US Lacrosse Community Forum Forums NORTHEAST LACROSSE BOTC MAIN FORUM (LI, CT, WC) Long Island Express Lacrosse

yes there is a trend, if you can afford it, go to prep school and redo your frosh year if you can afford it. (some schools you can repeat 8th but still maintain the level of academics. This is not new to college sports.

but keep in mind if you do this your child (most likely) will get one heck of an education and an opportunity at a better college isn't that what it is about.

Figure $200k+ for 4 years at most of the boarding high schools. And no guarantee it will work out the way you envision. But, what the heck, you can't take it with you.

OMG! you said education, wow thats wacky!

team 91 never played the Terps Black team

lots of mixing grades and teams in the conversation
Terps Black are 2017 as are Turtles
2018 also has a terps but they are not black
91extreme is a 2018
please be mindful when you are bashing a team you have the correct team

will the turtles ever have another team or are they one and done?

I doubt it. papa JD is in it for his son. It's not about anyone else. But then again there is another one coming up in a few years, (2020) so you never know! Problem is Orange Crush (91 2020) is hard to touch!!

Hard to touch......They are 11 years old. A lot can change in the upcoming years.

True, but the Turtles peaked in 7th grade, so that doesn't leave too much time for a "Turtles 2" team to emerge and dominate does it?

Hate to break the news. Turtles have yet to peak, not even close. #chosenones

Haha That's funny!, Unfortunately results don't lie. Who's next?

Turtles are a very good team. They have no weak links and play disciplined. That is why they win. I am happy my son is not on their team though, as there is rampant nepotism on the Turtles. That is not a healthy situation. Better off playing for the LI Express and even though you have to deal with a lot of drama, you don't have to deal with nepotism.

Wait, I thought Turtle where Express? I'm so confused!

Turtles are Express

Turtles are very good

Turtles are not "the best" not winning tournaments like they used to, which is why I said they peaked in 7th grade, they were better then!

There is plenty of nepotism on that team. [/quote]

[/quote]

Usuaully success and nepotism do not go together. They must be one of the few organizations on the planet that's figured out how to make those two work. Or it could be that the rest of the talent pool is so fragmented that the nepotism formula can still work. Cudas also got away with alot of nepotism against weaker teams but it caught up to them over and over when they ran into teams with highly concentrated talent throughout the summer and likewise didn't win many tournaments. Democracy (ie. most talented kids no matter who they know or don't know) always wins in the long run over nepotism.

Usuaully success and nepotism do not go together. They must be one of the few organizations on the planet that's figured out how to make those two work. Or it could be that the rest of the talent pool is so fragmented that the nepotism formula can still work. Cudas also got away with alot of nepotism against weaker teams but it caught up to them over and over when they ran into teams with highly concentrated talent throughout the summer and likewise didn't win many tournaments. Democracy (ie. most talented kids no matter who they know or don't know) always wins in the long run over nepotism. [/quote]

That's not the definition of a Democracy.

That's not the definition of a Democracy. [/quote]
I think you meant meritocracy...:)

I think you meant meritocracy...:) [/quote]

True. Turtles make it work because all the players are decent, many not great. A few are exceptional, especially the attack. The great kids carry the rest. Many kids look better than they are on that team playing together. Unfortunately, that is not what the colleges are looking for. The great ones will get well deserved scholarships, the rest may be surprised when the offers don't come rolling in!

"Better off playing for the LI Express" than the Turtles? Come on!!! Nepotism > drama (& BTW "drama" is an understatement;)

Turtles are a very good team. They have no weak links and play disciplined. That is why they win. I am happy my son is not on their team though, as there is rampant nepotism on the Turtles. That is not a healthy situation. Better off playing for the LI Express and even though you have to deal with a lot of drama, you don't have to deal with nepotism. [/quote]

"Better off playing for the LI Express" than the Turtles? Come on!!! Nepotism > drama (& BTW "drama" is an understatement;) [/quote]
I would take the Drama>Nepotism. Would prefer neither of course. But this is Youth Lacrosse and your never going to find a perfect situation.

I heard the 2020 Express had Over 100 kids at tryouts on Saturday and that they are looking to fill 2 spots.

Crazy how many people shelled out the $$ with those odds Would you do that in Vegas?

These pay to play clubs have really convinced parents that this is the kids only shot and like lemmings they line up to pay

Monkey see, monkey do.

