Athletic Republic trainer working with U.S. Army All-Americans

In it’s first year of involvement with the U.S. Army All-American Bowl and Football University, Athletic Republic is all over the field, literally. Throughout Bowl week, Athletic Republic trainers are working directly with the 90 seniors on the East and West teams as well as providing technical support to the U.S. Army National Combine and the 500 underclassmen participating in it.

Here’s what a couple of the trainers had to say about what they’re seeing on the field:

It is quite an honor to work with the best high school football players in the nation.  They all have great attitudes, which really helps them adapt to the higher overall level of play and quickly learn offensive and defensive schemes. It is great to interact with the players as we do taping and stretching, trying to break the shyness barrier and talk to them about their goals and aspirations. I am amazed at the superior size, strength, speed and quickness of these athletes compared to the Utah high school athletes I have trained for the last 14 years.  Some of the players look just as talented as the college and pro football stars of today.
– Michael Everett ATC, CSCS

It’s been fun to see how the ‘Best of the Best’ are now sizing up to the other ‘Bests’ in the country. Everyone is fast here, everyone is big and strong, so now the players have to step up their physical abilities and use everything they have in order to compete. It’s a privilege to be associated with the elite level of athlete represented here.  I am also enjoying employing some functional rehab techniques to some of the kids with nagging injuries.
– BJ Maack, ATC, CSCS

Looking ahead to Football University this winter and spring, Steve Swanson, Chief Officer of Science and Technology for Athletic Republic, offered the observation that:

The intensity and focus of both the coaches and athletes here in San Antonio is phenomenal—just like what the participants in Football University will experience in the coming months.

FBU Alumni Playing in 209 U.S. Army All-American Bowl

Of the 90 high school seniors participating in the U.S. Army All-American Bowl this Saturday, 19 of them are Football University (FBU) alums: Cliff Harris, CB (CA); Tajh Boyd, QB (VA) Shaquelle Evans, WR (CA); Kevin Newsome, QB (VA); Larvez Mars, OLB (FL); Je’Ron Stokes, WR (PA); Patrick Hall, S (CA); Christine Michael, RB (TX); Chris Whaley, RB (TX); Edwin Baker, RB (MI); Tom Savage, QB (PA); Gabe Lynn, CB (OK); Chris Metcalf, OLB (CA); Cierre Wood, RB (CA); Zeke Motta, OLB (FL). FBU Alum U.S. Army All-American’s not pictured: Bryce Brown, RB (MI); Randall Carroll, WR (CA); Michael Carter, CB (FL); Byron Moore, CB (CA).

In the lead-up to Saturday’s game, which will be televised on NBC at noon (CST), you can keep track of all U.S. Army All-American Bowl week activities via daily Web casts at www.allamericangames.tv.

It may be the height of “bowl season,” but at Athletic Republic, every season is football season. Bowl games just attract more attention than post-season skill development sessions, combine preparation, spring practice, pre-season training, or even regular season games do.

In the lead-up to the U.S. Army All-American Bowl, which will be televised from the AlamoDome in San Antonio by NBC Sports at noon (CST) on January 3rd, Athletic Republic trainers will be working directly with the 90 seniors on the East and West U.S. Army All-American Bowl teams. And, Athletic Republic will be providing technology  support for the U.S. Army National Combine—an event for the top 500 underclassmen in the country—which is also being held this week in San Antonio.

Once bowl week is over, Athletic Republic and its network of performance sports training centers will extend the Football 365 message to football players across the country through its sponsorship of Football University (FBU).

The 2009 Football University season kicks off in Dallas on January 30. The complete 2009 tour will take FBU to 30 cities around the United States. Invitations are being sent in the mail to athletes’ home or school addresses throughout December and January. If have not received an invite and would like to be considered, nominate yourself online at www.footballuniversity.org.

Brian Schaefering is a 25 year-old, 6′ 5″ 295 pound rookie free-agent in training camp with the Cleveland Browns. The Browns thought his story was interesting enough to post a story about “where Brian has come from” on their Web site.

In addition to coming from Lindenwood–a school that boasts two recent Super Bowl ring wearing alumni in DeDe Dorsey and Derrick Ward–Schaefering shares a training regime with Dorsey.

