Skills Needed For D1

[Redbirds Lax]

Hey The search bar is acting up. just shuts down the internet when i go on... anywho... Tell me exackly what type of talent you need to D1. What type of stick skills, talent, anything what do you need?. Preferably for a mid.
Thanks

[raykessler]

watch a D1 game, that should tell you everything you need to konw. e-lacrosse has a ton of D1 games to download.

[Redbirds Lax]

Yes i know that... but that doesn't get down to the nitty gritty

[mass_elite21]

ability to use both hands, speed, footwork, athletic, coachable, strategic. i don't know your positions so its kinda hard...

[sticktrix 34]

it depends on if the scouts are looking for someone who is a middie with ok skill but amaaing defense it all depends on what the college needs

[lilaxgurl23]

There isn't one specific thing you need in order to play DI. You need to be good and that's about as specific as it gets. Anything you do in a game, perfect it. Watching a DI game will show you what you need to be, or close to it anyways. The less holes in your game the better chances of being recruited to play DI. It's a combination of your skills, athleticism, knowledge and heart that will get you recruited. You may lack in one area, but there's always somewhere else that you can make up for it and go above and beyond the rest of the players.

[Longpole5435]

it depends on if the scouts are looking for someone who is a middie with ok skill but amaaing defense it all depends on what the college needs
You're in 7th grade, and certainly unqualified to make a judgement on waht is required of a D1 middie. Not saying that I am, but still...

[BwineLAX42]

^^What a useless post. And what he said is relevent, it does depened on what a college needs. Like Delaware right now has one of the top first midfield lines in the country they defiently don't need a middie what they need is a defense. Atleticism is a big thing along with stick skills. Coaches can teach you what to do in a situation you have to be able to exicute what ever it is they want you to do.

[The Doors]

You're in 7th grade, and certainly unqualified to make a judgement on waht is required of a D1 middie. Not saying that I am, but still...

Actually his advice is pretty sound. The topic of this thread is very broad, and I'm pretty confident that most people in this forum have no idea what its like to be recruited or even go to college in the first place.

[lilaxgurl23]

Actually his advice is pretty sound. The topic of this thread is very broad, and I'm pretty confident that most people in this forum have no idea what its like to be recruited or even go to college in the first place.

Exactly, that is why people need to be very cautious when taking advice, especially in this forum. A lot of people on TLF have not been recruited in any way, so it's imperative that you check up on the person you're taking advice from. It's not that the information is always going to be wrong if it comes from a HS underclassman who has yet to be recruited, but there's definitely a difference from a person who has experienced it first hand and has actually talked to coaches. I can't prevent people from posting rumors or false information, so it's up to the user to check up on what they hear and take to be true. Don't think everything is true just because someone said so.

[jedimasterPIMP]

Well once you reach a certain level, stick skills are honestly a non factor, because if you think you are good enough to get recruited, you probably have pretty legit stick skills with both hands. So unless you can do some extraordinary things, colleges just expect you to have good stick skills.

But my coach this summer who pretty much got me recruited said that the number one thing that separates a D1 player from a D2 or D3 player is the sense of the field and how they carry themselves on it.

What I mean by that is that D1 players just can make plays on the field that are just nutty because their awareness and field sense is just that good.

[ca180sx]

^^What a useless post. And what he said is relevent, it does depened on what a college needs. Like Delaware right now has one of the top first midfield lines in the country they defiently don't need a middie what they need is a defense. Atleticism is a big thing along with stick skills. Coaches can teach you what to do in a situation you have to be able to exicute what ever it is they want you to do.


That doesn't mean that they aren't looking for middies. They still need depth in thier lines. One line isn't good enough.

[wolfie8914]

Honestly...this summer I was talking to a D3 coach, and he told me the big difference between D3 and D1 was body size, and speed.

He said a lot of guys in D3 have the same skills and game sense as a D1 player, except that the D1 player was 6'2 and the D3 player was 5'9 and 30 pounds lighter.

So partly, you just gotta be born the right way. But obviously there are exceptions to this...

[RIT37FO]

depends on what D1 you want
do you want UVA,SU,JHU,Duke d1 or are you talking about Sacred heart, canisius nad marist D1

two very very very different levels there, as far as being recruited, Coachability, stick skills can always improve(but the further along you are the better) but coaches like speed and lots of it, if you dont have speed then your strength should make up for that along with hustle. To play on the perennial power houses you pretty much need to be a Stud to get playing time,keep in mind there are kids who ARE amazing and still get cut every year because of lack of hustle and ambition on those teams. but to play on the lower end of the D1 programs you dont need to be a Powell to get on the team/time.

as for size, D1 guys a D3 guys are the same size idc what you say we have 6' 4 defencemen who are 230 pound who move like they are 100 pounds lighter and i have played against some great d1 guys (5'9 and under) who look like highschool kids. the major dif is when your starter gets hurt how good is the next guy in line at the D1 level the next kid is (almost)always as good as the first. however the same cant be said about every D3 program

hope this helped

[shootandfeed]

to be d1 you got to be a really good athlete, stick skills with both hands, coachable, lax iq etc

[O.G. Laxin]

to be d1 you gto to be a really good athlete, stick skills with both hands, coachable, lax iq etc

pretty much sums up what i was going to say. To be recruited you really just need to be very athletic (fast, good agility, fast reflexs) and you need to have good stick skills (Be able to take different types of shots with both your strong and your weekhand, and also need to be comfortable with carrying the ball through traffic with both hands). Besides that you really need to have good field vision and really need to see slides forming when your about to dodge and you always have to know where your teammates will be. The most important thing is you need to be able to put the ball in the back of net.

