Iron Horse Lacrosse 2023 Players and Parents:

As of September 1, Juniors (2023s) are able to receive communications, texts, letters and phone calls from NCAA college coaches. This can be an exciting time but please keep in mind that September 1 is just the very beginning of the recruiting process for the 2023 class.  Each of our players that want to play in college will have very different recruiting journeys.  Maybe you will get a lot of interest from schools tomorrow. In that case my advice would be to keep an open mind and learn about the various schools, the course of studies they offer and the culture of their programs. I would advise against writing off any opportunity at this juncture of the process. Regardless, even if you do receive a lot of interest tomorrow you can’t stop bettering yourself both academically and athletically. If you do stop working any opportunities you have now will no longer exist at the end of the fall circuit. I have seen this cautionary tale too many times even from players that verbally commit to tremendous programs. They get comfortable, stop working on their grades or their games and the next thing you know the opportunities no longer exist. 

 If you don’t receive any recruiting emails, calls or texts tomorrow or maybe you did not receive any interest from the schools you have dreamt about, please don’t fret. You are like the vast majority of the 2023 class. My advice would be to keep working in the classroom and on the field. Ask your coaches to be brutally honest with you on what you have to do to reach your goals, listen to them and then put in the work on a consistent basis. 

Do your best to control what you can control and do not worry about the rest. First, make sure you scrub all your social media. There should be no inappropriate content on any of your social media. Second, make sure you have a respectful voicemail message setup. Third, make sure you have a highlight film from the summer. Then email your highlight film to me so we can get your highlight film on our You Tube Channel. You should also load your most recent highlights to ConnectLax or Sports Recruits. Fourth, make sure you have an off-season lifting program in place that is appropriate for you and execute it. Fifth, make sure you attend our fall practices and skill sessions as consistently as possible. If you are playing another sport this fall, do not put your stick in the closet for the entire fall. Please find some time throughout the week to work on your skills on your own and maybe you can make some skill sessions on the weekends as well. Sixth, if you are playing in tournaments this fall communicate your fall schedule to the schools you are interested in. Seventh, get an ACT and SAT tutor if you are able and religiously attend those tutoring sessions.  Finally, get the best grades you possibly can this semester by studying effectively.  

You will see some players commit tomorrow or the next couple of days but a large percentage of the 2023 class will not commit within the next month or even the next 6 months. So please do not panic. 

Just so everyone is aware there are two unique challenges presented to the 23 class. The first is the reduced number of roster spots on Division 1 rosters because of players taking an extra year of eligibility as a result of the pandemic. The second is the prevalent use of the transfer portal. Instead of filling roster holes with new recruits, a lot of division 1 teams are filling roster holes with proven transfers from other colleges (D3 or D1). Because of these challenges many 23s are reclassifying or at least considering reclassifying as a 2024. We ran into a lot of 23s playing as 24s this past summer. Reclassifying is an option. If you are considering reclassifying, please feel free to reach out to me with any questions and we can go through the pros and cons. 

Please remember September 1 is just a starting point for our 23s. Truth be told we are still working hard for our 2022 uncommitted players. There are a lot of programs still looking for 22s at this time. Heck in mid July there were still Ivy teams looking to fill 2022 spots.  Year after year we have had players commit in the second semester of their senior year to wonderful schools. Those players never stopped working and getting better.  As a result, opportunities presented themselves. This year will be no exception. 

So if playing in college is something you truly want, don’t give up after tomorrow. It is ok to be frustrated for 24 hours but then put that emotion on the fire of your preparation and let it fuel you to new heights. There is a lot of game left. Keep putting in the work day after day and watch what happens. I bet you might just avail yourself of some great opportunities before you graduate. And I do know if you work as hard as you can, you will have no regrets when it's all said and done regardless of what you choose to do.

Please know we are working for our players behind the scenes. I have sent many emails and been on many calls  over the past weeks.  Helping our players achieve their dreams is why we do this. It is what we enjoy the most.  That will not end tomorrow or next week or the next month. We will continue to be here for you throughout your journey. Do your best to enjoy the process of getting better and control what you can control.  

 If you have questions or concerns about recruiting, please feel free to reach out to your local coaches or myself. I am happy to help you. 

Coach Surran 

Christopher B. Surran, PLLC

5050 Quorum Drive

Suite 700

Dallas, Texas 75254

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