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The Human Weapon Does Destructive Things

Tom Schreiber remains cataclysmically destructive.

Once the detonator is pressed, there's little that can be done to stop the destruction. Just look at that video: Schreiber engages a non-descript split dodge against Thomas Keith (who did a killer job against Schreiber in that Big City Classic game), sets his feet, and unloads a bullet that heat-seeks the corner and lights up the net. There's nothing in that five seconds of action that looks impossible, which is why Schreiber is The Human Weapon: His ability to achieve absolute annihilation with extreme efficiency makes him a prism of carnage simply by stepping on the field.

That's what sets Schreiber apart from other offensive midfielders in the game right now. He can dodge to create action or he can dodge to score. He's not blindingly fast but deceptively quick enough to get to space. He's as likely to share the bean (he led Princeton with 32 assists last season) as he is to fire the pill from his cannon (he led Princeton in shot usage last season with 111 attempts). The ball is always in his crosse and he draws all kinds of attention, allowing others to work and forcing the defense to remain hyper-vigilant. He's a two-handed player that fears no opposing netminder or marker. He is, simply, one of the most difficult matchups in the college game right now with a complete game that continues to develop.

Take a look at that video again: What was Cornell supposed to do? Keith is in decent position but gets shook. Tom Freshour is caught in between, late to help to Schreiber because Kip Orban is taking up residence in the middle of the field, a deadly position where a resulting goal is almost a certainty if Schreiber flips him the ball. A.J. Fiore can do nothing to stop the shot given the placement of the attempt and the fact that Schreiber did not tip his hand on where the ball was destined. And Schreiber does this all the damn time.

Schreiber is a skunkworks midfielder. Others approach his production capability -- Bucknell's David Dickson comes to mind, but even he has a way to go to stand on the same plane as Schreiber -- but Schreiber remains the most dangerous asset -- from the midfield -- in the college game right now.