Colorado State University Athletics
Photo by: Mike Brohard
Guarascio has Rams picking up the pace
7/18/2019 12:00:00 PM | Football
Introduction of more speed work is paying off
FORT COLLINS, Colo. – Getting stronger was an imperative. For Joey Guarascio, so was getting faster, with one feeding directly into the other.
As pleased as he is with the gains made in the weight room, Colorado State's first-year head coach for strength and conditioning is more impressed with the drop in times during speed training, which goes well beyond the standard clocking for a 40-yard dash.
"I wanted to make speed-power an emphasis, bottom line," Guarascio said. "These are trainable qualities, and these are the differences between a guy breaking a big run, a receiver running by a defensive back, or a defensive back recovering from a double move. I put a high emphasis on speed and power, and we're going to train around it."
Guarascio already had a plan in place when head coach Mike Bobo gave him a week to put his training book in order when the job opened, and speed work one of his main targets, blending it in with the team's strength work.
For the players, it's been a welcomed addition to the normal routine, making it seem anything but ordinary to them. Add in the fact the Rams are getting faster, they're all the more ready for the next session.
"I feel like adding the speed work to the workout routine has helped us endurance wise and speed wise," said sophomore receiver EJ Scott. "When you're conditioning every day, it's very draining mentally every day for a team coming out here trying to find a positive, just running, trying to get tired.
"I feel like we needed it a lot. You could tell on the field we were moving slower than the other team."
Guarascio said speed grows like a tree. The process is gradual, but the effects can already been seen. In order for them to take root, the weight sessions had to make an impact.
Last year, the Rams did minimal speed work. This summer's program, which was just the start as Guarascio has it mapped out for weeks, months, even years. On Monday and Thursday they race. Monday's against other players, Thursday against themselves and the clock. It involves intrinsic and extrinsic motivation with a competitive atmosphere. There are days they build down, days they build up, with 72 hours in between the two testing days. Friday's are built around position-specific conditioning to prepare the players for camp, prepping them to avoid the common fall-camp refrain of having tired legs.
The phenomena doesn't come from running, he said, it occurs when they're not prepared to spend long periods of time in their stance. It all combines, and Guarascio knew he has to be careful this first summer, because the workouts are so intense and stressful on the human body. The goal is to avoid soft-tissue injuries which would set the process back.
Even the lifting sessions have a touch of speed to them. He purchased technology that measure speed even on heavy lifting days, setting standards for moving the bar .5 meters per second during a repetition.
"I'm definitely pleased. You look at hard numbers and you see improvement," Bobo said. "We made a conscious effort twice a week to work on speed, and the kids have done a good job and they've bought in and they're believing. We're not where we need to be, but as long as we continue to get stronger, that's going to help us get faster."
When Guarascio measures speed, he sees it differently for specific groups. The Rams are tested in the 40, for sure, but they also have marks for flying 10s and 20s, where they run 20 yards, then the next measure of distance is marked, helping to translate to game action in a truer form.
Those flying times for the front seven of the defense and the offensive front (including tight ends) are telling when it comes to explosiveness. And for them to improve, they had to hit the weights first.
"A 10-yard is all based on how strong you are. You have to overcome your own inertia, generate momentum," Guarascio said. "You need a ton of force. Times have dropped, because you see us getting stronger as a team."
Bobo and Guarascio are grateful the administration allowed it to take place by allowing for an extended training period, giving the Rams a full cycle to make inroads by avoiding a splintered schedule.
While Scott and Rashad Ajayi have been two skill players who have shown tremendous progress, so too has defensive lineman Damion Dickens. He won't beat either Scott or Ajayi in a race, but he will be quicker off the ball to the point of attack, and in the trenches, a quick first step can be destructive.
"It's helping me move faster. I'm moving better, I have my weight down, and it's getting my stamina up," Dickens said. "When we do flying 10s, flying 20s, I feel my legs have gotten lighter. It's really helping me move toward what we're running.
"I feel like it will translate a lot. The D-line, we're always talking to each other, we have to get better than this. Everybody has a bad day, but the next day we want to see you come out and be at your best. We're going to have a more explosive defensive line than we did last year."
In the spring, Colorado State had five players who ran 4.6 or faster in the 40; now they have 13. The number of players running sub-5 seconds was 37; now it is 49. With Guarascio having set the base this summer, their bodies will be accustomed to the training, allowing him to push the intensity next time around. He says everybody has genetic limits, but the fact remains speed can be improved, as he has proven to the players.
True freshman Dante Wright was clocked at 4.4, and Marvin Kinsey Jr. and Marcus McElroy have drawn attention with their time drops into the 4.5 range. Scott, who was still rehabbing a knee injury last year, can see a difference on the stop watch, but more importantly, he feels it mentally.
"I trust my knee 100 percent. Joey has us doing a lot of squats, a lot of lower-leg work, and that helps my confidence a lot," Scott said. "My speed is getting back to where it was. Last year, it was very mentally draining. Backing up two NFL prospects, it was mentally draining. This year, I think it's going to be different. I think I'm a little faster than I was in high school."
