Powellfan
Renowned lacrosse analyst
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With the start of the season nearly upon us, I thought this might be a good time to try and predict what the lineup for SU might look like this season. I was pretty accurate with last year's projections for the first game of last season, but of course the lineup that the Orange started with last year looked very different from the one they finished with. It just goes to show how volatile these things can be. I will start with the offense first, then follow up with a post about the face-off and defense later. I know there are members on this board with more first hand knowledge, so please feel free to point out where I am wrong. I've factored in a couple of things posters like Jeremy have mentioned already. Hopefully this gets a decent discussion going about what we might see out there from the Orange this season. Some positions are pretty close to be a sure thing, some I honestly have no idea about. I am going with what I think they will look like, and not what I think they should look like.
Attack: Tucker Dordevic, Owen Hiltz, Owen Seebold
This unit has a chance to be very good this season. Dordevic and Seebold offer two very good dodging options, with a Thunder and Lightening look. Dordevic can shake and bake and Seebold offers a large frame for defenders to contend with. Hiltz, to me, has First Team All American potential and is the best passer and shooter on the team. I imagine Seebold will occupy the space behind the goal with Dordevic to his right and Hiltz on the left. There are of course questions. I think both Dordevic and Seebold need to be better passers, both sometimes get tunnel vision when charge to the goal. Hiltz needs to be more assertive, he is no longer a freshman and a good chunk of the offense needs to flow through him. Also, while Seebold got his feet wet at attack last year, and Dordevic has been dodging against long poles since he was a freshman, this is the first time both will be full time starters on attack. The bench has some options in Mikey Berkman Liam Ferris or Brett Tenaglia, but the fact that they moved Dordevic down from midfield probably isn't a good sign for them.
First Midfield: Jacob Buttermore, Brendan Curry, Lucas Quinn
We've spent a lot of time on the first midfield line, so I'll try and keep things brief. Curry is the alpha male of this group which means he will get the pole each and every game. He needs to be a lot more consistent than he was last year. He scored half of his points in just three games last year, and never scored more than two in the other 10 games he played. That just isn't good enough. I think over the past couple of years he's relied too much on his speed and quickness to run by defenders. He can't rely on that as much anymore. He needs to add some more moves to arsenal. Quinn can be a very good complimentary midfielder, he shoots well from the outside, and while he isn't the level of dodger that Curry/Dordevic/Trimboli is, he also isn't simply an outside sniper. His issues the last few years have been mental, but last year he seemed to clean that up. Buttermore is the wildcard of the group. He scored 20 goals in 2019 which is almost unheard of for a second line midfielder. But 2020 he looked out of sorts and last year his season was cut short by injury. He's had just six goals in the last two years (13 games). If he can rebound he can be a really dynamic scorer. The other question is his health. I have no idea who would take his spot on the first line if he isn't ready to come back. Which brings us to the uncertainty surrounding the second line.
Second Midfield: Jackson Birtwistle, Griffin Cook, Tyler Cordes
This really is a shot in dark. The second midfield could be three totally different players and it wouldn't surprise me in the least. I chose Birtwistle since it seems like he's gotten a lot of chatter on this board. His high school tape is impressive, he looks like an aggressive dodger with a big shot. Cook will probably illicit some groans, but I think they give him another shot. He has been really inconsistent these last two years, but he does have talent and also would bring a veteran presence to the line that does not have much. I also like the idea of him being able to invert as a midfielder. If he doesn't produce there are lot of other options on the bench. I picked Cordes simply based on Jeremy's intel. I like Cordes high school tape a lot, undersized but pure hustle. If nothing else, hopefully this line can inject some energy on the field as Cook is also relentless. Again, lots of other options - Tengalia put up a lot of points at Furman as an attackman, Peter Fiorini and Matt Magnan have the high school accolades, Blake Borges and Mateo Corsi are freshmen who seem to have a lot of athleticism and potential. I imagine there will be a lot of mixing and matching with this line until the coaches are satisfied.
Okay, thanks for reading, Face-off and Defense coming up later.
Attack: Tucker Dordevic, Owen Hiltz, Owen Seebold
This unit has a chance to be very good this season. Dordevic and Seebold offer two very good dodging options, with a Thunder and Lightening look. Dordevic can shake and bake and Seebold offers a large frame for defenders to contend with. Hiltz, to me, has First Team All American potential and is the best passer and shooter on the team. I imagine Seebold will occupy the space behind the goal with Dordevic to his right and Hiltz on the left. There are of course questions. I think both Dordevic and Seebold need to be better passers, both sometimes get tunnel vision when charge to the goal. Hiltz needs to be more assertive, he is no longer a freshman and a good chunk of the offense needs to flow through him. Also, while Seebold got his feet wet at attack last year, and Dordevic has been dodging against long poles since he was a freshman, this is the first time both will be full time starters on attack. The bench has some options in Mikey Berkman Liam Ferris or Brett Tenaglia, but the fact that they moved Dordevic down from midfield probably isn't a good sign for them.
First Midfield: Jacob Buttermore, Brendan Curry, Lucas Quinn
We've spent a lot of time on the first midfield line, so I'll try and keep things brief. Curry is the alpha male of this group which means he will get the pole each and every game. He needs to be a lot more consistent than he was last year. He scored half of his points in just three games last year, and never scored more than two in the other 10 games he played. That just isn't good enough. I think over the past couple of years he's relied too much on his speed and quickness to run by defenders. He can't rely on that as much anymore. He needs to add some more moves to arsenal. Quinn can be a very good complimentary midfielder, he shoots well from the outside, and while he isn't the level of dodger that Curry/Dordevic/Trimboli is, he also isn't simply an outside sniper. His issues the last few years have been mental, but last year he seemed to clean that up. Buttermore is the wildcard of the group. He scored 20 goals in 2019 which is almost unheard of for a second line midfielder. But 2020 he looked out of sorts and last year his season was cut short by injury. He's had just six goals in the last two years (13 games). If he can rebound he can be a really dynamic scorer. The other question is his health. I have no idea who would take his spot on the first line if he isn't ready to come back. Which brings us to the uncertainty surrounding the second line.
Second Midfield: Jackson Birtwistle, Griffin Cook, Tyler Cordes
This really is a shot in dark. The second midfield could be three totally different players and it wouldn't surprise me in the least. I chose Birtwistle since it seems like he's gotten a lot of chatter on this board. His high school tape is impressive, he looks like an aggressive dodger with a big shot. Cook will probably illicit some groans, but I think they give him another shot. He has been really inconsistent these last two years, but he does have talent and also would bring a veteran presence to the line that does not have much. I also like the idea of him being able to invert as a midfielder. If he doesn't produce there are lot of other options on the bench. I picked Cordes simply based on Jeremy's intel. I like Cordes high school tape a lot, undersized but pure hustle. If nothing else, hopefully this line can inject some energy on the field as Cook is also relentless. Again, lots of other options - Tengalia put up a lot of points at Furman as an attackman, Peter Fiorini and Matt Magnan have the high school accolades, Blake Borges and Mateo Corsi are freshmen who seem to have a lot of athleticism and potential. I imagine there will be a lot of mixing and matching with this line until the coaches are satisfied.
Okay, thanks for reading, Face-off and Defense coming up later.
