Coach P’s picks for Great Grub on the Grind in Baltimore

Coach loves to find great eats. Being born and raised around Baltimore aka “Charm City” I know all the local spots.  Applebees, Outback, Red Robin are not bad spots but do not give our families a true flavor of the city or region. My recommendations will always be local haunts that have been tried and tested many times.

Sandwich Place on the Go-

Wine Merchant, 10741 Falls Rd, Lutherville, MD

Best sandwich spot in Baltimore. Close to Towson but also closed on Sundays. Go with the Ragin Cagin, The Bomber.

WAWA

WAWA Multiple locations.  Don’t be fooled by the gas pumps. WAWA is a great deli with a wide mix of subs, soups, breakfast items. Great spot for a quick gas stop for rental car and sub in between games or heading to airport.

Crab Cakes

Anyone coming into B’More needs to experience a crab cake. Depending on where the tournament is and where we are staying for the weekend, there are many options listed below:

G/M Lounge, 804 N Hammonds Ferry Road,   Linthicum Heights, Maryland 21090

Legendary spot near the BWI airport. Easy ride to Annapolis or Towson. Big crab cakes and local B’more culture. Double down on crab and get the crab cake platter with a bowl of Maryland crab soup.

Box Hill Pizzeria, 2915 Emmortan Rd, Abingdon, MD 21009

Close to the Cedar Lane, Carsons Run Complex outside Bel Air. Great spot, super busy so carryout is the play here.

Corner Stable, 9942 York Rd, Cockeysville, MD

Close to Towson. Small hole in wall spot with great crabcakes and ribs. Go with half a rack and crab cake. Gurr still says its the best place in Baltimore.

Good people watching spot after a long day on the fields

MaGerks, Steelfish Grill, Bel Air, MD

Bel Air stalwarts. Both spots have a nice patio scene with tv’s, cold refreshments and live music. Both haunts are in Coach P’s neighborhood so be careful throwing my name around. It’s hit or miss on the reaction from the locals.

Valley Inn- 1501 Falls Rd, Lutherville, MD

The patio is the place to be seen within the lacrosse community. Go back and shower first. Bring your “A” game. Recommended more for the ITP folks. Alot of popped collars, Vineyard Vines and Peter Millar. Just tell any local you either know Hilgy, Shrives or Jenny.  It’s your ticket to the cool club.

Green Turtle- Towson, MD

Great roof top deck owned by my man, Billy Packo. John Z is the play here. A true legend who has spent many hours with Billy P.

Bonus Pick

Towson Hot Bagel for a quick bagel sandwich. Two locations around Towson. Best bagel shop in Baltimore.

Happy Eating!!!!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Embrace the Grind 2020’s

Here we go. Our 2020’s are about to start the 3rd quarter of the recruiting process. My suggestion is to embrace it. The fall November recruiting period has become  a very important evaluation period for college programs.  College coach’s will get to see our 20’s one last time before they dive head first into their college season.  I would anticipate a second wave of commits after November. With no urgency from the college coach’s, it’s a great chance to show improvement from the last summer tournament in late July. Get prepared now by training hard at Sunday practices, kicking some butt in the classroom and getting bigger, stronger, faster. PLAY WITH GREAT ENERGY and leave all the excuses in Atlanta.

Excuses that need to stay at home:

Weather is bad

Fields are in bad shape

My  flight is delayed

Delta lost my bag

I just played a  playoff football game Friday night

College Coach’s Do Not Care. Be ready, play hard and prepare now!!!!!!

You worked too hard. 

Gerard Kane-The Man, The Myth,The Legend

From time to time I run across a kid and a family who embody everything we preach at Thunder LB3 . “Embrace the grind, commit to getting better and play with energy unknown to mankind”  Gerard and family have been  “all in” since I met them at a Thunder tryout 4 years ago. A kid that that was out of shape but had great hands. A kid whose father overcame a significant health issue his sophomore year. A kid that shows up to everything we do and plays hard every minute of practice. A family who drives 60 minutes from playing three high school summer games to a Thunder practice later in the day over at UMBC.  A kid that spends countless hours in the warehouse working on shooting, dodging.  We all should stand up and applaud a kid like this while it gives guys like me great pride in what we do for kids.  Gerard Kane has earned his spot at Ohio State and we are so happy for his family. Great job, Gerard.

Still some movement in the 2019 class, be a well qualified student first

Having spent alot of time on the phone with college coach’s over the past week, there is alot of last minute movement with the 2019 class. Some early commits from three years ago needed to get a certain GPA or ACT score to secure their spot.  Kids also change their minds and others fall off. Time is running out with admissions so schools are reaching back out to club directors and players to find guys who are fully qualified academically. High ACT, SAT scores and AP courses can trump athletic ability this late in the game for rising seniors. Lesson for the younger kids should be get after it in school which will open many more doors by the time they become seniors. #bustthebooks

Welcome

Our staff here at Thunder LB3 look forward to helping spread  information to lacrosse parents and players thru our new recruiting blog.  Any lacrosse parent or player is welcome to join no matter what your club affiliation is or what state you currently live.   This process can be confusing and frustrating for alot of folks.