Editor’s note: In the past few weeks, five men’s Division I head basketball coaches have been hired at Front Range schools. For the last in a series of Q&As with the new coaches, The Denver Post sat down with Air Force’s Jeff Reynolds.
Denver Post: With the whirlwind of activity of being named as Air Force’s coach – returning after saying you were going to CU with Jeff Bzdelik, your mother’s illness – are your feet on the ground?
Jeff Reynolds: We’re in the process of putting together a staff and that has moved along pretty well. To get back in here and move into the office, meet with the players, to begin hiring a staff, to get in contact with recruits and actually get on the road and do a little recruiting, we’ve done all of that, so we feel like we’re moving in the right direction.
DP: You’re looking at a new staff, with the exception of military assistant Capt. Tyrone Wright. Is that a drawback?
JR: Anytime there’s change, that slows the process. I don’t know that it’s a plus or a minus. I talked with (former AFA assistant) Larry Mangino, and we remain friends. I’ve talked at length with (another former AFA assistant) A.J. Kuhle. I just felt like A.J. already had decided to go to (the University of) Denver. We felt it was time to move on and bring some coaches in who we felt would be great fits for the academy.
DP: Troy Calhoun has departed from a tried-and-true offense for Air Force football. Will you, as a new coach, break away from what was termed the Princeton offense that was credited as important in the success over the past four years?
JR: We will play very similar. I don’t know what we did the last two years is Princeton offense. We termed it Air Force offense. The biggest changes people will see will be whether we have the ability to shoot it as quickly in our offense. We will adjust and tinker our offense to fit our personnel.
DP: With Air Force losing six seniors, including four starters, is this a treacherous time to be the coach?
JR: I don’t know if treacherous is the right word. I will say this, that one of the reasons Air Force basketball has been able to do what it has is the support, and not just from the administration, but the support of the fans. It’s hard to lose a home game when there are 6,000 people here screaming. They truly are a sixth man. Section Eight has become known all over college basketball circles. Losing six seniors, there’s going to be some huge shoes to fill. We can’t have people fall off the bandwagon if there is a little bump in the road. We’re retooling.
DP: Was maintaining some continuity important?
JR: Most people know I wasn’t a candidate for the job. I think it was important to maintain some continuity. I know the players. The players know me, but in a different role. They know my knowledge of the game, and I think that will stopgap any dip that there might be in the program.
DP: What’s your coaching style as a head coach?
JR: It has been seven years since I was a head coach. My coaching style will be determined by how the season goes. I’m not a screamer. I believe most of the work takes place before the game starts. We’ll have a game plan going in, but if it’s not successful because of what our opponent is doing, we have to counter that. Outprepare people.
DP: What do you do for relaxation?
JR: I’m a runner. I try to run six days a week. I don’t run on Fridays, because that’s the end of the week. I like to lift weights. I’m a 3-mile guy during the week. On the weekends, I’ll try to go 5 miles.
DP: What’s your goal for your first team?
JR: I haven’t had much chance to put much thought to that with all the things going on. Everything was very emotional for me. I have some things I want to establish and think we should be good at as a team. I’ll put more thought to that.
DP: Who are the players who you think will fill the shoes?
JR: I would say Tim Anderson, Eric Kenzik, Adam Hood and Keith Maren, they all have been in the program four years. We have three very good juniors in Anwar Johnson, Andrew Henke and Matt Holland. I would say those seven players.
DP: What are the differences in recruiting players to Air Force?
JR: In this job, the word “recruiting” isn’t as important as the word “evaluating.” You have to look at a player and be able to project what he’s going to look like two years from now. A coach who has been at North Carolina might not be able to do as good a job here, because you have to project talent. You have to turn over more stones here. I enjoy recruiting players who fit the way we play.
DP: Are you an overall sports fan?
JR: I’m a Yankee fan, and the one thing I’ve always wanted to do is see them play in Yankee Stadium. I’ve got to hurry.
Jeff Reynolds
Age: 50 (Born Sept. 7, 1956)
Hometown: Mountain City, Tenn.
College: University of North Carolina-Greensboro
Notable: While at Wingate, Reynolds led the Division II school to a 26-4 record in 1999-2000, including a final No. 7 national ranking, and a spot in the NCAA Tournament
Family: Wife Janet
Prior experience
2005-07: Assistant coach Air Force
2000-04: Assistant coach Tulane
1997-2000: Head coach Wingate College
1995-97: Assistant coach UNC-Greensboro
1990-94: Assistant coach UNC-Wilmington
1986-90: Assistant coach Winthrop College
1982-85: Assistant coach Randolph-Macon College
1981-82: Assistant coach James Madison
