Tewaaraton Award 2024

[Farfromgeneva]

My $0.02 on the Tewaaraton 2024.

Pending Yale, UVA, and Cornell team tournament results, and obviously remaining individual output, today my ranking is the following:

1. Matt Brandau

2. Connor Shellenberger

3. CJ Kirst


I don’t seee anyone else remotely close to these three. Nor do I see anyone else winning the award even if their team wins the championship and they excel while doing so. I think these three are that far ahead.

I like the first 2... CJ kirst, I don't see it happening this year, unfortunately. 54 points this year at #20 in the nation. Think he's a terrific player but a bit underwhelming point totals this year. And, Michael Long has more points than him.

I'm not saying Kirst deserves the award, but he's 3 points behind Shelly and ahead of him in PPG. He's 9th in PPG. And his contribution on the ride is often overlooked.

I don't see how Brandau is not the odds on favorite right now. All this talk about schedule and opponents and teammates and shots is ridiculous. He's the best player in the nation this season so far by a large margin and the only people saying otherwise are ACC and B10 fans who just don't accept that the Ivy League is on a par with those conferences.

Brandau may be the the best player in the country (haven't seen him this season so I don't know), but the Ivy League is certainly not on par with the ACC. The B1G is a bit down this year, but it's still better than the Ivy.

Yes, Ivy teams are a wretched 3-4 this season against both ACC and B1G teams, clearly "not on par." #1 Notre Dame's 18-17 recent rout of Cornell and Maryland's 14-13 overtime thrashing of Ivy 5th-place Brown abundantly illustrate your point.

You can be as hyperbolic as you want, but Notre Dame is better than every Ivy. So is UVA. So is Duke; they have a long history of losing to worse teams early in the season. Now that Syracuse is much improved, they make the ACC that much better than Ivy teams.

Cornell can beat anyone in the tournament for sure. But they would be multi-goal underdogs against the top 3 ACC's. Not sure about Yale (I haven't seen them). None of the other Ivies would have a chance against the top 3 ACC teams when it matters.

Yale doesn’t have the D and despite the hyperbole in Brandan the offense isn’t there for playoffs lacking sharp, Lyons and johnson.

[Farfromgeneva]

My $0.02 on the Tewaaraton 2024.

Pending Yale, UVA, and Cornell team tournament results, and obviously remaining individual output, today my ranking is the following:

1. Matt Brandau

2. Connor Shellenberger

3. CJ Kirst


I don’t seee anyone else remotely close to these three. Nor do I see anyone else winning the award even if their team wins the championship and they excel while doing so. I think these three are that far ahead.

I like the first 2... CJ kirst, I don't see it happening this year, unfortunately. 54 points this year at #20 in the nation. Think he's a terrific player but a bit underwhelming point totals this year. And, Michael Long has more points than him.

I'm not saying Kirst deserves the award, but he's 3 points behind Shelly and ahead of him in PPG. He's 9th in PPG. And his contribution on the ride is often overlooked.

I don't see how Brandau is not the odds on favorite right now. All this talk about schedule and opponents and teammates and shots is ridiculous. He's the best player in the nation this season so far by a large margin and the only people saying otherwise are ACC and B10 fans who just don't accept that the Ivy League is on a par with those conferences.

Brandau may be the the best player in the country (haven't seen him this season so I don't know), but the Ivy League is certainly not on par with the ACC. The B1G is a bit down this year, but it's still better than the Ivy.

Yes, Ivy teams are a wretched 3-4 this season against both ACC and B1G teams, clearly "not on par." #1 Notre Dame's 18-17 recent rout of Cornell and Maryland's 14-13 overtime thrashing of Ivy 5th-place Brown abundantly illustrate your point.

You can be as hyperbolic as you want, but Notre Dame is better than every Ivy. So is UVA. So is Duke; they have a long history of losing to worse teams early in the season. Now that Syracuse is much improved, they make the ACC that much better than Ivy teams.

