Any fan of lacrosse who is a proponent of growing the game (as most fans are) will tell you in an instant that it’s not possible for the game to have grown too fast in the State of Michigan, but as I alluded in Part 1, that may be one factor that has led to a perception (fair or not) that the level of play at the high school level is in a down phase.
It seems simple enough: Even if there are more talented players than ever before in the state (and the numbers seem to bear that out), growth in the number of programs at the high school level has led to a diluting of that talent pool. That results in an overall lowering of the average level of play, as more players who are new to the game emerge.
However, in the long term, this should lead to an increase in the quality of play in the state. A bigger talent pool means that players who previously would have been excelling at track or baseball as a spring sport now try their hand at lacrosse – and succeed. Lacrosse does have a big emphasis on stick skills in addition to athleticism, but as more high school programs emerge, that will lead to the rise of youth programs as well, meaning that youngsters of the future aren’t picking up a stick for the first time as they step onto the field for their first JV practice.
The most important factor, however, is one that you hear from all over the lacrosse world: the rise of coaches who have played the game. While Long Island, Baltimore, and other hotbed areas have long lacrosse traditions, Michigan hasn’t had the benefit of players sticking around to coach youth, high school, and even college teams to nearly the same degree. Though being an excellent player and an excellent coach aren’t necessarily correlated (for an example from football, look at the successes of former Texas Tech coach Mike Leach, who didn’t play the game in college, or you could look at any number of great players who have bombed as coaches in many sports), it’s easier for someone who at least has an understanding of the game from a young age to become a coach.
That factor is where the rise of college programs in the State of Michigan should be a huge help. In the past, exceptional players would leave the Mitten to ply their trade in Division-1 or Division-3 on the East Coast, but they can now stay in Michigan for their college ball. That makes them more likely to stay in Michigan after graduation than someone who’s spent four years in college on the East Coast, which means a wider pool of former players (and potential coaches who are already familiar with the game).
So, if the level of play in Michigan high schools today is down – a distinct possibility – and it’s in part because of massive growth in the game – which seems to be a likely contributing reason – it may be a problem in the short term. However, if it leads to a long-term improvement in the overall quality of play, it may be worth just a few growing pains.