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Former NFL Star Ed Reed Set To Become Next Head Coach at HBCU Bethune-Cookman

Bethune-Cookman has agreed to a deal with former Baltimore Ravens star and Pro Football Hall of Fame safety Ed Reed to become the school’s next head football coach.

Reed, 44, will be the 16th head coach of the historically black university (HBCU). Reed, who starred at Miami and won a National Championship in 2001, has spent the last three seasons in a support staff role at his alma mater, most recently as a senior football advisor under head coach Mario Cristobal.

He becomes the latest high-profile star to take over at an HBCU after Pro Football Hall of Fame cornerback Deion Sanders served as Jackson State head coach from 2020-22. Sanders took the Colorado job earlier this month after leading the Tigers to a 27-6 record. In addition, former Tennessee Titans running back Eddie George has been the head coach at Tennessee State since 2021.

Reed, who previously served as defensive backs coach with the Buffalo Bills in 2016, takes over for Terry Sims. Bethune-Cookman fired Sims after a seven-year stint at the university (2015-22). The Wildcats went 4-18 over the past two seasons under Sims and 38-39 overall with a Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC) championship in 2015. Bethune-Cookman, however, has struggled with the transition to the Southwestern Athletic Conference (SWAC), surely hoping Reed will have a Sanders-like impact.

Bethune-Cookman Taking the Deion Sanders Route in Hiring Ed Reed

Long before he joined the coaching ranks, Reed made his living as one of the greatest safeties in the history of the NFL. Selected 24th overall in the 2002 NFL Draft by the Ravens, Reed enjoyed a 12-year career in the NFL, 11 coming in Baltimore. A nine-time Pro Bowl and five-time All-Pro selection, Reed was a member of the Ravens’ 2012 Super Bowl-winning team.

Reed took home AP Defensive Player of the Year honors in 2004 after pacing the league with nine interceptions. He is a member of the NFL 2000s All-Decade Team.