Ex-Yorkville star Cale Reeder motivated to bring home No. 1 South Dakota State’s first national title

Cale Reeder was a cornerstone of Yorkville football’s revival over the last five years.

Could he make college history next?

Reeder and the South Dakota State football program look like they are well on their way. The Jackrabbits, Division I Football Championship Subdivision national runner-ups Reeder’s freshman year and semifinalists in 2021, received their first-ever No. 1 ranking earlier this season.

Now top-seeded South Dakota State is in the FCS playoff quarterfinals after a 42-6 second-round win over Delaware last week. The Jackrabbits host No. 8 Holy Cross Saturday morning in an 11 a.m. game to be broadcast on ESPN.

“I knew I was joining a program that played at a high level – I didn’t expect to be playing in a national championship my freshman year and semifinals my sophomore year, that was surprising,” said Reeder, a junior safety. “Getting in the building, around the team, it became more apparent how great the people were, how great a bond we had.”

Reeder was the 2019 Record Newspapers Player of the Year at Yorkville, a Class 7A All-Stater who led the Foxes to the second round of the playoffs in both his junior and senior seasons. He admitted that he didn’t expect to get on the field so soon at South Dakota State, but played in all 10 games as a true freshman. He moved into the starting lineup at safety midway through last season, and made eight starts while playing in 15 games.

This season, in nine games, he is sixth on the Jackrabbits in tackles with 28, and also has three interceptions. South Dakota State’s defense ranks second in FCS in yards allowed per game, and third in points allowed per game.

The Jackrabbits have a number of Illinois products on their roster. Former Neuqua Valley star quarterback Mark Gronowski has thrown for 2,378 yards and 19 touchdowns.

“I believe this season has gone as expected,” Reeder said. “We came in with a lot of confidence, a lot of returning starters, had a lot of depth, we had a lot of seniors coming back and great leadership. Coming off a good season last year we came back hungrier to prove ourselves.”

South Dakota State’s season started with its only loss, but even that was noteworthy. The Jackrabbits lost at Iowa 7-3. Since then the Jackrabbits have won 11 games in a row, and the Missouri Valley Conference championship.

“That Iowa game, it showed people that we can play with anybody,” Reeder said. “We have confidence in our skill level. We were a few big plays away from beating a Big Ten team.”

Reeder missed the next game because of a targeting call, and missed two more with a concussion and tweaked shoulder. But he’s 100% healthy for a playoff run after South Dakota State received a first-round bye.

“We had a two-week break at the end of the regular season; that was good for everybody,” Reeder said. “We were able to rest our bodies and recover, get back to 100%.”

Reeder said South Dakota State’s No. 1 ranking has been huge, proof that all the hard work he and his teammates put in have paid off. But they’re hardly satisfied. After getting so close the last two years, Reeder is determined to bring home the school’s first national championship.

“It definitely fuels us every day,” Reeder said. “We don’t want to leave this group of seniors short like we did last season. It goes to show how much work you have to put in to be successful. Last year we ultimately didn’t get it done. We came back stronger ready to work this season.”