ANSWERS: 22
  • You have to define consistently. Nobody can run sub-4 twice in one workout, but over the course of a season, it's possible he could have averaged 3.9 sec/dash. He was that fast. To compare: Michael Vick is one of the fastest men in today's NFL, and his time is over 4 seconds. (4.3 i think)
  • No way. Not only would a 3.9-second 40 time probably be impossible for the world's best sprinters, but Bo was a running back, which isn't even the fastest position on the field (wide receivers and defensive backs are typically quite a bit faster than running backs). To think that a man carrying 230 pounds on his frame could be fully 10% faster than the fastest people in the NFL today is ridiculous. There's a reason you never see big, bulky runners in the Olympics.
  • No, Bo Jackson did not run a 3.9 40. His bio claims a 4.12s 40 yard dash, but doesn't say where or when. He was a human oddity, though. Amazingly fast for his frame.
  • No!! Bo's fastest time 100m 10.39 secs, Ben Johnson's drug-induced time in 1988 Olympics was 9.79 seconds, at which time he past 40 yards in a staggering 4.24 seconds, yes 4.24 seconds. Ben Johnson would have blown him away from anywhere from 0 to 100 metres.
  • It is highly, highly unlikely. Until the NFL starts using computers and lasers to time the 40-yd dash, it's really actually kind of silly to talk about hundredths and tenths of seconds. There's no way the person holding the stopwatch is going to be accurate enough to time anything like that.
  • No way could Bo Jackson run that fast. Here's some interesting sites about the 40 yard dash. http://www.usoc.org/11611_32384.htm http://www.parisischool.com/programs/combine_highlight.asp http://www.trackandfieldnews.com/discussion/viewtopic.php?t=9573
  • No man is that fast. Maurice Green is believed to have run the fastest 40 ever -- somewhere around 4.21. He has recorded a 9.79 100-meter (without ever being accused of roids). Bo was fast -- but nowhere near that fast. I've never heard of him running a 10.39 100, but IF he did, thats .6 seconds, which is probably .2 at the very least in a 40. If any NFL player runs a 4.4 40 legitimately, he is amazingly fast. Andrew is WAY OFF. Vick is fast (and also a felon), but his "4.3" is also hand-timed. And anyone who knows anything about sprinting knows that .4 seconds is a LONG TIME. 4.3, which is not his real time, is not even in the same ballpark as 4.0--let alone 3.9. No man has ever--and probably will never--record a 40 under 4 seconds. Michael Vick is also not even close to the fastest man in the league; that honor would most likely go to DeAngelo Hall, Terence Newman, Michael Bennett, or Allen Rossum, and none of them can dream about touching 4.0.
  • No thats not true and its rediculous that anybody would even ask that question. It also seems that nobody has any of their facts right in these answers. Ben Johnson's race was broken down and went through the 40 at 4.38 not 4.24. And for the person who says that running back is not even the fastest position on the field. What does that matter. On average the running backs may not be faster than CB's or WR's, but you must not have seen Bo Jackson play football. The man was exceptionally fast and was probably one of the top 5 fastest players in the league when he played. Players faster would include Darrell Green and Deion Sanders. Deion was recorded at his combine at 4.19 which is the combine record. Knowing that the times from the combines are not official, it still says that Deion was the quickest player in the NFL combine era. As for most of you who don't know the difference between quick and fast. Quickness is based on reaction and how a person covers a shor distance. Being fast, measures how fast you can cover an extended distance. Too bad bgdddymtty probably won't ever read this but he is wrong about Bo. Bo was extremely fast, just not 3.9 second fast
  • well it all depends on age. after the age of 16 the human legs began to slow tremendously making it more difficult for the lower body to produce power. high school kids running track have been proven to be able to run the 60 yd dash in about 5.1 while maurice greene holds the record for 6.39. guess why,for track and field competition in the olympics a competitor has to be at least 21 years of age. if younger children would be allowed to compete the possibilities would be endless. at commack high school where i went we had a kid from canada who ran a 3.42 40 yd at practice. the average for the good high school track runners in high school range from 3.7 to 4.2. He probably did but when he was younger. In fact i know he did and if anyone says different you can ask me,Bob Costas.
  • well it all depends on age. after the age of 16 the human legs began to slow tremendously making it more difficult for the lower body to produce power. high school kids running track have been proven to be able to run the 60 yd dash in about 5.1 while maurice greene holds the record for 6.39. guess why,for track and field competition in the olympics a competitor has to be at least 21 years of age. if younger children would be allowed to compete the possibilities would be endless. at commack high school where i went we had a kid from canada who ran a 3.42 40 yd at practice. the average for the good high school track runners in high school range from 3.7 to 4.2. He probably did but when he was younger. In fact i know he did and if anyone says different you can ask me,Bob Costas.