Here’s what Brian has to say about his Acceleration Training experience at Nutriformance Acceleration in Chesterfield, Missouri:

I was always a skeptic when it came to speed training–even while playing at the University of Illinois. It wasn’t until I came back for my senior year at Lindenwood that I broke down and tried it. I called Dan O’Donnell and made my first appointment and haven’t looked back since. The Acceleration Training program has put me in the best shape I’ve been in a long time. It helped me excel in my senior year and will help me perform the way I need to at the combine for the NFL. I was a skeptic, now I’m with acceleration for good.

Here’s hoping Brian’s hard work and perseverance pays off with a spot on Cleveland’s opening day roster!

The good news we’ve all been waiting for has arrived–Eric Brock signed a free-agent contract with the Atlanta Falcons yesterday.

We haven’t heard directly from Eric yet, but here’s what his trainer Todd Robinett had to say:

I’m very proud and happy for Eric, because he has worked so hard to get to this point in his career, and now it’s starting to pay off. Anyone that spends time with Eric will know right away that he’s going to be a great pro in football and life. All of us at All-Star Sports believe in Eric and wish him the very best!

Next Weekend, Eric will take the field alongside other rookies and Falcon veterans at a Mini Camp in Flowery Branch, Georgia. With two practices on both Saturday, May 10 and Sunday, May 11 (all open to the public) and a closed session on Monday, May 12, Eric will finally have a chance to show his stuff.

We’ll try to keep track of Eric’s progress as the Mini Camp season unfolds.

This just in from Todd Robinett (the guy next to Eric in the photo above):

On Sunday, March 9th, I arrived in Auburn around 12:30pm and met Eric for lunch, then spent the rest of the day relaxing with his friends and family. My focus was to make sure Eric ate a good meal, was relaxed and had plenty of rest. That night Eric and I sat down and talked briefly about his Pro Day and what needed to be done, such as what time to wake up, eat breakfast, warm-up, etc. As his coach and friend, I felt like I should give him a little pep talk, but then I realized there wasn’t anything I needed to say. In fact, I think the only thing I said was, “you know you’re ready,” followed by “it’s Showtime.” To be honest, the confidence I saw in Eric and his trust in the Lord actually helped me relax.

Throughout all of Eric’s training at All-Star Sports, he had a fire in his eyes of determination, toughness and confidence. He pushed everything to the limit, and he knew that he worked harder than anyone else in the country. One example of his hard work is an exercise he did called walking push-ups, which he did once a week at the end of an upper body weight lifting workout. The first day of lifting Eric could barely do 6 push-ups at each of the three stops he had to make (meaning he did a total of 18 push-ups through the whole exercise). I told Eric the record was 30 push-ups at each stop, making it a total of 90 push-ups, which is very tough to do after you’ve already done a whole upper body workout. In week six, Eric came up to me and said, “I’m breaking the record today T” (short for Todd), and proceeded to do 32 push-ups at each stop, for a total of 96 push-ups.

The morning of his Pro Day, we woke up and I think all that was said was, “it’s time,” followed by a look of confidence and excitement. Then we double-checked our bags to make sure we had everything. I can’t speak for Eric, but I know my stomach was twisted in a knot—I did my best to stay relaxed. On our way to the field we talked about everything but the Pro Day, in fact most of our conversation was about some fun times we had at All-Star Sports with some of the other athletes.

When we got to the field I started to get a little more excited for Eric because I knew he had been waiting a long time for this opportunity. It was finally time for him to show off all that hard work. He looked strong through all the events and I heard a lot of comments from people talking about his physical appearance. It was nice to know other people recognized his hard work in preparing for this day. I was very proud of Eric’s performance, and I know good things will happen for him in the future.

After everything was over I felt like a weight was lifted off me, which means Eric probably felt an even bigger weight lifted off his shoulders. Eric did all the work and had all the pressure on him, and he handled it like a professional. Like I told Eric, “I’m not sure why I’m so exhausted when you did all the work.” In fact, when we got back to his house, I fell asleep on the couch before I drove to the airport. The whole experience was a positive one and all of us at All-Star Sports look forward to watching Eric play on Sundays!

