Just recently, the Carolina Panthers announced that they have signed Frank Reich as their new head coach, get to know five interesting facts about him below along with his coaching record
Prior to joining the Panthers, Frank Reich served as the coach for the Colts before they let go of him.
Panthers head coach Frank Reich coaching record and career stats list
Panthers hiring Frank Reich as new head coach. pic.twitter.com/Dw9GAcN65T
— NFL (@NFL) January 26, 2023
Fun Fact: Frank Reich was the Panthers starting quarterback in their first ever game back in 1995.
— Jonathan Reyes (@InsideherJay) January 26, 2023
Interestingly, the 61-year-old will be Carolina’s sixth head coach and the first-ever offensive specialist head coach in their franchise’ history.
Five interesting facts about Frank Reich
Given below are five interesting facts about Panthers’ new head coach Frank Reich
1. Colts stint
Before signing his new contract with the Panthers, Reich most recently served as the head coach for the Colts. Reich served there from 2018-22 and compiled a 40-33-1 record throughout his past five seasons. Under his leadership, the Colts went to two playoffs, and went 1-2 during the postseason.
When Reich joined in 2018, Andrew Luck was the starting quarterback and together, they led the team to the divisional round. However, ahead of the 2109 season, Luck retired but Reich managed to make it to the postseason again in 2020. The Colts however, lost out to the Buffalo Bills during the wild card round.
2. Super Bowl victory
Before working with the Indianapolis Colts, Reich served as the offensive coordinator in Philadelphia across two seasons. There, he led the Eagles’ offense to his first-ever Super Bowl win during the end of the 2017 season.
He notably helped in guiding the backup quarterback Nick Foles to a successful campaign end after their starter Carson Wentz’s suffered a season-ending ACL injury. During the end of the regular season that year, Philadelphia finished 13-3. They had undergone a major improvement from their previous 7-9 record back in 2016, when Reich first joined the Eagles.
3. A former Bills player
Before starting his work as a coach, Reich was a player in the NFL who spent most of playing career with the Buffalo Bills. Although he spent most of his career as a backup for future Hall of Fame quarterback Jim Kelly. Throughout his career with the Bills, he went to four straight Super Bowls.
Reich played with the Bills from 1985-94 after getting drafted in the third round of the 1985 NFL Draft. His most important career highlight came when Reich led the largest postseason comeback in the history of NFL. It was during the 1992 playoffs when Buffalo were down with a 35-3 deficit, when Reich lead the team to win against the Houston Oilers in the wild card round, with a 41-38 scoreline.
4. First starting quarterback for the Panthers
Frank Reich was one of the original quarterbacks for the Panthers. He signed a contract with the Panthers and played for them in their inaugural season in 1995. In fact, he became Carolina’s first-ever starting quarterback after making a debut for a Week 1 matchup against the Falcons.
He started three games before Kerry Collins took over, and that season the Panthers had a 7-9 record, which is still the best record for any first-year expansion team in the history of NFL.
5. A former Pastor in Charlotte
Reich has had an interesting life outside of the NFL as well, having previously spent time in Charlotte in ministry. His involvement in ministry started out when he was a student at the Reformed Theological Seminary’s campus, Charlotte in 1998. Reich later served as the president of the seminary from 2003-06.
He later served as the pastor of Cornerstone Presbyterian, now known as Ballantyne Presbyterian. Reich left Cornerstone in 2007 after he decided to take up his first coaching opportunity with the Colts.