Barsha, John

Abraham Barshofsky

An excellent all-around athlete, Barsha was a tremendous basketball player and helped spark Syracuse University to a 16-1 record and the national championship in 1918. Tom Thorpe, a well-known basketball referee of the time, called Barsha "the greatest player in the country."

Barsha was also an All-America football player for the Orangemen, and later played in the NFL. He changed his name from Barshofsky to Barsha during his senior year in high school to hide his participation in an unscheduled game his basketball team played without the coach's knowledge.

Birth and Death Dates:
b. Dec 25, 1898 - d. Feb 18, 1976

Career Highlights:
An emigrant from Russia, Barsha played for Syracuse in the late 1910s, helping his team win a national championship in 1918. The Orange's only loss that season was in the final game of the year to Penn, 17-16; they had defeated the Quakers 27-24 earlier in the season. In 1919, Syracuse had a record of 12-3. The following season, Barsha was the captain of the Orange, leading them to a 15-3 record.

In 1921-22, Barsha played professionally with the Syracuse All-Stars while in law school. John recalled that: "...we played an average of 20 games a season against all comers, including the old Celtics on which Nat Holman was a prominent star, and against whom I played when he was attending Commerce High and I was at Boys High in New York."

Origin:
Russia

Career Dates:
Barsha played guard at Syracuse University, 1918-1920.

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