Still on vacation, but I thought I’d round up some of the articles reacting to Michigan’s move to Division-1.
AnnArbor.com’s Mike Rothstein talked to several D-1 coaches about the Wolverines. Air Force’s Eric Semeret said it will help with the growth of the game:
“Now, it’s Michigan,” Seremet said. “It’s always a positive thing for the sport. I’ll be honest with you, for a university like that to add it, now kids don’t always have to think about going to the East Coast to play lacrosse.”
Dave Pietremala of John Hopkins talked about playing Michigan’s club team back in 2007:
“We benefited from being out there. It helps us in recruiting, but we did go out there with the purpose that we hoped it would help him, the Michigan people and administrators see the value of the sport. But I don’t look at it as a favor. I look at it as a responsibility of a program like Johns Hopkins.”
Petro is a big “grow the game” guy, and it seems like some of his efforts have paid off. Rothstein also talks to Kevin Corrigan of Notre Dame and Ohio State’s Nick Myers in the article.
Bloomberg takes a look at what it means for one of the big names in college athletics to add the sport:
“I think that’s the biggest news in our sport since we went to a Final Four 20 years ago,” said Virginia coach Dom Starsia, who set the Division I career record for wins at 327 last weekend. “If Michigan provides a little spark, 10 years from now you could see the Big 10, Pac-10. We could see a dramatic change in the game.”
The rest of the article is mostly boilerplate, with talk about the growth of the game more than Michigan specifically, but it’s still a god read.
Mark Snyder of the Detroit Free Press talks about how soon Michigan can be competitive. Mostly a repackaging of quotes from the original press conference. Collegelax has a photo gallery from said press conference.
I definitely don’t talk enough about the women’s game ’round these parts, but Mike Rothstein talked to a few college coaches about what it will take to build Michigan’s program from scratch:
“What’s unique and great about Michigan’s situation was similar to Florida. It has a strong academic and athletic reputation and tradition,” said Amanda O’Leary, the Florida head coach who left Yale to take over a new Gators team in 2007. “It’s not like it’s a no-name school. It’s so well known academically and athletically. You’re not going to have to go out and tell people who you are. You’re from the University of Michigan and there’s a lot of tradition, a lot of success that comes before you.”
Kellie Young, who left James Madison in 2006 to start Louisville’s program, also shares some of her experiences. Several other coaches also talk about the opportunity and challenges. It’s a great read, so check it out.