100 Years of Syracuse Lacrosse: The Roy Simmons Sr. I Era (1931-1950)
2/20/2016 7:00:00 PM | Men's Lacrosse
In each of Syracuse's eight home contests this season, the Orange will be honoring one segment of the 100-years of men's lacrosse at Syracuse. Today, we take a look at the first-20 years of the Roy Simmons Sr. Era, Syracuse's second head coach, who served as the Orange's head coach for 40 years.
    In 1931, the Orange experienced the first coaching change in program history, something that's happened just three times in the 100 years of Syracuse lacrosse. Roy Simmons Sr. took the reins for Syracuse, a position held for the next 40 years.
    Simmons Sr. faced numerous challenges in his first-20 years leading the program, but none more so than guiding the program through World War II. Simmons, who served in the military for three years while the program was stopped during the war, rebuilt the program very quickly upon his return and guided the Orange to prominence after serving his country.
    In Simmons' first year, the 1931 Orange stuttered out of the gate to a 3-4 record but rebounded to win four straight, beginning with a 9-1 victory against Hobart. The Orange finished the season with a 7-4 record.
    Simmons and the Orange continued that success into the following season as the Orange lost just one game, outscored their final five opponents 45-10, and finished with a  6-1-1 record.
    The 1933 season featured a major rule change, allowing only 10 players to play on each side of the field as opposed to 12, which was the previous rule. Simmons didn't let the rule change impact the Orange's success, guiding the squad to a 7-2 final record. The Orange won games by an average of 11.14 goals per game and only lost to Cornell twice, by a total of three goals in those two games.
    The 1934 Syracuse team finished 10-2, getting revenge against Cornell by winning both of its matchups with the Central New York rival during the year.
    After a disappointing 5-5 record during the 1935 season, the 1936 Orange returned to its winning ways, finishing 7-2 and ending with an 8-7 victory at Crescent A.C.
    Closing the season on a win streak continued to be a trademark of 'Cuse under Simmons in 1937. The Orange won the last four games of the season after a 2-4 start, avoiding what would have been just the third losing season in program history.
    The 1938 season began with two new opponents for the Orange as the schedule started to resemble more of what current fans are used to. Syracuse traveled to both Virginia and Duke to face off with each for the first time in program history. Winning both games by a combined score of 30-9, and then defeating the Alumni team 11-6, Simmons' squad opened the year 3-0 before losting its final-five games to finish 5-5.
    Playing just six games in 1939, the Orange finished with a 4-2 record. The following year, in 1940, the team once again fell victim to a four-game losing streak before winning four straight on the back-end of the schedule to end the season at 5-4. In 1941, Syracuse finished 6-3, winning three-straight against Hobart, Rutgers and Union to close out the year.
    Having coached 11-seasons and accumulating a 68-34-1, Simmons temporarily stepped down from his duties as head coach during the 1942 season, going into service for WWII after coaching only the first game of the season. Under interim coach Fred Schermahorn, the Orange finished 3-4. In the years to follow (1943-1945), no lacrosse was played as a result of the war.
    Returning from service, Simmons once again took control of the Orange as the team resumed play in 1946. Rebounding from four years without its head coach and three years without playing a game, the team finished 7-5, including a 12-2 victory against Cornell in the last game of the season.
    Simmons led the 2947 Orange to a 10-6 record in just the second season after the war. The following year, in 1948, Syracuse finished 11-3, reaching double-digit wins in consecutive seasons for the first time under Simmons.
    The 1949 Orange played their way to a 14-1 final record, losing only a 13-11 game to Army in the middle of the season. The team's 14 wins matched that of the 1925 USILA Co-Champion Syracuse team, the second highest win total in the 33 years of the program. The team featured seven All-Americans, the highest single-season total under Simmons.
    In 1950, the Orange finished 11-2, marking the fourth-straight with double-digit victories. For the second straight year, Simmons coached seven All-Americans, including William Fuller, who was named as a first-team midfielder in 1949 and 1950. Simmons teams amassed a 53-17 record from 1946 through 1950, the five seasons following the hiatus due to the war.
