Track athletes and NFL draft

[runohio]

Out of the 32 first round NFL draft picks this year, 22 participated in track and field during their high school careers.

[lane4]

This just in(to runohio apparently) - NFL-caliber players are fast and strong

[CoventryTrackXCguy]

James Harrison, who attended my alma mater, threw the shot put 50 feet, and was part of a 4 by 100 that was running into the 44's. Interesting combination, yes?

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[Mr. Slippery]

Originally Posted by CoventryTrackXCguy

James Harrison, who attended my alma mater, threw the shot put 50 feet, and was part of a 4 by 100 that was running into the 44's. Interesting combination, yes?

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Interesting but not uncommon. Both are explosive events.

LaTroy Lewis from Hoban (Signed yesterday by the Titans as an UDFA out of Tennessee) once won the 100 and the shot put in a dual meet against my school as a sophomore. 2 years later as a senior, he anchored their "fat man relay" to a big come-from-behind win against us. I knew what was coming when Lewis got the baton, but our "fat man relay" anchor did not.

Just found this story on Lewis: http://tennessee.247sports.com/Artic...i-cam-52559562

There was once a freak athlete named Steve Fink who was a AAA state champion in the long jump in the late '70s. At the sectional meet, he won the high jump, shot put, and discus in addition to the long jump - only athlete I know of to ever win all 4 at the same sectional/district. Garrettsville Garfield's defending state champion in the discus Lauren Jones won all 4 of those events at the Lew Speece NEO Invite 3+ weeks ago.


It's the chicken or the egg argument. Did track make these guys great athletes, or did they do track and field because they were great athletes? I'd opine that they did track because they were great athletes. Regardless of if they're using PEDs or are 100% natural, these guys who make it to the NFL are athletic freaks. Devin Smith is probably the best track and field athlete I ever saw (10.56 100m man, 7' 1/2" high jumper, 24' 7" long jumper,). In the NFL, he's an also-ran at WR. Tough luck that it was reported yesterday that he will miss the 2017 season with a torn ACL.

[Taco MacArthur]

Originally Posted by lane4

This just in(to runohio apparently) - NFL-caliber players are fast and strong

I think his point was a lot of football coaches seem to push for specialization. I thought that was painfully obvious.

[lane4]

Originally Posted by Taco MacArthur

I think his point was a lot of football coaches seem to push for specialization. I thought that was painfully obvious.

Seems the post itself contradicts that argument, eh?

[Taco MacArthur]

No. Just because 0.01% of former HS football players were multisport athletes doesn't mean many, many high school football coaches aren't pushing for specialization.

[lane4]

I'm sure the percentage of T&F participation are the same regardless of whether they make it to the NFL, or end their careers in HS. Which by runohio's numbers are over 60%

You want to talk about specialization, talk about the basketball and soccer kids. Last I checked there weren't any club teams playing spring football. But I could be wrong...

[bucksman]

Originally Posted by lane4

I'm sure the percentage of T&F participation are the same regardless of whether they make it to the NFL, or end their careers in HS. Which by runohio's numbers are over 60%

You want to talk about specialization, talk about the basketball and soccer kids. Last I checked there weren't any club teams playing spring football. But I could be wrong...

In Ohio, no. Other states have a greater emphasis on 7-on-7 during the spring season and/or outright spring practice.

[lane4]

Originally Posted by bucksman

Other states have a greater emphasis on 7-on-7 during the spring season and/or outright spring practice.

Fair enough. But I suspect the vast majority of top-end football talent kids are either involved with track(which continues to trend upward in terms of participation, currently #2 sport for boys) or playing baseball. Most football coaches realize the benefits of track, as long as it's a well-run(and well-rounded) training program.

[CoventryTrackXCguy]

Originally Posted by lane4

Fair enough. But I suspect the vast majority of top-end football talent kids are either involved with track(which continues to trend upward in terms of participation, currently #2 sport for boys) or playing baseball. Most football coaches realize the benefits of track, as long as it's a well-run(and well-rounded) training program.

Lol, at Coventry, T&F is THE main springtime sport. This season, we have 60 Boys on our roster. Baseball doesnt compete very well here, because our baseball team is so terrible, only a dozen or so hardliners are actually still playing it. And the only other sports we compete with, are tennis and rugby, either of which arevery niche sports, so yeah, Coventry track program is every track coaches dream, we have the overwhelming lions share of all the atheletes in our student body.

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[Taco MacArthur]

Originally Posted by bucksman

In Ohio, no. Other states have a greater emphasis on 7-on-7 during the spring season and/or outright spring practice.

Sounds like lane4 needs to get out of Ohio. Or venture outside of Yappi, at least.

[lane4]

Originally Posted by Taco MacArthur

Sounds like lane4 needs to get out of Ohio. Or venture outside of Yappi, at least.

Nice try. But this is an Ohio board, so...

My point remains - stating that 22 of 32 first rounders were also track guys, dilutes the argument that "many, many football coaches" discourage track in favor of "specialization". If your football coach does, maybe you should look at how your track coach runs their program.

