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 Coaching Corner

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Jeff Reynolds, Head Coach

Coach Reynolds was born: Sept. 7, 1956 Hometown: Mountain City, Tenn.

Personal: Married, wife Janet. Playing experience:

Surry Community College (1974-76); University of North Carolina-Greensboro (1976-78)

 

Coaching experience:

James Madison University, assistant coach (1981-82); Randolph-Macon College, assistant coach (1982-85); North Carolina Wesleyan, head coach (1985-86); Winthrop College, assistant coach (1986-90); UNC-Wilmington, assistant coach (1990-94); UNCGreensboro, assistant coach (1995-97); Wingate College, head coach (1997-2000); Tulane, assistant coach (2000-2004); Air Force, assistant coach (2005-2007)

 

Career highlights:

- In only season at North Carolina Wesleyan, he guided the program to  the Dixie Conference championship.

- He helped Winthrop transition from Division II to Division I and win the 1988 Big South    Conference championship

- He helped guide UNC-Greensboro to the 1996 Big South Championship and an NCAA Tournament bid.

- Named South Atlantic Conference Coach of the Year in 1998-99 after leading Division II Wingate to the conference title, its first NCAA Tournament bid and first national ranking.

- Guided Wingate to second straight conference title in 1999-2000.

 

During his two seasons as an assistant at Air Force, Reynolds helped guide the Falcons to its two most successful campaigns on the basketball court. In 2005-06, the Falcons were 24-7, the best record in program history, and played in the NCAA Tournament for just the fourth time ever. In '06-07, Air Force posted a 26-9 record, setting a new school record for most victories in one season, and advanced to the semifinals of the NIT. Air Force was just one of 17 Division I teams to win at least 50 games the last two seasons.

 

From his time at Tulane prior to becoming an assistant at Air Force: (BIO while at Tulane)

 

Entering his fourth year at Tulane (from archives), Jeff Reynolds has been involved in all aspects of coaching and managing a basketball team in his career, which includes four years as a head coach and 16 as an assistant. Most recently, Reynolds served as the head coach at Wingate University in Wingate, N.C.

 

"This is a very unique opportunity for me to work with Shawn at such a fine academic institution," Reynolds said. "It's an exciting time to be a part of Tulane basketball."

 

Reynolds coached Wingate for three seasons, building the program into a Division II powerhouse. In 1999-2000, his team led the nation in scoring defense and posted an impressive 26-4 record, closing the year with a final national ranking of No. 7. The Bulldogs also won their second consecutive South Atlantic Conference title and established the longest home-court winning streak at the Division II level (26 games). In 1998-99, Reynolds guided Wingate to its first NCAA Tournament bid, as well as its first national ranking; the Bulldogs closed that season with a 23-6 mark and Reynolds earned South Atlantic Conference Coach of the Year honors.

 

As the top assistant coach at his alma mater, UNC-Greensboro, from 1995-97, Reynolds helped the program to the 1996 Big South Championship and a bid to the 1996 NCAA Tournament. Prior to that, he served for four years as the top assistant at UNC-Wilmington, helping the Seahawks to Colonial Athletic Association Most Improved Team honors in 1992.

 

Reynolds began his coaching career at James Madison University in 1981, serving as a part-time assistant for a team which won 24 games and advanced to the NCAA Tournament in 1982. He went on to Division II power Randolph-Macon College, which reeled off three straight NCAA Tournament appearances and earned a No. 4 national ranking in the final poll of 1984.

 

He logged one year as the head coach of North Carolina Wesleyan College in 1985-86, leading his program to a 21-7 mark and the Dixie Conference Championship, before moving on to Winthrop College for four years. At Winthrop, he was directly involved in the team's transition from Division II to Division I, and, in 1988, the school captured the Big South Conference Championship

 

Assistant Coaches

foafbmtgmay07piliop.JPG Dave Pilipovich - Assistant Coach

Dave Pilipovich (pronounced pill-ih-POE-vitch) brings 20 years of coaching experience to the Academy. During the 2005-06 season, he served as the administrative assistant to then-Michigan head coach Tommy Amaker, then was an assistant coach during the '06-07 campaign.

