GAINESVILLE, Ga. — Reed Tipton has been "waiting patiently" for the opportunity to become a head basketball coach.
The wait is over.
The Gainesville graduate and long-time assistant coach was hired to take over the East Forsyth girls basketball program, the school announced on Wednesday.
"It's been a lifelong dream of mine," Tipton said. "I knew when coach [Benjie] Wood called me up to be his middle school coach and just work my way that this was what I wanted to do with my career. Once I became an assistant at Cherokee Bluff, that's when I started thinking about the idea of becoming head coach. I've just been waiting patiently for about four or five years. I'm excited that East Forsyth has trusted me and wants me to be the face of their program, and I can't wait to lead them. East Forsyth is a great place."
Over the last nine seasons, Tipton has been mentored by a trio of the area's best head coaches. He started with Wood at Gainesville, followed him to Cherokee Bluff, then jumped to North Hall under Kristi House, and last year, spent a season under Eric Herrick at North Hall. Oh, and he played for Todd Cottrell at Gainesville.
So, if anyone questions the hire, check his resume.
Tipton said those four coaches have influenced and molded him into the coach he is today.
"I've taken a little bit from all of them," he said. "Playing under Cottrell taught me a lot of values of life. He taught me how to be a man; just playing for him. I use all those teachings today. Working under Benjie, I mold what I do after Benjie. I think he's the greatest coach in Georgia. I definitely wouldn't be the coach I am today without Benjie. I also learned several key things under Kristi and Herrick as well. I learned a lot on the defensive end with Herrick and how to coach girls because I coached boys for seven under before North Hall. So, I will try to collect all of that and hopefully be as good a coach as they are."
The Lady Broncos are on solid ground, thanks to Mike Hedrick. Hedrick was the first girls coach at East Forsyth, only two years old, and guided them to back-to-back region championship games and playoff berths. Hedrick stepped down last month to move up to the next level, leaving the position open.
Tipton jumped at the opportunity.
"Mike did a great job of establishing the culture at East Forsyth," he said. "I was a part of Cherokee Bluff when it was a new school and loved how excited and proud they were of their school. East Forsyth has that same kind of vibe; that's what made it attractive. A few folks from the Forsyth community contacted me, asking me to apply at East Forsyth. They said East Forsyth could be something special -- it could turn into the new North Forsyth. So, that was why it was attractive to me."
The Tipton-coached Lady Broncos will play fast, press a lot and throw up the three balls, but more than that, Tipton said three foundational values will be the guiding light for the program.
"My girls are going to play hard, play for each other and compete," he said. "I think if they do all those things, then the culture will establish itself, and we'll be able to build that championship culture with those three foundational values at East Forsyth."
