The countdown is on to the 2025 College Draft, with the Philadelphia Waterdogs in control of the golden ticket. For the first time in club history, the Waterdogs hold the No. 1 overall pick.

Head coach and general manager Bill Tierney and his staff are excited about the opportunity to build their roster and the buzz surrounding the selection.

Despite calls and offers from multiple teams about a potential trade for No. 1, Tierney has made his intentions clear: Philadelphia has no set plans to trade the pick.

“[They’ll] have to attend my funeral to get that deal done,” Tierney said.

Barring an unprecedented offer, the second-year head coach has made it clear that the Waterdogs' name will be first on the docket come draft night.

“I have no plans on trading or moving away from our pick at this point,” Tierney said. “I have taken calls from teams, but they all have ended in the same way.”

Cornell attackman CJ Kirst is the top-ranked player on Adam Lamberti's Big Board and the favorite to go No. 1 overall. Kirst has separated himself from the rest of the pack -- a group that includes Harvard attackman Sam King, Duke midfielder Andrew McAdorey, Princeton attackman Coulter Mackesy, Notre Dame attackman Chris Kavanagh and Virginia long-stick midfielder Ben Wayer, among others -- and is on pace to set the all-time NCAA Division I goals record this season. 

Kirst is averaging 5.29 goals per game. No other D-I player is above 3.75.

If Kirst is the pick, he would join one of the best attack units in the league, which includes two top-five point-scorers in Michael Sowers and Kieran McArdle. 

“I don’t worry about adding another talented player to that line,” Tierney said. “It’s not going to hurt us or cause problems. It’s just going to help us because we believe we have a great culture. Big-picture look is to create more competition for the lineup and the roster and become a better team.”

Stacking competition across the depth chart has been Tierney’s main goal this offseason, and he believes the No. 1 pick can only help him reach it come training camp.

While Tierney is dead set on keeping the top pick, the draft order behind him has already changed. On Monday, the California Redwoods traded LSM Owen Grant to the Boston Cannons in exchange for the third overall pick and a 2026 fourth-rounder.

🚨OFFICIAL TRADE🚨

The @PLLRedwoods have traded LSM Owen Grant to the @PLLCannons in exchange for the 3rd Overall Pick in the 2025 College Draft and the Cannons 4th Round Pick in the 2026 College Draft.

With this trade, the Redwoods now hold the second AND third overall picks… pic.twitter.com/rUaeEIdiFQ

— Premier Lacrosse League (@PremierLacrosse) March 24, 2025