Architect of Homestead’s rise to title contender set to depart after state final
Philip Simpson will end his high school coaching career on Thursday as a hero – win or lose.
Simpson, 37, has led the Homestead Broncos (12-2) to the Class 3M state final against national power St. Thomas Aquinas (13-0) in a game set for Thursday night at 7 in Fort Lauderdale.
This will be the first state final in the 43-year history of Homestead football.
And, according to Simpson, it will be his exit from his hometown as he told the Miami Herald on Friday that he has accepted a job with the Nebraska Cornhuskers as an assistant defensive line coach and recruiter.
Although he has yet to sign a contract with Nebraska, Simpson said hetold his players about his imminent departure in a teary-eyed team meeting on Wednesday.
“For a moment, I was getting emotional, but then I realized that it was a great move for him,” said Homestead junior Joshua Townsend, who has been Simpson’s starting quarterback since his freshman year in 2020.
“He’s been like a second father to me. He has taught us about football and life – how to do things the right way.”
In his playing days, Simpson was an unusually large quarterback and punter (6-2, 260 pounds). He was named the Miami Herald’s first-team All-Dade quarterback as a senior.
At Temple, he switched to defensive line and grew to 285 pounds, playing under head coach Al Golden, who would later lead the Miami Hurricanes.
Simpson’s defensive line coach in 2006 at Temple was Matt Rhule, who was hired as Nebraska’s coach on Nov. 26.
That connection led Simpson to the Cornhuskers, but he first needed to break the news to his players.
“I was pausing and choking up, trying to get the words out,” Simpson said. “It was beating on me, trying to express myself.”
Simpson said he feels good about turning the Homestead program over to former Southern Miss linebacker Ronnie Thornton Jr.
Thornton, who serves as Simpson’s associate head coach and defensive coordinator, will keep the rest of the staff in place, according to Simpson.
“I’ve known Ronnie since the fourth grade,” Simpson said. “He’s like a little brother to me. I go to his family functions.
“He’s a high-energy coach and a disciplinarian. He’s ready for this moment.”
Simpson has been through a lot since taking over the Homestead program in 2019. The Broncos had gone 6-4 the previous season, and they went 2-8 in Simpson’s first year and 3-3 in the COVID-shortened 2020 campaign.
“Year One was about victories off the field,” Simpson said, “winning in the classroom.”
Simpson also said he had to get rid of a lot of people in the program – players and coaches.
“We had to eliminate the cancer,” Simpson said. “The more I dug in, the more bloodshed (players and coaches dismissed). But the only way to find the cure was to get to the root of the problem.”
Last year, Simpson was proven correct as he led the Broncos to an 11-2 record and a berth in the regional finals.
Unfortunately for the Broncos, they got routed in that round by St. Thomas Aquinas, 56-7. Aquinas went on to win its 13th state title, most in Florida history.
Aquinas will enter Thursday on a 26-game win streak, ranked seventh in the nation by MaxPreps.
Homestead, which has won six straight games, is ranked much further back, at No. 70. But the Broncos don’t lack for confidence.
“I’m happy to get a chance at revenge,” Townsend said.
Simpson said he believes Aquinas was better last year than this season.
“They still have big boys,” Simpson said. “But they were more violent last year. Their QB play was better last year. Their receivers are good but not anything we haven’t seen.”
Simpson said Homestead has the speed to match up with Aquinas.
Homestead senior wide receiver Richard Dandridge has committed to Temple – Simpson’s alma mater. Homestead junior running back Isaac Brown has committed to Louisville.
In addition, Homestead wide receivers Cortez Mills (Boston College and others) and Javon Robinson (FIU, FAU) also have college-scholarship offers.
Townsend, undersized for his position at 5-10 and 205 pounds, doesn’t have a scholarship yet. But Simpson believes Townsend is as good any prep quarterback around.
“He’s poised and smart,” Simpson said. “He sees the game so well that I sometimes tell my assistants, ‘Stay out of his way.’”
Townsend has passed for 34 touchdowns and just three interceptions in 17 games over the past two seasons.
He suffered a sprained right ankle against South Miami this year, and that led to two straight Homestead losses to Columbus and Southridge.
Once he returned, Homestead got on a roll, including a win over tradition-rich Northwestern.
“A lot of people doubted us against Northwestern,” Townsend said, “even at our own school.”
They are doubting the Broncos again, mainly because Aquinas is such a terror.
Aquinas has numerous players who have committed to play for Division I colleges, including safeties Conrad Hussey and King Mack, both to Penn State. There’s also cornerback Kimari Robinson (Duke) and wide receivers James Madison II and Chance Robinson, both with numerous Power-Five offers.
During their 26-game win streak, the Raiders have won every game by at least seven points. The last relatively close game for Aquinas came in this year’s opener, a 48-37 win over Philadelphia’s St. Joseph’s Prep, which hasn’t lost a game since.
Simpson, who won a state title as a Southridge assistant coach in 2016, acknowledged that sometimes there’s a limit of what can be done with players when there’s a talent disparity.
But he also said size is not a deciding factor.
“We won at Southridge with 5-11 and 240-pound defensive linemen,” Simpson said.
“(This year in Homestead’s state semifinal against Orlando Jones), they were much bigger than us. The Jones guys said they were going to kick our (butts) and send us back to Miami, but that didn’t happen.”
No, it didn’t, and now the Broncos get a chance to send Simpson out a hero – win or lose.
This story was originally published December 9, 2022 at 1:02 PM.