OT- UConn Lacrosse

[Northbound]

Upstate NY is and has been a very fertile ground for DI and high DIII lacrosse talent from high schools and JUCO's and while there are plenty of high income areas that have quality programs there are also plenty of average income areas that compete at a high level and have really good players. The sports has expanded significantly in recent years, moving from a once Northeastern/mid-atlantic (baltimore/philly main line) dominant sport. Not any longer there is significant growth in the west and mid-west and the challenge for the sport is to acquire fans that have never participated as the past participant pool is relatively small which leads to small fan bases.

As the sport grows at the HS level there are plenty of quality players to handle the growth at the DI and high DIII level so while pulling first line kids that would normally go to a resurgent UNC, Cuse, Hopkins, UVA, etc. would be challenging, UCONN could likely compete for other DI talent from the jump.

 

[ZooCougar]

Cause LAX is a lousy, boring sport?

This is the guy that misses Jeff Hathaway. 'nuff said.

Let me guess, you think baseball, a game based on a game that they only let British schoolgirls play is exciting?

 

[RuffRuff]

Can't get into this sport at all - kids like it because it has tons of fun expensive gear. It's a redundant sport. We already have an age old sport where your run up and down a grass/turf field and put balls in goals(soccer). We already have a sport where you put a small ball in small goals with sticks(hockey). It feels like a sport your gym teacher concocted and would have you play. It translates terribly, like hockey, to TV. A bit of a yuppy sport for rich kids with lot's of gear. Will never, ever gain any major momentum in the sports world if you ask me. We have enough major sports covering all seasons. What we see now is likely the ceiling - regional sport.

 

[Waquoit]

This is the guy that misses Jeff Hathaway. 'nuff said.

Let me guess, you think baseball, a game based on a game that they only let British schoolgirls play is exciting?

Real sports don't have artificial rules where certian players can't cross a line. Reminds me of the hoop my mother played in the 50's.

Your 1st sentence is slander but you aren't too bright so I will let it go.

 

[ZooCougar]

All sports have rules. And all rules by definition are artificial. By your definition soccer and football aren't even real sports.

This is exactly like explaining to some redneck idiot why there is an offsides rule in soccer, or some british guy why a certain number of players have to line up on the line of scrimmage in football.

Without these rules, the game is unbalanced and you have a mess like Canadian football, arena football.

Let us know when you have a criticism that holds water. We'll probably be waiting for a while. Like forever.

 

[SouthTampaBill]

Best lacrosse player ever came from Long Island
Imagine him coming at you?

http://nbcsports.msnbc.com/id/7903131/

 

[businesslawyer]

It feels like a sport your gym teacher concocted and would have you play.

I know you used that to put down lacrosse, but maybe recognize that you just exactly described the birth of basketball.

 

[babysheep]

Can't get into this sport at all - kids like it because it has tons of fun expensive gear. It's a redundant sport. We already have an age old sport where your run up and down a grass/turf field and put balls in goals(soccer). We already have a sport where you put a small ball in small goals with sticks(hockey). It feels like a sport your gym teacher concocted and would have you play. It translates terribly, like hockey, to TV. A bit of a yuppy sport for rich kids with lot's of gear. Will never, ever gain any major momentum in the sports world if you ask me. We have enough major sports covering all seasons. What we see now is likely the ceiling - regional sport.

Have you ever seen a full game played? Do you know what a yuppie is? Did the lacrosse kids pick on you in high school or something? Because this post just reeks of butthurt.

 

[stamfordhusky]

Will never, ever gain any major momentum in the sports world if you ask me. We have enough major sports covering all seasons. What we see now is likely the ceiling - regional sport.

Its ceiling may be a regional sport - but the region is getting bigger every year. In much of the Northeast and Mid-Atlantic, it has clearly passed baseball as the sport of choice among kids. The majority of the better athletes play lax in many areas. Attendance at high school and college games in these areas is much larger for lacrosse than for baseball.

As for expansion, lax has become big in many areas in California and Colorado, and it is expanding rapidly in North Carolina, Georgia, Florida, etc.

