29-01-2025
Chaminade's Donta Simpson is the Broward 4A-1A Football Defensive Player of the Year
Donta Simpson only got to play seven games as a senior for Chaminade-Madonna, but when he was on the field, he might have been the most dominant interior force in the state.
It's why the 6-foot-3, 281-pound defensive tackle is the Miami Herald's Broward County Defensive Player of the Year for Classes 4A-1A.
Simpson missed more than a month before finally getting back on the field for the Lions in the Class 1A semifinals and then helped Chaminade-Madonna roll to back-to-back blowout wins for a fourth straight state title.
In the Lions' 42-7 rout of Clearwater Central Catholic in the 1A championship last month, Simpson had seven tackles and a tackle for loss. He finished his final season in Hollywood with 45 tackles, 11 tackles for loss, six sacks, one safety and one blocked kick in only seven games. Simpson, who won't even turn 18 until the summer, is staying close to home to play at Miami after he finally caught the Hurricanes' attention last year and decided to flip his commitment from Maryland to Miami.
'Luckily, he flipped to us,' Hurricanes coach Mario Cristobal said.
Despite the limited production due to a hip injury, Simpson was at his best in the biggest moments, including the state title game. He had three tackles for loss in Chaminade-Madonna's shocking early-season loss to Blanche Ely, recorded a pair of sacks and two tackles for loss when the Lions bounced back against Plantation American Heritage the next week, and had three sacks and three tackles for loss in a rout of Norland a few weeks later.
Although only a three-star defensive lineman in the 247Sports composite rankings for the Class of 2025, Simpson was the defensive anchor—and biggest difference-maker—for one of the best programs in the country.
Above all else, he's a winner, who played an important role in three state championships for Chaminade-Madonna.
Coach Dameon Jones has coached his fair share of high school stars and future NFL players, and had high praise for Simpson: 'The best trench player in the state.'
