Simmons, Chaffee roll past Hayti as team, community honors former teammate

It didn’t take long for Chaffee to jump on top of the visiting Hayti Indians, scoring the first 29 points of the game and cruising to a 50-18 win on a night when the Red Devils came together to raise money for the recently hospitalized Seger Ruiz.

Led by senior Shelton Simmons, the Chaffee offense proved far too much for Hayti early on. With a 43-6 lead by the half, the teams chipped on a few more scores before eventually reaching a final 32-point margin of victory for the hosts.

Chaffee won its second consecutive game, coming back from a 28-14 win against Malden in Week 4 with a dominant victory against Hayti, a team that the Red Devils have historically struggled against. Now back over .500 at 3-2, the Red Devils look to do damage in the closing stretch of the season.

“That was kind of one of those little goals – if you can just get over the hump early,” Chaffee coach Jack Altermatt said. “It's good to have our momentum going. Our guys are just really committed to showing up every single day. No one misses practice, and that's a huge thing for us. Everyone's bought in.”

Simmons’ career night saw him finish with three long rushing touchdowns and an interception, supplying plenty of firepower for Chaffee to blow the doors off the Indians early.

A multi-sport talent, Simmons’ work on the gridiron certainly hasn’t gone unnoticed as he’s played a large role in Chaffee’s 3-2 start to the season. With any luck, the senior could be one of the keys to a historic season for the Red Devils.

“We've been trying to get Shelton Simmons loose,” Altermatt said. “He got hurt early in the year last year and he didn't get to finish the season. He kind of broke out tonight and had a really, really good game.”

The Red Devils honored Ruiz, a recent graduate involved in an accident that sent him to the intensive care unit at a St. Louis hospital. Selling shirts and bracelets with the phrase “Seger Strong” as well as running a halftime raffle to raise money for Ruiz, the Chaffee community came together to support one of their own.

Ruiz played football, basketball, and baseball for the Red Devils, and Chaffee made sure to support him on the field with each player wearing a sticker on their helmet in honor of Ruiz with his initials “SR.”

Having a big impact on the lives of so many different Chaffee students and community members, many of the current members of the team could speak and did speak on their close personal bond.

“He's done so much for the community,” Chaffee senior Kade Atkins said. “I mean, he's done everything. He was a StuCo President, and he just led the community and he did it right.”

Crawling back over .500 for the first time this late in the season since 2017, the Red Devils enter their Week 6 matchup against Portageville with a little bit of momentum.

While Chaffee is very well aware of the challenge that the Class 1 powerhouse presents, Altermatt’s club is fired up entering a big road test against one of the best teams in the area.

“It's a pretty big game,” Simmons said. “I mean, with us coming off this win, it'll be pretty big. We’re gonna be motivated. If we can keep it close with them, it'll be pretty good.”