BATON ROUGE — LSU’s success in the 400-meter dash has helped lay the foundation for its current position at the forefront of collegiate track and field, and the Tigers look to continue their success for years to come with the signing of prep standout Robert Simmons on Monday.
By signing his National Letter of Intent, Simmons hopes to continue LSU’s tradition of producing elite quartermilers that boasts three NCAA champions and 20 All-Americans in program history.
A product of Fort Bend Hightower High School in Missouri City, Texas, Simmons burst onto the scene last summer at the 2007 Pan American Junior Championships in Sao Paulo, Brazil, when he ran a personal best and the fourth-fastest time in the nation by a high school boy at 400 meters with a time of 46.40 seconds in the semifinal round.
His time also ranked No. 1 in the United States for a member of the Class of 2008 and No. 20 in the world by an athlete under the age of 20. Simmons went on to finish in fourth place at the Pan Am Junior Championships with a time of 46.46 in the finals.
He did not return home empty handed as he ran the leadoff leg on the United States’ 4×400-meter relay team that won a silver medal with a time of 3 minutes, 6.15 seconds.
“Robert is a young man that we’ve known about for a while now, but he really came on strong at the end of his junior season last summer,” said LSU head coach Dennis Shaver. “He’s without a doubt one of the top recruits in the world at 400 meters, and he showed why with his performance at the Pan Am Juniors. We’re excited that he has chosen to continue his career at LSU.
“He’s a very talented runner who will only improve with the competitive training program we have here at LSU. Robert has proven to be a great competitor and has the potential to continue the tradition of great quartermilers to wear the purple and gold.”
Simmons is no stranger to national competition as he won gold medals in the 4×100 and 4×200 relays with Team Texas at the 2007 Nike Outdoor Nationals last summer. He also won a pair of medals at the 2007 USA Track & Field Junior Olympic Championships, winning silver in the 200 with a personal best time of 21.11 and bronze in the 400 with a time of 47.28.
For his heroics in national competition and on the international stage, Simmons was named to the 2007 Boys All-USA Track and Field Team by USA Today.
He carried that momentum into the 2008 season by setting a new indoor personal best in the 400 meters with a time of 47.80 on the 200-meter oval at The Armory Track and Field Center in New York where he won a silver medal at the National Scholastic Indoor Championships.
Simmons knows what it takes to win championships and will bring that winning attitude to LSU next season after leading Fort Bend Hightower to the University Interscholastic League Class 5A state championship in 2007.
“Along with his many individual accomplishments, Robert understands what it takes for the team to win at the highest level,” Shaver said. “He will fit right in with the team mentality we have here at LSU. This is a program that is known for winning national championships, and Robert is a young man who will certainly help us continue to strive to reach that goal.”
Simmons joins a small but impressive incoming class of Tigers for the Class of 2008 that features fellow 400-meter standout Ade Alleyne-Forte of Trinidad and Tobago.
Alleyne-Forte boasts a personal best of 46.27 in the event that he set in a bronze-medal winning performance at the Pan Am Juniors this past summer before representing his country at the 2007 IAAF World Championships in Osaka, Japan, as a member of Trinidad’s 4×400 relay pool.
The Tigers will also welcome All-American transfer Walter Henning and prep hurdler Barrett Nugent to the squad in 2009. Henning will compete in the weight throw and hammer throw following an All-American freshman season at North Carolina, while Nugent will line up in both the 110 and 400 hurdles following his career at North Vermillion High School in Maurice, La.