He was a member of the 1899 "Iron Men" of Sewanee that went undefeated and won 5 road games in 6 days all by shutout. Fuzzy Woodruff wrote of the only game in which Sewanee was scored upon, the 11 to 10 win over Auburn, "Under Heisman's tutelage, Auburn played with a marvelous speed and dash that couldn't be gainsaid and which fairly swept Sewanee off its feet. Only the remarkable punting of Simkins kept the game from being a debacle."[6]
Simkins in 1900.
In a 1944 interview former coach Billy Suter said of Simkins, "one of the greatest football players I ever saw, a fine kicker, a fine ball carrier, and the most terrific tackler and blocker I ever saw."[6] Simkins is the fullback on the All-Time Sewanee football team,[7] one publication of which notes "Sewanee's greatest backfield ace, Ormond Simkins, unfortunately died some years ago from the effects of a football injury from which he never recovered after leaving college. A wonderful punter and a hard running ball carrier, he deserves much of the credit for Sewanee's wonder team of 1899."[7]
A documentary film about the team and Simkins' role was released in 2022 called "Unrivaled: Sewanee 1899."[8]
Simkins had suffered injuries to both legs while playing football. In later years, his left foot had to be amputated. While working for the War Risk Bureau in Washington, D. C. he entered Georgetown University Hospital in order to have the other one amputated, and died. Henry Seibels would later tell his two sons and an inquiring newsman it was Simkins, not he, who was the best player from Sewanee's 1899 team.[1][6] A field house with his name is part of the Juhan Gym at Sewanee, where the school plays basketball.
^ abGivens, Wendell (1993). "Sewanee's Football Iron Men of 1899". Tennessee Historical Quarterly. 52. Tennessee Historical Commission and the Tennessee Historical Society.
^"Sewanee Has Prospects Of The Championship". Atlanta Constitution. May 6, 1901.