Cornell can beat anyone in the tournament for sure. But they would be multi-goal underdogs against the top 3 ACC's. Not sure about Yale (I haven't seen them). None of the other Ivies would have a chance against the top 3 ACC teams when it matters.

How many games had 'Cuse played when they met Cornell? Not exactly early in the season.

Cuse a nearby longstanding rival of Cornell so specious to compare with low UMD/Brown as example (for all the nonsense we hear from a couple mid Atlantic crowds about record books etc)

And they’re 4th in the ACC.

[Farfromgeneva]

My $0.02 on the Tewaaraton 2024.

Pending Yale, UVA, and Cornell team tournament results, and obviously remaining individual output, today my ranking is the following:

1. Matt Brandau

2. Connor Shellenberger

3. CJ Kirst


I don’t seee anyone else remotely close to these three. Nor do I see anyone else winning the award even if their team wins the championship and they excel while doing so. I think these three are that far ahead.

I like the first 2... CJ kirst, I don't see it happening this year, unfortunately. 54 points this year at #20 in the nation. Think he's a terrific player but a bit underwhelming point totals this year. And, Michael Long has more points than him.

I'm not saying Kirst deserves the award, but he's 3 points behind Shelly and ahead of him in PPG. He's 9th in PPG. And his contribution on the ride is often overlooked.

I don't see how Brandau is not the odds on favorite right now. All this talk about schedule and opponents and teammates and shots is ridiculous. He's the best player in the nation this season so far by a large margin and the only people saying otherwise are ACC and B10 fans who just don't accept that the Ivy League is on a par with those conferences.

Brandau may be the the best player in the country (haven't seen him this season so I don't know), but the Ivy League is certainly not on par with the ACC. The B1G is a bit down this year, but it's still better than the Ivy.

Yes, Ivy teams are a wretched 3-4 this season against both ACC and B1G teams, clearly "not on par." #1 Notre Dame's 18-17 recent rout of Cornell and Maryland's 14-13 overtime thrashing of Ivy 5th-place Brown abundantly illustrate your point.

You can be as hyperbolic as you want, but Notre Dame is better than every Ivy. So is UVA. So is Duke; they have a long history of losing to worse teams early in the season. Now that Syracuse is much improved, they make the ACC that much better than Ivy teams.

Cornell can beat anyone in the tournament for sure. But they would be multi-goal underdogs against the top 3 ACC's. Not sure about Yale (I haven't seen them). None of the other Ivies would have a chance against the top 3 ACC teams when it matters.

And your support for these "hyperbolic" assertions is what? I see nothing.

To be fair, I agree with Keno: UNC is better than Columbia.

Columbia better than Wake Forest? Where's the rest of the vaunted ACC? Two-thirds of the league afraid to compete?

https://www.usalacrosse.com/magazine/co ... ion-i-poll

[10stone5]

The Machine,
with an 8 point night.

But,
he hasn't done this against any ACC teams, any ACC defenses,
and especially, not against Notre Dame.

[keno in reno]

The Machine,
with an 8 point night.

But,
he hasn't done this against any ACC teams, any ACC defenses,
and especially, not against Notre Dame.

The Machine is a great player. He is deserving of the Tewaaraton, and it would be great to see a Yale guy win it. He would also be the 3rd Boys Latin alumnus in the last 5 years to win it, which is pretty amazing.

But his greatness is completely unrelated to the conference comparison topic that you seem fixated on.

[Brownlax]

The Machine,
with an 8 point night.

But,
he hasn't done this against any ACC teams, any ACC defenses,
and especially, not against Notre Dame.

The Machine is a great player. He is deserving of the Tewaaraton, and it would be great to see a Yale guy win it. He would also be the 3rd Boys Latin alumnus in the last 5 years to win it, which is pretty amazing.

But his greatness is completely unrelated to the conference comparison topic that you seem fixated on.

