After three successful years (04-06) coaching at Independence High in Charlotte, NC and winning three state championships with a record of (48-0), Welvin L. Simpkins, a native of Edgefield, SC, is now coaching at South Pointe High School in Rock Hill, SC.

Simpkins is in his 2nd year at South Pointe and he is the Defensive Back Coach and he is also over the Kick-Off Team. Simpkins is no stranger to the game of football.

He played on the Lower State Championship team with Strom Thurmond in 1995. He played wide receiver and defensive back, and caught the winning touchdown pass that helped clinch a spot in the State Championship game.

South Pointe opened in 2005 and quickly became a powerhouse in a very short time. South Pointe won the state Class AAAA, Division II title in 2008 defeating Northwestern 35-14. The state championship team included seniors Stephon Gilmore and DeVonte Holloman, who played in South Carolina Gamecocks’ secondary last year as freshmen. Both Gilmore and Holloman are projected starters going into this season. Gilmore goes into his sophomore season regarded as one of the top players in the entire SEC, and is an All-America candidate.

This cross-town match-up has quickly turned into a rivalry pinning a student vs. his teacher. South Pointe’s Bobby Carroll was the Defensive Coordinator for Northwestern’s Jimmy Wallace for 22 years before South Pointe was open in 2005. Northwestern has advanced to the Class AAAA, Division II title game two years in a row. Northwestern lost to South Pointe in 2008 and to Berkeley in 2009.

The teams split their games last year, with South Pointe winning during the regular season but Northwestern prevailing in the playoffs. South Pointe was one game away from trying to repeat as state champs last year. Due to enrollment, this year South Pointe drops down a classification to Class AAA while Northwestern remains in Class AAAA. The Trojans are ranked No. 42 nationally by ESPN.

The South Pointe-Northwestern game will feature several of the nation's top high school seniors. South Pointe defensive end Jadeveon Clowney has been named by several national recruiting services as the #1 overall player in the nation at any position. His top five schools that he is considering in alphabetical order are: Alabama, Clemson, Miami, North Carolina, and South Carolina.

South Pointe also boasts kicker Landon Ard and linebacker Gerald Dixon. Northwestern quarterback Justin Worley last week committed to play at the University of Tennessee. Northwestern also counters with receiver Robert Joseph, who set a state record last year for most catches in a game, and defensive tackle Gerard Dixon. The Dixons are brothers.

This doubleheader is two of eight games involving 16 of the nation's top teams arranged by ESPN and Paragon Marketing in Chicago to kickoff the 2010 season. Games will be played on Aug. 27-29 and will be broadcast nationally on ESPN's stations. Northwestern, the host team, will play South Pointe at 4 p.m. on ESPNU. Byrnes High School of Duncan, SC will play Hoover High School of Hoover, Ala. on ESPN at noon.

Both games will be played on Saturday, Aug. 28th at District III Stadium in Rock Hill, SC.

Simpkins is the son of Willie and Rev. Carmilla Simpkins and a 1996 graduate of Strom Thurmond, a 1999 initiate into the Kappa Lambda Chapter of Kappa Alpha Psi Fraternity, Inc.,  and a 2001 graduate of Clemson University with a Bachelor Degree in Marketing.