Top 10 Middies of 2008

[hvlacrosse311]

10. Shamel Bratton
9. Dan Hardy
8. Dan Groot
7. Andrew Brancaccio
6. Mark Kovler
5. Jordan Levine
4. John Glynn
3. Stephen Peyser
2. Max Siebald
1. Paul Rabil

This is rediculous, how is a Bratton already ranked? Im so sick and tired of hearing about how good these kids are when they havent even done anything yet. Dan Hardy doesnt even play midfield anymore, IL isnt even on top of the lacrosse world? How did Brad Ross and Ned Crotty get left out of this? They had a bettter year then Groot, Hardy, Brancaccio, and Kovler. I think IL seriously screwed up, Crotty had a hat trick in the championship game, what else does he have to do? Good job screwing up that list IL

[westlakelax17]

10. Shamel Bratton
9. Dan Hardy
8. Dan Groot
7. Andrew Brancaccio
6. Mark Kovler
5. Jordan Levine
4. John Glynn
3. Stephen Peyser
2. Max Siebald
1. Paul Rabil

This is rediculous, how is a Bratton already ranked? Im so sick and tired of hearing about how good these kids are when they havent even done anything yet. Dan Hardy doesnt even play midfield anymore, IL isnt even on top of the lacrosse world? How did Brad Ross and Ned Crotty get left out of this? They had a bettter year then Groot, Hardy, Brancaccio, and Kovler. I think IL seriously screwed up, Crotty had a hat trick in the championship game, what else does he have to do? Good job screwing up that list IL



first off, chill out man its just a summer ranking. The only person I think they could have taken off was Shamel Bratton because he hasn't played any college ball yet. But besides that I think the list is good.

[LvIlLeLaX5]

dan hardy is a midfielder lol when perritt withdrew from school he got moved back up to the midfield if you followed any college lax you would of heard or seen that

[hvlacrosse311]

dan hardy is a midfielder lol when perritt withdrew from school he got moved back up to the midfield if you followed any college lax you would of heard or seen that

i doubt Hardy is going to play midfield next year though, that was a temporary replacement. Syracuse has some really good middies coming in, and Hardy is better at attack than midfield.

[Mista Hollywood]

hmm how can it be the top 10 middies if michael kimmel isnt in there

[hvlacrosse311]

first off, chill out man its just a summer ranking. The only person I think they could have taken off was Shamel Bratton because he hasn't played any college ball yet. But besides that I think the list is good.

sorry i wasnt trying to rant, i just cant believe that they screwed up that list that bad.

This would be my list
10- Michael Kimmel
9- Kevin Buchanan
8- Dan Groot
7- Andrew Brancaccio
6- Stephen Peyser
5- John Glynn
4- Brad Ross
3- Ned Crotty
2- Max Siebald
1- Paul Rabil

[LvIlLeLaX5]

i doubt Hardy is going to play midfield next year though, that was a temporary replacement. Syracuse has some really good middies coming in, and Hardy is better at attack than midfield.

did u see the umass game this year when hardy had the hat trick and quint made the comment that desko thinks hardy belongs up at the midfield and who is he gonna bump out of at attack leveille big n and nims are all staying hardy draws the pole or the shorty and that frees up brooks and when perrit returns he will be most likely drawing the pole

[hvlacrosse311]

did u see the umass game this year when hardy had the hat trick and quint made the comment that desko thinks hardy belongs up at the midfield and who is he gonna bump out of at attack leveille big n and nims are all staying hardy draws the pole or the shorty and that frees up brooks and when perrit returns he will be most likely drawing the pole

no i didnt see that, i think hed be better at attack, he causes more match up problems i think. Is perrit returning? i thought he left for good because of his medical condition

[MiddieMan05]

Bump off the Bratton and put Kimmel in there. Shamel is unproven at the college level, for all we know he might not be able to handle the pressure and collapse. It's ridiculous they're putting a rising freshman on that list.

I'd agree with that. I'd also put Ned Crotty in there. He had a great season and then really stepped up in the tournament, getting at least 2 points each game.

