.png&width=32&height=32&type=webp)
.png&width=32&height=32&type=webp)
Xavier University Athletics
Simeon Spurling's Coaching Journey to Xavier
11.03.23 | Women's Basketball, Featured
The California native enters his first season with the women's basketball program
CINCINNATI - Many of the opportunities basketball's given to Simeon Spurling have started with job interviews.
Spurling has a tactic for those interviews.
"What I say in every interview is 'I've never failed anything basketball wise in my life, and I don't plan on starting now,'" said Spurling.
That's exactly what he said earlier this year when Spurling was interviewing to become the Director of Player Development and Technology Coordinator for Xavier University's women's basketball team.
"Part of it is a line, but part of it is I believe I'm going to work so hard that I'm not going to fail at it. I'm willing to do whatever to figure out how to be successful," Spurling said.
That mentality is likely why he's found the success he has — from middle school, to high school, to NAIA, the WNBA, and now Xavier.
Spurling grew up in Los Angeles, California. He played basketball in high school. He had plans to play Division II in college, but after an injury he realized — earlier than most — that he wasn't going to make it to the NBA.
In college, an opportunity presented itself, and while he didn't know it at the time, it was one that would change the course of his life.
"My best friend told me, 'My sister's middle school needs basketball coaches,'" said Spurling. "So we went and coached the boys middle school basketball team, and it was my first time ever coaching.
"I was coaching and bartending and waiting tables to pay the bills and I just fell in love with coaching."
After five years, Spurling got another opportunity, this time at the high school level.
In addition to basketball, Spurling loves history, so his plan was simple — teach history and coach high school basketball.
"I was just gonna rock with that plan, but then one of my high school assistant coaches moved over to coaching girls and he got the NAIA coaching job at Hope International University," said Spurling. "He called me out of the blue. I hadn't talked to him in probably five or six years and he asked me to be his assistant."
It was a big change. Now, Spurling was coaching women at the collegiate level.
"I had to teach myself how to do everything at that level," he said. "I didn't know how to recruit. The recruiting I had learned was from playing NCAA Football video games. So I just got on the phone and started calling coaches and I went through all the junior colleges in California, trying to learn how to do it. I learned bit by bit and I loved it."
Spurling was comfortable with the basketball part. A former point guard, he grew up watching the sport, so the x's and o's weren't a problem. All of the other things that came with the job, though, he had to learn.
Once again, his mentality was "I'm going to work as hard as I can and figure it out."
And he did.
Spurling spent seven years coaching NAIA, and near the end of that tenure, he got another call with another opportunity.
"One of my friends from high school had started with the LA Sparks in the WNBA as an Administrative Assistant and they needed a Video Coordinator," said Spurling. "Mind you, I had never done video. But he recommended me to the GM and she called me one day and said she wanted to interview me.
"During the interview, 'I said I don't know how to use the programs you use but I promise you I'll learn it.'"
Then, Spurling uttered the same line he used when he interviewed at Xavier, "and she decided to give me a shot."
It was a perfect setup. One, Spurling got to learn a new skill. And two, the WNBA and college basketball seasons don't overlap. The WNBA plays in the summer; college plays in the fall and winter. So he worked both jobs.
During Spurling's first season with the Sparks, they won the WNBA Championship.
After three seasons in the WNBA, Spurling took a job at UCLA as the Video Coordinator, and that led him to Loyola Maryland for the last two years as an Assistant Coach.
While at Loyola, one of the other assistants had previously worked at Virginia Tech at the same time with Billi Chambers, who was named Xavier's Head Coach back in April.
"They stayed close and became really good friends, so she put my name out there and told Billi that if she ever had an opening, she should talk to me," said Spurling.
His role at Xavier is all encompassing. A large part of Spurling's job as Director of Player Development is exactly how it sounds — to do whatever he can to get the players better on the court.
"It's figuring out what they need to get better, what they need to work on, and doing anything and everything to put them in the right spots to accomplish that," he said.
And his Technology Coordinator work is something he's done for a long time at many different stops.
But another one of Spurling's biggest responsibilities centers around getting Xavier's players better off the court.
"The mental space is something I'm super passionate about," said Spurling. "I learned a lot of that from my time at UCLA. I've taken a lot of that and I head up our mental training and our mindfulness."
Spurling runs a weekly session with the team called Wellness Wednesday, and he takes them through a book. Right now, they're reading "It Takes What It Takes." Then on game days, Spurling leads the team in a mindfulness exercise before they take the floor.
One of the reasons Xavier was so appealing to Spurling was because he was looking for a coaching position.
"A lot of times in the player development position they kind of want you to just do player development," Spurling said. "Billi has told me, 'You're a coach. You're another assistant coach for us.'"
And that's what Spurling has worked for.
"This is what I wanted to do. I waited tables for eight years so that I could coach and make this a reality," he said. "I just want people to realize you're on your own journey. I always tell people, you're running your race at your pace … and you'll get there, just stay the course."
