ELLENSBURG, Wash. — In preparation for Central Washington University athletics annual Hall of Fame ceremony and Wildcat Gala, wildcatsports.com caught up with former football All-American and Hall of Fame inductee, Mike Reilly.
Reilly quarterbacked the CWU football team from 2005-2008. A Harlon Hill Award runner-up, he threw a touchdown pass in all 46 games of his collegiate career, giving him the NCAA all-division record for consecutive games with a touchdown pass. Reilly passed for 12,448 yards and 118 touchdowns. He was named the 2008 Great Northwest Athletic Conference Offensive Player of the Year after passing for 3,706 yards and 37 TDs.
That same season, Reilly earned All-America honors from Daktronics, D2Football.com, and Don Hansen's Football Gazette.
Following his CWU career, Reilly spent 12 years in the Canadian Football League, playing with both BC and Edmonton. He won Grey Cup championships with each team, earning Grey Cup MVP honors with Edmonton in 2015, and CFL MOP honors in 2017.
Reilly will be inducted during Saturday's Hall of Fame Ceremony. The following is a recent Q&A between Reilly and WildcatSports.com:
WildcatSports.com: What was your reaction when you first received the call from Dennis Francois about being selected for induction into the CWU Athletics Hall of Fame?
Mike Reilly: I originally got the call in 2019 so it was an eye opener. My first thought was "Man, I can't believe I have been out of college long enough to be eligible for the Hall of Fame. I'm getting old!"
WS: What are your fondest memories of your time at CWU?
MR: I really enjoyed my four years at CWU, and there are so many great memories but honestly my favorites were going on the road to play an away game and just being with the guys whether on a bus, or airplane and at the hotels just on the road and enjoying being around each other.
WS: How did you end up at Central?
MR: I originally went to Washington State out of high school and transferred to Central in January 2005. I knew that I wasn't going to get a proper opportunity to play at WSU and CWU would provide me a legitimate opportunity to compete to play. And my older brother Beau was a student at Central at the time so that was an added bonus for me to come to Ellensburg.
WS: Did you ever imagine when you started at Central that you would someday become a Hall of Famer?
MR: The thought never really crossed my mind. My goal was always to end up playing professional football but when I started attending Central in 2005 my sole focus was performing well enough to become the starter and doing the things necessary to earn the respect of my teammates so that I could become a leader for our team. Coach Zamberlin was also always quick to remind me that although they had high expectations for me, I hadn't done anything yet on the field and needed to prove myself.
WS: What did you take with you from Central into your CFL career?
MR: The number one thing that Central taught me when it came to football was that I had to earn everything that I wanted, and that nothing would be given to me based on who I was or where I was from. A lot of great players from big Division I schools would come up to the CFL and thought that they could just coast through and be an all-star and that was rarely the case for them. Coming from CWU and Division II, I had the lunch pail mentality that I needed to prove myself and earn my paycheck every single day and I think that attitude served me well throughout my career.
WS: What do you miss most about your time at Central?
MR: I miss not having real life responsibilities. I am blessed with a life that I love but having children and a mortgage and real responsibilities is a reality of being an adult. During my time in college all that I had to worry about was being prepared for football, making sure I had studied properly for my classes, and where we would all be enjoying the upcoming weekend at. When you are living in that moment it is hard to appreciate how good you have it.
WS: Who are the teammates and coaches that had the biggest impact on you during your year in Ellensburg?
MR: I was blessed to have some amazing coaches and teammates, and this is a loaded question because there isn't enough time for me to properly answer this question. But a very shortened list would be Coach Picha, and Coach Baldwin. For teammates Brian Potucek, Nate Brookreson, Johnny Spevak, Chris Rohrbach, Jared Bronson, and all of the nasties up front including but not limited to Gilbert, Coffman, Gariano, Lambo, Quirk, and I have to throw at least one guy from the other side of the ball in Adam Bighill.
WS: Looking back on your time at Central, would you have done anything different?
MR: No, there are always things that you can look back on and know that you could have done things differently or better. But I also know that I am so blessed to have the life that I live, and I know that all of my collective decisions and experiences up to this point have led to me where I am, and I wouldn't trade it for anything.
WS: What advice would you give to current and future CWU student-athletes?
MR: Ellensburg and CWU are amazing places to grow into an adult and it goes by very fast. Enjoy every moment of it, don't take it for granted, and know that there is a potential to meet some of the best people that you will ever come across in your life if you allow it to happen.
