Despite having only three and a half years of collegiate play under his belt, Cornell’s attackman Jeff Teat has impressed multiple professional teams hoping to revitalize their rosters as the first overall pick in the Premier Lacrosse League College Draft.
Teat has capped off his five year college career with being selected by Atlas Lacrosse Club. Despite being granted an extra year of eligibility, Teat and his teammates spent the 2021 season on the sidelines because of the Ivy League’s decision to cancel all spring sports.
Last fall, Teat was also selected first overall in the National Lacrosse League by the New York Riptide, a team that had a lackluster 2020 season with a 1-12 record. While he opted to return to Ithaca for a fifth year of college play, the Riptide holds the rights to signing Teat.
Despite his short tenure with the Red, Teat will go down as one of Cornell’s best offensive lacrosse players in program history. He came to the hill listed as the No. 1 recruit in the Class of 2016 according to Inside Lacrosse and started all 13 games during his first season. After a career that saw Teat and his team be propelled all the way to the number five ranked program in the country, the talent leaves Cornell holding the third most points in school history as well as the third most assists. Teat has been recognized for his efforts as a two-time Tewaaraton Trophy Nominee, three-time USILA All-American and a two-time unanimous first-team All-Ivy selection.
If Teat moves forward with Atlas LC, he will be a key player in suring up the team’s lack of offensive capacity. In the five games played by the club last year, Atlas lost four straight, failing to put up more than ten points in any of those games. With his consistent production dating back to his freshman year, Teat has proven to be one of, if not the best offensive prospect in collegiate lacrosse, which is a big reason Atlas felt the need to make him the first pick in the draft.
If he chooses to pursue a professional athletic career, he will likely be one of the most-watched prospects in his league of choice. If he decides to hang up his cleats for good, he will close out his career as one of Cornell’s greatest players who was not allowed to properly close out his college career.