Strength Coach Jason Spray from Middle Tennessee State talks about preparing for College
What are common areas of weakness you see with incoming freshmen? Most lineman and combos “linebacker, fullbacks, running backs, tight ends” typically come from a powerlifting style training program that are centered around the bench press “horizontal pushing strength” with less than adequate pulling strength, and poor shoulder mobility. This is recipe for a shoulder injury, and it’s amazing the number of 18 year old kids that have power lifting type injuries, like symptomatic labrum problems, also poor hip mobility is usually a given as well. WR – DB types typically are good to decent in the mobility area, but lack in the strength department. So let’s take a look at the absolute strength and the absolute speed continuum. Skill position athletes in high school tend to stay more far right “absolute speed” sprinting, jumping etc. with just body weight exercises not truly developing their strength potential. How can they better prepare themselves in HS to prepare for the rigor