Central Michigan University Athletics
Women's Basketball Assistant Has Deep Local Roots
8/12/2019 6:08:00 PM | Women's Basketball
Mark Simons joins coach Heather Oesterle's staff
MOUNT PLEASANT, Mich. – Central Michigan women's basketball coach Heather Oesterle has added coaching veteran Mark Simons to her staff as an assistant.
Simons, a Mount Pleasant native, brings more than 35 years of coaching experience, and two critical skills that Oesterle highly sought: head-coaching experience and recruiting ties to the Midwest, specifically to the state of the Michigan.
"I'm really excited for Mark to join our staff," said Oesterle, who was named to lead the highly successful program on July 12, succeeding her mentor, Sue Guevara, who retired. "I think he's going be a great fit with our staff and our team will love him."
Simons has deep roots in mid-Michigan. He is a graduate of Sacred Heart Academy in Mount Pleasant and has many relatives in the area, including former CMU men's basketball standout John Simons, Mark's nephew and Godson.
"Looking forward to seeing all the Simons' in the crowd at our games," said Oesterle, who added that Simons and Guevara have been coaching colleagues for years. "He comes highly recommended by (Guevara). He's someone I can really trust and he has a great basketball IQ."
Simons served last year at Georgia Tech and was also on the Yellow Jackets' staff from 2006-08. He was an assistant at Michigan State from 2012-17, helping lead the Spartans to four NCAA Tournament berths and four 20-win seasons.
Simons worked as an advance scout for the Washington Mystics of the WNBA and has also served as an assistant with the women's program at Auburn and was the head men's coach at Elon from 1993-2003, leading the program through the transition from NCAA Division II to Division I.
He also coached at Georgia College, St. Andrews (N.C.) College, and Saginaw Valley State. He began his coaching career as an assistant at his alma mater, Aquinas, in 1975-76. He was a four-year letter winner as a player at Aquinas College. He earned a master's degree from Michigan State in 1977.
