Lamar at Simpson, the rematch
Southern Sports & Travel, By Darron Thomas
It was nearly four weeks ago when the Lamar Raiders took their undefeated record and #1 ranking into Mendenhall to battle the once beaten Simpson Cougars for the district 3AA crown. The much anticipated matchup lived up to its’ billing through the first half as Simpson took a narrow 21-14 advantage into halftime. With just under six minutes left in the third quarter each team had scored with Simpson holding on to a 28-21 advantage. Then the wheels came off for the Raiders as Simpson reeled off 20 straight points to win the district title 48-21.
This Friday night the two squads will butt heads and once again the stakes are high. The winner takes the north AA championship and moves on to play for a state ring the following week while the loser goes home. Both schools have the same number of seniors and for ten of them Friday night will be the last time they suit up for their school.
Inside the numbers…….
>The Simpson Cougars are currently ranked #2 in the latest Southern Sports & Travel rankings.
>Simpson defeated North Delta 27-8 in round one and defeated Indianola 49-20 in round two.
>The Cougars average 29.5 ppg which is sixth best in AA football and yield 12.7, fourth best.
>Simpson’s only defeat came in week six, a 37-14 loss at Brookhaven.
>The Cougar’s are 7-0 at home where they average 37 ppg and yield 12 ppg.
>Key players – Senior tailback Kyle Munn who is the fourth leading rusher in AA football with 1,561 yards. Munn averages 142 yards a game (11 games) and 8 yards a carry. The senior has 23 touchdowns to his credit.
Sophomore tailback Cade Eiland is the sixth leading rusher in AA football with 1,340 yards. Eiland averages 112 yards a game and has 18 touchdowns on his resume.
>The Lamar Raiders are currently ranked #4 in the latest Southern Sports & Travel rankings.
>Lamar defeated Oak Hill 35-0 in round one and defeated Marshall 54-41 in round two.
>The Raiders average 41.5 ppg which is best in AA football and yield 16.9, eleventh best.
>Lamar’s only defeat came in week ten, a 48-21 loss at Simpson.
>The Raiders are 5-1 on the road where they average 40 ppg and yield 28 ppg.
>Key players – Senior quarterback Witt Haggard who leads all AA quarterbacks with 3,332 yards passing and 43 touchdowns and only 3 interceptions. Haggard has rushed for 804 yards and 14 touchdowns. He averages 278 yards passing and 67 yards rushing each game.
Haggard’s favorite target is senior wide-out Bo Bidgood. Bidgood has 84 receptions for 1,635 yards and 19 touchdowns on the season and has rushed for 2 touchdowns.
>Common opponents: East Rankin, Hillcrest, Canton and Leake.
*Simpson beat East Rankin 6-3, Hillcrest 30-0, Canton 23-13 and Leake 41-14.
*Lamar beat East Rankin 21-13, Hillcrest 48-0, Canton 53-40 and Leake 20-7.
>Stats from the first meeting in week ten:
First downs…SCA 23 – Lamar 20
Rushing yards…SCA 514 – Lamar 251
Passing yards…SCA 0 – Lamar 160
Total plays…SCA 56 – Lamar 57
Total offense…SCA 514 – Lamar 411
Turnovers…SCA 0 – Lamar 0
Coaches’ perspective……
It was nearly four weeks ago when the Lamar Raiders took their undefeated record and #1 ranking into Mendenhall to battle the once beaten Simpson Cougars for the district 3AA crown. The much anticipated matchup lived up to its’ billing through the first half as Simpson took a narrow 21-14 advantage into halftime. With just under six minutes left in the third quarter each team had scored with Simpson holding on to a 28-21 advantage. Then the wheels came off for the Raiders as Simpson reeled off 20 straight points to win the district title 48-21.
This Friday night the two squads will butt heads and once again the stakes are high. The winner takes the north AA championship and moves on to play for a state ring the following week while the loser goes home. Both schools have the same number of seniors and for ten of them Friday night will be the last time they suit up for their school.
Inside the numbers…….
>The Simpson Cougars are currently ranked #2 in the latest Southern Sports & Travel rankings.
>Simpson defeated North Delta 27-8 in round one and defeated Indianola 49-20 in round two.
>The Cougars average 29.5 ppg which is sixth best in AA football and yield 12.7, fourth best.
>Simpson’s only defeat came in week six, a 37-14 loss at Brookhaven.
>The Cougar’s are 7-0 at home where they average 37 ppg and yield 12 ppg.