[nhlax02]

Hardy can't do anything at attack besides backdown people and when that doesn't work he's screwed. He is better off at middie.

[LvIlLeLaX5]

the syracuse offense flows so much better when hardy is in the midfield with brooks being able to dodge on a shortie and yes there are rumors out there and ive had people tell me who know pat that he will be returning for his junior season

[merrychristmas]

Bratton is a foolish add. But once you hype them like IL did its hard to leave him off. He is a great athlete but isn't there as a middie yet. He was not the best middie at the U-19s

[laxer6]

my list would go as
10.Kevin Buchanan
9. Dan Groot
8. Peter Lamade
7. Scott Kahoe
6. Mike Kimmel
5. Ned Crotty
4. Steve Peyser
3. Brad Ross
2. Max Siebald
1. Paul Rabil
Other guys I think are going to have big years: Will Barrow,Jeremy Sieverts, Mark Kovler,Zach Goldberg,Steve Giannone, Steve Brooks,Josh Lesko,Scott Kocis, Basil Daratsos,Ben Hunt and Tim Brandow

[laxmiddie11]

I can't believe they put Shamel Bratton on the list. That's a joke, the list should be for college players not rising freshman. He hasn't even proven himself at the college level. For all we know he could be some huge hyped up player and not be an impact player at all for Virginia. I'm sick of hearing how good they are, they need to prove themselves at the college level first before they even deserve to be on that list.

[fsflaxer30]

Why does everyone hate on the Brattons? They're so damn good, I don't see how anyone could hate? Brancaccio deserves to be on the list, but Kimmel, Crotty, and Ross got snubbed I agree.

[hvlacrosse311]

Why does everyone hate on the Brattons? They're so damn good, I don't see how anyone could hate? Brancaccio deserves to be on the list, but Kimmel, Crotty, and Ross got snubbed I agree.

No one will rag on the Brattons once they actually do something in college, unless they flop that is. Its just that people are already saying theyre gonna change the game and how amazing they'll do when they havent played in college yet. And Brancaccio can shoot and thats about it, he had 1 assist last year and 20 goals, everybody on this list his similar goal numbers but with many more assists as well, as of right now Brancaccio is very one dimensional. And i agree that Crotty, Ross and Kimmel got snubbed, i honestly have no idea how they left them out.

[goalie1215]

No one will rag on the Brattons once they actually do something in college, unless they flop that is. Its just that people are already saying theyre gonna change the game and how amazing they'll do when they havent played in college yet. And Brancaccio can shoot and thats about it, he had 1 assist last year and 20 goals, everybody on this list his similar goal numbers but with many more assists as well, as of right now Brancaccio is very one dimensional. And i agree that Crotty, Ross and Kimmel got snubbed, i honestly have no idea how they left them out.

il had to put brancaccio on their top 10 middie list because they praised him as the best recruit overall last year and he wasnt even the best middie in this class.

[lsilaxer131]

everyone but IL is leaving Jordan Levine off of their lists...he was the best middy on albany last year and is going to dominate the AE this upcoming season...hes definately one of the best in the country

[fsflaxer30]

No one will rag on the Brattons once they actually do something in college, unless they flop that is. Its just that people are already saying theyre gonna change the game and how amazing they'll do when they havent played in college yet. And Brancaccio can shoot and thats about it, he had 1 assist last year and 20 goals, everybody on this list his similar goal numbers but with many more assists as well, as of right now Brancaccio is very one dimensional. And i agree that Crotty, Ross and Kimmel got snubbed, i honestly have no idea how they left them out.

Good point Branco doesn't pass much, but I think he adjusted to the college game pretty well... I think the reason they might've left off Ross, Crotty and Kimmel is because with Hopkins and Duke, whenever you played them you had to pick your poison because all 6 of their offensives players (and in Duke's case their longpoles) were dangerous... Maybe that has something to do with it; they had a lot of support especially Kimmel

[Casa42]

Personally, I think Seibald is a better overall midfielder than Rabil. I know that Rabil was as clutch as they come this season, but Seibald is that old-fashioned type do-it-all guy. Did you guys watch the quarters against Albany? He hadn't practiced all week because of a bad ankle, and ended up singlehandedly winning the game for them by stepping in and winning some fo's and then at teh end of the game made an incredible hustle play that eventually ended up with the game-winning goal. I'm not trying to take anything away from Rabil, but he seems like purely and offensive force.

