HIGHLAND — From the “Where are they now files” ...
Randy Reid is Utah’s most prolific high school scorer. Or not.
Reid, who will turn 50 this summer, just shrugs it off. Something to tell his kids.
Once upon a time, the 6-foot-2 blonde-headed Randy Reid, the guy with the side-spin archer, was the most prolific scorer in Utah high school history, and no Mr. Utah Basketball ever caught the Spanish Fork bomber.
That’s until 20 years ago when 93 points were added to the total of another prep star who played way, way before Reid.
The record correction benefited someone who played in the pre-digital age when records were created on paper with pencils. It was research that delved into high school play before the Vietnam War and the invention of public computers.
Reid broke the Utah career high school scoring mark 31 years ago, scoring 2,191 points at Spanish Fork High. He averaged 29 points a game his senior season, enjoying that record for 12 years. That is when the Utah High School Activities Association made an adjustment in the scoring career of the late Gary Hill, who played at Gunnison High from 1959 to 1963. Hill, like Reid, was a BYU guard. Their college and prep careers were 33 years apart.
The adjustment came when Hill was inducted into the Utah Sports Hall of Fame in 2000. I asked UHSAA director Rob Cuff about the change. He referred the question to staff member Curtis Pettingill, who said Reid was the leader in state tournament programs in 2000. Hill replaced him in the 2001 program. “I can only assume someone submitted the info to us,” answered Pettingill to an inquiry by Cuff.
Reid, a three-time BYU captain and prep honorable mention All-American, never argued his case, wanting to keep it classy. But it’s strange that records from 1950 would remain. Hill was a great player who died in 2013 at age 68. Reid played in the 3-point era; Hill did not. Hill started on the Gunnison varsity team in the eighth grade and those points, according to reports, were applied to his total. Reid would be happy to be known as the most prolific scorer in the modern era and leave it at that.
In his BYU online profile, it states Reid is Utah’s all-time leading prep scorer.
Reid family from left to right: Duncan, Naomi, Erin, Randy, Ryan, Griffin
Haley Miller Captures Photography
Today, Reid and his wife, Erin, live in Highland with their four children. Reid had four contract offers to play professionally after his BYU career, but was married, there was no NBA G League and post-career choices were different then. He worked on Wall Street for Goldman Sachs before being accepted to Harvard Business School. He worked in wealth management in both Boston and New York City before settling in Manhattan and building his own business.
Reid was looking out the window of his 41st floor New York City office on Sept. 11, 2001, and witnessed an airplane hit the World Trade Center. “I was actually looking out the window north and saw the plane hit the windows, saw the explosion come out of the building, and then 12 or 14 minutes later saw the second plane hit. I could feel the jet as it passed across the window. It was traumatizing to see it, it was horrible. I had friends I played corporate basketball with that died that day.”
In 2008, Reid sold his business to Merrill Lynch. His wife, the former Erin Berrett at Davis High, was a BYU cheerleader and Cougarette and remains active in teaching dance. She co-founded Odyssey Dance Company, one of the premier dance companies in Utah. “She loves the arts, theater and has danced professionally. She has certainly broadened me from my very narrow background in sports and made me more well-rounded as a person.”
Their oldest child, Ryan, is 20 and just returned from a church mission to Mexico, 21 months out when the COVID-19 scare brought him home. His second son, Duncan, will be a senior at Skyridge High where he is a high-level basketball player. While Ryan, at 5-9, played baseball and basketball and is quick and skilled, Duncan is 6-4 with a 6-foot-8 wingspan and completely different physically.
Duncan, an all-state basketball player has been starting since his freshman year, is expected to be among the top scorers in the state in 2020-21 setting all-time school marks in scoring, rebounds and assists. In modern record-keeping, of course.
Reid’s third child is a daughter, Naomi, 15, who will be a sophomore at Lone Peak High this fall and is a dancer like her mother. The youngest is Griffin, 12, who his dad calls a real spitfire, a ball of energy who loves all sports.
Randy Reid now has his own financial consulting circle among a few ultra-high net worth families all over the world. “It takes up an enormous amount of time and I spend my extra time going to recitals and ballgames as a dad.”