As pleased as he is with the gains made in the weight room, Colorado State's first-year head coach for strength and conditioning is more impressed with the drop in times during speed training, which goes well beyond the standard clocking for a 40-yard dash.
"I wanted to make speed-power an emphasis, bottom line," Guarascio said. "These are trainable qualities, and these are the differences between a guy breaking a big run, a receiver running by a defensive back, or a defensive back recovering from a double move. I put a high emphasis on speed and power, and we're going to train around it."
Guarascio already had a plan in place when head coach Mike Bobo gave him a week to put his training book in order when the job opened, and speed work one of his main targets, blending it in with the team's strength work.
For the players, it's been a welcomed addition to the normal routine, making it seem anything but ordinary to them. Add in the fact the Rams are getting faster, they're all the more ready for the next session.
"I feel like adding the speed work to the workout routine has helped us endurance wise and speed wise," said sophomore receiver EJ Scott. "When you're conditioning every day, it's very draining mentally every day for a team coming out here trying to find a positive, just running, trying to get tired.
"I feel like we needed it a lot. You could tell on the field we were moving slower than the other team."
Guarascio said speed grows like a tree. The process is gradual, but the effects can already been seen. In order for them to take root, the weight sessions had to make an impact.
Last year, the Rams did minimal speed work. This summer's program, which was just the start as Guarascio has it mapped out for weeks, months, even years. On Monday and Thursday they race. Monday's against other players, Thursday against themselves and the clock. It involves intrinsic and extrinsic motivation with a competitive atmosphere. There are days they build down, days they build up, with 72 hours in between the two testing days. Friday's are built around position-specific conditioning to prepare the players for camp, prepping them to avoid the common fall-camp refrain of having tired legs.
The phenomena doesn't come from running, he said, it occurs when they're not prepared to spend long periods of time in their stance. It all combines, and Guarascio knew he has to be careful this first summer, because the workouts are so intense and stressful on the human body. The goal is to avoid soft-tissue injuries which would set the process back.
Even the lifting sessions have a touch of speed to them. He purchased technology that measure speed even on heavy lifting days, setting standards for moving the bar .5 meters per second during a repetition.
"I'm definitely pleased. You look at hard numbers and you see improvement," Bobo said. "We made a conscious effort twice a week to work on speed, and the kids have done a good job and they've bought in and they're believing. We're not where we need to be, but as long as we continue to get stronger, that's going to help us get faster."
When Guarascio measures speed, he sees it differently for specific groups. The Rams are tested in the 40, for sure, but they also have marks for flying 10s and 20s, where they run 20 yards, then the next measure of distance is marked, helping to translate to game action in a truer form.
Those flying times for the front seven of the defense and the offensive front (including tight ends) are telling when it comes to explosiveness. And for them to improve, they had to hit the weights first.
"A 10-yard is all based on how strong you are. You have to overcome your own inertia, generate momentum," Guarascio said. "You need a ton of force. Times have dropped, because you see us getting stronger as a team."
Bobo and Guarascio are grateful the administration allowed it to take place by allowing for an extended training period, giving the Rams a full cycle to make inroads by avoiding a splintered schedule.
While Scott and Rashad Ajayi have been two skill players who have shown tremendous progress, so too has defensive lineman Damion Dickens. He won't beat either Scott or Ajayi in a race, but he will be quicker off the ball to the point of attack, and in the trenches, a quick first step can be destructive.
"It's helping me move faster. I'm moving better, I have my weight down, and it's getting my stamina up," Dickens said. "When we do flying 10s, flying 20s, I feel my legs have gotten lighter. It's really helping me move toward what we're running.
"I feel like it will translate a lot. The D-line, we're always talking to each other, we have to get better than this. Everybody has a bad day, but the next day we want to see you come out and be at your best. We're going to have a more explosive defensive line than we did last year."
In the spring, Colorado State had five players who ran 4.6 or faster in the 40; now they have 13. The number of players running sub-5 seconds was 37; now it is 49. With Guarascio having set the base this summer, their bodies will be accustomed to the training, allowing him to push the intensity next time around. He says everybody has genetic limits, but the fact remains speed can be improved, as he has proven to the players.
True freshman Dante Wright was clocked at 4.4, and Marvin Kinsey Jr. and Marcus McElroy have drawn attention with their time drops into the 4.5 range. Scott, who was still rehabbing a knee injury last year, can see a difference on the stop watch, but more importantly, he feels it mentally.
"I trust my knee 100 percent. Joey has us doing a lot of squats, a lot of lower-leg work, and that helps my confidence a lot," Scott said. "My speed is getting back to where it was. Last year, it was very mentally draining. Backing up two NFL prospects, it was mentally draining. This year, I think it's going to be different. I think I'm a little faster than I was in high school."
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