John Fitzsimmons steps down at Falmouth (Maine) in aftermath of players seeking his removal
John Fitzsimmons will no longer be the head football coach at Falmouth High School (Maine).
The school on Thursday afternoon officially received a resignation letter from Fitzsimmons, ending his tenure with the Navigators after 17 seasons at the helm.
In a press release by Gretchen McNulty, the Superintendent of Falmouth Public Schools, she released the following:
“Earlier today, I received a letter of resignation from High School Football Coach Dr. John Fitzsimmons. Coach Fitzsimmons, valuing the well-being of his players and respecting their concerns, is choosing not to return to his position as head coach. He extends his heartfelt thanks to the students and community for the past 16 years. I want to thank Coach Fitzsimmons for his many years of dedicated service to the football program and his contributions to our community. Coach Fitzsimmons' accomplishments extend well beyond the football field. As a Sergeant in the U.S. Marine Corps, he served a tour in Vietnam and chaired the veterans group for the Maine Vietnam Veterans Memorial. He represented the state of Maine as the Commissioner of Labor, earning national recognitions, including the National Alliance of Business "State of the Year" award. He's an advocate for higher education and served as the President of the Maine Community College System, overseeing growth from 3,300 to 18,160 students in 32 years. His commitment to the Falmouth community includes the creation of the John Fitzsimmons Scholarship and founding the Casco Bay Leadership Institute. We are grateful for all that Coach Fitzsimmons has done for Falmouth and we wish him the best of luck in the future.“
The longtime Falmouth head coach received blowback after the 2023 season and it wasn’t just from the community and parents. It came from his own players as well.
The start of the unprecedented event took place, per a report by Portland Press Herald’s Steve Craig, that members of the 2023 Navigators’ football team have signed a petition to have Fitzsimmons removed from his position.
“Several of us have talked with you individually and in small groups about this, but we are now speaking with a collective voice to ask that you replace John Fitzsimmons with a new football coach next season,” the petition said per the report.
Fitzsimmons, who has been the school’s head coach since 2007, has compiled an overall record of 84-66 during his time at Falmouth. The team dropped to 2-6 in 2023 after finishing 8-4 in 2022.
Per Craig’s report of the situation, 22 of 30 players from the 2023 team signed the petition, with 21 of them being returnees for the 2024 campaign.
“We come to you tonight, this time publicly, to ask for change in the Falmouth football team’s coaching leadership,” 2023 team defensive MVP Matthew Grace said per the report. “We are not adequately coached for competition, and our safety is not prioritized. We players have attempted to make our voices heard on this matter for far too long. Too many players have quit in recent years and not enough will return this fall if you do not make changes to the team’s coaching leadership. We do not understand why school officials will not pay attention to us. This program will be ruined by the inactions of the athletic director and administration.”
The report stated that players spoke up in regards to the 2023 campaign, in which instances the team had players playing in two games within a 96-hour span. One player in result ended up breaking his collarbone after playing in a Friday night varsity game and then a Monday night junior varsity contest due to a lack of players.
Falmouth had to forfeit a game against Portland in 2023 due to a lack of players, with the Navigators only having 19 total.
