Class of 2024 New Commit: Payton “Bear” Anderson (NY / CT: Brunswick), Midfield

[OttosDad]

Some additional Payton Anderson highlights for your viewing pleasure. Just summer highlights so a little low key, but he looks great.

Wow. The torque he generates on his overhand shot reminds me of O’Neil. Does anyone know how tall he is? He could end up being a dominate college player if he continues to add strength

 

[Powellfan]

Wow. The torque he generates on his overhand shot reminds me of O’Neil. Does anyone know how tall he is? He could end up being a dominate college player if he continues to add strength

He's listed at 6'2 205 in his recruiting profiles. For reference O'Neil is 6'2 225.

The above highlight reel is really impressive. Not just the torque (he can really hammer the ball, incredible wrist strength), but his placement on some of those shots is really impressive. He's showing everything you want to see in a player his size, is able to generate his own shot, shrugs off defensemen, and has some nice passes in there too. Obviously you have to read between the lines with highlight videos, but there is plenty to get excited about there.

There was some debate a while back if he would line up at middie or attack. I think long term attack might be his best position but there doesn't seem a reason he couldn't play midfield if needed. He could be a real problem coming out of the box.

 

[Laxfanshutt]

 

[4evaOrange]

Exhales…..

 

[JeremyCuse]

Exhales…..

He was never decommitting, he's all in.

 

[4evaOrange]

He was never decommitting, he's all in.

yeah

 

[Laxfanshutt]

 

[Laxfanshutt]

Believe he gets a Hattrick in this video

 

[Powellfan]

Brunswick up 3-0 early

 

[sutomcat]

This picture is right out of central casting.

The Syracuse guy has a dopey grin and is giving the guy next to him the biggest man hug. His shoes are untied, his tie a complete mess, and he has a weird string bracelet on. His clothes all actually fit well. He looks completely at home and relaxed.

Wisky next to him, completely generic. His tie is well tied, but his belt is askew.

Stanford has his tie crooked and too short. His hat is worn too low. He has a clean shirt but his pants are a completely different color than anyone else (also too tight) and of course, he is not wearing any socks.

Then we have the 3 Virginia guys all next to each other. They all look awkward, have weird expressions on their faces, geeky shoes and and least 2 phones jammed into their pockets. They touch each other in the most uncomfortable and awkward way possible. You can clearly see they are going to be ignored by girls their entire college careers.

Colgate is a little guy whose tie and pants are perfect. He is a nerd but has learned enough from Bear to leave his shoes untied. He might just get laid before he graduates college.

ND guy is one the other end. He is hugging no one; too awkward to touch his classmates. He has the wrong color pants and his shoes match nothing. He presents himself strangely and his jacket doesn’t fit well.

 

[MadNY3]

Brunswick up 3-0 early

Saw Darien play Saturday. Played without Pokorny. Lost to Fairfield Prep. They are a disaster at FOGO. Surprised tonight was that close.

 

[relaxer]

Saw Darien play Saturday. Played without Pokorny. Lost to Fairfield Prep. They are a disaster at FOGO. Surprised tonight was that close.

Always been an Achilles heel for the program; they've been a disaster at FOGO pretty much every year for as long as I can remember. Last year they lost 25 out of 26 against Brunswick and the one win was a violation. Remarkable they've consistently reached the heights they have whilst getting destroyed on face-offs 9 out of 10 times they play another nationally relevant team.

The Prep game they were also missing their top defenseman and another starting attack man. All three were back last night, but everything looked very rusty -- sloppy stick work, and missed shots on wide open opportunities. They can and should improve a ton as guys get back up to speed, but Brunswick should've probably beaten them by more last night given how badly the played.

Anderson looked very good; his shooting stroke seems to have gotten smoother over the last year, and he was a beast on ground balls. He soaks checks as well as anyone, and even sliding hard to the body is no guarantee of success. I think he had 2 goals and either 1 or 2 assists.

Pokorny on the other side definitely looked rusty in his first game of action, but still had 3G, 1A with an insane BTB goal on the run from 10 yards out. We'll see how the flash and flare pans out next year in D1, but at the high school level he's as much of a human highlight reel as I've ever seen.

 

[DoctahLexus]

Good stuff from Anderson in this one. Seems like he is doing a better job of looking to pass than I saw in games from last year. Defense can't take their eyes off of him due to his threat to dodge. Should be a good party starter for us next season whether that is at attack or midfield.

