ND Preview | Syracusefan.com
.

ND Preview

Wonder what gonna do on D if we change anything or keep it how was. As think you have to have dwan on yago cause of the size. Which leaves lally n miller left. So do you put figgy on miller n beck on freshman lally. Also brock burhman always goes to X when he’s in. Can’t remember how fast lally or miller are who ya rather figgy take. But def can’t have beck on anyone with good speed. So do we pump down chuck K ? Which think ya need chuck k or bolonino on jeffery or faison.

Haven’t watched a ton of ND games going off the games or parts did see n how their players look. Can absolutely not have bowen on jeffery or faison. They would eat him alive with their speed. As said think have to have dwan on yago as yago a decent size dude 6”3 200lbs believe. Dwan also can’t play super soft on him n has to keep pressure on his hands not letting him get them free. Dmids def will have to play a stellar game n hold their own as much as possible.

Honestly think mccool n mullen are gonna be the diff maker in this game. Believe last year mullen was above 60% when we played them n mccool was above 56%. Think they will need to be pretty close to 50-55% for both mullen n mccool for us to have chance to win. Of course with us doing everything else we need to (limit turnovers specially unforced ones, take good angle shots n bury them, gbs gbs gbs). Nd don’t foul much but if they do got to make them pay everytime as also believe their not great man down D.

Leo thompson bear rhoa hottle mcintee hahn etc. This is a game they all need to help carry to load as joey will surely have his hands full with lyght. I will almost bet the success joey had last time against playing offball isn’t gonna go exactly how well it did last time. Not saying joey can’t still make his presence felt. But this is a game will everyone else needs to step up more. Think have to attack from X as much as possible n invert our middies a ton. We have not won at arlotta since 2017 ? So guys really gonna have to play a well full syracuse lacrosse game. Also need to run n cause little choas. Corrigan hates chaos n even calls timeout when gets sniff of it starting. Truely hope gait n march n O prepared these guys very well with a solid game plan , on top of having ideas case need to change or adjust. Let’s go orange this a huge huge chance to improve your playoff picture while also gaining steam into playoffs n acc tounry.
 
LACROSSE REFERENCE
via Free Expected Goals Email April 24, 2026

Weekend Preview

#1: Notre Dame vs Syracuse​

Sat, Apr 25 @ 12pm ET

Notre Dame Summary​

Record: 9 - 1
LaxElo Rank: 1st
LaxElo Movement (this season): +61 rating points
Offense: 36.0% efficiency (9th nationally)
Defense: 18.7% efficiency (2nd nationally)
Faceoffs: 62.6% win rate (6th nationally)
Highest Usage: Josh Yago (9.8% play share)
Most Efficient: Teddy Lally (1.99 usage adjusted EGA; 4.7% play share)
Quarterback: Brock Behrman (17% of the team's assists)
Finisher: Luke Miller (15% of the team's shots)
Most Productive: Josh Yago (21 devittes)
Vacuum: Will Donovan (10% of the team's ground balls)
Disruptor: Nate Schwitzenberg (11 total caused turnovers)
FOGO: Tyler Spano (60% faceoff win rate)
Goalie: Thomas Ricciardelli (59% save percentage)


Syracuse Summary​

Record: 11 - 3
LaxElo Rank: 5th
LaxElo Movement (this season): +67 rating points
Offense: 38.5% efficiency (5th nationally)
Defense: 23.4% efficiency (11th nationally)
Faceoffs: 57.3% win rate (15th nationally)
Highest Usage: Joey Spallina (13.4% play share)
Most Efficient: Payton Anderson (2.18 usage adjusted EGA; 4.7% play share)
Quarterback: Joey Spallina (34% of the team's assists)
Finisher: Michael Leo (15% of the team's shots)
Most Productive: Joey Spallina (32 devittes)
Vacuum: Riley Figueiras (11% of the team's ground balls)
Disruptor: Riley Figueiras (17 total caused turnovers)
FOGO: John Mullen (53% faceoff win rate)
Goalie: Jimmy McCool (55% save percentage)
 
