Coaches Calls

The three time Mann Cup champ is the new head coach of the Victoria Shamrocks of the Western Lacrosse Association.

This one’s for the defensive minds. Former National Lacrosse League champion defender and current Georgia Swarm assistant coach Alex Crepinsek joins the podcast for a conversation about the modern box game — how it’s played, how it’s coached, and how teams are building identity behind the scenes. Crepinsek talks about the transition from player to coach and how the Swarm have developed their fast,...

Maybe the youngest coach in the National Lacrosse League, Brett Hickey is the offensive coordinator for the Las Vegas Desert Dog and Raiders LC of the Rocky Mountain Junior League, bringing his own system-driven style and a fresh perspective to both teams. Not far removed from his own playing career where he scored over 200 goals playing under some of the game’s best coaches. In this episode, Hix...

Randy Mearns wiped his Instagram clean recently — a sure sign of rebirth. Last summer, Mearns was let go as head coach of St. Bonaventure’s men’s lacrosse program — a team he helped build from scratch over nine years, just as it was gaining momentum and producing NLL talent year after year. So what’s next? Mearnsi Lacrosse and a new role with the Greek National Team chasing a spot at the 2028 LA O...

Randy Mearns wiped his Instagram clean recently — a sure sign of rebirth. Last summer, Mearns was let go as head coach of St. Bonaventure’s men’s lacrosse program — a team he helped build from scratch over nine years, just as it was gaining momentum and producing NLL talent year after year. So what’s next? Mearnsi Lacrosse and a new role with the Greek National Team chasing a spot at the 2028 LA O...

What if you took a lifetime of lacrosse lessons and turned it into a blog to inspire and motivate people to live a more purposeful and present life? That’s what Marty Dinsdale is doing with Zero Zero. A multiple NLL champion, Minto Cup winner, and one of the cleanest players to ever suit up (28 penalty minutes over 10 seasons — never a major), Dinsdale played the game the right way. Since retiring...

Matt Beers is grizzled in every sense of the word. NLL champion, Captain, leader and soon to be the most penalized player in National Lacrosse League history. But he’s okay with that. Without the PIMS he wouldn’t be him. He wouldn’t be that guy feared by opponents and loved by teammates and coaches. 19ish pro fights, 3 trips to the finals, he’s rode the highest highs and felt the lowest lows in th...

Is Adam Mueller a lost legend of lacrosse — or simply the keeper of an American vision that the NLL could use today? Adam Mueller is the 2008 NLL Les Bartley Award winner for Coach of the Year, and his influence lives on through the countless players, coaches, and programs he’s helped shape over a lifetime in lacrosse. The kid from Jersey went on to coach the Philadelphia Wings, Minnesota Swarm, a...

Jake Elliott is the premiere play-by-play announcer in the sport of lacrosse. Guiness hasn’t stamped it yet, but no-one has called more lacrosse games. Period. WLA, Junior A, Mintos, Manns, Presidents Cups, World Championships, and holding down two play-by-play jobs in the National Lacrosse League with Vancouver and Las Vegas. But did you know he was a college attackman, WLA heavy weight fighter,...

Jordan Hall has a sweet gig. He’s the Offensive Coordinator & Director of Player Personnel for the San Diego Seals of the NLL. A west coast boy made good in the east but now coaching in sunny San Diego and with Team Canada Sixes. A chance to work with the Merrill brothers and Joe Tsai, living the lacrosse dream. From the mean streets of Surrey to a number one overall pick in the NLL in 2007, h...

Ian Llord knows how to win. Nicknamed the “Llord of the Rings” by the Fort Erie Times , Ian built a career defined by championships—NLL titles, Mann Cups, a Minto, a Prezzy, and now provincial and national championships as a coach. A Top 10 all-time leader in NLL games played, he’s seen every era, system, and rule change the game has thrown his way. Back with the Rochester Knighthawks chasing one...

Tyrell Hamer- Jackson is one of the most popular players in the National Lacrosse League. One of the most followed lacrosse influencers on the planet, a fan favorite and an entrepreneur – but he’s never played a full season in the NLL. His is a story of perseverance. Being one of the games most recognizable faces, while simultaneously scrapping to become a full-timer comes with some built-in weigh...

Goats recognize Goats and lacrosse broadcasting legend John Gurtler has had a front row seat to watch the evolution of John Tavares and the Buffalo Bandits as their lead Play-By-Play Voice for the past 21 years. A team in the midst of a three-peat and vying to become the first team in NLL history to win 4 consecutive titles. Gurtler is the reigning NLL Media Person of the Year and has called a rec...

