BOTC - US Lacrosse Community Forum Forums MID-ATLANTIC LACROSSE MARYLAND FORUM MadLax Lacrosse

First of all, everyone knows you are not looking to play for Blackwolf. Second, they ask you to play, you don't "choose" to play for them.

If you are so interested, just email the guy and ask him your weird questions directly.

No 2020 team....not sure about other years

Weird Questions. You mean like what tournaments do you play in? How many teams do you have? Who plays on your teams? Normal questions answered on every club website but his.
And you made my point the marketing angle of only asking players to play for him not having tryouts is a really smart idea. People feel good and special and he pulls good players. But there is something elitist about not having tryouts.

Actually Biff, I was a three time All American in five sports at Harvard and Yale before I rowed for Oxford[/quote]

I'm sure you rode your unicorn to class there as well, right? moron... [/quote]

you should take the broom out of your [lacrosse] and relax, it's just a joke Idiot[/quote]

Good one! (don't quit your day job - those fries won't serve themselves) [/quote]
funny, i can't serve the fries until you get them cooked[/quote]

It would be nice if instead of this type of post, you posted something actually productive and lacrosse-related. Just a thought, since this is a lacrosse forum and all. [/quote]
Thank you Debbie Downer

They are an invitation only club. If they invited your son (and clearly they have no interest), then they would answer any question you ask.

Get a life. Why worry so much about what others are doing?

Ok let's look at what we all talk about and compare on this site. Second when someone talks bad about Madlax or VLC in favor of Blackwolf it would be nice to confirm these claims.

I love the hypocrisy of this message board! Someone asks a question about Blackwolf and everyone jumps up and down -- why worry, why do you care, your son isn't good enough, get a life, etc. etc.

Everyone. Look in the damn mirror. You're on a lacrosse forum talking about your kid's travel lacrosse team. If you don't care and need to get a life, what the [lacrosse] are you doing here? If you're so confident in every decision you've ever made for your son, why are you here? If he is God's gift to the creators game, surely you've got better things to do then browse 86 pages of lacrosse banter?

To answer the original question about Blackwolf, it is indeed an invitation only club. That being said, there is nothing precluding you, your son or preferably your son's coach to reach out to coach Trig to be evaluated/recommended. Trig and staff don't know every damn kid in the DMV with potential; so to say you have to sit and wait on pins and needles for an invite is ludicrous. If you want to play for Blackwolf, reach out. Or better yet attend a camp/clinic. You'll get a flavor for coach Trig's coaching style, and in turn they will get to evaluate your son. Note -- his style isn't for everyone, and he won't apologize for it.

On the youth front, I suspect the thin talent pool is something that is stopping them from fielding a U15 and U13 team. There are a lot of competing clubs; and one can assume that they want to keep the "elite" status of Blackwolf intact. Fielding a medicore U13 or U15 team doesn't make sense from a business or brand POV.

It is not a thin talent pool that's the problem for BW.

The big reason why BW hasn't taken off in the youth market is because Madlax and VLC have stopped BW from poaching their teams. BW was hot 1-2 years ago, but has cooled off recently.

Nova is definitely thinner talent wise in 2020 and younger, but I really don't think Trig ever intended to start a 2020 team this year. I'm guessing he really has his hands full right now. He's not a one man band, but he is not staffed like the others. He just now got a 2019 team going. I'd like to hear if any of the youth teams were able to field a team. One thing I know he won't do is put a marginal team out there. I think madlax and VLC are the safer plays, but as one poster said, Trig really brings kids in with the whole presentation and mystique of the program. He always seems to get it together and field great teams and gets kids to D1 programs consistently. Good on him. 3 solid clubs in Nova is good for everyone.

Thank you for this post this is what I look for on this site. Inside information so we all can understand the NOVA lax land scape and make informed decisions.

He is going to have trouble fielding youth teams because his model is poaching the best players from other clubs, not having a wide net and developing the best talent.

I agree with this 100% It works to contact and take the best 9th to 11th graders who are already on the colleges radars. to form 3 teams. But if you start this model any younger you will strike out more often.

He is also having problems poaching great players as he's done in the past. He uses his U15 camp as a tryout for interested kids and then puts a hard sell to switch to Blackwolf.

That worked great a few years ago, but Madlax and VLC have circled the wagons and he is having a lot less success poaching players. His current teams aren't nearly as good as his older teams and most of the top talent he gets now are Montgomery County kids and less from NoVA.

There definitely is a lot of high-end club competition between Blackwolf, VLC, and Madlax in NoVA. Not having the younger teams and not having tryouts definitely limits BW - despite the solid coaching, as a previous poster mentioned it is a style you will have to be able to handle and not everyone can. The ones who can get top-notch coaching and training. Speaking from experience, it would be a very difficult decision to switch clubs in High School if your son has experienced several years with a high-end club with excellent coaching, successful and knowledgeable recruiting support, etc. (such as you receive at VLC). It definitely happens, but it shrinks the pool quite a bit for a BW type methodology.

So I gather your son played VLC then switch to play for Blackwolf? If so why and would you do it again?

No, I was saying that it would be difficult to do so - he still plays for VLC and he has no intention of switching.

Ok my mistake, What fall tournaments are VLC playing in this fall. 2019,2018 and 2017? I see there name as going to the Quaker fall laxfest. But your website says two other tournaments.

