Happy Memorial Day Weekend

Well, can you believe the end of the college lacrosse season is here? Memorial day weekend, when everyone whose a fan of college lacrosse convenes in one place to watch the last teams standing in D1, D2, D3 and women's D1 (the 1st time this year) square off for the national championship and to be crowned the best for 2010.

Two big games today, Cornell vs Notre Dame & UVA vs Duke. How about the NCAA moving the start times back of these games after 30+ years? They usually kick off at 12:30 and 3:00 respectively but this year the D1 semis start @ 4:00 & 6:30. I personally think was a great move by the NCAA committee. Not only do fans get a lot more time tailgate, it will probably help with attendance knowing that if you're not a big tailgater (don't know why you wouldn't be) you could have most of the day to take care of your buiz & then show up at 3:30 and catch the 1st game @ 4. Likewise if you don't plan on attending (like me), then you can take care of what needs to be done and then hunker down on the couch and watch it on TV. This should definitely help with TV ratings as well. Lastly, the athletes aren't playing during the hottest part of the day which at times can take its toll on the players with heat exhaustion and fatigue. Once again, great job NCAA......at least you got something right with this year's tourney.

My prediction, Cornell vs Virginia in the championship game. Notre Dame is riding a wave emotion after pulling off the upset last weekend vs #3 Maryland (should they have been #3??). For them to knock off a Cornell team that's been in familiar territory (last year advanced to finals) then Scotty Rodgers needs to put the team on his back and carry them to Monday's final. It can definitely happen as goalies have done it in the past (Brian Dougherty, Tillman Johnson) but I just don't see it happening this year for the Irish. In the 2nd match up it's game 3 for these two teams. Duke won the 1st match up convincingly and then one week later the Wahoos got revenge in the semis of the ACC tourney before capturing the ACC crown. These two teams are evenly matched BUT if the Cavaliers get the play out of the midfield as they're capable of then I think UVA takes this one. Crotty and Quinzani need to have a game for Duke to stay in this one. We shall see what happens but I believe UVA gets it for their coach whose been through a lot over the past month!

I'm excited for the weekend to hang w/the family. The Cannon's are off after playing on Thursday night. Not sure if you caught that debacle but we played horribly. No disrespect to the Lizards but we didn't deserve to win that game with all of the unforced TO's and mental mistakes we made and it showed on that last play where we had a chance to clear the ball, get a timeout and set up a play to tie. What happened? We threw the ball away.....another unforced turnover......the story of the game! A good basketball player who wore #23 (45 for a little) once said, "You must fail before you can succeed". That was our game of failure, now it's time to turn it around for a big one vs Chesapeake next Friday night!

Make sure you tune in to ESPN2 and check out the games today!

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Long Island

On the bus headed down to Long Island, stuck in a little rush hour traffic here on 95 in Connecticut. Traffic stinks but honestly, it gives me more time to watch film and plan any last details for tonight's game at Long Island. This is a big one (as they all are) but with a win tonight we go to 3-0 and finish the 1st quarter of the season in the position we wanted to be in. I'm feeling pretty good about where we are as a team right now. The past two games we were able to play consistently on the offensive end of the field and put up numbers in all four quarters, most importantly the 4th. Defensively I have liked our effort in both games, especially the 1st and 3rd quarters against Chicago when we held them to 2 goals in 30 minutes of play. We need to be better in the closing quarter of the game and I've challenged my defensive unit to get it done tonight.

Long Island is a good team that is in need of a win as they sit 0-2. So there's no doubt they will come out ready to play and play with a sense of urgency. For us, it's all about us and what we need to do on both ends of the field to be successful. Offensively it's no secret that if we share the rock and get multiple players on the scoreboard then we are deadly and a hard team to slow down (9 vs. Denver, 8 scorers vs. Chicago). Defensively, we need to neutralize a very dangerous midfield group and control Matt Danowski......that will be Chris Passavia's task with the help of the entire defensive unit. Long Island likes to foul (10 first game, 8 last game) so when we have EMO opportunities it's important that we cash them in tonight...if we do it'll be hard for LI to keep up with us.

