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'05 PA RB/DB Mikell Simpson (Virginia signee)

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Harrisburg, Pa. running back Mikell Simpson is becoming a National prospect. The 6-1, 195-pound Simpson has 19 offers, and an offer from Notre Dame. Do the Irish have a shot at Simpson? What are his thoughts on Notre Dame? Simpson gave us the answers to those questions and more.


Mikell Simpson is becoming a National prospect with a host of offers on the table. "I have 19 offers," said Simpson. "Tennessee, Notre Dame, Vanderbilt, Virginia, West Virginia, Syracuse, Wisconsin, North Carolina, Nebraska, UCLA, Indiana, Boston College and U. Conn are some of them. Ohio State and Rutgers have offered me verbally."

We asked Simpson if his offer from Notre Dame was in writing. "Yes it is," Simpson said. "The first time they came here in May, they told my coach that I needed to raise my S.A.T. score. I took the test again and scored an 890. My coach called them and told them, we sent my scores in and they sent me an offer in the mail."

Simpson says he has an interest in Notre Dame. "I'm very interested," said Simpson of Notre Dame. "I've talked to coach Simmons two or three times. He's a really good guy. I'm interested in Notre Dame."

At this point, Simpson says he hasn't begun to narrow his list down. He does says he'll be doing that real soon, however.

"I plan to narrow it down to 10 real soon," Simpson said of his favorites. "I plan to call the coaches next week and talk to them all. I don't really know their true level of interest in me. I know I have offers and letters, but I want to see how interested they are in me. I'll probably narrow it down to a top 10 or so then."

Simpson says he plans to take all of his official visits before making a decision.


"I plan on taking all five," Simpson said of his official visits. "I'll probably have to do that after my season. We're are ranked 5th this year so we could be playing in late December so I'll probably have to do that after my season. I'll probably announce on signing day."

We asked Simpson what would be the important factors in his decision.

"I would say playing time," Simpson said. "Distance won't play a role. Playing time and how well I fit in there."

Simpson also said most college coaches tell him they like what he can do with the ball in his hands.

"They tell me that they like how I can create mismatches with my speed," Simpson said of the coaches recruiting him. "They say I catch the ball really well out of the backfield and that I can use my speed to get around people."

Does Simpson have a list of top schools at this point? "No, I haven't narrowed it down yet. I will soon," Simpson said.

Comments: Simpson says he has an official offer so we'll add him to the list. We'll check back with him in soon to see if the Irish make his top 10--we think they will. Keep an eye on this top prospect.
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I wonder where he plays on defense...6-1 195 with a 4.38 sound like a safety waiting to happen to me. Seems like he fits the Tressel mold of not recruiting a player for a specific position but rather as one of three types of athletes.
 
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Buckskin86 said:
He still has not received he official written offer from the Bucks (just a verbal offer)...
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Well, if they sent copies of the SAT only two weeks ago it'll still take some time before the written offer gets generated and sent. If he was told that he'd get a written offer upon recipts of the SAT scores and he already has a verbal offer, then he should treat it as a written offer.
 
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The latest edition of the Sporting News/SchoolSports High School Football guide is out and there is high praise for several players and teams that may be familiar to fans in the area.

The magazine ranks the top 100 players in five separate regions and ranks the top 50 teams in the nation.

Erie Cathedral Prep linebacker Andre Mathis is rated the 20th-best prospect in the East region, which includes players from Maine to Georgia. Harrisburg's Mikell Simpson is listed as a running back and is 44th on the list.
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http://www.centredaily.com/mld/centredaily/sports/9362609.htm
 
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Simpson to narrow list soon
By Jim Bowen UVAInsider.com
Date: Aug 13, 2004

Although Virginia has 20 commitments for the 2005 recruiting class, they have not received a verbal from a running back. One of the top players at that position left on the board is Harrisburg High School’s Mikell Simpson. Luckily for Cavalier fans, UVa is high on Simpson’s list.

Mikell Simpson

“They are real high, and they’re going to stay there until the end. They are one of the three schools that are recruiting me the hardest so they’re going to be at the top of the list.”

The three schools recruiting Simpson the hardest are “Virginia, UCLA and Nebraska.”

Of those three schools, only UCLA has earned an official visit as of yet. Simpson has not been to L.A., but does have his first official lined up.

“I haven’t seen it; I haven’t gone out west yet. I’m going out there for an official visit, hopefully when they play USC.”

However, Simpson has visited Charlottesville.

"The campus was beautiful. I really liked the environment down there, it was great.”

One factor stands out to Simpson and will be a main component in where he ends up:

“Playing time. That’s going to be the main ingredient…whether I can come in as a freshman and play and how I’ll fit in. Location isn’t going to really be factor, I’ll probably end up out of state because none of the instate schools are showing much love.”

