Ken Simendinger
Kenneth Alphonse Simendinger (October 23, 1899 – May 26, 1972) was a professional American football player in the National Football League (NFL) for the Hartford Blues in 1926. He also played for the Waterbury-Hartford Blues in 1924, prior to that team's entry into the NFL. He was also a head college basketball coach at his alma mater, Holy Cross from 1924 until 1925. Simendiger was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania in 1899, where he attended La Salle College High School.
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| Position: | Halfback | ||
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| Personal information | |||
| Born: | October 23, 1899 Philadelphia, Pennsylvania | ||
| Died: | May 26, 1972 (aged 72) Philadelphia, Pennsylvania | ||
| Height: | 5 ft 10 in (1.78 m) | ||
| Weight: | 175 lb (79 kg) | ||
| Career information | |||
| College: | Holy Cross | ||
| Career history | |||
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| Player stats at PFR | |||
At Holy Cross, Simendinger played three years of college football and baseball. He hit two home runs and a double in his baseball debut against Dartmouth College, earning him the nickname the “Babe Ruth of the Eastern Intercollegiates.” Simendinger is the only Crusader coach to have served for just one season, as he then became football coach at Gonzaga High School in Washington D.C. where his team went undefeated and unscored upon in 1927. He was inducted into the College of The Holy Cross Crusader Varsity Club Hall of Fame in 1958.
Simendinger then went on to an outstanding coaching and teaching career at Northeast Catholic High School for Boys in his home town of Philadelphia. He taught math at North for 40 years and coached the Falcon football team from 1930 through the 1940 seasons. He gave up coaching when his wife became ill. His teams won a share of the Catholic League championship in four consecutive years, from 1934 to 1937. He coached future National Football League (NFL) stars such as Frank Reagan and Bucko Kilroy. He has the second-most wins in school history (behind only Jack Gillespie) with an overall record of 62–22–12. Simendinger also coached the North Catholic basketball team to a league crown in 1935.
Simendinger died on May 26, 1972 in Philadelphia.
References
- Hogrogian, John (1982). "The Hartford Blues Part I" (PDF). Coffin Corner. Professional Football Researchers Association. 4 (8): 1–5. Archived from the original (PDF) on November 27, 2010.