LACROSSE REFERENCE
via Free Expected Goals Email April 24, 2026

Weekend Preview

#1: Notre Dame vs Syracuse​

Sat, Apr 25 @ 12pm ET

Notre Dame Summary​

Record: 9 - 1
LaxElo Rank: 1st
LaxElo Movement (this season): +61 rating points
Offense: 36.0% efficiency (9th nationally)
Defense: 18.7% efficiency (2nd nationally)
Faceoffs: 62.6% win rate (6th nationally)
Highest Usage: Josh Yago (9.8% play share)
Most Efficient: Teddy Lally (1.99 usage adjusted EGA; 4.7% play share)
Quarterback: Brock Behrman (17% of the team's assists)
Finisher: Luke Miller (15% of the team's shots)
Most Productive: Josh Yago (21 devittes)
Vacuum: Will Donovan (10% of the team's ground balls)
Disruptor: Nate Schwitzenberg (11 total caused turnovers)
FOGO: Tyler Spano (60% faceoff win rate)
Goalie: Thomas Ricciardelli (59% save percentage)


Syracuse Summary​

Record: 11 - 3
LaxElo Rank: 5th
LaxElo Movement (this season): +67 rating points
Offense: 38.5% efficiency (5th nationally)
Defense: 23.4% efficiency (11th nationally)
Faceoffs: 57.3% win rate (15th nationally)
Highest Usage: Joey Spallina (13.4% play share)
Most Efficient: Payton Anderson (2.18 usage adjusted EGA; 4.7% play share)
Quarterback: Joey Spallina (34% of the team's assists)
Finisher: Michael Leo (15% of the team's shots)
Most Productive: Joey Spallina (32 devittes)
Vacuum: Riley Figueiras (11% of the team's ground balls)
Disruptor: Riley Figueiras (17 total caused turnovers)
FOGO: John Mullen (53% faceoff win rate)
Goalie: Jimmy McCool (55% save percentage)
Am I crazy to think we should have Fig erase Yago & Chuck K on Behrman to disrupt his feeding? Dwan plays too cushioned on hands for me to want him on them.
 
For those who can't watch:

Q: “Gary, what makes Notre Dame’s defense a challenge to face?”
A: He said Notre Dame is “incredibly talented,” big, physical and capable, with “a bunch of four-, five-star guys” who are putting it together and playing good defense.

Q: “From your film study, how has their goalie really put it together?”
A: He said it has been a combination of the defense and goalie. The defense has stepped up by pressuring shots, which has allowed the goalie to get comfortable. He said Syracuse needs to get quality shots it can score on.

Q: “What goes into game planning for Joey going up against a defender like that and trying to get the edge there?”
A: He said he leaves that to Coach March, who is making some tweaks and doing different things in the game plan.

Q: “Joey talked after the game on Saturday about some of the weight that comes with wearing 22. In your eyes, how have you seen him handle that?”
A: He said Joey has come a long way and matured quite a bit. He thinks Joey is handling it well, is in a good place, and wants to help the team however he can.

Q: “In terms of the entire 2022 high school class, what have they meant to this program over the past four years?”
A: He said they helped elevate the program. They have made plays, gotten stops, scored goals and helped get Syracuse “back in the mix.” He called them the leadership group that the rest of the team follows.

Q: “Coach, you’re approaching the end of the road here. What has been some of the biggest learning curves that you’ve had so far?”
A: He said the team is trying to make sure it shows up ready to play. He pointed to road games as a struggle and said they have worked on their mindset while traveling and how they come out with energy.

Q: “Are you looking for a payoff there in terms of having put so many road games together earlier in the schedule?”
A: He said that is what they hope. They have had good road games and difficult ones, and those experiences have given them chances to learn and tweak how they prepare and step on the field.

Q: “Gary, where do you assess where the faceoff is right now?”
A: He said they are trying to get the faceoff group comfortable, back in a groove and ready to make a run in the playoffs. He said the unit is in a pretty good mindset and hopes Johnny and Drew have a good Saturday and playoff run.

Q: “What does it say about Jimmy and his ability to bounce back from the UNC benching and then have two really strong games against Virginia and then again against Colgate?”
A: He said that is “Jimmy.” He noted Jimmy had a rough road game, but said Jimmy is mentally tough and has shown he can rebound, both last year and this year.

Q: “How would you describe that kind of relationship and maybe the nod you give him every once in a while?”
A: After joking through a clarification, he said Jimmy high-fives all the coaches before every game. Postgame, he tries to give players a boost, whether through a nod, fist bump or another gesture.