Simpson is one of the top running backs in the nation, and has countless schools vying for his services. So far he has not narrowed his list, but plans on beginning the elimination process on Monday.

“I’m going to try and narrow it down to 10 by Monday…then I’ll get it down to 5 during the season. Then I’ll wait and make my final decision on signing day. That’s definitely what I’m going to wait until I make my decision, unless something drastically changes on one of my visits.”

How far will the Hoos make it with Simpson?

“UVa’s going to be there until the end, definitely.”

Although only a few spots remain in Virginia’s 2005 class, Simpson has not felt any pressure to commit soon.

“I haven’t felt any pressure really, because no other running back has committed. They’re recruiting a couple of other backs and we’re all playing the waiting game really, just waiting to see what the other does. That’s the only position they don’t have a commit at yet, so I guess we are all just waiting to see what each other decides to do.”

Mikell Simpson is rated four stars and is a top 15 back nationally. Virginia’s two biggest contenders for this prospect will be UCLA and Nebraska.
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Well we made his final 11..... :)

He plans on cutting this list further by late Nov. He is concerned about early playing time and relationship with coaching staff.

ranked 5th in the state by Pitt paper

5. Mikell Simpson

Harrisburg

Pos: RB/DB Ht: 6-1 Wt: 195

Scouting: Runs a 4.3 40. Many compare Simpson to former Cardinal O'Hara High School and Virginia Tech star Kevin Jones, who was the first round pick of the Detroit Lions in the latest NFL draft. Simpson only gained 862 yards last season, but did so on 88 carries and scored 15 touchdowns. More than a dozen colleges, including Pitt, UCLA, Syracuse, West Virginia and Nebraska, have offered him scholarships. Simpson realizes he's a big-time recruit, and has said, "I'm not going to play basketball this year because I have to concentrate on getting stronger for college football."
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http://pennlive.com/hssports/patriotnews/index.ssf?/base/sports/1093598514105660.xml

Mikell Simpson is a PROSPECT
Harrisburg's senior running back has quietly made his way onto many recruiting lists
Sunday, August 29, 2004
It is entirely probable that Mikell Simpson really had no idea just how ironic his clothing choice of the day was when he showed up at Harrisburg High School's Severance Field recently for the interview that led to this story.

Sitting atop the dulled aluminum bleacher on the top row of Harrisburg's stadium-in- transition -- a multi-million dollar field house was under construction just yards away -- Simpson talked about many things, not the least of which was his switch in career choice from basketball to football.

Now considered one of the top re cruiting prospects in Pennsylvania and even nationally, Simpson left the football gear at home and instead attended the inter view dressed in a hip, new NBA jersey.

He says with utter clarity that his "only goal now is to play in the NFL," although just a few years ago it look ed like basketball would be his primary sport and his ride to college.

"I always enjoyed play ing basketball," said Simp son. "But a couple of years ago, I realized that football would be my ticket."

And so it appears. Simp son, knowing full well that recruiting would be the core of this story, pro duced a handwritten list of the Division I-A col leges that he said has of fered scholarships.

It is lengthy: Seventeen schools scattered across the country.

He has since whittled that list to 10, and later this season will chop it to the five to which he plans to make official visits. The top ten, in no particular order, are West Virginia, Michigan State, UCLA, Wisconsin, Virginia, North Carolina, Nebraska, Ohio State, Min nesota and Notre Dame.

"The in-state schools are showing me no love," said Simpson. "That's a mystery to me."

There are two reasons that so many non-Pennsylvania colleges are so enthusiastic for a back who has yet to have a 1,000-yard rushing season and is arguably not the hottest commodity in the city -- Bishop McDevitt junior LeSean McCoy has become the buzz nationally after his 2,561-yard sophomore season.

The first is versatility. The second, and most important, is speed.

"I ran a 4.37 [40-yard dash] at one of the camps this summer," said Simpson, who also runs track for the Cougars. "I know that's what everyone looks for in a running back."

That speed is good, but Simpson has insurance. Although he rushed for 862 yards (by Harrisburg's numbers; the Patriot-News had him for considerably fewer yards), he did a lot more than carry the ball.

He caught it (23 for 520 yards). He picked it (five interceptions on top of 57 tackles at defensive back). He returned it (averaging more than 20 yards per kickoff and punt return).

He has found the weight room after years in the lifting wilderness (he says he benches 280 and squats 325) and has worked on his speed with a combination of pliometrics and 40-yard sprints.

That is the kind of package that gets noticed, especially in the Internet age. One major Internet service proclaims him the No. 15 running back prospect in the country among this year's seniors. Another pegged him as the No. 8 cornerback.

