☕️ S&C Daily — Why Only Five?

October 16, 2026

The NCAA has agreed to change Bylaw 11.7.4.4, which caps FBS football programs at five strength and conditioning coaches. The change takes effect in January, and until then schools can get waivers to hire past the limit. Mark Spellman, the coach who brought the suit, sat down with Justin Lima of Strength Coach Network for a new interview. He said he filed on a Friday, it ran in Morning Rep that Monday, “and then it blew up.” He took no money from the case.

Spellman said he understood why the rule began: some football coaches were hiring position coaches as strength coaches. But most NFL teams have more than five strength coaches, with rosters a little under half the size. Most law firms he called turned him down before Hagens Berman, the firm behind the NIL settlement, took the case. He said the change will make hiring a free market.

A new study put 35 male masters runners, aged 30 to 50, on a ten-week plyometric program twice a week, on top of their usual running. Running economy improved 3.9% on average, and more than three-quarters of the runners improved by more than normal test-to-test variability.

Week one was jump rope, scissors jumps and hops, 3 sets of 15 to 30 seconds each. After six weeks the work moved to single leg, and by week ten it was single-leg jump rope, single-leg hops and alternating lunge jumps. Higher reactive jump height predicted who improved most. Running form didn’t change.

Vanderbilt opened a rebuilt Olympic sports weight room for 11 varsity teams. All 16 of its custom Sorinex Base Camp racks have an integrated EliteForm velocity-based training unit that gives real-time data on every lift.

“The project was guided by a clear mission: increase athletic performance while decreasing the risk of injury and create the best training atmosphere in collegiate athletics,” said Tyler Clarke, assistant athletic director for sport science and sport performance.

In a new SimpliFaster piece, Philip Reichhoff lays out the three-day full-body template he uses with youth athletes. His case starts with the schedule. On a body-part split, a canceled Monday can wipe out leg day. On a full-body plan, an athlete who misses a session still hits every pattern twice that week.

Every day trains four patterns: double leg, single leg, upper push and upper pull. Max effort, dynamic effort and repeat effort rotate so each pattern gets each method once a week. Over nine weeks, max effort goes from 4 x 8 to 4 x 3, with the top set climbing to 90%. Dynamic effort gets lighter and faster, from about 0.75 to 1.3 m/s. No VBT device? He uses 50-70% of an estimated max and cues every rep. “If the weight looks heavy, it is too heavy,” he writes.

Pittsburg State is building an individual development plan for each of its 32 pitchers. Strength coach Beto Montero, who spent last summer with the Atlanta Braves, took a month to build their base strength and speed before testing. “Sometimes when you test people right away, they are not ready,” he said.

The lab tests body composition, mobility, movement patterns and strength, and a Rapsodo tracks release and movement in games. Each pitcher gets a baseball card style report: green is good, yellow needs work, red is a priority. Associate professor David Boffey said medicine ball throws and other strength and power measures show strong relationships with velocity.

Ironman world champion Taylor Knibb took 150 g of carbohydrate 15 minutes before the swim in Kona, then two 50 g gels in transition, she told The Athletic. “That’s 600 calories, but you just have to get it done.”

UEFA released consensus guidelines on preventing ACL injuries in women’s soccer, from a panel of 31 doctors, sports scientists, physios and a player. The most effective programs combined plyometric, strength and proximal control work, two to three times a week for 15 to 20 minutes. They reduced non-contact ACL injuries when adherence was high.

Real Salt Lake

Washington Nationals

Angel City FC

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