Reggie Stephens wasn’t sure what was in store for his future after he retired from playing professional football in 2006. So, he spent the next four years searching for a purpose.
That was until he ran into current Scotts Valley High football coach Louie Walters at a Beacon gas station on the corner of Capitola Road and 17th Avenue.
Five minutes into the conversation, the longtime Falcons skipper offered Stephens—a former Santa Cruz High football standout—his first coaching job at any level.
It was also in that moment, and unbeknownst, that he would become one of the biggest mentors and trainers in Santa Cruz County.
Stephens, who has helped hundreds of local children through the Reggie Stephens Foundation, will be inducted into the Scotts Valley Athletics Hall of Fame for the Class of 2024.
“I was very shocked because usually when you get in the hall of fame, you went to the school, you played at the school,” he said. “When you got your head down and just working, you don’t really realize that stuff, such as how you’ve been an impact to some of the kids but also how they’ve been an impact to me, as well. Definitely shocked but definitely grateful at the same time.”
Stephens, along with fellow former coaches Rick Silver (girls basketball) and Gretchen Schmitt (cross country) were selected to have their names forever enshrined on campus.
The Class of 2024 also includes former Falcons athletes Shane Carle (baseball), Jessica Kain (runner), Jackson Pasquini (football and basketball), Nagine Mansour Dewitsky (girls soccer), Vanessa Fraser (runner), Grace Giguiere (basketball and softball) and Dominique Parrish (wrestling).
This will be the fifth group inducted into the hall of fame, and is much larger than usual due to a significant gap since the last induction in 2017. A ceremonial dinner will take place Oct. 18 at the Back Nine Grill & Bar on the Pasatiempo Golf Course in Santa Cruz.
The Reggie Stephens Foundation (RSF) has a simple motto, “Seek, Believe, Achieve,” whether it’s in sports, art, education or culture.
“He’s done so much, and it’s not just football. He trains the basketball team, he trains the softball team,” Walters said. “And it’s not just about the sports. He’s training them with life lessons and moving them on to colleges. We’re just so fortunate to have him. He’s my best friend, and we love him at Scotts Valley.”
Stephens admitted he never wanted to start a foundation until a friend came up with the idea. He decided to follow in the footsteps of his former mentor, Tony Hill.
“I just made it about me, and my journey, how I got to Santa Cruz, what I was able to do with my music and everything that I stand for,” Stephens said. “Along with the help of Louie [Walters], giving me facilities to do all-star games, do the training and things of that nature, that hall of fame [induction] ties into RSF.”
Stephens and his family moved from Shreveport, La., to Santa Cruz shortly after the 1989 Loma Prieta earthquake. It didn’t take long for him to begin his football journey at Santa Cruz High. During that time, he was also heavily involved in the rap music scene.
He continued his playing career at Cabrillo College before transferring to Rutgers University. Stephens played with the New York Giants from 1999-2004, helping them reach Super Bowl XXXV.
“He’s played at the highest level. I could just tell in that conversation that this is a guy that’s going to relate to kids,” Walters said on the day he ran into Stephens at the gas station. “Talking to people that want to coach, a lot of times it’s about them and it’s not about what they want to do or who they want to do it with.”
Fast forward to 2010, Stephens began working with former Scotts Valley football player Jake Ringel and the rest was history.
“I found my passion, I found my love, I found my why,” Stephens said. “And now I look up, over 300 something kids, even going into a hall of fame…everything that I do intertwines with itself like with the foundation. And I’m happy it’s that way, because it’s one of the things that makes me happy to do every day.”
The RSF helped former notable local athletes, such as Santa Cruz High alumni Jonah Hodges, Qwentin Brown and Caleb Womack, get into college.
Brown is currently a junior on the Brown University football team, and Womack is a redshirt sophomore on the San Jose State University football team. Hodges played at the University of Cal-Berkeley.
Stephens is now reaching out to youngsters from as far as Watsonville to join the foundation because of his ties to music and culture in the city.
“To me, that’s important because at the end of the day I can’t just sit here in Santa Cruz and say I’m going to do this. No, I gotta reach down the way…and give them the same love that I’m giving to the kids in Santa Cruz County. I’m still building that relationship,” Stephens said.
Some people have asked Stephens why he doesn’t coach for NCAA Division I programs or work in the professional ranks. He easily could leave, but then he’d be giving up the RSF, which he proudly calls his “baby.”
“This is one of the things that is dear to my heart because of how many kids it’s helped,” he said.
The biggest obstacle for Stephens is trying to get a facility where he could host Saturday and Sunday sessions, which he doesn’t charge. Another challenge is not having enough money to cover all the kids who might need scholarships.
It took six years for him to get his first grant through Community Foundation Santa Cruz. He was able to take three minority students on a trip to Morgan State University and is optimistic the tradition will continue to grow.
Little by little, Stephens continues to swing the ax until the tree is chopped down. A tree that one day will be the grounds for hope of a major sports complex in Watsonville to provide a space for athletics, culture, education and music.
Walters said if anybody can bring a sports facility in Santa Cruz County, it’s the Reggie Stevens Foundation.
“We need it in Santa Cruz County, and not just for Scotts Valley kids, for every county athlete,” Walters said.
