Bluefield – Sometimes you’re too young to know any better but all the Baby Beavers have ever known is success.
The decorated history of Bluefield football is littered with stars, most of whom made their marks as upperclassmen.
The 2004 undefeated, record-setting Bluefield team was led by a group of seasoned seniors. Will Cole was a senior when he won the Kennedy in 2008. The 2017 Bluefield team that went from 4-6 to 14-0 was dominated by upperclassmen.
In fact the only Beavers to have earned first team all-state honors as sophomores are Yubrenal Isabelle (’94), Lucas Stone (’02), Marcus Patterson (’07) and Jake Lilly (’07). But the 2025 Bluefield squad is on pace to rewrite the record books.
Enter the Baby Beavers.
An unknown three months ago, Bluefield’s sophomore core highlighted by QB Max Simpson, running back and linebacker Jeremiah Jones, defensive backs and receivers Jaleel Jones and Pax Calhoun, receiver Jordan Hess and linemen Ethan Thompson and TJ Francisco have burst onto the statewide scene and into the Class AA state championship game.
If you didn’t see it coming you aren’t alone.
Simpson was the lone starter from a year ago while Calhoun and Jeremiah Jones weren’t even on the roster.
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On a downward trend following a first round playoff exit in 2022 and a failure to qualify for the postseason in 2023, reinforcements were largely assumed to be on the way. The 2023 Bluefield Middle School team rolled through an undefeated 8-0 season behind the talented bushel of aforementioned players.
Fresh blood was sorely needed to the point Simpson became the first quarterback in program history to start as a freshman. He struggled through a 4-5 campaign that ultimately yielded a playoff berth and win, the first for the program since 2021. But it came without most of his fellow freshman making an impact.
While Simpson was taking his lumps, Calhoun and Jeremiah Jones were academically ineligible.
Two players who would become two of the best players in the state a year later didn’t even suit up after massively successful middle school careers.
“It was really hard,” Jones admitted. “But I knew that If I could come back and out in some more work I could make a better impact on the team and have better chemistry with everybody else.”
Jones wasn’t alone through the process though.
“When we both figured out we weren’t eligible we started talking to each other more about us trying to get back on the team,” Jones said of his conversations with Calhoun during that period.
“It was humbling,” Calhoun said. “It showed me I’ve really got to start focusing and lock in if I really want to play this sport. “You’ve got to be a student before an athlete.”
Behind the scenes the Beavers were also working to bring back offensive coordinator Fritz Simon who stepped down following the 2023 campaign. Simon helped coordinate the offense for title teams in 2004, ’07, ’09 and ’17 and helped establish an identity for a team that lacked one a year ago.
“These coaches, they didn’t give up,” Simon said. “They kept on me about coming back. That included Jay Dissibio, Bryce Pannell, Deyantei Powell-Woods. The kids would start messaging me and say, ‘We’d like to have you back,’ and it got to be where it was difficult to say no to. Honestly, to be able to spend time with my dad (head coach Fred Simon), this is kind of the arena for him so you kind of have to come back and do this because it takes majority of his time.
“It was a thing where I knew there was some talent coming back so I gave to a lot of thought. I didn’t think it would be quite like this but I thought I could come make a difference and really enjoy my time with the coaches and the players..”
In their first game the young group immediately flexed their talent when they upended defending VHSL state champion Graham.
Simpson put together one of the best games of his young career, tossing three touchdown passes, two to Calhoun who added an interception on defense.
That win was parlayed into a 3-1 start with additional wins over James Monroe and Beckley.
The momentum was disrupted in a loss at Independence in which starting running back Willis Wilson suffered a season-ending injury. But Jones, who was already spelling Wilson at times, stepped in as the lead back.
“Stepping up was probably one of the hardest things to do especially losing one of my favorite people on the team,” Jone said. “It does feel good to be RB1 for right now.”
Since that game Bluefield has ripped an eight game winning streak with the stars sophomores leading the way.
Jones has rushed for 296 yards and eight touchdowns in the postseason while his brother Jaleel has collected three of his six interceptions in this playoff run.
Hess has emerged as the team’s second-leading receiver with 626 yards and seven touchdowns, rounding out a potent offensive group.
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Simpson has been in the spotlight longer than his peers by virtue of his position.
He became the first QB in program history to start as a freshman when he opened against Graham, and took his lumps throughout his freshman year. But in Week 3 the glimpses were in display.
Trailing by 19 points in the fourth quarter against Class AAA team Greenbrier East, Simpson engineered a three-score comeback, passing for 383 yards in a win over the Spartans. But overall the Beaver offense struggled as the young QB found his footing.
The 2025 season has been a different story.
Heading into Saturday’s Class AA title game against Frankfort, he’s already authored the most prolific passing season in program history.
He’s thrown the longest touchdown pass in program history (99 yards), thrown for the most passing yards in a single game (397), the most passing touchdowns in a season (36 and counting) and has crossed the 3,000 yard threshold.
Most of those records he’s conquered previously belonged to 2008 Kennedy Award winner Will Cole.
“It’s incredible – for him to be a sophomore quarterback, which I’ve never really been able to coach – usually I only get them for a year or maybe two years if they’re a junior,” Fritz Simon said. “I showed him the playbook when I agreed to come back and you could see it looked like it was a lot to him. Honestly he’s taken it and studied it. He’s telling guys their routes and stuff so I don’t have to do that as much as I have had to in years past. There’s a comfortability with him with the receivers out there where he’s able to tell the what to do.”
Simpson hasn’t been the only sophomore breaking records.
Calhoun quickly emerged as the top receiving option in that win over Graham and has remained as such. He’s hauled in 65 passes for a program record 1,098 yards and 13 touchdowns, cementing them as one of the state’s top most productive passing duos for at least the next two seasons.
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Head coach Fred Simon, at the helm in his 40th season, didn’t know what to expect coming into the season. He thought his team would improve but believed the title window would open next year. Instead they’re the No. 2 seed in the Class AA playoffs and have bulldozed their way through three uncompetitive games.
Simon hopes to squeeze one more win out of the year, combining his expertise of coaching in 12 state title games with a group of players who have never sniffed a stage with the stakes this big.
“They’re good and they work hard and they listen so it’d be hard to pick a better group right now,” the elder Simon said when asked if it’s the best group of sophomore he’s ever coached.”
They’ll have chance to prove the veteran right with state championship No. 12 on Saturday.
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