 

[JeremyCuse]

Good stuff from Anderson in this one. Seems like he is doing a better job of looking to pass than I saw in games from last year. Defense can't take their eyes off of him due to his threat to dodge. Should be a good party starter for us next season whether that is at attack or midfield.

Hard to see how it isn't' attack at this point, he really needs to get a shot there first.

 

[MadNY3]

Always been an Achilles heel for the program; they've been a disaster at FOGO pretty much every year for as long as I can remember. Last year they lost 25 out of 26 against Brunswick and the one win was a violation. Remarkable they've consistently reached the heights they have whilst getting destroyed on face-offs 9 out of 10 times they play another nationally relevant team.

The Prep game they were also missing their top defenseman and another starting attack man. All three were back last night, but everything looked very rusty -- sloppy stick work, and missed shots on wide open opportunities. They can and should improve a ton as guys get back up to speed, but Brunswick should've probably beaten them by more last night given how badly the played.

Anderson looked very good; his shooting stroke seems to have gotten smoother over the last year, and he was a beast on ground balls. He soaks checks as well as anyone, and even sliding hard to the body is no guarantee of success. I think he had 2 goals and either 1 or 2 assists.

Pokorny on the other side definitely looked rusty in his first game of action, but still had 3G, 1A with an insane BTB goal on the run from 10 yards out. We'll see how the flash and flare pans out next year in D1, but at the high school level he's as much of a human highlight reel as I've ever seen.

I didn’t realize FOGO has been that bad historically. My kid plays them for the third year now….this is the first year he said going into the season that they were bad at it. Yikes (for them.)

 

[relaxer]

I didn’t realize FOGO has been that bad historically. My kid plays them for the third year now….this is the first year he said going into the season that they were bad at it. Yikes (for them.)

It's kind of astounding considering that their arch rival churns out a D1 level FOGO at least every other year. I'd say that over the past 20 years that Darien has been a national power, it has had one truly great FOGO, during the 2014-2015 seasons. From 2021-2022 they had an above average FOGO who could scrap it up and often get to 40-50% against the better guys, and from 2016-2018 they had an average FOGO who could at least win a few against top competition.

The other dozen or so years they have been so utterly helpless and if they get to 20% against a D1 FOGO they'd call that a win. I remember in 2019 they played back to back days on ESPNU against top 10 ranked St. Anthony's and Seton Hall Prep. They lost probably 45 out of 50 FOs combined across two games and held the lead late in the fourth quarter in both. I remember watching a game live in 2008 against Greenwich that cost them a national championship, where they not only lost every face-off, but gave up 4 out of 8 goals overall directly off of FO fast breaks.

If they had consistently good FOGO play (which the privates can always get by recruiting to fill the gap) they'd have been unstoppable this past decade; as it stands, when they had even average play from 2016-2018 they went on the third longest winning streak in the history of high school lacrosse.

 

[Powellfan]

Big game so far against the top ranked team in the country.

 

[Whitey23]

Gotta let the goalie get back in the crease, right?

 

[relaxer]

Gotta let the goalie get back in the crease, right?

The prep schools play college rules, so no 5 second count for the goalie to get back in the crease.

 

[Laxfanshutt]

 

[GrowTheGame]

How fast does Bear get on the field at Cuse? I can’t tell what his immediate level of impact will be anymore. Will he be the same as Spallina/Duffy/Millon?

 

[JeremyCuse]

How fast does Bear get on the field at Cuse? I can’t tell what his immediate level of impact will be anymore. Will he be the same as Spallina/Duffy/Millon?

I'd be surprised if he wasn't seeing time next year at worst as a 2nd middie and I think he definitely has a shot of being on the starting attack line next year.

 

[Powellfan]

I'd be surprised if he wasn't seeing time next year at worst as a 2nd middie and I think he definitely has a shot of being on the starting attack line next year.

Yes, if he's a top 10 recruit, I think it's very reasonable to expect some sort of starting position for him next year. Looking at the Power 100 from IL for this year's freshman class, a majority of the Top 20 are seeing significant playing time for their teams. He just had four points (at least) against the number one high school team in the country. With SU losing a starting attackman (Mule) and a top six midfielder (Stevens), he'll have an opportunity.

Where he plays, should be interesting. Probably depends on who SU pursues in the transfer portal. He's a lefty who seems to own that lefty wing spot like Hiltz likes, but SU currently has two lefties on attack now, so it's possible. Should be interesting to see how it plays out. I think Syracuse can afford to be picky in the transfer market when it comes to evaluating offensive players, with Anderson joining the fold.

 

[Laxfanshutt]

 

[Laxfanshutt]