Reece was born in Marysville, Ohio, in 1919 and attended Marysville High School in that city. He played college football at Missouri.[1] He played at the fullback position for Missouri from 1940 to 1943 and was captain of the 1942 Missouri Tigers football team that won the Big Six championship.[2] He was also selected as a first-team player on the 1943 All-Big Six Conference football team.[3] He also played in the 1943 East-West Shrine Game.[4]
In 1944, he was assigned to Notre Dame as a Navy V-5 trainee.[4]
Reece played professional football for the Miami Seahawks of the All-America Football Conference in 1946. He appeared in 13 games, four of them as the Seahawks' starting fullback. He rushed for 109 yards on 30 carries.[1] He scored two touchdowns in a game against the New York Yankees.[5]
