Recruiting

[spidey44]

Anyone at LLL this weekend, come find me. I'll be setting up a Spidey's SportsBook on the sidelines. Live Lines on all the big games...

Let me help and put a few lines up first. 25s will be hardest to pick (kinda like college bowl games) since many top players won't play and for teams with girls targeting D3, some uncommitted girls will play alot more than their stars

2025: YJ Spallina (-1.5) vs. Steps Blue
2025: AIM (+1) vs. Eagle Stix
2026: Cap Blue (-2.5) vs. Skywalkers Blue
2026: YJ Manning (pk) vs. Prime time
2027: YJ Stadler (-10.5) vs. MD United
2027: Hero's Green (-2) vs. Eagle Stix

I've got Spallina even money on showing up. Wouldn't be the first time he pulls out of a tournament last minute.

[westcoastlax]

If you're a parent of a recruit, I HIGHLY recommend you speak to the parents of both kids who start and kids who don't start in the program. You'll find out really quick how much that coach truly cares about your child as a player, and if it's all based on a self-serving aspect.

This is good advice for both D1 and D3.

[westcoastlax]

If you're a parent of a recruit, I HIGHLY recommend you speak to the parents of both kids who start and kids who don't start in the program. You'll find out really quick how much that coach truly cares about your child as a player, and if it's all based on a self-serving aspect.

This is good advice for both D1 and D3.

[Womenslaxxfan]

+ 1 Great advice and this is all true from first-hand experience and observation. Nutjob parents and I will add, nutjob coaches.

With 2 kids playing in college, my experience is that worst parents are those of kids from the most well-known club programs (YJ, Cap, M&D, TG). They are the ones who can't believe that little Jenny isn't the star that they thought she was.

And even worse, there are kids from California, Texas, Illinois, and Minnesota who didn't play on top 20 clubs or top 20 private school high school programs, who are actually MUCH better after a year of training at the highest level.

This is what we found as well. Turns out that somewhat raw, but elite athleticism can get much better when paired with great competition and coaching….and surpass highly polished products who have benefited from an entire youth spent playing with skilled players…but whose athleticism is merely good.
We found a big difference between hotbed parents whose daughters are sitting and non-hotbed parents. A much higher percentage of the former lost their marbles—which gets expressed as “the coach doesn’t know what they are doing.” “The coach doesn’t like my daughter”. “We might transfer to a program where my daughter is appreciated”.

[LaxGnome22]

We found a big difference between hotbed parents whose daughters are sitting and non-hotbed parents. A much higher percentage of the former lost their marbles—which gets expressed as “the coach doesn’t know what they are doing.” “The coach doesn’t like my daughter”. “We might transfer to a program where my daughter is appreciated”.

I would imagine this to be true for the most part. I guess it can be general, but I bet a lot of those parents with kids from top club teams and hot beds, that were sitting in the stands at Colgate were 100% right with there assessment of “the coach doesn’t know what they are doing.” “The coach doesn’t like my daughter”. “We might transfer to a program where my daughter is appreciated” My daughter's high school coach was terrible. She played a lot. He liked my daughter. But he was brutal.

[tothedraw]

+ 1 Great advice and this is all true from first-hand experience and observation. Nutjob parents and I will add, nutjob coaches.

With 2 kids playing in college, my experience is that worst parents are those of kids from the most well-known club programs (YJ, Cap, M&D, TG). They are the ones who can't believe that little Jenny isn't the star that they thought she was.

And even worse, there are kids from California, Texas, Illinois, and Minnesota who didn't play on top 20 clubs or top 20 private school high school programs, who are actually MUCH better after a year of training at the highest level.

This is what we found as well. Turns out that somewhat raw, but elite athleticism can get much better when paired with great competition and coaching….and surpass highly polished products who have benefited from an entire youth spent playing with skilled players…but whose athleticism is merely good.
We found a big difference between hotbed parents whose daughters are sitting and non-hotbed parents. A much higher percentage of the former lost their marbles—which gets expressed as “the coach doesn’t know what they are doing.” “The coach doesn’t like my daughter”. “We might transfer to a program where my daughter is appreciated”.

Lars Tiffany has spoken about recruiting and having to be careful with kids who have reached their ceiling- single sport athlete, best club, individual training etc. How much more are you getting out of a player?

[LaxGnome22]

+ 1 Great advice and this is all true from first-hand experience and observation. Nutjob parents and I will add, nutjob coaches.

With 2 kids playing in college, my experience is that worst parents are those of kids from the most well-known club programs (YJ, Cap, M&D, TG). They are the ones who can't believe that little Jenny isn't the star that they thought she was.

