The midfielders shuffle in and out. The offense and defense only play when the ball is in their zone. The goalkeeper has to wait for a shot to make a tangible impact.

But at the faceoff X, Ben Williams can prepare knowing exactly when he’s going to be used.

“You can kind of go into your own place,” Williams said. “… I don’t really like to talk very much. I know when the crowd cheers, you’re out to try and get the ball back. It’s a relatively simple position and I like how there’s not much going on.”

Williams has made winning faceoffs look as simple as when he speaks about them. The sophomore transfer has given No. 2 Syracuse (8-1, 2-1 Atlantic Coast) possession at a 70 percent clip this season, which ranks second in Division I. And after being forced to market himself just to get a walk-on spot at Holy Cross for his freshman season in 2014, his athleticism has taken over a role that seven other SU players competed for.

SU assistant coach Kevin Donahue has a newly implemented uniform process at the X — one that Williams has repeated ad nauseam — and it fit his capabilities almost perfectly.

“He learned a lot on his own because he was on his own,” Donahue said. “Then he learned how to be a self-motivated learner.

“It’s physical. It’s athletic. And Ben is a great athlete.”

Growing up in Minnesota — far from a lacrosse hotbed — Williams struggled to get Division I looks. He was injured after his sophomore year in high school, which prevented him from going to lacrosse camps over the summer. His priorities were also split with the football team, where he was a blitz-heavy outside linebacker.

At St. Thomas Academy (Minnesota), he won 82 percent of his faceoffs as a midfielder and a FOGO. Head coach John Barnes said he sometimes had to pull him off the field since Williams would gain possession and take off down the field on offense. Barnes said he was “mean” when it came to getting the ball.

At Holy Cross he had to get better without the same number of pieces around him. He often worked alone or with one other person. Still, he improved his ball control out of his exits and it led to four goals and a 53.1 percentage at the X.

“He’s got the size, speed, strength. He’s got the brains, he’s got the hand quickness,” former Crusaders head coach Jim Morrissey said. “He’s got the ability to go down the gut and score. He can do it all. You don’t see a lot from faceoff guys. You understand that there’s some good ones but boy, he’s putting on a clinic out there.”

Donahue said it didn’t even take him through the fall season of Williams’ first semester to get a good idea that the sophomore was the right fit for his style.

It’s a technique that involves Williams angling himself toward the ball. He tries to listen closely to the whistle and not guess about when it’s coming. After he gets on top of the ball, he works on different exits based on where he can take it and how long the faceoff itself took. When something isn’t going right, he adjusts the stance and works on different clamps.

Unlike in previous years, specialists can’t pin the ball on the back of the stick, making it more difficult to get the ball to the offense. It’s a rule that plays into Williams’ athleticism even when he doesn’t win at the X, since he’s adept at chasing down opponents and forcing them into turnovers.

“That’s why I like the new rule,” Williams said. “It’s not over after the clamp. You stand up, hit the kid. Causing them to make a sloppy exit with the ball, you have a chance to go get it. I think it makes every faceoff winnable.”

SU head coach John Desko said any faceoff specialist that has quick hands like Williams does tends to get the ball first. His hands move well with his body and once he gets around to his stick, he’s able to excel, faceoff specialist Zack Vehar said.

Donahue has seen opponents gameplan unsuccessfully for Williams all season. His natural skills play too well into his position. Already this year Williams has redefined a position that’s had a reputation for being Syracuse’s hindrance. He started out the season by winning 17-of-20 against Siena. Two games later he set a Syracuse record by winning the first 11 against Army. When the Orange faced Albany a week ago, he won 24-of-27 in a win.

On top of that, Williams’ three goals are already three more than SU faceoff specialists have combined for in the past two seasons.

“It’s being more than just a FOGO,” Desko said of Donahue’s system. “I think Ben has those characteristics. He’s a very good athlete, he runs fast, he can shoot on the run. He tries to be more than just a faceoff person.”

When Williams went back home for Easter weekend, he spent part of his Friday afternoon at St. Thomas Academy with the lacrosse team. Barnes let Williams take his faceoff guys alone to work out. He taught them things he had learned at Syracuse, like angling into the ball, making sure to wait for the whistle instead of guessing based off timing and cadences and a few new clamp moves as well.

Williams was handing down the aspects of a process that he’s seemingly mastered. His success using it is only partly due to its design.

It needs someone to fit it, and Williams is the right piece.

“This year we just picked up the intensity and just started paying attention to the details of the faceoff,” Williams said. “We decided we wanted to raise the level of this position and bring a little more excitement to it.”

Published on April 8, 2015 at 9:43 pm

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