Get the latest Syracuse news delivered right to your inbox. Subscribe to our sports newsletter here.

The king cobra is the longest venomous snake in the world. It’s a vicious, instinctual predator that relentlessly strikes its helpless prey. If you ask four-time All-American Syracuse defender Ric Beardsley, SU’s Billy Dwan III is the king cobra of college lacrosse’s animal kingdom — because he’s its most intimidating transitional threat.

A 6-foot-4, 220-pound close defender, Dwan racked up eight goals in 2024 from the hardest non-goalie spot to score from. Beardsley, an offensive stud at close defense from 1992-95, didn’t score more than six goals in a season. Eight seemed like pure fantasy to him, until Dwan came around.

But even Beardsley, arguably the sport’s greatest trash-talker and one of its most ferocious defenders, says he would’ve been scared to step in front of a freight train like Dwan.

“There’s not many guys out there who probably want to square up with him,” Beardsley said of Dwan. “He’s like an ornery king cobra man, like a 12-foot king cobra. The little ones don’t want to mess with you.”

Dwan, amid his junior season, stands alone in Syracuse men’s lacrosse history as its leading single-season scorer from close defense. His sophomore year not only thrust him into All-American status but also established him as a modern-day lacrosse unicorn. Pole goals ignite teams like nothing else, Beardsley said. He compared a close defender tallying two goals in a game to a center in basketball scoring 80 to 90 points. No one that size should be that skilled offensively.

Yet Dwan has always had a thirst for the spectacular. His playmaking style is unmatched and gives Syracuse an edge against any team it faces.

“When a (long) pole scores in general, if it’s a cool trick shot or if it’s just a step-down shot, it provides a lot of energy for the team,” Dwan said of his two-way ability.

Dwan’s eight goals were more than all other SU defenders combined in 2024. He unleashed a two-goal performance in a March 23 win over Hobart. He made a litany of shock-inducing plays, highlighted by an enthralling game-tying pole goal in an eventual victory over then-No. 4 Virginia on April 20. On the play, Dwan corralled a ground ball then catapulted it over his head with his back facing the cage, whizzing it past UVA goalie Matthew Nunes.

This season, in Syracuse’s blowout of Utah on March 1, Dwan buried a long-range shot from beyond the midfield line in perhaps his most absurd goal yet.

Syracuse defensive coordinator John Odierna said Dwan’s rapid instincts make him dangerous in transition. He also picks his spots wisely, scoring on 72.7% of his attempts in 2024. In turn, Dwan’s mentality allows SU’s staff — which Odierna says emphasizes freedom — to encourage him to run upfield in transition because they trust his judgment and his production.

“We’re just continuing to let (Dwan) flourish and expand the creativity of his game,” Odierna said.

Dwan’s desire to score came from watching legends like the Thompson brothers and his father, Bill Dwan. Bill was a standout defenseman from 1988-91 at Johns Hopkins University and later served as the Blue Jays’ associate head coach for 20 seasons.

Bill remembers a young Dwan sitting on the floor of his office breaking down film and asking questions about specific plays. He loved watching his father’s Johns Hopkins teams and watching old film of Bill’s brother, Matt, a three-time All-American long-stick midfielder at Loyola University who totaled 19 career goals from 1992-95.

Dwan’s detailed ability to dissect opponents through schematic execution has always taken command of a locker room, Bill said. Bill thinks his son is a coach on the field, qualities Dwan learned from his father. Maintaining a heightened lacrosse IQ developed Dwan’s killer instinct, which was easy to activate once he hit high school.

“Billy’s pretty mild-mannered off the field. And when he gets onto the field, he just gets a high-intensity level,” Bill said.

The “race to the midline” piqued Dwan’s tenacity while playing at Loyola Blakefield, a high-level private school in Towson, Maryland. It’s a strategy used by Blakefield lacrosse head coach Gene Ubriaco. When in transition, the first three players who cross midfield continue to push upfield and play offense in the opposing zone, Dwan said.

Ubriaco doesn’t want his players to be hesitant, and he said Dwan took that to heart from the moment he arrived.

Cole Ross | Digital Design Director

Blakefield Assistant Coach Stephen Abrams first noticed Dwan galloping in transition during three-on-three scrimmages during his freshman training camp. Abrams said Dwan was immediately among the team’s best players in three-on-three, and it was “pretty evident” they’d use his skillset one day.

Dwan often bolted past players on fast breaks in practice, even from his starting point near the goal line as a close defender. Dwan loved the feeling of delivering an unlikely goal and took every opportunity to do so.

