Jon Brand

  (1:59 PM)

What's going on everyone? We've got another chat for you today, presented by ESPN and Inside Lacrosse. John Jiloty, IL's Editor-in-Chief and IL/ESPN analyst Quint Kessenich are with us today, so let's get chatting...

Jack (Albany, NY)

What's the deal with the Danes? Any hope left?

John Jiloty

  (2:01 PM)

When you think about all that Albany lost on offense (Thomson and Resetarits namely), you gotta give them some time to find themselves. Their D looked really strong against Hopkins so be patient with the offense. They'll be players in the postseason.

WoodyUK

Do you think scientists will ever find Lacrosse life outside of the MD/VA universe?.....I think (and I know you guys do) that its actually just a myth that Lacrosse exists in upsate NY, the midwest, Cali, FL and TX or even in other countries? Also Quint where did you play in College?, I have watched you on TV for years but you never mention it?

Quint Kessenich

  (2:03 PM)

Scientists at Johns Hopkins Hospital are working on it. Woody you have selective hearing. I mention west coast expansion very week (Tuesday spoke about Matt Drenan living in SD and having to evacuate his house because of the wildfires). On Saturday talked about SU middie Steven Brooks being from Illinois. Check the tapes baby!

TheJman (Austin, TX)

Hey guys, congrats on a great weekend! To the surprise of many, myself included, Notre Dame has gotten off to a terrific start. After Saturday's game against UNC, it looks like they get a easy ride to the GWLL Final with only Denver and Drexel seeming to pose a threat. With a #25 Strength of Schedule ranking, does the Irish need to win the Great West to make the tournament?

Quint Kessenich

  (2:09 PM)

If Notre Dame beats UNC this weekend they should make the NCAA tournament barring a total meltdown. They will be favored to win every remaining game on their schedule. Their seeding will take a hit because of their SOS.

Jon Brand, Inside Lacrosse

Hey, we're having technical difficulties with the server right now, but we hope to be back online in a second...stay tuned!

Mike (Boston, MA)

Im pysched for ESPN's coverage this weekend. Any plans for more? What would it take?

John Jiloty (Inside Lacrosse)

ESPN has done an AMAZING job covering lacrosse on TV. It really is pretty unbelievable to think how many games are being broadcast this year, even looking back three years ago. Whether more games will be on ESPN I don?t know. But I do know that ESPNU grows its distribution every year, and I know lacrosse is doing better and better on TV so I'm definitely hopeful. Guys like Sean Bratches, Burke Magnus and John Vassallo are important allies to have.

greyhawk

If duke wins it all this year, should they have an * next to their name since they are using 5 classes of players against all other teams whom are only allowed to use 4 classes?

John Jiloty (Inside Lacrosse)

I can pretty much assure you Duke won't get an * if they win it all. Think about the recruits they lost in 06. Clausen, Kocis and Dowd all decided not to go there. That took them from No. 2 overall to outside our top 10. I see where people come from when arguing that the Duke guys shouldn't have gotten a fifth year, but no way this team deserves an asterisk. It all evened out in the end.

Justin (Baltimore, MD)

Loyola's freshman goalie's played great. How will he do against Duke? Where does he rank compared with fellow frosh Ghitelman and Galloway?

John Jiloty (Inside Lacrosse)

I think Hagelin has been great for Loyola so far. His numbers are better than John Galloway's and we actually ranked him ahead of JG in this week?s Freshmen Rankings. We'll see how Jake does against Duke this weekend. Loyola?s played some solid teams, but not Duke (or Virginia). Although, looking at Duke so far I don't know if even the great Quint Kessenich could post a W over the Devils. Ghitelman's #s haven't been great but he's undefeated.

Chad (Fairfax, VA)

Quint: Virginia/Princeton this weekend...who wins and why? We know Virginia can hold its own against Princetons Attack. How well does Princeton's Midfield have to play against an outstanding defensive midfield with a couple of names like Will Barrow and Mike Timms

Quint Kessenich (IL/ESPN)

Virginia is a slight favorite because of their team speed. I expect the cavaliers to chase on defense in an attempt to inject some tempo into the game. If Princeton's Alex Berg wins faceoffs and Alex Hewit is his typical self between the pipes an upset is not out of the question.

SeaLax (Seattle, WA)

Do you think that we will see less success coming from Canadians playing in the NCAA next year when the new crosse specs come into effect? Also, I know that over 14,000 tickets were sold before the start of this year's Face-Off Classic but what was the final attendance for the games?

John Jiloty (Inside Lacrosse)

Final attendance at the Konica Minolta Face-Off Classic was 19,163. We were pretty fired up at that result considering it was pretty cold and windy last Saturday in Baltimore. Everyone I spoke to, from fans, to sponsors to players and coaches seemed to think it went well, so that?s important. As for Foxboro, I don't understand the naysayers. I think it will do very well somewhere around 28K tickets sold already, which is well ahead of last year's pace. I even spoke to Bill Belichick about this Saturday at the F/O Classic he's fired up too. Yeah, I just name-dropped.

Ronald J. Dio, Buffalo NY

Who is the most dominant player that flies under the radar?

