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USA Box Lacrosse: A New Future?

The future of USA box lacrosse is not set in stone, but if you read a recent article in the New England Lacrosse Journal by Chuck Jaffe, you would likely believe that the US has little to no chance of improving their position in the box lacrosse world rankings any time soon. I know Chuck casually, I’ve called a WILC game as his color commentary wing man, and I respect his opinions on the game of box lacrosse greatly. He’s been involved for decades in the box, and on the field, playing and also teaching kids, and the man knows his stuff. His dedication to the game is absolutely unquestionable!

That being said, I do disagree strongly with his current assessment of box lacrosse in the US on a couple of levels, specifically on how it relates to US Lacrosse, and their supposed lack of interest in the game. Of course Chuck got some stuff 100% right. Jaffe absolutely nailed US Lacrosse’s historic interest in box lacrosse.

For a long time, it was pretty much zero. There really is no argument there. In the past, USL contracted the management of the program to independent organizations, and this meant they didn’t even run their own national team. Their box programs were non-existent, and many in the old guard dismissed the game as a brutal fight-filled spectacle. Funding was near zero, interest was near zero, and only a handful of Americans were really interested in the game anyway. The ones who did play loved it (current USL President Steve Stenersen was actually one of them), but the numbers were so small that it didn’t register on any sort of large scale.

Field has historically dominated in all aspects of US Lacrosse operations. But is that really still the case? Does US Lacrosse truly not care about the box lacrosse side of the game today?

The Future Of USA Box Lacrosse

I would argue that US Lacrosse does care about box lacrosse now, probably more than ever. I would even go on to argue that box enthusiasts (like myself and Chuck Jaffe) need to get on board with US Lacrosse at this point, and stop treating them like an adversary. USL is now a box partner in a small way, and it’s time we start treating them like one, so they become a partner in a big way sooner rather than later. They are our collective national body, and can do a lot of this sport if we work with them.

Of course that means US Lacrosse needs to do their part as well, but from what I can tell, they are doing just that.

First, US Lacrosse brought the national team under their wing officially for the first time ever. Yes, the process was rushed and some big name guys made the cut above “pure” box guys, but the overall quality of the team was high, and the coaching staff did a good job of dealing with a difficult situation. The fact that US Lacrosse managed the team in-house for the first time ever (and treated the players and staff well) should be an extremely positive sign.

Team USA vs Israel WILC 2015 Finals Jeff Melnik (18 of 21)

Tony Resch was a great leader, and very realistic on the challenges the US faced. While lesser known guys didn’t make the team en masse, a lot of players were at least considered, and this is a positive. I may have personally liked to see a couple of the Vermont Voyageurs given a shot, but at the end of the day, I wasn’t coaching the team (that is likely a good thing). Nor was I dealing with an accelerated time table, two very talented rivals in Canada and the Iroquois, or players who had jobs and other lacrosse interests at stake.

The fact that we could have an argument at all about who should make the team shows a growth of interest from the media, as well as the players. For me, this is another overall positive aspect, even when acknowledging that the process was far from perfect. US Lacrosse took a risk on box and got in the FIL game with both feet even though they were a little late to the pool party and didn’t really know how to swim. They spent money, brought in great people, and made it happen. Again, this was the first time ever that USL took on the program directly, and if some of the less experienced guys they took stick with the game, that move could really pay off in 2019 with guys like Holman, Snider, Reynolds, Riorden, and Thul leading the way alongside Walters, Buchanan, Resetarits, Manney, O’Dougherty and many others.

Second, US Lacrosse kept the coaching staff involved after the WILC. At the very least, USL is treading water right now. Contrary to what some believe, Resch and Co. did not just disappear after the games ended. There is work being done behind the scenes right now to evaluate the 2015 approach, and find ways to improve. New players are being looked at and lists are being compiled of “box guys” who can get it done, and field guys who can make the switch. 2019 may be four years away, and there may be a different staff in place by then, but the foundational plans for how this program can be run better are already being drawn up.

To me, this shows a professed (perhaps not publicly until now) dedication to embracing box lacrosse on a larger level over the long-term. The entire US box community owes Resch and his staff a nod of appreciation for their efforts here, both leading up to the event, currently, and in the future, whatever their involvement. They are all box guys themselves, and they want to see it improve and flourish in the US. US Lacrosse is doing their part here by keeping these guys involved on some level until a new staff (or the old staff) is announced for 2019.

Team USA vs Israel WILC 2015 Finals Jeff Melnik (20 of 21)

Third, US Lacrosse is embracing small-sided play for field lacrosse, and they are also open to the idea of smaller goals for smaller kids. In all of this planning, box lacrosse skills and techniques are being adopted or adapted to fit the field game. This will better prepare youth players in general for the box game, should they ever want to play it. It also improves our field lacrosse coaching in the US, and increases touches and repetitions for young players. This is a solid foundation for future investment in the actual box game, and in my opinion it shows excellent foresight for both field and box.