[merrychristmas]

That would be incorrect. He plays good defense and gets his line mates and the attack more involved in the offense. Do you think Seibald is the only player to produce when having an injury. There are few head coaches in lacrosse who would swap Rabil for anyone else. Maybe none.

[Laxking31]

Why does everyone hate on the Brattons? They're so damn good, I don't see how anyone could hate? Brancaccio deserves to be on the list, but Kimmel, Crotty, and Ross got snubbed I agree.

Have you seen them play?! They yell and complain to the refs, they showboat, the take every oppertunity they can to make players on th opposing team look like a**ses, in football they dont tuck in there jersey. But the worst thing they do is they dont even look at the frieken flag when they play the national anthem. They turn around!!!! Its unbelievable. Thats why a lot of people hate on the Brattons. I think they actually lost the John Jay game for their team. They had the game in the bag and they were up by one. But rhamel had to score again. He missed and John Jay scored to put it into overtime where JJ eventually won. I didnt even metion how cocky the are....

[laxer6]

Paul Rabil is the Matt Danowski of midfield.There hasn't been a midfielder like him in a very long time. His size ability to score and feed all of it.This kid is top notch. Siebald is more of an intagibles guy both are no doubt one and two though. Also is that true about the Brattons?

[hvlacrosse311]

What? How is he the Matt Danowski of midfield because of his size? Matt Danowski's a sizeable dude (6'1" ain't bad) but it's nothing special, and certainly not what he's known for.


I think hes trying to say that Rabil is like Danowski in the sense that there hasnt been a player as good at their position in a while? I dont think Rabil is the best midfielder in the NCAA, i think Siebalds better but Rabil is sick.

And if thats true about the Brattons then i have lost any respect for them. Thats very disrespectable

[fsflaxer30]

Paul Rabil is like a bunch of those good middies (I see a little kyle in him) put into one powerful guy. Championship game he sparked the transition game extremely well.

[sicklaxer13]

first of all not only is Paul Rabil head and shoulders the best middie in the country but he is also the best middie of this generation. Credit to everyone else in the past couple years, but Paul Rabil is 6'3 215, with unreal speed and a sick first step and split dodge and he can shoot on the run with either hand and makes great passes once the slide comes. on top of that he is an unbelievable playmaker who twice in the duke game stole the ball from the opposition, ran down the field and set up two goals.

Secondly, the selection of Shamel bratton as one of the top middies for '08 is a great pick. What people fail to realize about lacrosse is that unlike sports like football and basketball where the transistion to college is so severe, the best high school lacrosse players are usually pretty prepared when they go to college. If you look at the top players in the Class of '04 when they were coming in Paul Rabil was the top middie, Ben Rubeor was the top attackman and Dan Cocoziello was the top d-man. Funny that those are the three best players at their respective positions their senior year. The elite high school players are almost always elite college players. Shamel and Rhamel are considered the most athletic recruits in lacrosse in a long time. Why should we not think that they will also dominate in their first year. Mikey Powell was the attackmen of the year in his freshman year.

[sicklaxer13]

both those statements are incorrect. Not only are Rabil's numbers better but he is the more athletic, complete and dangerous player. You wanna talk about defense and being a complete player, what about in the national championship game where Rabil stole the ball from a duke player in the duke offensive end and ran it down the field by himself and fed it to Jake byrne for an easy goal. Or the countless times that Rabil would make a play in transistion by making a stick check or just intercepting the ball and completely turn the play around.

