Tuesday, December 12, 2017

Culver: New head coach Willie Simmons embraces FAMU family

TALLAHASSEE, Florida -- For Willie Simmons, coming back to Florida A&M University was simply coming home. Simmons has always been a Rattler. Tuesday's press conference just made it official.

His wife, Shaia, is a Rattler.

His son Tre is a Rattler – freshman class president, actually.

His mother, Phyllis, who died in 2005, was a Rattler. Simmons said his grandmother sent seven of her nine children to FAMU.

Orange and green are in his blood. After he greeted fans at his introductory press conference, he said he was home.

The pull of returning home was too much to resist for Simmons. It was enough to get him to leave Prairie A&M, where A) he was winning and B) the facilities were top-of-the-line.

Shaia, a major force in nudging Simmons back to Tallahassee, was easy to spot Tuesday – she was the one dancing alongside Venom while the Marching 100 played “S.O.S.”

“That reaction hasn’t stopped,” Simmons said with a laugh. “She’s a lifetime Rattler. She bleeds orange and green. She has the utmost respect for this university, for what it’s given her. She’s gotten two degrees from here and she’s working on a third.

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