Everyone's situation is different. It only makes sense to switch if there's a compelling reason to do so. If your kid isn't getting as much playing time at VLC or madlax or if they just don't perform up to their potential in that particular system, then I would say switching to BW would make sense, but if you have a good situation, then why switch. I would guess some switch from madlax due to the $ or the heavy schedule...also good reasons. In the end, you need to do what's best for your kid. Different kids will play better under different systems or coaching styles....getting your kid where he performs best is the goal here in my opinion. All 3 are great clubs and will get your kid seen...he just needs to be at the top of his game when people see him play.

I agree with this 100%. That is why I wish the 3rd option for NOVA was a little more transparent with what they do and how they work. I think BW would get more kids if the parents knew more about it. I have had several parents ask me what about BW and I say I know they have 3 good high school teams but that is all I can tell you. And these are future low D1 kids.

It is what it is....Trig loves the mystique and I'm sure it appeals to the kids in some way as well. From his cryptic website, to his selection process, to his black car with tinted windows, to the simple black colored uniforms.....it's all part of his packaging. It has worked well for him so far, but it remains to be seen if he can break into the youth market and keep producing quality HS teams. His summer clinics are pretty tough and his approach is definitely not for everyone, but some kids respond to it. If your kid is one of them, BW is worth a look. If not, I wouldn't switch from either madlax or VLC.

Not sure on all of the other grades, but 2018 is Quaker, Terps Classic, and Famous Autumn as of now.

Another organization like the Dukes and HHH and Sweetlax claiming how good their coaching is. I'm calling BS. "give me all the best kid and watch what I do. we have the best coaches, play for us", blah blah blah. Develop a kid into a great player than talk to me. Christ Dukes takes kids from all over the country. Same as sweet lax. Your not good your just stacked. .

We all know that coaching is very subjective when it comes to Travel ball. But there is a theory of which style best showcases the kids for the next level of play. If your team is running very complex pick plays with a set ball movement and the guys are taking easy open shots is this the best Offense to show how good of a player your kids are? Or would a one on one or two man game Offense show off your kids skills better? I agree the more complex Offenses win games but I think its harder to see which kids are best. It is like the Princeton Offense in basketball compared to the Run and shoot Offense. Which one is easier to see which kids are great?

Do programs like Dukes and Sweetlax ever practice except the afternoon before a tournament?

Is Blackwolf like them or does it practice 1-2x a week?

I tend to respect more the model where programs train kids from an early age. No, I don't think a trick zone defense and a bunch of set plays are what college coaches are looking for, but surely coaches prefer to see players play team man-to-man defense and players properly moving off-ball in a 2-3-1, 22 or 1-4-1 offense. Is a stud really going to be hidden within a simple team defense or offense? (That said, Danowski said in his clinic last week that Duke ends up recruiting individual stud defenders based on 1v1 play and has to teach them team defense. I don't think he said that in a good way - just that's how the system is right now. Again, though, I have a hard time believing coaches won't notice an ACC stud defender just because he's in a defense where folks know their 1st, 2nd and 3rd slides.)

I was more talking about the Offensive side of the ball. But when a team is playing a more 1v1 Off. it does showcase the other teams D pole better I would think. Like the Duke coach he can coach a scheme and its harder to teach skill and foot speed.

Is MadLax tapped into the Landon School/do a significant number of the Landon players come from the MadLax program?

I think Madlax pulls from all the private schools but look for more Landon kids now that the started the Madlax Maryland teams. The Landon coaches are part of that

Landon boys don't flock to any particular club.

There are just as many Landon kids who play for Blackwolf and VLC as there are who play for Madlax.

Landon's LS and MS program is very weak right now. They really rely on kids transferring in to the high school.

Most of the Landon MS kids are with the revamped Next Level program right now, about 8-12 per grade. Some with Bethesds, few with Madlax.

This is not correct

As a Landon MS parent whose kid just moved to Next Level, here are the actual numbers. NL has 2 8th grade teams with 8 Landon students, Madlax, as far as I know has none. NL's 7th grade team has 7 Landon players. 4 Landon 7th graders play for Bethesda's top team. NL's 6th grade teams have 13 Landon students. 3 6th graders play for Club Blue and one for Madlax. Earlier statement sounds pretty accurate.

Writing this reminds me how lame it is that I actually know this. Serious Lax dad problem. Whatever YOLO.

This is odd to read NL always has good to avg. teams wonder why so many Landon kids choose them not a Madlax or another club that could be great

Convenience and social reasons. Pack mentality.

There are very few impactful kids in the Landon middle school right now. Their MS teams last spring were terrible. Got crushed by Mater Dei across the board.

The Landon MS should get crushed by Mater Dei with their institutionalized reclassifying policy!

OMG...someone please change the record.....












Of course, the fact that it's true doesn't help

Mater Dei has more reclassed kids, but don't pretend that it doesn't happen at Landon. They have their share as well.

All rich people everywhere reclass their kids in 2015. Or they start them late depending on their Birthday. If you pay 25k for 1st grade another year of daycare at 8k is a bargain.

Kids repeating a grade before going to an IAC school for 9th grade is close to a given these days. The IAC has a league rule stating a kid can only play 4 years, so that pushes it younger. Unfair to single out any one...Bullis, Landon, Mater Dei, etc all have the same families going through for the same reasons. Paint it all with a mop.

The funniest thing is a lot of these kids wind up needing an additional PG year at a boarding school in order to cajole a college coach to take them. Business is very good for expensive prep schools these days.