Bowling Green is targeting Southern Utah coach Todd Simon to be its next coach, sources told ESPN on Tuesday.
A deal is expected to be put together in the coming days, sources said.
Simon is set to replace Michael Huger, who was fired following an 11-20 season. Simon emerged as a top target for new athletic director Derek Van der Merwe after winning 20 or more games three straight years at Southern Utah. This included a Big Sky regular season championship in 2020–21.
Simon has been at Southern Utah since 2016 and compiled a 118-106 record there. He was UNLV’s interim coach during the 2015-16 season and went 9-8 during a 17-game stretch.
Prior to his time as an assistant coach and interim coach at UNLV, Simon coached for seven years at powerhouse Findlay Prep. He went 35-1 as a head coach in 2012-13 and was 192-9 his entire time there.
Southern Utah’s 23 wins in 2021-22 were the second-most in school history and he oversaw the transition from the Big Sky to the WAC this season. The Thunderbirds went 22-21 this year and finished third in the WAC with a 12-6 record.
Bowling Green has a history of hiring strong coaches, as Jim Larranaga, Dan Dakich, Bill Fitch and Chris Johns all coached at the school. Bowling Green has not made the NCAA Tournament since Fitch became head coach in his lone season in 1967-68.