And even worse, there are kids from California, Texas, Illinois, and Minnesota who didn't play on top 20 clubs or top 20 private school high school programs, who are actually MUCH better after a year of training at the highest level.

This is what we found as well. Turns out that somewhat raw, but elite athleticism can get much better when paired with great competition and coaching….and surpass highly polished products who have benefited from an entire youth spent playing with skilled players…but whose athleticism is merely good.
We found a big difference between hotbed parents whose daughters are sitting and non-hotbed parents. A much higher percentage of the former lost their marbles—which gets expressed as “the coach doesn’t know what they are doing.” “The coach doesn’t like my daughter”. “We might transfer to a program where my daughter is appreciated”.

Lars Tiffany has spoken about recruiting and having to be careful with kids who have reached their ceiling- single sport athlete, best club, individual training etc. How much more are you getting out of a player?

Legit question. What's wrong with the single sport kid? I know they always say a kid should play multiple sports, I just want to know why that's negative in a recruiting sense.

[LaxDadMax]

+ 1 Great advice and this is all true from first-hand experience and observation. Nutjob parents and I will add, nutjob coaches.

With 2 kids playing in college, my experience is that worst parents are those of kids from the most well-known club programs (YJ, Cap, M&D, TG). They are the ones who can't believe that little Jenny isn't the star that they thought she was.

And even worse, there are kids from California, Texas, Illinois, and Minnesota who didn't play on top 20 clubs or top 20 private school high school programs, who are actually MUCH better after a year of training at the highest level.

This is what we found as well. Turns out that somewhat raw, but elite athleticism can get much better when paired with great competition and coaching….and surpass highly polished products who have benefited from an entire youth spent playing with skilled players…but whose athleticism is merely good.
We found a big difference between hotbed parents whose daughters are sitting and non-hotbed parents. A much higher percentage of the former lost their marbles—which gets expressed as “the coach doesn’t know what they are doing.” “The coach doesn’t like my daughter”. “We might transfer to a program where my daughter is appreciated”.

Lars Tiffany has spoken about recruiting and having to be careful with kids who have reached their ceiling- single sport athlete, best club, individual training etc. How much more are you getting out of a player?

Legit question. What's wrong with the single sport kid? I know they always say a kid should play multiple sports, I just want to know why that's negative in a recruiting sense.

It can be negative because there is an assumption that the kid is much closer to the ceiling.

An example. Two potential prospects, relatively close skill set and measurables.

One was a kid one-sport athlete who played for M&D and top IAAM school

Another played multiple sports and played for a middle of the road public school team and the 50th ranked club team in the country.

Who are you recruiting?

Back up a few messages, this is also why many coaches love athletic kids from non-hotbeds.

[LaxGnome22]

+ 1 Great advice and this is all true from first-hand experience and observation. Nutjob parents and I will add, nutjob coaches.

With 2 kids playing in college, my experience is that worst parents are those of kids from the most well-known club programs (YJ, Cap, M&D, TG). They are the ones who can't believe that little Jenny isn't the star that they thought she was.

And even worse, there are kids from California, Texas, Illinois, and Minnesota who didn't play on top 20 clubs or top 20 private school high school programs, who are actually MUCH better after a year of training at the highest level.

This is what we found as well. Turns out that somewhat raw, but elite athleticism can get much better when paired with great competition and coaching….and surpass highly polished products who have benefited from an entire youth spent playing with skilled players…but whose athleticism is merely good.
We found a big difference between hotbed parents whose daughters are sitting and non-hotbed parents. A much higher percentage of the former lost their marbles—which gets expressed as “the coach doesn’t know what they are doing.” “The coach doesn’t like my daughter”. “We might transfer to a program where my daughter is appreciated”.

Lars Tiffany has spoken about recruiting and having to be careful with kids who have reached their ceiling- single sport athlete, best club, individual training etc. How much more are you getting out of a player?

Legit question. What's wrong with the single sport kid? I know they always say a kid should play multiple sports, I just want to know why that's negative in a recruiting sense.

It can be negative because there is an assumption that the kid is much closer to the ceiling.

An example. Two potential prospects, relatively close skill set and measurables.

One was a kid one-sport athlete who played for M&D and top IAAM school

Another played multiple sports and played for a middle of the road public school team and the 50th ranked club team in the country.

Who are you recruiting?

Back up a few messages, this is also why many coaches love athletic kids from non-hotbeds.