Brandau is a complete stud! The back-and-forth about him playing in the Ivies is a complete joke. If you had the chance for him to start on your team you would take him in a heartbeat.

Albany has one of the best defenders in the country - I wonder if he was the one who matched up against Matt.

[keno in reno]

The Machine,
with an 8 point night.

But,
he hasn't done this against any ACC teams, any ACC defenses,
and especially, not against Notre Dame.

The Machine is a great player. He is deserving of the Tewaaraton, and it would be great to see a Yale guy win it. He would also be the 3rd Boys Latin alumnus in the last 5 years to win it, which is pretty amazing.

But his greatness is completely unrelated to the conference comparison topic that you seem fixated on.

Brandau is a complete stud! The back-and-forth about him playing in the Ivies is a complete joke. If you had the chance for him to start on your team you would take him in a heartbeat.

Albany has one of the best defenders in the country - I wonder if he was the one who matched up against Matt.

What's the back and forth about him playing in the Ivy?

[Lax3]

Pesion was on Brandau, who managed to run by him on several occasions. So Brandau had eight points tonight against a preseason first team All American who is also a midseason first team All American. Those waiting for him to face better opposition - tonite was that night. And he exceeded his points per game average.

Pretty, pretty good.

[keno in reno]

Pesion was on Brandau, who managed to run by him on several occasions. So Brandau had eight points tonight against a preseason first team All American who is also a midseason first team All American. Those waiting for him to face better opposition - tonite was that night. And he exceeded his points per game average.

Pretty, pretty good.

Brandau certainly cured Pesion the lesion

[PulpExposure]

My $0.02 on the Tewaaraton 2024.

Pending Yale, UVA, and Cornell team tournament results, and obviously remaining individual output, today my ranking is the following:

1. Matt Brandau

2. Connor Shellenberger

3. CJ Kirst


I don’t seee anyone else remotely close to these three. Nor do I see anyone else winning the award even if their team wins the championship and they excel while doing so. I think these three are that far ahead.

I like the first 2... CJ kirst, I don't see it happening this year, unfortunately. 54 points this year at #20 in the nation. Think he's a terrific player but a bit underwhelming point totals this year. And, Michael Long has more points than him.

I'm not saying Kirst deserves the award, but he's 3 points behind Shelly and ahead of him in PPG. He's 9th in PPG. And his contribution on the ride is often overlooked.

I don't see how Brandau is not the odds on favorite right now. All this talk about schedule and opponents and teammates and shots is ridiculous. He's the best player in the nation this season so far by a large margin and the only people saying otherwise are ACC and B10 fans who just don't accept that the Ivy League is on a par with those conferences.

Brandau may be the the best player in the country (haven't seen him this season so I don't know), but the Ivy League is certainly not on par with the ACC. The B1G is a bit down this year, but it's still better than the Ivy.

Yes, Ivy teams are a wretched 3-4 this season against both ACC and B1G teams, clearly "not on par." #1 Notre Dame's 18-17 recent rout of Cornell and Maryland's 14-13 overtime thrashing of Ivy 5th-place Brown abundantly illustrate your point.

Or you could pick Marylands 13-7 win over Princeton, but nah better to cherry pick only the brown game, right?

[Gobigred]

The point is: Sometimes one league wins, sometimes the other. One is not "below par." Results on the field have shown that. You just don't want to accept it.

[Finster]

The point is: Sometimes one league wins, sometimes the other. One is not "below par." Results on the field have shown that. You just don't want to accept it.

Common opponents:

UVA 16
Albany 10

Shellenberger 1 and 5 for 6 pts

Yale 17
Albany 10

Brandau 3 snd 5 for 8 pts

——————————-

UVA 13
Harvard 10

Shellenberger 0 and 2 for 2 points

Yale 17
Harvard 15

Brandau 0 and 8 for 8 points

———————————-

UVA 10-2 (likely 11-2 after today. We’ll see)
Yale 11-2

[coda]

The Machine,
with an 8 point night.

