University of Tennessee at Chattanooga's Skrine shines in 40-yard run tests
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| Scott Brincks | - Download MP3- |
In the scouting, recruiting and evaluation of football players, this question comes up often among coaches and all the time among numbers-hungry, die-hard fans: What's his 40 time?
For University of Tennessee at Chattanooga sophomore cornerback Buster Skrine, the answer is now 4.22 seconds.
Yep, according to strength and conditioning coach Scott Brincks' stopwatch, Skrine covered 40 yards in 4.22 seconds Tuesday at Finley Stadium.
"I was really shocked," said Skrine, who started three games last season and had a pair of interceptions, returning one for a touchdown. "I ran a 4.35 the week before, but to run 4.22, I couldn't believe it."
By comparison, former Arkansas All-American running back Darren McFadden, well known for his blazing speed, ran the 40 in 4.33 seconds at the NFL combine back in February. At the combine the times are measured more scientifically, using lasers at the start and finish lines, but Brincks said he was very confident that Skrine's time was accurate.
"He is the fastest kid that I've timed personally, myself," Brincks said. "It was legit all the way around. Anybody can question it, but they're all (wrong) because it is legit."
Skrine, who ran track for the Mocs this spring, said he ran a 4.40 in high school and that his improved times were the result of putting on about 20 pounds of muscle since he arrived on campus.
"I came in at about 156 or 157 pounds, but since I got here I've really worked hard and I'm now up to 175," the 5-foot-8 Skrine said. "When I put on the weight it was hard to adjust at first because your body feels so different, but now I've gotten used to it and I'm running a lot better. I've also worked really hard on my technique, too."
For Skrine and the rest of the Mocs that are in town participating in Brincks' voluntary summer workout program, running 40s last week was a way for evaluate their progress.
Sprinting from the 20-yard-line to the opposite 40, they took two or three turns each. Some were pleased with what they did and others weren't.
Skrine was definitely among the pleased, emphatically so. Among the others who put up good times were wide receivers Thomas Hinton, who ran a 4.40, and Joel Bradford - the former McCallie standout who redshirted last season - ran a 4.43.
"We'll always plan for about halfway through the summer we'll run our 40s, and that will give us a good test to see where everybody is at (with their speed training)," Brincks said. "I'm very pleased, right now, (with) where they're at. I've been very, very pleased with how they've been going, coming here and working their tails off and doing everything that I ask them to do. And it's showing."
The obsession with football players' 40 times can be viewed as a strange one since it has little to do with the actual game itself. After all, seldom does a player run 40 yards in a straight line.
And for players like senior fullback Brent Hayes, whose 6-2, 260-pound shape isn't exactly made for sprints, running 40s isn't a particularly satisfying experience. Especially since his job is usually to run a couple of yards and pound a linebacker or defensive end into the turf, or carry the ball in short-yardage situations.
"It's definitely not my specialty," Hayes said. "They matter if you're going to the next level (of football), but if you're just playing ball - if you can play ball, you can play ball, regardless of what your time is."


