Roy Simmons, Jr.

Roy D. Simmons Jr. (born August 6, 1935) is a former American lacrosse coach who was the head coach of the Syracuse Orange men's lacrosse team from 1971 to 1998. Simmons' teams won the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Men's Lacrosse Championship six times (one was later vacated), and appeared in the national semifinals 16 consecutive seasons. He won the F. Morris Touchstone Award for the coach of the year in NCAA men's lacrosse in 1980, and was inducted into the National Lacrosse Hall of Fame in 1991.

Early life and playing career Simmons's father, Roy Simmons Sr., was the coach of Syracuse's men's lacrosse team for 39 seasons; he was a 1964 National Lacrosse Hall of Fame inductee. According to Simmons Jr., during his early years he was a mascot for his father's teams, and was a regular in the team's locker room. He was also interested in boxing, and Simmons Sr. referred to him as "Slugger". Simmons Jr. attended Kimball Union Academy, playing on the school's lacrosse team for three seasons. Beginning in 1955, Simmons Jr. went to Syracuse University, He repeated as an honorable mention All-American selection the next season, when he served as captain for Syracuse. Twelve years later, he succeeded his father as head coach of the varsity team. Early in his head coaching career, the program faced budget limitations and was unsuccessful, with losing records in three straight seasons. In 1974, it had a 2–9 win–loss record, and Simmons once fielded two goaltenders during a game against Cornell. In addition, Simmons had numerous players from the Iroquois tribe. Previously, he had relied on local Native Americans and ex-members of the Syracuse Orange football team to form the basis of his rosters. In 1980, the Orange reached the semifinals of the NCAA Tournament before losing to Johns Hopkins, their furthest advancement in the event to that point under the leadership of Simmons. After entering halftime with a four-goal deficit to Johns Hopkins, Simmons Jr. forbid his players from entering the team's locker room, telling them "There is no sanctuary." They reached the final but lost in a rematch against Johns Hopkins, 13–10. After Syracuse finished the 1985 regular season with a 12–1 record, the teams met in the NCAA Tournament final; The Gaits, who had resided in Canada, were recruited by Simmons at a time when Canadian lacrosse players typically took part in indoor games. Before the Gaits started playing for Syracuse, Simmons called them "the two greatest lacrosse players I've ever seen in my life"; the pair combined for 118 goals in 1988. North Carolina prevented Syracuse from playing in the championship game of the 1991 NCAA Tournament with a 19–13 victory in the semifinals. With a 13–9 Syracuse victory, Simmons claimed his sixth national championship, counting the vacated 1990 title. He later indicated that a desire to pursue an art hobby and have more family time was the reason for his decision. He was 290–96 in his head coaching career, and had a streak of reaching the semifinals of the NCAA Tournament in 16 consecutive seasons prior to his retirement. One of his children, Roy III, is the director of operations for Syracuse's men's lacrosse team, and played on Simmons's 1978–1981 teams. His grandson, Ryan Simmons, also played lacrosse for the Orange.

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