Ubriaco felt Dwan’s athleticism could translate to a precise shooter as well, and gave him freedom to make snap decisions in transition during his junior year — his first as a starter. But Ubriaco wasn’t completely comfortable with his close defender handling the ball quite yet.

He recalled a moment during a game against Georgetown Preparatory School. Blakefield had successfully cleared and Dwan charged across the midfield stripe before being pressured by a few defenders. As Dwan winded up to shoot in traffic, Ubriaco called a timeout, which he instantly regretted.

Dwan’s shot had already hit the back of the net when the play was whistled dead.

“Billy, I’m so sorry, but I won’t do that again,” Ubriaco told Dwan after he got to the sideline. “I’ll trust you.”

Blakefield’s staff began to scheme around Dwan’s innate traits. Abrams said they toyed with putting Dwan on the man-up unit, while Ubriaco added that they slid him to midfield at times, too. But the key to unlocking Dwan’s potential was letting him fly. He won the “race to the midline” seemingly every time, his coaches said. From there, it was about getting out of the way so Dwan had room to rumble.

Abrams was always impressed with Dwan’s physical finishing style, displaying an attackman-esque touch by getting near the crease and finishing close to the goalie.

“He was never one to get a crow-hopping step from the restraining line and let a shot go,” Abrams said of Dwan.

Ubriaco saw how difficult Dwan was to stop with his massive stature. Defenders couldn’t reach the ball with how high he carried it when sprinting upfield in transition. That combination of size and speed is what makes him so special, according to Ubriaco.

So, after initial apprehensiveness came back to bite him, Ubriaco’s handling of Dwan’s skillset changed.

“We gave him the green light,” Ubriaco said.

Everything came to fruition in Dwan’s senior campaign when he earned All-Maryland Interscholastic Athletic Association honors. He said the freedom Ubriaco and his staff provided allowed him to deliver consistently. The moment he remembers most from that year came against The John Carroll School in Bel Air, Maryland. Dwan scored a twister to put Blakefield up six points in a Friday night victory.

Dwan swiftly transitioned his scoring prowess to Syracuse. He scored once his freshman year as a reserve, then followed up with an explosive sophomore campaign. Dwan said SU’s coaching staff trusting him helped him quickly adapt to Division I.

Of his eight goals in 2024, Dwan’s signature moment occurred in the Orange’s win over North Carolina on April 13. Dwan streaked past midfield with the ball after a failed UNC chance, then executed a give-and-go with attackman Joey Spallina before Spallina fired a behind-the-back feed to Dwan. On the move, Dwan cradled the ball side-to-side then dove near the left crease, squeaking his shot past Tar Heels goalie Collin Krieg.

Dwan described the play as “unbelievable,” complimenting Spallina’s feed but downplaying his own effort. The long pole elicits excitement; Dwan loves to score because of the lift it provides his teammates. Though, sometimes, that hunger comes at the expense of others’ emotions.

“That was the classic, ‘No, no, no!’” Odierna said of Dwan’s goal versus UNC. “As the defensive coach, I wanted us to hold the ball and play a little offense. But Billy made a great play.”

Beardsley couldn’t believe Dwan’s season was a reality. He didn’t even find out Dwan scored more goals in a single year than he ever had until a phone call with Syracuse head coach Gary Gait before the 2025 season.

“Rick’s like, ‘Oh my God, Billy was probably the leading scorer for a close defenseman last year in the country. I only had six goals in my best year as a close defender.’ And I was like, ‘I didn’t realize Billy was at a higher pace than (Beardsley) was,’” Gait said. “He thinks really highly of Billy, as do I.”

Beardsley, a longtime family friend of the Dwans through his connections with Bill and Matt, often invites Dwan to dinner, where they’re joined by Spallina and his brothers, Jake and Brett. Beardsley tries to make them laugh with stories of the old days. Last month, though, the conversation turned to Dwan.

Beardsley and Dwan talked about how they each broke the mold of their position, as Beardsley praised Dwan for his remarkable 2024 campaign. When the two stood up to leave the table, Beardsley was reminded of how improbable Dwan’s numbers were. Beardsley’s no small guy, but he joked Dwan’s stature made him look like a tick.

Face-to-face with a giant like that, you’d think they’re a hard-nosed defender. What you wouldn’t expect is a slithery snake with the ball in his hands. But that’s exactly what Dwan is.

“There are lots of guys that play the long-stick position that get assists, get points, get ground balls, and Billy (scored eight goals) from close defense? I can’t remember anybody that did that,” Beardsley said of Dwan. “Not a lot of guys can set their feet and let it rip 100 miles an hour without effort.”

Published on March 6, 2025 at 1:49 am

Contact Cooper at: ccandrew@syr.edu | @cooper_andrews