Clyde Simmons

Twice Pro Bowl defensive end and Eagles Hall of Famer, now coaching at Bowling Green.

Clyde Simmons Jr. (born August 4, 1964) is an American football coach who currently serves as the defensive line coach for the Bowling Green Falcons. During his playing career, he was a defensive end in the NFL. With the Philadelphia Eagles, he earned two first-team All-Pro honors and two Pro Bowl selections, and he was later inducted into the Philadelphia Eagles Hall of Fame.

Simmons played college football at Western Carolina University, where he helped the Catamounts reach the 1983 NCAA Division I-AA National Championship game. He was inducted into the Western Carolina Athletics Hall of Fame in 1992.

The Philadelphia Eagles selected Simmons in the ninth round of the 1986 NFL draft, and he spent eight seasons with the team (1986–1993). He later played for the Arizona Cardinals (1994–1995), Jacksonville Jaguars (1996–1997), Cincinnati Bengals (1998), and Chicago Bears (1999–2000). In 1992, he led the NFL with 19 sacks. He finished his career with 121.5 sacks, which ranked 11th all time at the time (currently 22nd). He was selected to the Pro Bowl in 1991 and 1992. In the 1996 NFL Playoffs, he returned an interception for a touchdown against Jim Kelly and the Buffalo Bills.

After retiring, Simmons began coaching in 2008 as the defensive line coach at Greater Atlanta Christian School. In 2010, he joined the New York Jets as a fellowship coach under Rex Ryan. He later served as an assistant defensive line coach for the St. Louis/Los Angeles Rams, where the team recorded 217 total sacks during his tenure. He coached three-time Pro Bowl defensive tackle and 2014 NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year Aaron Donald, as well as defensive end Robert Quinn, who set a single-season franchise record with 19 sacks in 2013. In January 2017, he was hired as the defensive line coach for the Cleveland Browns. In 2019, he became the defensive line coach at Missouri Baptist. In May 2021, he was hired as the defensive line coach at Tennessee State under head coach Eddie George. In March 2025, he was hired as the defensive line coach at Bowling Green.