JACKSON - Northwest head coach Benjy Parker has been named MACCC North Division Coach of the Year, the Mississippi Association of Community Colleges Conference announced on Wednesday.

Parker has guided the Rangers to a 10-1 overall record and the program's 12th MACCC Championship, following a disappointing exit in last season's MACCC Semifinals. Under Parker's guidance, Northwest also captured its 20th MACCC North Division title this season and the Rangers are currently ranked fourth in the latest NJCAA Division I Football Rankings.

Since taking over the head coaching reins ahead of the 2016 season, Parker has led Northwest to the conference playoffs every season. The Bruce native holds a record of 75-20 overall and a 47-7 mark in division play. While he remains far behind the 201 career wins by all-time winningest head coach Bobby Franklin, Parker's .789 overall winning percentage is historically the best among all Northwest coaches. His .870 winning percentage in the MACCC North Division is also the best in program history.

Parker's teams have won seven or more games in every season since 2016, excluding the COVID-19 shortened 6-0 record during the fall of 2020. He has won five MACCC North Division titles since 2016 and three conference titles (2020, 2021, 2024). 

This is the fourth Coach of the Year award for Parker and the first since the 2021 season. He previously earned MACJC North Division Coach of the Year in 2017 and garnered MACCC Coach of the Year accolades in 2020. Parker was also awarded NJCAA Region 23 Coach of the Year in the 2021 campaign.

Northwest continues to await its national postseason destination, which will be announced by the NJCAA early next week. The Rangers have made the NJCAA Division I Football Playoffs three times in the last four seasons, the most of appearances of any MACCC program since the four-team playoff's inception in 2021.