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Total posts: 2
Blog URL: http://laxspot.e-lacrosse.com/blogs/lax_spot_interviews
By: Lax Spot
Interviews with some big names and interesting people in the sport of lacrosse.
Lax Spot had the opportunity to recently interview Salisbury lacrosse head coach Jim Berkman. Berkman has lead the Salisbury Sea Gulls to 7 National Championships, 25 consecutive NCAA tournament appearances, and holds an all time record of 299-30 at Salisbury.
Lax Spot: There is always discussion about you leaving Salisbury to take a head coaching job at a D1 school. Surely you have had offers for D1 positions, why have you remained in D3?
Coach Berkman: Well over the years there have been some interesting jobs and opportunities that presented themselves, but none were that intriguing to leave Sea Gull land. The grass is not always greener as a lot of people believe. Salisbury is a great place for me and my family. At this point in my career I always see myself wearing and bleeding maroon and gold.
Lax Spot: We've heard speculation that the only position that you would leave Salisbury for would be the Syracuse job. Is there any truth to that?
Coach Berkman: Well Syracuse lacrosse has a great tradition, one that would be very appealing for most coaches. However there is something to be said about planting the seeds for a successful program and sticking around to bear the fruits of your labor. That's what I think about Salisbury at this point. My goals and philosophies reflect those more of a D3 level. That’s where I stand at this point in my life and I like where I'm at and I like the level and philosophy of D3.
Lax Spot: What is there left for you to accomplish at the D3 level? What continues to drive you?
Coach Berkman: Well each year is a new team and it’s a new group of players and a new group of guys to mold and guide and hopefully help them reach their potential. This in itself is a very rewarding experience at any level. Personally I really enjoy helping, motivating and being a part of a young mans journey to reach his potential. Every year at Salisbury we usually have 3 or 4 seniors who D1 coaches say "how did we miss that guy?" This is very rewarding to think that you’re a part of something very special in a player’s development to that level. This is why I coach and many others do and continue to drive me each and every year to help special guys to find out how good they can become.
Lax Spot: Give us your thoughts on coaching your son. Is it what you expected?
Coach Berkman: I’ve been coaching Kylor in one capacity or another since he has been about 4 years old. I’ve been fortunate to have this opportunity and cherish these days on the field at Salisbury University. It’s easier coaching him at Salisbury University than the days on the Orange Crush traveling soccer team when he was 12 or 13. He has matured as a person and as an athlete to realize the position we are both in and the character it takes on his part to make it work. So I think his maturity and realizing where we are as a program and where he fits as a piece of the puzzle it really hasn't been that difficult, it has really been a joy.
Lax Spot: Does it make it easier to coach your son when he happens to be a good athlete and a great lacrosse player?
Coach Berkman: I have talked to several coaches that have had their sons play with them over the years and it always makes it easier to coach your son when he is one of the best players on your team. The marginal player that's a son is one that is always scrutinized about his playing time. Besides being a very good athlete and lacrosse player, it always helps when a coach’s son is a very hard worker. Kylor has been in the gold club at Salisbury since he stepped on campus. He benched his body weight ten times, 15 plus pull ups, 25 plus dips, running sub 9 minute mile and a half. He has been able to do that since day one. As you know anybody at Salisbury that makes the gold club immediately earns respect of all their teammates.
Lax Spot: Kylor received a lot of interest from other schools who were recruiting him. What other schools was he considering as top choices?
Coach Berkman: Kylor set an unofficial state record coming out of HS in Salisbury which is pretty unbelievable when you think about the state of MD. He scored well over 400 pts in his high school career. I think he actually scored 169 in his senior year playing both midfield and attack. He was also a two time High School All-American. I think the three schools that showed the most interest were Brown, UMBC, and Towson. They were the three major ones that kind of came forward in the recruiting process.
Lax Spot: In a few words, summarize what comes to mind when you think of each of your seven national championship teams.
Coach Berkman: Well I kind of think through and look at the 7 championship teams and maybe 1 or 2 people or a unique thing, and starting with number one on 1994, the thing that rings in the back of my mind was beating Hobart before they left for D1. Because of that, none of out further championships could be scrutinized. We beat them the last time in D3 and it will always stick out in my mind.
In 1995 the thing that sticks out in my mind was a dominate team in every position. We had Jason Coffman as an attackman. He was just one of the most unbelievable players to ever play college lacrosse, a 4x 1st team All-American. He was virtually unstoppable.