And there is no way that Zack Greer is better than Ben Rubeor. Zack Greer is a great finisher but lets not forget that his stats have been incredibly inflated because he plays with the best attackmen (besides maybe Mike Powell) of this generation. his stats dont mean as much because he scores 6+ goals against weak defenses like Providence, Dartmouth and North Carolina and then gets shut down in the national championship game. (and duke played 20 games and Virginia only played 16)

[sicklaxer13]

i would take it one step further and say that the gap between Stephen Peyser and Seibald is smaller than that between Rabil and Seibald. Hopkins plays a defensive style and the burden of the scoring and playmaking is on the midfield, where as the attack are generally finishers (e.g. Jake Byrne and Kevin Huntley). Cornell had some great playmaking attackmen this year (Pittard and Mitchell) who were able to open up the scoring for players like Seibald. On top of that Peyser is an incredible face-off man who beat out Alex Smith in the Delaware game. Alex Smith is the best face off man in a lot of years and Peyser's ability to not just neutralize him but outdo him was impressive. on top of that I would say that peyser has become a great dodger and shooter and is probably more athletic than Seibald (maybe not as skilled) and he gets fewer opportunities to dodge because he has Rabil as a linemate

[laxer6]

Look at Rabil's numbers over the past 3 years. How many middies playing that type of schedule can have over 20 goals and 20 assists.Plus Rabil has 2 national championships.This is a guy who threw this team on his back and led them to a national title. Remember where this team was in May? Siebald is hands down the more athletic guy But in todays game where we have defensive midfield specialists Paul Rabil takes the cake as one of the top 5 middies of this decade. Also with Rubeor vs. Greer what everyone is leaving out is look at the rosters. Rubeor was the number one threat on a team that earned a second seed Greer has yet to be the number one threat in his time at Duke.

[faceofflax15]

Where the hell did you get this list? I don't see it at IL.com

[duck]

Where the hell did you get this list? I don't see it at IL.com

It was on there I swear, but I can't find it either. I searched, and checked the gallery home where the other top 10 lists are. But seriously, it was there...but that's really weird.

[MiddieMan05]

Look at Rabil's numbers over the past 3 years. How many middies playing that type of schedule can have over 20 goals and 20 assists.Plus Rabil has 2 national championships.This is a guy who threw this team on his back and led them to a national title. Remember where this team was in May? Siebald is hands down the more athletic guy But in todays game where we have defensive midfield specialists Paul Rabil takes the cake as one of the top 5 middies of this decade. Also with Rubeor vs. Greer what everyone is leaving out is look at the rosters. Rubeor was the number one threat on a team that earned a second seed Greer has yet to be the number one threat in his time at Duke.

In your argument of Rubeor vs. Greer, you also have to look at who they play with. If you look at it, Rubeor is only the number one threat because guys who were previously the number one guy left. Matt Ward, John Christmas, Kyle Dixon, all left which made way for Rubeor to emerge as the leader. But, when they were there, he never pushed himself ahead of the pack. Now you apply that to Greer and you'll see that he's playing with the best attackman of the decade in Matt Danowski. But, when Danowski leaves, no doubt Greer will step up and be the number one guy, but as of now he's only second fiddle to Danowski. But I still think Rubeor is the better attackman. Greer is great and all, but he's a pure finisher with mostly his left hand, and many of his points come from Danowski's presence. And if you think Danowski has nothing to do with it, then your just fooling yourself. But on topic, I think Rabil has to be the better middie than Seibald. No doubt Seibald is a tremendous player, but you can't argue with results, and two rings is enough results for me.

[sicklaxer13]

i cant understand anyone saying that Max Seibald is more athletic than Paul Rabil. Paul Rabil is the most unstoppable one on one player in college lacrosse. There is no team that can stop Paul Rabil, his statistics are incredible and when he wants to beat his guy he can. Max Seibald played on the team that had the highest goals per game average in college lacrosse and he scored 17 goals. Paul Rabil played on a slow it down hopkins team with no all american attackmen around him and yet he managed to lead his team in scoring. Max Seibald has two second two all american attackmen to feed to and yet he is the fourth highest scorer on his team. I think the fact that they are even being compared to each other is absurd. Rabil is the superior player hands down

[BLUEJAYSFAN9]

to tell u the truth i think rabil is better than K. Harrison

Stats

kyle(graduated): 126 points

Paul(in 3 years):129 points

Rabil already passed harrison in 3 years

[faceofflax15]

K18 is more athletic though, and had better dodges.. Yeah I said it better dodges.

