The 🔥 Burns for the Absolutely Obsessed
Hey there,
Five days are in the books of the 2020 Gonzaga lacrosse season.
We’ve had 5 practices. 2 film sessions. 1 staff workout (at 6:30 AM).... And several coaches meetings.
95% of cuts have been made.
Our first scrimmage is later today against St. Stephen’s & St. Agnes (it’s one school with a joint name)...
Opening game is Saturday, March 7 against McDonogh. In the preseason Inside Lacrosse poll, we’re 11th in the country and...
Scrimmages Over
Hey there,
Our season started on February 20th.
February is already in the past…
Poof. Gone.
It’s now March.
Our 3 scrimmages are complete.
The final one was yesterday at Calvert Hall.
Calvert Hall moves the ball lightning fast… and they had several multi-goal runs.
We experienced our first case of adversity… (as a team and a coaching staff.)
It’s hard to find the right coaching words when nothing seems to be going...
Your Fingertips and Yale Lacrosse
Hey there,
I was listening to a recent interview with Andy Shay… the head coach at Yale.
(For those that forgot, Yale won the 2018 lacrosse national championship.)
They dominated Albany in the semis…
Then took down Duke in the finals.
Anyway, part of the interview was about offensive player development.
...specifically SHOOTING the lacrosse ball harder.
Today’s lesson is about “Time & Room” shooting…
...
Jim Berkman has Won 12 Championships… Here’s his Advice
Hey there,
A couple years ago, Matt Rienzo, Adam (BTB Lax’s tech guy), my Dad, and I drove out to Salisbury to interview Coach Jim Berkman about the college recruitment process.
Talking to that guy was pure gold.
He’s won 12 Division III National Championships at Salisbury.
I just listened to a Phi-Lacrosse-ophy podcast with Berkman...
In the first 20 minutes alone, there’s a tons of gold for lacrosse players looking to get better.
One of...
Kissing the Shoulder
Hey there,
Lately I’ve been writing A LOT about the parallels between lacrosse and other stuff...
Cross-cutting concepts that can be applied to lacrosse, getting in shape, and life in general.
But today it’s all lacrosse…
And it’s about how proper mechanics can result in better shooting.
Specifically… how to shoot with MORE velocity.
I play LOTS of golf, and it’s amazing how efficient technique can allow golfers to pound...
Rings Aren't Free
Hey there,
High school programs don’t typically give out rings for league titles…
...but the Gonzaga lacrosse program does.
Every player.
Every coach and trainer.
And they aren’t free...
But it happens cuz the program is EXTREMELY organized.
...and having an organized program is more than crafting a good practice plan.
You NEED to have a head coach that handles all the behind-the-scenes necessities - fundraising, hiring...
New School Year
Hey there,
Time flies by.
Summer is already over and kids are back to school.
Parents have shifted to fall schedules.
...and lacrosse programs are gearing up for the season.
College teams are meeting to set goals and establish the fall schedule.
High school programs are doing the same (just to a lesser extent.)
There’s a balancing act between school, other sports, outside commitments, and lacrosse.
I understand that conflicting demands can be stressful...
But...
So Casual, Like a House Mouse
Hey there,
August is a great month to relax and think about the upcoming year.
I spend more time reading, talking to different people, and thinking about random stuff (still always get my workouts in…)
I was talkin’ to a BTB Lax dad a couple days ago. He coaches his young boys and was askin’ about “in-game” adjustments and communicating with young players.
He knows my style through my emails and online training programs, and he just wanted...
Advice For Lacrosse Players Struggling to Improve - From a Lacrosse Coach Who Was Once in those Exact Shoes
Hey it’s Coach Miller...
This is a pic from a HUGE win we had last spring over St. John’s…
the same team that beat us in the conference championship back in 2017.
(I’m in the middle with the backwards hat..)
The other guys are fellow coaches and recent alums.
...and all of us played (or currently play) college lacrosse.
At schools like Maryland, Penn State, Lehigh, and Tufts.
Not too shabby…
All these guys are lacrosse...
The Referee Was Remorseful
Hey there,
Jacksonville was up 10 in last year’s AFC Championship game when Myles Jack forced a fumble and was about to run for a touchdown.
That would have put them up 17…
...but the referee blew the play dead.
Bad call.
The league office responded that the referee was “remorseful”.
New England came back to win and advance to the Super Bowl.
Tom Coughlin wasn’t (and still isn’t) happy about it.
...
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Coach Miller
Coach Miller played college lacrosse at Tufts University under coach, Mike Daly, and went on to be the Graduate Assistant. Coach Daly is now the head coach at Brown University.
After spending two years under Daly at Tufts, Coach Miller became the Volunteer Coach at Georgetown University under legendary coach, Dave Urick. Miller spent six years on the Hoya’s staff.
After leaving Georgetown, Coach Miller joined the coaching staff at Gonzaga College High School in Washington D.C. - a perennial top high school team in the country, sending about ten graduates each year to play in college.
Coach Miller has been coaching some of the top players in the country for over a decade. During that time, he has chronicled the training programs, habits, and strategies that the top lacrosse players and coaches follow.