But,
he hasn't done this against any ACC teams, any ACC defenses,
and especially, not against Notre Dame.

The Machine is a great player. He is deserving of the Tewaaraton, and it would be great to see a Yale guy win it. He would also be the 3rd Boys Latin alumnus in the last 5 years to win it, which is pretty amazing.

But his greatness is completely unrelated to the conference comparison topic that you seem fixated on.

Brandau is a complete stud! The back-and-forth about him playing in the Ivies is a complete joke. If you had the chance for him to start on your team you would take him in a heartbeat.

Albany has one of the best defenders in the country - I wonder if he was the one who matched up against Matt.

What's the back and forth about him playing in the Ivy?

I pointed out the poor defensive SOS he played. It was not Ivy specific, as many have wrongly suggested here. I mentioned Kirst, who has faced a very tough schedule. Facing Albany isn’t going to change that. They are not a very good defense, despite having 1 excellent defender

[The Orfling]

With my standard caveats that the season isn't over and that performances in the conference tournament and NCAAs could and probably will elevate someone to the Tewaaraton, if you didn't get a chance to see Yale vs. Albany last night, with Brandau matched up against Albany's Jake Piseno, the highlights of his three goals are worth a click -- three different types of goals showcasing his range of goal-scoring skills:

• https://x.com/LacrosseNetwork/status/17 ... 6668951811

• https://x.com/YaleLacrosse/status/1781466236607459670

• https://x.com/USALacrosseMag/status/1781467886969659779

I'm not trying to argue that others in the top season conversation don't have similar skills, it's more that as a longtime Yale fan I've watched Matt (via streaming and in person) since he started at Yale and some of what he's doing this season is still new to me.

[keno in reno]

With my standard caveats that the season isn't over and that performances in the conference tournament and NCAAs could and probably will elevate someone to the Tewaaraton, if you didn't get a chance to see Yale vs. Albany last night, with Brandau matched up against Albany's Jake Piseno, the highlights of his three goals are worth a click -- three different goals showcasing his range of goal-scoring skills:

• https://x.com/LacrosseNetwork/status/17 ... 6668951811

• https://x.com/YaleLacrosse/status/1781466236607459670

• https://x.com/USALacrosseMag/status/1781467886969659779

I'm not trying to argue that others in the top player conversation don't have similar skills, it's more that as a longtime Yale fan I've watched Matt (via streaming and in person) since he started at Yale and some of what he's doing this season is still new to me.

Nice goals. There are 2 separate conversations going on here:

- Does Brandau deserve the Tewaaraton? Absolutely. Shellenberger does too, so it'll be interesting to see who wins. Hopefully it's not dependent on whose team does better in the tournament.

- Is the Ivy league as good as the ACC? After seeing Yale last night, no way. You can cherry pick some stats and scores from meaningless games in March or February, but come May, 3 ACC teams will be odds-on favorites to make the Final assuming they're not matched up. There is certainly a higher likelihood that at least 2 ACC teams make the final 4 than 1 Ivy

- You can argue that the Ivy is on par with the B1G this year. There is no great team in the B1G and lots of mediocrity

But yes, Brandau is great and deserving of the Tewaaraton

[Finster]

With my standard caveats that the season isn't over and that performances in the conference tournament and NCAAs could and probably will elevate someone to the Tewaaraton, if you didn't get a chance to see Yale vs. Albany last night, with Brandau matched up against Albany's Jake Piseno, the highlights of his three goals are worth a click -- three different goals showcasing his range of goal-scoring skills:

• https://x.com/LacrosseNetwork/status/17 ... 6668951811

• https://x.com/YaleLacrosse/status/1781466236607459670

• https://x.com/USALacrosseMag/status/1781467886969659779

I'm not trying to argue that others in the top player conversation don't have similar skills, it's more that as a longtime Yale fan I've watched Matt (via streaming and in person) since he started at Yale and some of what he's doing this season is still new to me.