If I had the choice between Seibald and Rabil for my team, I'd take Rabil, just because his shot is the better of the 2...

Thats the way I view it.

[BLUEJAYSFAN9]

id take rabil over k18

[littleItaly]

all I care about is how overated Hardy is, he never hits, he sucks on groundballs, he whines to officialls, dont get me wrong hes talented but he dosent deserve the 22 on his back, and he hasnt lived up to the hype sorounding him, the bratton brothers are just like any other freshman, we can speculate all we want but we have no idea what they will do until we see it.

[littleItaly]

i cant understand anyone saying that Max Seibald is more athletic than Paul Rabil. Paul Rabil is the most unstoppable one on one player in college lacrosse. There is no team that can stop Paul Rabil, his statistics are incredible and when he wants to beat his guy he can. Max Seibald played on the team that had the highest goals per game average in college lacrosse and he scored 17 goals. Paul Rabil played on a slow it down hopkins team with no all american attackmen around him and yet he managed to lead his team in scoring. Max Seibald has two second two all american attackmen to feed to and yet he is the fourth highest scorer on his team. I think the fact that they are even being compared to each other is absurd. Rabil is the superior player hands down

I completely agree with this, seibald is a great player, but he certainly hasnt caught Rabil yet.

[littleItaly]

Look at Rabil's numbers over the past 3 years. How many middies playing that type of schedule can have over 20 goals and 20 assists.Plus Rabil has 2 national championships.This is a guy who threw this team on his back and led them to a national title. Remember where this team was in May? Siebald is hands down the more athletic guy But in todays game where we have defensive midfield specialists Paul Rabil takes the cake as one of the top 5 middies of this decade. Also with Rubeor vs. Greer what everyone is leaving out is look at the rosters. Rubeor was the number one threat on a team that earned a second seed Greer has yet to be the number one threat in his time at Duke.

Greer and rubeor are completley different players, dont even bother trying to compare them, greer scores goals by waiting for his man to slide, then he cuts and finishes inside, he is also good on rebounds in front probably from his experience as a hockey player. rubeor, is a dodger who scores bc his start time and acceleration is rediculous, he runs right by his defender who strugggles to keep up while he throws trail checks, just whatch greer highlights and the difference is clear, rubeor dodges to score, greer hardly ever dodges, scoring off rebounds and slam dunks

[sicklaxer13]

your right, Paul Rabil doesnt have leadership. He took a team put it on his shoulders and lead them to a win against Duke by getting 6 points in the national championship game against a defense that was focused on him. Thats not leadership at all

[laxer6]

Seibald's intangibles are second to none and that's what makes him a great player.Rabil is the biggest thing to happen to the midfield aspect of this game in a long time. He's a better player than K18 but Harrison gets alot more hype. And when saying we can't compare Greer and Rubeor you're right the styles of play are totally different but they have been the top 2 attackmen in the class of '08 so there are def. going to be compared.

[MiddieMan05]

Greer and rubeor are completley different players, dont even bother trying to compare them, greer scores goals by waiting for his man to slide, then he cuts and finishes inside, he is also good on rebounds in front probably from his experience as a hockey player. rubeor, is a dodger who scores bc his start time and acceleration is rediculous, he runs right by his defender who strugggles to keep up while he throws trail checks, just whatch greer highlights and the difference is clear, rubeor dodges to score, greer hardly ever dodges, scoring off rebounds and slam dunks

And becuase of that you could say Rubeor is better. If Greer's whole game is based on having stronger players around him, what happens when he's forced to be the go-to-guy? If Greer is doubled and tripled every game the second he touches the ball, or just completely shut off in general, how will he get those finishing opportunities he thrives off of? But, if you give Rubeor the ball as the number one threat, he can use his speed and agility to not only beat his own man, but also draw the slide and dump it off for a guy like...OH, I know, Zack Greer.

