Week 1 Prep Blitz: Simons, in year 28, not done yet at Clovis North

Clovis North’s Tim Simons, a month shy of his 74th birthday, in his 28th season as a high school football coach and 4 1/2 years removed from heart surgery, says he feels chipper and hasn’t established a timeline on retirement.

“My answer is the same I’ve been giving for 15 years, which is I’m taking it one year at a time,” he said. “Last year, at the end of the season, there was no question in my mind I wanted to come back and coach again. If I feel that way at the end of this season, I’ll do it again. So I’m not putting any restrictions or time limit on myself.”

Common thought on the street has former Kingsburg coach Dave Steele – in his first season as the Broncos’ defensive coordinator – taking over from Simons after one year.

“That’s not the deal,” Simons said. “It could happen, though. He’ll do a fine job.”

At 240-83-6 – the lion’s share compiled in 24 years at Clovis – Simons is second only to the late Leo Robinson of Woodlake (290-129-11, 1962-2002) in Central Section career wins, according to historian Bob Barnett.

Saturday, at 7 p.m. at Veterans Memorial Stadium, Clovis North (0-1) will play Folsom (1-0), the state’s defending Division I champion coming off a 16-0 season and ranked No. 5 in the state this year by Cal-Hi Sports.

Games of the week (all Friday)

▪ No. 8 Lemoore (1-0) at No.1 Clovis (1-0): Tigers D-II but with D-I talent – again – after beating the Cougars 40-27 last year.

▪ No. 2 Liberty-Bakersfield (0-1) at No. 10 Ridgeview (1-0): Kern County headliner.

▪ No. 4 Bullard (1-0) at No. 7 Buchanan (1-0): Can the Bears find more emotional gas after stunning Edison, 16-14, on the final play last week?

▪ No. 11 Edison (0-1) at No. 3 Bakersfield (0-1): Want NASCAR speed? Turn left and go to this one.

▪ Liberty-Madera Ranchos (1-0) at Mendota (1-0): Small-schools special set for capacity crowd. Liberty-Madera Ranchos has a state-leading 20-game winning streak.

This story was originally published September 3, 2015 at 7:39 PM with the headline "Week 1 Prep Blitz: Simons, in year 28, not done yet at Clovis North."