Brian T. Simpson Invite honors late Harrisburg coach

Brian T. Simpson Invite
Chris Auckley

Brian II

Those that knew him say Brian was a class act and he will always be remembered for his unforgettable smile.

Simpson was a friend, teacher, coach, and mentor, impacting thousands of lives. Ackman said his best friend Simpson "taught "all" students. He made it a point to impact every student in some positive light." Ackman added, "As a coach, he taught his players to (be) model citizens/representatives of the program, the school, the community, and the family. Simpson was one to handout "endless high-fives" to students in the hallway, according to Ackman, no doubt encouraging and uplifting those at the school.

Brian wasn't just the kind of person that would buy a kid a pair of shoes to replace worn-out ones and quietly put them in the student's locker, without a note of attribution, but Brian was the kind of person that ACTUALLY DID THAT.
 

The school district honored Simpson by renaming the baseball field "Brian T. Simpson Memorial Field" in the spring of 2018.



Coach Simpson and Harrisburg state cross country qualifiers at Oak Hills in Jefferson City. (Courtesy Jennie Simpson)

Simpson's Twitter feed is full of posts from a doting father, a proud coach, and fervent sports fan, especially of the Kansas City Royals and Chiefs, and Missouri Tigers. And there are many Harrisburg Bulldogs posts and retweets as he was proud of his community, where he's spent the second half of his life. His feed is also full of coaching and life advice, including posts on mindset and attitude.

It includes tweets and retweets about his own running and other running news, including Mizzou national champion Karissa Schweizer as well as worldwide marathon news. His fun, witty spirit also comes thru. Like a post of "Results from the Inaugural N. Boone Co. MLK Jr. ½ Marathon. # of racers: 1, Winner: B. Simpson, Time: 1:50.31, Pace 8:25/mi."

It's filled with quotes about sports and life, including one from Jackie Robinson, "A life is not important except in the impact it has on other lives." As well as moments from life as a parent.

Harrisburg Cross Country

Corey Whitaker lived in Harrisburg, four doors down from Simpson. His children had Simpson as a teacher, and his wife had worked in the district and worked with Jennie Simpson. Whitaker had an education degree but was working in college campus ministry in Columbia. Maybe it was divine intervention, but the community reached out to Whitaker, and he took on Brian's teaching and cross country coaching responsibilities.

Whitaker said about Brian, "He's a great, great guy. (He made) a huge impact in our community. Brian was a guy who loved people and cared about who you were as a person, not just who you were as an athlete, and that's why he had such an impact."

Whitaker credits the girls in the program at the time of the accident with keeping it going after the accident. "It's a real testament to the girls in the program. After the accident, it's really a wonder we had a cross country program the next year. But instead of letting that be the final note on who that program was, they came back out, invested and we had better numbers than ever."

He said "That's continued. They really set the tone. Some of those girls that were involved in that accident, the next year, made it to state for the first time. The year after that got 8th in state and then got 3rd in state two years ago. That's really a testament to them and the community. The community has totally supported us. The administration has been great to work with. I'm just grateful to be along for the ride. I just yell at the girls and tell them to run faster," Whitaker said recently with a smile. "So they have to go out and do it and I'm just blessed to be a part of it."

With the community supporting them and with the opportunity to honor Coach Simpson, the Lady Bulldogs put in a lot of work. Juniors Kaitlyn Weil and Sydney Fischer rebounded from the accident to qualify for state and finish 64th and 85th at the state cross country championships in Class 1, five weeks after the crash.

A year after the accident in 2018, Harrisburg dedicated the season to Simpson. With some of the girls recovered enough to finally compete again, and all still recovering emotionally, they placed 2nd at districts to qualify for state as a team for the first time. At state at Oak Hills Golf Center in Jefferson City, the Lady Bulldogs placed 13th.

In 2019, the Lady Bulldogs took second at districts, getting a state-qualifying top-2 finish via tiebreaker. At state, in the first state meet held at Gans Creek, Harrisburg posted an 8th -place finish. A year later, the Bulldogs won a district title and a week later placed 3rd at the state championships to earn a top-4 team trophy. The Bulldogs were led by senior Baylie Combs who placed 11th, for All-State honors, while freshman Emma Fischer just missed, posting an impressive 27th-place finish.