Colin Puckett is an elite attack on the ADVNC North Bay and NDP ‘24 squad committed to play at the Ohio State University, starting next Fall.
Colin and his older brother Owen, playing catch in the backyard.
Colin first played lacrosse in 2nd grade, when he saw his older cousin, Charlie, and his older brother, Owen playing the game. “As a younger kid who looked up to those guys, I just wanted to follow in their footsteps,” said Colin. “I loved the game from the moment I stepped on the field for the first time. Once I found lacrosse, I haven’t really thought about playing other sports at a competitive level. It’s been all lacrosse for me.”
“Colin has always had a piece of sports equipment in his hand since he could walk, and that’s not an understatement,” said Colin’s mom, Sarah Puckett. “It started with his little hammer, and then it became a tennis racquet, a football, eventually a lacrosse stick, and sometimes a basketball. Something in his hand, constantly. The no playing balls in the house rule just wasn’t going to happen here.”
Colin and Owen Puckett were water boys for their older cousin, Charlie Hunt when he played at Marin Catholic.
“It was so nice for him to get away from baseball,” said Colin’s dad, Mark Puckett. “I vividly remember the last baseball game Colin ever played, it was painful to watch. It was great to see my two boys playing lacrosse together. They both started playing for the Grizzlies here in Marin, and the club needed coaches. I had never seen a real lacrosse game before, but I got roped into helping coach their team, and I’m glad I did. It’s been an awesome sport for our family.”
“I was drawn to the creativity of lacrosse,” said Colin. “You could do whatever you wanted with your stick. There’s so much freedom. It’s very free flowing .. plus, I got to hit people and I like hitting people.”
“I loved watching my boys playing lacrosse together in the backyard,” said Colin’s mom, Sarah Puckett. “They would set up cones and backstops and do lots of drills. Seeing their older cousin play at Marin Catholic really inspired Colin and Owen. They became water boys for the varsity team, and they’d always bring their sticks on family trips and play together. Lacrosse has really bonded our family together.”
Colin played for another club in the Bay Area, but had played as a guest player with ADVNC several times over the years. He decided to join ADVNC full time in his sophomore year of High School. “ADVNC has been awesome,” Colin said. “I didn’t know some of the other players at first, but I felt a connection with them right away. I saw right away that the ADVNC players were all really good. All the ADVNC practices were super high energy, and all the coaches clearly wanted to bring out the best in us.”
“When Colin went to ADVNC full time, we experienced a framework of excellence that was in place,” said Mark Puckett. “They have a great coaching staff. Not just with Colin’s team, but from all the different age classes. Guys that all played at a high level in college and some pros. He got exposure to the best coaches in California. I also felt a high level of support that he got from Chris Rotelli (ADVNC Founder & CEO) and others.”
“It’s not an understatement to say that Colin’s entire lacrosse trajectory shifted overnight after his first practice with ADVNC,” said Sarah Puckett. “We were suddenly on this track that we didn’t expect to be on and that was all thanks to Chris Rotelli and BJ Grill (ADVNC Director of Training, and also Colin’s High School Head Coach at Marin Catholic.)
“Colin had the skills, but we felt he was getting overlooked for better recognition and accolades before he came over to ADVNC,” said Mark Puckett. “ADVNC saw his potential in that first month, and put him on a path to excel. That gave Colin a big confidence boost and it was nice to feel that support.”
“Going into the recruiting process, I wasn’t expecting much major Division I interest,” said Colin. “I didn’t think of myself as that player, but then I grew a ton of confidence through playing with ADVNC. Coach Rotelli and BJ were always by my side. BJ was always texting me after games, asking which college coaches were there to see me. Rotelli was also always there, calling coaches and advocating for me, because most of the big time coaches didn’t know who I was at the beginning of the process. I was from Marin, and I hadn’t played for the big time club team for very long.”
Colin has been a huge Buckeyes fan since he was a little kid.
“I was very impressed with how Colin handled the college decision making process,” said Mark Puckett. “He did not want to go to a school just for lacrosse. He wanted a big school with lots of school spirit. I really appreciated how he took the time to figure out what he wanted and then evaluated the entire school, not just the lacrosse program.”
Mark Puckett was born in Columbus, Ohio, and has always been a big Ohio State football fan. Colin, in turn, has loved the Buckeyes since he was a little kid. “Once Ohio St showed interest in me, it was a pretty easy decision,” Colin said. “Having been a fan my whole life, I knew right when I stepped on campus that it was the place for me. There’s a great energy there, and the lacrosse team is on the rise, and getting better each year.”
Despite his love for the Buckeyes, Colin said he looks up to a fellow lefty attack from Notre Dame and current PLL All-Star with the Redwoods, Ryder Garnsey. “I love how he plays with such enthusiasm,” said Colin. “He talks a lot and plays with emotion. I always like to watch him.”
Colin, at his first NDP Training Camp with ADVNC.
Colin has the following advice for young players who admire his game. “Listen to your coaches. A lot of players want to do their own thing, whether its shooting sidearm or other stuff, but your coaches have been around for a long time and they know the game. They know what’s best for you. Just listen to them. When Coach Grill came to Marin Catholic I tried to listen to everything he said and buy in. That’s when my game started to change. He would tell me, just keep running, and don’t do lots of moves to break down defenders. That worked well for me.”
“As a parent, the key to success with youth sports is, make sure everyone in the family is having fun with it,” said Mark Puckett. “The kid has to like it, but the parents also must be having a good time, because it’s is an absolute grind. The number of times Colin and I had to wake up at 3:30am to get to a tournament was hard. But then we got there, and I saw Colin on the field playing the game he loves, and having fun playing with his closest friends, it was worth it. Plus, the ADVNC families are phenomenal, and we all enjoyed ourselves.”