Transfer to VMI or Mt. St. Marys?

[bigbri13]

I'm thinking about transferring from my club team to play lacrosse somewhere and I'm trying to see what processes I should be takin to do so. I'd really like to play for Mount St. Marys or VMI. Anyone have any suggestions? I've emailed the coaches already.

[Sir Mackel]

Mt. St. Marys is a half-hour from were I live, I've heard it's a decent school, and they have an okay lacrosse program.

[dcblax18]

VMI lax is cool, but i heard horror stories about the school. go to the mount, tom gravante is a great coach, and it is a great school. that is wher i want to play someday.

[The Doors]

nothing wrong with playing club ball. I did it for 4 years and loved every second of it, and it landed me a great job in the lax field. Unless you are unhappy as a student at whatever institution you are at, I would recommend you stay

[dcblax18]

what scool do u play club 4?

[egrlax10]

I thought you were going to Presbyterian. But if not, Mt. St. Mary's is in the middle of nowhere. I'm sure there's a decent amount of stuff to do on campus, but if you want to do anything off campus, you're going to need a car. I remember someone saying that a movie theater was recently built about 10 minutes from campus and it was a huge deal. VMI is also in a pretty small town, but still a little bit bigger than Emmitsburg. It's a military college, which I'm sure you already know, and I'm not really sure what that means to be honest. I'm pretty sure you don't have to serve or anything after graduation, but I could be wrong about that. Here's some info from the website about being a cadet there, in case you haven't looked into it:
http://www.vmi.edu/Admissions.aspx?id=276&ekmensel=fb5d653b_20_309_276_1

[bigbri13]

thanks guys, I play club at UMD now, i don't see any chance of me getting looked at too hard there it i was to walk on, I am an athlete and I bust my ***, i just want to know how I would go about possibly playin for VMI or Mt. St. marys? I am looking at presbyterian really hard but its just so far from home, i want to know if there is any way I could play somewhere closer like those schools, any more advice would be awesome.

[<<RANGER>>]

I don't really see how you could transfer to VMI unless you want to go there for four years, since every student has to be part of the ROTC program.

[bigbri13]

O, i didn't know that, then how would I go about going to transfer and play at the mount?

[lax_man23]

dude i am in the town that vmi is in and it sucks just dont come here its not a good school and this town sucks if you have any questions about vmi or W & L pm me my parents work there

[bigbri13]

Haha, i guess i'm rulin VMI out, so what about the mount? What should i do to transfer and play there?

[dcblax18]

email gravante that ur considern it

[njone42]

I thought you were going to Presbyterian. But if not, Mt. St. Mary's is in the middle of nowhere. I'm sure there's a decent amount of stuff to do on campus, but if you want to do anything off campus, you're going to need a car. I remember someone saying that a movie theater was recently built about 10 minutes from campus and it was a huge deal. VMI is also in a pretty small town, but still a little bit bigger than Emmitsburg. It's a military college, which I'm sure you already know, and I'm not really sure what that means to be honest. I'm pretty sure you don't have to serve or anything after graduation, but I could be wrong about that. Here's some info from the website about being a cadet there, in case you haven't looked into it:
http://www.vmi.edu/Admissions.aspx?id=276&ekmensel=fb5d653b_20_309_276_1

no no no, vmi is a milatary school witch means that you have to go into eather the navy or the marines. and you have to searve for at least 4 years. the town is cool. and it right next to another college. but the team does play some very good competition.

[spenny]

you dont have any service obligation after attending VMI, many MVI students choose to go into the military but they are not forced to.

its not the same thing as west point, annapolis, or the air force academy

[twin58]

no no no, vmi is a milatary school witch means that you have to go into eather the navy or the marines. and you have to searve for at least 4 years.

Senior Military College (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Senior_military_college)

In the United States, a Senior Military College (SMC) is one of six colleges that offer military Reserve Officers' Training Corps (ROTC) programs and are specifically recognized under 10 USC § 2111(a). The six senior military colleges are:

North Georgia College and State University; Dahlonega, Georgia
Norwich University; Northfield, Vermont
Texas A&M University; College Station, Texas
The Citadel; Charleston, South Carolina
Virginia Military Institute; Lexington, Virginia
Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University; Blacksburg, Virginia
....

Cadets at an SMC are authorized to take the ROTC program all four years, but taking a commission upon graduation remains optional, unlike other colleges where ROTC cadets are required to sign a contract to take commission before entering their final two years.
....

Another advantage to the SMC system is that all cadets at the Senior Military Colleges are guaranteed active duty commissions when they graduate.

"The Secretary of the Army shall ensure that a graduate of a senior military college who desires to serve as a commissioned officer on active duty upon graduation from the college, who is medically and physically qualified for active duty, and who is recommended for such duty by the professor of military science at the college, shall be assigned to active duty."

