This game is fast and it is fun. Enjoy it and work hard.— Coach Max
Max's playing career started at Northwest Guilford High School and continued at North Greenville University from 2018 to 2022. After his time at NGU, he transferred to the University of Mount Olive to play one final year with the Trojans, and then served as a graduate assistant coach at UMO. Since graduating, Max has kept playing in men's leagues around Greensboro and suits up as a defender for the Greensboro Gamblers box lacrosse team.
On the coaching side, Max has been an assistant coach at Cornerstone Charter Academy, led several Deadshots lacrosse teams, coached the inaugural Carolina Gryphons club season, and stayed involved with the TYLA youth lacrosse league. He is also a certified youth lacrosse referee.
Max's coaching philosophy is anchored in five things. The first three are the only controllable factors in the game of lacrosse: attitude, effort, and stick skills. A good attitude is crucial to success, so players have to want to improve, want to be coached, and be able to handle adversity. Effort has to match the intensity of the fastest game on two feet, and mistakes made going full speed are okay. Stick skills, the ability to pass and catch effectively, build confidence and let the whole team play at a higher level; improving them never ends and takes time, which is exactly where attitude and effort come back into play. When a team focuses on all three, they become unstoppable.
The final two pieces go hand in hand with the first three. Max believes lacrosse is most fun when it's played fast, with the transition from defense to offense the team's favorite part of the game. And development comes every time out: getting better at something each session keeps kids engaged and wanting to keep playing the game he loves.
