An awful day
On Thursday, September 28, 2017, Simpson was driving the Harrisburg cross county team to a meet in Moberly on a small school bus. Another driver crossed the center line on Route F in northern Boone County and struck the bus head-on, killing Simpson, and injuring four girls on the team. It was reported that the other driver's lawyer said that sleep deprivation was a possible factor in the crash. The driver said that he had worked more than 100 hours in the weeks leading up to the crash and that the crash came after a 16-hour work shift.
The shocking event was one that current Harrisburg cross country coach Corey Whitaker says many people in the area, and many involved in area sports recall well, knowing exactly where they were when they heard the tragic and sobering news.
The repercussions and tributes began immediately. Whitaker says about 700 people showed up to a community prayer time at the high school, in a town of 271, with many people coming from all over the region. The football game against Fayette on Friday was canceled, but Fayette's usual pre-game cookout still happened, with those from Harrisburg invited and served by members of the Fayette community, some even sporting Harrisburg red. Whitaker says a large outpouring of support from other communities and schools they traveled to and competed against in athletics became normal for the rest of the year.
Former Mexico track coach and longtime Missouri State High School Activities Association (MSHSAA) cross country and track and field official Ron Whittaker worked the Moberly meet that fateful day, September 28, 2017. Whittaker calls Simpson a fine man, whose athletes were "business-like competitors," ... "prompt and cooperative." Whittaker says, as the starter, he noticed the starting box Harrisburg was assigned to was empty, which was "very unlike Coach Simpson's team." Whittaker added, "I asked (the athletes in) both boxes beside the Harrisburg box if they had seen any Harrisburg competitors, and all said 'no'."
Whittaker started the race on time, with the Bulldogs nowhere in sight. He heard the news of the accident and injuries soon after the race and the veteran coach and official says he's "never had a situation like these, either before or after...".
The gathering at the school baseball field the night of the accident saw a memorial built with the date spray painted behind home plate while flowers, candles, baseballs, plaques, hats, and other mementos were laid together. Harrisburg's coach Whitaker relayed the story of South Shelby coach Desirae O'Neal's daughter Meredith, who was moved to honor Simpson, running at the state cross country meet five weeks later with an armband or similar physical symbol of recognition.