It's hard to say what Simpson's numbers will be like this year. Harrisburg has so stockpiled its offensive arsenal, it's possible that Simpson's numbers won't explode but his effectiveness will.

Harrisburg returns Brian Smoot, who will be a three-year starter at quarterback. Senior Eric Brickus, a fullback who is also receiving Division I recruiting attention, has transferred from CD East. There is a clutch of good, speedy receivers.

Armed with superior talent and a new confidence born by last year's amazing seven-game turnaround from a 1-9 season to an 8-3 playoff team, Harrisburg is thinking big.

"It's more of a family thing now," said Simpson. "My sophomore year, we'd argue every day about everything. But now we have a lot of dedication and a lot of confidence."

There is no question that something different and good is going on at Harrisburg. Last year, Harrisburg was riding high with a good 3-0 start, including a spirit-raising last-second win over Red Land, but was totally outplayed in a stunning 31-6 loss to Central Dauphin.

To be blunt, it was the kind of loss that would have sent many a Harrisburg team into a long-term and a resulting tailspin.

Simpson, who had a 78-yard touchdown run called back early in the game ("It took all of the wind out of us.") said that loss was painful but important.

"We realized there was no sense in hanging our heads," he said. "We had a team meeting, and everyone had something to say. From that point on, we were a team."

Harrisburg reeled off five straight wins to qualify for the District 3-AAAA playoffs for the first time in a decade before losing consecutive games to eventual district champion Cumberland Valley.

"We have high expectations this year," said Simpson. "We should. But we can't make any assumptions."
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http://pennlive.com/sports/patriotnews/index.ssf?/base/sports/1094376114223590.xml

MID-PENN COMMONWEALTH: HARRISBURG 26, CHAMBERSBURG 7
Cougars' big 3 produce in victory
Sunday, September 05, 2004
BY ANDREW P. SHAY
For The Patriot-News
There was a balance of good and bad for Harrisburg in its opener yesterday at steamy Severance Field.

But the bottom line was the Cougars did enough to get the result they wanted against Chambersburg.

Led by its three best players, QB Brian Smoot, WR Justin Taylor and RB Mikell Simpson, Harrisburg jumped out to a comfortable lead by halftime and nursed it home for a 26-7 Mid-Penn Commonwealth win.

"We started out great. Early on we were sharp. And I thought we would be sharp [all day]," Harrisburg coach George Chaump said. "Then we got that big lead. And we started losing guys to cramps. When we start losing guys, we don't have any depth.

"The second half we got sloppy. We did the best we could. But you can't play sloppy games in this league and win a whole lot."

Smoot and Taylor were the most consistent performers for the Cougars. And it started from the opening snap.

Harrisburg came out gunning. Smoot dropped back to pass the first seven offensive plays. He completed all five of the passes he threw and ran the other two times.

On the first series of the game, after Simpson had a 90-yard kickoff return called back, Smoot hooked up with Taylor for a 66-yard catch and run. Taylor, who finished with nine catches for 161 yards, broke a couple of tackles at midfield and was off to the races.

Following a Chambersburg punt, Smoot completed passes to Taylor and Simpson covering 32 yards. Smoot then scrambled for 13 yards before Simpson took a pitch and darted left for a 14-yard touchdown on the Cougars' first designed running play of the game.

At that point it appeared Harrisburg was off and running.

But Chambersburg put together an eight-play, 67-yard drive, capped by Josh Truman's 2-yard run, to make it 14-7. From that point it was a bit of a struggle.

Turnovers and miscues dominated the second quarter. Harrisburg did manage a touchdown, though, to open a 20-7 cushion by intermission.

Alonzo Brodie blocked a punt to give the Cougars excellent field position at the Trojans 39. Five plays later Simpson took a pitch to the left again and rolled in from 10 yards out.

"Two turnovers and a blocked punt led to 21 points for them," Chambersburg coach Shawn Kimple said. "We have to fix the mistakes and penalties. We knew they had a quarterback who got better each year throwing the ball."

Despite a sluggish second half overall, Smoot continued to produce.

The senior finished 14-for-19 with one interception and 201 yards. He also tossed a pair of touchdowns.

"I feel a little more confident. We started out really good. The second half we were a little passive. We have some kinks to work out," Smoot said. "Justin and I are right there. I can just look at his eyes and see we're reading the same defense almost every play."

Harrisburg started inside Chambersburg territory on three of its first four second-half possession but managed only seven points on a 2-yard pass from Smoot to Eric Brickus late in the thirdr.

ANDREW P. SHAY: 255-8123 or [email protected]
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