David W. Healy
dhealy@ddtonline.com
HOLLANDALE — Simmons High School running back Vontrez Rush won’t be able to sneak up on his opponents this upcoming football season, but he still expects to be an even better football player.
“I have put the work in, and now I am ready to go,” Rush said Monday afternoon.
Last season as a sophomore Rush, a 5-foot-9, 140-pounder, unexpectedly blazed by defenses all over the Delta. Despite being one of the smallest players on the field each game, Rush finished the season with 1,322 yards rushing and 16 touchdowns and was named the Delta Democrat-Times’ Newcomer of the Year.
“I learned a lot last season about myself,” Rush said. “I proved that I could play at a very high level against older players. This year I know that I can do even better.”
Making this season even more special for Rush is that he will get to play alongside his brother, Devontae Rush. First year Simmons head coach Jeremy Packer said he expects Devontae, a sophomore, to compete for the starting quarterback position. Even if Devontae does not play quarterback, Coach Packer expects him to be a big contributor on this year’s Blue Devils team.
“It is going to be fantastic playing with my brother,” Vontrez Rush said. “We are really close, and we are really similar players. I believe we are both going to have great seasons.”
Coach Packer said it did not take him long to understand the talent Vontrez brings to the game of football.
“Vontrez is a very explosive player, and we are going to do what we can to enhance his skill set,” Coach Packer said. “I have also been impressed with Vontrez’s work ethic, and how he is doing what it takes to be a team leader.”
It is players like Rush, said Coach Packer, who have helped make his transition to Hollandale smoother, despite all the uncertainty that surrounds the program and the game of high school football because of the coronavirus.
Packer, 33, was a star athlete at Madison Central High School in football, basketball and track.
Packer replaces former Simmons head coach Timothy Johnson who left the Blue Devils to become the new head football coach at Humphreys County High School.
Both Coach Packer and Vontrez say they understand that the bar at Simmons High School will always be set high. After winning state championships in 2015, 2016 and 2017, the Blue Devils finished last season with a 5-6 record.
“We are humble, but we also know that our goal at Simmons is always to win it all,” Vontrez said.The Blue Devils are currently scheduled to play eight games this year, after the Mississippi High School Activities Association last week pushed back the start of the season by two weeks. The Blue Devils are scheduled to open the season at home on Sept. 4 against Humpreys County.
