JD Lane

From a HS 🏈 coach: I decided to actually study one of our senior football players on film. I broke down all 10 football games and charted the number of plays that he was on the field defensively throughout a game, and I also timed each play (snap to whistle) in which he was physically active. I thought you might like to see this. This young man (linebacker) was on the field for an average of 47.6 plays for a total amount of "active" time of 3 minutes and 51 seconds (3:51). The majority of the plays lasted between 3 and 5 seconds. There were a few games in which he didn't play in the 4th quarter, so these numbers may have been higher, but I do not see the kid ever playing more than 5 minutes of football. Just took me back to those "old school" days where we would run them forever and for reps of 20 - 30 seconds, and the whole time it was doing more harm than good LOL.

HS 🏈 at its worst. This was sent to me from SEC country this morning. 2 miles of conditioning will diminish cats and might literally kill big kids. #MindlessConditioning A one-way HS 🏈 player will play 5 minutes and stand for over two hours in a HS 🏈 game. Speed and explosiveness wins 🏈 games, not endurance. 0% of HS athletes have hit their ceiling of speed. This conditioning will ensure that no speed gains will happen for at least a week, maybe longer. When I asked the guy who sent me this picture for permission to post, his classic reply… “Yea I think that would be fine. I’m pretty sure the HC doesn’t follow you, based off what’s on that board.” 🤣

Often asked question, “If we run an uptempo offense, don’t we need tons of conditioning?” This is counterintuitive but bear with me. I get this question a lot. Also get, “I coach at a small school, we have multiple 2-way players, don’t they need more conditioning?” Answer is no to both. Put your money on energy (no fatigue), speed (max velocity), health (the grind causes injuries), and enthusiasm (love is a powerful drug). Let practice condition players. Be patient. Practice at game speed or “game speed plus”. To do this, practice in “clusters” of intensity followed by full recovery. Aka “Wave Theory”. Practice uptempo by running 5-10 plays, followed by coaching up your team during the recovery time. Never let practice volumes exceed 50-60% of game volume. Let the game be the hard. Enter games fast and healthy (with fully charged batteries). (And make sure your uptempo makes the defense work twice as hard as the offense!) Just like FTC training for the 400 meters, you can train for the 400 without ever running more than a 200 if you sprint at race speeds on a foundation of recovery. store.simplifaster.com/produ…