Below are Eric’s Pre-Test/Post-Test numbers:

• 10-yard dash — 1.71/1.55
• 20-yard dash — 2.82/2.69
• 40-yard dash — 4.94/4.56
• Short Shuttle — 4.19/4.04
• L – Drill — 7.00/6.73
• Vertical Jump — 34 inches/37 inches
• Broad Jump — 9’ 7”/10’ 3”
• 225# Bench — 6/15

Right now, Eric is continuing to train, because as soon as the draft is over he’ll probably have to go to some rookie mini camps with which ever team picks him up. Also, any team could ask Eric to workout for them before the draft, so he has to keep his conditioning up and be prepared for anything. Aside from individual workouts Eric may also have phone interviews with teams that are interested in signing him. The next four weeks could be very busy for Eric depending on the number of teams that are interested in drafting him.

To put it simply Eric is staying focused on training and waiting patiently for individual workouts or interviews with NFL teams before the draft.

Thanks for reading and rooting for Eric on NFL Draft day!

Brian Schaefering started his collegiate football career at Illinois, and finished up this year at NAIA powerhouse Lindenwood. With his sights set on a career in the NFL, the 6′6″ defensive tackle has been prepping for pro day at Missouri tomorrow. Working out at Acceleration, a proud member of the Athletic Republic, in Chesterfield, Missouri, Brian and his training partners have received media attention from the St Louis Post Dispatch and television coverage from KSDK.

You can watch the video of Brian running 21 mph on Athletic Repubic’s Super Treadmill here, and read the Post Dispatch story here.

Good luck to Brian and his training partners Mark Anelli and J.R. Niklos!

Over the past several weeks, we’ve been fortunate to offer two different perspectives on Eric Brock’s training for Auburn University’s Pro Day: Eric’s and his trainer’s. In this post we get Todd Robinett’s point of view on just how ready Eric is:

Because of Eric’s hard work and dedication he is more than ready to perform at Auburn’s Pro Day. After spending countless hours over the last 7 weeks training, Eric has increased his strength and power, dropped his body fat % and learned all the techniques needed for the Pro Day Drills. In the Short Shuttle and L-Drill, Eric improved in his ability to get in and out of cuts with good control and power, by learning to sit through his hips and distribute his weight properly. In the 40-yard dash he spent a lot of time on his starts, but he also improved the last 20 yards by increasing his stride length and frequency so he will have a strong finish.

All of us at All-Star Sports believe in Eric and have confidence that he is ready to move on to the next level.

It’s also important for everyone to know that Eric has made an impact on a lot of people while he was with us, and has set a standard of excellence for future athletes. Many of our young athletes have seen Eric train and they all look up to him and wish him the best. Beyond his training, Eric has shown us all the type of man he is and has definitely left a positive mark on many kids here at All-Star Sports. I’m excited for Eric to have the opportunity to show off the skills that he’s been working on over the last 7 weeks.

 

Go Eric!

It’s been a while since we’ve checked in on Eric Brock. With his pro day coming up on Monday at Auburn, here’s what he’s got to say about his state of mind … and body:

I’m very excited by the opportunity given to me at my pro day. I feel like All-Star Sports has provided the resources to allow me to have a great pro day. Its almost like I am getting ready for a big game. I know what’s at stake and I’m willing to give it my all. Like I always say: when its time to train I will train, but when it’s time for results there isn’t anymore time to train–it’s showtime!

Good luck, Eric!

Hi Everyone ,

As you can see from the photo above, it’s not all work and no play here at All-Star Sports Camps. Sure we’ve been working out a lot (see my typical day post), but we do have fun too.

Last Thursday, after an early morning workout, we visited the Daytona International Speedway and got to see what goes on behind the scenes in the build-up to the Daytona 500. In the photo above, I’m on Pit Row during driver introductions for the Gatorade Duels.

We had seats on Pit Row and also had the opportunity to tour the pits before the race began. It was a great experience for all the guys that went, because none of us have ever had the opportunity to be on Pit Row during a race.

We’re all back in Paisley now, working hard. But we sure enjoyed the chance to relax and let our bodies recover a bit.

Thanks for reading!