Excited to say the least, we have a 12:30 walk through at Stonybrook and then the Passavia's are hosting us for lunch. Cindy and Gary always take care of us when we're on LI so, can't wait to see what sort of spread they have planned. After that back to the hotel for a little R&R (who am I kidding, I'll probably watch more film) and then back to SB for a 7:30 face off. The game is shown live on Comcast Sports New England and ESPN3.com, make sure you check it out or set the DVR....it's sure to be a good one.

I'll check back in before the weekend as we have some interesting match ups down in Baltimore for Championship weekend!

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#2

Early morning once again in the Daye household as my 20 month old decided to get dad up at 4:45. What else does one do when up so early? Study some more film, finalize the scouting report and get ready for our 10:00 team meeting before our walk through.......plus have a few cups of coffee! Another big one today...... honestly though, every game in the MLL is a big one! Each team in this league is stacked with talent, there's no such thing as a "soft" game so to speak. The key to success is having the right chemistry in place so you can compete in all 12 games. If as a team you can accomplish this then you have a chance to get some W's and make a run at this thing; the team that usually figures this out the quickest is the one who has success. Chicago is in town tonight, two good friends are on the opposite sideline; BJ O'Hara formerly of the Rochester Rattlers and Ted Garber a former Cannon's assistant coach. Two very respective coaches in the game, so I'm sure Chicago will be very well prepared to face off against us tonight. For us, it's simple....we need to build on last week's victory and continue sharing the rock and getting everyone involved on the offensive end of the field. It's nice that we have #99 back in the line up as I'm sure Rabes is excited to be back out on the field after 6-7 months of playing indoor. With the success we had last week with nine players on the scoreboard, Paul is another threat Chicago has to prepare for (and a big one at that!). Defensively our veteran presence needs to step up tonight and control that end of the field. Chicago is loaded on the offensive end; Kevin Leveille, Mike Leveiile, Chazz Woodson, Matt Striebel, Terry Kimener, Bill McGlone, Chris Rotelli, Brett Garber. All players who are dangerous and can find the back of the net when given the opportunity. When you play against an offensive unit like this, TEAM defense is huge. Lots of communication and making sure we are helping each other will be a very important piece to the puzzle. It should be a great game tonight so if you haven't gotten your tix yet you can call the office (617.746.9933) or walk up and purchase them at our ticket office at Harvard. Hope to see you there, it's going to be a great night and we would love to have 10,000 loud screaming Cannon's fans!!

Big weekend of college lacrosse, best match up of the weekend is today at 2:30.....Carolina vs. Duke....what else can you ask for? Brad Ross and I have a dinner bet on the game. Should be a good one, winner advances to the semifinals in Baltimore next weekend. GO HEELS!

What's your favorite video on lax-school.com? Post a comment on our facebook page or shoot me an email (bd@lax-school.com). You want to see something specific in a video? Let us know!

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Week 1

THANK YOU to the 9,841 fans that came out to support us on Saturday night and cheered us to victory! I can't tell you how much it means to have a crowd like we have, they're basically our 11th man. It's a great to get the "W" for the home opener and start 1-0. Saturday night was the unveiling (so to speak) of the team we worked so hard to put together in the off season and we were pretty happy with the results. We had nine different players score goals and when your team is capable of doing that without the services of the reigning MLL MVP and Offensive player of the year.......that's good stuff. We have a lot of work to do as we were sloppy at times but we'll take the "W" and get back to work this Friday as Chicago comes to town on Saturday. If you haven't gotten your tickets yet, call 617.746.9933 as we would love to get to 10,000 for this game! The goal is to take one game at a time and not look to far ahead, because in this league you can't afford to do that as every team is capable of winning on game day. There was a first for me this past weekend as I couldn't believe Brian Reese got ejected from the game. I wasn't out there at the time so I don't know what occurred but when I turned around and saw Roy Condon (the head official) give the "you're out of here" arm wave, I thought we were at Fenway park for a second!

