🌎 THE BEST PLAYER ON EARTH IS...

In the past two weeks, New York Atlas attackman Jeff Teat has claimed both “Best Men’s Player” in the TLN End of Year Awards and the No. 1 spot in The Players Top 50.

Teat, who broke the PLL record for most points (64) in a season and was named Most Valuable Player in 2024, beat out last year’s MVP and No. 1 ranked player — Tom Schreiber — for the top spot.

Here’s a look at the FULL Top 50 ranking, with college affiliations included.

The Virginia Cavaliers led the way with six Top 50 representatives this year. The Notre Dame Fighting Irish and Duke Blue Devils were right behind them with four representatives each.

This is the sixth iteration of The Players Top 50, which is determined by current PLL players voting on their peers. Here’s a look at who’s taken the No. 1 spot each year…

2019: Matt Rambo
2020: Tom Schreiber
2021: Blaze Riorden
2022: Tom Schreiber
2023: Tom Schreiber
2024: Jeff Teat

Do you agree with this year’s ranking? Who was the biggest snub? Reply to this email and let us know!

🙏 D3 Players Rally To Save Program

The Montclair State University Athletic Department recently announced a controversial decision to transition its men’s and women’s lacrosse programs from NCAA Division III to the club level in 2025. The University’s plan is to add an NCAA women’s flag football program once the lacrosse programs are demoted.

“This is extremely devastating,” Montclair State face-off specialist David Driscoll told TLN in a direct message on Instagram.

A petition titled “Restore Men's and Women's Lacrosse Teams at Montclair State University” has been started at Change.org and is currently approaching 15,000 signatures.

From 2009-2017, Montclair State’s men’s lacrosse team made nine straight NCAA Tournament appearances. They went 4-10 under head coach (and former MLL player) Matt Poskay in 2024. The women’s team has been coached by Nicol Parcelluzzi since 2006 and finished 8-6 last spring.

🎥 PLL Rookie Featured in ESPN Documentary

On Christmas Eve, ESPN is releasing an E60 documentary that features former UNC lacrosse star Logan McGovern, who played for the New York Atlas this summer. The documentary is titled “Second Wind: The Boomer and Gunnar Esiason Story” and it focuses on the struggles of living with Cystic Fibrosis (CF).

Here’s a preview, featuring McGovern’s interview:

McGovern overcame his CF diagnosis to play NCAA Division I lacrosse, first at Bryant and then at UNC. He finished his college career with 225 points and was the Tar Heels’ leading scorer in both 2023 and 2024. 

McGovern, who is from Connecticut, made his PLL debut as an undrafted rookie in Fairfield this summer. He scored two goals in that game, including a crazy diving backhand goal from X.

👀 Belichick Eyes UNC Lacrosse Players

Since former New England Patriots head coach and well-known lacrosse guy Bill Belichick accepted his new role at the University of North Carolina, he’s taken note of the lacrosse players around campus.

During an appearance on the Pat McAfee Show this week, Belichick was asked how many lacrosse players are on the Tar Heels’ football roster.

“We have two players on the team,” Belichick said.

Those two players are Ryan Hornyak and Drew Scott. Hornyak is a five-star kicker on the football team and going into his freshman season as a defensive midfielder on the lacrosse field. Scott is a former TCU wide receiver who started his college career on the Ohio State lacrosse team and recently transferred to UNC.

🥍 Athletes Unlimited Suspends Lacrosse

This week, Athletes Unlimited (AU) announced its plan to suspend all lacrosse operations indefinitely, citing the international competition schedule and player availability during the summer months.

Here’s the official statement from AU:

AU will continue to operate other sports, but the Lacrosse Operations will cease after just four seasons. This year’s champion was former Boston College star Sam Apuzzo.

The newly established Women’s Lacrosse League (WLL) remains an option for female lacrosse players who aspire to compete on the professional level. The WLL is set to begin play at the 2025 PLL Championship Series in February.

🤫 Pehlke Drops Another Undercover Video

Former Ohio State lacrosse player Mitchell Pehlke has struck gold with his undercover video series. In his latest episode, he assumed the identity of “Liam Johnson” and tried out for Calvert Hall (Md.) — one of the best high school teams in the country.

Watch the full episode below.

If you haven’t seen Pehlke’s other undercover videos yet, check out Brad Butch’s tryout at South Carolina (MCLA) and Marco Lombardi’s tryout at Adelphi (NCAA Division II).