| Wins against Kentucky - 1 | Losses against Kentucky - 0 |
Alma Mater: Georgia Southern [1961]
Date Born: June 14, 1937
Date Died: October 24, 1999
Overall Record: 71-66 [5 Seasons]
| Date | Matchup | UK Result | Score | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3/11/1982 | Kentucky vs. Middle Tennessee | L | 44 - 50 | NCAA Mideast Regional First Round (at Nashville, TN) |
Obituary - Murfreesboro (TN) Daily News-Journal (October 26, 1999)
Colorful ex-MTSU Coach Dies
by Tony Stinnett
One of the most colorful coaches in MTSU sports history died Sunday after an extended battle with cancer. <>Stan "Ramrod" Simpson, who coached MTSU's men's basketball team from 1979-84 and had served as a Blue Raider assistant to Jimmy Earle prior to that, compiled a 71-66 worksheet in five seasons at the helm.
Simpson led the Blue Raiders to the biggest basketball win in school history and, perhaps the greatest sports victory in university history, when MTSU stunned Kentucky 50-44 in the opening-round of the NCAA Tournament in 1982.
He was known for his outlandish one-liners, his off-the-cuff remarks and his motivational techniques, but Earle recalls his friend and co-worker as one of the "most loyal people" he ever knew.
Earle was 164-103 during a 10-year career at MTSU, much of which was spent with Simpson as an assistant.
"I knew Stanley was fighting a battle and I am so sorry this has happened," Earle said Monday night. "He was well-liked by all the players. He was one of the most loyal people to me. A lot of our success during (the 1970s) can be credited to Stanley Simpson. I have him so much responsibility."
"You are only as good as your staff and I had an outstanding staff with Stanley and Jan Stauffer (who is now principal at La Vergne High School). I had two of the finest assistants anywhere."
Earle said that Simpson was in charge of organization and advance scouting.
"Stanley was an outstanding basketball coach and he knew the game," Earle said. "He coordinated our game preparation during the time he was with me. Our basketball team was as organized as any you would find in the United States."
Chris Harris, currently an assistant basketball coach at Riverdale and the starting center when MTSU upset Kentucky, recalls Simpson as a "great motivator."
"He could get the best out of anyone," Harris said. "He was a great motivator. He could really find ways of getting the best out of his players. Sometimes that may have been through hard discipline, like running us to death, but when we played Kentucky he made us believe we had a chance to beat them."
Buck Hailey, who also was a starter on the 1982 team, credits Simpson's motivational approach and game plan for the monumental win.
"A lot of people across America underestimated us, but we knew before we played Kentucky that we were going to win," said Hailey in an earlier interview. "The only ones who didn't know it were the fans. It was no fluke that we won. We had a motivating coach who made us believe we could do anything."
Simpson also made people laugh. It didn't matter who, where or when. He seemed to have a knack for bringing humor to a situation.
Moments after MTSU lost at Alabama, 103-58, during the 1982-83 season, Simpson told the press one bad call beat the Blue Raiders -- "the one our athletic director made to schedule the game."
During a press conference prior to the NCAA Tournament selection 1982 Simpson told reporters he "was like the ugly girl at the dance." He didn't care who he got to dance with as long as he got to dance.
"You would think Ramrod would outlive everybody because he always said he was the meanest man in town," said longtime friend and supporter Fred Lovelace. "You never knew if the story he was telling was the biggest lie in the world or the truth. He could tell some good stories and never was at a loss for words."
Stauffer, who coached under Bobby Knight at Indiana and then later joined Earle's MTSU staff, said Simpson had a calming effect and had an uncanny ability to keep people loose even under the most stressful situations.
"We were good friends and I'm certainly sorry to hear about his death," Stauffer said. "I always thought Stanley had a good knowledge of the game and did a good job of motivating players. I know personally that he and I had a lot of very good times together and I certainly miss some of the good times we had."
"He was very well liked. You couldn't talk to him without laughing half of the time. I never met a man that had as many funny jokes to tell. Under difficult times he could keep you loose and often make you forget about something being serious and make a good, enjoyable moment of it."
Funeral services for Simpson will be Wednesday at 11 a.m. at the First Methodist Church in Nashville, Ga. Graveside services will follow in nearby Wheeler County, Ga.
Simpson is survived by his wife, Betty Jean.