How about some of the upsets over the weekend in the opening rounds of the NCAA lax tourney? Army knocks off the 2-time defending champs Syracuse, congrats Coach Joe Alberici, great victory! Notre Dame lead by Senior goalie Scottie Rodgers knocked off Princeton and Delaware came very close to upsetting my boys down in Chapel Hill. This is what the NCAA tournament is all about........parity in college lacrosse. Unfortunately some of the teams we're on the outside looking in as they didn't get a chance to show what they were capable of doing. I know the selection committee has a difficult job but I think it was evident that a couple of the teams (or one in particular) who received at large bids didn't deserve to be there. That's why I honestly believe the tournament should be expanded to 24 teams (2 more games in each bracket). This way more teams (Drexel, Georgetown for example) get into the tourney and get an opportunity to show what they can do. Thoughts??? Down to eight teams and this weekend's games should be great; Duke-Carolina rematch, Maryland-Notre Dame, Cornell-Army and Virgina-Stonybrook. All playing for an opportunity to get to the big dance! Make sure you tune into ESPNU, check your local listings.

Congrats to Foxboro HS and Coach Matt Noone for beating their arch rival Franklin last week and capturing the Hockomock League Championship. 6-4 nail biter, Foxboro's goalie had 17 saves to get the W. Best of luck in the tournament boys!

Wondering how you can take your game to the next level? Email me at bd@lax-school.com

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Friday.....

Wow, Friday is here already.....it's going to be a busy day for me, still finalizing some last minute details in our game plan for Denver. I have to head into the Cannon's office this afternoon for staff meetings and then finish breaking down film for our film session tomorrow morning before practice tonight at Harvard. All in a day's work as the MLL season opener is upon us! Very excited, that's for sure....the season is here. With the season here means there's always interviews; Boston Herald, the Boston Globe, Lax United and Inside Lacrosse over the past few days.....we're ready to get the ball rolling on Saturday.

Our 19 man game day roster still needs to be finalized, this will be done after practice tonight. Everyone is itching to get on the field but we need to see who fits into our game plan and the roles we've identified for us to have success tomorrow night. I'm excited (did I mention that already) as the 2010 Boston Cannon's are ready to take the field. It should be a great game tomorrow night, weather is looking good, now we need a big crowd to fire up the boys. Tickets are still available so give the office a call (617.746.9933).

I was down at Foxboro HS's practice yesterday afternoon, hanging out with head coach and good buddy Matt Noone as they were preparing for Franklin HS today. The winner will be the eventual Hockomock League Champ. They had a good practice, intense and focused on what they need to do to win and be successful today.....good luck boys!

I also helped out a good friend Paul Mazur yesterday before heading down to Foxboro. Paul is the director of Lexington Youth Lacrosse, a very good team customer of mine. His son is looking at schools and he asked if I would help review the recruiting film he put together and give some feedback. I tell you these days that is the way to go. If you have the capabilities of putting together some shots of you in action to get into coaches hands, it's the next best thing to a coach being at your game. Make sure you show as much as you can, coaches want to see this. Not just goals, but assists, ground balls, riding, anything showing you hustling to make plays! If you play multiple positions, make sure you get all of that on film as well as coaches love to see versatility in players. If you need any help with stuff like this shoot me an email, bd@lax-school.com

Did you see the Celts game last night? Congrats to Doc and the guys as they move onto the conference championship! Now the boys in Black & Gold need to refocus and set their goal on winning one game.... so they too can advance into the conference championship....Good Luck B's!

