Class Three, An Inside Look: PJ Bogle & Tommy Heidt
9/17/2014 12:00:00 AM | Men's Lacrosse
The University of Michigan men's lacrosse team inked 14 student-athletes as members of the team's 2014 recruiting class last spring, and the group was ranked No. 19 class in the country by Inside Lacrosse.
MGoBlue.com will sit down with each incoming freshman on an individual basis this fall. First up is goalie Tommy Heidt, who is ranked as the No. 17 recruit in the country, along with attackman PJ Bogle of Culver Military Academy in Indiana.
PJ Bogle • Attack • Culver, Ind./Culver Military Academy
On playing for Culver Military ... "At that time, the year before I came was the first time being nationally ranked, we were 25th. In my eyes, a nationally ranked team was one of the better teams I would have ever played for. Playing for a small Chicago public school team really meant very little, so being able to compete on a national level, even if it was for rankings only as high as 25th, was still a whole new experience. From my first year until the time I graduated at Culver, we made huge strides as a program. A lot of that has to be credited to Coach Posner, who led the whole train. By the end of the year, we made it up a couple more ranks to 20th, and the second year we made it to fifth in the nation. Eventually during senior year, we finished second in the nation. Being part of that whole development was an honor and an awesome experience."
On playing lacrosse in the Midwest ... "Being from Chicago, lacrosse is developing a lot slower than on the East Coast. When I was looking to be recruited I was looking for different routes I could take. A lot of it was summer lacrosse, but then the opportunity of going to boarding school came up, and I jumped on the boat at the right time for Culver."
On attending military school ... "The most important thing I'll take from military school and bring to Michigan is the experience I've had at the leadership position. Within three years at military school, I ranked up and got promoted and eventually made my way to the top. With that experience of being in a leadership position, I hope I can contribute to the team. I understand that as a freshman there are not many opportunities for leadership. It's a lot like my first year at Culver when you're a new cadet. It's a lot of falling and learning new things. When the opportunity presents itself, I'm not going to hesitate to hop into a leadership position and see what I can do for the team."
On choosing Michigan ... "I wanted to stay in the Midwest. Playing Midwest lacrosse, I love where it's heading and having that blue-collar mentality. I narrowed my option at the D I level, and when I visited Michigan, the coaches and team were great, the facilities were awesome. They have everything that I wanted: athletics, academics, social life' they're just a well-balanced school in general."
Tommy Heidt • Goalie • Greenwich, Conn./Greenwich
On the competition in goal ... " I'm going in open minded. Based on the first practice, it's already much faster than I'm used to, so I already know that I'm behind, but I'm going to try my hardest and see what happens. I'm going to listen to Coach Casey Martin, but right away I noticed the shots were much faster."
On how goalie Coach Casey Martin has helped him thus far ... "Throughout high school, I never had a goalie coach. When we split up, Casey is always having us do these hard and tiring drills that I know will make me better quickly."
On choosing Michigan ... "Michigan was the school I always wanted to go to since freshman year of high school. They didn't really recruit me until my rising junior year, and I committed within around a week or two. I have a lot of family from northern Michigan, and I spend time here every summer. Michigan has everything and takes everything seriously, which I like."
On playing in the Under Armour and other all-star games ... "It was cool to play with the top caliber guys and see where I was in comparison to them. It also proved to me that I could play with some of the best kids in the country, which is a confidence that you really don't get in high school."
On being ranked in the IL Power 100 ... "Rankings like that definitely boost my confidence but not much more than that."