Another thing to consider at midfield is that colleges are now starting to pull away from offensive midfielders and defensive midfielders. The past couple years have really set a tone in NCAA lacrosse with the two way middie. Virginia's midfielders last year were mostly all two way middies. I was told by a few high end D1 coaches that they are trying to addapt to that kind of midfield play. For a while kids would be recruited because they play defense very good but dont have as good as stick skills and vice versa where kids have outstanding stick skills and cant play defense. I was told on my visits so far that schools are now looking for more of two way middies rather then and offensive or defensive middie.

[valax100]

schools are always going to say they would rather have two way middies... why would you want a one dimensional player as opposed to a player who is effective on both ends of the field... but the fact is there are very few players who can play both sides of the field and remain 100% the entire game... it's a lot easier to sub a dmiddie who is as (if not more) athletic as the "two way" middie. you give your guys a break...

obviously there are a few kids out there who can do it the whole game and arent even tired when its all said and done... but those are few and far between

[O.G. Laxin]

coaches will sometimes bring in attackman and switch them to offensive middie to help invert down low against a shortstick and still feel comfortable around the crease. These same players usually arent the best defensive players.

[Laxholic14]

SPEED!!! and basically you have to be able to do anything that pertains to your position as if it were like riding a bike or breathing...what i mean is, everything you do has to be second nature. Field sense comes with experience and alot of film watching. You have to be good enough at everything so that the coaches can basically let you play, and just direct you and watch over making sure that you dont mess up. Yea, they give you plays to run...but a monkey can learn a lacrosse play...it takes a player better than his opponent in order for them to work.....so what im trying to say is, you have to be pretty friggin good

[Eclipse]

RIT pretty much nailed it on the head.

There are two completely different levels of Division 1 Lacrosse. As he stated the JHU, Cuse, UVA, Princeton, Duke, and Towson make up one end of this Spectrum. The other end is comprised of teams like Colgate, Holy Cross, VMI, Siena, so on and so forth.

That being said the list of qualities possesed is far and long and can change dramatically depending on the player. If there were a set list of skills being required to play Division 1 ball...then all the players would be the same. Some players rely more on speed. Some rely more on strength and size. Some rely on vision and stick skills.

The biggest difference between D1 and D3 is the size though. D1 players are generally much bigger then those of us who play D3. Not to say small players cannot make it in D1 (Mikey Powell?) but size has its benefits. You want to play D1..play, run, lift, and play more every single day. Good Luck.

[valax100]

i wouldnt lump colgate into the same category as holy cross vmi and siena...

[richlax5]

As a former DI LSM and DM, I can tell you that the fundamentals are key. Catching and Throwing with both hands is a plus, great footwork, and above all else the desire to improve. There are many amazing athletes who are recruited but don't strive to improve their game, yet they may have the most talent they are not always the stars on the team, and many decide to transfer when a coach asks for more from them.
My opinion by school year would this:

Middle school - focus on catching, throwing, and cradling (wall ball to start and then on the run), along with this gather the footwork necessary for your position (watch GOOD film of the best at your position, see what these people do and why are they successful)

Freshman (9th grade) - get all the dodges down for an attackmen/midfielder, also shooting on the run and from all angles. Attackmen need to work on the dip dodge and face dodge to get by a poll. IF you can get a handle on these work to the roll dodge to feed (but this is usually a difficult move to pick up). Defensemen need to work on checks especially the underutilized and underestimated poke check....for shorter poles this is key to, continue to work on the stickwork and footwork..ask you get bigger (taller and stronger) you need to remember that you have to grow into your size especially if you shoot up 5 to 6 inches like many people do. Also all lacrosse players have to realize that weight training and running throughout high school is important. It doesn't matter how tall you are you can always get stronger. This is coming from a person who is 5'9" and had to play against much bigger opponents but the weight training and footwork paid off.

Tenth and Eleventh Grade (JV - Varsity) - this is where all of the skills come together and you elevate your game to fit the needs of the team you play on. If you used to play attack, but are asked to play midfield you do and you focus on the different skills. You really have to look at your skill sets and improve upon them. Shooting and passing if you want to be an offensive threat, also playing solid defense and transitional play as a midfielder are a coaches dream.

Senior year (Varisty) - This is where you show you have practiced your heart out and all of the camps have honed your skills. When it comes to playing college you really have to showcase yourself the summer before your senior year after you have played at the Varisty level for at least one year. NEVER be afraid to play up in level, especially after your 10th grade year because it can only make you realize where you need to improve.

Once in college, coaches will get you in the weight room and on the field to improve your skills and help get you on the field IF YOU WANT TO SUCCEED.

[dunitlongpole]

Richlax, If you don't mind me asking, where did you play?

[richlax5]

I played 4 years at Canisius under the tutleage of Randy Mearns. Many of my teammates and one of my Bestmen currently play professional lacrosee, both indoor and outdoor...Some of these same players were asked to play elsewhere but chose to go to Buffalo and play...I was a walk-on who had no asperations to play college lacrosse after high school and it just fit. Limited action my freshman year sitting behind a few High School All-Americans at D-Middie and then played every game after my freshman year. Great experience, but even greater family.

[amcc90]

Just to bring this up again, as you watch a D1 game and then a 2 or 3 game you can see the big differences. Size is one of them, D1 players are strong and big. Next is speed. Although the players are bigger they can also handle it and are extremely fast. And just one more big difference is that the players in D1 are completley capable of doing anything the same in their left or right hand. It's a big deal to have two hands while playing and not to just use your other hand as a last resort. D2 and D3 players aren't completley without another hand but they dont use it as well as D1 players can.