Similar skill set I would go with the multiple sport athlete. But if the M&D girl had insane stick skills, great IQ and was athletic, but the non hot bed multiple sports girl is a great athlete but not great stick skills and poor IQ, I'd go with M&D.

[UpDownLax]

+ 1 Great advice and this is all true from first-hand experience and observation. Nutjob parents and I will add, nutjob coaches.

With 2 kids playing in college, my experience is that worst parents are those of kids from the most well-known club programs (YJ, Cap, M&D, TG). They are the ones who can't believe that little Jenny isn't the star that they thought she was.

And even worse, there are kids from California, Texas, Illinois, and Minnesota who didn't play on top 20 clubs or top 20 private school high school programs, who are actually MUCH better after a year of training at the highest level.

This is what we found as well. Turns out that somewhat raw, but elite athleticism can get much better when paired with great competition and coaching….and surpass highly polished products who have benefited from an entire youth spent playing with skilled players…but whose athleticism is merely good.
We found a big difference between hotbed parents whose daughters are sitting and non-hotbed parents. A much higher percentage of the former lost their marbles—which gets expressed as “the coach doesn’t know what they are doing.” “The coach doesn’t like my daughter”. “We might transfer to a program where my daughter is appreciated”.

It’s funny this exact statement is playing out in the transfer portal thread with a former LIYJ.

[Relax77]

+ 1 Great advice and this is all true from first-hand experience and observation. Nutjob parents and I will add, nutjob coaches.

With 2 kids playing in college, my experience is that worst parents are those of kids from the most well-known club programs (YJ, Cap, M&D, TG). They are the ones who can't believe that little Jenny isn't the star that they thought she was.

And even worse, there are kids from California, Texas, Illinois, and Minnesota who didn't play on top 20 clubs or top 20 private school high school programs, who are actually MUCH better after a year of training at the highest level.

This is what we found as well. Turns out that somewhat raw, but elite athleticism can get much better when paired with great competition and coaching….and surpass highly polished products who have benefited from an entire youth spent playing with skilled players…but whose athleticism is merely good.
We found a big difference between hotbed parents whose daughters are sitting and non-hotbed parents. A much higher percentage of the former lost their marbles—which gets expressed as “the coach doesn’t know what they are doing.” “The coach doesn’t like my daughter”. “We might transfer to a program where my daughter is appreciated”.

It’s funny this exact statement is playing out in the transfer portal thread with a former LIYJ.

I think this happens all the time. Doesn’t matter what club. How can UNC take that many top players over a four year period and those kids all end up playing. They can’t. Those players were the top players for their clubs/high schools and now they are told they aren’t good enough to step on the field. Plenty of teams to go play and try to prove them wrong. Some do. Some don’t.

[sanelaxparent]

Interesting conversation about single sport versus multi-sport athletes. I think what some people may not realize is that the multi-sport athlete has also played multiple roles on different sports teams. She hasn't always been the star, so she gains an appreciation for being a role player, feeder, or even riding the bench. In addition, that kid obviously plays some of those other sports for FUN and doesn't only see sport as a vehicle to get to the next level. Some of her teams might have sucked, and she learns how to lose gracefully or just be excited for the small achievements of her teammates from game to game. Continued character development, not just athletic skill development, comes from playing a variety of sports and finding the joy in all of them - often for different reasons.

In my experience, its the over-coached single sport athlete from hotbed areas who has the biggest shock to the system (and even more so, her parents) when D1 college ball starts and they are blindsided by reality that attitude, resilience, sports IQ and being a great teammate are all very important in hanging in there in the lean years.l

[Relax77]

Interesting conversation about single sport versus multi-sport athletes. I think what some people may not realize is that the multi-sport athlete has also played multiple roles on different sports teams. She hasn't always been the star, so she gains an appreciation for being a role player, feeder, or even riding the bench. In addition, that kid obviously plays some of those other sports for FUN and doesn't only see sport as a vehicle to get to the next level. Some of her teams might have sucked, and she learns how to lose gracefully or just be excited for the small achievements of her teammates from game to game. Continued character development, not just athletic skill development, comes from playing a variety of sports and finding the joy in all of them - often for different reasons.

In my experience, its the over-coached single sport athlete from hotbed areas who has the biggest shock to the system (and even more so, her parents) when D1 college ball starts and they are blindsided by reality that attitude, resilience, sports IQ and being a great teammate are all very important in hanging in there in the lean years.l

You’re on a message board about lax with the rest of us. No such thing as a sane lax parent.

