Inside Lacrosse Elite 8 & Midnight Mania

We were honored at the opportunity to work under the Inside Lacrosse team at their Elite 8 & Midnight Mania events. The team did a great job putting on a fun and special event.

Inside Lacrosse Elite 8 & Midnight Mania Notebook

On the horizon of an exciting time for high school players with 9/01 looming, we got the opportunity to watch 8 great men’s 2023 teams compete, and be a part of the Midnight Mania Showcase alongside some of the best coaches in the game. We took notes and observations - let’s take a look!

General Takeaways

This is something we constantly stress in sessions. Build good habits of calling for the ball, communicating doubles, speaking terminology. Sometimes it falls on deaf ears. Well, 5 minutes into the college showcase, 1 coach challenged the group to raise their level of communication and got after them. It was intense - time to step up your communication if you’re serious about being a legit D1 prospect on any part of the field!

Recently, one of my athletes asked me what she can do to separate herself and standout. My answer was to “COMPETE”! Compete levels were high. Games were intense. It was exciting to see these guys (and the girls Elite 8 games I saw) get after it. It’s another level, and you need to ramp it up. Do you have the fire from within? How hungry are you? Do you love to play? Are you ready to take a hit and keep coming back for more?

I wrote about the Summer Landscape a few weeks ago, but it was awesome to see so many players we’d worked with earlier in the summer or in August fresh and excited to compete. While back to back (to back) events can be unavoidable at times, it’s certainly noticeable to see guys fresh with some pop to their step. Even more so, mentally fired up to be there and soak it all in. It was an exciting night and you could feel it!

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Player Notes

Leo brought it all night with energy and big time plays. Scoring early in game one off a low wing redodge, as well as a game winning assist to send to the finals, Leo is a playmaker. I think his vision is a less talked about part of his game that I continue to see developing.

Great seeing McCabe back on the field at Midnight Mania. It only took 1 4v4 buildup drill to see McCabe demonstrate a variety of skills. First he wins his matchup for an underneath dodge and finish in front. Then he holds space inside then pops off to fade & finish in a 2v2. 2 balls later he verbally/visually communicates with his teammate off ball, sets a pick, then slips to the cage for a catch and finish. That’s why he’s elite.

Jack impresses me more every time I see him. He seemingly catches everything and can finish lefty or righty. Plays the pipes and catches people watching - it’s simple yet it really stands out when someone does it well. I tweeted how he reminds me of Eric Law. Scored 4g in the 1st half of the finals in a variety of ways.

The big lefty was a presence dodging off the wing, attacking topside a few times throughout the evening. Demonstrated nice range on the run.

My first time seeing Maddox play live, I was impressed with his speed and pop out of his step. Scoring a nice lefty up the hash shot, Maddox puts some zip on his shots with a nice snappy release.

AJ demonstrated great skills in the open field and athleticism getting up and down. A great frame and strong on ball, I really like AJ’s versatility.

We hope you found this helpful. We started First Class Lacrosse because we believe in the power player development. We believe you can get exponentially better if you combine a great work ethic with the guidance of knowing what to work on and how to do it. Luckily, we experienced it firsthand as players and coaches. Our goal is to pass on what we have learned and experienced to future generations of lacrosse players, parents, and coaches. Join our Email List here.

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