Southern Sports & Travel
The Simpson Cougars racked up 367 yards on the ground Friday night and punished the previously undefeated Leake Rebels 41-14 before a spirited crowd in Mendenhall. Tailback Kyle Munn accounted for 250 of those yards and 4 touchdowns as the senior continues to recover from a severe ankle injury that has hampered him over the past several games.
(Above) Simpson's Kyle Munn (#4) had 250 yards and 4 tds.Simpson set up shop on their own 25 yard line after Leake punted on their opening possession. Kyle Munn gave a preview of things to come on the Cougar’s first play from scrimmage as the senior scampered for 47 yards all the way down to the Rebel’s 28 yard line. Munn then busted through for 28 yards on the next play to give Simpson a first and goal at the Leake 2 yard line. Three plays later tailback Cade Eiland scored on a two yard plunge with 7:31 remaining in the opening quarter to cap off a 5 play 75 yard drive. Justin Griffin added the PAT as the Cougar’s took an early 7-0 lead.
A three and out by Leake and punt gave Simpson the ball at the Leake 47 yard line. Munn quickly went off left tackle for 12 yards and then quarterback Sam Cowart hit Cade Eiland for a 34 yard strike to set the Cougars up at the Leake 1 yard line. Kyle Munn then put the Cougars up 13-0 on a 1 yard burst up the middle with 4:30 left in the first quarter. Justin Griffin's PAT put the Cougar on top 14-0.
Leake then mounted a drive that started on their own 30 yard line and ten plays later found themselves on the Simpson 14 when the first quarter ended. A Grant Wilson keeper for five yards to open the second quarter set up a critical 3rd and 1 at the Cougar 5 yard line, but a Leake fumble was recovered by Simpson’s Will Ashley at the 7 yard line with 11:19 left in the half. On Simpson’s first play after the turnover Kyle Munn hit straight up the middle for 93 yards and a touchdown that seemed to take the air out of the Rebels. Justin Griffin added the PAT to give Simpson a 21-0 lead with 11:04 left in the quarter.
Simpson added to the lead at the 4:41 mark of the quarter as Munn scored his third touchdown of the half on a 37 yard run followed by a Justin Griffin PAT to give the Cougars a 28-0 halftime lead. (Right) Simpson's Cade Eiland drags the foot after a 34 yard reception at the 1 yard line.
Simpson opened up the second half the same as they started the game and drove to the Leake 31, but a Sam Cowart pass was intercepted near the Rebel goal line by Leake’s Caleb Burns who returned it back to the Simpson 48. Leake would get on the board on a 15 yard pass from Grant Wilson to wideout Jake Wall with 5:12 left in the quarter. Dylan Alford added the PAT to trim the lead to 28-7.
A three and out by Leake and punt gave Simpson the ball at the Leake 47 yard line. Munn quickly went off left tackle for 12 yards and then quarterback Sam Cowart hit Cade Eiland for a 34 yard strike to set the Cougars up at the Leake 1 yard line. Kyle Munn then put the Cougars up 13-0 on a 1 yard burst up the middle with 4:30 left in the first quarter. Justin Griffin's PAT put the Cougar on top 14-0.
Leake then mounted a drive that started on their own 30 yard line and ten plays later found themselves on the Simpson 14 when the first quarter ended. A Grant Wilson keeper for five yards to open the second quarter set up a critical 3rd and 1 at the Cougar 5 yard line, but a Leake fumble was recovered by Simpson’s Will Ashley at the 7 yard line with 11:19 left in the half. On Simpson’s first play after the turnover Kyle Munn hit straight up the middle for 93 yards and a touchdown that seemed to take the air out of the Rebels. Justin Griffin added the PAT to give Simpson a 21-0 lead with 11:04 left in the quarter.
Simpson added to the lead at the 4:41 mark of the quarter as Munn scored his third touchdown of the half on a 37 yard run followed by a Justin Griffin PAT to give the Cougars a 28-0 halftime lead. (Right) Simpson's Cade Eiland drags the foot after a 34 yard reception at the 1 yard line.
Simpson opened up the second half the same as they started the game and drove to the Leake 31, but a Sam Cowart pass was intercepted near the Rebel goal line by Leake’s Caleb Burns who returned it back to the Simpson 48. Leake would get on the board on a 15 yard pass from Grant Wilson to wideout Jake Wall with 5:12 left in the quarter. Dylan Alford added the PAT to trim the lead to 28-7.
(Above) Simpson's Kyle Munn (#4) with a 1 yard plunge for a score.
Simpson answered in the 4th quarter as Kyle Munn earned his fourth score of the night on a 1 yard run with 11:27 left in the game. Griffin’s PAT increased the lead to 35-7. The final Simpson score came 11 seconds later when Cory Herrington intercepted a Grant Wilson pass and returned it 51 yards for a touchdown. The PAT failed and with just over 11 minutes remaining Simpson enjoyed a 41-7 advantage.
(Above) Simpson's Mark Herrin (#44), Will Ashley (#60) and Brandon Bairfield (#71) open up a hole for the Cougar ground game.Leake finished the night on a Grant Wilson strike to tailback Brad Hunter. Dylan Alford’s PAT settled the scoring at 41-14.
Simpson’s Jacob Busby rushed for 65 yards on 9 carries and Cade Eiland had 39 yards on 7 carries and a touchdown. Quarterback Sam Cowart was 2/5 for 46 yards on the night.
Simpson improved to 6-1 and sits atop district 3AA with a 2-0 mark. “Our offensive line played great tonight” said Simpson head coach Billy Hankins. “This is the first time this season we’ve put together a complete game offensively”. When asked about Kyle Munn’s performance Hankins said “Kyle is still not 100% healthy but he’s getting there. He had a solid game and had nearly 200 yards rushing in the first half”. Simpson is part of what most consider the toughest AA district in the MAIS. The Cougars have two district games remaining with a trip to Canton in two weeks, and if the Cougars prevail in that one it sets up a huge battle with #1 ranked Lamar visiting Mendenhall in week ten. “Lamar is a great team and we’re excited about the challenge” said Hankins.
Leake will look to regroup next week when they host a “hot” Copiah Colonel squad that’s coming off an impressive 27-10 win over Presbyterian. The Leake Rebels slipped to 5-1 and 2-1 in district play.
Simpson has leaped three spots to #5 in the latest Southern Sports & Travel Top Ten poll while Leake falls to #10.
