There is one question that has lingered in the back of my mind ever since I got on the bus ride home after my very last college lacrosse game. It was a bitter ending to my collegiate lacrosse career, one that you can see coming, yet there’s nothing you can do to prepare for the feelings you’ll have. 

“What the hell do I do now?”

To make it more difficult, my team struggled in my senior year. Add in the pandemic cutting my junior season short, and my last game was emotional. I remember the final buzzer going off and thinking, “Well, that’s it. My whole life of competitive sports has led up to right now, and it’s over.”

If I wasn’t still on the field, I probably would’ve burst into tears. It’s a hard reality many of us must come to face – only one percent of college athletes find themselves playing competitively after college.

The thing about lacrosse, though, is that many players know this to be their fate. In this part of lacrosse’s history, it’s still growing. It’s still the underdog, hidden in the shadow of professional football, baseball, and hockey. There’s just not a ton of opportunities to play beyond the college level.

So, how do the majority of us who don’t go pro stay involved?

Like I said before, in this part of lacrosse’s history, it’s still growing, and that’s okay. We’re only in the early stages of this sport’s rise in popularity. Give it some time, and we’ll see how prosperous lacrosse can become.

Why am I so confident in this? Fans of the game can already see it happening. The PLL put lacrosse on ESPN and NBC and is pushing more and more kids to pick up a stick. Lacrosse is the fastest-growing college sport in America. The sport will be more significant tomorrow than it is today.

This is great news for us retired college players. If you want to help contribute to the growth and success of this game, the game itself is inviting you to stay. All you need is to find what you want to do.

For me, it may be writing. That’s what I’m doing now, and that’s what I enjoy. But these things can change, of course. For you, it could be coaching, or maybe it’s working with a lacrosse team at the youth, high school, college, or professional level. It could be organizing tournaments, officiating, or producing content and media for other fans to consume. There are so many ways to be involved and help lacrosse grow.

We’re in an interesting time for the sport. What we’re witnessing are the building blocks for tremendous growth and future success of the game. The bricks have been laid out, but the building won’t construct itself. There needs to be incentive, opportunity, and most importantly, people who are driving the sport in the right direction.

Paul Rabil is a perfect example of this. A co-founder of the PLL, he is one of the most important people for the game. I remember watching him as a little kid when he was dominating college lacrosse and then in MLL. He became the face of the sport, was known as the game’s first million-dollar man, and is one of the greatest to ever play.

Now years down the line, his playing career has come to an end, but he’s still the face of lacrosse. I looked up to him as a player, but now more than ever, I respect him as a pioneer of the game. And in 10 years, we’ll have him to thank for where he has taken the sport.

The last college lacrosse game of your life is when many of us will see the end of our competitive playing days. It’s a very hard pill to swallow – trust me, I’ve been there.

Like many of you, my summers were spent at lacrosse tournaments, my eyes were glued to the TV in May during the NCAA Tournament, and I’ve broken a few windows from shooting around in my backyard. We all have reasons to love this game, and there will come a time when you take off your helmet for the final time. But I invite you to take a step back and reflect on what the game has given you: friends, family, fun memories, and maybe some gnarly bruises.

The final contest of your college career doesn’t have to be a bitter end. It can be a sweet start to something great, something that will contribute to the game on a level way out of your own reach, but something that you can sit back and watch knowing you were part of its greatness.

For those of you who love this game as much as me, who have faith in the success of this game as much as me, I invite you to stay involved. Don’t let the lacrosse in your blood die out on that field. Lacrosse doesn’t have to end there. Instead, help build a legacy that only goes up from this point on.

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When it comes to accolades, SUNY Brockport men’s lacrosse head coach Ben Wineburg does not fall short.

As a player, Wineburg led his Nazareth College team to two undefeated regular seasons and two national championship appearances in a row. As the starting goalie, Wineburg was the backbone of the team, particularly as a senior when he led his team to the 1996 national title, earning First Team All-American, National Player of the Year, Goalie of the Year, and MVP of the championship game that season.

Just a few years later in 2000, Ben Wineburg became the head coach of the newly-revived SUNY Brockport men’s lacrosse team, restarting the sport at a varsity level for the first time in 21 years. Another 21 years later, Wineburg is still going strong.

His inspiration to coach grew from his desire to remain in the sporting environments he loved and to take after his former coaches, whom he truly looked up to, and it looks like he found the perfect niche. Wineburg has no complaints as to what he does today. 

“Of course, the experience has its ups and downs. (There’s) lots of good days, lots of bad days. But it is very rewarding,” Wineburg said. “To me, it’s about building relationships with the guys. I try to make an effort to get to know them. It can be hard to watch them come and go over the course of four years, but to me, that is the fun part.”  

Heading into his 22nd year as Brockport head coach, Wineburg has held on to a few memories that will be forever important to him. For a team like Brockport, SUNYAC conference play has always hosted the most important games of the season. That’s where he finds his favorite memories.  

“My first big win in the conference was when we beat Oneonta at home in 2005,” Wineburg said, referring to his team’s 11-10 overtime victory. “Also, when Geneseo came in ranked No. 9 in the country (in 2010), we beat them.”

One of his most recent big wins came in 2018, when Wineburg led the Golden Eagles to a 10-8 victory over SUNY Cortland in conference play.

“Obviously beating Cortland a few years ago,” he said. “I don’t think they had lost a regular season SUNYAC game in 10 years. That was a great memory.”  

It was a big win, because it was the first time Brockport beat Cortland in 16 years and snapped the Red Dragon’s 56-game win streak in regular season conference play, a record that dated all the way back to 2009.

On top of what his players do on the field, Wineburg takes a lot of pride in other aspects of their lives as well. He looks on them as family, which means he wants to see them succeed in everything they do.  

“It’s not just about winning games,” Wineburg explained. “It’s about being successful both on and off the field. I want to lead them in a way to help them get their degree, to create balance with academics and athletics. I try to teach them that if you want something done right, you do it yourself. And to be a well-rounded person.”  

Wineburg has found success in that as well, as his team has recently been crushing the classroom.  

“Last year, we received an academic award for the team, and for the last four semesters, we’ve (collectively) held an average GPA of above a 3.0,” he said. “You have to give a lot of credit to the athletes.”

Wineburg’s love for the game and greater love for his players is what has driven his to keep going, even though all the ups and downs that come with restarting a dormant program, he said.

While his time as a player has long been over, Ben Wineburg still finds success, inspiration, good times, and gratitude as a head coach. That’s what makes his job so special.

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