Why Forge Was Built

Doug Steele was forged in Long Island, New York—one of the nation’s premier hotbeds for elite lacrosse—where being average gets exposed fast. The son of a U.S. Army veteran, he was raised in a home where discipline, teamwork, and execution to the highest standard were daily expectations—values instilled long before they ever became coaching principles. A four-year, dual-sport varsity starter in both lacrosse and football, he captained both programs and came up inside an environment that taught him exactly what serious player development looks like: demanding standards, honest feedback, and daily competition against the best athletes around.

He carried that leadership to Sacred Heart University, where he cemented his legacy as a multi-year NCAA All-American, four-time Defensive MVP, and a rare four-year team captain wearing #19. Holding a captaincy for four straight seasons at the NCAA level is a distinction few players ever earn—a reflection of the standard he held himself to every day, on the field and off it. In the decades since, Doug has coached and developed elite lacrosse players at the highest levels of youth, high school, and college lacrosse—building skilled athletes, leaders, and complete players at every stage of the game.

Today, Doug channels that playing and coaching pedigree into Forge Lacrosse Performance, the program he founded and leads as Managing Director from its home base at YMCA Taylors. Built on the Forge Method, the program delivers structured, position-specific, game-speed development—clear standards, honest evaluation, and measurable progress—to athletes across Greenville, Taylors, Greer, Spartanburg, and Upstate South Carolina. His mission mirrors the environment that built him: hold athletes to a higher standard, teach them to compete with confidence, and develop complete players and leaders whose habits last well beyond the field.

Brian Silcott brings a rare combination of elite playing experience, championship coaching, national leadership, and a lifelong commitment to helping young athletes grow through lacrosse. Over more than 45 years in the game, he was a two-time All-American, national champion, two-year captain, and 1993 Fran McCall Award winner at Nazareth before playing 11 professional seasons across Major League Lacrosse and the National Lacrosse League—including four years as captain of the Boston Cannons and championship-game runs in both leagues.

After his playing career, Brian became the first Black head coach in Major League Lacrosse history and served as Executive Vice President and Governor of the NLL’s Portland LumberJax. He helped coach Nazareth to the 1996 national championship—pairing a coaching title with the one he won there as a player—with coaching stops spanning Trinity College, Wentworth, The Bolles School, and the Scotland Men’s National Team, and most recently guided the Sweetlax 2026 team to a No. 2 national ranking with every player on the roster going on to play Division I college lacrosse.

His leadership extends across the sport: National Men’s Game Director, Vice President of Sport Growth and Development, and Board of Directors member at USA Lacrosse; Head of Player Experience and Lacrosse Administration for the Premier Lacrosse League; National Team Director and Men’s Head Coach for Jamaica Lacrosse; and current supporter of Greece’s effort to qualify for the 2028 Olympics in Los Angeles. For Upstate South Carolina families, that means training with a coach who has developed players from their first stick all the way to the Division I and professional level.