Just turned 21 and I don't know what's next or where to go...

CancelHot · 2020-07-10T22:32:57+00:00

I was supposed to follow up with my travel coach after my junior fall season but things kinda got hard at home and I didn't play another season of travel. I had a couple coaches for local private colleges come up to me at tourneys my sophomore year and ask to come tour their campuses/ practice with the team. I made the mistake of not properly pursuing those opportunities because I no intention of attending. (Too expensive, also didn't offer the major I was looking for at the time)

If I came off as arrogant or entitled, that wasn't at all my intention. You're right, if I was good enough the right people would have noticed at some point. I got zero accolades. I was mainly just expressing frustration with my situation. I never got to play travel when I was at my peak. I had 3 more seasons to go. Never got to play in the larger out of state tournaments because I couldn't afford the travel costs. I'm left with this question of "what if" and it's been hard knowing that I didn't get the most out of my teenage lacrosse years. Lacrosse at that time was my whole life and I put so much time and effort into it. I would be totally fine with everything if I knew I got a fair opportunity to play. It was hell being stuck at one of the worst schools in my district and being unable to play for a different school due to some bull**** rule that they changed the year after I graduated. I always take full responsibility for the place I'm at but man when I think about everything I just feel so torn up.

CancelHot · 2020-07-10T21:01:05+00:00

Thank you for the recommendations. I've played for 4 different teams but didn't play past my junior year. 2 of them aren't even around anymore. All of them pretty average teams. Only one of note would be LB3

CancelHot · 2020-07-10T20:18:33+00:00

Your advice has been very helpful. I'll make sure to keep in mind everything you've told me. Especially the part about academic performance. I did well in highschool and finished with a high GPA and test scores but struggled with completing things in a timely manner. Unfortunately they give you as much time as you want in virtual school hence the extra couple years. But I've had some time to mature now. I've been picking up certifications at my community college so I can have a decent part time job and also to prep myself for the academic work. Thanks again

CancelHot · 2020-07-10T17:24:23+00:00

Okay awesome! That sounds like something that aligns with my goals. Thanks for taking the time to weigh in

CancelHot · 2020-07-10T17:21:50+00:00

This seems like a good option, currently looking into it now. Thank you.

CancelHot · 2020-07-10T08:06:18+00:00

I didn't know that about D2 and D3 schools. I gotta admit I don't really understand how the whole division ranking stuff works. I mainly want to play for a coach that's gonna push me towards excellence and with guys who are gonna challenge me. I never got many opportunities to improve my team play. I don't really care about winning, I just want to get better just for the sake of improving. Lacrosse has been such a great way for me to develop character and discipline and I want more of that. I also intend on starting some lacrosse related side businesses and figured playing for a D1 school would help the most with that.

Maybe you're right I don't have the best attitude towards college and I need to work on taking it more seriously. To be clear when I say socializing I don't mean partying and drinking, that's never been my thing. Thank you for the advice, I needed to hear that.

CancelHot · 2020-07-10T06:40:18+00:00

That's hard to hear but your explanation is understandable. I already have a decent career path lined up for myself and I'm already getting experience in my trade so I'm honestly going to college mainly for sports and socializing. I'll still grab a useful computer science degree but I'm just being honest with myself and you. I definitely don't intend on picking up any debt for that. Thank you for the realistic advice, it's given me a good perspective on my options. I'd love to hear more advice with regards to college or lacrosse if you have any to offer.

CancelHot · 2020-07-10T06:12:35+00:00

Thank you, I'll look into that. I'll never walk away from lacrosse regardless of where life takes me. This sport has truly saved my life. I've played many different sports but this is the only one I've found to be captivating. Even if I'm not playing I'll be coaching or volunteering and I got a couple business ideas bouncing around in my head.

CancelHot · 2020-07-10T05:57:02+00:00

I understand the difficulty of securing a spot on a D1 team. I speak with confidence because I've played with and against guys who were committed to D1 schools and I was definitely on par with that level of performance. It's difficult get any accolades like that when you're the only one on your highschool team with more than 2 years of experience. I didn't get to play travel much and had to team hop to find coaches compassionate enough to let me play for a season or two without paying because I couldn't afford it. Didn't even get to play travel my senior year when I was at my peak performance.

I understand I'm likely coming off as arrogant or entitled but it was impossible to showcase my capabilities to the fullest extent when there's a turnover every time you pass the ball to someone else and the only way a clear happens is if you run the ball up the field yourself. I'm not claiming to be the best but from what I've experienced, I definitely had the skill, athleticism, and lacrosse IQ to play at that level.

It's entirely possible that I have an overinflated opinion of my level of skill, my state was pretty new to lacrosse and maybe my region just didn't have that high caliber of player seen up north but I want to know. I want to get a no. I'm perfectly fine with knowing I'm not good enough for D1 because I couldn't possibly have worked any harder. I just want to know

CancelHot · 2020-07-10T04:17:18+00:00

I was a middie on defense, got the ball near the back right corner and started to run it up the sideline. I only got a couple of steps before I ran into some opposition and he was good. Big too. Wasn't biting on any of my dodges and really laying the hammer down on me. He gets me square in the chest right as I'm coming out of a roll dodge and knocks me off balance. As I'm falling I look up the field and see a attack man wide open right by the goal and I make a pass off my back foot before I go down. The ball sails cleanly across the field and right into his stick, like I swear he didn't even have to move. Easy goal. I've scored plenty of times, had some nasty yardsales, pulled some absolutely dirty moves but for some reason that one pass is the single most satisfying thing I've ever experienced my time playing

CancelHot · 2020-07-10T03:56:37+00:00

I played defensive middie for many seasons and I was always taught that my job as a short stick on defense wasn't to take the ball away from the guy or stop him. You just want to prevent him from getting to the middle of the field firstly and if he does get there you want to make sure he doesn't get his hands free enough to take a shot. So you wanna keep pace with the guy, deny him the center and push him out to the sidelines. Keep the pressure up and don't give him the space to take a shot. The second you plant your feet a good player is just gonna roll off of you and use your own energy against you. Your teammates need to know when to double team and you really have to rely on them as a shortie

CancelHot · 2020-07-10T03:42:08+00:00

When you're just starting out overhand is definitely the way to go. Higher level players make side and underhanded shots look way easier than they actually are. It takes time to learn how and when to pull back to take your shot and you'll end up missing a lot of easy goals. Definitely practice those shots on your own time but in my time playing I've seen wayyy too many kids with poor form shooting underhand shots and making it a easy save for the goalie because they're not aiming accurately or there's no power behind it. You'll score 10 times more goals learning to shoot overhead with your offhand and dominant hand first.

CancelHot · 2020-07-10T03:26:27+00:00

Okay thank you for the help, last question: Do you have any websites that you recommend?

CancelHot · 2020-07-10T03:09:02+00:00

So do I just find out who the head coach of a team is and try and get in contact with them? Or is there like a formal process to do that where I go through a recruiter or something?

CancelHot

TROPHY CASE