Grow the Game®

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The Final Countdown(s)

In one week I’ll be going full time with LAS and that means I’ll be 100% lacrosse all the time, every time.  I forced my day job quietly into that good night, I’ve neatly organized my multi-color poker chips and now I’m ready to splash the pot in a big way.

I’m excited to write during the day and take calls during normal business hours.  I’m thrilled to wake up in the morning, work out a bit, hit the wall and then come back and fill my day with as many lacrosse-related activities as possible.  And finally, I am beyond thankful that I’m going to be able to make lacrosse my life.

Replace football with "watch footbal" and he's got it right!

Just having the chance to pursue one’s passion in life is a rare and great opportunity.  I plan on taking full advantage of it.  I owe all of the LAS faithful a HUGE thank you for reading, believing and coming back day after day.  Without your support, I doubt I would have the confidence to make the jump, so THANK YOU!  Your comments and involvement only make us better and without our readers, we are nothing.

A standing O for the readers!

While I’m sure you’re all excited to hear more about me (probably not actually), that’s not really what this post is about.  I just had to get that out of the way.  I’m a little emotional.  But back to business…  This post is about lacrosse, and why this time of the year is so important.

NCAA and MCLA Fall Ball is in full swing.  Every team that is able to hold fall ball practices has probably done so already.  If you follow 412, you know that Indiana is going hard enough that 3 of their guys have suffered slight concussions.  If you read InsideLacrosse, you know that NCAA Div 3 Cortland State wouldn’t allow the IL reporters to even watch their practice.  What could they be hiding?  DRA-MA!!  Of course, IL was nice enough not to mention this in their article.  UVa and Loyola played (and beat) their alumni teams in scrimmages.  Cuse will do the same shortly in what is probably the most highly anticipated single fall ball game of the season.  Sure, they won’t keep score, but the names on that alumni team will likely read as a modern Who’s Who of Lax.

The action on the field isn’t the only thing going on right now. Coaches, captains and Athletic Dept. people all over the country are busy crafting the designs for their spring gear and uniforms.  Manufacturers are working on timelines and last minute changes so that the teams they sponsor will look their absolute best come late February/early March.  Some of the stuff leaking out right now looks pretty solid, but the best is definitely yet to be seen…  Unless you think Indiana’s practice shorts are the best, because that’s totally understandable.

Back to on the field happenings… The NLL is starting up.  In Canada, this is huge news.  In the US this will be huge news someday, just not yet.  As more and more boxla is actually being played stateside, the game is poised to grow in popularity.  Americans like to cheer for Americans and as players like Paul Rabil, Brendan Mundorf and Max Seibald become better box players, the US will see an increase in popularity of the indoor game.  Kids have always wanted to “Be Like Mike” so if our best love boxla, the kids will love boxla.  Very simple.

Casey Powell and Joe Walters are a big part of the reason Americans know about boxla at all!

Guys like Casey Powell and Joe Walters are true American box converts and as that number increases and the even younger set of stars get on board, the real change will come.  Box lacrosse is a great game that requires toughness, skill and athleticism.  There is no where to hide out there and weaknesses are quickly exposed.  You still have to play defense with your feet.  The physicality is unmatched.  Stick skills are of the utmost importance.

Chris Schiller makes his lax living in the NLL and he's American... gasp!

It forces you to become a better, even more well-rounded lacrosse player and it is why Canada won the World Games in 2006.  They were tougher, had better sticks and played a style we didn’t fully understand.  in 2010, we brought some box-style players of our own, did our research and expanded our game.  And that’s how we won back the gold.  We evolved.  It’s as simple as that.  Now the rest of the US needs to get on the wagon and evolve as well.

So as you can see, even though it’s the fall, there is still a lot of work to do and many lax happenings to cover.  Yes, we’re talking ’bout practice.  But we’re also going to cover a thousand other aspects of the game and I can’t wait to do it full time.  Things are about to hit the next level and I’m glad you’re along for the ride!