The Premier Lacrosse League has embraced social media as part of its core business strategies since its inception, and its latest social endeavor has gotten fans and players alike talking.
The PLL Top 50 has rolled out in recent weeks, starting at No. 50 and culminating on Thursday with the reveal of Matt Rambo as the top player in the league. This was voted on by PLL players and represents a wide demographic of positions, colleges and graduation years.
The Best Player, Voted by the Players.
— Premier Lacrosse League (@PremierLacrosse) December 12, 2019
1: @rattmambo
Rambo led the league in points & assists in the regular season on his way to being named the Jim Brown Most Valuable Player, the Attackman of the Year, Championship MVP, All-Star Captain, & All-Pro. #PLLTop50 pic.twitter.com/WqrKBTwGY6
We broke down the PLL Top 50 based on a few key categories.
Team
Naturally, each of the six PLL clubs were represented, though two teams stood out above the rest.
Whipsnakes: 12 players
Redwoods: 11 players
Atlas: 9 players
Chaos: 7 players
Chrome: 5 players
Archers: 6 players
Position
Breakdowns by position can be deceiving, as each team employs one starting goalkeeper and one primary faceoff specialist. The “midfield” category consists of strictly offensive midfielders. There are separate categories for short-stick defensive midfielders and long-stick midfielders.
Attack: 14 players
Midfield: 13 players
Defense: 8 players
Goalkeeper: 4 players
Short-stick defensive midfield: 4 players
Long-stick midfield: 4 players
Faceoff: 3 players
College
The 50 players represent 27 different colleges. Maryland tops the group by a wide margin.
Maryland: 10 players
Notre Dame: 5 players
Duke: 4 players
Johns Hopkins: 3 players
Albany, Denver, Hofstra, Rutgers, Syracuse: 2 players each
Cornell, Fairfield, Georgetown, High Point, Loyola, Massachusetts, North Carolina, Ohio State, Penn, Penn State, Princeton, Providence, RIT, Salisbury, Stony Brook, Towson, Villanova, Yale: 1 player each
Graduating Year
The PLL Top 50 largely consists of athletes who have graduated college within the last seven years, but there are several veterans who were recognized by their peers as key contributors. Brodie Merrill (Georgetown, 2005) represents the oldest player in the PLL Top 50. The graduating classes of 2017 and 2018 lead the way with eight players each.
2005: Brodie Merrill (45)
2006: Greg Gurenlian (40), Joe Walters (46)
2007: Kyle Hartzell (44)
2008: Paul Rabil (14)
2009: None
2010: Ned Crotty (25)
2011: Jordan MacIntosh (49), Joel White (24)
2012: Brent Adams (36), Drew Snider (41)
2013: Dominique Alexander (28), Jake Bernhardt (20), Tucker Durkin (12), Marcus Holman (7), Eric Law (32), Will Manny (13), Scott Ratliff (33)
2014: Mike Chanenchuk (11), Michael Ehrhardt (4), Kieran McArdle (48), Tom Schreiber (2), Jordan Wolf (8)
2015: Connor Buczek (17), Matt McMahon (47), Joe Nardella (29)
2016: Kyle Bernlohr (18), Ryan Brown (35), Matt Dunn (9), Myles Jones (26), Matt Kavanagh (10), Matt Landis (23), Blaze Riorden (6)
2017: Josh Byrne (34), Ryan Drenner (42), Garrett Epple (19), Jake Froccaro (16), Jarrod Neumann (15), Sergio Perkovic (38), Matt Rambo (1), Sergio Salcido (43)
2018: Trevor Baptiste (5), Jack Concannon (31), Connor Fields (3), Justin Guterding (21), Jules Heningburg (22), Connor Kelly (37), Ty Warner (39), Bryce Young (27)
2019: Ryder Garnsey (30), Tim Troutner (50)
National Team Connections
A majority of the PLL’s top players have played on U.S. national teams in their careers. Here’s everyone who took part from the Top 50. Anyone who played in a world championship competition qualifies. Shoutout to Joel White with the trifecta.
Senior: Tom Schreiber, Michael Ehrhardt, Trevor Baptiste, Marcus Holman, Jordan Wolf, Tucker Durkin, Paul Rabil, Jake Bernhardt, Joel White, Ned Crotty, Ryan Brown, Greg Gurenlian, Drew Snider, Kyle Hartzell, Joe Walters
U19: Matt Kavanagh, Connor Buczek, Joel White
Indoor: Matt Rambo, Trevor Baptiste, Blaze Riorden, Marcus Holman, Matt Dunn, Connor Buczek, Joel White, Connor Kelly, Drew Snider, Kyle Hartzell, Joe Walters, Paul Rabil, Kieran McArdle
Twitter Reaction
As with any ranking — whether it be best lacrosse players or best Seinfeld episodes — people made their voices heard online. Players, coaches and fans alike expressed their opinions on the rankings, and we compiled some of the best responses.
Joe Keegan thinks Scott Ratfliff should rank higher than No. 33.
Too many poles are looking to pull from 2 as soon as they cross midfield. @Srat2 keeps his head up and makes the extra pass. More assist opportunities than any defenseman. He should be higher in the #PLLTop50. pic.twitter.com/fXezJ1JroT
— Joe Keegan (@joekeegs) December 5, 2019
Where's John Sexton?
My only real complaint with the top 50 is that @John_Sexton46 isn’t in it
— Ryder Garnsey (@rsgarnz) December 10, 2019
He’s really good
Hanover College women's lacrosse coach Brandon Allwood wants to see the WPLL do a Top 50, too.
I’m really enjoying seeing what the @PremierLacrosse players think and who they put in their #PLLTop50.
— Brandon Allwood (@CoachAllwoodLax) December 10, 2019
I’d also like to see that @prowomenslax Top 50! A lot of talented women need that shout out as well.
And, of course, plenty of buzz surrounding the decision made by players to rank Tom Schreiber No. 2 and Matt Rambo No. 1.
.@TomSchreiber26 2019 Ranks
— Jake Watts (@jake_wattz) December 12, 2019
Points: 37 (2nd)- No other midfielder had more than 30
Scores: 19 (T-11th)
Assists: 18 (2nd)
Recency bias is the reason he slipped to #2. He is the best lacrosse player on the planet. https://t.co/tzbWu3Nwqn
Schreiber is def Top 2 but I know he ain't #2....... https://t.co/d4SrcwU4PK
— Official Lax Girl™ (@officiallaxgirl) December 12, 2019
Matt Rambo in 2017-18: 26A, 52TO
— Joe Keegan (@joekeegs) December 12, 2019
Matt Rambo in 2019: 26A, 24TO
The MVP took a leap as a QB in his 3rd pro season. https://t.co/CgG1WOwwi3