The Takeaway Check, Issue #12
How a quote from Bluey provided perspective as a lacrosse writer and coach, and a deeper dive on my PLL mock draft
We watch Bluey with our daughter. Bluey is a six-year-old (in human years) Blue Heeler puppy, and the show is about how she navigates the world around her with her family and friends. While it’s aimed at young children because of Bluey and her sister Bingo’s imaginative play, there usually is a more subtle or layered theme or experience that parents relate to as well.
A new episode, “The Sign”, released a few weeks ago. The title refers to the “for sale” sign in front of Bluey’s house. Dad got a new job in another city, so the family is moving, although Bluey, naturally, isn’t happy about leaving her home and friends. She tells her class at school the news, and everyone is sad. Her teacher, Calypso, reads them a story to calm them down. In the story, a farmer’s horse runs away; while his neighbor’s comment on the bad luck that is, the farmer simply replies “We’ll see.” Then, the horse returns and does so with three other horses. The neighbors comment that this is good luck, and the farmer says, “We’ll see.” The story continues to alternate between fortune and misfortune, ending with another “We’ll see” from the farmer. While the other kids go out to play after the story, Bluey questions her teacher; she doesn’t understand if it’s a happy ending or a sad ending. Her teacher provides the quote that would be the through line for the remainder of the special, half-hour episode:
“Everything will work out the way it’s supposed to.”
In this moment, not only did Calypso climb the power rankings of greatest fictional teachers (she still has a long way to go before taking down the likes of Mr. Feeny and Professor Charles Xavier), she provided perspective on a couple life moments that intersect my place in lacrosse.
It was the final week of my spring semester of my sophomore year at Emerson College. I had been staying up late, cranking out multi-page essays as the final assessment of knowledge for my classes. I was ready to go home and be done. For the summer, I had gotten a job at a day camp in my town as a camp counselor. Before I could finish the semester though, I was sitting in my bed at the Double Tree (our school required freshmen and sophomores to live on campus but ran out of housing, so I was put up in a hotel for two years living my best version of The Suite Life of Zack and Cody) and received a Facebook message from Kyle Devitte, my former assistant coach at Emerson and The Godfather of lacrosse media. He was going to be working for a company called Lax United covering Major League Lacrosse and asked if I wanted an internship helping him with coverage.
This is what I went to Emerson for: to network and make connections to help build my resume and, ultimately, get me a job. This opportunity was exactly the kind of job I wanted, not only in sports but covering a sport I loved.
But it wasn’t a paying internship, which meant not only would I not have any money to do things over the summer, but that money I normally made over the summer was also what I stretched to buy the few class books I couldn’t get in the library, subway rides, and other incidentals for the first semester. I probably couldn’t really afford to even go to Emerson, but my parents made it work for me somehow. Also, where would I live for the summer?
If I thought about it longer, I’m sure I could have come up with solutions, but I also was just done. I was already in that mode where I told myself, “You just have to get through this week, and then you get to go home for three months.” So, I said thanks, but no thanks.
But what had I just done? All my professors talked about was how getting into and succeeding in journalism — especially a competitive field like sports journalism — was a grind that required paying your dues and making sacrifices. And here I was, saying no to all of it. How bad did I really want this career if this was what I was going to do when presented with my first opportunity?
I went home. The camp I was working at held an orientation for the counselors. There, I met Brooke. She was kind, outgoing, and pretty. The more we worked together, the more I liked her. Like liked liked her. To my pleasant surprise, she felt the same way. We started dating that summer. And then dated long distance during college. Then we moved in together. Then we got engaged and married. We got a dog and bought a house. Now, we also have two amazing children. It doesn’t get better than that.
I also, despite turning down that initial job, still found a way to work in sports journalism, writing about lacrosse, including for New England Lacrosse Journal. I got my first opportunity with the magazine through a connection with my head coach at Emerson, Michael Blanchard. You know who is one of my editors at New England Lacrosse Journal now? Kyle Devitte. It’s funny how that came full circle.
So yes, saying no to that internship did have a huge impact on my life — an incredibly positive impact I never could have imagined. Everything worked out the way it was supposed to be.
Last week, the high school team I coach had two big district games. In our district, there are seven teams; six make the district playoffs. There is a clear top three that not only is the best in our league but some of the best in the state: Freedom South-Riding, Battlefield, and Patriot. Gainesville is a third-year program that isn’t in that top tier yet, but they are certainly on their way. Then, there are three teams at the bottom: us, Unity Reed, and Osbourn (not to be confused with our school, Osbourn Park). We have small programs with student-athletes that are mostly trying lacrosse for the first time as opposed to other schools where they’ve been playing club lacrosse for multiple years. Two of us will make the playoffs. Last Monday, we took control and beat Unity Reed, 7-5. Thursday, we played Osbourn, and while we won the time of possession and shot categories, we couldn’t finish and lost 6-4.
As a coaching staff, we were proud of their effort, but that doesn’t mean it didn’t suck to lose. We play a number of tough games, especially in our district, so when you’re in a competitive game, you really want to come out on top to give the kids something to hang their hat on. Earning a trip to the playoffs, even if it results in a loss in the opening round to one of the top teams, is a reason to celebrate, and when you’re building a program, you want to celebrate as much as possible.
