Returning home: Varnadore new boys basketball coach at Palmetto High

PALMETTO — Abel Varnadore is going home.

A former Palmetto High resident, Varnadore is the new boys basketball coach at Palmetto High.

He replaces long-time coach Reggie Bellamy who stepped down after the past season.

Varnadore was not far away. He has been coaching at IMG Academy, his alma mater since 2017. Varnadore was an assistant on the Ascenders’ National team and the head coach of the IMG Junior National team.

The move to Palmetto was a natural one.

“That’s where I’m from, number one, and the potential of the school, the community and the kids,” Varnadore said. “They’ve had a program that has been successful in a lot of sports. I think we can bring that to basketball.”

Varnadore emerged from a group of 38 applicants that were paired down to eight and eventually a final three. The interest ranged from as far as Virginia to the halls of Palmetto High. 

“We’re excited about the quality of coach that we were able to get,” Tigers director of athletics Bryan Wilkes said. “We had some great people apply for the job. He was the most impressive.”

Varnadore attended Palmetto Elementary School and Lincoln Middle School before heading to IMG Academy, where he was the first four-year graduate of the basketball program.

With the Ascenders, Varnadore played in a starting five with four players who went on to play in the NBA.

“As a player it was awesome. You only took the core classes,” he said. “You’re only going to school from about 12:30 to 5:30 a day. It was sport specific with some of the best athletes in the world.” 

Varnadore remembers the Detroit Pistons with Chauncey Billups training at IMG.

“It was amazing to be around such high level guys,” Varnadore said.

Varnadore was a walk-on at Ole Miss, where he played for four years.

After spending a year coaching at Mount Dora Christian Academy, Varnadore returned to IMG Academy. He founded 3:16 Athletics, a sports ministry that trained hundreds of players with varying skill levels and a number of states. Varnadore received the Governor’s Sports Award with the IMG staff for making a major contribution to sports in Florida.

At Palmetto, his approach is a “very positive relationship-based with the kids,” Varnadore said. “It’s tempo-oriented from a basketball standpoint. We’re gonna play fast and get after it defensively.”

He plans to meet with the Tiger players, their parents and the community and “re-introducing myself to everyone.”

The 30-year-old Varnadore also plays to “immediately implement what we’ll call the Tiger standard. “I’m excited to be home and embrace this opportunity,” he said.

Dennis Maffezzoli is the deputy sports editor for the Sarasota Herald-Tribune and chief reporter for Sarasota Herald-Tribune and HTpreps covering Sarasota, Manatee and Charlotte counties. Support local journalism by subscribing.