SIMON HIRED AS UNLV ASSISTANT COACH
Findlay Prep head coach and former Runnin’ Rebel video assistant joins Rice’s coaching staff
Todd Simon has been hired as an assistant coach for the UNLV men’s basketball program, head coach Dave Rice announced Monday.
Simon, 32, returns to UNLV after spending seven years with the Findlay Prep program, including the last year as its head coach. Simon also has a history with the Runnin’ Rebels as he was a video assistant from 2004-06 before joining the Pilots.
At Findlay Prep, Simon spent six seasons as associate head coach before being named to the program’s top spot prior to the 2012-13 year. As head coach he led the team to a 35-1 record, including eight wins over top-25 ranked teams. The 35 victories are the most wins in school history as the program finished the regular season ranked as the nation’s unanimous No. 1 team for the first time.
“We are excited to add Todd Simon to our staff,” Rice said. “He brings head coaching experience and tremendous success at the prep school level. Coach Simon has a strong background at UNLV having been part of Lon Kruger’s staff for two seasons, while working towards his master’s degree. Todd has a tremendous work ethic and will be terrific complement to our staff in all areas.”
Findlay’s lone loss this past season came against St. Benedict’s in the semifinals of the ESPN National High School Invitational. The loss snapped a school-record 54-game win streak. A school-record eight players from this year’s team have signed with Division I schools and also helped set school records in defensive field-goal percentage and charges taken. In addition, Findlay has an active home win streak of 82 games.
Simon oversaw all academics of the program as its associate head coach and helped it to achieve a 100 percent graduation rate.
“I’m excited to return to a great program and to be a part of Coach Rice and his staff’s vision for UNLV basketball,” Simon said. “UNLV’s success under Coach Rice over the past two seasons is well respected on a national scale. Being part of a university that I graduated from, working in a city I have a passion for, and in a role of helping develop student-athletes is a tremendous opportunity.”
Findlay Prep has become known as one of the top prep schools in the country since it was founded in 2006. Simon has been involved from the beginning serving a critical role in bringing elite talent to the school in Henderson, Nev. Anthony Bennett, who attended UNLV and was selected as the top overall pick in last week’s NBA Draft, went to Findlay Prep as have other NBA players Avery Bradley, Tristan Thompson, DeAndre Liggins and Cory Joesph.
The Findlay program has won three ESPN national titles and has produced seven McDonald’s All-Americans. From 2007-12, the Pilots went 192-9 before last year’s record-breaking season.
A native of Fowler, Mich., Simon earned his bachelor’s degree from Central Michigan with a double-major in sport studies and management information systems in 2003. He was a member of the Honors College and graduated with a 3.9 GPA. He then earned his master’s degree from UNLV in sport education leadership in 2010. Todd and his wife, Kati, have two boys: Rece (2) and Raylan (6 months).