Adrian Benitez | Staff Writer
A new era has begun for FIU football. Duke running backs coach and former Florida A&M head coach Willie Simmons has signed a four-year deal to become the seventh head coach of the Panthers program.
The deal was first reported by Yahoo Sports’ Ross Dellenger on Saturday morning.
Simmons is a proven winner as a head coach. He’s had two stints coaching Prairie View A&M and Florida A&M, compiling a 66-24 overall record.
His time at FAMU was particularly impressive, only winning less than nine games in one of his five seasons. In 2023, Simmons’ Rattlers team went 12-1 and won the SWAC championship, as well as a black college football national championship.
In his one season at Duke, he was part of a team that went 9-3. In addition, he was the main recruiter involved in signing three-star running back Nate Sheppard to the Blue Devils. Sheppard committed to Duke over offers from Ole Miss and Colorado.
Simmons is taking the job left vacant with the firing of head coach Mike MacIntyre back on Dec. 1. His dismissal came after the conclusion of a third straight 4-8 season for the program, as well as abuse allegations made against him by former players.
With this hire, it seems that FIU is going for another coach with proven success. Though he’s never coached at the FBS level, his transformation of the FAMU football program is a promising sign.
The hiring of Simmons helps the Panthers massively in the recruiting department. After spending five years developing ties in Tallahassee, Simmons will have a lot of pull with recruits and transfers all around the Sunshine State.
All in all, the hiring of Simmons points to an optimistic future for the program. With the amount of players that have left the program this offseason, it may take some time to gain momentum, but things are certainly on track to improve for FIU football.
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