Additional information revealed on ouster of Falmouth (Maine) head football coach
The resignation last week of Falmouth High School (Maine) head football coach Dr. John Fitzsimmons came in the aftermath of a petition signed by 22 of the school's 30 varsity football players, requesting his ouster.
Now, news has broke of a 41-page list of grievances presented to Falmouth Schools superintendent Gretchen McNulty to support the petition. McNulty had not commented on or taken action with regard to Fitzsimmons, prior to the coach's decision to resign.
Upon his resignation, however, she did release a statement of support for Fitzsimmons and thanked him for his years of service to the school.
“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 list of grievances was detailed in a report by the Maine Wire's Seamus Othot.
Per the report, 58 percent of the freshmen that competed on the team suffered concussions or bone fractures, with one game forfeited to Portland. Players on the team felt that Fitzsimmons was too hard on them.
"Fitz screamed my hands weren't working and I couldn't catch the ball so bad it got in my head. I was scared to catch the ball after that," one player said to the Maine Wire.
The report also stated that racial slurs were being made towards one of the players on the team by assistant coach George Spino, which stated were substantiated by other student-athletes that heard the comments.
Prior to Fitzsimmons' resignation, team defensive MVP Matthew Grace called for the coach's dismissal in a previous report by the Portland Press Herald's Steve Craig
“We come to you tonight, this time publicly, to ask for change in the Falmouth football team’s coaching leadership,” said Grace. “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.”
Fitzsimmons had led the Navigators since 2007, compiling 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.
Safety concerns were also sited after the team played two games in a 96-hour span during the 2023 campaign. Fitzsimmons was also criticized when one broke his collarbone after playing in a Friday night varsity game followed by Monday night junior varsity contest, due to a lack of players.
SBLive Sports' initial report on this matter has drawn nearly 800 reactions, as of this posting, and Coach Fitzsimmons is not without supporters.
Some those who commented do not see the allegations against the former coach as egregious for a varsity football team and several accused the players, and their parents of being "soft." Others believe the school should shoulder some of the responsibility for the scheduling and the fielding of a junior varsity team without an adequate number of players.
