A Combine is a test of athletic ability, using several “standard” benchmark tests for assessing speed and different categories of strength.  The NLC Combine tests for a lot more.

The NLC Combine is Lacrosse-specific, meaning that it makes athletic tests more realistic to the game, and it uses skills tests as well.  NLC is the first and only Combine to create such a test for athletes and college coaches interested in recruiting them, and the results are more relevant to how a lacrosse player will actually perform once on the field.

Almost all the other combines advertised to the lacrosse community are glorified football combines, put on by football groups.  NLC is the ONLY combine put on by the lacrosse community for the lacrosse community.  This is why Inside Lacrosse Magazine has given NLC their endorsement, partnering in the venture.

For several reasons: Number One, the NLC Combine data will be uniform from location to location, all around the county.  This means, that, no matter where a player comes from, and no matter what their statistics, coaches will be able to assess players from around the country using the same lacrosse-specific measurements.  NLC levels the playing field.  In addition to standardizing the tests, NLC makes the tests more objective than other combines, using only state-of-the-art electronic equipment, which eliminates human error or favoritism.  Coaches don’t have to rely on hand-held times from parents or coaches and wonder how truly accurate they might be.  In addition, the fact that the NLC Combine is Lacrosse-specific makes the data more telling and more compelling to coaches.  While an athlete might be fast or strong, that doesn’t mean that they will be able to shine on the lacrosse field.

Two of the founding members of NLC are Joe Walters and Matt Danowski.  They are two of the biggest names to ever have played the game. Read about them in “Our Team.”  We received input on recruiting needs from top college coaches, including now-retired Hall of Fame Coach Jack Emmer, the winningest coach in NCAA men’s lacrosse history and Director or Men’s Lacrosse for the Federation of International Lacrosse.  In addition, Strength and Conditioning Expert, Ben Shear, was instrumental in devising lacrosse-specific athletic testing.  His ground-breaking research in lacrosse biomechanics give him singular insight into what lacrosse athleticism translates into in on-field play.  Also, Inside Lacrosse Magazine, the sport’s most serious and credible source of lacrosse information, is a proud affiliate in the NLC lacrosse-specific Combine.

The NLC Combine is designed to assess both male and female lacrosse players’ lacrosse-specific athleticism and lacrosse skills.  

NLC caters to high school athletes, (grades 9-12) primarily, because we assist in getting those lacrosse players noticed by college lacrosse coaches, trying to recruit for their teams.  Younger players (8^th graders) who are extremely serious about playing college lacrosse can also be tested, learning where they might focus much of future training.

Definitely.  The Combine tests lacrosse-specific athleticism and skills.  Coaches will want this information, regardless of your position, because it will be a standardized indicator of the performance they are looking for.

The NLC Combine takes roughly two hours to complete.  Athletes are put through an average of 10 stations by testers.  There are generally three to four time slots per NLC Combine event.

The NLC Combine can be retaken as many times as a lacrosse player wants, similar to how high school students retake the SATs, hoping to score higher and higher.  As the NLC Combine is retaken, higher scores WILL replace lower ones already used in an athlete’s profile.

Yes, athletes can receive a full refund, as long as they contact us at least 24 hours prior to the Combine test for which they registered.

Athletes should arrive roughly 45 minutes prior to their Combine starting time.

Athletes going through Combine testing are required to bring their stick, gloves, and turf shoes and/or cleats, depending on the venue.  They are also encouraged to bring water.  

NLC Combine data will be incorporated into the NationalLacrosseCombine.com website, where college coaches from across the US will search athletes, depending on their own recruiting criteria.  Combine data will clarify for coaches how prospective recruits truly measure up against the competition from around the country. 

After an athlete registers for a combine, they are able to create a profile page with general contact information.  After he or she has completed combine testing, scores are added to their profile automatically.  If an athlete wants to register for a complete recruiting profile on the NLC site, they will also be able to add academic information, playing statistics, photos and video highlights, making their personal profile the most thorough and compelling online recruiting vehicle available. 

No other recruiting site has this combine data attached to it, and no other combine is as relevant and important to college coaches.  

There are other recruiting websites that allow athletes to create online profiles, and these sites claim that “every” coach in the country uses their service.  The NLC site verifies all academic information and statistics provided by athletes, and NLC utilizes the standardized Combine data to level the playing field for coaches overwhelmed by regional statistics and incomplete player information. This verification process gives coaches assurance that the information provided is not only complete, but also accurate. The NLC Combine data actually allows coaches to evaluate players from around the country intelligently and allows athletes from all regions and programs to compete evenly and fairly.

NLC is quickly rolling out their proprietary lacrosse-specific Combine testing around the country.  Athletes can find the location nearest to them and register online.

When an athlete registers for an NLC Combine, they will receive a free 1-year subscription to Inside Lacrosse Magazine, a $34.95 value.  Also, when an athletes registers for a Combine at the same time he or she registers for the online recruiting service that NLC offers, they immediately receive a 15% discount off the price of the two separate services.

But, what if an athlete doesn't see a conveniently-located combine city? Can a combo discount still apply?

Yes.  In this situation, the full price for the recruiting service will be billed up front, and the combine will be discounted to $50 when the new location becomes available to the already-registered NLC recruiting site athlete.  This way, the same total discount price applies.