Express will turnover kids to improve the talent on their teams. If there are better kids that come along, existing players will get cut. If there were 100 kids at the tryout, many of these were likely returning players as well and not altogether new players. If your kid is good, they will get on a team. If your kid is as good, but not better than, a returning player, the returning player will likely get the spot.

This is pretty much the same drill for all paying clubs especially as the kids get older. There are established teams with a few spots available on each team because of kids that leave or to replace kids that didn't perform well. Even the clubs that call themselves "not for profit" are charging for tryouts where there are only a few spots available. With Express the odds for making a team are worse because so many people come to the tryouts because they want to play for Express. The other clubs would take the same money if they had the turnout. Express does a great tryout and has many paid evaluators that they have to compensate. Many of the "not for profits" have parent coaches evaluating and they are still charging something, many $50 and up.

It's pretty simple, kids have to stand out to take a spot from an existing player at any of these tryouts. Express is harder because there are more kids at the tryout. If they do something to get noticed, they will have their choice of clubs even if there are 100 kids at the tryout.

I was at the 91 workout with my son but I was told the talent level for the 2019 team at Express was much lower then they had hoped and the A team will probably be more of a low A team and the B team more like a C.Any feedback on if that was true or not.Pleasse respond only if you were there.There were a bunch of Express helmets at the 91 tryout but I really didn't look to see how good they were or if they played for the A or B at express last year.

Only if a returning player comes back.If 9 of the kids from your A team go over to 91 to try out you will also have openings. But will the talent be better or will you just be filling spots.

Yes it will weaken the talent base but that's ok because winning is not the most important thing, It seems that just wearing the helmet makes people happy whether you are on the A,B or C team

Comment of the day so far... "and like lemmings they line up to pay" ... my prediction is this guy didn't like the tryout and felt like his 100 bucks was wasted so he feels like jumping off a cliff...

Stay away from Express unless your kid is going to St. Anthony's or is on the Express "A" team. Jesters, fl$, Outlaws have excellent recruiting placement track records for public school kids.

I was at the 2019 tryouts this past weekend with my son. I heard that there were approximately 125 kids. I can tell you that the kids that I watched looked pretty impressive. They certainly did not look like low A or B team players to me. I did see some 91, True Blue and Rampage helmets, but there were obviously more Express helmets out there.

I can tell you what I saw was probably the least talent we have had there in years and I have gone for the past three years. Unless they grab some kids off of other tryouts it will be a long season.

I disagree, I saw some very athletic kids and some very skilled lacrosse players.
If they get it right the A team will be very strong.

If other kids stay the second team will be good as well.

Listen to the guy that's been there the past three years... he knows the level of players that have been there and left. With so many of their kids at the 91 tryout, I tend to believe him.

Second Team ? I would rather try out for Icon, True Blue, Millon Force etc
There are still plenty of good teams w/ tryouts remaining.

I disagree, I saw some very athletic kids and some very skilled lacrosse players.
If they get it right the A team will be very strong.

If other kids stay the second team will be good as well. [/quote]

Don't get sucked into the hype of any of these clubs or get hung up on which kid plays for what club. College coaches could care less what club team your sons play for - It makes absolutely no difference to them so don't drink the cool-aid of any program, including the Express. All the college coaches care about is your kid as an individual. He could play for the 3 stooges club located in tim-buk-to and it wouldn't matter as long as they see him and he's a stud he doesn't have to come from a well known program. The great majority of kids on D1 rosters played for club programs that you've never heard of. Go with the cheapest for some exposure and supplement with individual showcases and college prospect days. Trust me, I've just been through it.

You are correct, and thank you. Great post.

I just went through it as well. My son did not play for any of the "big" clubs, he is now recruited to an excellent D1 school with a very nice scholarship. He was seen at recruiting camps, not club play!

I tend to agree with the post. BUT..Your child is only going to get better if he plays with “better” players and gets “better” coaching. Most high schools do not provide one or the other or both.
The “bigger” clubs tend to get “better” players that help your child get “better”. Obviously there are exceptions, but this seems to be the trend over the past few years since we have become obsessed with getting our children some sort of scholarship for lacrosse.

makes me wonder what planet you people are living on. did you know that a fully funded program has 12.1 scholarships spread across the entire team? so you'e talking maybe 1/4 which doesn't account for much. most people will get more in financial aid packages based on income and need. stop talking about scholarship $$ because it makes you sound dumb. it's all about gettiing into a school that otherwise may be unreachable.