The playoffs, however, were no longer in our control. We now face a scenario where we beat Unity Reed, they beat Osbourn, and Osbourn beat us, forcing a three-way tie. I don’t know how the district breaks that tie. I don’t like not being able to tell my team what comes next. We ended this week with games Thursday and Friday; I really don’t like not knowing if we just had our last practice of the season or not.
The long ride home was somber, but for some reason, Calypso’s voice came to mind. “Everything will work out the way it’s supposed to.” Maybe we make the playoffs, and I can share with my team something they were able to accomplish during a tough season. Or, maybe we don’t make the playoffs, and that’s ok, too, because I can be at home, helping my wife with our two-year-old and six-week-old, instead of getting home late after they’re asleep on another game-night.
Either way, it will work out the way it’s supposed to, and that brought me some peace. All thanks to a reminder from a cartoon dog.
Mock Draft Thoughts
On Tuesday, USA Lacrosse Magazine published my 2024 PLL Mock Draft. While I explain my picks in the article, I thought this would be a good place to explain in a little more detail some of my thought process or guesses that took more consideration than others.
I said the Outlaws would draft Connor Shellenberger first over Brennan O’Neill. What was once a hot take but has become commonplace, the reason for this was not an evaluation of which is better because they are both elite prospects. Denver just really needed an X-attackman badly last year, and that need is even more pressing this year. It just makes sense. That being said, would I rule out the Outlaws picking O’Neill because he’s really good, deciding whether he or Logan Wisnauskus plays out of the box, and drafting an X-attackman later? Not at all. I wouldn’t pan the decision, either.
The Chaos have a decision to make at number four that is not clear cut. I’m confident they’re going with an offensive player, and my feeling is they would grab whomever they think is the best midfielder. I initially penciled in Shane Knobloch because of the two-point threat he could pose, but the Jake Stevens comparisons to Zach Currier — an elite do-it-all midfielder that can impact every facet of the game — were too many to ignore. The Waterdogs took Currier instead of Rob Pannell in the 2020 Entry Draft for a reason (and again, that’s not an indictment on Pannell). So, I think Chaos go Stevens over Knobloch, but I also really like the idea of Matt Brandau on the Chaos, too. Similarly in the second round, I like the idea of drafting TJ Malone to create a speedy duo with Brian Minicus, but it wouldn’t surprise me if they took Dyson Williams, who played out of the midfield for Team Canada in the 2023 World Championship. So the Chaos seem to be in a position to pick from an embarrassment of riches.
As mentioned in the article, Liam Entenmann is the real turning point in the draft. The Atlas have been linked to Entenmann since last season after they finished sixth out of eight in saves and last in save percentage. But with so many potentially elite field players available, do they need to spend a first round pick to get him? Look at who picks between the fifth and tenth selections. The Cannons (Colin Kirst, Adam Ghitelman), Waterdogs (Dillon Ward, Matt DeLuca), and Whipsnakes (Kyle Bernlohr, Brendan Krebs) not only have really good starting goalies but also backups they really like. Brett Dobson was the MVP of the 2023 PLL Championship for the Archers.
The only team that picks between the Atlas picks that could go goalie is the Outlaws because a team in last place could look for upgrades anywhere, and they have a lot of picks in this draft. I really like Sean Sconone though. I don’t think the Chrome win the 2023 Championship Series without him. I think they need to use those early picks to get top-tier attack and midfielders for an offense that really struggled.
The Chaos also are set at goalie, and the Redwoods need at least a backup, but they don’t have much draft capitol to move up in the draft at this point. With all that in mind, teams in the PLL don’t draft guys in the first round to sit them. So, the Atlas have to be safe, right?
They did trade Chris Gray to get an additional first round pick. If anybody is in a good position to take a goalie in the first round it’s the Atlas. There’s also something to be said about going and getting the guy you like. So yes, I said they’d go Brandau at number five, but there’s still a good chance they take Entenmann. And if they do, as some coaches noted, that could really send the draft into a tailspin, dropping some players to coaches who never thought they’d be in a position to take them. It also could put more of a priority on Syracuse goalie Will Mark and increase his draft stock.Most mock drafts have Kenny Brower at No. 8 to the Archers. With the retirement of Matt McMahon, taking another really good close defenseman to play in his place makes sense. Jake Piseno is a really unique prospect though, and even though he’s listed at LSM, and we’ve seen his highlights playing in transition and on offense, he’s played down low this year for Albany in an effort to make sure he’s always on the field. There’s an excitement and buzz around him, and this article from USA Lacrosse Magazine by Matt Hamilton does a great job highlighting how special people think he is (also, how great of a nickname is “Burrito”?). But now that the Archers traded Jared Conners to the Redwoods for a second round pick, Utah has another defensive position to fill, making Piseno seem like even more of a reality.
I worry I have Payton Cormier too low. I have him at No. 20 to the Chaos, but he might go No. 19 to the Outlaws, who are desperate for goals. The Redwoods could use a lefty midfielder; would they take him at No. 18 and try to run him out of the box? Alternatively, why wouldn’t the Archers — who now have two second round picks — or the Philadelphia Waterdogs, neither of which really has a hole on their roster, take a goal-scoring machine that can play off the ball at the end of the second round?
Some players I didn’t have in my mock draft but very well could or should be drafted: Ross Scott (attack, Rutgers), Chris Conlin (defense, Notre Dame), Chase Yager (SSDM, Virginia), Reese Burek (attack, Army), Jackson Bonitz (defense, Navy).
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