Skyridge’s Duncan Reid goes to the hoop in a 6A boys basketball quarterfinal game against Lone Peak at the Huntsman Center in Salt Lake City on Wednesday, Feb. 26, 2020. Reid, the son of former BYU great Randy Reid, is expected to have a big senior season in 2020-21.
Spenser Heaps, Deseret News
Randy and his brother Robbie remain two of my favorite Utah athletes to cover from high school to college. They were spunky, competitive, confident and very good. They were always accommodating, friendly, and respectful during a time when they took some lumps for playing for their dad, Roger, at BYU.
On Feb. 20, 1995, the brother duo was featured as the “Stormin’ Mormons” in Sports Illustrated. At the time, BYU stood 20-5 with wins over Louisville, Mississippi State, Oklahoma State and rival Utah.
Randy and Robbie Reid had competitive days growing up as athletic siblings just as former NFL quarterbacks Ty and Koy Detmer did. There are legions of stories of their battles in baseball and basketball.
Randy says he likes what he’s seen from Mark Pope and the Cougars in 2019-20, a season cut short by the virus.
All the Reids felt respected when Pope called former BYU coach Roger Reid when he was hired at Utah Valley University, just to pick his brain. He did the same thing after being hired at BYU, this time including visits with Randy, Robbie and Roger. Pope had Roger Reid as his guest in the Marriott Center for the San Diego State game this past fall.
“He asked my dad for counsel and advice. He wanted to know his philosophies about offense, defense and delved deep into the game. This lasted through his time at UVU and now at BYU and it included all of us getting to know (assistant) Chris Burgess better by playing pickup games with him and my brother. It was a way to get to know Chris in a way we never had before,” said Randy.
Former BYU head coach Roger Reid, center, the father of BYU great Randy Reid, coaches from the sideline at the Marriott Center.
Tom Smart, Deseret News
Back when Burgess was being recruited by BYU, Duke and others out of Irvine, California, as one of the nation’s top prospects, Roger Reid was disappointed and sometimes blamed by others for not securing his services at BYU and it created an awkward dynamic.
But that’s all ancient history as Burgess and the Reids have forged a mutually respectful relationship, which, really, always existed. It’s just deeper and more full at present.
Said Randy, “After Mark was hired, we had an incredible lunch with Mark and Brian Santiago (BYU’s deputy assistant athletic director). We spent a lot of time talking about basketball experiences, about BYU. I think this just speaks volumes about Mark, his inclusiveness, how he wants to build the program. He’s always looking for a better, smarter way, a more thoughtful way to do things.
“He’s always looking to improve, looking for an advantage, always looking to be motivated and hungry and dedicated. One thing I was really impressed with the Cougars this year under Pope, was that they were so unselfish, motivated and hungry to win and how they played together. It was a reflection of the players themselves, but also of Pope and his coaching staff.
“After Mark (Pope) was hired, we had an incredible lunch with Mark and Brian Santiago (BYU’s deputy assistant athletic director). We spent a lot of time talking about basketball experiences, about BYU. I think this just speaks volumes about Mark, his inclusiveness, how he wants to build the program.” — Randy Reid
“They instilled a high level of effort, a degree of defensive accountability that elevated their offensive skill set to win a lot of big games and play at a high level. He got the most out of Yoeli Childs, Jake Toolson and TJ Haws, some of the best players the school has had in some time. It was impressive and fun to watch.”
Reid said he loved BYU’s inside-out attack style and use of the outside shot as the national leader in 3-pointers, addressing the style of play that is today’s college game.
“I mean, it was so elegant in the speed and the pace that they played but when they needed it, they showed great patience and ability to execute. Mark was very thoughtful analytically in how he approached his team with his offensive sets. It was very, very impressive to watch and I think there are great things in store for the program.”
It’s been three decades since Randy Reid donned the BYU uniform and even longer since he established himself as one of the most prolific scorers in Utah high school history.
Yes, his career mark was supplanted by a research campaign, but he’s not bitter, just amused. He’s an upbeat character, an effervescent personality whose eyes are always looking above the horizon.
“It was a different game in the ’50s than it was in the mid-’80s,” he laughs.
And, as always, he keeps the controversy on a noble channel; he’s positive and enjoying a very, very good life with the family he loves deeply.
What, after all, is 93 points?