Tom Reed (January 7, 1945 – September 26, 2022) was an American

college football College football (french: Football universitaire) refers to gridiron football played by teams of student athletes. It was through college football play that American football rules first gained popularity in the United States. Unlike most ...

player and coach. He served as the head football coach at

Miami University Miami University (informally Miami of Ohio or simply Miami) is a public research university in Oxford, Ohio. The university was founded in 1809, making it the second-oldest university in Ohio (behind Ohio University, founded in 1804) and the 10 ...

from 1978 to 1982 and at North Carolina State University from 1983 to 1985, compiling a career head coaching record of 43–43–2.

Early life and playing career

Reed studied at

Oxford, Ohio Oxford is a city in Butler County, Ohio, United States. The population was 23,035 at the 2020 census. A college town, Oxford was founded as a home for Miami University and lies in the southwestern portion of the state approximately northwest ...

, graduating in 1967. There, he played two season for the

Miami Redskins The Miami RedHawks are the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I intercollegiate athletic teams that represent Miami University in Oxford, Ohio, United States. Miami is a member of the Mid-American Conference (MAC) East Divis ...

under Bo Schembechler. He recorded 38 and 34

rushing yards Rushing means a sudden forward motion, or a surge or onslaught. Rushing may refer to: Tactics * Rush (gridiron football), advancing the ball by running on offense. On defense, charging the quarterback or kicker is a pass rush. * Human wave att ...

in 1964 and 1966, respectively.

Coaching career

Assistant (1967–1977)

After graduating, Reed remained at his alma mater and took up his first coaching role as graduate assistant for the Redskins. He then became the defensive line coach for the

Akron Zips Akron () is the fifth-largest city in the U.S. state of Ohio and is the county seat of Summit County. It is located on the western edge of the Glaciated Allegheny Plateau, about south of downtown Cleveland. As of the 2020 Census, the city pr ...

from 1969 to 1972. After a brief stint as defensive back coach with the Arizona Wildcats, he went back to coaching defensive line with the Michigan Wolverines in 1974. He served for three seasons in that capacity, his final assistant role before becoming head coach.

Miami (1978–1982)

Reed served as the head coach at Miami University from 1978 to 1982, replacing Dick Crum who became the North Carolina Tar Heels coach. His best seasons came in 1978 (where he inherited 15 starters and 30 returning players) and 1981, when he led the Redskins to 8–2–1 records. Reed's squads orchestrated several big upset wins including a victory over

North Carolina North Carolina () is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States. The state is the 28th largest and 9th-most populous of the United States. It is bordered by Virginia to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, Georgia and So ...

during the 1978 season and a victory over

Kentucky Kentucky ( , ), officially the Commonwealth of Kentucky, is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States and one of the states of the Upper South. It borders Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio to the north; West Virginia and Virginia to ...

in Lexington in 1979. Reed had four winning seasons in five years and tallied a career record of 34–19–2 at Miami. After the 1981 season, Reed accepted the head coaching position at NC State and was replaced by

Tim Rose Timothy Alan Patrick Rose (September 23, 1940 – September 24, 2002) (unofficial website by long-term correspondent of Rose's) was an American singer and songwriter who spent much of his life in London, England, and had more success in E ...

NC State (1983–1985)

Reed was appointed as head coach at North Carolina State University on December 22, 1982, succeeding Monte Kiffin who became linebacker coach for the

Green Bay Packers The Green Bay Packers are a professional American football team based in Green Bay, Wisconsin. The Packers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC North, North division. It ...

. During his tenure with the Wolfpack, Reed raised the school's recruiting to a national level and ameliorated the team's academic standing within the institution. However, he never had a winning season in three years and compiled a record of 9–24 with the Wolfpack. He also feuded with Bruce Poulton – the university's chancellor at the time – over freshman athletic eligibility, as well as over the school administration's support for the team. It was predicted that Reed would be dismissed at the conclusion of the 1985 season, despite having two years remaining on his contract. However, he pre-empted this by resigning suddenly on December 13, 1985, after losing to North Carolina in the final game of the regular season. He ultimately agreed to a financial settlement, and was succeeded by

Dick Sheridan Dick Sheridan (born August 9, 1941) is a former American football coach and college athletics administrator. He served as the head football coach at Furman University from 1978 to 1985 and North Carolina State University from 1986 to 1992, compi ...

two weeks later. Reed subsequently went back to Michigan, serving as its defensive assistant from 1987 to 1991.

Later life

After retiring from coaching, Reed returned to the

Research Triangle The Research Triangle, or simply The Triangle, are both common nicknames for a metropolitan area in the Piedmont region of North Carolina in the United States, anchored by the cities of Raleigh and Durham and the town of Chapel Hill, home to ...

and managed an executive-search consultant business that he established. He resided in that area until his death. Reed died on September 26, 2022, at a retirement facility in

Zebulon, North Carolina Zebulon is the easternmost town in Wake County, North Carolina, United States. The population was 6,903 at the 2020 census. Zebulon is part of the Research Triangle metropolitan region. Five County Stadium, home to the Carolina Mudcats minor lea ...

. He was 77 years old.

Head coaching record

Source:

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Reed, Tom 1945 births 2022 deaths Akron Zips football coaches Arizona Wildcats football coaches Miami RedHawks football coaches Miami RedHawks football players Michigan Wolverines football coaches NC State Wolfpack football coaches People from Delaware County, Ohio