Virginia Military Institute (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Virginia_Military_Institute)

the town is cool. and it right next to another college. but the team does play some very good competition.

Most people think Lexington is a pretty nice place to live. It's in a rural setting, with lots of outdoor activities nearby. VMI is a state school, so residents of the Commonwealth of Virginia pay less for tuition than out-of-state students.

The school next door is an outfit that goes by the name of Washington and Lee University (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Washington_and_Lee_University). Mt. St. Mary's is an hour and a half from DC and a little closer to Baltimore.

[laxerbart2]

as someone who went to vmi i can say the school is not that fun to be at but the education is excellent and it is great school to be from. you don't have to go into any type of service if you don't want to when you graduate, i know i didn't. lax man it might suck to spend your early life in lexington but i'd be careful trashing a school for that reason.

[bigbri13]

Alright I emailed coach gravante and he told me to make a scheduled visit to the college and he would meet with me. Is this something they do all the time with anyone who is interested or should I go up and meet with this coach? I guess it couldn't hurt, I just don't want it to be a waste of time.

[Orange]

I thought you were going to Presbyterian. But if not, Mt. St. Mary's is in the middle of nowhere. I'm sure there's a decent amount of stuff to do on campus, but if you want to do anything off campus, you're going to need a car. I remember someone saying that a movie theater was recently built about 10 minutes from campus and it was a huge deal.
Yeah I visited Mt. St. Mary's as well. I felt like I wanted to go there for a little, but there's really nothing you can do off campus, at all. It's dead in the middle of nowhere. That being said, the parties we went to on campus were pretty fun. It's a small school so you would get to know a lot of people.
Alright I emailed coach gravante and he told me to make a scheduled visit to the college and he would meet with me. Is this something they do all the time with anyone who is interested or should I go up and meet with this coach? I guess it couldn't hurt, I just don't want it to be a waste of time.
That's what I did as well. When I was there I met him and talked to him for a little. He was a pretty nice guy.

[splaxer13]

anyway man. im assuming you are transfering just for the sake of lacrosse. Then why would you shoot low, I mean the mount and vmi are worse than many d3 schools. research a little more the the school that suites you best lacrosse wise and academic wise.

[bigbri13]

I have to shoot low because I have no stats to back up my athletic ability, I'm really not trying to brag but I pick up sports very quick and I just started playing lax last spring and I fell in love with it, but I really don't think a top D-I school would consider someone with no background in the sport, I'm trying to get to Mount based on work ethic, personality, and athleticism, which, not to brag again, I do have, I may not have the experience but I do have the will and potential.

[Beta26]

If you're going to walk on somewhere (since you don't have the stats/experience) then what if you don't make the cut? That's a HUGE possibility. Being athletic and working hard is great...but that doesn't automatically mean you're set to play. Then you're stuck at a school you picked just for the team. Someone mentioned you play college club...does your current college have an NCAA team? Try out for that one?

Find a school you like, with a worthwhile degree and a solid chance of making the team and you most likely will be better off.

[bsboy4]

i highly doubt that someone who started laxin last spring is gonna be able to walk on to UMD, but yea id say go to a game and see how good they(mt.) are compared to you before just transferring

[bigbri13]

So I'm going to visit the mount in april, I'm a transfer student, it really seems like a good fit for me, I'm going to meet the coach, what should I bring, ask, etc.?? I don't have much game tape, I just wanna know what I should be doing. Thanks for the help

[soclax15]

I think a big question that I don't think was covered is this: WHY do you want to transfer? Do you not like UMD? Do you simply want to transfer to try and play at a D1 program? What is your motivation?

[bigbri13]

The campus at UMD is too big for the likes of me and I've just started playing lax so I just now started to love playin it. I'm an athlete, I got recruited as an athlete to play football at alot of D-III schools but didn't go because I didn't feel I had the size to play football at the college level. I really like the campus at the mount and i'm an irish catholic and I love lacrosse and want to make it more of a commitment than there is at the club level.

And might i add that experience in the sport is important but isn't everything. Hard work, dedication, athleticism, character, teamwork those are the qualities that matter is any sport.

[soclax15]

I just wanted to make sure that you're not transferring simply for a shot to play D1 ball, because if that was the case and you didn't make the team as a walk-on that would be pretty tragic. If you also like the school itself from an academic and environment standpoint, I think you're on the right track. Just keep your head level and don't get yourself in a situation where if you don't make a team you're going to be stuck somewhere you don't want to be. I don't mean to play devil's advocate, I just want to make sure you're looking at both sides of the coin. I think you certainly have the attitude to be successful, just work as hard as you can on your lacrosse skills and knowledge so that you're as prepared as you can be come tryout time.