In 1999, the thing that stands out was that it was a good team. It definitely wasn't one of our best teams but I remember the great goalie play of Jason Tarnow. The saves that he made probably deserved the MVP [MVP honors went to attackman Brian Smith (3 goals)]. He was unbelievable, especially early in the game when we were getting bombarded and were struggling a bit. He kept us in the game.
In 2003 there were a couple things. It was the first time at pro stadium for lacrosse. I was also on the NCAA Lax committee at the time and I was a part of that process of the championship moving to the pro stadium. The second was calling the play before overtime and Andy Murray winning the face off. Chris Phillips scoring the goal on the play that we called as time expired in regulation and scoring on in overtime.
In 2004, Eric Martin on defense was just a total dominate player. He dominated the game from start to finish on defense. Andy Murray was dominating on the face off as he did for 4 years. We did that pretty much for 20 games that year.
In 2005 the thing that jumps off the page with that one is it was the first time we did three in a row and that was pretty special. I remember that season looking back at some of those people and we hear from D1 coaches asking me "how did miss those guys?" We had three guys on that team; Sean white, Justin Smith and Jeff Bigas, who all got world team tryouts. From a D3 championship, that was kind of something that always stuck in my mind as a special team.
Last year we had a few questions to answer and I guess two things stick out in my mind about 2007. Number one, the attack was challenged in the beginning of the year and they definitely answered the bell. An unknown attack scores the all time record in college lacrosse for goals scored and then obviously you’re sitting there holding the championship trophy with your son playing an integral part. That is something you will always remember.
Lax Spot: With the legacy that has been built, and the steady pipeline of great lacrosse players that you now have, has winning national championships become any easier?
Coach Berkman: Every year it gets harder. There is more parody in college lacrosse. There are more kids playing and with new D1 and D2 programs with scholarships digging deeper into the talent pool every year. As far as some of the kids we may have gotten previously, it is hard for a kid to give up a scholarship even to come play in one of the best D3 schools. In the back of their mind they always think, "D1, D1" Finally they come to realize that maybe they should just go play a higher level of D3 in some of the top programs. But it makes it harder each year to track the talent that it takes to win a championship. There are more kids out there, there are more programs, there are so many new young and energetic and great coaches scouting the fields that definitely increase the level of parody in college lacrosse. I definitely think it is getting harder each year to maintain the level of play that we were fortunate enough to get over the last 19 years.
Lax Spot: Out of all the players you have coached over the years, you can only pick three to start a team with, who are they?
Coach Berkman: Well I guess you start right at the top; the first player would definitely be Jason Coffman at attack. The games all time leading scorer at any level. He was virtually was unstoppable for 4 years. He just dominated the game and changed the way the other teams were able to defend us. So if I was picking 3 people at 3 different positions it would start with Coffman at attack.
At midfield, obviously Jake Bergey; he had dominate size and speed, which made him unstoppable and still does till this day playing for the Philadelphia Wings, playing 10 plus seasons for the pros.
Eric Martin on defense, he was First Team All-Pro MLL defenseman! Eric totally dominated his last 2 years, in a way which we really never had in a kid. A lot of years we have had some great defensemen, but they used to cover the 2nd or 3rd best guy to take the ball away. He covered the best guy. He would shut-off and take the kid out of the game. Any D1 coach would love to start a program with any of those 3 kids.
Lax Spot: As a whole your team's stick skills have continued to improve throughout the years. Do you attribute this to today's players starting earlier, playing more, and coming out of high school with better sticks? Or is this do to a shift in the way your teams practice and prepare?
Coach Berkman: I think it’s a couple of things. Kids obviously have solid sticks coming out of High School. But no matter how good they are or think they are it's a rude awakening on the first day of fall ball. A lot of them think they have really good sticks and they go out there and kids are popping that ball one cradle & out and winging it right and left handed, and all of a sudden the kid that thought he had a good stick is like whoa my sticks skills are not so good. Then they realize there is a lot of wall ball ahead to catch up. That is what motivates and drives our guys to play at a high level each year to catch up to the guys that are here. The thing that we changed a little bit more recently in the last few years is the importance of shooting. We shoot a lot more at practice. We have to shoot more in order to score more goals. Another thing is we are working with our defenseman’s stick work more now than in the past, especially relative to our clearing game and the clearing principles that we have. The stick work with our defenseman and shooting are the major things we have changed in practice over the last few years.
