Season 6 Episode 17- Anthony Cockrill- Training is training, the sport is the application

·33 min·3 clips

Jay DeMeo finally sits down with SMU's Anthony Cockrill to discuss his groundbreaking work with volleyball athletes.

Jay DeMeo introduces Anthony Cockrill, a strength and conditioning coach at SMU known for his work with volleyball players. Cockrill shares his career journey, starting with internships and a GA position at Tennessee Tech with men's basketball. He moved to Houston for a part-time role under Allen Bishop and Bree Brown, then landed his first full-time job at UMBC, where he coached six teams. Cockrill explains that he shifted from basketball to volleyball because he wanted a more quantifiable impact on wins and losses, noting that volleyball's physical components, like jumping high and hitting hard, give a clear edge. He discusses the importance of interpersonal skills learned from coaching multiple teams, emphasizing efficient communication with athletes and coaches. Cockrill delves into his methodology for developing jumpers, which involves three key facets: genetics as the most important factor, hyper-focusing on technical skill efficiency inspired by pro dunkers and track and field, and training the structures of the stretch-shortening cycle in the weight room. He argues against position-specific plyometric progressions, stating that training should be general to allow athletes to apply adaptations to their sport. Cockrill uses force plates and vertex assessments to identify gaps between physical potential and technical skill, noting that a high countermovement jump but low approach jump usually indicates a skill issue. He highlights the growing popularity of volleyball as a youth sport and revenue generator. The episode concludes with Cockrill recommending future guests Brian Amenta from UMBC and Allen Bishop from Houston.

As heard by us

A grounded look at how physical preparation becomes visible in volleyball.

Jay DeMeo and SMU's Anthony Cockrell frame training as a way to make volleyball performance easier to see, test, and improve. Their conversation keeps returning to jumping, physicality, recruiting, and the kind of measurable impact that can shape how coaches think about…

Read the full review in PlayNext →

Why you'd press play

You want to know when jumping higher becomes a volleyball advantage instead of just a nice number.

Read the full recommendation in PlayNext →

Listen to the show on

Apple Podcasts Spotify

Play clips from this episode More from CVASPS The Podcast