MACON — Leader.
It’s a word a lot of athletes use to signify their status on their teams as someone who sets the pace that others follow.
In August, Jeffery Simmons recognized the opportunity he had to be that player this season for the Noxubee County High School football team. Instead of shying away from it and allowing some of his senior teammates to shoulder that responsibility, Simmons seized it and established himself as one of the team leaders in preseason workouts and in the weight room.
The 6-foot-4, 245-pound defensive lineman has done everything he can to back up his status.
On Friday, Simmons had three of Noxubee County’s seven sacks in a 21-0 victory against Greenwood in the Mississippi High School Activities Association Class 4A North State title game. The victory helped Noxubee County (13-2) clinch a spot in the Class 4A state title game against St. Stanislaus (13-1) at 3 p.m. Saturday at Mississippi State’s Davis Wade Stadium.
For his accomplishment, Simmons is The
Dispatch’s Prep Player of the Week.
Noxubee County coach Tyrone Shorter said he saw Simmons’ potential to be a team leader — much like his brother, Dylan Bradley, who recently completed his sophomore season at Southern Mississippi. Bradley played an integral role in leading the Tigers to the state title in 2012. Simmons will try to do the same things Saturday and help Noxubee County earn its third state championship.
“I think he was a little hesitant at first because he was a junior, but when he speaks I know the guys listen,” Shorter said. “They realize he is going to be a player. From the spring on, they saw how he played.”
Shorter said Simmons has been able to emerge as such a good leader because he backs it up on the field. Simmons is second on the team with 55 solo tackles and 101 total tackles. He leads the Tigers with 14 tackles for loss, 15 sacks, 21 quarterback hurries, five fumble recoveries, seven forced fumbles, and one blocked punt. He has accomplished all of that despite having opponents run away from him when he is lined up at defensive end. Shorter and defensive coordinator George Richardson have countered that strategy by moving Simmons to defensive tackle so teams can’t avoid him as easily.
Simmons has used a combination of speed and strength to dominate wherever he lines up. Shorter said Simmons has remained humble and has continued to play at a high level. He said Simmons’ humble nature has helped build team chemistry.
“The kid is just a natural leader,” Shorter said. “I saw it early on, and I really see it now. He just put it on his shoulders that he is going to lead.”
Simmons said it wasn’t difficult to step into a bigger vocal and on-the-field leader. He said Friday part of his motivation comes from that fact he wants to send his senior defensive teammates out with a state championship. Bradley helped push him in that direction after the game by offering encouragement and congratulations. Simmons said his brother told him to “go get it” on Saturday. He feels he has done a good job being a leader and helping his teammates stay focused through losses to Starkville and West Point and an assortment of injuries.
“I push the defensive linemen because I know some of those boys can play,” Simmons said. “I think the defense has come a long way from the beginning of the season to now.”
Simmons said he works well with Trinity Conner, Laterience Dora, Kenterius Turner, and Ronnie Gray up front. Linebacker Kevorkian Brewer also will move up to play a rush end in some formations. Simmons said he knows if his teammates see him taking plays off it will be easier for them to do the same thing. That’s why he has become more aware that he needs to go hard every play, even if teams are doing their best to avoid him. He said the coaches have told him they are going to move him, so he has gotten used to having to stay active and make plays from behind.
“Everybody on the defensive front has speed,” Simmons said. “Coach Shorter always tells us it starts with the trenches, and the game is won in the trenches. We take that in and go hard and dominate, and in practice we work hard every day.”
As a result, Noxubee County has 49.5 sacks in 15 games. The Tigers also have posted four shutouts. That total might not be as many as past seasons, when other Noxubee County defenses have laid claim to being the best in the program’s history. Simmons isn’t concerned about that designation. He is focused on another title — one that will come with a piece of hardware the seniors can cherish for years to come.
“The (vocal) leaders we have on this football team — Bobby May, Jeffery Simmons, Timorrius Conner — are juniors,” Shorter said. “Sometimes I think the juniors, especially Jeffery, they kind of hold their tongue a little. But I tell them all the time, these guys are going to look up to you and you go out and do your thing on the field. I tell him all of the time you have to be a leader on that defensive line.
“Jeffery is a kid who is determined to win. He texted me Saturday morning and told me he wants to help these seniors win a championship. I texted him back and told him he did just that. He came out and had a really good football game and wouldn’t be denied.”
Follow Dispatch sports editor Adam Minichino on Twitter @ctsportseditor
Adam Minichino is the former Sports Editor for The Commercial Dispatch.
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