 

[AJC88]

butthurt just became my new favorite insult.

 

[royboy123]

Not enough money to go around even for the under-funded and very successful sports teams we already have (track, field hockey, baseball)

 

[babysheep]

Man, how cool would it be to have a competitive home-and-home with Cuse and in the Rent/Carrier Dome.

 

[HuskyDogArt]

Doesn't UHart have a LAX team??

 

[RuffRuff]

Have you ever seen a full game played? Do you know what a yuppie is? Did the lacrosse kids pick on you in high school or something? Because this post just reeks of butthurt.

Checklist for my good man Babysheep:

Have I ever seen a full game? I live and work in Ffld Country - seen plenty of lacrosse. I sit in a hotbed. Have yet to watch a full game only because it puts me to sleep. I've tried, have cousins that played in highschool.

Do I know what a yuppy is? I work in an Investment Bank in Fffld County, yes I know what a yuppy is.

Did a lacrosse kid pick on me? Not to sound like Tampa Bill, but I did play a major sport on a professional level. I have a good appreciation for sports. I have no bias against lacrosse specifically, I just find it concocted.

Listen, I just kind of look at lacrosse as the field hockey to women's sports. Something resurrected to satisfy a niche demographic of second tier athletes. The sport has no ambience, no character, feels artificial. I know the Indians played it 200 years ago - we also ran those guys off their land.

 

[8893]

Lacrosse was a varsity sport at my high school in Fairfield County when I attended more than 30 years ago. I didn't play it but some of my best friends did and I always found it interesting, although I didn't know the rules. The sport has grown steadily in popularity since.

I now live up the shoreline in CT and the sport is taking off like gangbusters--especially among girls. There are enough girls playing in the 5th and 6th grades that our town is fielding three teams. It is taking kids away from soccer at a steady clip.

Like it or not, it is growing. And it is no more artificial than any other team sport.

 

[UCHuskies08]

This is the guy that misses Jeff Hathaway. 'nuff said.

Let me guess, you think baseball, a game based on a game that they only let British schoolgirls play is exciting?

Baseball is a wee bit more popular than Lacrosse.

How many people here advocating for it would actually attend games? My guess is most might go to one, then return to their state of not caring about Lacrosse. Yet, they clamor for the university to add 24-26 scholarships. Where's that money coming from?

 

[ZooCougar]

Second tier athlete pretty much describes every baseball player, if you actually consider those fat boys to be athletes.

Checklist for my good man Babysheep:

Have I ever seen a full game? I live and work in Ffld Country - seen plenty of lacrosse. I sit in a hotbed. Have yet to watch a full game only because it puts me to sleep. I've tried, have cousins that played in highschool.

Do I know what a yuppy is? I work in an Investment Bank in Fffld County, yes I know what a yuppy is.

Did a lacrosse kid pick on me? Not to sound like Tampa Bill, but I did play a major sport on a professional level. I have a good appreciation for sports. I have no bias against lacrosse specifically, I just find it concocted.

Listen, I just kind of look at lacrosse as the field hockey to women's sports. Something resurrected to satisfy a niche demographic of second tier athletes. The sport has no ambience, no character, feels artificial. I know the Indians played it 200 years ago - we also ran those guys off their land.

 

[UCHuskies08]

Second tier athlete pretty much describes every baseball player, if you actually consider those fat boys to be athletes.

 

[RuffRuff]

Baseball is a wee bit more popular than Lacrosse.

How many people here advocating for it would actually attend games? My guess is most might go to one, then return to their state of not caring about Lacrosse. Yet, they clamor for the university to add 24-26 scholarships. Where's that money coming from?

Baseball is a wee bit more popular than Lacrosse.

How many people here advocating for it would actually attend games? My guess is most might go to one, then return to their state of not caring about Lacrosse. Yet, they clamor for the university to add 24-26 scholarships. Where's that money coming from?

