Inside Scoop on WR Derek Kief: The Method Behind the Madness of "Speed Does Kill"

The song "Speed Does Kill" wasn't just created to make Derek's highlights unique, it was a method of motivation for Derek going in to the off-season prior to his Senior year.  You have to understand, for many years, Derek was playing sports all year round.

He was stuck in a never-ending loop, relying mostly on his freakish size coupled with his god-given talents to get him by.  While Derek loved basketball (I coached him and various school and AAU teams for many years), he decided not to play his Junior year to focus all of his efforts on football.

For the first time ever, Derek was about to experience the upside of downtime.  Derek's father called me and said, "Print some shirts that say, Speed Kills, Strength Punishes. That is going to be our theme during the off-season."  Being the somewhat overzealous uncle (as some may say), I called up a friend in the biz and asked if he and his crew would be interested in making a song.  Upon arrival to the studio, I told them I wouldn't stifle their creativity but I absolutely needed "Speed Kills" and "Strength Punishes" somewhere in the song.  It wasn't long before they were bouncing ideas off of each other and the next thing you know, WORD IS BORN:

 


"Speed does kill yeah speed does kill.  You'll get punished with my strength, that's for real."

Since Derek's Junior season ended, he has been laser-focused on one thing and one thing only, to be the best version of a WR that he can possibly be going in to his Senior season.  That focus is harnessed by the "Speed Kills, Strength Punishes" theme.  Derek knew he needed to work on his speed, strength, agility and quickness to make him a stronger and more explosive wide receiver.  Not playing basketball provided him with the necessary downtime to focus on what was most important at the next level, his upside.

Let's rewind to the summer of 2012.  Derek ran a 4.51 40 in front of the OSU coaching staff at their annual summer camp.  At that time, dripping wet he might have weighed 185 lbs.  Did he already and continue to put up amazing stats in the GCL, consistently catch everything in sight, display a high football IQ and very solid technical route running ability?  Sure.  Although, while that was probably good enough to be the best in the GCL and one of the best players in Ohio, that wasn't good enough for Derek.  He wanted to push himself to be the best.  He recognized that he needed to make room for some downtime, leading to his decision to drop basketball.

Fast forward back to today, his focus and efforts are paying off.  To put it in perspective, I will compare Derek's summer pre-test stats (before La Salle's strength & conditioning) to the 2011 NFL combine stats of one of his favorite wide receivers.

	A.J. Green	Derek Kief
Height	6-4	6-5
Weight	211	200 (205 - 210 by season)
Vertical Jump	34 1/2	35
40 Low	4.40	4.47
40 Time	4.48	4.48
40 High	4.56	4.49
Broad Jump	126"	124"
3-Cone	6.91	6.94

Of course, I recognize that the methods for capturing the 40 and 3-cone times are not necessarily equal, that isn't the point.  The point is simply, "Speed Kills, Strength Punishes".  That theme is now woven into the fabric of Derek Kief.  The investments that he has made and continues to make in his upside during his downtime are now paying dividends.

While his film and stats from playing in one of the Nation's top high school conferences have landed him 22 offers, including 3 of the top 4 ranked 2012 teams seems impressive, you ain't seen nothin' yet!

Speed Does Kill.