Colin Corcoran to play at John Carroll University
In late August 2015, senior Colin Corcoran committed to play lacrosse at John Carroll University in Ohio.
Corcoran has decided to further his education and lacrosse career at John Carroll University in University Heights, Ohio. JCU is a Division III lacrosse team in the Ohio Athletic Conference.
Corcoran chose to become a Blue Streak the summer before his senior year. He also considered Milwaukee School of Engineering (MSOE), but ended up choosing JCU. He has worked very hard to put himself in the position to receive this scholarship.
“This decision means a lot. I know my mom is proud of me. It’s great to know that I have the opportunity to play lacrosse for 4 more years,” Corcoran said. “It’s a great feeling to see yourself accomplish a long term goal you’ve had for years.”
Junior teammate Marcus Darby has been playing lacrosse with Corcoran since U-13. He does not think anyone else deserved the scholarship over Corcoran.
“[Corcoran’s] scholarship to JCU is well deserved. I couldn’t think of anyone else who should get it over him,” Darby said. “I can’t wait to see how he kills it in college.”
Junior teammate Pad Dabruzzi, has been playing with Corcoran since seventh grade.
“He’s a really positive player and he motivates everyone around him to be better,” Dabruzzi said. “His work ethic is what separates him from everyone else.”
It has always been a goal of Corcoran’s to play NCAA lacrosse. Following a trip to Delaware for a lacrosse tournament with his summer team, the “Minnesota Loons“, Coach Small from JCU started talking with Corcoran.
“He was the first coach to contact me and it was very exciting,” Corcoran said. “Ever since then I have put in countless hours of work to get to this point.”
In the 2014-2015 high school lacrosse season, Corcoran sat his junior season out with a torn ACL. Despite being injured, Corcoran has been working hard to come back.
“It has been a long and tough recovery,” Corcoran said. “Challenging both my mental and my physical strength.”
Darby is confident that Corcoran will come back from the injury better than ever. He looks to Corcoran for leadership, and he is hoping that his ability to lead will have a positive effect on the team this year.
“His work ethic to get back to playing after his bad injury is amazing,” Darby said. “He’s gonna come back better than ever.”
Dabruzzi, agrees with Darby. He claims that even with the injury, Corcoran was at practice doing what he could to better himself as a player.
“He works nonstop,” Dabruzzi said. “Even when he had his torn ACL he was out shooting and participating as much as he could.”
Dabruzzi, Darby and other teammates all supported him after his junior season ended much too early due to injury. They always reminded him of how great next season will be with him leading the team, and how he will come back as good as he was before the injury. A lot of Corcoran’s teammates even put #21 (Corcoran’s number) on their helmet to support their injured teammate.
“A lot of the kids put his number on our helmets,” Dabruzzi said. “We all just tried to be positive around him and support him through his injury.” Darby said, “We always reminded him of how great the next season will be and how he will bounce back from his injury.”
Corcoran tries to play lacrosse everyday. Before he goes to train, he does his homework before working on his skills, sometimes having to practice in the dark.
“I try to get my stick in my hand everyday, especially in the off-season,” said Corcoran. “Other than school, lacrosse is one of my highest priorities.”
Corcoran feared that the knee injury would be an issue with getting recruited. Many other schools took Corcoran off their radar after hearing of his torn ACL, but Coach Brian Small continued to show his interest.
“I was afraid that he would lose interest like so many other schools when I told him about my knee.” said Corcoran, “He didn’t hesitate and still wanted to recruit me.”
After seeing the school and talking with the coach, Corcoran was sure that JCU was the school for him. Corcoran will be studying mathematics at JCU.
“After visiting the school and talking to the coach,” Corcoran said, “I knew it was where I wanted to go.”
Corcoran has finally completed the long term goal of his to play lacrosse in the NCAA. After all the time and money spent to put himself in this position, it all payed off in the long run.
“After making it official, it was like a huge weight off my shoulders,” Corcoran said “I could relax, and not have to worry about the future for me. It was secure.”
Dylan is a junior at Stillwater High School. He plays hockey for the high school. His role is a Social Media Editor. He enjoys golfing and going to Minnesota...