Spurling has a tactic for those interviews.
"What I say in every interview is 'I've never failed anything basketball wise in my life, and I don't plan on starting now,'" said Spurling.
That's exactly what he said earlier this year when Spurling was interviewing to become the Director of Player Development and Technology Coordinator for Xavier University's women's basketball team.
"Part of it is a line, but part of it is I believe I'm going to work so hard that I'm not going to fail at it. I'm willing to do whatever to figure out how to be successful," Spurling said.
That mentality is likely why he's found the success he has — from middle school, to high school, to NAIA, the WNBA, and now Xavier.
Spurling grew up in Los Angeles, California. He played basketball in high school. He had plans to play Division II in college, but after an injury he realized — earlier than most — that he wasn't going to make it to the NBA.
In college, an opportunity presented itself, and while he didn't know it at the time, it was one that would change the course of his life.
"My best friend told me, 'My sister's middle school needs basketball coaches,'" said Spurling. "So we went and coached the boys middle school basketball team, and it was my first time ever coaching.
"I was coaching and bartending and waiting tables to pay the bills and I just fell in love with coaching."
After five years, Spurling got another opportunity, this time at the high school level.
In addition to basketball, Spurling loves history, so his plan was simple — teach history and coach high school basketball.
"I was just gonna rock with that plan, but then one of my high school assistant coaches moved over to coaching girls and he got the NAIA coaching job at Hope International University," said Spurling. "He called me out of the blue. I hadn't talked to him in probably five or six years and he asked me to be his assistant."
It was a big change. Now, Spurling was coaching women at the collegiate level.
"I had to teach myself how to do everything at that level," he said. "I didn't know how to recruit. The recruiting I had learned was from playing NCAA Football video games. So I just got on the phone and started calling coaches and I went through all the junior colleges in California, trying to learn how to do it. I learned bit by bit and I loved it."
Spurling was comfortable with the basketball part. A former point guard, he grew up watching the sport, so the x's and o's weren't a problem. All of the other things that came with the job, though, he had to learn.
Once again, his mentality was "I'm going to work as hard as I can and figure it out."
And he did.
Spurling spent seven years coaching NAIA, and near the end of that tenure, he got another call with another opportunity.
"One of my friends from high school had started with the LA Sparks in the WNBA as an Administrative Assistant and they needed a Video Coordinator," said Spurling. "Mind you, I had never done video. But he recommended me to the GM and she called me one day and said she wanted to interview me.
"During the interview, 'I said I don't know how to use the programs you use but I promise you I'll learn it.'"
Then, Spurling uttered the same line he used when he interviewed at Xavier, "and she decided to give me a shot."
It was a perfect setup. One, Spurling got to learn a new skill. And two, the WNBA and college basketball seasons don't overlap. The WNBA plays in the summer; college plays in the fall and winter. So he worked both jobs.
During Spurling's first season with the Sparks, they won the WNBA Championship.
After three seasons in the WNBA, Spurling took a job at UCLA as the Video Coordinator, and that led him to Loyola Maryland for the last two years as an Assistant Coach.
While at Loyola, one of the other assistants had previously worked at Virginia Tech at the same time with Billi Chambers, who was named Xavier's Head Coach back in April.
"They stayed close and became really good friends, so she put my name out there and told Billi that if she ever had an opening, she should talk to me," said Spurling.
His role at Xavier is all encompassing. A large part of Spurling's job as Director of Player Development is exactly how it sounds — to do whatever he can to get the players better on the court.
"It's figuring out what they need to get better, what they need to work on, and doing anything and everything to put them in the right spots to accomplish that," he said.
And his Technology Coordinator work is something he's done for a long time at many different stops.
But another one of Spurling's biggest responsibilities centers around getting Xavier's players better off the court.
"The mental space is something I'm super passionate about," said Spurling. "I learned a lot of that from my time at UCLA. I've taken a lot of that and I head up our mental training and our mindfulness."
Spurling runs a weekly session with the team called Wellness Wednesday, and he takes them through a book. Right now, they're reading "It Takes What It Takes." Then on game days, Spurling leads the team in a mindfulness exercise before they take the floor.
One of the reasons Xavier was so appealing to Spurling was because he was looking for a coaching position.
"A lot of times in the player development position they kind of want you to just do player development," Spurling said. "Billi has told me, 'You're a coach. You're another assistant coach for us.'"
And that's what Spurling has worked for.
"This is what I wanted to do. I waited tables for eight years so that I could coach and make this a reality," he said. "I just want people to realize you're on your own journey. I always tell people, you're running your race at your pace … and you'll get there, just stay the course."
2025-26 Meet the Musketeers - Meri Kanerva
Sunday, October 12
2025-26 Meet the Musketeers: Lucía Martínez López
Tuesday, September 23
2025-26 Meet the Musketeers: Denise Neves
Saturday, September 20
2025-26 Meet the Musketeers: Payton Richards
Friday, September 19