The conversation of multi-sport athletes seems to have already dominated the off season with results from the recruiting classes at Ohio State, Notre Dame and Alabama leading the way a few months ago.
With the NFL Draft wrapping up over the weekend the issue was once again brought to the forefront with a number of tweets and statistics making their way around illustrating the domination of the multi-sport athlete and we felt the numbers were (once again) worth sharing with coaches.
The good folks at TrackingFootball, who have proven to have a great pulse on this developing story over the last few months, had some great coverage throughout the course of the draft (including a player-by-player breakdown).
Last week we ran a story profiling how 85% of the NFL Draft picks were multi-sport athletes, and as you can see, the numbers for this year are even higher at 88%.
While these numbers are certainly intriguing, I can't help but wonder if participation in multiple sports helps guys become better athletes, or if these guys play multiple sports because they are superior athletes.
I think the general consensus from coaches is the former (multiple sports help to create better athletes) because growing up a multi-sport athlete helps to train the mind and body much differently than specializing in one particular sport.
Either way you see it, the results from recruiting classes to draftees are impossible to ignore.