Make sure you set your DVR this weekend....lot's of College Lacrosse on ESPNU Saturday and Sunday as the opening round of the NCAA tournament gets underway....GO HEELS! Check out the brackets: http://espn.go.com/ncaa/news/story?id=5175947

Well, have to run...been up since 5:00, early morning in the Daye household!

I want to leave you with one thing......

What are you doing to take your game to the next level?

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Training Camp is Over!

Another competitive and intense day of practice yesterday to close out training camp for 2010. We ended with a little "pow wow" after practice yesterday morning as I spoke to the team first. Captains Passavia and Poskay said a few words and then our owner Matt Dwyer ended it by speaking to the team, all of us echoing the same thing....... Training camp this year was full of competition and it's only going to make us a better team as we strive for our goal of winning the MLL Championship.

The coaching staff and I met for a few hours yesterday after practice with our owner and Vice President to discuss the last round of cuts that need to be submitted the league office today. There were some difficult decisions that were made and we went back and forth with each other until we were all convinced this was the direction we wanted to go with the roster for 2010. We had a very athletic group this year and possibly the most talented group we've had since I've been coaching. Our goals coming into camp were to add depth and more athleticism at the midfield, get younger while at the same time maintaining our veteran presence at the key positions so we could remain competitive. I believe we've not only attained these goals but we've surpassed them. We shall see, starting this Saturday at home vs. Denver. To see our 23 man roster once it's announced make sure you check out www.bostoncannons.com If you haven't gotten your tickets yet for the home opener, go online or call the office and get that taken care of ASAP, this is not a game you're going to want to miss! (617.746.9933).

I think we all knew Virgina was going to get the #1 seed last night but honestly I was a little surprised Maryland got the #3 seed. Matt Poksay and I were texting back and forth during the show saying the same thing. Despite the fact that Maryland beat Carolina in the ACC tournament, the regular season win and overall record should account for more. Even Duke had significant beef to say they should have been a #3 or #4 seed over Maryland. How about the committee giving Hopkins the nod and keeping the longest tournament streak alive in NCAA Lacrosse! If I'm a Georgetown fan, I would feel disrespected BUT the RPI is all about strength of schedule and Hopkins does play the toughest schedule in college lacrosse. Nevertheless it should be a great tournament with some exciting match ups in the 1st round.....Duke/Hopkins; can't believe one of those teams are going home early! Make sure you check out ESPNU next weekend (Saturday and Sunday) or at least set the DVR as it's going to be a great weekend of lacrosse. Check your local listings or espnu.com for the schedule in your area. Go HEELS!!!!

Busy week for me, it's the middle of the month so I need to ramp up some sales for LU team and at the same time start preparing for Denver. We need to break down film, prepare a game plan, scouting report and get ready for practice on Friday night. The 1st few games of the season are always a little bit harder to prepare for a team when they've changed personnel and you don't have film on some of the new players you may see. That's part of the job though and it's what I enjoy the most. Time to go to work!

Have a question? Email me at bd@lax-school.com I've been answering a lot of questions on my facebook page, so feel free to email me there as well.

Have a good week and make sure you're working hard to take Your Game to the Next Level!

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Last Weekend of camp

Sitting here watching the Bruins, Recci just tied it up with 31.5 seconds left....SICK! That's what playoff hockey is all about! I know, why am I typing right now? Well, it's the intermission between the end of the 3rd and OT and I'm pretty beat so need to get it done. My man Joe Beninati is doing the game, he is the man. I love listening to he and Q when I'm watching an MLL game, they make a great team. It's pretty cool to hear Joe's voice on a Bruin's game, Yeah Boston sports!

