(35) RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN PRESEASON PERFORMANCE TESTING AND IN SEASON MAXIMUM VELOCITY IN DIVISION I FOOTBALL PLAYERS

Preseason testing is commonly used in athletics to assess athlete performance. These tests may reveal strengths and deficits in areas of an athlete’s physical capabilities and can provide insight into their performance during the season. Considering speed is an essential component of football, a player’s maximum velocity (V_MAX) can have a high degree of relevance in competition.


Purpose: The purpose of this study was to determine the relationship between various performance metrics and maximum velocity throughout the course of a competitive season.     



Methods: Fifty-four National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I football players completed preseason performance testing. Performance testing consisted of one repetition maximum (1-RM) bench press testing, 1-RM squat testing, 5-10-5 change of direction testing, and vertical jump testing. All players were monitored using GPS receivers with integrated accelerometers and gyroscope (Catapult) during all in season practices and games. V_MAX was measured throughout the duration of the season. Pearson-product moment correlations were used to assess the relationships between each performance test and V_MAX. An alpha level of 0.05 was used to determine statistical significance.       



Results: There was a significant inverse correlation between 5-10-5 testing and V_MAX (r = -0.808, p < 0.001). There was a positive correlation between vertical jump testing and V_MAX (r = 0.648, p < 0.0001). The correlation between 1-RM squat and V_MAX was not statistically significant (r = -0.259, p = 0.0533) and there was an inverse correlation between 1-RM bench press and V_MAX (r = -0.543, p < 0.0001).    

Conclusion: These finding suggest the 5-10-5 test has the strongest relationship with V_MAX in football players, as those with a faster 5-10-5 test during preseason testing had a higher V_MAX during the season, on average. The inverse relationship between 1-RM bench press and V_MAX implies that athletes with a higher bench press tend to be slower, likely due to the physical qualities that benefit the bench press.

PRACTICAL APPLICATIONS: Strength coaches should consider implementing change of direction training to aid in the development of maximal sprinting capabilities, along with change of direction capabilities, which may be even more relevant to competition performance. Future studies should investigate changes in competition performance due to the effects of various change of direction training interventions. Additionally, future studies should look at the relationships between preseason performance tests and injuries that occur during the season.                   

Acknowledgements: None