How Does Your Athlete’s Strength and Speed Compare to Others Their Age?
After a testing day, athletes, parents, and coaches usually have the same question: “Are these numbers good?”
A 200-pound squat, a 5.2-second 40-yard dash, or a certain vertical jump can tell you what an athlete can do, but without something to compare it to, it can be difficult to know what that number actually means.
That’s where normative data comes in. Using reference values published by the National Strength and Conditioning Association (NSCA), coaches can compare an athlete’s performance with benchmarks for athletes of similar ages, sexes, and sports. These numbers aren’t meant to label an athlete as “good” or “bad.” Instead, they provide context, help identify areas for improvement, and make it easier to set realistic training goals.
Why Do Athletic Benchmarks Matter?
Testing gives us valuable information about an athlete’s strength, speed, power, and agility. But the number itself is only part of the picture.
For example, what qualifies as an average squat for a 14-year-old football player may look very different from the average for an 18-year-old. The same applies across different sports. A basketball player, football player, volleyball player, and softball player may each have different physical demands—and therefore different performance benchmarks.
Normative data gives coaches a reference point to help determine where an athlete currently stands and where training may need to be focused.
Strength Benchmarks
Strength can change significantly throughout adolescence, particularly between ages 14 and 18. Because of this, age should always be considered when looking at an athlete’s numbers.
Some NSCA reference values include:
Male college baseball: Bench press 227 lb, squat 281 lb, power clean 210 lb
Male college basketball: Bench press 225 lb, squat 251 lb, power clean 209 lb
Female college softball: Squat 183 lb, bench press 144 lb
Male high school football, ages 14–15: Bench press 179 lb, squat 294 lb, power clean 176 lb
Male high school football, ages 16–18: Bench press 214 lb, squat 348 lb
These differences are an important reminder that athletes shouldn’t expect their numbers to remain the same as they develop. Growth, training experience, sport demands, and physical maturation can all influence performance.
Agility Benchmarks
Agility is another area where an athlete’s sport matters. Different sports require different types and amounts of cutting, acceleration, deceleration, and change of direction.
For the pro agility shuttle at the college level, NSCA reference medians include:
Male basketball: 4.41 seconds
Male football: 4.52 seconds
Female volleyball: 5.01 seconds
Female basketball: 5.06 seconds
Female softball: 5.17 seconds
These values show why comparing athletes solely based on sex or age may not give the full picture. Sport-specific demands should also be considered.
Speed and Power Benchmarks
Vertical jump and sprint testing can provide additional information about an athlete’s explosiveness and speed.
NSCA reference values include:
Male high school football backs and receivers
Vertical jump: 24 inches
40-yard dash: 5.2 seconds
Male competitive college athletes
Vertical jump: 25–25.5 inches
40-yard dash: 5.0 seconds
T-test: 10.0 seconds
Male recreational college athletes
Vertical jump: 24 inches
40-yard dash: 5.0 seconds
T-test: 10.5 seconds
Female competitive college athletes
Vertical jump: 16–18.5 inches
40-yard dash: 5.5–5.96 seconds
T-test: 10.8 seconds
Female recreational college athletes
Vertical jump: 15–15.5 inches
40-yard dash: 5.8 seconds
T-test: 12.5 seconds
One limitation is important to keep in mind: the high-school-specific data in this source primarily comes from football athletes, so it should not automatically be applied to every high school athlete or sport. The college-level data provides more opportunities for comparison across male and female athletes and different sports.
It’s a Reference Point, Not a Report Card
Perhaps the most important takeaway is that normative data is not a pass-or-fail standard.
An athlete who falls below an average can still be a talented and successful athlete. Likewise, being above average in one test doesn’t tell us everything about overall athletic performance.
Instead, testing should be used to establish a baseline, identify strengths and areas for development, create individualized goals, and track progress over time.
Ultimately, the most valuable comparison may not be an athlete versus everyone else. It’s the athlete today versus where they were six months ago.
At Hoops Physio, performance testing can help turn those numbers into useful information so athletes and coaches can make more informed decisions about training and continue working toward measurable goals.
Source: National Strength and Conditioning Association (NSCA), Essentials of Strength Training and Conditioning.
