MLL Expansion/Relocation - Realignment #1

In light of the poll results, I am shuffling some of my fictional MLL teams around. Since you all took the time to vote, I figure the least I can do is honor your opinions. The unchanged teams will be listed and the new cities will be expanded upon.

2011: Los Angeles Riptide & Pittsburgh Pride

2012: Seattle Sea Lions & Dallas Generals

2013: San Jose Dragons & Rochester Rattlers

2015: Neither of my original choices for 2014 made it through the polls. It looks like the Philadelphia Barrage will remain dead and Red Bull will not muscle its way into this US league.

-Buffalo Barrage: Although it may be cursed, the Barrage name will be kept. Despite the failure of Bridgeport, Philadelphia, and the travel team - not to mention my failed attempt to resurrect the team in Philly - the name is worth keeping. With 12% of the Northeast vote, Buffalo seems to be the most logical replacement for Philadelphia. The team will have a natural rivalry with Rochester.

The Barrage will play their games at the University at Buffalo Stadium. The 29,000 home of the Bulls is the most suitable venue available in a metro with many sports options. Working with the lax programs at NCAA D1 Canisius College and NCAA D3 Medaille will ensure the Barrage's longevity and provide a pipeline of talent with local ties. Extending their efforts to nearby Hamburg could net the Barrage recruits from Hilbert College. The Bulls also have a lacrosse team that could prove valuable to the Barrage.

-Syracuse Vulcans: No, not the pointy-eared fellas from Star Trek. These Vulcans take their name from the same root as the city itself - Sicily. A minor island off of Sicily proper, Vulcano was believed by the ancient Romans to be the home of the blacksmith god, Vulcan. The MLL team is technically named after the god, which is not and honor as he is widely associated with significant power.
Retaining much of the Red Bulls' color scheme, the Vulcans will wear red and gold. These colors will also symbolize a volcanic eruption. Black will be used as the main accent color.
Syracuse brings a strong history of successful lax to the league. Both Syracuse University and LeMoyne College have been consistently successful in the NCAA (D1 & D2, respectively). This gives the pro team a strong base from which to draw talent - talent like the Gait and Powell brothers. Both schools offer a few choice venues for professional lacrosse.
While the Carrier Dome may work work the Orange, it may be too big for the Vulcans. An expanded JS Coyne Field or Soccer Stadium could be usable venues. However, the new Turf Complex at LeMoyne might prove to be the winner. Details are sparse, but the early indications are that the field will become the epicenter for their sports teams. If it arrives an initial capacity of at least 5,000, it could be a real winner.

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MLL Expansion/Relocation Poll Results

To coincide with the MLL Expansion/Relocation series, I posted five polls asking which metro in a specified area should have an MLL team. I staggered the polls a bit to give each five days in the top spot.

Western:

Los Angeles: 55%

Seattle: 23%

San Fransisco Bay Area: 11%

Las Vegas: 11%


Eastern:

Rochester: 26%

Syracuse: 26%

Pittsburgh: 12%

Ottawa: 12%

Buffalo: 12%

Providence: 12%


Midwestern:

Des Moines: 66%

Twin Cities: 34%


Southeastern:

Atlanta: 25%

Jacksonville: 25%

Orlando: 25%

Raleigh: 25%


South Central:

Dallas: 75%

Oklahoma City: 25%


None of these metros received votes:


San Diego, Phoenix, Salt Lake City, Portland, Vancouver, Philadelphia, Montreal, NYC metro, Albany, Hartford, Worcester, Omaha, KC, St. Louis, Milwaukee, Cleveland, Cincinnati, Columbus, Indianapolis, Detroit, Miami, Tampa Bay, Charlotte, Richmond, Columbia, Memphis, Nashville, Louisville, Birmingham, Houston, Austin, San Antonio, El Paso, Albuquerque, Tulsa, Little Rock, Baton Rouge, New Orleans, and Jackson.


Eighteen metros received votes in the various polls. I chose 18 expansion cities for Major League Lacrosse. Matching up the hits and misses should be fairly simple...

Hits: LA, San Jose, Seattle, Pittsburgh, Rochester, Twin Cities, Atlanta, & Dallas

Misses: Philadelphia, & New York metro, Charlotte, Florida, Houston, Detroit, St. Louis, & Phoenix, San Diego, Portland


So I picked less than half of the cities (44% match) that my readers did. I guess the next step will be relocating my teams to match up with your picks. This time around, I plan to keep the descriptions shorter, but will still make field suggestions. If a name change is required, a brief explanation of that name will be included as well. The expansion year will remain the same as my original city. Let the fun begin...

Who is your favorite NCAA Division I lax team?

Originally I wanted the poll at the top to ask which NCAA Division I lax team you support. But with 61 sanctioned programs, the poll would take way too much room. Instead I want to know which conference your favorite team plays in; this will give me some idea of which teams draw the most support. Since we do not have any NCAA D1 programs in our immediate area, this might be interesting.

If you want to give the nod to a specific program, please comment below. If you want to trash a particular team, that is welcome too.

Atlantic Coast Conference: Duke, Maryland, North Carolina, Virginia

America East Conference: Albany, Binghampton, Hartford, Stony Brook, UMBC, Vermont

Big East Conference: Georgetown, Notre Dame, Providence, Rutgers, St. John's Syracuse, Villanova

Colonial Athletic Association: Delaware, Drexel, Hofstra, Massachusetts, Penn State, Robert Morris, Sacred Heart, Towson

ECAC Lacrosse League: Air Force, Bellarmine, Denver, Fairfield, Hobart, Loyola, Ohio State, Quinnipiac

Ivy League: Brown, Cornell, Dartmouth, Harvard, Pennsylvania, Princeton, Yale

Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference: Canisius, Detroit Mercy, Manhattan, Marist, Mount St. Mary's, Saint Joseph's, Siena, Virginia Miliatary Institute, Wagner

Patriot League: Army, Bucknell, Colgate, Holy Cross, Lafayette, Lehigh, Navy

Independents: Bryant, Jacksonville, Johns Hopkins, Monmouth, Presbyterian College

For the record, I am a Hopkins fan. As a D3 school in everything but lacrosse, they present no conflicts of interest with my other college teams.

Long Term Planning - New Areas

Although it will not happen until this summer, I wanted to let people know that I plan to travel to new areas within the state to help teach the basics and start the game up. Yesterday I was in Lovilla and Albia visiting my mom and grandma and remembered that there was a group down there interested in learning the game, as well as some guys in Knoxville that came up last summer. I may also venture to Cedar Rapids and Waterloo as groups there have sought assistance. Even such far away locales as Ankeny (LOL) have expressed interest.
I will be contacting those groups/individuals some time this spring to make arrangements. They will have to purchase sticks and balls at the very least as I only have three extra sticks and would like them to keep going in my absence. If there are other groups in new areas, please do not hesitate to contact me. Anyone that is interested in helping me out is welcome to join me.