Quint Kessenich (IL/ESPN)

Ryan Hoff, Sean Dougherty, and Joey Kemp of Notre Dame are three guys who don't get the national respect they deserve. Loyola's LSM PT Ricci is superb, caught him on tape making plays. UMBC's Terry Kiminer is #2 in career midfield scoring nationally right now behind Paul Rabil, yet nobody every talks about Kiminer.

Mark (Ridgewood)

How does Loyola match up with Duke this year? Despite the upset last year, do you think they can take down Duke?

John Jiloty (Inside Lacrosse)

I don't think Loyola can take down Duke this weekend. I?m not sure who can take down Duke this year, outside Hopkins and maybe Virginia. The Greyhounds have looked solid so far, don't get me wrong. But Duke has answered pretty much every question mark that existed coming into the season. Their offense is deep, their defense is solid and they're winning face-offs. P.T. Ricci has been solid on D, but they don't have the personnel to run with Zack Greer and Matt Danowski and Max Quinzani on attack.

Jon (Richmond, Va.)

Hey Quint, thanks for chatting with us. You covered the Johns Hopkins-UMBC game Thursday night. Wanted to get your thoughts on the Retrievers? Do they have what it takes to contend with Albany in the America East?

Quint Kessenich (IL/ESPN)

UMBC ran their first midfield into the ground on Tuesday night. When the weather gets warmer and they have to play 2 games in a weekend that'll be a huge concern. Dom Zimmerman must develop more depth on the offensive end of the field. I was impressed with Ryan Smith, Bobby Atwell and Jeremy Blevins on Tuesday night.

Chris (Tenafly, NJ)

Princeton's offense has looked suspect. Will they be able to hang with UVA this weekend? What do you think of Hewit's play so far?

John Jiloty (Inside Lacrosse)

Hewit has seen a lot of rubber, which is interesting. He had to make a lot of saves against Canisius, and obviously the Tigers didn?t exactly hold off Hopkins in the first half last week at the Face-Off Classic. But that second half had to buoy their spirits and should provide some momentum this weekend. I don?t see Princeton winning, but I think it will be a close game. Bill Tierney has one of the best defensive minds in the game ? this one will be close.

Felix (The Strong Island)

So far this year, UNC has proven itself against top competition, and they play a tough game tomorrow against Notre Dame. What do you think of John Haus' crew so far this year? Can the hold up in the ACC?

Quint Kessenich (IL/ESPN)

The ACC is by far the best conference in lacrosse. Next week the Heels play Duke. I have ranked UNC at #4 because I like their goal scoring attack led by Bart Wagner, their faceoff man may be the best around (Shane Walerhoefer) and Grant Zimmerman is the most improved netminder in the country. Tim Kaiser can cover the opponents #1 guy. The Heels have got to cut down on the penalties though.

Carl (Bellevue, WA)

How do you feel about the new lacrosse stick specifications that come into effect next year?

John Jiloty (Inside Lacrosse)

Pretty major stuff. I think these new specs are going to have a BIG impact on the game and the way its played. Going to be very interesting to see how it plays out. I know the manufacturers have been against the changes, so stay tuned on this one. I know one of the issues is the ball staying in the pockets too long, and how dramatically that?s evolved the way the game has played. We?ll see what these new specs do to the game.

Alex (Burlington, VT)

Am enjoying the ESPNU coverage so far this season. With the ESPN game this weekend and more, it seems like there's more coverage this year than there has been in the past. You guys think this trend will continue?

Quint Kessenich (IL/ESPN)

If you build it, they will come. When the cameras show up ? if you make a play ? we?re going to make sure it gets seen by the folks at Sportscenter. The revolution will be televised

Dan (Camp Bruno)

Any thoughts on Brown's chances out in Denver this weekend? Will Brown continue to improve under Lars Tiffany and return to relevance in the Ivy League?

John Jiloty (Inside Lacrosse)

We talked about this on InsideLacrosse.com this week: how disappointing Denver has been. That's partly because we might have overhyped them as a dark horse in the preseason, but I still think they have a solid squad. I think Lars is doing a great job at Brown, and this will definitely be a close game. I'm taking Denver - love their offensive firepower and Austin Konkel has been great in net. They should have beaten Towson. Anyone else shocked that the Pioneers play their second weekend with back-to-back game? Amazing.

Bob "Cat" goldthwait

Who is the best long-stick middie in D1?

John Jiloty (Inside Lacrosse)

As Quint noted, PT Ricci has been a big breakout player for Loyola. I like Nick O?Hara at Duke and I really like Mike Timms at Virginia. Timms is one of the longest players I?ve seen. He also has a great understudy in Bray Malphrus. Could someday make the Kyle Sweeney-Brodie Merrill transition from a few years back at Georgetown. Drexel?s Steve Grossi is excellent as well.

Joe (Long Island)

Quint - what do you think of the direction Hofstra is heading?

Quint Kessenich (IL/ESPN)

Coach Seth Tierney will get the Pride into the top 20. He can coach and can recruit. He just could never score on me in practice at JHU (That's for you, WoodyUK). Never.

Jon Brand

  (2:51 PM)

Ok everyone. Thanks for posting and sorry for the technical delays. We'll be back next week same time and same place. Don't forget to check insidelacrosse.com this weekend and watch ESPN at noon tomorrow for Quint Kessenich and Dave Ryan.