Comparison of Speed and Agility Performance of College Football Players on Field Turf and Natural Grass

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to determine the difference in 40-yd dash and proagility times performed on field turf (FT) and natural grass (NG). Red-shirt freshmen National Collegiate Athletic Association Division II college football players (n = 24) performed 2 trials each of a 40-yd dash and proagility run on each surface. Sprints were timed by an electronic timing system (ET) and by 2 hand timers (HTs). Agility was timed on each surface by 2 HTs. There was no significant difference in 40-yd dash times between FT and NG using ET (FT: 5.34 ± 0.30 seconds, NG: 5.33 ± 0.33 seconds) or HT (FT: 5.06 ± 0.31 seconds, NG: 5.11 ± 0.29 seconds). Hand timer 40-yd dashes were significantly faster than ET 40-yd dashes on both surfaces, with the difference between HT and ET on FT (-0.28 ± 0.11 seconds) significantly greater than the difference on NG (-0.22 ± 0.06 seconds). The time differences between surfaces were significantly correlated (r = 0.12, p = 0.56). Proagility times were significantly faster on FT (4.49 ± 0.28 seconds) than on grass (4.64 ± 0.33 seconds). Thus, it appears that straight-ahead sprint speed is similar between FT and NG, but change-of-direction speed may be significantly faster on FT.

Within - and between - Session Reliability of the Spider Drill Test to Assess Change of Direction Speed in Youth Tennis Athletes

“…testing session 2: ICC = 0.69, 95% CI: 0.36 -0.90), and between-sessions (ICC = 0.66, 95% CI: 0.11 -0.90) reliability falling outside of the proposed threshold. These findings are contradictory to those from Stewart, et al [15], of whom found high intraday reliability (ICC = 0.9, 95% CI: 0.84 -0.94) for pro-agility within a sample of physical education students of similar ages to those of the present study (16.7 ± 0.6 years), and to those of Mayhew, et al [22], who concluded the pro-agility test to hold strong reliability Correlation Coefficient (ICC) with absolute agreement. This modality of ICC was used due to its capacity to detect absolute agreement within both rank and score.…”

“…To the authors' knowledge, a small sample of literature to date has assessed the reliability and validity of both the modified t-test [23] and pro-agility [15,22] CODS tests, which are theorised to be applicable CODS assessments for youth tennis athletes [11]. However, this is the first study to evaluate the reliability (both within-and between-testing sessions) of the spider drill CODS assessment in comparison to other CODS assessments specifically within elite youth tennis athletes.…”

“…Two commonly used CODS assessments are the modified t-test and pro-agility [11,22,23]. Both are argued to be suitable and practical methods for the assessment of CODS performance of tennis players due to their emphasis on both linear and lateral movement patterning, acceleration and subsequent deceleration, of which is considered highly important for tennis performance [6,7,11].…”

“…Equally, both assessments cover a total distance of 20 m, which may be pertinent to tennis as distances covered tend not to exceed 12 m [23]. However, though these two CODS assessments are heavily documented within the literature to produce reliable and sufficient results [15,22,23], to the authors' knowledge, they have not been examined specifically amongst the tennis population. Additionally, a less wellknown CODS assessment is gaining popularity among the United States Tennis Association (USTA); the spider drill [8,12,24,25].…”

The influence of playing surface on physiological and performance responses during and after soccer simulation

“…Initial sprint performance has been shown to influence decrements in multi-sprint activity performance (Gaitanos, Williams, Boobis, & Brooks, 1993). Given that sprint times (Fletcher et al, 2009;Hughes et al, 2013) and agility actions (Gains, Swedenhjelm, Mayhew, Bird, & Houser, 2010;Hughes et al, 2013) can be faster on AT than NT, this may have implications for the fatigue response during or following match-play. The occurrence and severity of fatigue during soccer activity on artificial turf surfaces may be a concern as the risk of injury during a match is greatest during periods of fatigue (Greig & Siegler, 2009;Small, McNaughton, Greig, & Lovell, 2010).Using a 90 minute soccer simulation protocol to accurately replicate the movement patterns and physiological demand of soccer, Hughes et al (2013) reported that heart rate, blood lactate accumulation, as well as decrements in sprint and agility performances were not different between a NT and a third-generation AT.…”