US Lacrosse Magazine released the Nike/US Lacrosse Division I Men’s Preseason Top 20 on Jan. 8. Team-by-team previews will be unveiled on uslaxmagazine.com throughout January and will also appear as part of the magazine’s NCAA preview edition that mails to US Lacrosse members Feb. 1 — opening day of the 2018 college lacrosse season.

No. 4 Albany

2017 Record: 15-3 (6-0 America East)
Coach: Scott Marr (18th year)

All-Time Record: 351-293
NCAA Appearances: 9
Final Fours: 0
Championships: 0

The multi-season story of NCAA Division I men’s lacrosse is the combination of droughts ending and programs enjoying major breakthroughs.

Recent national title runs for North Carolina (2016) and Maryland (2017) placed long-time powers back at the top of the sport, while Denver’s 2015 championship and recent final four appearances for Brown, Ohio State and Towson brought new faces to the final weekend of the season for the first time in a while (if not ever).

The next to join the party? There’s a good chance it’s Albany, a program with a firm grip on its league and a recent history of player of the year candidates. And with eight starters back, including Tewaaraton finalist Connor Fields, this could be the year the Great Danes take one more step.

At the very least, it looks like the pieces are in place for coach Scott Marr’s team.

“It’s certainly one of the most experienced groups we’ve ever brought back from a really good year,” Marr said.

For Albany, it all hinges on an explosive attack unit featuring a pair of veteran starters. Senior Justin Reh is the table-setter and is coming off a somewhat unheralded 58-point season. Connor Fields is the engine that makes the Great Danes go.

“Watching him every day in practice, he’s just as good as anybody I’ve ever coached,” Marr said of Fields, who piled up 117 points as a junior. “He’s right up here with either Lyle or Miles [Thompson].”

The Thompson comparisons naturally continue with Tehoka Nanticoke, a 6-foot-1, 235-pound freshman who will immediately step into a starting role at Albany.

“He comes in actually ahead of the curve from where Miles and Lyle were and it’s a product of him heading down to IMG Academy and getting experience, plus his box experience,” Marr said. “He’s a pretty quick learner and a very savvy player.”

There’s plenty of experience scattered throughout the roster. Midfielder Kyle McClancy was a first team All-America East pick. So were long pole Troy Reh and defenseman Stone Sims. Faceoff ace TD Ierlan was the league’s rookie of the year.

Nonetheless, the spotlight will be one of the nation’s top attack units.With Albany fixing their one big question mark (faceoffs) last year upon Ierlan’s arrival, the Great Danes will turn to their strength — in an established star (Fields), a reliable mainstay (Justin Reh) and the exciting newcomer (Nanticoke) — to go further than they ever have before.

The Case For Albany

Put simply, this is the most experienced team Marr has fielded in his career. And after a disappointing exit in last year’s quarterfinals, there’s even more urgency for a lineup stacked with tested seniors. To suggest it’s now or never would belittle how well Marr has constructed his program. Still, the window for a trip to Memorial Day weekend is as open as it’s ever been for the Great Danes.

The Case Against Albany

Albany lost one-goal games to Maryland and Syracuse last season before bowing out in a lopsided quarterfinal loss to Maryland, and it saw only two starters (midfielders Bennett Drake and Adam Osika) depart after last season.

This isn’t a team with holes and, fair or not, it will be judged largely on whether it thrives in May. But it still has to get there.

“The big thing is to not get ahead of ourselves and not to think down the road or think of the next game,” Marr said. “We have a little thing in our locker room. It’s a ladder, and we put a nameplate on the ladder, and every game is a rung. It says that we’re just focusing on this one game.”

Path to the Playoffs

Quite candidly, there isn’t much reason to think Albany won’t plow through the America East and win the league tournament as they have four of the last five seasons. While there were signs of progress in the conference last year from programs like Binghamton and UMBC, the Great Danes still remain well ahead of the pack. That places an onus on nonconference tussles with Syracuse, Maryland and Yale to make a case with the NCAA tournament committee for seeding. Albany’s results in those contests will dictate what sort of path it must take once May arrives.

Players To Watch

Connor Fields, A, Sr.
55 G, 62 A

A Tewaaraton finalist as a junior despite being the unquestioned top option on Albany’s potent offense, Fields is back for one last run. He already ranks in the top four in school history in goals, assists and points, and figures to be even more dangerous with the return of Justin Reh and the addition of Tehoka Nanticoke.

TD Ierlan, FO, So.
70.8 FO%, 202 GB

The Great Danes were missing exactly one thing as they made their case for a place among the sport’s elite this decade. Ierlan’s dominant presence at the faceoff X provides it. To beat Albany, teams are probably going to have to score at least a dozen goals; that’s a lot harder to do when you never have the ball.

Tehoka Nanticoke, A, Fr.
22 G, 9 A (2016 U19 WC)

The much-anticipated arrival of Nanticoke after a post-grad year at IMG Academy strengthens an already entertaining Albany offense. He’s the latest Native American star to join the Great Danes, following in the footsteps of Tewaaraton winners Lyle and Miles Thompson, and he could have a greater impact than any freshman this season.

National Rankings

Power Ratings (Scale of 1-5)

Offense
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Defense
⭐⭐⭐

Goalkeeping
⭐⭐⭐⭐

Faceoff
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

28

Consecutive victories in America East regular season play for the Great Danes, the longest active conference winning streak in Division I. Albany has not dropped a regular-season game in league play since falling 12-11 to Stony Brook in 2012.

5-Year Trend
Faceoff Percentage

Coach Confidential
Scott Marr

“This is the first time in our history that we’ve been ranked this high in the preseason. We’re going into the Dome as the higher-ranked team, which has never happened. My job is to keep our feet on the ground and keep us focused on the present.”

Enemy Lines
Rival Coaches

“Roll Tide Roll. Run Danes Run. And let me repeat, it is all about having the ball. Could TD Ierlan be the next Baptiste? Probably not, but he will keep the high octane offense of the SUNY on the Hudson fully fueled with extra possessions. And that is deadly for the opposition, as Connor Fields — no argument, pound for pound the best lacrosse player, and maybe the best regardless of gross tonnage — slices apart any defensive scheme thrown his way. He has a whole corral full of ponies who are ready to run with him: Justin Reh, Kyle McClancy and a host of other gunslingers. Goalie JD Colarusso is back in the net for his senior year, and he is the benefactor of much improved defensive schemes in front of the crease. For a long time, Albany seemed to give little interest towards this end of the field, but they are now defined more so as stingy than porous on defense. ... How does Nanticoke fit into an offense? They could be freaking good. ... Defense will need to prove they can make stops vs. quality opponents on big stage. ... I decided to rank them fifth, where they normally finish the year. I would expect them to compete at this level again. ... Such a great nucleus coming back. They bring in Tehoka, and now you have a darned strong presence who will do a great job right away. I don’t see any reason he wouldn’t put  a lot of pressure below and above goal line with those middies. They have a senior goalie, a second team All-American faceoff guy, guys who get you a ton of points. The goalie is really good. He didn’t have his best game in the quarterfinal. There’s a lot of experience. I think they feel like they’ve been building toward this, and the preseason ranking is probably well-deserved.”