Bio

Coach Tom Simpson was named the head coach of Coker Men's and Women's Tennis for his first stint in September of 2011. Simpson came from the Smith Stearns Tennis Academy in Hilton Head, SC, where he served as a pro, giving private and group lessons as well as serving as the traveling coach for the tennis academy. He was also the Co-Director of the Academy’s Housing of International and National Students. Prior to his time at Smith Stearns, Simpson served as the head professional and tennis director at several tennis clubs in Columbia and Hilton Head, including The Rockbridge Club, the Spring Valley Country Club, the Forest Lake Country Club, and the Port Royal Racquet Club.

A very successful professional tennis instructor, coach, and player, Simpson holds his United States Professional Tennis Association (USPTA) P1 certification and his United States Professional Tennis Registry (USPTR) certification. He holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in Political Science from Oakland University in Rochester, MI, where he competed in the NCAA Division II singles and doubles championships in 1979. He also holds a Master of Arts in Intercultural Studies from Columbia International University.

Simpson had a successful first stint with the Cobras, being named the Conference Carolinas Coach of the Year and the United States Professional Tennis Association Southern Division Coach of the Year in just his second season with the program. That season, the men were a record-setting 18-5 overall and a perfect 10-0 in conference. They were ranked as high as No. 6 in the Southeast Region, and Andre Staab became the first-ever Coker player to be ranked nationally (No. 32) and regionally (No.12) by the ITA. Staab was also named Conference Carolinas Freshman of the Year and ITA Rookie of the Year.

In that 2012-13 season, six Cobras received all-conference honors, four men and two women. Andre Staab, William Marrafao, James Corfield, and Tom Sizeland were all-conference on the men's team, while Daniela Chipe and Jessi Campos were all-conference on the women's team. During the 2013-14 season, the Cobra men had another outstanding season. They finished the season 11-8 overall, but registered a 9-2 conference mark and came up just short of back-to-back regular season championships. Coker was ranked as high as No. 33 in the nation and No. 8 in the Southeast region. The Cobras had four players land on all-conference teams that season, with sophomores Andre Staab and Tom Sizeland both being named first-team singles selections. Staab and partner James Corfield were tabbed first-team doubles selections, while William Marrafao was named an honorable mention singles selection.

Following the end of the 2013-14 season, Simpson departed Coker to become the Director of Character Development and College Advisor at Bishops Gate Golf Academy. In that role, he served both golfers and tennis players alike. Following that stint, he returned to the Coker Tennis Courts for the 2017-18 school year. In that first season back, the men saw their best season since the 2014 season, recording 11 wins and securing a trip to the South Atlantic Conference tournament. That season, he coached Mark Watt to SAC First Team honors in singles and doubles, Hunter Horton to a SAC Honorable Mention award in singles, and Henrik Hellbe to a SAC First Team award in doubles. The men's tennis team finished the academic year with an impressive GPA of 3.7. Henrik Hellbe won the SAC Men's Tennis Scholar-Athlete of the Year award, as well as the prestigious SAC President's Award.

Simpson helped the Cobra tennis teams to improved records in 2019-20 before the seasons were cut short due to COVID-19. The men's team got off to a fast start, posting a 6-1 record, including one win in South Atlantic Conference play. The ladies posted a 5-4 record under Simpson's tutelage. He also coached Hunter Horton, who won the South Atlantic Conference's Elite 20 Award for Men's Tennis. Horton was later named a CoSIDA Academic All-District At-Large selection, before being named a Second Team Academic All-American. Academically, Men's Tennis posted the second-highest GPA for the year amongst Coker's 24 athletic teams with a mark of 3.78, before 10 players were named to the 2019-20 SAC Commissioner's Honor Roll. In the classroom, the women posted a 3.70 team GPA and had four players named to the 2019-20 SAC Commissioner's Honor Roll. Both teams were named ITA All-Academic Teams, and combined for 11 Scholar-Athletes.

Simpson has coached two stellar athletes on the women's side in the form of Jessica Binzari and Jade Bellegy since returning as the coach, with both earning a number of postseason honors. In the 2023 season, Binzari was ranked as the 57th-best tennis player in the country as well as a top-10 player nationally. Bellegy was in a similar scenario, as she came in as a 7.7 UTR and left as an 8.8 with numerous accolades and rankings. The women's program has seen a recent spike, culminating in a 14-7 record in the 2025 season, the best record in program history. The women also recorded their first nationally-ranked win in program history (4-3 over #32 Newberry) and made it to the South Atlantic Conference semifinals, where they lost to the eventual champions in #4 Catawba. Bellegy was an All-SAC First-Team honoree in singles and joined Emerson Banning as a First-Team Doubles pairing. Simpson also coached the 2025 SAC Freshman of the Year in Ilona Hernandez-Sanchez.