Page 15 - Alumni Horae: Vol. 93, No. 3 Spring 2013

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The road has not been without its pot-
holes for the NALL, which has struggled
to establish a foothold in the sport’s
expanding, but still limited, fan base. As
of the conclusion of the 2013 season, only
three teams remained solvent: Kentucky,
the defending league champion Boston
Rockhoppers, and the Rhode Island King-
fish. The growing pains associated with
establishing a professional sports league
have been exposed through the sagas of the
now-defunct Baltimore Bombers, Char-
lotte Copperheads, Hershey Haymakers,
Jacksonville Bullies, Lehigh Valley Flying
Dutchmen, and Wilkes-Barre/Scranton
Shamrocks franchises. Baltimore, despite
lacrosse’s deep roots in the region, ran
out of funding with two games remaining
in the 2013 campaign.
But in Kentucky, where Clifford has
done his share to promote the game over
the last six years, the Stickhorses aver-
aged more than 1,000 fans at each of their
games at historic Freedom Hall, including
the championship against Boston.
“The overarching goal of the league is
to spread box lacrosse in America,” says
Clifford. “We have a great owner, who
went out and got the best team possible.
Most of my teammates are former college
players. There are players from Major
League Lacrosse and Canada and the
talent level is high. The business side is
fascinating, but we just want to play. I’ve
found myself thinking, ‘Hey, I’m in Ken-
tucky, and I’m playing lacrosse!’ That’s
pretty cool.”
Kentucky is known for basketball,
horse racing, and other traditions, but
a lacrosse hotbed it is not. Clifford has
been pleased to witness the impact the
formation of the Stickhorses has had on
the sport. Club teams use Freedom Hall
(former home to the University of Louis-
ville men’s basketball team) to scrimmage
after Stickhorses games; state champions
are honored at halftime; promotions offer
free Sunday admission to youth players
wearing their lacrosse jerseys; and curi-
ous fans are coming out just to see what
the sport known as the “fastest game on
two feet” is all about.
Kentucky, which recognized his overall
coaching performance and contributions
to the sport on and off the field. That
same year, he helped establish a middle
school program for local athletes. He has
coached at too many clinics to count (for
players and aspiring coaches), and has
joined forces with other local coaches to
help increase the exposure of lacrosse to
as many Kentuckians as possible.
“There has been significant growth in
Kentucky in the last 10 years,” he says.
“At first there was only high school
lacrosse, but now we have programs for
kids as young as third grade.”
Playing professionally, he says, has
only increased his credibility with his
players, who don’t hesitate to critique
their coach’s game – for better or worse
– at the next practice. For Clifford,
returning to competition has given him
the added perspective of what it takes
to be a productive lacrosse player, and
breaking down the skills for the purposes
of coaching has helped him improve his
own game.
Not that he would change a thing (and
he really wouldn’t), but there are also
challenges involved with moonlighting as
a professional athlete. A typical morning
sees Clifford waking before the sun to lift
weights and run through a conditioning
regimen. He coaches with a stick in his
hand and practices in his backyard when
he returns home in the evening.
“I am much more efficient now,” he
says. “It’s hard work, but there is nothing
better than being competitive again. Go-
ing through all the pre-game rituals – it’s
one of those things you forget that you
miss. It has been nice reviving that feel-
ing. I’m not sure what will happen, but I
will play until they tell me not to.”
“The nice part about box lacrosse is
that it’s right in your face – it’s physical
and it’s faster than people are used to,” he
says. “Having a professional-level team
brings the sport a little more credibility,
too. It tells people that the game is here in
Kentucky at a high level.”
It has taken many years for this
Northeast sport to travel south. Clifford,
who now teaches at Louisville Colle-
giate School, has coached six seasons at
duPont Manual High School, where many
of his initial players had never tried the
sport. In 2010, Clifford was named the
US Lacrosse head coach of the year for
I’ve found
myself thinking,
‘Hey, I’m in
Kentucky, and
I’m playing
lacrosse!’ That’s
pretty cool.
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