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Marshall University

Marshall Athletic Department
P.O. Box 1360 Huntington, WV 25715
Division 1 West Virginia Northeast
Public Medium National competitor

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Rafa Simoes

Marshall men’s soccer head coach Chris Grassie announced the addition of Rafa Simoes to the coaching staff on March 1, 2022.


Simoes makes his return to Huntington after working with the Herd in 2018-19.


“I want to thank Coach Chris Grassie for believing in me and offering me the opportunity to work with the best soccer program in the country,” Simoes said. “Marshall is a place that I am proud to call home. I always knew I would come back to Huntington – an incredible place that helped shape me as a coach. The Herd community is my motivation to do an excellent job for this top program. It’s great to be back. Go Herd!”


Simoes rejoins Marshall after coaching stints at Nova Southeastern (2021-22) and Ohio University (2019-20), both serving as an assistant coach with the women’s programs.


“I’m very happy to welcome Rafa back to our staff,” coach Grassie said. “Rafa played for me, and also coached for me back in 2018. Since then, he’s been on a coaching journey, working hard and educating himself, and taking opportunities that have taken him across the country. Rafa is an amazing human being, and I know our players will learn a lot from him on the pitch and from him as a man. With Kyle (Sniatecki) leaving, we had big shoes to fill, so I thought, ‘who would be great?’ Rafa was my first and only phone call, so I know we have the right person, who can help us grow our program.”


In 2021 with Nova Southeastern, Simoes helped lead the Sharks to an 8-7-1 record overall and 6-4 in the Sunshine State Conference (Division II). The season included a 1-0 conference victory over No. 17 Florida Tech on Oct. 2. The Sharks had two players named All-Conference in Louise Matsgard and Chama Silva. Matsgard also earned D2CCA All-South Region honors as well.


In 2019 at Ohio, the Bobcats finished the season 11-9-1, including starting on a 6-match winning streak. The year ended in the Mid-American Conference Tournament semi-finals. That year, four players received All-MAC accolades. Alivia Milesky and Abby Townsend were named to the First Team, Victoria Breeden earned Second Team honors and Maddie Young was selected to the All-Freshman team. Ohio scored 38 goals in 2019 with Milesky leading the way with a career-high 10. Milesky also earned All-Region honors.


During the 2018 season in Simoes’ first stint with Marshall, the Herd finished 8-9-3 in coach Grassie’s second year leading the program. The Herd defeated FIU in the first round of the Conference USA Tournament before falling to top-seeded and third-ranked Kentucky, who went on to win the tournament. Marshall had five players receive All-C-USA honors and two named to the All-Tournament team.


Along with coaching at the collegiate level, Simoes has led the River Valley Soccer Club, the West Virginia Olympic Development Program-Youth Soccer where he won State Cup titles in 2019 and 2021, West Virginia Football Club-Youth Soccer, the Charleston Football Club-Youth Soccer and the Tetra Brazil/Challenger Sports back in 2015. He was named the River Valley Soccer Club Coach of the Year in 2019 and 2020.


Simoes starred in his native country of Brazil, including being the top scorer in the SP State League with 26 goals in 2009 being named First Team All-State SP League the same year.


Simoes played at the University of Charleston from 2014-17, with his first three seasons playing for coach Grassie. Simoes was a member of the Division II National Runner-up in 2014, a Final Four squad in 2015, another National Runner-up in 2016 and finally the Division II National Champions in 2017. During his time with the Golden Eagles, Charleston finished with an overall record of 82-8-5.


Simoes owns a bachelor’s degree in Business Administration and two Master’s degrees in Physical Education and Coaching, as well as in Sports Science. He holds a USSF National C License.


Simoes is marred to his wife, Rebecca.

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