[sicklaxer13]

Heres my wild theory for next year, one of the brattons, dont know which one will score 40 points next year and be the best offensive midfielder for UVA as a freshman

[merrychristmas]

The Seibald groupies have gotten out of hand. And I am so tired of hearing about one goal at the end of the game. Rabil had quite a few game winning goals last year with the game on the line. As to more athletic. Give it a rest. I don't see a lot to choose between them. Rabil was the consensus best player in his class coming out of HS as viewed by the coaches. And the coaches would still take Rabil over any other middie in the country if they had to choose one.

Seibald is a first teamer. The groupies should be satisifed with that right now and if not O well. That's why everyone has an opinion.

[littleItaly]

And becuase of that you could say Rubeor is better. If Greer's whole game is based on having stronger players around him, what happens when he's forced to be the go-to-guy? If Greer is doubled and tripled every game the second he touches the ball, or just completely shut off in general, how will he get those finishing opportunities he thrives off of? But, if you give Rubeor the ball as the number one threat, he can use his speed and agility to not only beat his own man, but also draw the slide and dump it off for a guy like...OH, I know, Zack Greer.

your absolutely right, I would say Rubeor is better, but my point was just that you cant compare thier roles, bc I dont think greer could ever be a number one guy, he needs someone to feed him in order to be successful, I watch alot of duke games since he was a freshman and ive seen him dodge like twice, with rubeor having the more complete game its much easier for him to be the go-to guy.

[hoyalax]

il had to put brancaccio on their top 10 middie list because they praised him as the best recruit overall last year and he wasnt even the best middie in this class.

Actually he was the best middie in the class, only frosh middie to be named All American.

[DJ Death]

yeah seriously, michael kimmel was tearin' it up long before brancaccio finally learned how throw a feed.

[Mista Hollywood]

well if you look at the fact that paul rabil was a 3rd team all american as a freshman and seibald was a second as a freshman as well, It seems that Seibald is a better player. But can seibald put up 1 goal and 5 assists against duke in the final game even when they are expecting you? Rabil is so good that when they try and stop him scoring goals, he ends up putting up 5 assists. I would like to see Seibald be clutch again this year, now that he is of the age that paul rabil was in 07

[sicklaxer13]

He got hit because his head was down

[hoyalax]

Psh, Kimmel was way better.

Well I guess the USILA didnt think so. In case you didnt realize its a little easier to produce along Rabil and Peyser as opposed to being the top middie on your team.

[DJ Death]

brancaccio was the most one-dimensional player i have ever seen this past season. all he would do is crank shots from the restraining line. the guy had 20 goals and 1 assist -- that's the very definition of one-dimensional. kimmel created offense all sorts of ways. he would dodge, feed (eh not so much, still more than brancaccio though), shoot, whatever. not so with brancaccio.

[hoyalax]

Ask the likes of coaches Tierney, Cottle, Shillinglaw and Toomey if brancaccio is one dimensional and tell me what their response is.

[DJ Death]

i don't have to. his stats speak for themselves. he obviously is still a scoring threat, but not as big of a scoring threat as say, michael kimmel, because brancaccio basically telegraph's what he's going to do. catch the ball in space, wind up, crank. repeat. catch the ball and there's pressure, he just moves the ball. he never really makes himself a threat off-ball as well...whenever he scores, it's when the rest of the offense creates the opportunity for him.

[laxer6]

As an opposing coach facing Mike Kimmel is ten times different than Brancaccio. Kimmel can actually create offense.Brancaccio reminds me of Matt Poskay a good player but pretty predictable.

[hoyalax]

Strange because I saw both of gtown's playoff games. Bronco had 3 goals in those 2 games and not one of them was catching a ball in time and space and cranking...in fact i was standing on the field for the hop game where on gtowns first possession he split left and scored one lefty on the run from about 12 yards..so yea he doesnt feed but to say its just cranking from the restraining line is just plain not true

[DJ Death]

i wasn't there, but i'll take your word for it. hmm, frankenstein can actually dodge, huh? good for him. maybe he'll do it more next season and not give himself this one-dimensional image.

[atm 1892]

in football they dont tuck in there jersey.


