John Simon - Hall of Fame Class 2017

John Simon ‘90
Basketball

A native of Dubuque and a 1986 graduate of Wahlert Catholic High School, John Simon joined Clarke’s men’s basketball program as a freshman for the 1986-87 campaign—the program’s second season of existence. Four years later, he finished his career as a school’s all-time leading rebounder, a record he still holds today.

Simon grabbed a single-season record 235 rebounds as a senior, a mark that still stands, and finished his career with 744 rebounds.  He shares the single-game rebounding record of 20 with former teammate and Clarke Hall of Fame member—the late Keith Sanders.

Simon finished his career as a member of the program’s 1000-point club. He ranked second behind Sanders in career scoring with 1,058 points and currently ranks eleventh.

Simon averaged 9.6 points and a team-high 8.1 rebounds as a freshman. He was the recipient of the squad’s Most Improved Player Award and was named to the National Little College Athletic Association District Tournament All-Tournament Team.

As a senior, Simon garnered second-team Midwest Catholic Conference All-Conference honors after logging career highs in both scoring (13.8 ppg) and rebounding (8.7 rpg). He tallied a career-best 33 points in a 91-81 win over Blackburn College. The team co-captain landed a spot on the 1989 Trinity Christian College All-Tournament Team.

In his Hall of Fame questionnaire, Simon said “I want to be remembered as a player that always put the team first. As a team, we had to overcome a lot of adversity in the beginning years of men’s basketball. We had to prove we could perform both on the court and academically off the court. We built a foundation for what would become one of the fastest growing athletic departments in the Midwest. My teammates and I take great pride in the contributions we made to Clarke Athletics and to future student athletes.”

Simon has been employed at Prudential for 27 years.  He is active in Ducks Unlimited, National Wild Turkey Federation and Dubuque Field Archers.

Simon received his bachelor of arts degree in business administration.

John and his wife, Chris, have one child, Emily.