A few weeks ago, I had the opportunity to interview Diego Reyes, the new head men’s basketball coach for Solano Community College, to learn more about his backstory, the team, and a few fun facts about himself. At just 27 years old, Diego is the youngest basketball coach among all California community colleges. Despite being young, he believes his age will bring in new perspective.
“I think for sure the advantages are relatability. Less than five years ago, I was in their shoes. It allows them to have a little more trust in me, you know, when discussing certain things—academically, athletically, anything in that realm. The experience isn’t too far in the past, so they’re able to connect with me a little better on that,” he exclaimed.
While the youth perspective can have its benefits, there may also be challenges his youth might pose at this level of coaching.
“Of course, you know, the experience itself obviously being so young, I lack the experience of coaches that are in their 50s, which is like the average age. It’s just some learning steps, I guess, coming through the year.”
He then elaborated on how these challenges might impact the team and what they can do to overcome them.
“I think we’re all on the same page that it’s not going to be absolutely flawless. There are going to be some hiccups, and we just have to learn from the whole group, and that starts with the coaching staff as well.”
Reyes holds a Master’s degree in Applied Math from UCLA and has lived in California his entire life.
“Yeah, I grew up in Vacaville, went to school all the way through ninth grade, then moved and relocated to Mendocino County. I went to high school there, went to junior college there, and then left to complete my undergraduate degree at UCLA, so I’ve been in California my whole life.”
He went on to discuss his basketball journey, emphasizing that he played competitively.
“I played all the way up until junior college at Mendocino College.”
After that, he shifted his focus to academics and soon received a coaching opportunity after graduation.
“I decided to focus on going to school. After graduating with a degree in Applied Math, I got a call from a former assistant coach who had just taken a head coaching job at a four-year school,” Reyes explained.
“He wanted me to help out a little bit, and I kind of got thrown into the fire pretty quickly. I gained a lot of experience that I think people at that age don’t usually get.”
Due to Covid and other circumstances, Reyes had the opportunity to step into the head coaching position for two games after only being an assistant coach at just 23 years old.
“I think I was the youngest head coach in the nation at that point, so I just jumped right into (coaching) and had a fire lit under me once I got those opportunities. I’ve been committed ever since and haven’t looked back.”
Outside of being a basketball player, Reyes has had prior experience with coaching as an assistant at Pacific Union College.
“Pacific Union is unique compared to junior college in its own way. It’s a religiously affiliated school, something I wasn’t familiar with. It obviously has a different approach and is very diverse in various ways. It was good to learn from the athletes how things are done there—just a different way, a different philosophy, a different approach.” he stated.
Reyes however fell in love with the sport as a child, growing up a diehard 76ers fan.
“I’m a 76ers fan; I’ve been a 76ers fan my whole life ever since Allen Iverson, so I’m still sticking with them. They haven’t been the most successful recently, but I’m loyal. I even had my room painted blue, red, and white when I was a kid.”
Knowing that the basketball team here at Solano has lost several key players, including former guard Justize Wilson, Reyes plans to focus on the team’s aspirations this year as they work to establish their identity.
“Yeah, we have really high goals. We have Nico Ignacio, who I think is our second-leading scorer returning. We brought in a transfer from Los Medanos, who led them in scoring, plus another transfer from Delta. We have a really deep group that I think we haven’t had in the past. For the first time in a while, we have size on our team—some legitimate size. I think we’re well-balanced, hoping for a lot of guys—maybe six or seven players—to score 8-9 points. But yes, we have really high aspirations for the year, hoping to compete for the conference and see what the postseason looks like for us.” he exclaimed.
Diego and his players are looking forward to this upcoming season as they aim to compete more fiercely than ever while remaining committed academically. Diego is ready to bring his youthful and positive coaching style to the locker room, giving his players a significant boost in the 2025-2026 season.
