Reid attended Springville High School in Springville, Utah and was an all-state performer in both baseball and basketball. He went on to play both sports at the College of Eastern Utah and was recognized as a junior college All-American in baseball. Reid concluded his collegiate playing days at Weber State earning all conference honors in baseball both seasons he played and was also a key player for coach Dick Motta's Big Sky Conference championship team in basketball.
After finishing college, Reid was drafted and played professionally, as a shortstop, for both the Atlanta Braves and Chicago White Sox minor league farm systems over four seasons.
Coaching career
High school
In 1971, Reid embarked on his basketball coaching career at Payson High School in Utah. He compiled a 50-26 in three seasons before moving on to Clearfield High School in 1974. He finished coaching at the northern Utah high school with a 60-24 record.
BYU
Reid became a member of Frank Arnold's staff at BYU in 1978 and stayed on as an assistant under LaDell Andersen when he replaced Arnold. He was named as BYU head coach in 1989. His BYU teams were consistent winners and Reid led them to a 152-77 record. BYU also made five NCAA Tournament appearances, won three conference regular season titles and two conference tournament championships during his tenure. His success did not prevent him from being disliked by some BYU fans and players. Reid's sons, Randy and Robbie, decided to play for their father at BYU. Some disgruntled alumni were not pleased that the Reids were playing for the Cougars, and some insinuated that Reid's decision to play his sons amounted to nepotism. By 1996, Reid's coaching future at BYU was in doubt. Some school administrators strongly suggested that getting Chris Burgess--a highly touted player from Irvine, California--to play for the Cougars, could save Reid's job. Burgess was a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, and his father had played for BYU, which is owned by the Church. In the end, Burgess told Reid that he was going to play for Duke. Upon hearing this, Reid allegedly told him that he had let down all members of the LDS church. Reid was dismissed as BYU head coach on December 17, 1996, shortly after the recruiting incident. Reid has stated since then that his remarks to Burgess were taken out of context. BYU had started the season 1-7 after being decimated by injuries; assistant Tony Ingle replaced Reid for the rest of what would become a 1-25 season—the worst in school history. Although his comments to Burgess have frequently been cited by the media and many associated with BYU as the primary reason for Reid's dismissal, a more likely cause was a combination of those remarks, old charges of nepotism, and the fact that, despite recent conference success, his team was struggling to draw half-capacity crowds for even the most significant home games in the 22,700-seat Marriott Center. Reid's son Robbie did not return to BYU after serving a two-year LDS church mission to Greece. He attended the University of Michigan instead and became a two-year starter for the Wolverines to close out his college basketball career.
Phoenix Suns
Reid was hired by former BYU and NBA player Danny Ainge to be an assistant coach for the Phoenix Suns. During his five years with the Suns they made two playoff appearances.
Hangzhou Horses
Reid coached the Hangzhou Horses in China's top professional league for two years.
Snow College
On May 9, 2005, Reid was hired as the head basketball coach for the Snow College Badgers. His teams at Snow compiled an overall record of 33-28 in two seasons including a 23-8 mark for the 2006-2007 season.
On March 14, 2007, SUU President Michael Benson announced the hiring of Roger Reid to replace Coach Bill Evans. Reid coached for five seasons, then retired from coaching on March 8, 2012. Reid finished his run at Southern Utah with a 54-97 record.