Um, you officially lose all credibility and are thinking from the regional fishbowl perspective. No, baseball is not a "wee" bit more popular. It's vastly more popular. Baseball remains a prime time, top tier sport. It has international attention. It has a national/global franchise with a team like the NY Yankees that falls within the top ten highly valued sports franchises. Where is lacrosse? Is baseball the the NFL, right now? No. Although some may argue that the concussion thing may put the NFL in a very vunlerable position 30 years from now. Has lacrosse gained popularity in the Northeast/Mid Atlantic over baseball at the junior ranks? Sure - parents love investing in gear where they can afford it. Unfortunately for lacrosse, most of the country/middle America doesn't give a about a sport like that where they can't afford it. There is a lot more country to the US than just this corner. Head west, head south. Baseball has professionals garnering multi million dollar annual contracts playing in stadiums specific to baseball worth hundreds of millions of dollars. Lacrosse - has some makeshift league sharing fields with other sports. Give me a break - hogwash It's not even an Olympic sport.

Lacrosse = field hockey. So it's ripped up the Eastern CT shoreline - whoopee. Let's go a bit more macro with this one.

 

[UCHuskies08]

I was being sarcastic. It's a billion times more popular. I'm not on the lacrosse train here. MLB vs. Major League Lacrosse (such a thing exists). 'Nuff said.

Leave Lacrosse to the Orange and the Dukies.

 

[ZooCougar]

Ask some random person on the street who played in the World Series last season. Bet they can't remember or couldn't care less. That sport is collapsing into itself because less people than ever before want to watch it, much less waste their time playing that idiotic and boring sport. It's the perfect cure for insomnia.

The worst thing about baseball is that it runs into football season and it distracts the media because for some reason they think people give a crap. I think ESPN got higher ratings from a weeknight mid major football game than than the stupid "world" series.

 

[RuffRuff]

?

Have you tried hitting a 95 mile an hour fastball? Or a 88 mile an hour slider that moves 4 inches 5 feet from the plate? My guess is if I threw you in a cage where a machine was throwing a straight 83 mile an hour fastball, you'd miss 10 out of 10. It's widely known that the hardest thing to do in all of sports is to hit a small ball traveling fast on multiple planes with a rounded bat. Are baseball players the best "athletes" in the world? No - it's more of a skill sport, a hand eye coordination sport. But there are still some great athletes in that sport and it's a sport distinct from any other. There is an art to it and it has an established historical value to it. It's not for everyone? I played it professionally, but have actually moved away from it as far as a sport of choice from a fan perspective. But I respect it, understand it's brand and where it sits in the American marketplace/history.

Lacrosse - not distinct. It overlaps other sports. Has no recognized history in today's passive fan base and fighting for recognition in a saturated sports market. It's going no where other than a regional makeshift sport. Just like so many of us can't get into watching women's hoops, nor can a lot of us get into watching second a second tier sport. We all want to watch sports where the best athletes or most skilled humans are.

 

[UCHuskies08]

?

Have you tried hitting a 95 mile an hour fastball? Or a 88 mile an hour slider that moves 4 inches 5 feet from the plate? My guess is if I threw you in a cage where a machine was throwing a straight 83 mile an hour fastball, you'd miss 10 out of 10. It's widely known that the hardest thing to do in all of sports is to hit a small ball traveling fast on multiple planes with a rounded bat. Are baseball players the best "athletes" in the world? No - it's more of a skill sport, a hand eye coordination sport. But there are still some great athletes in that sport and it's a sport distinct from any other. There is an art to it and it has an established historical value to it. It's not for everyone? I played it professionally, but have actually moved away from it as far as a sport of choice from a fan perspective. But I respect it, understand it's brand and where it sits in the American marketplace/history.

Lacrosse - not distinct. It overlaps other sports. Has no recognized history in today's passive fan base and fighting for recognition in a saturated sports market. It's going no where other than a regional makeshift sport. Just like so many of us can't get into watching women's hoops, nor can a lot of us get into watching second a second tier sport. We all want to watch sports where the best athletes or most skilled humans are.

Why are you responding to my posts like I'm agreeing with him? I'm on your side, buddy.

 

[UCHuskies08]

Ask some random person on the street who played in the World Series last season. Bet they can't remember or couldn't care less. That sport is collapsing into itself because less people than ever before want to watch it, much less waste their time playing that idiotic and boring sport. It's the perfect cure for insomnia.

