Coach Reed Year-By-Year

Clifford Reed, Jr. enters his ninth season as the head coach of the Bethune-Cookman University men's basketball program, eager to build upon consecutive winning seasons in 2009 and 2010.

Reed won his 100th game at B-CU in 2009-2010, but wants to add the Wildcats' first appearance in the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference championship and even a historic first-ever NCAA tournament appearance experience to his building resume.

The former Wildcat standout has spent 13 years overall with the B-CU program, including four years as an assistant coach under Horace Broadnax.

In 2009-10, Coach Reed's Wildcats built on the success of 2008-09 and set a new standard, again finishing 17-16, producing the first back-to-back Division I seasons in program history. Coach Reed's talented point guard and son, C. J. Reed had another outstanding season, leading the team at the point position, named first team All-MEAC and second team HBCU All-American, as the Wildcats advanced to the Quarterfinal of the MEAC tournament.

In 2008-2009, Reed led the Wildcats to their first winning season in Division I with a mark of 17-16 and a 9-7 conference finish, winning the most games since joining the Division I ranks. C.J. Reed led the team in scoring, assists, minutes played and earned the MEAC Rookie of the Year in addition to All-MEAC second team honors.

"Our team plays hard, defense is the core and we guard people and aren't intimidated," Reed said. "In 2009, we did a lot of good things winning on the road and being competitive throughout the MEAC season. We want to continue to build and our program we want to be at the top of the conference;we have those goals and they can be attained."

For over a decade, Coach Reed has watched and mentored young men and women who looked up to the collegians in and around the Daytona Beach area at nearby South Ormond Beach Recreation Center. It was working closely with youth and seeing smiles on their faces that showed Reed his teams had something special. It would spill over onto the court, but also would carry players far into life beyond that of basketball.

It is the leadership, loyalty and charisma that Reed instills into his team each year at B-CU.

"I think we have a very good group of kids here at Bethune-Cookman University, and that is what I love best about this place," states Reed. "We have a group of young men that are not only hard workers on the court, but in the classroom and their communities as well."

He was named the school's sixth head men's basketball coach, and just the fourth head coach on the Division I level of athletics within the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC). He took over before the end of the 2001-02 season, after the departure of Broadnax; now head coach at Savannah State University. In the process, Reed compiled a record of 6-4 (5-3 MEAC) and advanced his newly acquired team to the second round of the Mid- Eastern Athletic Conference Tournament.

It may be the 2005-06 season that will make people believe in the coaching philosophy and discipline of Reed more than any other. Reed helped the `Cats go 15-15 overall, finishing tied for third in the MEAC and earning a first round bye in the MEAC Tournament.

Reed led the `Cats to a major road victory in 2005-06, knocking off their first-ever major conference opponent with a win over South Florida out of the Big East Conference. In the process, Reed guided his team to a five-game winning streak, the longest for B-CU since 1995-96.

The 1991 graduate of Bethune-Cookman is one of the most respected coaches in and around the MEAC for his commitment to his players' long-term well being and an intense work ethic cultivated when he wore a Wildcat uniform.

"It was a great experience to be a student here with the educational experience that you get socially," states Reed. "The ultimate is to be able to go back and coach at the institution that you graduated from, and I just want to build upon a great tradition of basketball ... and bring about a rebirth after being dormant for over 25 years."

Reed began his rising coaching career back in 1992 as the Boy's Junior Varsity basketball head coach at Mainland Senior High School in Daytona Beach. In 1994, he guided the Buccaneers to a 19-7 record and the Volusia County Junior Varsity championship. After serving for two years in that position, he became the inaugural head Boy's Varsity coach at Atlantic High School just minutes from his home in Daytona Beach. During his tenure at Atlantic High School, Reed led the Sharks to back-to-back District 8 titles on the Class 4A level.

But his calling was to one day coach on the collegiate level, and he was given the chance while serving as an assistant coach under legendary Bethune-Cookman football and basketball head coach, and current Associate Director of Athletics Jack "Cy" McClairen for one season during the 1991-92 campaign. This one year eventually led to Reed's acceptance to Broadnax's staff prior to his head coaching experience.

Reed played for two years at Bethune-Cookman after transferring from St. John's River Community College where he averaged 18 points per game from 1983-85. While at St. John's, Reed was named to the 1984-85 Mid-Florida All-Conference team.

After arriving at Bethune-Cookman, Moore Gymnasium became a staple for this "Cage Cat" as he set a then single-game school record for three-point field goals made (8), and scored over 1,200 points in just two seasons with the `Cats. In his two years, Reed scored an average of 21 points per game.

"Bethune-Cookman University is a part of me, as both a coach and a former Wildcat," explains Reed. "I want to see this school succeed, and I think we are working tirelessly towards that goal with a great staff and great young men. We are molding young men into athletic bodies with academic minds in the effort to make them succeed far after their athletic careers have ended. This is a great school, and we are working hard to promote the legacy of Dr. Mary McLeod Bethune and the wonder that is the great Bethune-Cookman University."

Reed graduated from with a Bachelor's degree in Physical Education after receiving an Associate's degree from Daytona Beach Community College. He is a native of Ormond Beach, Florida and currently lives in Daytona Beach. He is married to Vera Reed, and they have one son, Clifford Jervon (CJ) Reed, currently a junior on the Wildcat basketball team.