In 1957, the Orange posted an undefeated record; Simmons Jr. trailed only Jim Brown among the team's top scorers, and was named an honorable mention All-American.
[5] In 1958, Simmons graduated from Syracuse with a Bachelor of Fine Arts in sculpture, and the following year he joined his father's staff as coach of the freshman lacrosse team.
Early in his head coaching career, the program faced budget limitations and was unsuccessful, with losing records in three straight seasons.
[6] Eventually, he received increased support in the form of scholarships and focused his recruiting efforts on central New York-based high school players.
[11] In 1980, the Orange reached the semifinals of the NCAA Tournament before losing to Johns Hopkins, their furthest advancement in the event to that point under the leadership of Simmons.
In 1983, Syracuse posted an 11–1 record in the regular season—losing only to Army—then defeated Pennsylvania and Maryland in the NCAA Tournament to reach the championship game against top-ranked Johns Hopkins.
"[6] The Orange trailed 12–5 at one point in the second half, but rallied for a 17–16 victory, claiming the program's first NCAA Tournament title and first national championship since 1925.
[15] The Gaits, who had resided in Canada, were recruited by Simmons at a time when Canadian lacrosse players typically took part in indoor games.
[16] Before the Gaits started playing for Syracuse, Simmons called them "the two greatest lacrosse players I've ever seen in my life"; the pair combined for 118 goals in 1988.
[14] Syracuse returned to the championship game of the NCAA Tournament in 1990, defeating Loyola 21–9 to give Simmons an apparent fourth title, and third in a row.
[14] However, in 1995 the NCAA stripped Syracuse of the championship after a report that an automobile loan for Paul Gait was co-signed by Simmons's wife, Nancy.