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Former Police Chief Clyde Parry to Patrol the Sidelines as J.P. Taravella’s New Football Coach

Clyde Parry named new J.P. Taravella Football Coach. {David Volz}

In a move that’s sure to shake up the gridiron, J.P. Taravella High School has enlisted former Coral Springs Police Chief Clyde Parry as their new football coach.

Trading his badge for a playbook, Parry is on a mission to bring order and victory to a team that’s seen more coaches than championships in recent years.

Retiring in 2022, Parry aims to give back to the community where he spent most of his life.

“It is my hope that we make improvements each year, and as we do, more and more of the talented kids who attend Taravella will come out for the team and help us achieve our goal of winning a district championship,“ said Parry.

He previously worked under former J.P. Taravella coach Yapphet Butler in 2023 and has spent over 30 years coaching with the Coral Springs Chargers. His younger son played at J.P. Taravella and went on to play college football at Florida Tech and the University of South Florida.

Parry relocated to South Florida in May of 1987 after spending a year as a police officer with the Derry Borough Police Department outside Pittsburgh, PA.

Early in his career with Coral Springs, Parry saw first-hand the effects drugs were having in the community and “committed himself to learning all he could about narcotics trafficking and drug smuggling,” the city said in its press release.

The city said that commitment quickly earned Parry a position within the police department’s Vice Intelligence and Narcotics Unit, where he served for 18 years.

In late 2006, Parry was promoted to the rank of sergeant. In 2010, he attained the rank of lieutenant.

According to the city, after his promotion to captain, Parry developed the Burglary Enforcement and Reduction (BEAR) Unit when Coral Springs experienced an increase in home burglaries.

“That unit led to great success in preventing home burglaries in our community and became the model for other departments who established similar units,” said Parry in 2022.

In March 2018, Parry was hired as the city’s sixth chief of police.

Parry’s promotion came shortly after the February 14, 2018, mass shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School.

In the attack’s aftermath, Parry made the mental health of his cops a priority.

“Early on in my career, I saw how an incident impacted a fellow officer, and later in my career, we lost a detective to suicide,” Parry said in a statement. “I know the violence at MSD impacted so many of our members, and I am proud of how we supported each other during that unthinkable tragedy and how we still support each other today.”

In his first weeks as head coach, Parry is proud of his upcoming senior group, which includes Miles Green, JaMichael Barnes, Marcus Jean Baptiste, Jaheim Olivieri, Bryan Herandez, and Kile Duquesnay. These players have stuck with the team despite having some players transfer.

“We are blessed to have them, Parry said. “They are all fine young men. I am very happy they chose to stay. I believe they, along with the underclassmen we have, can accomplish more this year than we have done in the last four years.”

Parry has also been impressed with the coaching staff he has and feels his team has already shown progress.

J.P. Taravella is coming off a 1-9 season. They have gone two straight years, winning only one game, both coming against Pompano Beach High School. They are currently underway in spring practices and will start the new season in the fall with another difficult schedule.

They are scheduled to face Hollywood Hills High School in their first game on August 23 at 4 p.m.

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