NLC has created a win-win situation for athletes wanting to play college lacrosse and college coaches looking for the perfect athletes for their teams.  When high school athletes register for the NLC recruiting service, they get themselves maximum exposure to coaches around the country. When an athlete registers, they can start to create their online recruiting profile with personal information, game photos and video highlights of their game.  Academic information, player statistics, and Combine data will all be input by NLC, once that information has been verified by the athlete’s school, coaches and Combine testing site.  When the profile has been completed, athletes can either search schools of interest from a list, or they can contact college coaches directly and include a link to their personal NLC Recruiting profile page.  

One of the features of having an NLC recruiting account is having the ability to get on a coach’s radar from early on.  If a younger athlete (8^th or 9^th grade) truly has potential to play at the highest level, he or she can contact a coach with a partial profile, and that coach can then 1) recognize that they have to keep an eye on this standout and 2) keep track of the athlete’s progress and development over the years through the NLC system--without having to worry about violating recruiting protocol.

Unlike many recruiting websites which allow registrants to input their own critical academic information and sports statistics, NLC makes sure that this info is accurate.  After an athlete registers for the NLC recruiting service, he or she must have their high school provide proof of GPA, class size, etc.  They must have their coaches provide lacrosse statistics.  And their Combine scores and other standardized tests scores must come from authentic sources as well. Coaches, then, can be sure that what they are seeing is the real deal, not information which has been fabricated or “improved upon” to look better amongst competition.

Uploading video of an athlete’s lacrosse highlights is an easy part of the registration process.  And incorporating video into a profile is an effective way to provide coaches with this additional piece of the recruiting puzzle without burdening them with yet another DVD that sits on their desks.  It also becomes cheaper for athletes, since they aren’t copying and shipping their highlights to every coach they are interested in contacting.  Currently, the NLC website allows athletes to upload highlight reels, but coming soon is the additional ability for an athlete to add their “Latest & Greatest video highlight” from a recent game, camp, etc.

If an athlete does not have their highlights ready, this is not a problem.  They can be added to a profile at any time.  And if an athlete needs assistance in creating the highlights, NLC can assist in that process as well.

NLC has its own reputable video editing service that understands lacrosse and can create exciting examples of an athlete’s performances on tape.  This option is available for purchase as part of registration process to the NLC Recruiting site.

An athlete can search all lacrosse programs in the country by School name, State, Division and by girls’ or boys’ program.  This search feature opens up the possibilities for athletes who might not know of all their options for recruitment into the right program.

Part of the registration process involves listing an athlete’s top five schools of interest.  These coaches will automatically be notified and sent a direct link to the athlete’s personal recruiting profile after the athlete’s registration process is complete and verified information has been incorporated.  Athletes can send emails from NLC to other coaches beyond their top five as well.  They can include all the information that a coach needs by including a link to their profile page—without having to send anything physical (and able to be lost) via regular mail.  Athletes can easily email these coaches from the contact information provided in our Participating Schools section, and coaches can easily organize the athletes that contact them in their own NLC Coaches’ account.

When a college coach receives an email from an NLC athlete, they can click on the link provided in that email to view an athlete’s complete online profile, getting a thorough portrait on that athletes’ potential for recruitment into their program.  Emailing is quicker and more efficient, and the links to NLC athlete profiles eliminate mountains of paperwork and DVDs that coaches have to physically organize and be able to re-access throughout the process.  At this point, coaches can respond to the athlete and/or bookmark their profiles for later viewing, as a way to track progress or potential for recruitment.

When an athlete has registered on the NLC site and created an online profile, it is easy for an interested coach to search the site by that player’s name.  If an athlete participates in a camp or showcase and gets noticed by a coach that that athlete may not have considered, it becomes easy for that athlete to have opened up his options just by having created that complete NLC profile. 

When a college coach registers on the NLC recruiting site, he or she sets their recruiting criteria.  When an athlete’s information matches those criteria, the coach is automatically contacted via email to let them know who those athletes are and to take a look at their complete NLC recruiting profiles.  The coaches can search actively any time they want, inputting recruiting criteria, comparing athletes side-by-side, and refining searches to help pinpoint the exact matches that they are searching.

To help coaches doing the best recruiting job possible, NLC sends automatic email alerts to coaches if criteria have been met by newly added registrants to the site.  So, no, coaches do not have to constantly check; NLC does that for them.

Yes, and coaches can tailor the search to compare many different statistics of several athletes (up to five), side-by-side.  In the same way that online retail sites allow customers to compare features before making a purchase, NLC allows coaches to assess the many different features that go into making a prospect into a recruit.

The cost to join the NLC recruiting site is $195 per year.  If purchased in combination with a Combine test at one of our national locations, registration is discounted by 15%, at $250 total for both services. 

There is no cost to college coaches to use the NLC recruiting service.

Athletes sign up for a 1-year period.  At the end of that year, membership can automatically renew.  Fifteen days prior to the anniversary of their registration, athletes are contacted via email, alerting them to the fact that the subscription to the recruiting website is about to expire.  At that point, he or she can opt to renew or cancel for the upcoming 12-month period.

A graduating senior who no longer needs the services of the NLC website can opt to not renew in the email correspondence he or she will be sent 15 days prior to the anniversary of their 12-month registration period.  

An athlete who no longer wants to be included in the NLC database can opt to not renew in the email correspondence he or she will be sent 15 days prior to the anniversary of their 12-month registration period.

Everest Lacrosse Recruiting specializes in the subject.  The expertise in the sport of lacrosse, in addition to experience in the college sports recruiting in general, can help anyone better understand what lies ahead.  Their contact information can be found on the Recruiting page of the NLC website.

Depending on the division/conference in which the school competes, athletes and their families would do well to read the NCAA and MCLS guildlines, accessible for download from the athletes’ recruiting page.