New Parlier coach focuses on discipline and program rebuild

Jason Lowry is the new Parlier High football coach.

Contributing photo

Jason Lowry stood on the sidelines at Parlier High football games years ago and envisioned himself someday leading the Panthers.

He got his first opportunity to make that vision a reality in 2023, when he applied for the head coaching job. Parlier ultimately went with Rick Stewart, who had more experience as a varsity head coach.

“They made the right decision,” Lowry said. “They went with the experienced guy.”

That didn’t stop Lowry from believing he was the right person to lead Parlier. When the job opened again, he put his name back in the hat.

This time, Parlier noticed.

Lowry had coaching experience, primarily as an assistant in Clovis Unified, but he also had an advantage: He was already part of the Parlier community as the school’s ROTC instructor.

Now, he’s taking over a program that hasn’t had a winning season since 2008-09, when the Panthers finished 8-4.

For Lowry, the opportunity isn’t simply about winning football games. It’s about changing the culture and establishing a foundation that can last.

“Sometimes the experienced guy doesn’t have the same passion as the guy who’s trying to prove himself,” Lowry said. “That’s what I saw in myself. I have the passion, the energy, the drive, and the grit to get this done.”

Parlier has endured a long stretch of difficult football, including winning just five games over the past six seasons. Lowry wants the Panthers to leave that history behind.

“We understand that over the past six years we’ve won five games total,” he said. “We don’t want to be known for that. We want to be known for hard work, technique, and discipline. We want to be known for bigger things than going 0-10 or winning five games over six years.”

Lowry believes the transformation starts with changing the way his players approach the game.

In his view, football isn’t about emphasizing one phase over another. Offense, defense and special teams all matter, but so does the mentality a player brings to practice and games.

“What we’re getting them to understand now is that football is all aspects—offense, defense, and special teams—but more importantly, it’s the mentality you show up with,” he said. “If you show up with the mentality that you’re just going to hang out and have fun, we don’t want to do that. We want to compete to win games.”

That process will come with an unusual challenge this season.

Parlier is in the process of building a new stadium, meaning the Panthers will spend the season playing their home games away from home. Some games are expected to be played in Orange Cove, with another site also being considered.

The new stadium is expected to be completed in 2028.

Rather than viewing the situation as an excuse, Lowry sees it as another opportunity for his players to live out the values he wants the program to represent: grit, determination and resilience.

For now, Lowry’s attention is on building the team that will eventually take the field in the new stadium.

He believes the Panthers’ senior class will play a major role in getting the program moving in the right direction.

“I think our senior class is really going to carry us this year,” he said.

That group includes Noah Solorio, whom Lowry identified as one of the team’s leaders, and Angel Cisneros, who is expected to handle the tailback duties.

Parlier has a history of producing quality running backs, and Lowry wants to continue that tradition.

“I believe Parlier has produced a lot of really good running backs in the past, and we want to honor that tradition by continuing to run the football,” he said. “Angel is going to be really good for us.”

Lowry also pointed to Alfred Gonzales at center, along with OL/DL Malakai Torres, TE/DE Matthew Cano and Javy Robles, a two-sport athlete who also plays basketball.

Cano, a junior, is already emerging as a leader, Lowry said.

Those players will be among the faces of a program Lowry hopes will look very different in the coming years.

He knows rebuilding Parlier won’t happen overnight. But he believes the process has already started.

The goal is to create a standard that extends beyond Friday nights and football.

And eventually, Lowry wants the community to see the results.

“I’m very excited to see the product we’re going to put on the field Friday nights,” Lowry said. “I believe Parlier is going to have something to be proud of, something to cheer for on Friday nights, and something to talk about on Saturday mornings.”

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