Walter Reyes deserved to wear 44. Rob Konrad, the last to don the hallowed number, told Reyes so himself. Paul Pasqualoni, Syracuse’s head coach at the time, publicly stated that he tossed the idea around, and Reyes’ fellow seniors pushed for it hard. They asked the original 44, Jim Brown, for his blessing in person when Brown visited campus for a movie he was shooting with Spike Lee.
Brown saw no problem with Reyes resurrecting the 44 jersey, according to former SU kicker Collin Barber. But Reyes did.
Reyes wanted to stay with 39. It was the number he signed next to his name in middle school because, at the time, Penn State’s Curtis Enis was an inspiration to the first-time football player in Struthers, Ohio.