School reassigns coach Willis May

Marjory Stoneman Douglas football coach Willis May has been reassigned from his position, per a robocall sent out to parents on Thursday afternoon.

Principal Ty Thompson was the voice on the robocall informing parents. No reason was given for the decision.

“This morning, one of our teachers, Mr. May, was reassigned to a district administrative location until further notice,” said Thompson in a recording of the message obtained by the Sun Sentinel. “The reassignment is unrelated to the February 14 tragedy.”

Over the past four months, the football team has been coping with the loss of beloved assistant coach Aaron Feis, one of the 17 victims who died in the Feb. 14 shooting at the Parkland high school. Chris Hixon, Stoneman Douglas’ athletic director at the time, was also killed.

Neither May nor new athletic director Lauren Rubenstein responded to requests for comment. School Board representatives could not be reached or refused to comment.

With the football team participating in summer workouts ahead of the upcoming fall season, May was there to orchestrate workouts on Thursday morning. However on Friday, defensive coordinator Quentin Short filled that role, according to two sources who were there.

May’s son, Jordan May, who is offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach, was also at the workout Friday, according to one source.

After spending the 2012 season as a Douglas assistant, he was promoted to head coach the following year. During his tenure, he accumulated a 28-21 record, going 5-4 last season.

In addition to his coaching duties, May also serves as a physical education teacher.

At the time of the massacre, May was in his football office with four football players and two coaches from Nichols College when he heard “Code Red” over the intercom and the school went into a lockdown mode. May said they later saw the shooter outside the office window, trying to blend in with students evacuating.

Prior to Stoneman Douglas, May spent eight seasons as the head coach at West Virginia’s Hurricane High School, finishing 59-30 during that stretch. May also played college football in the Mountain State, suiting up at Concord University.

In addition to Feis and Hixon, Douglas cross-country coach Scott Beigel was another fatal victim of the shooting with coaching ties to school athletics. The three will be honored posthumously with the Best Coach Award at the upcoming ESPYs on ESPN on July 18.