Clifford Reed, Jr., is in his ninth season as the head coach of the Bethune-Cookman University men's basketball program. Reed has spent 13 years overall with the B-CU program, including four years as an assistant coach under former Bethune-Cookman head coach Horace Broadnax. He won his milestone 100th game at B-CU in 2009-2010.

Record-Setting Season in 2008-2009 For Reed's Wildcats

The 2008-2009 season was a record-breaker for Reed's B-CU program winning the most games-ever in the Division I ranks and the first winning season in Division I for the Wildcats. B-CU was 17-16 overall, and tied for the third in the MEAC, 9-7 last season. Coach Reed's talented freshman guard and son - C. J. Reed, led the team in scoring, assists, minutes played and earned the MEAC Rookie of the Year and also All-MEAC second team honors. The upcoming 2009-2010 season looks to continue the improvement of Reed's program.

"Our team plays hard, defense is the core and we guard people and aren't intimidated," said Coach Reed. "Last season 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, Bethune-Cookman head coach Clifford Reed, Jr. 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 the 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."

Reed 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 just 11 games before the end of the 2001-02 season, after the departure of Horace Broadnax--now head coach at Savannah State University. In the process, Reed compiled a record of 6-5 (5-3 MEAC) and advanced his newly acquired team to the second round of the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference Tournament.

2005-2006 Season - `Cats at 15-15 Overall 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--helping B-CC earn a first round bye in the MEAC Tournament. Only once in the Reed era has Bethune-Cookman failed to reach the second round of the annual post-season conference tournament. Reed led the `Cats to a major road victory in 2005-06, knocking off their first-ever major conference opponent, beating the University of South Florida out of the Big East Conference. In the process, Reed guided his team to a five-game winning streak--the most since the 1995-96 season.

The 1991 graduate of Bethune-Cookman College is one of the most respected and loved coaches in and around the MEAC. No one in the league is respected as a leader for doing more with less than Clifford Reed, Jr. Not having showcase facilities means nothing to the B-CC grad who knows that winning is contagious, and that love, team work and dedication are the building blocks to winning.

"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."

Prior to the 15-15 season in 2005-06, Reed had put on a seemingly "one time affair" in the course of the 2004-05 season where many thought, at the time, it was his best coaching job crafted at B-CU. After the arrival of All-MEAC guard Antonio Webb, and players like Diondre Larmond and Michael Williams II, Reed transformed a team that won just 16 games combined in the previous two years to a winning record halfway through the 2004-05 campaign.

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 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 4-A level. He finished with an overall record of 40-48. He spent three years with the Sharks program from 1995-98.

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 at Bethune-Cookman University, Jack "Cy" McClairen for one season during the 1991-92 campaign. This one year eventually led to Reed's acceptance to the staff of Horace Broadnax prior to his head coaching experience.

Reed, now in his eighth season as head coach of his alma mater, played for two years at Bethune-Cookman College 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 (7), and scored over 1,200 points in just two seasons with the `Cats. In his two years with the `Cats, Reed scored an average of 21 points per game. After stepping in as an interim head coach, Reed went on to collect eight wins (five in the MEAC), and saw his `Cats post the first 100-point scoring output since the 2000 season.

"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 B-CC with a Bachelor's degree in Physical Education after receiving an associate 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-- a standout high school player at Atlantic HS in Daytona Beach and now a sophomore point guard for the Wildcats. C.J. was named the 2008-2009 MEAC "Rookie of the Year" and was named to the second team All-MEAC team last season. C.J. led B-CU in scoring, assists, minutes played, three-point field goals made, and most all team individual categories in 2008-2009.