Playing with Science – The Science of “The Catch”

About This Episode

On November 23, 2014, NY Giants rookie wide receiver Odell Beckham Jr. made a catch against the Dallas Cowboys that broke the Internet and stunned the football world. He did it in spite of a pass interference call, without stepping out of bounds – and he did it with one hand. Was it skill? Was it science? Or was it a little of both? In this episode of StarTalk Playing with Science, hosts Chuck Nice and Gary O’Reilly take a closer look at “the greatest catch in NFL history.” At the time, sportscaster Cris Collinsworth, himself a former wide receiver, called the catch “impossible.” But was it? You’ll hear guest physicist John Eric Goff explain that although the laws of physics constrain all of us, Beckham’s feat shows us the absolute limits of what we’re constrained by. Find out what role practice and experience played in the catch. Discover why Odell’s large hands were critical in getting a 46mph football to come to a stop in about 2/10 of a second with just 3 fingertips. Explore how having one foot on the ground helped Beckham apply torque to keep from over-rotating and pull the ball back in bounds. Next up, Gary and Chuck welcome guest Joe Bevier, Nike’s Senior Football Innovation Designer, to discuss the technology of Odell’s gloves. You’ll learn how the co-efficient of friction figures into glove design using materials like silicone and neoprene, and why different positions require different kinds of gloves with different areas of articulation and padding. Listen in as Joe explains how the biggest changes in football are not in technology, but in player training, and how the technology needs to keep up. Last, but certainly not least, Jay Norvell, the former Wide Receiver Coach at ASU who is now the head coach at University of Nevada and the author of The Complete Wide Receiver, talks with Gary and Chuck about what makes a great wide receiver, and the difference between playing at the college level and in the NFL. You’ll also hear how players are now regularly practicing to do the “impossible” from very young ages, and training at higher levels of intensity than ever before. Plus, comedian James L. Mattern stops by to comment on why Odell’s catch is the greatest catch of all time – even better than Jay-Z catching Beyoncé or Donald Trump catching the presidency.

NOTE: All-Access subscribers can watch or listen to this entire episode commercial-free here: Playing with Science – The Science of “The Catch.”