John Reed file
Career record: 283-126-1 in 36 seasons as head coach
Coldwater record: 168-31 in 15 seasons
Midwest Athletic Conference record at Coldwater: 102-14
State titles: 2 (2005, 2007)
State runners-up: 3 (1998, 2000, 2009)
State semifinal appearances: 8 (1995, 2001, 2004)
Midwest Athletic Conference titles: 9 (6 at Coldwater, 3 at Parkway)
Inducted into Ohio High School Football Coaches Association Hall of Fame in 2006 ... 11th all-time among Ohio high school coaches in wins ... MAC all-time wins leader ... MAC coach of the Year a record 9 times ... 70-4 past nine seasons in the MAC.
Coldwater High School’s football teams celebrated two state championships, six league titles and 168 wins in 15 seasons under head coach John Reed.
Even with all those accomplishments, what he instilled in his Cavaliers players — according to former standout Ross Homan — still serves as his greatest victory.
“He always talked about you can be a decent football player, but if you’re a great man, a great father, a great husband, that’s what he was going for,” said Homan, a member of the 2005 state title team and senior linebacker at Ohio State University. “He wanted to make sure we had discipline in our lives and we had good morals.”
Reed, 64, died about 2:30 a.m. Friday morning after a battle with esophageal cancer.
Coldwater, a town of about 4,500 people in the heart of Mercer County, became a measuring stick for Ohio high school football programs when Reed took over in 1995. A Cavs program that had appeared in the playoffs just once in 58 seasons prior to his arrival reached the postseason 14 of his 15 seasons.
Coldwater earned national recognition — and plenty of additional awe statewide — after stunning nationally ranked Youngstown Mooney for the 2007 Division IV state championship. Coldwater beat Mooney in 2005 for its first title.
Coldwater also beat Alter 59-52 in triple overtime in the 2007 regional semifinals, a game many spectators call the greatest high school game they’ve ever seen.
“If you asked people to name four or five coaches you wouldn’t mind your kid playing for, I think John Reed would be one of those coaches,” Alter coach Ed Domsitz said.
“I’m sure the memory of what John Reed was all about will sustain those kids from Coldwater all their lives. I’m sure they learned from him what you really hope kids learn from the game of football.”
Contact this reporter at (937) 225-2400, ext. 6991, or gbilling@Dayton DailyNews.com.
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