[LaxDadMax]

Interesting conversation about single sport versus multi-sport athletes. I think what some people may not realize is that the multi-sport athlete has also played multiple roles on different sports teams. She hasn't always been the star, so she gains an appreciation for being a role player, feeder, or even riding the bench. In addition, that kid obviously plays some of those other sports for FUN and doesn't only see sport as a vehicle to get to the next level. Some of her teams might have sucked, and she learns how to lose gracefully or just be excited for the small achievements of her teammates from game to game. Continued character development, not just athletic skill development, comes from playing a variety of sports and finding the joy in all of them - often for different reasons.

In my experience, its the over-coached single sport athlete from hotbed areas who has the biggest shock to the system (and even more so, her parents) when D1 college ball starts and they are blindsided by reality that attitude, resilience, sports IQ and being a great teammate are all very important in hanging in there in the lean years.l

My 25 who committed this past fall ended up dropping other sports after freshman year. We asked her head coach who she committed to if this impacted her decision making and she had an interesting perspective.

A few key points with me paraphrasing

- My #1 thing is getting kids who want and need to compete regardless of whether they are a multiple sport athlete; this is something I can tell from talking to them in 3 minutes of our first conversation

- I find tremendous value in kids are are multi-sport athletes in very unrelated sports. I'd rather have someone who plays lax+ volleyball or lax+ice hockey then lax+soccer or lax+FH

- The girls who get the most out of being multi-sport athletes are usually ones who don't play that much in their second sport; helps them learn to be more of a team player

- Multi-sport athletes can have a couple of downsides. 1) overtraining and overuse, especially at private schools who require girls to play 3 sports-- that can be a red flag for me. 2) often kids who play multiple sports never set aside the time for lifting and speed/agility work. As a result, they can often be physically behind when they go to college. 3) girls who play multiple travel sports in high school is a red flag too. Almost guarantees an overuse injury at some point.

[Relax77]

Interesting conversation about single sport versus multi-sport athletes. I think what some people may not realize is that the multi-sport athlete has also played multiple roles on different sports teams. She hasn't always been the star, so she gains an appreciation for being a role player, feeder, or even riding the bench. In addition, that kid obviously plays some of those other sports for FUN and doesn't only see sport as a vehicle to get to the next level. Some of her teams might have sucked, and she learns how to lose gracefully or just be excited for the small achievements of her teammates from game to game. Continued character development, not just athletic skill development, comes from playing a variety of sports and finding the joy in all of them - often for different reasons.

In my experience, its the over-coached single sport athlete from hotbed areas who has the biggest shock to the system (and even more so, her parents) when D1 college ball starts and they are blindsided by reality that attitude, resilience, sports IQ and being a great teammate are all very important in hanging in there in the lean years.l

My 25 who committed this past fall ended up dropping other sports after freshman year. We asked her head coach who she committed to if this impacted her decision making and she had an interesting perspective.

A few key points with me paraphrasing

- My #1 thing is getting kids who want and need to compete regardless of whether they are a multiple sport athlete; this is something I can tell from talking to them in 3 minutes of our first conversation

- I find tremendous value in kids are are multi-sport athletes in very unrelated sports. I'd rather have someone who plays lax+ volleyball or lax+ice hockey then lax+soccer or lax+FH

- The girls who get the most out of being multi-sport athletes are usually ones who don't play that much in their second sport; helps them learn to be more of a team player

- Multi-sport athletes can have a couple of downsides. 1) overtraining and overuse, especially at private schools who require girls to play 3 sports-- that can be a red flag for me. 2) often kids who play multiple sports never set aside the time for lifting and speed/agility work. As a result, they can often be physically behind when they go to college. 3) girls who play multiple travel sports in high school is a red flag too. Almost guarantees an overuse injury at some point.

Excellent post. Thank you for that perspective

[cltlax]

Interesting conversation about single sport versus multi-sport athletes. I think what some people may not realize is that the multi-sport athlete has also played multiple roles on different sports teams. She hasn't always been the star, so she gains an appreciation for being a role player, feeder, or even riding the bench. In addition, that kid obviously plays some of those other sports for FUN and doesn't only see sport as a vehicle to get to the next level. Some of her teams might have sucked, and she learns how to lose gracefully or just be excited for the small achievements of her teammates from game to game. Continued character development, not just athletic skill development, comes from playing a variety of sports and finding the joy in all of them - often for different reasons.

In my experience, its the over-coached single sport athlete from hotbed areas who has the biggest shock to the system (and even more so, her parents) when D1 college ball starts and they are blindsided by reality that attitude, resilience, sports IQ and being a great teammate are all very important in hanging in there in the lean years.l

My 25 who committed this past fall ended up dropping other sports after freshman year. We asked her head coach who she committed to if this impacted her decision making and she had an interesting perspective.

