New Jersey FAQ

Below are the questions we most frequently are asked regarding our Team 91 NJ team programs.

Q:    How much does it cost to participate on a team? 

A: The cost to participate on a 91 South team varies from year to year and from level to level.  Our fees for middle school players (grades 4-8) are inclusive.  Which means it includes all of your tournament entry fees, game uniform, practice reversible, coaches stipends, practice fields, balls, minicamp, individual NSCLA league games.  At the HS level you will be paying additional tournament entry fees for tournaments where you son will be staying in dorms and eating in the college’s dining hall.  Final fees are communicated to those that receive an invitation to play based on their tryout. The 91 South fees do not include travel, hotel, or meal costs at each tournament.

Q: How are the teams configured?  

A: The 91 South teams are GRADE based.  We use the current school year to determine our teams.  We have the following teams and they are identified by the year that grade will graduate HS.  We identify the teams this as it is the preferred method of the college coaches for their evaluation purposes.

Team Configuration:
  • 3rd Grade Team
  • 4rd Grade Team
  • 5th Grade Team
  • 6th Grade Team
  • 7th Grade Team
  • 8th Grade Team
  • 9th Grade Team
  • 10th Grade Team
  • 11th Grade Team

Q: How many players are on a roster?

A: Team 91 NJ takes 18-22 players on any given roster.

Q: How do you select your teams?

A:  At Team 91 NJ we utilize a multi-faceted approach to our player evaluation process.  ALL players must participate in a traditional tryout.  Players new to 91 will be asked to participate in at least 2 tryouts.   Basically, the more we see you play prior to tryouts, the more we must consider.  All players will participate in two evaluation sessions that make a 91 team. The bottom line is we want to make sure we get the best players and give the best players the opportunity to play their best.

ATTENTION HS PLAYERS/PARENTS - The callback tryouts will consist of 2 parts on the same date.  After callback tryout 1 is completed a list of players continuing in the process will be posted at the check in tent.  The players on that list will stay and participate in part 2.  Players not on that list will need to leave at that time and their tryout process will be over.  Please consider this process when you sign up for tryouts.  This process is not for everyone.

Q: What type of player are you looking for? 

A: We are looking for Team 91 NJ level players.  Our definition of a 91 player is one that has a solid base of fundamentals.  They can use both hands in all aspects of play (goalies excluded).  They are passionate about lacrosse and committed to being at every practice and every tournament.  They are always looking to get better and never feel like they have "arrived" or know how to do everything.  They should be considered one of the best players in your local community.  Individual player assessments will NOT be provided after the tryouts.  The evaluation process does not lend itself to being able to provide individual feedback.

Q: Where do the teams practice? 

A: All teams will be practicing at Capelli Sports Complex and Monmouth Regional HS for most practices

Q: Who will be coaching my son?  

A: This may be the most important question a parent can ask.  At Team 91 NJ we believe we have the BEST coaching staff around.  Our coaches are passionate about coaching lacrosse.  ALL have collegiate playing experience and are dedicated to being on top of the latest trends in coaching.  All our coaches attend two coaching clinics annually, run by college coaches.  All our coaches currently coach at the COLLEGE, HIGH SCHOOL or YOUTH LEVELS.  Our coaches stay at the same level each summer.  This provides the opportunity for the players to experience different coaches each year.  This is a valuable experience as the players get older.  No one ever loves every coach they have, but they MUST learn to play for every coach they have.  We utilize college players that came through the Team 91 NJ system as assistant coaches or practice coaches.

Q: Can I play for more than one club program?

A: NO!!  At Team 91 NJ we make a tremendous commitment to our players, and to run an elite organization it takes time and preparation.  We need to be able to count on EVERY single player at EVERY practice and tournament.  We do not allow our players to play for other travel teams during the summer.  We do not attend a tournament every single weekend.  When we take a weekend off we are doing it for a reason (rest, popular individual recruiting event).  We want you to rest. Being in top condition and form when playing in these tournaments are critical to everyone’s success as well as the team’s success.

Q: How do you select the tournaments your teams attend each summer? 

A: Our experience participating in tournaments provides us with tremendous advantages when it comes time to select tournaments.  We select our tournaments based on many factors: level of competition, division format, history of running a tournament well, location, past experience.  For our high school teams, we add in attendance of college coaches.  Often this is difficult to predict. However, our experience and the fact that we are top program in the country tends to draw coaches to our games regardless of the tournament.  Our membership in the NSCLA allows us to tap into a network of other top programs to make sure other top teams will be at the tournaments we are attending.

Q: What is the overall commitment required to play for Team 91 NJ? 

A: Team 91 NJ offers a year round curriculum, but the primary commitment if you make a 91 team is for June and July each summer. We will also offer weekly training session from September thru November.

We do offer the opportunity to play in tournaments in the fall and winter.  Fall tournaments have become more critical each year.  We will be implementing winter training sessions that we feel are critical to setting our players apart from the rest when we get to the summer season.  Our winter training program will focus on core skill development LAX IQ development.  Working on your craft is important, but the BEST lacrosse players are multi-sport athletes.  Details of the winter session will be communicated to those that are invited to play.

Q: What separates Team 91 NJ from the other programs I may tryout for?

A: Our staff - we all truly LOVE to COACH!  In addition, we have created a reputation among college coaches of preparing our players to play at the collegiate level.  We implement college style offenses and defensive philosophies that make it easy for coaches to evaluate our players and prepares them for the expectations that will be placed on them at the next level. 91 South is not a part time endeavor for Marc Moreau, Owner.  91 South is his full-time job.  Marc is also the head coach at St. Joseph HS in Metuchen, a 2010 Non-Public A State Champion and Tournament of Champions Finalist.  Marc also coaches in the Somerset Hills Youth Lacrosse program.  He is on top of the strategies and techniques to make youth and high school lacrosse players successful.  This involvement at many levels allows us to be on the cutting edge in every aspect of running a lacrosse training business.  The entire staff of coaches are PASSIONATE about COACHING lacrosse.  We do not have a bunch of coaches that love to just play lacrosse.

Q: What is Team 91 New Jersey South's Refund Policy?

 A: Refunds are only issued if a player cannot participate due to an injury (with presentation of a doctors note) OR if a player replaces the player that left.

Q: I have some other questions, who do I contact?  

A: You can email Nick Caruso at nick@team91lacrosse.com with further questions.

 

Question for Mom and Dad -

 Are you prepared to have the conversation with your son if he does not make a team?  A lot of players tryout for our teams, which means A LOT of players do not make a team at Team 91 NJ.  Our process is not perfect, there is no perfect process.  Everyone has an opinion on the right way to do things.  We have ours, it has been successful, we tweak each year and we take this process very seriously.  If you or your son is not prepared to hear the news that they did not make a team, then they should not tryout.

Playing Time Guidelines -

 Playing time for the 3th - 7th grade teams will be as equal as possible during regular pool play in a tournament.  There are situations during games that make getting equal playing time impossible (too many penalties, flow of the game, etc...)  The coaches are very experienced and do their best.  Once the teams reach the playoff portion of the tournament the coaches have the flexibility to shorten their bench.  They are not required to, and each coach makes that decision on their own.  There are no playing time guarantees at 8th grade to High School level.  Situations, your skill set and ability dictate your playing time.