View Full Version : high school/college football and lifting
I have noticed that some of the more elite high school football teams have some very strong kids on those teams and then when they get to college they get even stronger. Sometimes I also hear remarks made about some kid in college up did alot of weightlifting and pushed his bench or squats up to a certain number. I even heard a bench number of 450lbs of a guy on a certain college football team.
I wondered what kind of program(s) do these kids go through that they get so strong and their weight rise as they do? I also wondered if this becomes a genetic thing because I don't think that high school kids necessarily eat 'right' in order to get strong unless they have a coach and parents stronger monitoring their diet.
Can someone , maybe with some experience with this, share their insight with me? Also, what is the difference between the lifting down in high school and college v. powerlifting training.
deanna7272
10-27-12, 7:12 pm
Not going to give a ton of info here, but I know with our HS, they never really gave a lot of thought about incorporating a weight training program (and it shows)... I am not sure why though. It may be that they don't KNOW anyone that is schooled well enough to do it (they DO but they aren't hired on as "staff") or if they don't see the importance. WE all know the importance, and as of THIS season they HAVE brought in a former player/standout that has brought a whole different approach to pre season training (but I have seen a little lax in the program since season started...)
As far as their training, I often hear of them "maxing out" on bench.... I had one of my 8th graders tell me that their "weight training coach" told them that if they couldn't "get" the press to BOUNCE the bar off of their chest!!! At 13/14 NOT the brightest idea... Ugh... Along with that, I usually have to remind them to "hit legs" every once in a while because those that don't "get it" think that it's all upper body that we should be concerned with...lol
One thing that I see is that they have a boatload of testosterone surging at their age. My kids often ask me which supps they should take... Uhhhhh... Early teens... None... Well, you know what I'm saying... I try to get them to realize that this is the time that they should be taking advantage of natural test to build...
Just a thought on the topic... Hope someone can clue ya in to more detailed programs...lol
I have only been in the weight room of one high school football team and I only had that happen because the leader of the Orlando ABC group was an asst coach for the JV team. I saw a line of power racks in there and it made me wonder why kind of work outs they do. I have seen a few guys pull the sled around the track. I know this team is a very strong team and they are known in the state of a powerhouse and even around the country.
Testosterone is probably a factor in this yet I still wonder about the training and how it compares to the regular routines of powerlifting.
MR.TeachFreak
10-27-12, 9:11 pm
Hormones are a factor at the younger ages but it still comes down to the high school and college having the proper knowledge and then applying it. When I was in high school we ran through many random "program" and as a offensive lineman I was told to just eat anything. We also "maxed out" a lot as well. I see a lot of high schools that are also very number bound. Max weights, percentages, etc. You can find videos of notable colleges on youtube and see them with chains and bands but only see quarter squats. You can also see "highlight" videos of high schools where the program is some random circuit style training or max outs with horrible form. And often the coach is watching. I say one where a kid squatted about 450 but it looked exactly like a good morning. And the coach was sitting right behind him.
I really think it all comes down to having the knowledge and applying it properly. No amount of puberty can help if you eat and train like shit. And in my experience (HS Teacher/Coach) 85-90% of most high schools either lack the knowledge or don't apply it correctly. Short of your school just happening to get all the natural talent in the county most of the times good athletes go to waste.
And of course hindsight being 20/20 if only I knew now what I knew back in high school. Things would be different. And as to how I think a off season training should be that is another subject for another time.
What about the college arena? How intense is the weightlifting and is it a matter of lifting to the max and eating all you can eat to go up in weight on the barbells? I see some of these guys are seem to be HUGE and some ripped. I think of Percy Harvin when he was at Florida having huge guns. Now, I don't know if he had that coming out of high school or not but he is among many others.
Even Nick Saban at Alabama has a strength training program but what is he doing that is causing his players to go up high in weight?
MR.TeachFreak
10-27-12, 10:01 pm
College it can be the same. Having the proper knowledge, applying, and then also recruiting real athletes. In the college level, especially D-1, they can recruit natural athletes who respond to almost anything.
From what I have seen about Saban is he has the knowledge and is applying it but you also have to remember at a high ranking school like that they find the right athletes who are naturally gifted. There are some things we can't explain. And even in college there may be the use of there substances. When I was at App State and they were winning the three-peat of national titles there quite literally were no drug tests.
So all in all there are many factors even in college. Having the right knowledge and staff, applying the knowledge properly, having athletes that are coach-able (big one here) and will actually do as told, recruiting the top level athletes who are naturals, and maybe even a little "extra" that the players do independently from the college.
well in response to the Nick Saban thing, I go to the University of Alabama. However, I am an Auburn fan, if you're not from the state you probably won't get what that means, but anyways the reason I am here is because Alabama has THE best Strength and Conditioning coach in College Football, and possibly sports in general. Saban is just the Coach, and knows his X's and O's, it is Scott Cochran that takes care of turning these kids into freaks. Had to give credit where credit was due.
TigerAce01
10-28-12, 7:10 pm
A couple of ideas:
1) In high school, the level of skill has an extreme diversity. In this regard, the strong kids look stronger, and the strongest look like the elite.
2) In college, the best schools can choose the best players. They can recruit the top 1% of the sport from high school...the genetic freaks that would be the best even if they didn't have the best equipment, diet, or program.
3) Level of conditioning - These football players have superior conditioning...with that comes the ability to adapt in training situations. This allows supercompensation to occur more rapidly and with more frequency.
4) Pressure and atmosphere - Football is an organization that borders on cult status in some areas and schools. With this added pressure to be outstanding comes the determination to be exactly that. These players understand that they can be cut if they don't perform, and the guy that's doing more than them will take their place.
Just a couple of outside the box ideas.
-Ace
james220
10-29-12, 7:01 pm
being a former high school football player myself, i find myself a credible source...
in high school, the kids are all ego lifters... when they say they bench X amount of weight its quite misleading... benching to them means having a huge bounce off the chest, ass fly off the bench, and spotter upright rowing the bar.
squats are half squatted
every once in awhile there are kids who are actually really strong, these are the kids that maybe bench 300-350 without a spot/ass on bench
Vrotsos991
10-29-12, 9:37 pm
Plain and simple. Some schools have the programs and value them. They put the kids to work in the weight room. Some schools do not see the need in a lifting program so the kids dont lift, and if the kids do, they do it with horrible form, and the will always be focusing on the isolation movements and not the compound movements. In highschool, i remember seeing kids lift during lunch and after school. They would only go in and do chest and curls all day every day. The school i went to, did not feel that lifting was a priority, even though there were resources with in the school, that were not staff on the football team. The community had alot of knowledgable indivuals but the school never reached out to them.
Then you look at a school up the river, who values a lifting program from seventh grade and up. They put lifting at the top of the list, and this is why they win championships every year ( along with great coaching, and talented kids, and a solid program ). I remember playing these kids in eigth grade and they were know as the powerhouse for years on an 8th grade level!
What causes some of these kids to go up in weight seemingly so fast? From times to time I hear or read about a certain player on a team who spends the offseason lifting and putting up major numbers to get stronger. I often wonder if that player is doing certain exercises several times a week. ie. say it is the big 3, are they doing the big 3 2-3 times a week and watching their diet or having someone watch their diet so they get strong as quickly as possible? I have wondered what is the difference between them and regular powerlifers because, well, lets face it, football players don't do bodybuilding workouts. I use to lift that way but I have transitioned to strength training and this is the reason I am asking this question.