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While playing in a winter box lacrosse league at Culver Military Academy, Ty English and his brother, current Syracuse midfielder Sam English, threw punches at each other. Ty was heated.

Sam mercilessly slashed and checked him throughout the contest. Still, Ty launched a long-range shot that found the net. He celebrated with a loud “Let’s go,” but his follow-through caught Sam’s arm. Sam retaliated with a punch, sparking a full-on brawl. The two hit the turf and started unleashing, Ty recalled, before teammates and Culver head coach Jon Posner pulled them apart.

“Growing up, those two were opposites, and they were always the reason why we would have some kind of scrap in the family,” their father, Andrew, said.

Now, fists have turned to phone calls where they swap scouting notes and talk midfield strategy. But come Saturday, the rivalry returns when Ty’s No. 8 North Carolina (9-3, 2-1 Atlantic Coast) meets Sam’s No. 11 Syracuse (9-4, 2-1 Atlantic Coast) in a critical ACC clash. Ty’s scored in 11 of 12 games this season. Sam, in his sixth year, is SU’s Swiss Army knife.

“The Englishes are like wine. They just get better and better and better with time,” Posner said.

Last season, Syracuse edged UNC 10-9 in Chapel Hill. Ty shined, scooping up six ground balls and causing two turnovers. This year, he’s stepped into a bigger offensive role and will look to snap Sam’s perfect 3-0 record against his brothers — Ty and Johns Hopkins’ junior Brooks English, who’s a year younger.

“It was a close game against them last year,” Ty said. “Being able to do it again is something that I’m really looking forward to.”

Saturday is “nerve-wracking,” Ty added, not only since he’s playing versus his older brother but with the game’s stakes. If SU wins, it’s the No. 1 seed in the ACC Tournament; if UNC prevails, it’s the No. 2 seed. Whoever loses drops to No. 3.

Ahead of the matchup, Ty said Sam, who’s two years older than him, is why he began playing lacrosse.

“At a young age, it was always like, ‘Oh, Sam did this. I want to do that,’” Ty said.

He followed Sam’s every move. Sam played for Team Ontario in lacrosse. Ty competed alongside him at the 2022 World Lacrosse Men’s U-21 Championship. Sam attended Culver to pursue lacrosse. Ty followed. Sam committed to a Division I school. So did Ty.

But when Sam chose Princeton, Ty broke from the blueprint. After a standout summer in 2019, he became the No. 17 prospect in the 2021 class — the second-highest among the four brothers, which also includes Sawyer, who’s committed to play at Brown next year.

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UNC won out in Ty’s recruitment for its lacrosse and historic athletic reputation. The Tar Heels had just made the 2021 Final Four and looked like a national powerhouse. But that trajectory quickly unraveled.

“The first three years here weren’t as good as I expected, but we finally built a culture and a team where we could have the ability to make it all the way,” Ty said. “And I think that’s something that happened this year.”

Ty helped lead the charge. He noticed that while North Carolina’s defense was stout, ranking 19th in goals against last season, the offense lacked punch, especially downhill dodgers. So, he volunteered to become an attacking midfielder this campaign — which he was originally recruited for — after playing defensive midfield.

The senior’s leadership role on a championship-contending team would’ve surprised his parents as a kid. Andrew said it was like pulling teeth to get Ty to play lacrosse, while his other brothers always wanted to play.

Still, Andrew and his mother, Kim, described Ty as a “hyperactive” kid. They put him in almost any sport available, even hip-hop dance and gymnastics. When the four English brothers would watch a movie or sporting event, Ty wouldn’t want to sit still.

The siblings frequently competed against each other in whatever sport was on television. It’d frequently pit Sam and Sawyer versus Brooks and Ty.

Ty said he originally wanted to follow his father, who was a professional football player in the Canadian Football League, and pursue football. But he noticed Culver’s opportunities in lacrosse “were a lot bigger.” When he saw Sam originally commit to Cornell for lacrosse, Ty realized he could follow in his footsteps.

“I always kind of loved lacrosse, but it just kind of happened to the point where opportunities found their way throughout Culver and Coach Posner reaching out to us,” Ty said. “ I think that just led us down this path, and it’s been so fruitful.”

Once at Culver, Ty still played both sports. He gravitated more toward lacrosse since, unlike football, players practice in full pads all week, befitting his competitive and active personality.

“Ty was pretty cocky and thought he should be playing right away,” said Posner, who coached Ty and Sam at Culver and has coached all four English brothers. “By the time he graduated, (he) was probably one of the most mature, reliable captains I’ve ever coached.”

Ty had a torrid senior season at Culver, playing offense and defense. But when he arrived at North Carolina, he only pitched in as a defensive midfielder.

Ty English (left) poses with Sam English (center) and their mother Kim (right) after Syracuse’s loss at Duke Saturday in Durham. As a senior at North Carolina, Ty English has helped UNC likely reach its first NCAA Tournament since 2021. It can boost its resume with a Saturday win against Syracuse. Photo Courtesy of Kim English

Amid his adjustment at UNC, Ty found success in box lacrosse, winning the prestigious box lacrosse Minto Cup in summer 2023 with his hometown Burlington Blaze. During the 31-game run to the trophy, Ty tallied 32 goals and 50 assists.

Ty also sparked another kerfuffle after Brooks, whom he played alongside, accidentally checked someone in the cup-deciding Game 5. Brooks was taking a beating battling for a ground ball. So, Ty came off the bench to start throwing hands.

Andrew and Kim said it was a sign of maturity. Ty noted it was part of the non-vocal way the brothers show their love to each other. That maturation has continued at UNC. When Manuel Rodríguez Ponce, Ty’s roommate at Culver, visited him in Chapel Hill this fall, he saw “another side” of him.

“He’s really honest, and he may not be the loudest, or may he’ll be the one that gets angry, but he sure is a really good leader that speaks in the field, speaks in training,” Rodríguez Ponce said.

As Ty’s role has risen at UNC this season, he’s leaned on Sam. With both playing offensive midfield, they frequently call and text to give insight into matchups. For instance, before the Tar Heels met Notre Dame on April 19, Ty said Sam, who’d beaten the Fighting Irish with SU earlier in the season, provided scouting UNC’s coaching staff didn’t have.

Through it all, Ty’s competitive edge is still very much alive. Over winter break, the family was on vacation in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, and found a local high school football field. For two hours, Andrew lined up at quarterback, with one brother playing wide receiver and another at defensive back.

Andrew warned them not to take it too seriously. It didn’t work.

“We ended up running one-on-one for two hours, and it got so competitive,” Ty said. “And it ended up getting physical, and me and Sam were going at it.”

The brothers’ relationship has come a long way from trading punches at Culver. But Ty’s evolution — as a player and a person — has helped fuel UNC’s resurgence. The rivalry may reignite on Saturday. But once the final whistle sounds, it won’t be about the scoreboard.

It’ll be about brotherhood.

“They’re just still brothers, and they’re still so close, and they love each other, and they have this respect for each other,” Andrew said.

Published on April 22, 2025 at 11:10 pm
Contact Nicholas: njalumka@syr.edu | @nalumkal