Just south of campus is a four-bedroom house with a doorway decorated with one strand of Christmas lights and the letters “LAX” nailed to the roof. Some might say it looks like a fraternity house but in reality it is the home of five lacrosse teammates.
The tradition started eight years ago when a few members of the BYU lacrosse team decided to find a house to live in and dub it the “The LAX house.” Though past locations have varied, it has become a central hangout zone for the team.
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The house has helped the team bond even though only five of the 50 lacrosse players live there.
“It’s a small number of students who actually live in the house, but it definitely helps them all get up together, make sure they are all to practice on time and they are definitely having a good time,” Schneck said. “It’s been a fun gathering area.”
This school year, the LAX house activities have included relaxing in hammocks, hosting parties, having butter fights, barbecuing and even adopting a cat, named “Cosmo, the LAX cat.”
“We found a kitten for 10 bucks on KSL, he was so cute, so we brought him home,” said Kevin Wallace, a junior from Boise, Idaho, majoring in history. “We would have people come over just to see Cosmo. We’d loan him out for cookies. He has a Facebook and he has more Facebook friends than our mom. We even took him rock climbing once.”
Wallace said they asked for permission from their landlord to keep the cat at the house, but the landlord declined their request. As a result, the cat now lives with Wallace’s parents in Idaho.
Pat Matheson, a senior from Holladay, majoring in facility and property management, said he enjoys living at the LAX house because the guys have similar schedules.
“We have practice every morning, except Wednesday, and practice starts at 5:30 a.m.,” Matheson said. “We can wake up at five in the morning, turn on music and shout to make sure everyone is up, so that’s nice logistically.”
Wallace’s brother, Neil Wallace, a senior from Boise, Idaho, majoring in therapeutic recreation, also lives at the LAX house and said he feels it is a haven of help to those in need.
“The LAX house is a center for change,” Neil Wallace said. “It’s kind of a halfway house for people with lost souls, guys who break up with girlfriends, people who are having a hard time, we help with everything.”
Neil Wallace points out a few negatives of living at the house.
“We have all of our lacrosse stuff everywhere, lacrosse pads everywhere, it’s always just kind of busy being in school, on a team and most the guys have work, too,” he said. “People come and go, so sometimes it can get a little messy. Sometimes privacy can be an issue, too.”
However, he said there are mainly positives.
“Pat met his fiancée while living in this house, I met a girl that I am dating now while in this house, my brother decided to start his mission papers while living in this house and we had a boy get both the Aaronic and Melchizedek priesthood while living in this house,” Neil Wallace said.
