100 Years of Syracuse Lacrosse: The Second Roy Simmons Jr. Era

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 last-16 years of the Roy Simmons Jr. Era, Syracuse's third coach, who led the Orange to six NCAA Championships.

For Roy Simmons Jr., his first 12 years as head coach served as a building process for the Orange. By 1983, it was time for Simmons Jr. and company to enjoy the fruits of their labor. His teams went on to win six National Championships and dozens of All-American Awards in the final 16 years at the helm of the program.

In 1983, the Orange won their first NCAA Championship and first title since 1925. The team finished the regular season with a 11-1 record, losing only to Army. During the postseason, the Orange easily defeated Penn and Maryland, both of whom were ranked in the top six, to reach to the finals for the first time.

In the title game, the Orange rallied from a large second half deficit to take down top-seeded Johns Hopkins behind strong performances from first-team All-Americans Brad Kotz and Tim Nelson on the offensive end and Jeff McCormick on defense.

Kotz also became Syracuse's first recipient of the Lt. Raymond J. Enners Award, presented annually to the nation's best player, while Nelson won the first of his three consecutive Lt. Col Jack Turnbull Awards, which is given to the nation's best attackman.

The Orange finished the regular season undefeated in 1984 and once again made their way to the NCAA Championship and a re-match against Johns Hopkins. This time, the Blue Jays kept Syracuse from defending its title, winning 13-10. The Orange finished the year 15-1, which at the time set the program record for most wins in a single season.

The 1985 season played out similarly to the previous two. The Orange ended their regular season 12-1, and once again headed to the NCAA Tournament. They handily defeated Penn, 14-7, in the quarterfinal. In the semifinal, Syracuse beat North Carolina in overtime to reach a third-straight title game against Johns Hopkins, where the Blue Jays again prevailed. The 1985 squad featured four first-team All-Americans. Kotz and Nelson earned their third-straight selection, where they were joined by Jeff Desko and Kevin Sheehan.

In 1986, a loss to Virginia in the semifinal upended Syracuse's fourth-straight trip to the NCAA Championship Game after another 14-win regular season. Syracuse again had its season come to an end in the NCAA Semifinals in 1987, with a loss to Cornell. Todd Curry was named as the Lt. Donald C. MacLaughlin award for being the nation's top midfielder, becoming the first of eight Syracuse players to earn the honor.

The Orange had experienced five years of great success, but 1988 started a three year stretch of some of the most dominant lacrosse the game had ever seen. Syracuse lost just one game in three seasons – a game that was moved to from the Carrier Dome to Homewood Field in Baltimore to accommodate a concert in the venue in 1989. As Simmons says, Bon Jovi was the only reason the Orange didn't win 43-straight games during that stretch.

Syracuse won all 15 games in 1988 and was ranked No. 1 for the entire season. Syracuse defeated Cornell 13-8 in the NCAA Championship to complete its perfect run. Gary Gait (Enners, MacLaughlin) and John Zulberti (Turnbull) collected national postseason honors and Paul Gait joining the duo in earning All-America First Team honors.

The group returned in 1989 and after losing the season-opener at Johns Hopkins, bulldozed their way back to the NCAA title game, squaring off with the Blue Jays and winning 13-12 to win the program's second-straight title.

The 1990 squad that provided the exclamation point on Syracuse's three-year run of dominance. Syracuse rolled to the NCAA championship that season with an undefeated record and just one win coming by less than five goals. The Orange defeated Loyola, 21-9, in the title game for the program's third consecutive National Championship.

Gary Gait again earned the Enners Award, while Greg Burns won the Turnbull and Pat McCabe became Syracuse's first recipient of the William C. Schmeisser Award, given to the most outstanding defenseman. Burns, Gary Gait, Paul Gait, Tom Merechek and McCabe earned All-America First Team honors, the most honorees in one season in program history.

In 1991 Syracuse again made it to the Final Four, the title streak ended with a 19-13 loss to North Carolina in the national semifinal game that was played in the Carrier Dome.

Syracuse returned to the title game in 1992 season, losing to Princeton in two overtimes, 13-12. Dom Fin and Charlie Lockwood each earned their first All-America First Team accolades. The pair was later inducted into the Hall of Fame together in 2015. Marechek earned his fourth-straight All-America nod that season as well.

In 1993 the team earned a chance at redemption. After losing to rival North Carolina in the first game of the season, the Orange earned another shot at the Tar Heels in the NCAA Championship game. Simmons' squad avenged their regular season and 1992 title game losses with a 13-12 victory in the championship game. Fin, Roy Cosley and Matt Riter were three first-team All-America selections of the eight on the squad.

The 1995 Orange won another NCAA Championship. After two back-to-back losses early in the season, Syracuse downed Princeton, Virginia and Maryland, all in blowout fashion in the NCAA Tournament to claim Simmons Jr.'s record-setting sixth NCAA title as head coach.

Ric Beardsley and Cosley each earned their third-straight All-America honors, while the first member of another famous Syracuse lacrosse family – Casey Powell – earned his first.

Simmons concluded his era as head coach with three more 11-win seasons and trips to the NCAA Semifinals. Powell earned back-to-back Enners Awards in '98 and '99.

All told, Simmons delivered six NCAA Championships to Syracuse and his players accumulated 109 All-America accolades. He recorded an astounding 203-33 record during the final-16 years of his career. A 1991 inductee into the Lacrosse Hall of Fame and a member of the 2016 inaugural class of the IMLCA Hall of Fame, Simmons is one of the greatest coaches in the history of the game, who helped transform Syracuse into the greatest program in collegiate lacrosse.

Syracuse University Athletics

100 Years of Syracuse Lacrosse: The Second Roy Simmons Jr. Era

Players Mentioned

Jeff Desko

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