Nice goals. There are 2 separate conversations going on here:

- Does Brandau deserve the Tewaaraton? Absolutely. Shellenberger does too, so it'll be interesting to see who wins. Hopefully it's not dependent on whose team does better in the tournament.

- Is the Ivy league as good as the ACC? After seeing Yale last night, no way. You can cherry pick some stats and scores from meaningless games in March or February, but come May, 3 ACC teams will be odds-on favorites to make the Final assuming they're not matched up. There is certainly a higher likelihood that at least 2 ACC teams make the final 4 than 1 Ivy

- You can argue that the Ivy is on par with the B1G this year. There is no great team in the B1G and lots of mediocrity

But yes, Brandau is great and deserving of the Tewaaraton

I generally agree with your longer post, but to what you wrote and I highlighted, I’ll respectfully disagree. This is that time of the year when leadership counts for a lot, ESPECIALLY in a year where no team is light years better than all others and when two Tewaaraton candidates are basically even. This is the time when you want one alpha to put a team in his back, refusing to lose. Leadership imo is part of the Tewaaraton (or should be anyway…in years past I believe the committee got blinded by recruiting rankings and raw numbers).

I still have Brandau as 1 and Shellenberger as 2, but there’s a long way to go here.

[Gobigred]

With my standard caveats that the season isn't over and that performances in the conference tournament and NCAAs could and probably will elevate someone to the Tewaaraton, if you didn't get a chance to see Yale vs. Albany last night, with Brandau matched up against Albany's Jake Piseno, the highlights of his three goals are worth a click -- three different goals showcasing his range of goal-scoring skills:

• https://x.com/LacrosseNetwork/status/17 ... 6668951811

• https://x.com/YaleLacrosse/status/1781466236607459670

• https://x.com/USALacrosseMag/status/1781467886969659779

I'm not trying to argue that others in the top player conversation don't have similar skills, it's more that as a longtime Yale fan I've watched Matt (via streaming and in person) since he started at Yale and some of what he's doing this season is still new to me.

Nice goals. There are 2 separate conversations going on here:

- Does Brandau deserve the Tewaaraton? Absolutely. Shellenberger does too, so it'll be interesting to see who wins. Hopefully it's not dependent on whose team does better in the tournament.

- Is the Ivy league as good as the ACC? After seeing Yale last night, no way. You can cherry pick some stats and scores from meaningless games in March or February, but come May, 3 ACC teams will be odds-on favorites to make the Final assuming they're not matched up. There is certainly a higher likelihood that at least 2 ACC teams make the final 4 than 1 Ivy

- You can argue that the Ivy is on par with the B1G this year. There is no great team in the B1G and lots of mediocrity

But yes, Brandau is great and deserving of the Tewaaraton

I generally agree with your longer post, but to what you wrote and I highlighted, I’ll respectfully disagree. This is that time of the year when leadership counts for a lot, ESPECIALLY in a year where no team is light years better than all others and when two Tewaaraton candidates are basically even. This is the time when you want one alpha to put a team in his back, refusing to lose. Leadership imo is part of the Tewaaraton (or should be anyway…in years past I believe the committee got blinded by recruiting rankings and raw numbers).

I still have Brandau as 1 and Shellenberger as 2, but there’s a long way to go here.

Not clear at all to me that "the Tewaaraton candidates are basically even" at this point in the season.

[The Orfling]

With my standard caveats that the season isn't over and that performances in the conference tournament and NCAAs could and probably will elevate someone to the Tewaaraton, if you didn't get a chance to see Yale vs. Albany last night, with Brandau matched up against Albany's Jake Piseno, the highlights of his three goals are worth a click -- three different goals showcasing his range of goal-scoring skills:

• https://x.com/LacrosseNetwork/status/17 ... 6668951811

• https://x.com/YaleLacrosse/status/1781466236607459670

• https://x.com/USALacrosseMag/status/1781467886969659779

I'm not trying to argue that others in the top player conversation don't have similar skills, it's more that as a longtime Yale fan I've watched Matt (via streaming and in person) since he started at Yale and some of what he's doing this season is still new to me.

