Connor Sport Court has been excited to be a part of this project ever since we first learned about it a year ago when approached by Athletic Republic to design a super plyo floor for the new training center under construction in St. George, Utah.

This custom platform exceeded our previous designs since it measures 864 square feet and is 46′ x 18′ in size, making it the biggest plyo platform we have ever built (and thus the largest in the world). The design incorporates numerous activities including multiple Munoz, Krumrie, LeClair, 4-Square formations along with a ladder w/ruler (for measuring the broad jump), allowing this plyo floor to accommodate multiple athletes simultaneously with plenty of space left over for functional training. The platform is made up of 4′ x 8′ hard rock maple panels with a sleeper subfloor produced that are manufactured in Amasa, Michigan plant, by the same team that makes the NCAA’s Final Four basketball tournament floors each year. All of the graphics and formations including the Athletic Republic logo were custom painted in our manufacturing facility.

The extra large plyo floor is just one of the reasons we think Athletic Republic’s St. George training center is super!

David F. Smith
Connor Sport Court International

Acceleration St. George, a proud member for Athletic Republic, has been in St. George Utah since 2002. In that time we have relocated 3 times. July 21st 2009 was our final move into Intermountain Dixie Regional Health & Performance Center. The Health and Performance Center is an out-patient facility that offers numerous programs dedicated to helping clients get the most out of their body, and out of their life.

Southern Utah has very hot and dry summers and mild winters. That is one of the many reasons we are excited for our large plyo floor. It will allow us to do most of our agility and cord drills indoors. Along with the different formations we have a ruler and ladder painted on the floor to help us maintain the professional Athletic Republic look. With our new space we also now have a large grassy area and sport court to do more outside during the winter months.

Acceleration St. George has spent the last 7 years helping many local athletes gain their competitive edge. We know this move will only help us be able to train at an even higher level.

Dayna Player Robinson

Acceleration Sports Performance Training

Being involved in “The Ride” has certainly fit its moniker.  I was selected for the 10-episode reality show to provide the perspective of a sport scientist who is passionate about football and experienced at helping athletes improve.  The Ride is not just about finding the best high school quarterback; it’s about uncovering the “diamond in the rough” that, given the opportunity of a lifetime could break through the barriers that have prevented them from being heavily recruited.  Each of the athletes has a unique “story” that includes challenges, whether it was being labeled as too small, not having enough experience, or coming from a smaller school, etc.

The first episodes were shot at FBU-Philadelphia in June. In addition to meeting the eight quarterbacks selected for the show, I also became part of a coaching staff that carry some serious credentials: Glenn Smith, Sam Wyche, Ron Jaworski, Larry Kennan, Mike Kruzcek, Tom Martinez, and Barry Every from Rivals. I consider this group among the “best of the best” when it comes to coaching, developing and evaluating athletes. More importantly, they are outstanding people that have each athlete’s best interest at heart.

We are looking to select THE Quarterback through a series of competitions and challenges. The athletes worked very hard in Philly, handled themselves like gentlemen, and improved immensely in a very short time.  And it was rewarding to see the progress that a few of the athletes made while training in our centers over the last few months-the coaches were impressed with their improved performance.  What a perfect example of the competitive advantage an athletes gains with Athletic Republic!

Next stop was Top Gun, where the field had been narrowed to four QBs.  It was very exciting to take all the athletes through the evaluation and training sessions in one of our more unique training facility-All Star Sports Training in Paisley, FL.   As the cameras were rolling I lead the players through both treadmill and plyometric sessions.  I was able to explain what each needed to do to improve their athleticism and conditioning.  As we see every day, the athletes made quick improvements in their sprint mechanics and movement skills which will allow them to get faster and move more efficiently.  They also seemed to really enjoy the training, understood how they can get better and were thankful for the help.

I’m looking forward to the next stages of the show, as we visit the remaining athletes in their home towns and high schools as we take in one of their Friday night games. After the cross-country tour, the two final players will be invited to play in Bowl Game in Hawaii in December. After the game, the coaches will shoot a live selection “round-table” and name the top QB. The winner gets a roster spot in the All-American Game.  The 10-series reality show starts in early November … I hope you can join Athletic Republic on “The Ride”

Steve Swanson - Chief Science and Technology Officer

Pulling up to All-Star Sports Training in Paisley, Florida for the first day of the Top Gun camp I was a bit skeptical.  You drive down a 1/4 mile dirt road and the first thing that you see is about 10 long horn bulls.  This was going to be my office for the next two weeks and I was not sure what to expect.  I have visited and trained at many training facilities but none of them had livestock to my knowledge.  Yet little did I know I was stumbling onto a football player’s training oasis in the middle of Florida and for two weeks it would be housing the top football players in the country.

The first three camps had unbelievable talent and averaged around 15 of the 80 athletes at each camp training at our Athletic Republic training centers.  This is an amazing figure considering these kids are chosen from all across the country and 20% had gone through our program. Yet I would not understand the true future of College Football until the final group of Athletes arrived at All-Star Sports Training on Wednesday afternoon.

The final group is all going into their senior year with a few invited juniors was so much fun to both watch and train.  Even though we had two huge storms which limited our time on the field with the final group we were still able to put them through some football specific Fusion Timing & Reaction system drills that tested both the reactive and physical ability of the kids.

After 33 FBU camps and 4 top gun camps there are two things I have come to realize: 1) There is a lot of raw talent out there and with the technology Athletic Republic has in their training centers we can make a huge impact on an athlete; 2) Even though people say that frog legs taste like chicken I don’t agree.