MSU Football Data Analytics: How is Maximum Velocity and Acceleration Correlated to Weight Room Metrics?
Alternative Title
Abstract
Getting faster does not happen overnight, but what athletes do in the weight room can help. The main muscles relating to sprinting velocity and acceleration include the quadriceps, hamstrings, and glutes. Some of the most effective weight room exercises to improve quadricep, hamstring, and glute strength and power output include squats, reverse lunges, and jump training. However, little research has actually assessed if such resistance training exercises performed in weight room settings correlate with measures of velocity and acceleration in collegiate athletes. Therefore, the purpose of this study is to see if there is a correlation between certain lower-body weight room exercises with velocity and acceleration from a Division I football team. The data used for this analysis was provided by Michigan State University. The Eliteform system was used to capture strength and power measures during squat and reverse lunge exercises performed in the weight room during normal team lifting sessions throughout the 2022 calendar year. Similarly, the Forcedeck system captured countermovement jump height and power when jump exercises were done during lifting sessions. Finally, a Catapult system was used to capture player velocity and acceleration data during team practices and games during the 2022 calendar year including the fall season. To examine the given information, correlation analyses were conducted by testing weight room metrics and jumping data to on-field maximum velocity and acceleration. Players were split up into either a big, small, or skill group to create position-specific analyses. The main finding from this project was that players tend to lift heavier weights and produce more power output during offseason months than during the fall football season.
Throughout the offseason period, their maximum velocity and acceleration also increase. The big position group, consisting of offensive and defensive lineman, has stronger correlations between weight room metrics and field measures of acceleration and velocity than the small and skill groups. Overall, positive correlations between lower-body resistance training and sprint acceleration/velocity indicates that offseason resistance training may positively effect on-field performance measures for certain positional categories.