Andrew McBride is the defensive coordinator for the Colorado Mammoth of the National Lacrosse League … again. A team that has missed the playoffs in the two years since he wasn’t behind the bench of the team that went to back-to-back league finals, in his last two seasons coaching before taking some time away with his family. He’s an underdog, a captain, a champion and a coach. In this podcast we’...

Dane Dobbie was one of the fiercest competitors the lacrosse world has ever seen and this summer he announced his retirement from playing the game he loves but is immediately taking on a management role with the Calgary Roughnecks – the Lacrosse Operations Adviser for the team he played 13 seasons for and won two championships with. My broadcasting career started in the BC Junior ‘A’ League in 200...

The shorter the bio, the greater the man. Simply, John Tavares is the GOAT. The National Lacrosse League’s all-time leader in goals and points. He won 4 championships as a player with the Buffalo Bandits and another 8 Mann Cups while casually summering north of the 49th. But in recent years, he’s found equal, if not even more success as a head coach. He just completed the NLL’s second ever 3-peat....

What does it mean to be a lax rat? New Westminster Salmonbellies head coach Jason Bishop played in the 1995 Mann Cup, falling to the Six Nations Chiefs at Queen's Park Arena. He's now the head coach of the Salmonbellies who will host the 2025 Mann Cup at - you guessed it - Queen's Park Arena. A 30-year shot at redemption for the life long lacrosse obsessed player's coach. In this e...

I bet you didn’t know that Mike Keenan’s first ever coaching gig was the high school lacrosse coach at Toronto’s Don Mills Collegiate. He grew up playing lacrosse in Whitby/Oshawa and the rest is history. Mike Keenan is one of the most successful coaches ever. He began his hockey coaching career at Forest Hill Collegiate in Toronto, and his star ascended rapidly. He won an Ontario championship in...

I grew up in Ladner, and I wear that with pride. But whatever Four Winds-drinking, potato-munching, flatland patriotism I can muster is nothing compared to Logan Schuss.  I’ve watched him grow up. I even played a bit of lacrosse with his older brother, Carlton, and Logan was always there. Thursday night Pioneer games, Friday night Junior A games, mid-week Intermediate B, Peewee, Novice, or Tyke at...

One of the NLL's unsung heroes. A man behind the curtain. Jeremy Tallevi, an assistant coach alongside Derek Keenan for over two decades, is an unsung personality in the league. His career began as a young scout during the Toronto Rock's Les Bartley dynasty era. He then coached the Western Mustangs in the CUFLA for 20 years, winning multiple Baggataway Cup national championships. His coach...

Every team has its unsung heroes. Its people behind the curtain. Its secret weapons. Sean Ferris has been one of those guys since the 90s! The NLL's International Man of Mystery, and that's part of the reason this podcast exists: to shine a light on some of these legends, pick their brains, and tell their stories, honoring their impact on the game. Sean Ferris started as a scout in the NLL...

It’s always fun talking to the O and D coaches in the NLL. The real lax rats. They always bring a very open and honest dialogue about what they’re up to, all in an effort to grow the game. They’re passionate and they see the game from a unique angle. Today is one of the goods guys of the game. NLL superfan as we’ll learn, but always one of the just the nicest dudes to see at the arena, O coach for...

Dan Carey is the first and only General Manager and VP of lacrosse operations for the NEW incarnation of the Rochester Knighthawks of the National Lacrosse League. A role in which he oversees all aspects of lacrosse operations, including team services, player acquisitions, and personnel development. He was named the NLL’s GM of the Year in 2023. The team has made back-to-back playoff appearances i...

Merry Christmas! We just passed our one-year anniversary, so thanks to everyone who has downloaded, subscribed, commented, and listened to an episode. I appreciate you, thanks for an amazing year. It’s that time of year when stockings are filled with lacrosse balls, and kids are unwrapping awesome new gloves and shafts from under the tree. Most years, we get a little mini-break from the NLL, but b...

With his long stride and familiar gait, it's hard to miss Robert Hope on a lacrosse floor. He also gets loud and takes it as a compliment like any good defender should. He's an NLL champion, World champion, multiple Mann Cup champion and one of the longest serving captains in the NLL today. He's been one of the league's best defenders for a decade. He's also the head coach of the Peterborough Juni...