PERRYVILLE — The coach for the Perryville Mustangs said quarterback Reid Standridge is one of the more competitive football players he’s ever seen.
That could be because Reid was born with a competitor — his younger brother, by 1 minute.
Reid, a three-sport athlete, and Ryan Standridge, 17, are fraternal twins, as well as being teammates in two sports — baseball and basketball.
“We really are the same person,” Reid said. “We like a lot of the same things and do a lot of things together.”
Reid said the brothers are both athletic in their own rights.
“I’d say we’re pretty equal,” Reid said. He said he and Ryan, both St. Louis Cardinals fans, each have their strengths on the diamond.
“He’s a better pitcher; he fields the balls. I’m a better hitter,” Reid said. “In basketball, I’d say I’m better. I was an all-state nominee for that. He’ll play this year; he should start. We have a little-brother chemistry going on [on the court].”
Ryan said it’s hard to compare the two because of their different positions.
“I play more of a point guard; he’s clearly taller,” Ryan said, lamenting that no matter how much he grows, he can’t catch up to his brother. “We don’t look anything alike.”
Reid is 6-2, 180 pounds; Ryan is 5-10, 150 pounds.
Reid, who was all-conference last year in football, said his favorite sports memory was on the hardwood, not the field. The Mustangs were playing Paris for a better seed, and Perryville was behind by 1 point.
“I was having a very off game, missing free throws,” Reid said. Dawson Bullock took a shot from the side. “He shot it like a floater, and it bounced off the rim. I got the rebound and made it with one second left to win the game.”
Ryan’s only football experience was in junior high.
“I did play [football] in seventh grade, and our team went 8-0, and we only had one team that ever scored against us. I just decided football was not my sport,” Ryan said.
He said he even contemplated whether he wanted to play his senior year and decided his heart wasn’t in it.
Even though Reid said baseball might be his favorite sport, he loves the challenge of football, and he knew what position he wanted to play.
He said there was a competition at the beginning of last season between him and another player for quarterback.
Reid said that in his mind, “I was like, ‘Sorry, bud, but this is my position.’ I just felt like it was the right time. I ended up throwing a touchdown pass the first game,” he said.
“I’ve always dreamed of being quarterback,” he said. Last year, Reid threw it a lot. “This year, I may be a little more mobile. The coach says, ‘If you have grass to run, just go for it.’
“Last year, our line wasn’t that big, and I had to take a couple of shots. Taking hits motivates me to be better … run over people and give it my all. Having people chase me last year made me more mobile.”
Football coach Chris Norton, in his second year with the Mustangs, said he respects Reid for his character.
“Regardless of the situation, you are going to get every ounce of everything he’s got. That obviously shows up during competition — be it on the football field or basketball court or baseball field. He’s all-in, all the time,” Norton said.
“More importantly, it shows up on the practice field. Too often you find guys who know they are ‘the guy’ and coast through practice and preparation,”
the coach said. “Reid is the kind of guy who is going to play hard, be in the right place and execute at a high level and with great effort every day. He practices on a Tuesday afternoon like he plays on a Friday night, and I respect that more than he probably understands right now.”
Ryan, who never misses a game, praised Reid’s skills on the gridiron, too.
“He’s very fun to watch; he’s very strong,” Ryan said. “He puts up with his team, even if they’re not the best. He manages through the frustration and stays focused; he has a good mentality.”
Although they get along well, “we’ve always been competitive about everything we do, even coming down to grades at the end of a nine weeks,” Ryan said. “Even in sports, we’d get so mad at each other. It pushes me to do my best.”
Reid and Ryan both have 3.8 grade-point averages. Reid said he had a 4.0 until last year, when he made a B in English. At first, he was disappointed, “but at the same time, it was one B.” He said writing is not his favorite thing to do.
The brothers said math is their best subject.
“I love math; I love math,” Reid said, adding that he’s taking calculus this year.
The twins said their parents, Michelle and Michael Standridge, are supportive and loving but make it clear that academics come first.
“School first — that’s 100 percent their motivation,” Reid said. The twins’ father, a lifelong resident of Perryville, played center for the Mustangs football team and was on the baseball team, too.
Ryan said he and Reid have an older brother, Aaron, 20, who wasn’t into sports.
“He’s smart, ridiculously smart,” Ryan said.
Reid and Ryan both participate in the school’s 4-H and Beta clubs. Reid said he enjoys volunteering, like when the 4-H Club students made 1,000 meals for the Pack Shack.
They both love the outdoors, especially deer hunting.
Norton has noticed that about Reid, too — his demeanor when he’s not in a football uniform.
“Off the field, he’s genuine. If he is concerned about something, he’s going to talk to you about fixing it,” Norton said. “If something goes well, he’s going to talk to you about building on it. He carries himself well, treats his teammates and classmates well, and he’s the kind of guy you can trust in tough times.
“One of the things I appreciate most about him — he understands what matters. He’s a great student, a great young man, a great teammate — those are great qualities to have, and they reach further than football or athletics, in general. It’s not about flash and attention; it’s substance.”
Reid said he would love to get a scholarship to play football at the University of Central Arkansas in Conway. But if not, Reid said, he might go to the University of Arkansas Community College at Morrilton to get his basics. Ryan said he wants to become an electrician.
“Life will take me where I need to go,” Reid said. “I feel like God has a plan. … I believe no matter what, he always has a plan. If he wants something to happen, it’s going to happen for a reason.”
Reid said he is optimistic about his senior football season.
“If we can win over half the games, I’ll be excited,” he said. “I’d say we go 5-2 conference. Who knows? We could catch fire. I think our team will come out very motivated. Last year, our team wasn’t very organized. … We weren’t a family. You’ve got to compete, give it your all.
“Our team has really come together this year. We’ve got a lot of leadership in the senior high. We tell the younger players, ‘So what? You made a mistake. Go hard the next time.’”
That’s just Reid’s nature; he was born that way.
Senior writer Tammy Keith can be reached at (501) 327-5671 or tkeith@arkansasonline.com.