Nice goals. There are 2 separate conversations going on here:

- Does Brandau deserve the Tewaaraton? Absolutely. Shellenberger does too, so it'll be interesting to see who wins. Hopefully it's not dependent on whose team does better in the tournament.

- Is the Ivy league as good as the ACC? After seeing Yale last night, no way. You can cherry pick some stats and scores from meaningless games in March or February, but come May, 3 ACC teams will be odds-on favorites to make the Final assuming they're not matched up. There is certainly a higher likelihood that at least 2 ACC teams make the final 4 than 1 Ivy

- You can argue that the Ivy is on par with the B1G this year. There is no great team in the B1G and lots of mediocrity

But yes, Brandau is great and deserving of the Tewaaraton

I've studiously stayed on the sidelines of conversation number 2! Appreciate your kind words about Matt Brandau, though, who is a great team guy beloved by the Yale fan base/lax community.

[stupefied]

Flip a coin

Ivy offenses are potent while their defenses are rather porous this year , a loose generalization with some merit . Surely factors into thinking but wouldn't discount Brandau given his body of work over the years when facing good defenses .

The Heisman in college football does not always go to the greatest talent and salso true that tats dont necessary tell all.

Personally prefer overall games of both Shellenberger and Kavanaugh but Brandau production impact are consistently significant for a strong program. There is a strong and legit basis that can be made for him.

Flip a coin.

[Finster]

With my standard caveats that the season isn't over and that performances in the conference tournament and NCAAs could and probably will elevate someone to the Tewaaraton, if you didn't get a chance to see Yale vs. Albany last night, with Brandau matched up against Albany's Jake Piseno, the highlights of his three goals are worth a click -- three different goals showcasing his range of goal-scoring skills:

• https://x.com/LacrosseNetwork/status/17 ... 6668951811

• https://x.com/YaleLacrosse/status/1781466236607459670

• https://x.com/USALacrosseMag/status/1781467886969659779

I'm not trying to argue that others in the top player conversation don't have similar skills, it's more that as a longtime Yale fan I've watched Matt (via streaming and in person) since he started at Yale and some of what he's doing this season is still new to me.

Nice goals. There are 2 separate conversations going on here:

- Does Brandau deserve the Tewaaraton? Absolutely. Shellenberger does too, so it'll be interesting to see who wins. Hopefully it's not dependent on whose team does better in the tournament.

- Is the Ivy league as good as the ACC? After seeing Yale last night, no way. You can cherry pick some stats and scores from meaningless games in March or February, but come May, 3 ACC teams will be odds-on favorites to make the Final assuming they're not matched up. There is certainly a higher likelihood that at least 2 ACC teams make the final 4 than 1 Ivy

- You can argue that the Ivy is on par with the B1G this year. There is no great team in the B1G and lots of mediocrity

But yes, Brandau is great and deserving of the Tewaaraton

I generally agree with your longer post, but to what you wrote and I highlighted, I’ll respectfully disagree. This is that time of the year when leadership counts for a lot, ESPECIALLY in a year where no team is light years better than all others and when two Tewaaraton candidates are basically even. This is the time when you want one alpha to put a team in his back, refusing to lose. Leadership imo is part of the Tewaaraton (or should be anyway…in years past I believe the committee got blinded by recruiting rankings and raw numbers).

I still have Brandau as 1 and Shellenberger as 2, but there’s a long way to go here.

Not clear at all to me that "the Tewaaraton candidates are basically even" at this point in the season.

You’re likely correct. I think I was forecasting likely tournament chances, which is stupid to do. At this point, Brandau is the clear leader; I don’t think anyone other than Shellenberger is close.