So..... last weekend of training camp. We brought back a few extra guys to take one last look before we finalize our 23 man active roster. Competition is the name of the game so far this year and it's what we as coaches want to see. When top athletes compete, it brings out their best. There are a few rookies that may push for a spot on the active roster, so this weekend will be an important one for a handful of players. What we are looking for is consistency; the ability to play at the highest level on a consistent basis. This is what separates players in the MLL. A lot is on the line this weekend that's for sure, it'll be a good one. Catz is back in the house to condition the guys on Saturday prior to practice. Then we'll get out and start putting in offensive and defensive calls, different O & D sets, and mix up the personnel, etc. It'll be good to get the guys all on the same page in terms of communication. We'll get after it a little bit with some GB transition drills and then finish up with some shooting. I'm a big advocate of shooting, all of our drills mimic game like situation dodges and are at full speed. After practice Saturday night, we're headed up to the Green Brian in Allston for a little team bonding exercise and then back on the field bright and early Sunday morning.

I just wanted to reiterate how that scrimmage last week vs LI really turned out to be a good thing for us. It gave us a good indication of where players are a lot earlier than in the past. It's the 1st time we've had a preseason since 2001 & 2002......the early years, back when I was out there between the pipes.

Sunday, 9:00 tune into ESPNU to see what seed your favorite team gets.....or if they get in. Go HEELS!

Did you get a chance to check out Holla Back w/Matt Casey a.k.a. Sizzle on Lax-School.com? Who else on the Cannons do you think we should follow on Cannon's weekly? Email me your favorite Cannon's player you want to see featured: bd@lax-school.com

Check back on Monday to see who made the 23 and why.....

Next week....Denver. Boy, I can't wait.

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2nd Weekend in the books....

I got back yesterday from Wilton, what a great weekend. The scrimmage went well for us, we got exactly what we were looking for out of it. It was an opportunity to see how the younger players would adjust and react to the speed of the MLL game and most importantly how would they perform. I definitely saw some really good things from a few players on Saturday vs Long Island. Unlike in year's past, Coach Mule from Long Island didn't really bring that many guys into camp so we were facing a very good LI team and the rookies and guys trying out for us performed well. Tomorrow we have a staff conference call to discuss cutting down to our 23 man active roster for the upcoming weekend. It's our last weekend of training camp and I want to use it to prepare for our home opener vs. Denver. These types of meetings/calls can get a little crazy sometimes because we have to look at the big picture which not only entails how a player performed but also looking at the business side; travel expenses, salary cap issues, etc. Should be fun, always hard but it's not a bad thing having to make these hard decisions as this was one of the most competitive training camps we've had in a long time!

Saturday night was pretty sweet as well. We went to the JDRF fundraiser gala in Old Greenwich and supported our teammate Chris Eck and his family as they were honored for all of their hard work and support of the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation. You talk about high rollers, everyone was dressed to the nine and looking good....check out the picture online at www.facebook.com/laxschool of the Cannons all "cleaned up" as we like to say. Chris did a great job with his speech as well, it's not easy speaking in front of 500+ people and he nailed it. Thanks again to the Eck's for having us there as their guests!

Did you catch any college lax over the weekend? Some conference tourneys were played and two automatic qualifiers made the big dance. Congrats to Coach Alberici at Army for capturing the Patriot league championship and getting an AQ as well as my man Coach T for getting it done in his 1st year at DU after dismantling Loyola to advance to the NCAA tourney. There are a few more tourneys this upcoming weekend which will decide who goes to the tournament. Sunday the NCAA Lacrosse selection show will be on ESPNU @ 9:00. Make sure you tune in and see if your squad makes the dance.....I'll be checking it out for sure to see where the Tarheels end up and who they'll be facing in the 1st round! What's going to happen with the Hop??? Johns Hopkins could be in jeopardy of not making the NCAA tournament, what's up with that? A little fact, The 'Jays have played in every tournament except 1971.

Our interview with Chris Bates is up on lax-school.com so make sure you check it out, especially if you're interested in going Ivy after you graduate from HS!

Keep checking the site as we'll have our next version of Boston Cannon's weekly up shortly and a little surprise with our main man Matt Casey from the Cannon's.

Have a question, email me at bd@lax-school.com.

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