Wow that's pretty terrible. Your a joke. Please stop.

[hoyalax]

i wasn't there, but i'll take your word for it. hmm, frankenstein can actually dodge, huh? good for him. maybe he'll do it more next season and not give himself this one-dimensional image.

Yeah maybe hell do more, last year he was the first frosh AA ever at gtown, not bad for a one dimensional player, so well see whats next...

[Mista Hollywood]

It Doesnt seem that Branccacio is the "Oh so Great shooter he seems like"

Branccacio

89 shots
20 goals
.225 shooting percentage
45 shots on cage
.506 on cage shooting percentage


Kimmel

62 Shots
23 Goals
.371 Shooting Percentage
36 Shots On Cage
.581 on Cage shooting Percentage

[hoyalax]

Believe me youll come across much easier shots when you have the best middie in the country and another all american on your middie line, the pole that rabil had to deal with are the ones that Bronco had to deal with as well

[Mista Hollywood]

well if he was such a great dodger shouldnt he be able to beat the defenders?

[laxer6]

Your a Hoya fan so your bias the fact is Branccacio was the most overatted player on the top ten list this year. Peter Lamade amd Ned Crotty had better stats than him and were left off the AA list. And as to your arguement that Branccacio

[laxer6]

Was the best player on his team you have to put into the fact that Kimmel was playing out of position and had to beat out Brian Christopher,Austin Walker,Mark Bryan and Mike Powers all of these guys are natural middies.

[DJ Death]

not to mention drew dabrowski as well, and he was a captain...

[hoyalax]

Duke played 5 more games than gtown did, look we can argue this forever, both Brancaccio and Kimmel are very talented, you may think Kimmel is better. The USILA, Insidelacrosse, and myself think bronco is. Either way its close. Let me pose another question to you who was more valuable to the hopkins team Kimmel or Boyle?

[hvlacrosse311]

I have no idea how Brad Ross and Ned Crotty were left off both this list and the AA's list.

[laxer6]

Brad Ross was was an H.M. A.A. And the USILA would'nt put Kimmel on the AA list because for some reason they will never put a whole unit on the list. Remember Dan Flannery in '05 had over 70 points but couldn't even get an honorable mention. I think the same with IL's top ten list instead of putting Hop's whole first unit they put a guy who doesn't even own his own jersey yet.

[LAgoalie]

i cant understand anyone saying that Max Seibald is more athletic than Paul Rabil. Paul Rabil is the most unstoppable one on one player in college lacrosse. There is no team that can stop Paul Rabil, his statistics are incredible and when he wants to beat his guy he can. Max Seibald played on the team that had the highest goals per game average in college lacrosse and he scored 17 goals. Paul Rabil played on a slow it down hopkins team with no all american attackmen around him and yet he managed to lead his team in scoring. Max Seibald has two second two all american attackmen to feed to and yet he is the fourth highest scorer on his team. I think the fact that they are even being compared to each other is absurd. Rabil is the superior player hands down
Really? There are no AA attackmen on Hopkins? Who are Jake Byrne and Stephen Boyle eh? And Seibald isnt a great midfielder because of his points total, he breaks down the defense from the top, he may not always get the credit, but thats what he does, and he is also a better two way midfielder, he plays better defense. And dont just throw Paul Rabil's groundball stat at me and say that it makes him a good defensive player, because against teams like Duke that have an all time D middie, and an all time O middie that sub on the fly during transitions, Rabil doesnt even play during defensive posessions. So there you have it, Rabil has 53 points in '07, and plenty of groundballs, but Seibald has all the intangibles.

[LAgoalie]

Its hard to come up with a top ten list, so i will just throw out a bunch of names. Rabil, Seibald, Ross, Glyn, Crotty, Kovler, Groot, O'Harra (if he doesnt switch to close D) and now that were talking about D middies, i have to mention Michael Ward as well, and Mike Timms. And btw, i just read that Max Siebald has scored in every game since April 19th, so theres one reason people say he is good, consiestancy.

