By Brett Hughes

A "space eater" is what some call him, others.. the No. 2 recruit in the country. Those who have seen him play comment that he is a man amongst kids, and when you meet him it's always, "that kid has a bright future." Jack Reilly of Christian Brothers Academy (Albany N.Y.) is that space eating, blue chip recruit, who happens to be an incredible young man and he is gearing up to be coached by one of the best the game has ever seen at Johns Hopkins with Dave Pietramala.

	Kirstin Olsen/ESPN RISE
	Reilly off to Hopkins next fall.

Reilly is already doing work, but not on the lacrosse field, that will have to wait for the spring. The 6-foot-2, 220lb., specimen is busy making his climb to the top of some local record books on the football field. Upstate teams may have been happy to get wins against Reilly, but are having trouble stopping the monster running back every Friday. Here is a recent article explaining the fall for our future defensive star.

Name: Jack Reilly
School: Christian Brothers Academy – Albany, NY
Position: Defense
12

ER: How long have you been playing lacrosse:
JR: I've been playing lacrosse since 9th grade.

ER: That's not very long… so you still got some stuff to learn huh?
JR: Yeah, I have put in a lot of work to get where I am, but I feel like I have a ways to go, and I think Hopkins will allow me to do that.

ER: Who brought you to this game:
JR: My younger brother Pete introduced me to the game.

ER:What is your best memory as a lacrosse player:
JR: My best lacrosse memory so far has to be playing on the 2009 Upstate Under Armour Underclassmen Team - the guys were awesome and coaches were great - seriously the best team I have ever been on. Great vibe, great lacrosse.

ER: What other sports do you play:
JR: I also play football (rb/s), basketball (forward) and golf.

ER: Favorite Music:
JR: Rap

ER: Best Concert:
JR: Dave Matthews Band

ER: Favorite lacrosse player of all time:
JR: Brodie Merrill, that guy is all over the place.

ER: Best Advice:
JR: Hard work beats talent when talent doesn't work hard.

ER: How do you spend your off season
JR: In the off season I spend lots of time in the gym and lots of time on the wall.

ER: Who is the best player on your team we may not know yet:

ER: Most embarrassing moment as an athlete:
JR: SIMPLE, Anytime I get beat.

Favorite Drink: Yoo-Hoo
Favorite Movie: Remember the Titans
Best Warm-up song: The Second Coming - Juelz Santana
How much wood can a wood-chuck chuck: None. Seriously, wood-chucks cannot chuck wood. It's a widely held misconception.

Bonus round with Reilly:

ER: So lets talk a bit more, your size, build (you could carry 30lbs more easy), why not play football and lax, or even just football:
JR: What am I doing playing lax? Well.....hmmmm.......Urban Meyer, Charlie Weiss, and Joe PA never called me. I was getting a little interest from a few D1AA and a couple of lesser-known D1A programs but nothing comparable to the caliber of lacrosse programs I heard from either academically or athletically. Football was not recruiting me as aggressively as lacrosse was.

ER: That's crazy to me, is football very big in upstate NY? Well you cant get much more competitive than Johns Hopkins so I think we all understand:
JR: Yeah, I live in Upstate NY and we play an 8 game regular season schedule - no spring or summer football - very rare for any D1A guys to come out of here. Big time college football wasn't going to be in my future. I am very grateful for the opportunity to play lacrosse at the highest possible level. I am a competitor and I am grateful to be given the chance to compete for such a prestigious program as JHU. I hope I can make a solid contribution while I am there.

ER: So Lacrosse was your choice, and honestly you had to have your door beaten down with offers… How did you decide on Hopkins:
JR: The recruiting process was fast for me. I heard from more than 40 D1 schools during first in September of my junior year. I visited several programs. Before the Hopkins visit I went to Siena, Syracuse, Georgetown, Navy and Cornell. All of those schools and programs were great. I still had more visits scheduled after Hopkins but once I hit Coach Pietramala's office and began speaking with him I knew Hopkins was the place for me. I am a defender and to have the opportunity to learn from and be coached by him is truly an honor. I will receive a first class education at Hopkins and I will have a first class athletic experience in a lacrosse program with a long tradition of excellence. Coach Petro gave me the time to complete my remaining visits and weigh my options but I was certain that Hopkins was the right fit. I committed the day of my visit.

ER: You mentioned how new you are to lacrosse… that is a big upside and you have not had time to develop many bad habits. But how did you drop the mit and bat and pick up up a six foot pole instead what was it about lacrosse:
JR: I am new to lacrosse compared to most guys. I came from baseball. I know I still have a lot to learn. My younger brother Pete had been playing lacrosse for a couple of years in a youth league and I would go to his games and I liked the action - it looked like fun. Lacrosse has it all - its physical, its fast, you have to be focused, and it requires skill.
You can say these things about most sports but lacrosse has something I had not experienced in any other sport. There is a connection in lacrosse to every other player - its like a huge family. Its pretty wild - you might play on a team with a guy for only a few games but you are always connected after that - even if you find yourselves on opposing teams at another time - you remain connected to your lacrosse buds.

ER: So a few games into the football season and you are running wild, is it crazy that your last football games are coming up:
JR: Absolutley, it's crazy to think about. I will seriously miss playing football - I love the game. I will miss the whole Friday night lights thing - the crowds, the pep band, the team traditions - the pure physical demands of the sport - the warrior mentality - the battle. Lacrosse at Hopkins has many of these same elements. So, I guess I will miss running the ball and scoring. I play both sides of the ball in football and defense in lacrosse.

ER: So it's a known fact you are a really competitive guy, anyone you would want to go one on one with… Just for fun? Any paybacks we need to set up?
JR: Just for fun I would like to go one on one with Brett Queener again - now that guy is fun. He smoked me in a clinic about a year ago and I would like the opportunity to return the favor. When you say "fun" Queener is the first player I think of. Bring it on Brett!