Naiem Simmons

#9 · WR · Sr. · UConn5′10″ · 185 lb · Cherry Hill, NJ

Naiem Simmons is a wide receiver who has not played this season; the last season with a stat line was 2023, at South Florida.

Simmons beats you over the top. Came to UConn by way of South Florida. One game to point at: 272 receiving yards and 8 receptions against Rice — Week 4, 2023.

Style of play

Play style

Stretches the field vertically. Every snap is a potential big play.

Similar players

Closest statistical matches, adjusted for opponent strength.

Jonathan BradyNew Mexico State · 2023 · 81% season match
Ahmari Huggins-BruceLouisville · 2021 · 80% season match
Avery DavisNotre Dame · 2021 · 78% season match
Omarion DollisonJames Madison · 2024 · 78% season match
Taye BarberTCU · 2022 · 77% season match

Where to follow

Career stats

Swipe the table sideways for more columns.

Season	Team
2023	South Florida	39	637	16.3	5	53
Career		39	637	16.3	5	53

Game log

Game log · Week-by-week

2023 season · 13 games

Box score · CFBD

Swipe the table sideways for more columns.

Wk	Opp	REC	YDS	AVG	TD	LONG	Note
Wk 1	L 24-41@ Western Kentucky	1	6	6.0	0	6
Wk 2	W 38-24vs Florida A&M	3	59	19.7	1	31
Wk 3	L 3-17vs No. 10 Alabama	3	20	6.7	0	9
Wk 4	W 42-29vs Rice	8	272	34.0	1	53	Season-high 272 yds
Wk 5	W 44-30@ Navy	5	23	4.6	0	9
Wk 6	L 35-56@ UAB	2	21	10.5	1	13
Wk 7	L 14-56vs Florida Atlantic	2	37	18.5	0	34
Wk 8	W 24-21@ UConn	4	19	4.8	0	8
Wk 10	L 50-59@ Memphis	2	73	36.5	1	44
Wk 11	W 27-23vs Temple	1	13	13.0	0	13
Wk 12	L 21-49@ UTSA	2	21	10.5	0	12
Wk 13	W 48-14vs Charlotte	2	17	8.5	1	16
Bowl	W 45-0vs Syracuse	4	56	14.0	0	33
Total		39	637	16.3	5	53

Signature game

Week 8 · 2023

L 21-24

vs South Florida

4 rec · 19 yds

With B. Brown — 203 yds · 0 TD · 1 INT · QBR 37.0 · 61 rush yds (14 car) · 1 TD · N. Wright — 186 rush yds (26 car) · 2 TD

Signature plays

The plays that mattered most

Week 2 · Florida A&M · 4th and 6 · Q4 · EPA +4.74Byrum Brown pass complete to Naiem Simmons for 31 yds for a TD (John Cannon KICK)
Week 4 · Rice · 2nd and 20 · Q2 · EPA +4.35Byrum Brown pass complete to Naiem Simmons for 53 yds to the RICE 35 for a
Week 4 · Rice · 2nd and 18 · Q3 · EPA +4.01Byrum Brown pass complete to Naiem Simmons for 42 yds to the RICE 41 for a
Week 4 · Rice · 2nd and 4 · Q3 · EPA +3.90Byrum Brown pass complete to Naiem Simmons for 49 yds for a TD (John Cannon KICK)
Week 4 · Rice · 1st and 10 · Q3 · EPA +3.40Byrum Brown pass complete to Naiem Simmons for 51 yds to the RICE 24 for a
Week 2 · Florida A&M · 3rd and 11 · Q2 · EPA +3.25Byrum Brown pass complete to Naiem Simmons for 16 yds to the FAMU 46 for a

4 more plays

Week 10 · Memphis · 2nd and 9 · Q2 · EPA +3.24Byrum Brown pass complete to Naiem Simmons for 29 yds for a TD (John Cannon KICK)
Week 10 · Memphis · 2nd and 3 · Q2 · EPA +3.19Byrum Brown pass complete to Naiem Simmons for 44 yds to the MEM 32 for a
Week 6 · UAB · 2nd and 10 · Q4 · EPA +2.84Byrum Brown pass complete to Naiem Simmons for 13 yds for a TD (John Cannon KICK)
Week 1 · Syracuse · 1st and 10 · Q2 · EPA +2.75Byrum Brown pass complete to Naiem Simmons for 33 yds to the SYR 48 for a

Teams and coaches

2023South Florida7-6HC: Alex Golesh · Run-leaning, fast tempo

Our ratings

CFB Zeitgeist Score 57 (#144 of 497). Show the ratings

Where this profile ranks vs the WR cohort

Box-score + play-by-play EPA percentiles · 2023 season

57Quality starter #144 of 497 · 2023, at South Florida?

10 metrics · season cumulative

2023 score, at South Florida: the 2026 sample is not big enough yet. The rows below are 2026 so far. Elite: yards / catch (89th percentile). Strength: td rate (84th percentile). Concern: catch rate (27th percentile).

Real play-by-play efficiency

Yards / catch#70 / 639 · 89th pct

16.6

TD rate#105 / 639 · 84th pct

10.6%

Explosive rate#147 / 639 · 77th pct

19.1%

EPA / target#229 / 639 · 64th pct

0.88

Catch rate#468 / 639 · 27th pct

74.5%

Box-score rates (5)

Yards / catch#101 / 566 · 82nd pct

16.3

Rec TDs#109 / 566 · 78th pct

Rec yards#133 / 566 · 77th pct

637

Receptions#188 / 566 · 66th pct

Long catch#214 / 566 · 62nd pct

Season trend

EPA / target— first qualifying season

Explosive rate— first qualifying season

Catch rate— first qualifying season

TD rate— first qualifying season

Yards / catch— first qualifying season

Percentiles versus same-position peers with enough snaps in 2023. Most bars are box-score rates; EPA / success-rate bars are computed from real play-by-play (offense only — no defensive EPA model exists yet).

Splits

Home and road splits, scheme and staff

Splits · Per-game

2023 season · 13 games

Home/Road · Season halves

Home vs Road

	REC/g	YDS/g	YPR	TD/g
Home6g	3.2	69.7	16.7	0.5
Road6g	2.7	27.2	12.2	0.3

First half vs Second half

	REC/g	YDS/g	YPR	TD/g
Weeks 1-78g	3.5	61.8	14.2	0.4
Weeks 8+5g	2.2	28.6	14.7	0.4

Supporting cast · Scheme

Staff and system around the player

2023 season

Head Coach

Alex Golesh

Pass share

43.8%

447 pass / 573 run

Plays / game

78.5

13 games

Team sack rate

8.8%

491 dropbacks · PBP

Scheme: Run-leaning, fast tempo.

Awards

Player standing · 2023

39 catches in 13 games

About as many catches a game as a typical FBS receiver who plays every week.

Recognition

Roster2-deepStarterRecognizedEliteApex

Production · CFB Zeitgeist Score

57 · #144 of 497 WRs · 2023, at South Florida