Tim 'Ice' Harris changes course; Accepts football head coaching position at Mater Academy

The legendary South Florida head coach will take over the Lions
Miami Hurricanes On SI/All Hurricanes

As ESPN's Lee Corso would say on the show he's made famous, College Gameday, not so fast.

Last week, it looked like legendary South Florida head coach Tim 'Ice' Harris was going to step away from high school football as he then decided to call it a career, thus ending his time with Miami Booker T. Washington.

Then Mater Academy came into the picture and starting a new chapter in Harris' long, illustrious coaching career.

According to a report by the Miami Herald, Harris has accepted the football head coaching position at Mater Academy. Harris, who has won three state championships as a head coach, just last season led the Tornadoes to the Class 2A state semifinals.

Per the Miami Herald report, Harris had retired last week after 35 years within Miami Dade County Public Schools as an administrative assistant.

Less than a week later, Harris will be donning new colors come this spring and fall.

Harris, who returned to Miami Booker T. Washington in 2022, led the Tornadoes to three state championships in 2008, 2012 and 2013.

The legendary head coach finished up his fourth stint as Miami Booker T. Washington's lead man as the team just capped a season just a step away from the Class 2A state title game, falling to Gadsden County, the eventual runnerup.

Harris has coached at schools like Miami Booker T. Washington, Miami Central, Miami Northwestern and Miami during the timeframe of 1986-2024. He also was the head coach at Florida Memorial for multiple seasons before parting ways.

Mater Academy is a Class 5A team and went 6-5 in 2024, with notable wins over Miami Beach and North Miami.


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-- Andy Villamarzo | villamarzo@scorebooklive.com | @highschoolonsi


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Andy Villamarzo
ANDY VILLAMARZO

Andy Villamarzo has been a sports writer in the Tampa Bay (FL) Area since 2007, writing for publications such as Tampa Bay Times, The Tampa Tribune, The Suncoast News, Tampa Beacon, Hernando Sun to name a few. Andy resides out of the Tarpon Springs, FL area and started as a writer with SB Live Sports in the summer of 2022 covering the Tampa Bay Area. He has quickly become one of Florida's foremost authorities on high school sports, appearing frequently on podcasts, radio programs and digital broadcasts as an expert on team rankings, recruiting and much more.