Rick Lum (left) and Todd Lorenz were both on the turf last season as NLL referees. This year, they are manning the bench as assistant coaches for the Washington Stealth and Edmonton Rush, respectively.
FORMER REFS FINDING SUCCESS ON THE BENCH
Todd Lorenz and Rick Lum enjoying fast starts to their NLL coaching careers
02/08/2010
By Ryan Rosengrant for NLL.comThis past offseason, the Edmonton Rush (3-2) and Washington Stealth (6-0) looked to the field of play to improve their coaching staffs, adding former officials Todd Lorenz and Rick Lum, respectively, to their coaching staffs.
Both teams are off to great starts, sitting at one and two in the West Division standings. Not coincidentally, both Lorenz and Lum had many advantages that they knew they could bring to the table as former referees and players.
"I was a former player and the players all knew that I could help them learn the game," said Lorenz.
"Being a referee gave me an opportunity to be a better coach, a calmer coach. It gave me a wider range of the game," said Lum.
Those advantages have been noticed by the players and coaches in each city, as well.
"I have been very impressed with the job that he has done; his knowledge of the game has been great," said Rush forward Ryan Ward of Lorenz.
"He has helped us out tremendously. He almost knows when a call is going to be made before it happens," Stealth forward Jeff Zywicki said in regards to Lum.
Another advantage that Lum has brought to the Stealth has been his knowledge of how to put together scouting reports.
"He does the scouting reports and does a fantastic job at them," said Zywicki.
"We get a really good handle on the other team."
The teams were excited right from the start to have the expertise of Lorenz - who was a 2008 Canadian Lacrosse Hall of Fame inductee - and Lum - whose lacrosse background dates back many years across many platforms.
"We were getting a great lacrosse mind that would contribute immediately to our team and the success that we are striving for," said Rush Captain Chris McElroy.
"(Lorenz) is a big benefit. He is really a quality lacrosse guy; he was hired because of his background," said Rush Head Coach Derek Keenan.
"He also had a very strong desire to coach. It wasn't a very difficult decision at all; he is a great offensive guy with great principles."
Both Lorenz and Lum were well-respected referees during their time on the NLL turf. In fact, Lum worked five championship games (one as crew chief, four as assistant ref) and two all-star games during his nine years as an NLL ref.
Despite their success in stripes, the two former officials both see their moves to the bench as positive ones that fit their personalities.
"Because of all of the refereeing I did, I got to know many of the players and their tendencies. Things like that can be extremely valuable as a coach," said Lorenz.
"It takes a unique individual to go from a referee to a coach," said Lum, sharing a laugh in the process.
One part of the transition from referee to coach has been the aspect of being criticized by coaches and player to now being the ones doing the criticizing. For Lorenz, just because he can doesn't mean he does, though.
"Referees don't make bad calls," said Lorenz, practicing the company line.
Lum, though, isn't as forgiving. If he sees a situation where a referee may miss a call and he must get involved, he knows how to handle it.
"I will give it to them, but at the same time being an ex-referee, I have a good idea of knowing the ref's limits. I know when enough is enough" said Lum.
With the success that both teams have been off to, the captains in each city are attributing that success, in part, to their new coaches.
"(Lorenz) is a great coach with a lot of knowledge to pass along. He was also a great player so he knows the game well. He also has a great relationship with the players, he communicates well and focuses on the positives" said McElroy.
"(Lum) has exceeded expectations. He has a huge insight and in-depth knowledge of the league," said Bloom.
Despite the overflowing support from both the players and coaches, Lorenz isn't about to take credit for all of the success... just some of it.
"Two percent of the team's success is my doing. It's all about the players; we are all in this together.
"Competition for life is what I like to call it," said Lorenz.
As far as getting back onto the other side of the bench and refereeing again, both coaches echoed the same mindset.
"My hat for that is gone, but I really did enjoy my time. I am most comfortable where I am now," said Lorenz.
"I don't think I would ever go back to refereeing. I accomplished everything that I wanted to," said Lum.
"I would be open for criticism, and I don't intend on going through that now."
It remains to be seen if more teams go to this type of strategy that the Rush and Stealth have implemented, but so far the blueprint has delivered success in both cities.
The two ref-turned-coaches have faced off once already this season, as their teams played the opening week of the season with the Stealth winning 15-7. They next play each other Apr. 2 at Edmonton and also close out the regular season with a matchup on Apr. 17.
Edmonton will travel to Toronto this Friday, Feb. 12, while Washington will visit Minnesota on Saturday. Both games can be seen live on the NLL Network at NLL.com.
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