[splaxer13]

rabil has got to be the most clutch player i have ever seen, he is not selfish at all(3 assists in the championship), can dodge where ever he wants(through the middle, behind, or down the alley) and has a record for 2 overtime game winners in one season. I wouldnt be suprised to see him have an incredible season and win the tewaaraton. Go HOP!

[splaxer13]

my list would go as
10.Kevin Buchanan
9. Dan Groot
8. Peter Lamade
7. Scott Kahoe
6. Mike Kimmel
5. Ned Crotty
4. Steve Peyser
3. Brad Ross
2. Max Siebald
1. Paul Rabil
Other guys I think are going to have big years: Will Barrow,Jeremy Sieverts, Mark Kovler,Zach Goldberg,Steve Giannone, Steve Brooks,Josh Lesko,Scott Kocis, Basil Daratsos,Ben Hunt and Tim Brandow

that is a very accurate list, i agree with that 100%.

[furchy12]

Mike Leveille should deffinetly be up there in the top ten

[ekajsk8er]

Mike Leveille should deffinetly be up there in the top ten

Mike Leveille plays attack, not midfield.

Abbott on the other hand, is a clearing machine. Maybe not top 10 worthy, but definitely top 15.

[Laxer123321]

1) Rabil
2) Seibald
3) Peyser
4) Kovler
5) Glynn
6) Hardy
7) Levine
8) Brooks
9) Brancaccio
10) Lamade
What do you guys think? I know I put Kovler a little high, but I think he is going to have a big year with Sowanick and Trombino gone.

[hvlacrosse311]

1) Rabil
2) Seibald
3) Peyser
4) Kovler
5) Glynn
6) Hardy
7) Levine
8) Brooks
9) Brancaccio
10) Lamade
What do you guys think? I know I put Kovler a little high, but I think he is going to have a big year with Sowanick and Trombino gone.

You left out Ned Crotty and Brad Ross, two of the best middies in the country in my opinion.

[BLUEJAYSFAN9]

1) Rabil
2) Seibald
3) Peyser
4) Kovler
5) Glynn
6) Hardy
7) Levine
8) Brooks
9) Brancaccio
10) Lamade
What do you guys think? I know I put Kovler a little high, but I think he is going to have a big year with Sowanick and Trombino gone.

No kimmel? Jeez, even though the guy plays with the best middie in the country, he still is really good. But pretty acurate list anyways, nice job

[laxplaya9]

hardy isnt playing midfield this year hes playing attack perritt is goin back cuse in the spring

[LvIlLeLaX5]

hardy isnt playing midfield read some syracuse.com lacrosse reports dan hardy and kenny nims have been running most of the fall with the midfielders and hardy will be running with the midfield this year how much would u like to bet hardy isnt playing midfield this year hes playing attack perritt is goin back cuse in the spring

[LAgoalie]

glyn doesnt get enough credit. that kid is an amazing dodger. peyser isnt that good either, he jumps early on faceoffs but never gets called on it. and everyone keeps forgetting about nick o' hara.

[Midi Lax]

Rabil #1!!!... Harrisons still a beast though

[laxn]

Rabil is definitely the best, and than theres Seibald at a close second, followed by Peyser. Than Lamade, I really don't get this disrespect he is getting. Lamade is very talented and will be playing for UVA along side the Brattons. Thats the upper echelon, after that theres Levine, Kovler, Groot, Brancaccio, Glynn and Ross. All very talented middies but not at the level of those top four. That's my ten.

1. Rabil
2. Seibald
3. Peyser
4. Lamade
5. Levine
6. Kovler
7. Ross
8. Groot
9. Glynn
10. Brancaccio

[hvlacrosse311]

Why isnt anybody giving respect to Crotty or Ross. Crotty just completely caught on fire in the tournament and Brad Ross has an amazing shot. Those two will definitely catch some serious attention this year and thats why Duke will be unbeatable. They have the attackman, middies, an amazing defense and one of the best goalies in the country.

[Stach]

Personally, I would have Seibald #1 on my list.
If Cornell didn't have him they would not be as successful as they were last season.

[merrychristmas]

That is so silly it is not worth a substantive reply.