By John Davis
Community Relations Director

David Dorris arrived well ahead of the Central Elementary students who walk down to the Oxford Activity Center each day. Dorris was excited about setting up for his first teaching opportunity, and to start to plant the seed of learning lacrosse.

Lacrosse is the sport Dorris is very familiar with, and he is hoping that the students at Central, and beyond, also become familiar with it in time.

Dorris started playing lacrosse in the sixth grade in Atlanta. He played all the way through high school. While playing football at Rhodes College in Memphis, Dorris joined club lacrosse team his freshman and sophomore years. The club team elevated to an NCAA recognized lacrosse team his junior year, and as a senior, he was the team’s captain.

Dorris moved to Oxford a year and a half ago — his wife is an Ole Miss graduate — and one thing he wanted to do was to help promote the sport locally.

“Lacrosse is a sport that tests and trains the total athlete in the sense that it’s a very fast paced game,” said Dorris, who served eight years as a volunteer coach in the Memphis high school ranks. “I know that’s a big reason why I was originally attracted to it, and while others like it. You have to be able to think quickly, like basketball, where you go up and down the court and make split-second decisions.

“It also trains your physical attributes in that you have to guard people 1-on-1. You have to run past people and dodge them,” Dorris added. “When I was at the high school, I always tried to get defensive backs out to try and play, or basketball players because you have that pick-and-roll element involved. A lot of the athletes in basketball that were good on defense 1-on-1 are also really good in lacrosse.”

There were 25 Central students who decided to take part in the initial introduction to lacrosse this past Wednesday. The lessons will continue until the Thanksgiving break. Lacrosse could serve as a great option for those who haven’t found a sport they love just yet, or be an additional sport to add because it transitions to so many other sports.

“One of the better offensive players I played with, he wasn’t the most athletic specimen, but he knew spacing and he knew where to be and move without the ball,” Dorris said. “He was able to be very successful not by running past people or being stronger, but by knowing where to be. He knew how to get open and work off the ball. He also had really good stick skills where he could catch and throw very well.”

Dorris has always enjoyed sports, and lacrosse has meant a lot to him through the years. Some of his fondest memories have come through lacrosse, and he would love to see the game grow in Oxford and Mississippi as a whole. Dorris has told parents who have kids that are interested in lacrosse that it’s a great way for them to get out and run and be a part of a team, while improving individual skills as they become a better team member.

“It’s a team sport that requires individual skill,” Dorris said. “It’s a great way for them to spend time with friends, get outside and get engaged while working on a craft. It’s kind of like playing the guitar, a kid can pick up the stick and throw the ball against the wall. It’s a fun game to watch because it’s an easy game to understand. One team is trying to score in one of the goals. There are some other rules that make it unique, but it’s an easy game to watch. My boys like to go out and watch, and what they really like to do is, to play with the sticks at home.”