The Associated Press | Posted: Monday, September 15, 2008 11:00 pm
PLEASANT VIEW, Utah -- A week of fast and furious text messaging by Weber High School students won a coveted radio station prize -- a visit from singer Jessica Simpson.
Simpson dropped in at the Pleasant View school Monday to the delight of about 1,800 screaming fans.
To earn their prize Weber High students sent 571,795 text messages to Salt Lake City-based radio station KUBL.
Weber's text numbers clobbered rival Fremont High school by about 250,000.
Overall, the country station got more than 1 million texts, afternoon disc jockey Pat Garrett said.
Simpson had a private visit with Weber High's student body officers and two "top texters" before fielding questions from students in the gym.
In her Texas drawl, Simpson talked about high school, her move from pop to country music, Dallas Cowboys quarterback Tony Romo and how she relies on family, friends and faith to handle the public scrutiny that comes with fame.
Students also got to see the video for Simpson's country single, "Come on Over."
Before the end of her 25-minute visit, a few lucky students got hugs and kisses from the star.
"I think he's shaking," Simpson said with a laugh after hugging one teen.
Junior Josh Naylor was among those who met Simpson before the rally. He sent more than 23,000 texts -- more than any other student -- for the honor.
"I love her. I mean, she's just about the prettiest lady in the world," Naylor said.
Weber High normally bans cell phone in classrooms during school hours, but some teachers looked the other way last week for contest texting.
"We see that (Simpson's visit) as a spectacular, fun way for Weber High to kick off Homecoming Week," said Weber School District spokesman Nate Taggart, "but it's not the type of distraction we'd want to occur on a regular basis."