Charlotte Hounds MLL |
It’s rare when a player in any sport gets the chance to turn
pro after the age of 30. By that time,
many are thinking retirement.
Meet Devan
Spilker! He`s now 31 and on the last weekend
of March, he goes to training camp with the Charlotte Hounds, an expansion team
in Major League Lacrosse.
Devan was drafted in the later rounds by his
old college coach Mike Cerino, the first ever Hounds Head Coach. The two know each other well. Cerino recruited Spilker when he was Head Coach of the Limestone College Saints. Together they won the DII National Championship in 2000. Limestone is one of the smallest schools ever to win an NCAA title.
Shoulda – coulda –
woulda
Devan and Brendan Spilker - Limestone Hall of Fame |
Words you`ll never find in Devan Spilker`s dictionary of
life. As he graduated from high school
there was no doubt in his mind that he would go to college and would play
lacrosse with the big brother he idolized. Coach Cerino put the pieces together and Devan
joined brother Brendan at Limestone.
In
2000, #15 was one of only two freshmen to achieve starting positions with a stacked Saints
team and they won it all. It was the first national
championship in Saints history in any sport, an honour recognized last year when the entire team was inducted into the Limestone Athletics Hall of Fame.
High level of
achievement
Throughout his college career, Spilker lived the Saints team
motto;
``if you couldn`t play tomorrow, how hard would you play today``
- 2000 - National Champions DII Men`s Lacrosse
- Deep South Conference Rookie of the Year
- Deep South All-Conference Team - Attack
- 2001 – National Championship runner up
- Deep South All-Conference Team - Attack
- 2002 – National Champions DII Men`s Lacrosse
- Championship Game Outstanding Player Award
- Championship Tournament All Star
- 2nd Team All American - Attack
- Deep South All-Conference Team - Attack
- 2003 – National Championship runner up
- 1st Team All American - Attack
- Championship Tournament All Star
- Deep South All-Conference Team – Attack
- Selected to play in the North South Senior College All Star Game
- Drafted by the Colorado Mammoth of the National Lacrosse League
- Finished college career as the Limestone Saints all-time leader in total points and assists
- Finished second all-time in goals
Nine years later, those Limestone Lacrosse scoring records still stand. And, nine years later, Devan Spilker heads to his first pro training camp with the
Charlotte Hounds of the Major Lacrosse League.
A regular guy with a
passion for winning
Devan is happiest when he's with his wife Katie; medium rare
steak, baked potato, salad and a cold Coors Light, maybe the hot tub or a
movie. They love to hang with friends and family. They both have careers. Sounds like the good life! Several times a year they travel from their
Baltimore Maryland home to Portland Oregon where Katie was born and
raised. Devan is a Mortgage Broker who loves
to see the smile on his clients` faces when he`s been able to finalize the
financing on a first home.
2002 Championship Game MVP |
If he could,
he`d become a full time lacrosse coach.
But that`s way off in the future, if at all. The immediate challenge is to make the roster
of the Charlotte Hounds. Spilker has the
soft hands, vision and drive of a major offensive player. For him, it`s all about the team and winning!
He played his first field lacrosse game at age of
five in Glen Burnie Maryland. Devan remembers getting knocked on
his butt and then chasing the kid all game until he got him back.
Since being drafted by the Hounds, a personal trainer has been kicking his butt to get him physically ready for the pros. 25 pounds of fat has been replaced by 10 pounds of muscle. The speed is still there, along with the hands and that burning desire to win.
Since being drafted by the Hounds, a personal trainer has been kicking his butt to get him physically ready for the pros. 25 pounds of fat has been replaced by 10 pounds of muscle. The speed is still there, along with the hands and that burning desire to win.
When you play pro lacrosse you are a weekend warrior. There's no NFL-like money in the fastest game on two feet. If he makes it, maybe Devan should change his jersey number from #15 to #31 to celebrate the age he turned pro.