Q: “Is there anything specific about that’s tough playing there?”
A: He said having people there should help because a loud crowd brings energy. Whether fans are cheering for or against Syracuse, he said it creates a better atmosphere and should make for a good game.

Q: “What’s the message there about kind of all for one, one for all in fundraising, how that affects lacrosse?”
A: He said the program is dialed in and on board with fundraising. They are working with the department on their avenue for NIL, and he said it is important for lacrosse as it continues to grow and receive support.

Q: “There’s a non-zero chance you play Notre Dame twice in two weeks, maybe a couple times in two and a half weeks. Do you try to hold your cards close to your chest at all, or is it kind of just one game at a time?”
A: He said they are going to compete to win and would love to win the ACC regular season. If they play Notre Dame again, they will make adjustments after this game.

Q: “What’s different a little bit about the way you guys are ending this year?”
A: He said they are trying to build momentum as they finish the regular season and head into the ACC tournament. Last year had more pressure because they were more of a bubble team, but this year he hopes they are just as excited to play and try to win the ACC again.
 
Am I crazy to think we should have Fig erase Yago & Chuck K on Behrman to disrupt his feeding? Dwan plays too cushioned on hands for me to want him on them.

ND's offensive #s are pretty low key in fact you could almost use the word abysmal. Yago leads the way with 28 pts, SU has 4 guys with more then that including Joey at 64 pts and Leo at 46.

Assist wise Behrman does lead the way with 11 but that's not exactly a ton and Miller and Yago have 9 and 8 respectively.

Yago is listed 6'3 so he's a bit of a bigger dude. I think you could put Fig on him but I wonder if SU will go with Dwan at least to start. Miller actually has the 2nd most goals and points, could see Fig drawing him.
 
My guess would be Dwan on Yago since he is kind of a tank. And Figgy on Miller since he is super speedy. I am pretty confident we can minimize the damage from their attack. Main worry is definitely their speedy midfielders. Chuck K may be slightly insane (see the GTown hit) but he is having an excellent year shutting down faster midfielders 1v1. I worry more about our LSMs after him as well as Beck, if they get a faster matchup. There are a lot of intimidating quick dodgers on the ND middie lines, but despite that the offense has struggled to put up big numbers, even against some not that great defenses like Michigan and UVA. I think the middies are strong but the relatively weak attack this year holds them back a bit.

I had ND pretty far down the top 10 in the preseason. I am surprised how well their ssdms have held up against some of these teams. UNC goes as Duffy and Petro go, so holding them to 5 goals is not that surprising considering how well they did in those matchups, but I am still shocked all those fast middies were not able to create more opportunities. They seemingly recovered in a big way from losing Ramsey and a couple other guys. Still feel like we should be able to challenge those matchups and create looks similar to last season. Still feel like we should be able to challenge those matchups and create looks, similar to last season. Guys like Hottle and McIntee need to draw slides or finish their shots off the dodge if they get a short stick. Should be a good one!
 

The ACC tournament field is set, and the tournament will be played at American Legion Memorial Stadium in Charlotte. The conference only has five teams, and this year Duke is the odd man out. Even with games to be played, Duke is winless in conference and all other teams have at least two wins, so there is no way for Duke to qualify. Teams play for seeding this weekend. UVA is done with ACC play, they are 2-2. The games that impact seeds this weekend at Notre Dame vs Syracuse and Duke vs North Carolina.



Notre Dame and UNC win: Seed order is Notre Dame, North Carolina, Syracuse, Virginia

Syracuse and UNC win: Seed order is North Carolina, Syracuse, Virginia, Notre Dame

Notre Dame and Duke win: Tiebreakers are needed. Notre Dame is the one seed, but UNC, Syracuse, and UVA are all 2-2 in this scenario. Record against the top team is the first tiebreaker. Virginia beat Notre Dame, while the other two both lost. So the seed order goes Notre Dame, Virginia, North Carolina, Syracuse.

Syracuse and Duke win: Tiebreakers are needed. Syracuse is the one seed, but UNC, Notre Dame, and UVA are all 2-2 in this scenario. Record against the top team is the first tiebreaker, and UNC beat Syracuse while the other two lost. So seeding goes Syracuse, North Carolina, Virginia, Notre Dame.
 

Forum statistics

Threads
175,340
Messages
5,351,131
Members
6,236
Latest member
SaltyCity

Online statistics

Members online
248
Guests online
11,852
Total visitors
12,100


Top Bottom