[Taco MacArthur]

Yes, this is an Ohio board, very astute of you. Which is why I told you to venture outside of Yappi and Ohio. The NFL is more than just Ohio so...

It's incredibly myopic to base an opinion based off 1% of former high school football players.

[lane4]

Originally Posted by Taco MacArthur

The NFL is more than just Ohio.

Interestingly, I took a look at the three most prominent states that have spring football - Texas, Florida, and Alabama - and there is very little overlap between track season and spring football dates. All three have their state meets the first or second week in May(as opposed to early June, as with most states), with no more than a week overlap(for those who actually get to the state meet).

[long time coach]

From today's Columbus Dispatch - Playing Mutiple Sports Best for Kids - http://www.dispatch.com/sports/20170...-best-for-kids

[fanofrunning]

How many were distance guys? (yea, really showing my bias here, but I felt like lightening things up a bit)

[CoventryTrackXCguy]

I bet a handfull of them might have been 800mguys, at least on a relay. Ive known atheletes who were predominantly sprinters (200/400's) / football players come out and be proficient 800 meter runners. A little distance training might make a football player more valuable relatively in the 4th quarter.

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[Con_Alma]

Originally Posted by fanofrunning

How many were distance guys? (yea, really showing my bias here, but I felt like lightening things up a bit)

...and how many distance guys specialize...or do they participate in other sports too?

[CoventryTrackXCguy]

Originally Posted by Con_Alma

...and how many distance guys specialize...or do they participate in other sports too?

Ive actually known some distance guys to come out and play soccer, as well as wrestle...and be proficient in both.

In fact, I think Jacob Ondash, from Crestwood, was also a wrestler.

[Con_Alma]

Originally Posted by CoventryTrackXCguy

Ive actually known some distance guys to come out and play soccer, as well as wrestle...and be proficient in both.

In fact, I think Jacob Ondash, from Crestwood, was also a wrestler.

This is great. It's not uncommon for some wrestlers to run XC. I just wonder how many track and XC coaches push their kids to participate in other sports for their overall benefit as much as they lean on football coaches to get their kids to run track....for the kids' overall benefit of course.

[CC Track Fan]

Originally Posted by Con_Alma

This is great. It's not uncommon for some wrestlers to run XC. I just wonder how many track and XC coaches push their kids to participate in other sports for their overall benefit as much as they lean on football coaches to get their kids to run track....for the kids' overall benefit of course.

Ours is very supportive of playing other sports and particular supportive of them swimming during the winter.

[CoventryTrackXCguy]

I think wrestling goes very well with Track and Cross Country. Wrestling is basically like 7-8 minutes of pure endurance, except for the fact that it is your whole body, not just your legs, that you are using. A very solid stamina builder. Also, I think wrestling developes that very solid competitors mindset that is good in cross country as well. Anybody else have any reasons why Wrestling goes well with track/xc?

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[CoventryTrackXCguy]

Most of the Track/XC coaches I know would agree with that as well

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[Con_Alma]

Originally Posted by CC Track Fan

Ours is very supportive of playing other sports and particular supportive of them swimming during the winter.

This is great to hear. Many if not most football coaches are "supportive" of their roster competing in track also. What I was looking for was those track and XC programs that urge and suggest their athletes become multi-sport as opposed to specializing in running in order to benefit the kid.

[mathking]

The point about distance kids running year round is well taken, and something that a lot of track and XC coaches tend to overlook. I am happy when kids do some other sport in the winter or summer. Most of our best athletes will train pretty much year round, but we do enforce time off between seasons. All that said, there is a difference between a coach who says "Don't do this other sport in the off-season for my sport" and the coach who says "Do this sport." When kids ask me what they should do, I generally tell them they should do what will make them happy. If they are actually likely to get a scholarship in some sport then maybe it makes sense to choose the less fun course in order to get college paid for by someone else. Otherwise I feel strongly that a sports experience they enjoy will be better for them in the long run.

We do have kids on our team with scholarships in other sports (soccer, volleyball, hockey, basketball and football have been the most common) and I try to be accommodating for them. By and large when we deal with coaches from other teams in the school there is little problem. It is club coaches who are much more likely to not want to cooperate. In particular our problem has been club coaches who don't want injured kids to rest.

Back to the topic at hand, it is nice to see that more football (and other coaches) at higher levels are seeing that track and field can make athletes stronger, faster and more explosive. When I began my coaching career there were a lot of coaches who basically felt that speed was genetic, and you couldn't really get faster through training. I had a head football coach tell me that there was no point in having his skill kids (surprisingly he encouraged bigger kids to throw) run because "You can't make them faster." After a season of this, one day I asked him "Why do Olympic sprinters train?" About a week later he came back to me and said he was going to start encouraging kids who didn't have a spring sport to do track.

[Con_Alma]

Originally Posted by mathking

... When kids ask me what they should do, I generally tell them they should do what will make them happy. ... Otherwise I feel strongly that a sports experience they enjoy will be better for them in the long run. ...

In the end it's my belief this should be the answer. It's been my experience that kids will work their tails off in that which they truly enjoy.