One week to go in the regular season . . . wow, did that creep up on us. Most of our district seedings should be set by now.  A few are likely still up for grabs but not much of importance. We all want to see as many games as possible, including me. It’s been a good year for me in attending games, much better than the last two years.  Including the 2 women’s games in Jacksonville plus the STA-LHP and Vero-Benjamin Girl’s games I’ve probably seen over 30 teams already (a few didn’t get written up because the games weren’t close) and this coming week, assuming MaxPreps is accurate, I get to add to that total: Monday: Olympic Heights & Atlantic Tuesday: Palm Beach Central & Jupiter Christian Wednesday: American Heritage-Plantation & Columbus Thursday is the 2nd installation of Jupiter & Benjamin this year and I missed the first one Friday: Belen Jesuit & Barron Collier Saturday: Cardinal Gibbons & Gulf Coast (a 2 for 1 since I get to see Trace Davidson in person) EIGHT more schools, which would push the numbers closer to 40.  I don’t think I’ve seen that many in one season before.  I’m glad it worked out so well.   I was sent a link to a video containing for me the type of highlight film I enjoy so much.  Although the save video we posted is terrific, I’ve always favored the team highlight; particularly the perfectly run fast break that finished with a crease-side open man.  Here’s one from the Oxbridge-Jupiter game:  

LINK

That’s how the game is played . . .  

Jared Bernhardt Is Going to Win the Tewaraaton Trophy

  The hype is REAL.  He’s doing it against B1G Ten competition.  No one is stopping him on the field. And he’s FLORIDA’S OWN. What better way for us to put the stamp on how far we’ve come with this sport is to see Jared holding this: This is the Heisman Trophy for college lacrosse, if you are wondering why I am harping on this.  It’s not a guarantee but he is taking the bull by the horns. He’s just broken Matt Rambo’s career goal record at Maryland and will likely earn the all-time points record too.  At one of the storied programs in lacrosse history. Inside Lacrosse just posted this feature article today:

‘Happy He’s Rocking the No. 1 With Pride’: Jared Bernhardt Comes Full Circle to Make History

There’s ONE THING MISSING . . . For some reason, I’ve put this out and no one at Lake Brantley has picked up on it.  How about spreading the word?   Get on it Lake Brantley!!!  

YouTube Subscribers & Lee’s 70’s Cultural Fixation

  What is going on here?  FLN has 4,767 Twitter Followers, 2,606 Facebook followers and almost that many ‘Likers’.  Okay, I haven’t kept up yet with Instagram like I should have. Heck, on average 1,000 people read this poll article each week . . . But so far only 176 have signed up for a YouTube subscription??? This is where we are going. Morning Coffee is just the start.  The next step is to learn how to do split screen interviews. Video content will soar over time. And you are STILL lagging on this! Well, I warned you the 70’s music will get worse.  And you’ve EARNED this one!   [embedyt] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IgPgavmY99U[/embedyt]   Better learn your lesson this week! Click on the SUBSCRIBE button on our Florida Lacrosse News page . . . OR ELSE!  Here’s the LINK  

The Underdog Upset of the Week

I don’t think I saw a major one this week unless you count the way Oak Hall handled Maclay, but BOY DID WE DODGE ONE SATURDAY! I was completely stunned by this score on MaxPreps on Saturday: Gulf Breeze 7 – Navarre 6 Gulf Breeze is 9-1, ranked tied for 15th in 1A with Episcopal of Jacksonville. And Navarre is 3-10 . . . 3-10! They are an Independent and MP has them at #13 out of 23 Independents. Yikes. That sound you hear is the collective exhaling of the Gulf Breeze lacrosse community. Of course, if the score is wrong I take it all back . . .  

Saint Andrew’s is Sweating Bullets

  The #1 team all year in 1A is under COVID protocols. It looks like they can get back in time for their District playoffs at this time. Even healthy their district is rough and Saint John Paul is putting it together late. I believe one more positive test this week ends their season. And it would mean a wide open path for plenty of other schools. As well as the final horrible effect of this Pandemic should it happen. Regardless of who you root for this sport does not need top teams disqualified from FHSAA playoff action.  

Wells Dusenbury & WPTV Channel 5 West Palm and ESPN 106.3

  Many of you know my collaborations with Wells over the years when he was at these outlets (he now is a news reporter with the Sun-Sentinel down here in Ft. Lauderdale). Wells played at Saint Andrew’s and Club at UF before starting his journalism career.  He produced a LOT of highlight segments for the station and the web site and once in a while something pops up that deserves posting.  You saw the one from the comeback of Boca Raton against Benjamin and here’s one from the same year of a game I attended (I did not write for FLN until 2013 and this is from 2012). Wells has a great feel for how to put a lacrosse segment together and it’s a shame we don’t get as much coverage on our local TV stations as we once did down here, and it’s all his doing by providing the outlet. It’s SA and Boys’ Latin, from a period of games when SA gave their MIAA competition all they could handle, including defeating McDonogh in 2007 and Boys’ Latin in 2008.  Some great games over the years!   [embedyt] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TEgGET5RkbA[/embedyt]   Okay, time to get down to brass tacks . . . Time for the Top 15 in each class! Another reason for subscribing to our YouTube channel is that I will be doing segments on teams outside the Polls and analyzing what keeps them out.  Look for those in either Morning Coffee or separate segments as I get the time.  

Strength of Schedule

  You’ve heard me say it OFTEN.  It’s a staple of how I look at things. MaxPreps also tried to develop comparative SOS rankings.  I do feel that there is a decent amount of accuracy there. Here’s their take on Strength of Schedule, based on the Top 30 in each class and who’s played the toughest schedules: 1A

1. Benjamin
2. Saint John Paul
3. Lake Highland
4. Cardinal Mooney
5. King’s Academy
6. Oxbridge
7. Saint Andrew’s
8. Pine Crest
9. St. Edward’s
10. American Heritage-Plantation

  2A

1. Creekside (by far the highest rated schedule in the state by MaxPreps)
2. St. Thomas
3. Ponte Vedra
4. Jupiter
5. Lake Brantley
6. Lake Mary
7. Western
8. Vero Beach
9. Nease
10. Fleming Island

  The old saying of “If you want to be the man, you have to beat the man” certainly holds up here.  Play tough games and you are ready for tough games.  

Okay, Time For The Polls!

  Class 1A Poll for 3/21/21  

1. Saint Andrew’s
2. Benjamin
3. Oak Hall
4. Jesuit of Tampa
5. Pine Crest
6. Saint John Paul II
7. Belen Jesuit
8. Canterbury
9. Cardinal Mooney
10. St. Edward’s
11. American Heritage-Plantation
12. Oxbridge
13. Maclay
14. Lake Highland Prep
15. (t) Episcopal of Jacksonville, Bolles & Gulf Breeze

  Class 2A Poll for 3/21/21  

1. Ponte Vedra
2. Jupiter
3. Plant
4. Winter Park
5. Creekside
6. Oviedo
7. St. Thomas Aquinas
8. Newsome
9. Lake Mary
10. Riverview-Sarasota
11. Western
12. Gulf Coast
13. Lake Brantley
14. Windermere
15. Nease

  #TAFTAG! Lay off the refs! And have a great week!  

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