From a family of 10 children, he is the second member to compete on the collegiate gridiron. His older brother, Chris, played at Central Michigan (1993-96).

Parmele was ranked 16th on the Detroit Free Press "Fab 50" Team and 31st on the Detroit News' "Blue Chip List" as a senior at Dow High School. He was named first-team Class A All-State and earned the league's Most Valuable Player award. He was also named the 24th-best player in the state of Michigan by The Midwest Football Recruiting News.

In his final season, Parmele rushed for 1,507 yards and 23 touchdowns. He made first-team All-League as a junior after gaining 1,253 yards on the ground. The three-time All-Academic team choice added 705 yards on the ground as a sophomore. He also ran track as a sprinter and played basketball.

Rather than enroll at his brother's former school, Parmele ventured to Toledo in 2004. He was listed third on the depth chart at tailback, appearing briefly in nine games. He totaled 183 yards and scored three times on 42 carries (4.4 avg). He also gained 24 yards on four catches. As a sophomore, he was elevated to second string behind Trinity Dawson at tailback, but missed the Northern Illinois and Ohio University games with a right ankle sprain. He finished with 64 attempts for 294 yards (4.6 avg) and three touchdowns.

Parmele emerged from 2006 fall camp as the Rockets' new starting tailback. He led the team and ranked second in the league with 1,131 yards and eight touchdowns on 207 carries (5.5 avg). The first-team All-Mid American Conference runner also snared 16 passes for 128 yards, as he also averaged 15.3 yards on three kickoff returns.

As a senior, Parmele again received All-MAC first-team recognition after his banner campaign. He finished ninth in the nation in rushing, with 1,511 yards on 276 runs (5.5 avg) that included 14 touchdowns. He caught 17 passes for 157 yards (9.2 avg) and one score, as he also returned 20 kickoffs for 560 yards (28.0 avg) and a touchdown. His 2,228 all-purpose yards were good for 10th place in the NCAA.

Parmele started 24 of 44 games at Toledo, ranking fourth in school history with 3,119 yards on 589 carries (5.3 avg), including 28 touchdowns. He made 41 catches for 350 yards (8.5 avg) and one score. He returned 25 kickoffs for 628 yards (25.1 avg) and one touchdown, as he scored 180 points. He also gained 4,097 all-purpose yards, an average of 93.11 yards per game.

Negatives: More of a straight-line runner who has good weave in his running style, but is not a true cutback runner ... Displays good balance, but only adequate quickness off the ball, in cuts and while hitting the hole ... Sees and anticipates the holes, but is not always at the hole when it opens ... Makes moves that take time to get to the line of scrimmage and tends to run too high inside ... When he fails to run at a good pad level, he can be dragged down rather than breaking one-arm tackles ... Has strength, but needs better quickness and power ... Has good timed speed, but not as an outside runner to turn upfield and gain extra yardage ... Runs east/west too much before heading north/south ... Shows only adequate explosion into the hole and on initial contact ... Plays at one speed most of the time and displays marginal elusiveness to avoid tacklers ... As a receiver, he needs to look for the ball sooner and be ready to make the catch ... Needs to get his head and shoulder turned past the line of scrimmage ... Shows inconsistency in his approach to blocking and in his ability to finish ... Despite his ability to break arm tackles, he does not have the brute strength to push the pile ... Has decent hip snap, but will take too long to change directions ... Good on controlled routes, but struggles to get into gear when asked to line wide as a receiver ... Has problems separating after the catch, as he needs to gather, giving the defender time to recover.

Compares To: KOLBY SMITH-Kansas City ... Like Smith, Parmele is a physical runner with adequate power, but does have some issues when he needs to push the pile. He is a one-cut runner with decent hip snap, but is not going to separate from too many defenders in the open field. He is a good complementary back who has good upside on special teams, but is not a featured runner despite a pair of 1,000-yard seasons. He might have good triangle numbers, but does not always play up to his size as one would hope.

Combine: 4.47 in the 40-yard dash ... 1.48 10-yard dash ... 2.54 20-yard dash ... 4.3 20-yard shuttle ... 6.96 three-cone drill ... 34-inch vertical jump ... 10'5" broad jump ... Bench pressed 225 pounds 19 times.