Aaron Simoneau - Cross Country Coach - Michigan State University Athletics

Aaron Simoneau

Title:
Head Men's Cross County Coach
Email:
simonea4@ath.msu.edu
Phone:
517-353-9299

Aaron Simoneau joined the MSU cross country and track & field programs as a full-time assistant coach in December of 2014. He enters his 11th season with the Spartans in 2024-25.

Simoneau's primary coaching responsibilities include working with the MSU distance runners, while also serving as recruiting coordinator.

In his 11 seasons with Michigan State in a full-time capacity, Simoneau has helped coach fourteen cross country All-Americans, including most recently Katie Osika, a graduate student who earned the honor of its kind for the first time in her career in 2022.

Since the 2015 cross country season, Simoneau has coached 20 men’s and 25 women’s cross country runners to Great Lakes All-Region accolades, in addition to the 12 men and 19 women who have earned All-Big Ten honors.

Simoneau has been part of the coaching staff that has helped lead the women’s cross country team to three Big Ten titles in 2019, 2020, and 2022 while they've been on the podium in seven of the eight seasons during his time with the team. He has also aided the women's Great Lakes Regional Championship in 2019 and the men's in 2017 to earn automatic bids to the NCAA Cross Country Championships. At the 2020 NCAA Championships, the Spartan women raced to a fourth-place finish, which was the highest finish since the team won the title in 2014. On the men's side, the 17th place finish at the NCAA Championship was the program's best since 2006.

One of the brightest stars who shined under Simoneau's guidance was Morgan Beadlescomb, a 10-time All-American, between cross country plus indoor and outdoor track who was twice an NCAA runner-up, three-time Big Ten Champion in track distance events and 2022 Great Lakes Region Men's Indoor Track Athlete of the Year. The likely future Spartan Hall-of-famer currently runs professionally for Adidas. Another bright spot on the men's side has been John Petruno, a two-time All-American, sub-four minute miler, and multiple-time Big Ten medalist.

On the track, Simoneau has become an integral part in mentoring the distance runners and coaching them to the NCAA Finals.

Since joining the staff for the 2014-15 track and field seasons, Simoneau has guided 10 Big Ten Champions on the men's side and 17 on the women's side in distance-related events. He has also aided in the success of 28 men's All-Americans and 15 women's All-Americans.

During the 2019 outdoor season, Simoneau helped coach three athletes to the NCAA Finals, including NCAA Runner-Up Justine Kiprotich in the 1,500 meters, Karrigan Smith in the 3,000 steeplechase, Dillon McClintock in the 1,500 meters and Morgan Beadlescomb in the 5,000 meters.

With Simoneau’s guidance, Justine Kiprotich became the first three-time outdoor All-American on the track in program history. Kiprotich completed his Spartan career at the 2019 NCAA Championships in Austin, Texas with his second runner-up performance. Kiprotich finished second in 2017 and seventh in 2018.

Simoneau was an integral part of the coaching staff that helped lead the 2014 Spartan women's cross country team to the first-ever NCAA championship in women's program history. MSU went undefeated in its six major competitions of the 2014 season and had four individuals named to the NCAA All-American Team. The Spartan women's squad also won the Big Ten and Great Lakes Regional Championships in 2014, while the MSU men's team was the regional runner-up and finished 24th at the NCAA Championships.

A star from the 2014 season was Leah O'Connor who won multiple All-American honors in the mile and 3,000-meter steeplechase under Simoneau's coaching. O'Connor was named the Great Lakes Region Women's Track Athlete of the Year in three seperate seasons, the only Spartan to ever achieve the feat.

Prior to his current position, Simoneau returned to his alma mater and served as the volunteer and graduate assistant coach with the Spartans.

As a student-athlete at Michigan State, Simoneau ran cross country and track from 2007-2012. The Manistee, Michigan, native was named team captain during his junior and senior year and was a two-time national qualifier in the 3,000m steeplechase.