He served as an assistant coach at Eastern Michigan University for five years (2000-05) prior to joining the Michigan staff. Before his stint at EMU, he served four years as an assistant coach at Robert Morris University (1996-2000), two years an assistant coach at Georgia State University (1994-96) and two years as the assistant head coach at Florida Atlantic University (1989-91) before being named associate head coach the following four years (1991-94).

Pilipovich, 43, began his coaching career as a graduate assistant at California University (Pa.) for two years (1986-88), before being named as an assistant coach for one season (1988-89).

A 1986 graduate of Theil College in Greenville, Pa., with a business administration degree, Pilipovich earned four varsity basketball letters and served as team captain during his senior season. He earned his masters from California (Pa.) in 1988 in geography and regional planning. He is an active member of the National Association of Basketball Coaches (NABC) and serves on the NABC Assistant Coaches Committee.

Pilipovich and his wife, Kelly, have a son, Kyle, and a daughter, Kelsey.

snellphoto.jpeg Steve Snell - Assistant Coach

Coach Snell served as an assistant coach at Louisiana-Monroe for the past two seasons, while Carroll was an assistant at Division II Alabama-Huntsville last season.   A 17-year coaching veteran, Snell helped the Warhawks to the co-championship of the Sun Belt's West Division in 2006-07 with an 18-14 record, including a perfect 14-0 mark at home. Prior to coaching at ULM, Snell was at Tulane University, where he and Reynolds served as assistant coaches. During his four-year tenure with the Green Wave, Snell assisted in all aspects of the program.

A native of Radford, Va., he served as an assistant coach at Marshall University for five seasons under head coach Greg White prior to his tenure at Tulane.

In his five years at Marshall, Snell helped the Herd to an 86-54 (.614) record. In that time, he played a vital role in recruiting such standout players as Tamar Slay, J.R. VanHoose, Travis Young, Joda Burgess and Cornelius Jackson. The Herd's 1998 recruiting class was ranked by ESPN as the best in the Mid-American Conference. Slay was selected in the second round of the 2002 NBA Draft by the New Jersey Nets.

Prior to his move to Marshall, Snell spent three years as an assistant coach at East Tennessee State University. He served the 1992-93 campaign at the University of North Carolina-Greensboro and also spent two years at Wingate College and one season at Radford University. Before that, Snell was an assistant coach at Radford High School during the 1988-89 campaign.

 Snell, 43, earned a bachelor's degree in recreation management from Radford University in 1988. He is married to the former Ann Barnitz. The couple has two sons, Jaden (4) and Jordan (3).

 

  

coachespryor.JPG Rob Pryor - Assistant Coach

Pryor, 32, returns to the Air Force staff after helping Siena to a 20-12 record and an appearance in the championship game of the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference Tournament. He served under head coach Fran McCaffery, who was named the MAAC Coach of the Year.

Pryor, who also coached AFA's junior varsity team in '05-06, was instrumental in AFA's return to the NCAA Tournament that season. He helped Air Force post a 24-7 record, the second-most wins in one season in program history. The Falcons led the nation in scoring defense and finished fourth in the nation in 3-point percentage at 40.4 percent. Air Force was in the top 20 in the nation in six other statistical categories as well.

Before joining the Academy staff, Pryor spent the previous three years coaching basketball at the USAFA Preparatory School. From 2002-04, he was a volunteer assistant coach at the Prep School while teaching in the behavioral science department at the Academy. In 2004-05, he was the head coach at the Prep School. Pryor, a 1997 graduate of the Academy, had a very successful run at the USAFA Prep School. During his two seasons as an assistant coach, the team had a combined record of 57-10, including a remarkable 31-3 record in 2003-04. As the head coach in `04-05, the team was 17-17.

After graduating from the Academy with a degree in human behavior, Pryor received a master's degree in education with an emphasis in counseling in 1998 from UCCS, then earned an M.B.A degree at William & Mary while serving as a contracting officer at Langley AFB in Virginia. He spent four years at Langley before returning to the Academy in 2002. He separated from the Air Force in 2006.