Lax Spot: You have had a many assistant coaches graduate from this program and take over head coaching positions at other schools. Which one will be the first to beat Salisbury?
Coach Berkman: Hopefully that won't occur until I am all done at Salisbury (laughing). But all of them are great young coaches that work very hard and all have the knowledge to beat us at any given day if they have the talent to do it.
Lax Spot: Who do you consider to be some of the other great coaches at the D3 level?
Coach Berkman: Well obviously one of my former mentors, Coach (Hank) Janczyk, he has done it year in and year out at Gettysburg. There are so many great D3 coaches out there right now. There are so many young guns that are making a name for themselves. Look at the preseason Top 20. Any of these coaches at those programs are outstanding people who know the game. They are knowledgeable and extremely motivated. The game has a lot more energy for a coaching perspective and for recruiting then it had 15 years ago. I attribute that to all the great coaches out there.
Lax Spot: What coaches did you grow up admiring and trying to emulate?
Coach Berkman: My high school basketball coach, Lou Kibling at Watertown High School probably had the biggest impact on me when I was growing up. He was into it 24/7 and that made a huge impact on me and in a lot of ways; an impact on the expectations that exist at Salisbury University today. My work ethics as a player and as a coach were developed under his mentoring because he was so into it all the time. I enjoyed that passion that he had and I think my expectations for our guys to become the best they can be and a lot of that is because he motivated me to become the best athlete I was in high school.
Lax Spot: You had the opportunity to coach against so many great players over the years. Who are some of the players that really stand out?
Coach Berkman: There have been so many, but if I had to name just a few the ones that come to mind first are Billy Miller from Hobart in the early 90's, Brian Silcott from Nazareth College in the early 90s, David curry from Gettysburg in the mid 90's, Jed Raymond from Middlebury College late 90's to 00, and Stephen Burger from Washington College.
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Bill on 01/15/2008
This is an excellent interview. It's interested to hear answers to some of the questions that don't really get asked. It's really amazing what Berkman has done with Salisbury's program. When people nowadays think of Salisbury they think of a program that has always been a powerhouse. But in reality Salisbury's success is a direct result of Berkman taking over the program. They only had moderate success before he took over. And in a few short years they were playing in the national championship game.
Scott on 01/16/2008
Wow....That was definetly worth taking 10 minutes to read while being paid by my bosses. The funniest part of that interview was Coach cutting Smacks down....Brutus I'm sure still stands tall.
All I can say about Salisbury Lacrosse is that I am proud that I was apart of this great tradition!
Glen on 01/25/2008
There's been so many great players come through the program, I always wondered who coach Berkman would name as the top three players of all time. Coffman and Bergey seem obvious, but Chris McQueeny has to be a close 2nd on the defensive end. He was so dominant and a three time 1st team AA, and two time Defensemen of the year. Plus he played the wing on face-offs. Martin's last year through he really was unstoppable.
marshall on 02/25/2008
I agree, great article, but Berkman didn't pat himself enough on the back about being able to find great athletes and use his class program to turn them into great lax players. Classic example of this (and of what's so fun about DIII) is Eric Martin. Martin was a walk-on based on a video of a HS game he showed to Berkman. Even though Martin didn't start playing lax til 9th grade and so was not All State or anything coming out of HS, Berkman saw that he was big and quick and so was willing to have him on the team and see what happened. Martin rode the bench for most of his fresh and soph yrs, but both coach and player were well rewarded in Martin's junior and senior years (back to back natl championships, beginning of historic undefeated string, etc.). So even though Martin ultimately was good enough to have played for (and been a star on) any team in DI, it was Berkman and his staff who gave him the chance and ultimately the platform to get noticed by and drafted into the pros (first in Rochester but now with SanFrancisco Dragons and San Jose Stealth). None of that likely would have happened but for Berkman and the respect he already had developed for himself and his program. NOTE: While I haven't verified this, my bet is that Berkman probably has about as many kids playing in the pros right now as any DI program outside of the top 5.
Glen on 03/20/2008
I actually wrote a blog on that topic. Salisbury is currently 11th among all teams in terms of # of players in the MLL. See URL below.
http://laxspot.com/blogs/glens_look_on_lax/index.php?pst_id=100076
