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AFM Magazine


The Speed Report

Running Backs: Speed Skills can be Taught - Part I
by: Dale Baskett
Football Speed Specialist
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Coaching is teaching and the successful coaches from year to year are usually good teachers on the field. Over the last 38 years I’ve been coaching I’ve observed that most coaches rely on natural talent and innate speed skills when choosing a running back. Running backs with quicks, vision and intuitive reaction capabilities are a choice commodity. Exceptional running backs come along infrequently. However, developing backs to have quickness, burst and acceleration capability while running with the ball can be taught. Each year you can produce and induce the speed and movement skills for your running backs and have consistant performances year to year.

The Main Ingredients

As indicated in past articles a speed development program that produces both linear and multi-movement speed for your entire team is extremely important. Beyond a team training package you need a position specific series for running backs. This series of drills will be the main ingredient for stabalizing your crew of running backs. The position coach will be the most likely to initiate the activity during his specialization periods. There are many factors that are important for movement capabilities as a running back. They are as follows: burst capability, accel and decel skills, lateral speed and control, plant skills, top end sprint speed. These are the ingredients that need to be infused into your running back candidates. Of all the skills that can be trained the most difficult of the bunch will be the teaching plant skills and burst techniques.

Diagram 1.

My experience with numerous athletes has convinced me as a coach that these two skills are indifferent to the majority of athletes you’ll encounter. They are, conversely, the two most important attributes neccessary for a running back to possess, but they can be taught.

Teaching the Skill Procedures

First and foremost as indicated in previous articles you want your athletes as fresh as possible when you do speed work. This allows you to activate the nervous system properly while you are processing the techniques into good motor pattern habits. As previously discussed, we must again focus in on teaching the players to concentrate on the arms as the control point. Remember, whatever the arms do the leg cycle behavior follows. When teaching the burst technique the running back must short cycle the shoulder joint rotation quickly front to back to impact leg cycle speed directly. This action will create a rapid down cycle footstrike force to the ground, immediately generating a velocity impluse. This is a tough technique for most athletes to master immediately but it is a significant tool for burst capability. When they get the hang of it you will see immense results in all of your backs burst skills (See Diagram 1: a useful drill that helps develop burst skills and accel, decel control).

Accel and decel technique again places the emphasis on arms to control the decel action of the leg cycle. To decel we must slow the arm rotation down which gears the leg cycle down equally. It’s important to note that the 90 degree angle of the arm remains fixed during the frequency changes of arm speeds. Running backs will gain tremendously from learning to do what ‘I term lateral slide.’ Running straight ahead merely plant and shift to a lateral run while keeping your hips and shoulders square to the end zone upfield (See Diagram 2).

Diagram 2.

It’s extremely important to not drop your hips on plants. Plant quickly and activate the arm cycle rapidly at the same time which creates enormous lateral velocity. Plant upfield at the end of the slide or back to inside angle as indicated. Keep arms activate continuously; this is a key factor when changing directions and planting. Planting technique application is a critical aspect if we are to have solid running backs. Planting is something that every player can learn if the following skills are performed properly. Once again, never drop your hips when planting, merely extend the plant step to the ground rapidly and keep the arm cycle active upon ground contact. This continues the force action to the ground, generating a continuous acceleration pattern. A running backs objective is displacement of angle velocity when running the ball and being illusive. Displacement speed is a huge value for any running back and planting capability will allow your backs to be able to cover ground while changing directions. (Note - always keep arms active on every plant).

What makes Reggie Bush so dangerous is that he doesn’t lose speed on his plant movements. If you watch him you’ll notice that he extends his plant step to the ground and doesn’t drop his hips. Therefore his separation on plants to new directions is very fast, thus reducing velocity deceleration. Coaches literally teach running backs to drop on plants. If you have been guilty of this I suggest you begin to teach extension plants and you will see a tremendous difference (See Diagram 3). Put this to drill to work for your athletes which will help you teach extension planting. Run in a straight line with very quick short cycle stride pattern at half speed, quick plant to the left and right. Keep arms active at all times, elbows in and short rotations that are at a rhythmical pace. When you plant right or left you have the athlete come right back to the straight foot pattern. After 5 - 6 quick plants, plant to a short quick lateral angle as indicated, then plant to a full sprint 30 yds which sharpens your sprint skills. Lateral acceleration is also a great asset because it allows you to cover ground in a new direction without having to turn your hips.

Diagram 3.

The drill I feel helps develop plant to lateral skills and emulates running back movement as well as any that I’ve used over the years is called the ‘Straight Lateral Plant Drill’ (See Diagram 4). The procedure is to sprint straight and execute extension plant to the lateral angle. Keep your arms active, short and elbows in. The elbows in keeps arm-leg synchronization together which is important for balance on transitions from straight-to-lateral and lateral-to-straight. You must plant on each direction change while maintaining good line to foot strike relationship. A very good way to learn control and quick plant application is to slow the velocity down and focus on lateral rhythm and plant accuracy (See Diagram 5). The laterals on this drill should be quick short cycles and quick extension plants. Do not generate too much velocity on this drill; it’s more of an easy flow and plant control. Again, remember the arms are active at all times, elbows in, 90 degree consistantly.

Diagram 4.

Diagram 5.

Every year I spend time traveling to schools across America doing workshops for football players and coaching staffs. As I work with the coaches from school to school the same phenomonon takes place each time I break out the position specific teaching drills and techniques. Coaches light up with excitement the see the teaching applications transform the athletes movement skills to a new level right before their eyes. Be a teacher and apply the drills and perspectives offered and you to will be a believer that running backs speed skills can be taught.





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