    From 1931-1950, Orange earned a total of 60 All-America awards and won 124 games to begin Simmons' legacy, setting the stage for the second half of his tenure as Syracuse's head coach.
    In 1931, the Orange experienced the first coaching change in program history, something that's happened just three times in the 100 years of Syracuse lacrosse. Roy Simmons Sr. took the reins for Syracuse, a position held for the next 40 years.
    Simmons Sr. faced numerous challenges in his first-20 years leading the program, but none more so than guiding the program through World War II. Simmons, who served in the military for three years while the program was stopped during the war, rebuilt the program very quickly upon his return and guided the Orange to prominence after serving his country.
    In Simmons' first year, the 1931 Orange stuttered out of the gate to a 3-4 record but rebounded to win four straight, beginning with a 9-1 victory against Hobart. The Orange finished the season with a 7-4 record.
    Simmons and the Orange continued that success into the following season as the Orange lost just one game, outscored their final five opponents 45-10, and finished with a  6-1-1 record.
    The 1933 season featured a major rule change, allowing only 10 players to play on each side of the field as opposed to 12, which was the previous rule. Simmons didn't let the rule change impact the Orange's success, guiding the squad to a 7-2 final record. The Orange won games by an average of 11.14 goals per game and only lost to Cornell twice, by a total of three goals in those two games.
    The 1934 Syracuse team finished 10-2, getting revenge against Cornell by winning both of its matchups with the Central New York rival during the year.
    After a disappointing 5-5 record during the 1935 season, the 1936 Orange returned to its winning ways, finishing 7-2 and ending with an 8-7 victory at Crescent A.C.
    Closing the season on a win streak continued to be a trademark of 'Cuse under Simmons in 1937. The Orange won the last four games of the season after a 2-4 start, avoiding what would have been just the third losing season in program history.
    The 1938 season began with two new opponents for the Orange as the schedule started to resemble more of what current fans are used to. Syracuse traveled to both Virginia and Duke to face off with each for the first time in program history. Winning both games by a combined score of 30-9, and then defeating the Alumni team 11-6, Simmons' squad opened the year 3-0 before losting its final-five games to finish 5-5.
    Playing just six games in 1939, the Orange finished with a 4-2 record. The following year, in 1940, the team once again fell victim to a four-game losing streak before winning four straight on the back-end of the schedule to end the season at 5-4. In 1941, Syracuse finished 6-3, winning three-straight against Hobart, Rutgers and Union to close out the year.
    Having coached 11-seasons and accumulating a 68-34-1, Simmons temporarily stepped down from his duties as head coach during the 1942 season, going into service for WWII after coaching only the first game of the season. Under interim coach Fred Schermahorn, the Orange finished 3-4. In the years to follow (1943-1945), no lacrosse was played as a result of the war.
    Returning from service, Simmons once again took control of the Orange as the team resumed play in 1946. Rebounding from four years without its head coach and three years without playing a game, the team finished 7-5, including a 12-2 victory against Cornell in the last game of the season.
    Simmons led the 2947 Orange to a 10-6 record in just the second season after the war. The following year, in 1948, Syracuse finished 11-3, reaching double-digit wins in consecutive seasons for the first time under Simmons.
    The 1949 Orange played their way to a 14-1 final record, losing only a 13-11 game to Army in the middle of the season. The team's 14 wins matched that of the 1925 USILA Co-Champion Syracuse team, the second highest win total in the 33 years of the program. The team featured seven All-Americans, the highest single-season total under Simmons.
    In 1950, the Orange finished 11-2, marking the fourth-straight with double-digit victories. For the second straight year, Simmons coached seven All-Americans, including William Fuller, who was named as a first-team midfielder in 1949 and 1950. Simmons teams amassed a 53-17 record from 1946 through 1950, the five seasons following the hiatus due to the war.
    From 1931-1950, Orange earned a total of 60 All-America awards and won 124 games to begin Simmons' legacy, setting the stage for the second half of his tenure as Syracuse's head coach.
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