John Barsha

{{Short description|Russian-born American football player (1898–1976)}}

{{Infobox NFL biography

| name = John Barsha

| image = John Barsha (cropped).jpg

| caption = Barsha while at Syracuse

| number =

| position = Fullback

| birth_date = {{birth date|1898|12|25}}

| birth_place = Russia

| death_date = {{death date and age|1976|2|18|1898|12|25}}

| death_place = New York, New York, U.S.

| height_ft =

| height_in =

| weight_lbs =

| high_school = Brooklyn (NY) Boys

| college = Syracuse

| pastteams =

Rochester Jeffersons ({{NFL Year|1920}})
Syracuse Pros (1921)

| pfr = BarsJo20

}}

John F. Barsha{{cite web | url=http://www.nfl.com/player/johnnybarsha/2509096/profile | title=Johnny Barsha | work=nfl.com | access-date=October 27, 2017}} (born Abraham Barshofsky, December 25, 1898 – February 18, 1976),{{cite web | url=http://www.oldestlivingprofootball.com/19791970necrology.htm | title=1979 - 1970 Pro Football Necrology List | publisher=oldestlivingprofootball.com | access-date=October 26, 2017 | url-status=dead | archive-url=https://archive.today/20121205093510/http://www.oldestlivingprofootball.com/19791970necrology.htm | archive-date=December 5, 2012 }} was a Russian-American professional American football fullback who played for the Rochester Jeffersons of the American Professional Football Association (APFA) and the Syracuse Pros, who may or may not have been members of the same league. He played college football, basketball and baseball at Syracuse. He was also nicknamed "the Brooklyn Bullet".{{cite news | url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/14722344/the_brooklyn_daily_eagle/ | title=Syracuse Dazzles Brown Eleven | work=The Brooklyn Daily Eagle | date=November 10, 1918 | access-date=October 27, 2017 | pages=36}}{{cite news | url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/14722427/the_lincoln_star/ | title=Ideal Weather for Turkey Day Game | work=The Lincoln Star | date=November 28, 1917 | access-date=October 27, 2017 | author=Sherman, Cy | author-link=Cy Sherman | pages=9}}

Early and personal life

Barsha was Jewish,{{cite web | url=http://jewsinsports.org/profile.asp?sport=football&ID=57 | title=Barsha, John | publisher=Jews in Sports | access-date=October 26, 2017 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171028021955/http://jewsinsports.org/profile.asp?sport=football&ID=57 | archive-date=October 28, 2017 | df=mdy-all |url-status=dead}}{{Cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=M1xAAQAAMAAJ&dq=john+barsha+jewish&pg=PA490 |title=The American Hebrew & Jewish Messenger |date=1920 |publisher=American Hebrew Publishing Company |volume=107 |page=490 |language=en |via=Google Books}} and his family immigrated from Russia to the United States when he was a small child. He attended Boys High School in Brooklyn, New York. During his senior year of high school, he changed his name from Abraham Barshofsky to John Barsha. According to OrangeHoops.org, he did it to "hide his participation in an unscheduled game that his basketball team played without the coach's knowledge". He lived in Brooklyn, New York.[https://www.nytimes.com/1976/02/21/archives/john-barsha-78-lawyer.html John Barsha, 78, Lawyer, Football All‐America in 1918 - The New York Times]

Barsha also attended the Syracuse University College of Law and worked as a lawyer. He also coached basketball and football at Norwich High School in Norwich, New York.{{cite web | url=http://www.evesun.com/news/stories/2017-07-21/27186/NHS-Sports-Hall-of-Fame-Induction-Frank-R-Wassung-CoachSuperintendent-1915-37/ | title=NHS Sports Hall of Fame Induction: Frank R. Wassung, Coach/Superintendent 1915-37 | publisher=evesun.com | access-date=October 30, 2017 | url-status=bot: unknown | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171031021126/http://www.evesun.com/news/stories/2017-07-21/27186/NHS-Sports-Hall-of-Fame-Induction-Frank-R-Wassung-CoachSuperintendent-1915-37/ | archive-date=October 31, 2017 }} He had two children (son; Jerry, and daughter; Betty Schwartz) with his wife Daisy Ferrari. He died at the age of 78 in 1976.

