Willie Simmons is closing in on completing his inaugural staff at Florida International University, and the veteran Simmons is working to finalize deals to bring along some familiar faces.
Multiple sources tell FootballScoop that Simmons is targeting UAB's Nick Coleman to become FIU's offensive coordinator, and longtime college coaching Rick Stockstill is in discussions to become the Panthers's tight ends coach.
All sound familiar? It should. Stockstill, the man who served as head coach at MTSU from 2006 through 2023, hired Simmons onto his MTSU staff for a five-year run from the 2007 through 2011 seasons.
It was also during that time that Coleman was a quarterback for the Blue Raiders, and after his playing career concluded following the 2009 season, he served as an offensive graduate assistant under Simmons and Stockstill during 2010.
Coleman has served as Trent Dilfer's quarterbacks coach the past two seasons at UAB, where he arrived after spending the previous two seasons on Shane Beamer's South Carolina staff as an offensive analyst.
Stockstill has served as an senior offensive analyst the past year for Mike Norvell at Florida State.
Simmons, hired earlier this month at FIU after spending the 2024 season on Manny Diaz's Duke staff, has been moving quickly to get his FIU staff in place prior to the close of the NCAA Transfer Portal Window, which opened Dec. 9 and has been set to conclude Dec. 28 unless a student-athlete is on a team that still has one or more games remaining.