>Key players – Senior tailback Kyle Munn who is the fourth leading rusher in AA football with 1,561 yards. Munn averages 142 yards a game (11 games) and 8 yards a carry. The senior has 23 touchdowns to his credit.
Sophomore tailback Cade Eiland is the sixth leading rusher in AA football with 1,340 yards. Eiland averages 112 yards a game and has 18 touchdowns on his resume.
>The Lamar Raiders are currently ranked #4 in the latest Southern Sports & Travel rankings.
>Lamar defeated Oak Hill 35-0 in round one and defeated Marshall 54-41 in round two.
>The Raiders average 41.5 ppg which is best in AA football and yield 16.9, eleventh best.
>Lamar’s only defeat came in week ten, a 48-21 loss at Simpson.
>The Raiders are 5-1 on the road where they average 40 ppg and yield 28 ppg.
>Key players – Senior quarterback Witt Haggard who leads all AA quarterbacks with 3,332 yards passing and 43 touchdowns and only 3 interceptions. Haggard has rushed for 804 yards and 14 touchdowns. He averages 278 yards passing and 67 yards rushing each game.
Haggard’s favorite target is senior wide-out Bo Bidgood. Bidgood has 84 receptions for 1,635 yards and 19 touchdowns on the season and has rushed for 2 touchdowns.
>Common opponents: East Rankin, Hillcrest, Canton and Leake.
*Simpson beat East Rankin 6-3, Hillcrest 30-0, Canton 23-13 and Leake 41-14.
*Lamar beat East Rankin 21-13, Hillcrest 48-0, Canton 53-40 and Leake 20-7.
>Stats from the first meeting in week ten:
First downs…SCA 23 – Lamar 20
Rushing yards…SCA 514 – Lamar 251
Passing yards…SCA 0 – Lamar 160
Total plays…SCA 56 – Lamar 57
Total offense…SCA 514 – Lamar 411
Turnovers…SCA 0 – Lamar 0
Coaches’ perspective……
Simpson head coach Billy Hankins
What is the team’s health status following the win over Indianola?
“At this point in the season we are reasonably healthy. The one big loss for us was losing our leading tackler Gage Blackledge a few weeks ago. Hopefully we can keep everyone healthy this week in practice.”
What concerns you most about Lamar?
“As for Lamar obviously they have an unbelievable amount of offensive fire power. They have at least 4 really good receivers and a couple of good running backs. But obviously the thing that makes them go is their quarterback. He is the best I have seen in the MAIS since I began coaching in 1992. Not only is he a great passer but also a really good runner. Last week against Marshall I thought their defense played really well against a good Marshall team.”
Do you expect any new wrinkles from Lamar?
“I am sure just like us they will tweak some things but they have had a great year and I am sure they will continue to do the things that got them to this point.”
What will be the key for Simpson to win and advance?
“First it is always difficult to beat any team twice in the same year. Much less a team as talented as Lamar. The key for us will be to just play our game. Try to run the football and keep their offense off the field. If we don’t limit their possessions it will be really hard to win. I also feel that our defense needs to be more aggressive. The last time we played we were not as physical as we would like to be.”
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Lamar head coach Mac Barnes 
What is the team’s health status following the win over Marshall?
“We did not have any major injuries at Marshall. Michael Marcello and John Countiss both missed the Oak Hill game, but they played at Marshall and did fine.”
What will be the key to winning against Simpson this Friday night?
“No doubt that the key for anyone playing Simpson is to try to slow down their powerful running game. "
When Lamar and Simpson met on October 23 you were only down 21-14 at the half. What did you take away from that game after having time to analyze it?
“The second half of our first game showed that Simpson probably has more depth than anyone in AA, and that they keep coming at you on both sides of the ball for 48 minutes.”
What is the team’s health status following the win over Marshall?
“We did not have any major injuries at Marshall. Michael Marcello and John Countiss both missed the Oak Hill game, but they played at Marshall and did fine.”
What will be the key to winning against Simpson this Friday night?
“No doubt that the key for anyone playing Simpson is to try to slow down their powerful running game. "
When Lamar and Simpson met on October 23 you were only down 21-14 at the half. What did you take away from that game after having time to analyze it?
“The second half of our first game showed that Simpson probably has more depth than anyone in AA, and that they keep coming at you on both sides of the ball for 48 minutes.”
**Note**
I offer my sincere appreciation to coaches Barnes and Hankins for their remarks.
