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Who are the longest-tenured high school football coaches in Sarasota, Manatee, Charlotte?

dennis maffezzoli, sarasota herald-tribune
·3 min read
Entering his 17th season at Venice High, John Peacock is the longest-tenured high school football coach in the area.
Entering his 17th season at Venice High, John Peacock is the longest-tenured high school football coach in the area.

Area football teams will usher in five new coaches this season.

One, Rashad West, is making a lateral move from Lakewood Ranch High to Palmetto High to replace long-time coach Dave Marino, now an assistant at Cardinal Mooney Catholic High.

New Parrish Community High coach Dylan Clark (Alonso High in Tampa) and new Lakewood Ranch coach Scott Paravicini (Bradenton Christian) have had previous head coaching experience.

New coaches: COACHING CAROUSEL: Meet the new football coaches and their offseason plans for the team

Best of the decade: Which high school football team has the best record during the past 10 years?

Nate Strawderman at Bradenton Christian and Josh Phillips at Sarasota High take over after being assistants: Strawderman with the Panthers and Phillips with Manatee High.

While the turnover among coaches always seems to be high, a number of coaches have been on the scene for a number of years.

Here is the longest-tenured coaches in the area:

1. John Peacock, Venice High, 17th season (160-42)

For years Peacock ranked behind legendary coaches such as Paul Maechtle, Joe Kinnan and Binky Waldrop.

Now, Peacock is the dean of football coaches in the area.

A former Venice High assistant, Peacock was hired prior to the 2007 season to replace Nick Coleman.

Entering his 17th season, Peacock has a 160-42 record, including a pair of state championships.

After going 7-4 in his first season, Venice has won eight or more games every season since.

Peacock had a five-year stretch of 11, 10, 12, 14 and 12 wins, a 59-8 mark during that period with a state championship.

Venice matched the 14-1 record of 2017 in 2021 with its second state championship under Peacock and third in program history.

2. Jordan Ingman, Port Charlotte High, 12th season (79-33)

Hired as a 22-year-old in 2012, Port Charlotte High's Jordan Ingman is the second-longest tenured high school football coach in the area.
Hired as a 22-year-old in 2012, Port Charlotte High's Jordan Ingman is the second-longest tenured high school football coach in the area.

Hired as a 22-year-old Jan. 7, 2012, the former Port Charlotte High player now ranks second in the area in seniority.

Taking over a 2-9 team and a program that had not had a winning record since 2002, Ingman’s Pirates never have had a losing season.

Port Charlotte has had two 10-2 seasons, including 2013 when it reached the regional final before losing to East Lake.

3. Curt Bradley, Braden River High, 12th season (79-40)

Braden River High hired Curt Bradley just more than four months after Jordan Ingman at Port Charlotte. Bradley and Ingman are entering their 12th seasons as head football coaches.
Braden River High hired Curt Bradley just more than four months after Jordan Ingman at Port Charlotte. Bradley and Ingman are entering their 12th seasons as head football coaches.

Hired just more than four months after Ingman to replace Don Purvis, Bradley has the same number of wins as Ingman after a rough start.

Braden River went 1-9 in Bradley’s first season and have gone 78-31 since.

The former defensive coordinator out of Leesburg High strung together seasons of 10, 13, 9, 10 and 9 wins, going 51-9 from 2014-18. The 10 wins followed by 13 wins established school records.

In the 13-1 year of 2015, the Pirates went to the state semifinals, losing at home to eventual state champion St. Thomas Aquinas.

4. Don Southwell, Lemon Bay High, 7th season (31-28)

Don Southwell is entering his seventh season as head football coach at Lemon Bay High.
Don Southwell is entering his seventh season as head football coach at Lemon Bay High.

A long-time assistant, Southwell moved from defensive coordinator to head coach and offensive coordinator to replace D.J. Oglivie prior to the start of the 2017 season.

The Manta Rays put together a stretch of three straight playoff appearances and a two-year mark of 17-3 in 2020-21. The 9-1 season in 2021 was the most in Lemon Bay program history since it went 9-3 in 2003 under Mike Messina.

5. Josh Smithers, Riverview High, 7th season (53-22)

Josh Smithers is entering his seventh season as head football coach at Riverview High. Smithers also was the head football coach at Cardinal Mooney Catholic for eight seasons.
Josh Smithers is entering his seventh season as head football coach at Riverview High. Smithers also was the head football coach at Cardinal Mooney Catholic for eight seasons.

Entering his sixth season and hired four months after Lemon Bay tabbed Southwell as its new coach, Smithers posted 11, 10, 9, 9 and 9 wins his first five seasons with the Rams.

Riverview reached the regional final and state semifinals in Smithers’ first two seasons after replacing Todd Johnson, still an assistant with Riverview.

Throw in Smithers’ eight seasons (2008-14) at Cardinal Mooney Catholic and he would rank second on the list with 14 seasons as head coach.

The Cougars went 42-41 under Smithers, including 7-3 and 8-4 seasons his final two years, when Cardinal Mooney reached the playoffs.

This article originally appeared on Sarasota Herald-Tribune: Five longest-tenured high school football coaches in Sarasota, Manatee, Charlotte