A few key points with me paraphrasing

- My #1 thing is getting kids who want and need to compete regardless of whether they are a multiple sport athlete; this is something I can tell from talking to them in 3 minutes of our first conversation

- I find tremendous value in kids are are multi-sport athletes in very unrelated sports. I'd rather have someone who plays lax+ volleyball or lax+ice hockey then lax+soccer or lax+FH

- The girls who get the most out of being multi-sport athletes are usually ones who don't play that much in their second sport; helps them learn to be more of a team player

- Multi-sport athletes can have a couple of downsides. 1) overtraining and overuse, especially at private schools who require girls to play 3 sports-- that can be a red flag for me. 2) often kids who play multiple sports never set aside the time for lifting and speed/agility work. As a result, they can often be physically behind when they go to college. 3) girls who play multiple travel sports in high school is a red flag too. Almost guarantees an overuse injury at some point.

My multi-sport athlete continued to play travel lacrosse and travel soccer throughout high school. She is now committed to play both in college next year.

[GratefulRed]

Interesting conversation about single sport versus multi-sport athletes. I think what some people may not realize is that the multi-sport athlete has also played multiple roles on different sports teams. She hasn't always been the star, so she gains an appreciation for being a role player, feeder, or even riding the bench. In addition, that kid obviously plays some of those other sports for FUN and doesn't only see sport as a vehicle to get to the next level. Some of her teams might have sucked, and she learns how to lose gracefully or just be excited for the small achievements of her teammates from game to game. Continued character development, not just athletic skill development, comes from playing a variety of sports and finding the joy in all of them - often for different reasons.

In my experience, its the over-coached single sport athlete from hotbed areas who has the biggest shock to the system (and even more so, her parents) when D1 college ball starts and they are blindsided by reality that attitude, resilience, sports IQ and being a great teammate are all very important in hanging in there in the lean years.l

My 25 who committed this past fall ended up dropping other sports after freshman year. We asked her head coach who she committed to if this impacted her decision making and she had an interesting perspective.

A few key points with me paraphrasing

- My #1 thing is getting kids who want and need to compete regardless of whether they are a multiple sport athlete; this is something I can tell from talking to them in 3 minutes of our first conversation

- I find tremendous value in kids are are multi-sport athletes in very unrelated sports. I'd rather have someone who plays lax+ volleyball or lax+ice hockey then lax+soccer or lax+FH

- The girls who get the most out of being multi-sport athletes are usually ones who don't play that much in their second sport; helps them learn to be more of a team player

- Multi-sport athletes can have a couple of downsides. 1) overtraining and overuse, especially at private schools who require girls to play 3 sports-- that can be a red flag for me. 2) often kids who play multiple sports never set aside the time for lifting and speed/agility work. As a result, they can often be physically behind when they go to college. 3) girls who play multiple travel sports in high school is a red flag too. Almost guarantees an overuse injury at some point.

My multi-sport athlete continued to play travel lacrosse and travel soccer throughout high school. She is now committed to play both in college next year.

Amazing accomplishment, congrats!

[laxdadpat]

Great posts!

College lacrosse pretty much comes down to how well the girls can handle adversity. I tend to think the top clubs do have "over-rated" players past the top 2-3 players. The teams are mostly full of very good players, but they generally get to play to their strengths for most lacrosse games. Coaches are supposed to try to put players into those high percentage situations to win games, but do they work enough on improving their weaknesses? It's a very slippery slope. The girls that have both the mental toughness to go along with athletics are the under rated girls with high ceilings. Having "to do it all" develops mentally tough athletes that seem to do well at the college level. They can handle and learn from losing games because it's what they have done growing up in non-hotbed areas. This is not an anti hot-bed post, it's where I would recruit. The secret is how to find the girls that love to compete and hate to lose!

[Relax77]

Would love to see where the people posting the last few days come from. I bet I can guess right about 95% of the time whether their daughters play in a “hot bed” or not.

And for the posts about what coaches are looking for. Come on guys/girls. Put 200 players in a room with 100 coaches. Those hundred coaches are going to agree on about 20 of those kids. The rest are gonna have different opinions on size, athletic ability, iq, whether they can fix their deficiencies, etc etc.

[Deacon022]

Put 200 players in a room with 100 coaches. Those hundred coaches are going to agree on about 20 of those kids. The rest are gonna have different opinions on size, athletic ability, iq, whether they can fix their deficiencies, etc etc.

I can see this. There's quite a few head scratchers on our team.