College career

Barsha lettered in football, basketball and baseball for the Syracuse Orangemen of Syracuse University, serving as captain of both the basketball and the baseball teams.{{cite web |title=Barsha, John |url=https://www.jewsinsports.org/profile_sport_football_ID_57.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171028021955/http://jewsinsports.org/profile.asp?sport=football&ID=57 |archive-date=October 28, 2017 |access-date=October 26, 2017 |website=Jews In Sports Online |publisher=}}{{cite news | url=https://www.nytimes.com/1976/02/21/archives/john-barsha-78-lawyer.html?mtrref=www.nytimes.com | title=John Barsha, 78, Lawyer, Football All-America in 1918 | work=The New York Times | date=February 21, 1976 | access-date=October 30, 2017 | url-status=bot: unknown | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171031021152/http://www.nytimes.com/1976/02/21/archives/john-barsha-78-lawyer.html?mtrref=www.nytimes.com | archive-date=October 31, 2017 }} He was a member of Phi Beta Kappa, and was a magna cum laude graduate of the university.{{cite news | url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/14792023/the_buffalo_enquirer/ | title=Athlete and Scholar | work=The Buffalo Enquirer | date=March 26, 1920 | access-date=October 30, 2017 | pages=15}}

He lettered four seasons for the football team from 1916 to 1919. He was co‐captain of the 1918 Walter Camp All American football team and named an Honorable Mention.{{cite book | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=G2lPAQAAMAAJ&q=%22John+Barsha%22 | title=Fifty Years of Football at Syracuse University 1889-1939 | publisher=Syracuse University Football history committee | year=1939 | pages=89 | url-status=bot: unknown | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171028031015/https://books.google.com/books?id=G2lPAQAAMAAJ&q=%22John+Barsha%22&dq=%22John+Barsha%22&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwibre7zqpLXAhViwYMKHd6pDU0Q6AEISTAG | archive-date=2017-10-28 }}

Barsha played guard on the basketball team. He played in 17 games, starting 16, during the 1917–18 college basketball season and averaged 2.0 points per game. The team finished with a 16–1 record and were later retroactively named national champions by the Helms Athletic Foundation. He played in 16 games, all starts, during the 1918–19 season and averaged 6.1 points per game. Barsha was the team's designated free throw shooter that season. He played in 18 games, all starts, during the 1919–20 season and averaged 3.5 points per game. He was a team captain that season. Barsha played in 51 games, starting 50, during his college basketball career and averaged 3.8 points per game.{{cite web |title=John Barsha |url=http://www.orangehoops.org/JBarsha.htm |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171028021954/http://www.orangehoops.org/JBarsha.htm |archive-date=October 28, 2017 |access-date=October 27, 2017 |website=orangehoops.org |publisher=}}

He also played catcher on the baseball team.

Professional career

Barsha played in three games, all starts, as a fullback for the Rochester Jeffersons of the APFA in 1920 and scored one rushing touchdown.{{cite web |title=1920 Rochester Jeffersons |url=http://kencrippen.com/Jeffersons/1920_Rochester_Jeffersons.pdf |url-status=bot: unknown |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171028043629/http://kencrippen.com/Jeffersons/1920_Rochester_Jeffersons.pdf |archive-date=October 28, 2017 |access-date=October 28, 2017 |website=kencrippen.com |publisher=}}{{cite web | url=http://kencrippen.com/Jeffersons/Rochester_Jeffersons_All_Time_Player_Roster.pdf | title=All-Time Player Roster: Rochester Jeffersons | publisher=kencrippen.com | access-date=October 28, 2017 | pages=3 | url-status=bot: unknown | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171028042228/http://kencrippen.com/Jeffersons/Rochester_Jeffersons_All_Time_Player_Roster.pdf | archive-date=October 28, 2017 }} He later played for the Syracuse Pros.{{cite news | url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/14792524/the_washington_post/ | title=Syracuse Pros Have Heavy Grid Machine | newspaper=The Washington Post | date=November 11, 1921 | access-date=October 30, 2017 | pages=16}}{{cite news | url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/14792533/the_brooklyn_daily_eagle/ | title=Barsha To Play Pro Football On Syracuse Team | work=The Brooklyn Daily Eagle | date=September 15, 1920 | access-date=October 30, 2017 | pages=23}}

After his professional career ended, Barsha worked as an attorney.