Pryor and his wife, Joy, are the proud parents of two sons, Salem, who was born in November of 2005, and Seth, who was born April 10, 2007.

  

wright.jpg Tyron Wright - Assistant Coach

Capt. Tyron Wright returns to the Falcon coaching staff after a five-year hiatus. Wright was a graduate assistant coach for the Falcons during the 2000-01 campaign. Prior to rejoining the program, Wright was the Executive Officer to the Commander of the 509th Maintenance Group at Whiteman Air Force Base in Missouri.  Wright, who earned his bachelor’s degree in human factors engineering in 2000 from the Academy, enjoyed a stellar basketball career with the Falcons. After spending his first two years with the junior varsity, he became a two-year starter for the varsity. He burst on the scene in 1999 as a junior to lead Air Force in scoring with an 18.2 average. His scoring average still ranks as the third-best in school history for a first-year player.
Wright ended the season as a second-team all-conference selection and was twice named  conference player of the week. He earned his first player of the week honor after scoring a career-high 36 points and grabbing 11 rebounds vs. SMU. Wright shattered the school record for most points by a reserve with 31 in a win over Denver.  An all-around player, Wright finished second on the team in scoring, rebounding and assists as a senior. He averaged 13.8 points, 4.5 rebounds and 2.1 assists per game.  Following the 2000-01 season, Wright was assigned to Randolph Air Force Base in San Antonio, Texas, where he served as an ACE Lieutenant for the 12th Communications Squadron.  Upon the completion of his ACE tour in 2003, he joined the 509th Communications Squadron as the Support Flight Commander. In Nov. 2004, he became the Network Systems Flight Commander, then was hired as the Executive Officer to the  commander of the Maintenance Group in June of 2005.  While assigned to the 509th Maintenance Group, Wright was deployed to Ali Al Salem Air Base, Kuwait, where he served as the Executive Officer to the 386th Maintenance Group Commander.


In August of 2003 and May of 2004, Wright was selected to represent the Air Force in the Armed Forces Basketball Tournament. As a result of his performance in 2003, he was also chosen to represent the United States Military in international competition at the Military World Games held in Cantania, Italy. In 2004 he won all-tournament honors. Wright and his wife, Hassain, are the proud parents of a daughter, Jada, who was born on Nov. 25, 2005.

 

 carrollcoach.JPG Kevin Carroll - Assistant Coach

Kevin Carroll was an assistant at Division II Alabama-Huntsville last season.  Carroll, meanwhile, helped UAH to an 18-11 record last season after spending six years in the high school ranks, serving as the head coach of St. Pius X High School in Atlanta, Ga., for three seasons. While there, Carroll accomplished one of the state's biggest turnarounds and helped establish Pius as one of the premier high school programs in Georgia.

After taking over a struggling program and winning only six games in '04-'05, Carroll's second Pius team improved their win total to 19 games, advancing to the second round of the state tournament. Carroll's '05-'06 team set numerous school records, tying the mark for wins (24) on their way to an Elite 8 finish and only the second region championship in the 49-year history of the school. In his last two seasons, Carroll's teams knocked off 10 state ranked teams, including AAAA's top ranked team in the 2006 regional finals.

Before taking over as the head coach, Carroll served as the varsity assistant coach at St. Pius X for two years. Carroll began his coaching career as the assistant varsity coach and head JV coach at Chattahoochee High School in Alpharetta, Ga. He helped lead Chattahoochee to its first 5A region championship and school record for wins in a season.

Carroll, 29, graduated from Berry College (Rome, Ga.) in 2000, with a degree in math education. He helped guide Berry to three consecutive 20-win seasons in his four years at the school. In his last season, Carroll received the TranSouth Conference Scholar Athlete Award for his efforts on the court and in the classroom. He earned a master's degree in health sciences from the University of Alabama in 2002.

Carroll was born in Chattanooga, TN and is married to the former Caroline Wright of Raleigh, N.C.