By: Joey Mullins
Samford Athletics
 
The words sacrifice and hard work are often used by athletes and rightfully so. The work put in to play a sport, especially at the college level while also being a full-time student, is considerable. Those words have never been truer for a student-athlete than they are for Samford graduate defensive lineman Seth Simmer.
               
The Powder Springs, Georgia, native started his college career at the Ivy League's Dartmouth College in Hanover, New Hampshire. After redshirting the 2016 season, he was going through the spring of 2017 when he noticed a problem.
               
"I was playing in the spring game of my freshman year, and I was having trouble hearing the linebacker behind me making the calls," Simmer said. "I ended up saying something to my parents about it and they said you need to go see a doctor. So, I went to the clinic on campus, took a hearing test, didn't do too well because I couldn't hear out of my left ear. I had to go to the hospital, ended up getting an MRI, found a tumor and I started the process of figuring out how to get it taken care of and what was the next step."
               
Simmer was diagnosed with an acoustic neuroma, which is a noncancerous and usually slow-growing tumor that develops on the main (vestibular) nerve leading from the inner ear to the brain. Branches of this nerve directly influence your balance and hearing, and pressure from an acoustic neuroma can cause hearing loss, ringing in your ear and unsteadiness.
               
Simmer had surgery to remove the tumor on July 5, 2017. He spent a week in the hospital and then it took about seven months to recover from the procedure.
               
Simmer said the help and support of his family and friends helped him get through this incredibly difficult situation.
               
"My family was there the whole time," Simmer said. "My extended family, and my mom, dad, brother, grandparents, aunts, uncles, cousins, they were all there. Also, family friends, it was a great atmosphere. I really felt the love the whole time. My family has a huge network and they literally showed out and were supportive, helped us out with meals and places to stay if we needed it and they were just super helpful."
               
In addition to his family and friends, Simmer said his coaches and teammates at Dartmouth were also incredibly supportive during this time.
               
"A lot of my teammates would go to the doctor with me," Simmer said. "My coaches were right there with me, calling all the time. When I had the surgery in July, I woke up the next day and I had over 300 text messages and calls. So, it was great that people really showed a lot of support. My parents did a great job of letting everybody know what was going on. It was a great experience and I appreciate all of those people who were there for me."
               
The operation Simmer had involved removing the nerves that control balance and hearing on his left side. He said it took him a little bit of time to regain his balance, but he still cannot hear out of his left ear.
               
"I had a lot of trouble with balance," Simmer said. "I felt like I was on a boat in the ocean a lot of times. I'd get discombobulated, disoriented and I couldn't keep my balance. It took me a while through PT (physical therapy) and just slowly gaining my own confidence back and being able to do things. I got back in the weight room and that helped a lot. That spring when I came back, it was hard, I was having some problems. But, as the fall came around in fall camp, I felt like I was a brand-new man. I had no balance issues."
               
Simmer played the 2018 and 2019 seasons for Dartmouth, winning an Ivy League championship in 2019. As the 2020 season approached, like everyone else, COVID changed his plans. He was also graduating from Dartmouth with a degree in environmental sciences, and Ivy League schools do not allow graduate students to play. So, if he wanted to continue to play football, he had to find another school to attend.
               
"I graduated, got in the (transfer) portal and Coach Steve Adams hit me up," Simmer said. "I talked to Coach (Alex) Garcia, Coach (Nick) Benedetto and Coach (Chris) Hatcher, and it just seemed like the best fit for me. It was close to home; my parents could come to games a little easier. They had two academic programs that I was very interested in to get my master's degree in. I've always loved Birmingham, it's a great place. So, it was just kind of like the magic fit for me."
               
Simmer played in the spring season, seeing action in all seven games. He tallied 33 total tackles, including 15 solo stops and 2.5 tackles for loss. Through the first seven games of this season, he has 33 tackles, 13 solo, 2.0 tackles for loss and 1.0 sack.
               
Though he is in graduate school for his MBA, because of the time he missed due to his illness and the extra year granted because of COVID, he has another year of eligibility for the fall of 2022. He talked a little about what he would like to do once his playing career is over.
               
"When I graduate, I'm looking to get into some kind of management consulting," Simmer said. "I've been working on a couple of leads. I have some time during the day so I can get internships and things like that. I'm also interested in renewable energy, the utility sector in general. That's what my undergrad was in, environmental sciences. So, I'm not 100 percent sure, but there are some great opportunities out there and I'm trying to set myself up to take advantage of them."
               
Simmer has been through a lot during his college career. From Dartmouth to Samford, he has kept a positive attitude and looks forward to another season next fall and then a successful career after school and football are over.