You hear it all the time about fast football players: “He was a track guy in high school with great straight-line speed.”

Being a great track athlete doesn’t always translate to the football field, but according to Jeff Vlk, football and track coach at Buffalo Grove High School(Ill.), a football player can benefit immensely in a number of different ways by running track.

It starts with form, and even gifted athletes on the football field can often learn to improve on the mechanics of running.

“Track is great to teach you how to run like an athlete,” Vlk said. “Most athletes really don't know how to run, and we have seen several ‘fast guys’ come out for track and notice different things about them such as their short strides or awkward arm swing.

“Working in track really helps to clean up a lot of these things and focus on getting them to move their bodies in a linear form.”

Not only does track help improve someone’s form and posture, Vlk says it can also lengthen stride and help with hip flexibility. Vlk added that most people don't realize that having long strides has just as much to do with the flexibility in your hips as it does with the length of your legs.

“We begin each day with a hip mobility routine to help activate and loosen our hips,” he said. 

Track can also help keep players in shape because it forces athletes to run every day. The variety of track workouts can also challenge athletes to focus on different phases of running.

“For example, block starts are all about power and turnover, but on other interval days, we are working on volume and getting the runners to hold a consistent stride throughout the course of a race,” Vlk said. “These focused workouts are something a kid cannot get just running on their own.

It’s important to Vlk for football players to not only learn the specific drills and habits of a track athlete to become better, but also change their attitude toward the way they stretch.

Stretching should be a daily activity. It works in conjunction with active warmups before practice and stretching again following practice. It takes a little time, but stretching helps you stay healthy and flexible.

Vlk also loves that track can help keep football players’ competitive juices flowing when they are away from the gridiron.

“Although kids will come back and say, ‘Coach I am just going to lift this spring,’ we remind them that the weights don't fight back,” Vlk said. “You can really see what types of competitors these kids are when they are in the last 50 meters of a 200 or 400.

Form. Flexibility. Competition. Speed. The combination of these benefits makes track a smart a smart decision for football players.