Penn State Sports Magazine
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/1496986
3 4 M A Y 2 0 2 3 W W W . B L U E W H I T E O N L I N E . C O M that means a heavy emphasis on hand fighting, with a focus on timing and pre- cision. Ideally, there is no wasted motion. "It's baby steps. Rather than just throwing your arms and moving your arms, going crazy, it's articulate," Lom- bard said. "It can be challenging, be- cause it's something you've got to do over and over again. But everybody is lifting weights, and everybody is doing footwork drills. What are you doing for your hands? "Fighting is about rhythm and flow. It's not about being barbaric, punching as hard as you can reach. That's why I try to tell these football guys who are all big, strong and fast, we're doing the little things here to make your rhythm and flow better. If your rhythm and flow and your timing are better, then along with that speed and power, it's just going to put you on the highest peak you can get." Offensive Approach On the other side of the trenches, of- fensive linemen who participate in Lom- bard's MMAFx training learn techniques that are more closely aligned with box- ing. Hand fighting is a condensed part of their training; the focus instead is on the lower body. Many offensive linemen have a ten- dency to rely on their upper-body strength. Lombard said boxing tech- niques and drills help players generate additional power by emphasizing other muscle groups. "When they strike at their opponent, they're using their full body, which means their legs and their hips are get- ting involved more, rather than just their arms. We teach them how to unlock their hips," Lombard said. "When I get guys, their hips are all locked in. They're kind of stiff and they're just bench press- ing everything. We're looking to make a 300-pound offensive lineman [move] like he's a 160-pound boxer. "We're trying to make his punches quicker, faster. Precision, timing, foot- work, making his feet lighter. They have to be heavy with their feet sometimes. But sometimes you've got to be quick, so we'll work that hand-eye-foot coordina- tion, reaction timing, retraction on their strikes, so they get in there, snap, and get back, get ready for the next movement, whatever it might be, rather than push- ing everything." The idea is to add a quick, snappy punch, not unlike a jab in boxing, to jar a defensive lineman and take him out of his rhythm. "It's about split seconds and inches," Lombard said. "In a split second, you can manipulate your opponent to where it affects his balance or his rhythm. That's to your advantage." A Growing Movement In the process of developing and re- fining his training regimen, Lombard has been to the campuses of Alabama, Oklahoma, Washington and LSU, among other top programs in college football, demonstrating his methodology in per- son. Most recently, he traveled to Vir- ginia Tech in March to meet with the Hokies. Virginia Tech, of course, is now being coached by Brent Pry, who was Penn State's defensive coordinator for Redshirt freshman guard Vega Ioane is one of several Penn State offensive linemen who have attended classes at Lombard's gym in downtown State College. PHOTO BY THOMAS FRANK CARR Lombard has helped pioneer the use of mixed martial arts training to improve football players' hand-fighting tech- nique. PHOTO BY THOMAS FRANK CARR