The worst thing about baseball is that it runs into football season and it distracts the media because for some reason they think people give a crap. I think ESPN got higher ratings from a weeknight mid major football game than than the stupid "world" series.

I'm sure more people know who was in the World Series than could name a single Lacrosse player, nevermind a team in Major League Lacrosse, nevermind the teams that were in the Major League Lacrosse championship.

 

[RuffRuff]

Ask some random person on the street who played in the World Series last season. Bet they can't remember or couldn't care less. That sport is collapsing into itself because less people than ever before want to watch it, much less waste their time playing that idiotic and boring sport. It's the perfect cure for insomnia.

The worst thing about baseball is that it runs into football season and it distracts the media because for some reason they think people give a crap. I think ESPN got higher ratings from a weeknight mid major football game than than the stupid "world" series.

Ask some random person on the street who played in the World Series last season. Bet they can't remember or couldn't care less. That sport is collapsing into itself because less people than ever before want to watch it, much less waste their time playing that idiotic and boring sport. It's the perfect cure for insomnia.

The worst thing about baseball is that it runs into football season and it distracts the media because for some reason they think people give a crap. I think ESPN got higher ratings from a weeknight mid major football game than than the stupid "world" series.

Buddy, go check the financials. MLB has actually trended forward in revenue. Baseball is a slow boil - it's a long season and they have a mechanism in place that works. They don't do it in a short spurt like the NFL, they do it over a long haul. Why do you think teams still pay a player a guaranteed contract for 25 million a year for 10 years? Because they like throwing money out the window? No, because there is a cost benefit to it. If I'm pointing my kid in a direction, if he's talented, that makes the most sense, it's baseball. There are no health risks, there are gauranteed contracts, there is a long shelf life.

Who can remember who was in last years final in the NHL or NBA? Probably as many as MLB. The NFL is on it's own level - although it's having it's own issues. Again, don't fishbowl this one - Northeast, lot's of static. A lot of America is much more attentive, less distracted.

I actually agree that the baseball season is too long. That kills it for me - I need juice on any given game - I have ADD. It won't change given it's still making money that way and there it too much critical mass from the historical perspective. It's a sport that shouldn't be played in April or October/cold.

 

[husky8273]

Debate the structure of the game all you want. Kids are voting with their feet and they love it. It is the fastest growing youth sport today. The best athletes play lacrosse in the spring, not baseball.

Go to the lax Championships this year in Foxboro over Memorial Day weekend. The Final Four has been drawing 50,000 to NFL stadiums for 10 years! 2 D I semis on Sat., Div II and III finals on Sun., D I final on Mon. See a fanfest that rivals those at a men's hoops Final Four!

Go to http://uconnmenslacrosse.blogspot.com/. The UConn club team had his best year ever finishing 2nd in its conference, finished ranked #15 before losing in the first round of the PCLL playoffs.

 

[Waquoit]

Have you ever seen a full game played?

Make me. Unlike baseball, LAX has a low skill factor. It's just a glorified version of keep-away.

 

[8893]

LAX has a low skill factor. It's just a glorified version of keep-away.

You don't seem very bright. You also have a penchant for criticizing things you know very little about, like sports. Let me help you: That is false.

 

[ZooCougar]

I'm sure more people know who was in the World Series than could name a single Lacrosse player, nevermind a team in Major League Lacrosse, nevermind the teams that were in the Major League Lacrosse championship.

No doubt, nobody could name lacrosse player other than Jim Brown. But 35 years from now I bet a somewhat common question will be "daddy what is baseball?". The answer will be: "it's a niche sport that is still pretty big Japan".

Baseball is awful. People are turning away from it in droves. Good riddance.

 

[ZooCougar]

Make me. Unlike baseball, LAX has a low skill factor. It's just a glorified version of keep-away.

Baseball takes skill, so does gardening and automotive maintenance. And I don't want to watch any of the three.

Lacrosse has no skill. Too funny, I guess any bum on the street could play football well too.