No quit in NU's Simpson

Leonard Simpson received the poem from a co-worker in 1988, when his son Eddie was still a toddler.

Fifteen years later, as Eddie headed off to play linebacker at Northwestern, Leonard made sure he left with a copy of the poem, titled "Don't Quit."

"It was something that I held on to," Leonard Simpson said, "something that I passed on."

Before the final game of his freshman season, Eddie put the poem up in his locker. Five years later, the poem remains, "old and crinkled now," Eddie said.

It's displayed next to a picture of Eddie's mother, Sharon, who died of breast cancer last August.

Before each practice, Eddie kisses his mother's picture. Then he reads the poem, which begins this way:

When things go wrong, as they sometimes will,

When the road you're trudging seems all uphill,

When the funds are low and the debts are high,

And you want to smile, but you have to sigh,

When care is pressing you down a bit,

Rest, if you must, but don't you quit.

"That poem, little did I know five years ago, would be the testament to my career," Eddie said. "It hasn't been a world of perfect, as (former NU coach Randy Walker) used to say, but it's how you respond, how you finish."

After five seasons of injuries, comebacks, high hopes and setbacks, Simpson is finishing strong. The man known to his teammates simply as "Fast" finally showed why last week.

With NU trailing Indiana 14-3 in the second quarter, Simpson returned an interception 41 yards to the end zone. NU won the game 31-28, keeping its bowl hopes alive heading into Saturday's regular-season finale at No. 20 Illinois (11 a.m., ESPN).

"It's been as hard of a road on Eddie as it has anybody in our program," coach Pat Fitzgerald said. "What a great way to go out."

The view was just as good in the stands for Leonard and Eddie's older brother Leonard II. "It was definitely beholding," Leonard said.

Simpson's touchdown was a highlight in every sense, especially after the dark days of the last 17 months. The first blow came on June 29, 2006, when Walker died suddenly of a heart attack.

As Wildcats players began training camp without their coach, Simpson got word that his mother had only a few days to live. He returned home to Houston to be with Sharon and rejoined the team following her passing.

"We have no control of death and life," Leonard said. "But you have to continue on with life. That's something I'm sure she would have wanted him to do.

"I can never recall a time when he said, 'I don't want to go back.' He always knew what he wanted to do, the goals that he wanted to reach."

But would Eddie's body ever let him reach those goals?

The 6-foot-1, 230-pounder had hamstring and ankle problems his first three seasons. Last year a neck injury kept him out of three games.

After a decent finish that included 2 fumble recoveries, Eddie entered this season with high expectations. But he suffered an ankle injury against Nevada in Week 2 and missed the next four games.

Leonard said Eddie considered seeking a medical redshirt but was cleared to play Oct. 13.

"Most guys, if you're coming to college to play at this level, you have aspirations to play at the next level," Eddie said. "Those were my aspirations. You look at the guys who are hurt, who are banged up, and they really don't get that opportunity.

"You really have to hone in on the moment."

For Eddie, it meant showing greater discipline in practice.

"Early in his career, he might have tried to get by on his pure athletic ability," linebacker Adam Kadela said. "This season, he's trusting the technique, trusting the scheme a lot more. He's a very smart football player.

"I've always known Fast has had great potential."

Fitzgerald saw the potential while recruiting Eddie at Houston's North Shore High. Injuries to teammates required Eddie to play defensive end, which hurt his recruiting stock because of his size.

His prep coaches sold him as a linebacker or a safety, but certainly a top-division talent.

"When I brought the tape back and showed Coach Walker, he looked at me and said, 'Why didn't you know about him earlier?' " Fitzgerald said.

Eddie didn't blossom on the field until later in college, but his rickety route helped him mature.

"Sometimes in conversations we've had, I'm like, 'Is that my son Eddie?' " Leonard said. "He sees life in a whole different light."

Leonard still keeps the "Don't Quit" poem in his briefcase and often gives it to young people in church. His message: Never give up.

Eddie Simpson didn't.

"No matter what, you just keep fighting," Eddie said. "You don't quit."