SA lax

Florida lacrosse was a completely different game. Of course everyone appreciated a good bell-ringer from time to time, but it was much more about skill and finesse. This was 'beach lacrosse'...
One of my first lacrosse memories at St. Andrews (the Scots) was during a one-on-one drill and I was playing defense. Chris Cawood, who would later become one of my best friends, was the other player in the drill and about to put a move on me when I swung my stick like a Harrisburg club into his forearms and midsection. I can't remember whether he took a swing back at me or not, but basically he stopped and shouted outraged obscenities, and the rest of the team seemed to agree! Apparently, I was a 'hack', and quickly learned what designated a 'slash' penalty ;) . Under the direction of pre-anger management Coach Goldberg, we learned the basic skills and fundamentals of the sport. Move your feet, scoop through the ball, keep your stick in the imaginary box above your shoulder, bounce your shot, pick away. After however long it took Goldberg to learn your name, you were subject to his fire in public. He was a little man with an engine and mouth like a motorbike (*Sublime lyric?). Actually, very much like the motorbike in Nintendo's Excitebike, especially when it was redlining! He would have a vein bulge in his forehead when he told you you sucked in front of the whole team. A ton of guys hated him and a few even quit because of his harsh attitude. I loved him. Many, many times he reamed me out in public and in private. He could be extremely demoralizing, intense and intimidating, but he did it because he passionately wanted us to get better. He had been Rookie of the Year at UNC and even went on to play for Team USA. It was clear that he was passionate about the game, but a lot of the kids didn't care to put up with him. As I said, I really liked his brutally honest, in-your-face coaching style. When you did good, you were his hero. When you did poorly, he let you know it. I compare Coach Goldberg to what I'd expect NFL coaches Bill Cower and Bill Parcels to be like. If you can handle these coaches and excel underneath them, you can be a great player and do amazing things. IF you can handle them. One thing Coach G always did say after a good 'whipping' was, "only because I like you, Johnson! Once I stop talking to you, then you know I don't like you anymore". That was good enough for me. Granted, I only saw the angry Goldberg for my first two years. Then, I believe he was made to take an anger management course or something, because he came back my Junior year a changed man. Still, a great coach, but much softer.

Despite the super-intense coach (who could also have a very fun, playful side), lacrosse in Florida was a blast. We had amazing facilities and equipment, perfect weather, hot water girls, and... we were good. Really good. We were Florida State Champions three of my four years, and when we didn't even get to the finals during my sophomore year, the seniors cried. We were the best, the team to beat. We had teams fly in from New York, Texas, and even Canada to play us. During spring break, we had Syracuse, Yale, Duke, and Colgate (top college programs) come down to our campus. They'd do clinics with us during the days, and then they'd have games on our field at night under the lights...

Under the lights...

Wow. The memory of that feeling just came rushing back to me- playing a big game at night under the lights. An athlete warrior in the spotlight. The clean night air. The ultra green grass and the freshly painted lines. The bright orange pipes that I'd hurl the ball between. The eyes. The pressure. The pre-game hype and nerves building up, ready to explode. For the big games, we were even led onto the field by a team of bagpipers; the sound cutting through your soul. An elemental, almost overwhelming feeling combining excitement, fear, passion, strength, honor, truth, will, courage, and energy. It was an incredibly intense experience for me, those night games, and I know the other guys on the team felt it too.