Because his father is in the military, running back D.J. Reid hasn't had as tough of a transition as most to his new home this fall.

Reid, who signed with Virginia Tech of Thomas Dale (Va.) in February, fell just short of qualifying academically with the Hokies. He enrolled at Fork Union Military Academy (Va.) in August and has set to work improving himself both on the field and with his grades and test scores.

Now midway through his prep season, Reid is still set on getting to Virginia Tech. If he takes care of business and stays at his current pace of being eligible, he'll enroll in January and compete in the Hokies' spring practice. Reid said his upbringing has had plenty to do with his success so far this fall.

"I come from a military background family anyway, so the structure isn't that hard for me," Reid said. "It was really easy for me to adjust here. From a football aspect, they're basically just sharpening up skills that I came in here with already. With the weight room program they have here, I've really gotten serious with that. This is the hardest I've been pushed in the weight room and I've gotten a lot of good results from it, from my power, to my speed and explosiveness in the backfield."

Under the guidance of Coach John Shuman, Reid said he's slashed his weight from 234 pounds to 220 and has added a few pieces to his game.

Reid said he still plans on enrolling at VT in January.

"I feel like I've gotten completely adapted to the speed, even though we play D-III schools, JV," Reid said. "My power has gotten up there, because I'm starting to break a lot more tackles, not letting one guy take me down. My speed, my footwork has gotten a lot better and the spin move. Coach Shuman, he really praises that spin move for the running backs. I've added that into my little weapon case and I use it a lot more, now."

Joining Reid this fall at FUMA have been fellow Virginia Tech class of 2013 signees Holland Fisher and Cequan Jefferson. Reid said the trip have helped each other stay focused, on and off the field.

"Everybody's hungry and that makes everybody here push harder," Reid said. "It makes me a better player. Cequan and Fish, we push each other every day in the weight room, on the field. They're on the defensive side of the ball, so I have to give it to 'em sometimes. Me and Cequan, we always scrimmage each other, the same with Fish. Me and Fish, we just knew of each other at first, until we met at the Virginia Tech and Duke game. We got close then and kinda kept in contact. Me and Cequan just knew each other as competitors and we didn't know each other until we got here. But now, we're like brothers."

Reid said he's also maintained a relationship with assistant coach Shane Beamer, who recruited him out of high school. Beamer made a visit to FUMA a few weeks ago to catch up with Reid, Fisher and Jefferson.

"Coach Shane is the same, happy-go-lucky and full of energy," Reid said. "He was just letting us know that he hasn't forgotten about us and he can't wait for us to get up there, do big things and contribute to the program. He's basically asking how they're treating us up here, if we're learning anything and stuff like that, especially with my academics."

With words of motivation from Beamer and help from Fisher and Jefferson, Reid said he has no plans on opening up his recruitment. He still plans on being a Hokie.

"It's Virginia Tech all the way and to tell you the truth, they've grown on me," Reid said. "At first, when I did commit, it wasn't pushed on to me by my family, but it was more of an 'I don't know yet,' type of feel. At the end of the day, I felt like it was the proper choice for me to get there and get better, fight for a starting spot. It's one of the schools I could get some playing time early and it kinda fits my style, now. They've got new coaches up there and I saw some of the games, how they're putting a pro-style set in the game. Up here, I'm not really used to a spread offense and running the ball out of a spread, but I'm actually pretty good at it. That's also helped me be able to contribute as an all-purpose back."

For the remainder of the fall, Reid said he hopes to get the most out of his time at Fork Union. That includes continuing to improve on the field and getting himself eligible so he can attend Virginia Tech.

"Since I'm about to be cleared, there's a couple of things I have to ask Coach Shuman and Virginia Tech," Reid said. "I know some of the VT guys that came here got to leave early because they got cleared early. Other than that, with the weight program here, I'm just gonna keep hitting that really hard and working on my power, explosiveness, so when I get to Virginia Tech, it won't be anything they have to teach me again. It's just fine-tuning me and getting everything together."