Virginia Beach, VA – The Regent University Athletic Department has announced the promotion of Barry Hollenbeck, to Head Men's Basketball Coach. Previously, the Associate Head Men's Basketball Coach, Hollenbeck just completed his second full season with the Royals and will take over the coaching duties effective immediately.
Director of Athletics, Michael W. Allen, who stepped in to fill a void in December 2024 and brought stability to the program, will now return his full-time focus back on his Director of Athletics role. Allen is excited to promote Coach Hollenbeck and knows that his years of experience and a proven history of developing student-athletes has prepared him to guide the Royals into an exciting new era of success.
"We are pleased to announce Barry Hollenbeck as our next head men's basketball coach. He fully supports and understands Regent's culture and mission, as well as having a strong understanding of NCAA Division III and the C2C," said Allen. "Over the past two years, Barry has built a great relationship with our current players, where they respect him and love playing for him. He has been instrumental per recruiting mission-fit student-athletes, who are helping us move the needle in becoming more competitive, and I am excited to see him take this next step in his professional coaching career".
Over the past two seasons, Hollenbeck has been responsible for recruiting and game preparation and has overseen the development of two National Players of the Week, a 1,000-point scorer and numerous program record holders. During the 2024-2025 athletic year, Hollenbeck was named the Athletic Department's Assistant Coach of the Year. He will take over a team that just completed its first season at the NCAA Division III level as members of the Coast-To-Coast Athletic Conference.
Prior to his time at Regent, Hollenbeck served as an Assistant Coach and Recruiting Coordinator at The Apprentice School in Newport News where he was instrumental in both their NSAC Conference Championship and USCAA Small College National Championship. In addition, he started and coached the Hawaii Legends Grassroots basketball program in Honolulu and coached for Empire Sports in Chesapeake, VA. Hollenbeck also served as the associate head coach for Deep Creek High School for two years.
"This opportunity is amazing and I feel extremely blessed," said Hollenbeck. "I want to first give thanks to God. It's amazing the doors he will open when you put your faith in him. I want to thank Michael Allen, Katie Reyes, and the Regent University leadership for believing and trusting in me. I want to thank coaches Michael Allen, Evan Kee, and Craig Frost for their friendship and mentorship. I will continue to value the knowledge and guidance they provided to me. Nothing I do in life is possible without my family. My wife, Sine, is the most loving and supportive partner and believed in me as I spent several years spending money to coach as a volunteer. I thank my son, Toa, who is an exceptional person and gifted basketball player. I think he opened doors for me early on that possibly may not have been available had it not been for his notoriety, and none of this is possible without his years of hard work. Thank you to my daughter, Kaydence, who has an extremely gifted artistic and creative mind that she will use to do great things in life for her love and support. I am excited about where this basketball program, athletics department, and school are headed. I look forward to continuing to lead the young men currently on the roster and our future Royals on and off the court to help guide them to be better players, people, leaders, and most importantly, Christians".
Hollenbeck, who lives in Chesapeake, VA, served 20 years in the Coast Guard and received his Bachelor's Degree with a major in Coaching and a minor in Sports Science from the United States Sports Academy. He is married with two children and believes it is important to live, lead, and coach in a way that honors our faith in God.