Fourth, US Lacrosse is open to new ideas when it comes to box! While there is no insurance standard provided by USL just yet (and that quickly needs to change), and NOCSAE does not certify box lacrosse helmets (that ALSO needs to change quickly!), there is an open mind towards change and the growth of box lacrosse. US Lacrosse loves lacrosse, in all its forms, and while we may not always agree with them on everything, their goals are honest and true. They want to see our game grow. They want it to be fun. They want people to be engaged from the time they are 7, and never let the game go. They want to keep it safe. And finally, they want to allocate resources intelligently, so growth can be sustained, instead of coming in fits and starts. A silver medal in 2019 means little if you finish in 6th place in 2023. The goal needs to be long-term success and competitiveness, not a one year potential jump in the medals.

How do I know all of the above to be true? Because I talked to multiple people at US Lacrosse in-depth, paid particular attention to the US team (attending their tryouts and the WILC), spoke with Coach Resch before, during, and after the WILC, and talked to players on the team, talked to guys who got cut, and I took in as much as I possibly could.

I also understand that steering US Lacrosse in a new direction is sort of like trying to turn a cruise ship. You don’t just stop, split dodge, and head off in a new direction. When an organization is that big, it takes time. A whole lot of time. And to be done right, it will also require money. A whole lot of money. US Lacrosse has a lot of costs already, and their focus has been on helping the field game grow overall. A specific budget for box will not appear overnight as a line item. That will also take time, and financial support.

Understandably, this can be frustrating. So what do we do while we wait for US Lacrosse to steer their behemoth of a national lacrosse organization (by far the biggest on the planet) on a modified course?

We work together.

FAR too often in the box community we see divisiveness, patronizing talk, and territoriality rule the conversation:

We are the ONLY ones playing REAL box lacrosse!

I hate this phrase more than anything else. It shows a willful ignorance for what is actually going on in this country and is a really bizarre attitude for anyone who loves box lacrosse. There is real box being played in Colorado, California, Indiana, New York, New Jersey, Maryland, Massachusetts, Seattle, Ohio, and a number of other places. Multiple groups, teams, leagues, and organizations exist. They just do. While a lot of people are still playing modified field lacrosse indoors, there are plenty of people playing real box lacrosse. Heck, the AAU is even talking about adding box lacrosse as an official sport! If these groups were really the ONLY ONES playing real box, the AAU probably wouldn’t have any interest at all. These are all indisputable facts, so anyone who says they are the only ones playing “real box” is, quite frankly, full of it.

There may be different levels of skill out there, and some may be further along than others, but this “real” vs “fake” stuff has gotten out of hand. Do you play with padded up goalies? do you use 4′ goals? Do you let the kids crosscheck and play off the walls? Do the players wear rib pads? Are you teaching strong hand, sides of the floor, 2-man games and using box subs? Sounds like good box to me. You don’t have to be an NLL veteran to coach box and there are plenty of people out there doing it the “right” way.

Vermont Voyageurs mens box lacrosse team

To be fair, since US Lacrosse had not stepped into box in any meaningful way, this competitive atmosphere was more or less bound to happen. Box can be expensive, and when it’s new or small or under supported (or all three), there can be a strong sense of ownership, and again, this was COMPLETELY FAIR. But now that box has grown a little, US Lacrosse is showing increased interest, and groups like the AAU want to get involved, isn’t it time the community came together in a meaningful way? Can we stop competing for scraps? Can we not instead work together to take the box game in the US where it deserves to be? No one group will be able to do this alone.

There are a couple new men’s tournament in the works for club teams. It might happen this year, or next year, but the discussions are happening. There are also more youth events going on, and programs are popping up across the country. Instead of decrying the historic lack of support, the box community needs to come together and work with US Lacrosse to make our game more cohesive, more fun, and more beneficial to the players. We might not get everything we want right away, but when has that ever happened?

Working together is our best option by far. Sharing best practices, putting drill videos on YouTube, supporting and informing new box programs instead of blasting them for doing something wrong, helping more kids as opposed to less… all of these things are positives. In the long-run, they will even help the more established programs find better competition. Beyond that, the above approach can help make Team USA more competitive for DECADES to come, and will help cement box lacrosse into the larger US sporting scene.

US Lacrosse is going to put more into the game, but it will take time. The box community needs to realize this, and continue to grow itself organically and together. When these two trends eventually meet up fully, the country will be well positioned for long-term success, which is what everyone seems to want. When we put our differences aside, we can serve the players in our programs better, and at the end of the day, that’s really why we do all this…

Right?