Kyle Devitte and Owen Hart welcome Fork Union Military Academy head coach and athletic director Chris Panos to discuss the school’s structure and his lacrosse background. Panos explains Fork Union is a boys boarding school (grades 7-12) with postgraduate programs, including a PG lacrosse program he started, emphasizing discipline, no cell phones, a one-subject academic plan, and heavy strength and conditioning. He details the team’s eight-month schedule, high-level competition, tournament play, and college placement success. Panos recounts his box lacrosse journey from early inspiration to being drafted into the NLL and playing in Canada, then describes how box and sixes skills translate to the field through physicality, picks, rolls,and creativity. The conversation covers coaching transitions from NCAA to prep, building a program from scratch, recruiting nationally, managing roster realities, and advising families on realistic college lacrosse paths and financial aid.

Topics 00:22 Yearbook Mix Up 01:26 Meet Chris Panos 02:33 Fork Union Explained 04:21 Military School Culture 05:51 Program Structure Success 06:50 Box Career Origins 10:14 Box Skills to Field 11:58 Sixes Creativity Debate 13:58 Practice Drills Philosophy 16:54 Play Everywhere Advice 19:23 Coaching Career Transition 22:44 Head Coach Reality Check 23:53 No Admin Coaching 25:08 Adversity Makes Coaches 25:52 Building Program From Scratch 27:25 Small Roster, Big Results 29:28 Recruiting Nationwide Pipeline 32:09 Club Lacrosse Reality Check 34:22 Setting Realistic College Goals 36:54 Scholarships Exposure Strategy 39:51 Bus Breakdown Horror Story 42:43 Lacrosse Opens Doors 46:18 Wrap-Up and Thanks

The guest is Andover boys head coach and owner of HGR Lacrosse, Bryan Brazill. He describes building HGR’s lacrosse-focused indoor turf facility near Lawrence Airport and discusses his relationship with Andover legend Wayne “Pug” Pugliese, now the athletic director. The group reflects on a frustrating, defense-heavy and unusually parity-driven Massachusetts season, speculating about COVID-era developmental impacts. Brazill explains Andover’s choice to play fewer games to prioritize player development, IQ, and chemistry, and contrasts college versus high school buy-in and constraints. They discuss prep-school player movement, Brazil’s coaching approach across ages, Andover’s win over Acton-Boxborough, and upcoming playoff concerns including St. John’s Prep.

Topics

00:54 Podcast Kickoff

01:06 JV Season Grind

02:04 Meet Bryan Brazill

02:17 Inside HGR Facility

03:51 Taking Over Andover

07:04 Season Frustrations

09:08 Why This Year Feels Weird

11:42 Fewer Games Philosophy

15:21 Practice vs Play Debate

20:44 Merrimack Destiny Story

23:21 Intensity and Buy In

24:50 College Buy In Culture

26:57 High School Reality Check

28:58 Getting JP Back

31:09 Prep School Talent Grab

36:58 Coaching And Winning Mindset

39:47 Authenticity And Standards

45:00 Favorite Win And Playoffs

50:58 Coaches Care Closing

Kyle Devitte and Owen Hart discuss a difficult season personally and then preview the upcoming MIAA boys lacrosse playoffs, emphasizing how unusually unpredictable the year has been. They suggest parity might be influenced by more players leaving for prep/private schools and by broader talent saturation driven by youth coaching and participation (noting 208 Massachusetts varsity programs). They highlight surprise teams Winchester (16–1) and Bishop Feehan, and stress roster depth as increasingly decisive, especially across lower divisions. They review notable tight results involving St. John’s Prep and identify key D2 contenders (Reading, Billerica, Mansfield, Longmeadow). Sleepers include Newton North, Needham, St. John’s Shrewsbury, Weston, Foxborough and Bourne/Mashpee; favorites include Cohasset (D4), Norwell/Medfield (D3), Billerica (D2), and Lincoln-Sudbury (D1). They also pick NCAA winners: Princeton (D1), Adelphi (D2) and Tufts (D3).

MIAA boys lacrosse, MIAA, MIAA lacrosse, high school lacrosse, Winchester, Bishop Feehan, St. John’s Prep, Reading, Billerica, Mansfield, Longmeadow, Chasing the Goal podcast, lacrosse

Topics

00:52 Podcast Kickoff Banter

01:10 Season Grind Stories

02:06 Playoff Preview Setup

02:49 Why This Season Is Wild

04:57 Prep School Talent Drain

06:09 Talent Boom Theory

10:14 Coaching and Expectations

15:47 Surprise Teams Rising

17:51 Depth Wins Playoffs

22:16 St. Johns Prep Close Calls

24:09 Division 2 Contenders

24:52 Division 3 Chaos

27:44 Division Cutoffs Explained

28:33 Weston Moves Up

29:06 Giving D4 Some Love

29:31 D4 Towns and Cohasset

30:34 Wild Injury Tangent

32:32 Seeding and Dream Matchups

34:55 D1 Sleepers to Watch

37:00 Sleepers D2 to D4

40:58 Picking Division Favorites

44:05 LS Title Case in D1

46:07 Games to Watch Soon

47:34 NCAA Final Four Picks

51:07 Wrap Up and Thanks