Good morning. Here’s the latest from around the lacrosse world:
1. College fall ball comes with numerous causes, none more visible than that of the Headstrong Foundation, which funds blood cancer research and assists families of patients. The foundation, founded in 2006 by Hofstra men’s lacrosse player Nick Colleluori shortly before he died from non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma and continued by his family, announced Thursday it will host nine fundraising events in October featuring 38 NCAA men’s and women’s lacrosse teams. The slate:
Oct. 14 – Colleluori Classic at Hofstra (men) – Bucknell, Hartford, Hofstra, Lehigh and Penn State
Oct. 15 – Colleluori Classic at Hofstra (women) – Boston College, Hofstra, Michigan and UConn
Oct. 15 – Headstrong Classic at Rutgers (women) – Fairfield, Rutgers, Siena and Wagner
Oct. 15 – Colleluori Classic at LIU Post (women) – Adelphi, Central Connecticut State, Hofstra alumni, LIU Brooklyn, Manhattan, NYAC, Quinnipiac and Villanova
Oct. 15 – Colleluori Classic at Johns Hopkins (men) – Army, Albany, Johns Hopkins and Richmond
Oct. 15 – University City Classic at Penn (women) – Penn, Temple, USC and Virginia
Oct. 21 – Headstrong DIII Fall Scrimmages at Cabrini (men) - Cabrini, Montclair State and Scranton
Oct. 22 – University City Classic at Penn Park (men) – Bellarmine, Delaware, Drexel, Lafayette, Monmouth, Penn, Quinnipiac and UMBC
Oct. 22 - Headstrong DIII Fall Scrimmages at Cabrini (men)
2. The New England Patriots played the Kansas City Chiefs in the 2017 NFL season opener Thursday night. Why is that relevant to lacrosse fans? We love to tout the Patriots’ numerous ties — wide receiver Chris Hogan (Penn State), head coach Bill Belichick (Wesleyan), safeties coach Steve Belichick (Rutgers), defensive assistant Mike Pellegrino (Johns Hopkins) and recent football operations/player development addition Chris Mattes (Rutgers) all played lacrosse in college — to the fastest sport on two feet. In fact, there were several lacrosse mentions on NBC’s “Thursday Night Football.” We think we’ve seen this one before:
3. Jenna Collins, the catalyst of Navy’s historic run to the women’s lacrosse final four, took on all sorts of questions in this month’s “Give & Go.” From making it to the next meal during plebe summer, to doing barrel rolls and flying upside down over San Diego, to lessons learned from the legendary Cindy Timchal, Collins provides a glimpse of life at the service academy.
4. Dr. Jackie Berning, professor and chair of the health science department at the University of Colorado-Colorado Springs and a member of the US Lacrosse Sports Science and Safety Committee, debunks a couple of common sports nutrition myths she hears in lacrosse sideline conversations.