[bigbri13]

Thanks solax, I just wanna know what would impress the coach at Mount st. Mary's other than a bunch of numbers on a paper. I know its gonna be hard to win over a coach when you don't have many stats to show for, I just want to know what else I should do to let him know I mean business and am not just some joke?

[Beta26]

Numbers don't impress coaches. Coaches watching a player play is where they (99 times out of 100) make their judgment..if they know what they're doing).

If you have no stats and you're lacrosse ability is behind kids that have been playing since they were 6...you gotta show the coach that you're willing to find a way to help the team out. Whether it's "d-middie->then off the field" or fogo.

You're the product...and you're essentially selling yourself to the coach.

[bigbri13]

I wouldn't say my lax ability is behind everyone else, I've been working on my stick skills and have become more of an offensive threat. My first year playin I was the lockoff man on the varsity team of my high school and I'd lockoff the best player on the other team. I mean I just need to know, since he really can't see how I play, what I need to do in order to "sell" myself to the coach?

[atm 1892]

Yea like everybody said, definitely don't chose a school just for lacrosse.

According to laxpower, Mount St. Mary's has 19 new freshman coming in next year. I think it's pretty safe to say that someone is going to get cut. I wouldn't transfer there unless you were absolutely sure you are going to make the team.

Also, it seems that you are only interested in lower end D1 schools. You don't have to play D1 to be on a competitive team. There are many good D3 schools that you could probably excel at academically while still playing competitive lacrosse.

[Beta26]

Like I said...ANY coach is more interested in watching you play and not numbers on paper.

Meaning you have to figure out a way for him to see you play.

If it were me, I would ask if you can do some 1v1's perhaps with some of his practice squad guys after a day of practice so he can see you.

Without him seeing you...it's basically a 0% shot.

Would you buy a car without driving it, or seeing it in action? Definitely not. Would a coach let someone on his NCAA Division 1 team without seeing him play first? Absolutely not.

Basically, you're not going to get "on" the team until he sees you play. If you don't wanna wait till you are at the school to try-out...then you should get him to see you play now. Whether it's against some of his scrubs after one of his practices, some game film...or even ask about a summer league he can see you play in against decent people.


Also...


Even though you're not selecting top tier D1 schools to try and walk on...you're picking schools that aren't exactly brand new this year. That lowers your chances because the coach has a set system...build (partially) around the guys he has. You are essentially (whether you wanna admit it or not) the odd man out of his system. A new team (D1, D2, D3) is going to offer a MILLION more chances for you to make waves. 1) Lots of freshman/transfers and 2) The team is brand new, will most likely lose a lot of games and you will stand out more if you are any good. 3) More $ academically available.

I mean here's the biggest thing that lingers around with most HS coaches that no HS player/parent wants to hear...not everyone is meant to play college lacrosse. Just like not every HS football player isn't meant to play college football. I mean, most of the guys on those teams are there because they did 5, 10, 15 years of hard work MORE than you have. You might love lacrosse...we all do...but they love it just as much, maybe less, maybe more than you do.

D1 is the upper echelon of lacrosse in terms of organization and all that jazz. Yeah there are good D2 and D3 teams...but we're talking on the overall level...because there are some god-awful D2, D3 and even D1 teams. You want into the upper echelon of the sport everyone here loves...and your resume is lacking. Meaning in the very VERY few chances you have to show this coach your skills...you gotta make it count.

[bigbri13]

Thanks Beta, that really helps me out on what the coach at the mount is thinking, I'm gonna try and ask if I can do some 1 v 1's or something, I really appreciate the help.

[Beta26]

Thanks Beta, that really helps me out on what the coach at the mount is thinking, I'm gonna try and ask if I can do some 1 v 1's or something, I really appreciate the help.

Another BIG thing...use connections. Have any coaches (lacrosse, strength/conditioning, etc) get you some recommendations/phone numbers to give the coach at Mount. If there's someone you can Kevin Bacon to the Mount coach to a coach that knows you...DO IT. That would be clutch.

[bigbri13]

well my assitant coach at my old high school is in the National Lacrosse Hall of Fame, he told me it was ashame i started lax so late. He's good friends with Don Zimmerman, head coach of UMBC, thats where one of my buddies is playin right now. I might try and use him as a contact, i already have actually and it doesn't seem he has much say.

[p8ntgoalie93]

tom gravante is a great guy, if you work your off you should have a shot. ive been to his camps for the 3 years ive played lax and he has helped me tremedously

[bigbri13]

Thanks guys that really helps, I'll see what happens when I go down to visit.

[p8ntgoalie93]

the dorms are pretty decent too

[bigbri13]

yea it all looks like the perfect place for me, I just wanna play lax there too though

[atlax14]

if you want to go to vmi you'd also have to go through the ratline