  • First of all Bob maurice greene's 6.39 is 60 meters which is a little bit farther then 60 yards and secondly whut the hell are you talking about highschool track athletes can run 3.4..there is no chance of anyone running under 4.0 especailly a highschol kid...now as for bo jackson running a 3.9 if it was hand time it is very possible he could have but hand time is not accurate it ranges from .24 seconds to .40 seconds of a timing diffrence from real automated time...so if bo did run a 3.9 it was hand time and was probabley more like a 4.2 which would be fast very fast but still humanly possible since deangle hall ran a 4.15 which is the fastest to my knowledge
  • Bo Jackson had a 4.1. He's raced Olympic sprinters. They said he kept up the whole way, until the very end where they'd edge him out. That dude that said Bo was 230 needs to watch some Sportscenter because he's talking out his ass. Bo was 210 when he was in shape, and yes a guy 210 can run that fast. Just because you don't think it's possible, doesn't mean it is impossible. Maybe that's why you can't break 6sec./40?
  • No, he ws more in the 4.1 range. He was a blur on the football field though, unlike many track guys who lose speed with pads and helmet on, Bo was still fast as hell with pads. It is common for track guys to lose speed with equipment on since much of their speed is streamlined and good technique that you lose with equipment on. If your speed is more generated from pure power, than you won't lose as much from a few pounds of equipment.
  • The 50 fastest athletes ever timed in a 40-yard dash Last Updated: 11/6/2004 9:27 p.m. The Top 50 Fastest recorded 40-yard dashes of All-Time (under 4.3 seconds) 1. Ben Johnson* 2. Darrell Green 3. Renaldo Nehemiah 4. Johnny Lam Jones 5. Bullet Bob Hayes* 6. Carl Lewis 7. Maurice Green* 8. Bruny Surin 9. Tim Montgomery* 10. Joey Galloway 11. Lee McRae* 12. Leroy Burrell* 13. Dennis Mitchell* 14. John Drummond* 15. Curtis Dickey 16. Alexander Wright 17. Andre Action Jackson 18. Calvin Smith* 19. Donte Stallworth 20. Phillip Epps 21. Ron Brown 22. James Jett 23. Michael Bennett 24. Raghib Rocket Ismail 25. Deion Sanders 26. Willie Gault 27. Laveranues Coles 28. Bo Jackson 29. Houston McTear* 30. Sam Graddy 31. Stanley Floyd* 32. Herschel Walker 33. Calvin Smith 34. Andre Cason* 35. Tim Harden* 36. John Capel 37. Mike Marsh* 38. Randy Moss 39. James Trapp 40. Cliff Branch 41. Emmit King 42. James Sanford 43. Mel Lattany 44. Rod Woodson 45. Brian Lewis 46. Henry Neal 47. Brian Cooper 48. Michael Green 49. Marvin Harrison 50. Brett Perriman * Official times were never recorded at this distance
  • to bob costas... no, your the most fuckin retarded person ever, you think you know what your talking about, but you don't, if that was the case, then then people at age 14, 15, and 16 would be running 4.1-4.3's, not 20-35 year old NFL football players.
  • No. That hasn't been confirmed nor did he repeat the feat other than in training camp without pads, etc. Then again, everyone runs it without pads for "timing" puruposes. He's unquestionably the fastest in the 30-yard dash area. He was routinely ahead of people whom he outweighed by 30-50 pounds, as his football playing weight was 222 pounds in college at Auburn University. He would be ahead of Olympic-class sprinters until the last 5 yards or so, when he would be overtaken at times. I think, however, he had the intangibles that, had he played football full-time, he would have likely shattered and put most career rushing marks well out of reach, a-la Jerry Rice of the San Francisco 49ers did for Receivers. Recall, for instance, that he was the MLB MVP of the All-Star game. He hit a solo home run at Royal Stadium that STUCK IN THE GRASS ON THE SIDE OF THE HILL. It was estimated to have gone some 448 feet unencumbered. The official best-40 times in the NFL that I am aware of are as follows: Darrel Green - 4.29 Napoleon Harris - 4.28 Devin Hester - 4.27 Deion Sanders - 4.17 and 4.23 Bo Jackson - 4.12 (1986 NFL Combine) not even close...and the scary thing is he's at least 30 pounds heavier than any of the above men, with the pure acceleration to get behind and stay behind defenders. In short, nobody...NOBODY...could ever catch him from behind on a dead run. No film exists to disprove it that I know of. In fact, Bo frequently - and I witnessed this in person several times - outran defensive backs who had an angle on him against the sideline. I think they all, to a person, never in their wildest dreams thought a man that large could be that fast. He beat Georgia Tech's "Black-Watch" defense late in the 4th quarter in Atlanta's Peach Bowl on a 3rd-and-6...with a 76 yard run down the left sideline, RIGHT AT ME. I was seated in the corner of the endzone looking right down that sideline. It looked as if he were looking right at me, and I saw the intensity in his being. He outran defenders who seemingly again had an angle on him. It's like he kicked it up into high warp and left those little children in the dust. I think that was his 36th carry that game, with over 200 yards rushing, and wound up Auburn 21, GT 17. It was truly an emotional moment to see such a gifted athlete that was just SOOOOO clearly above everyone. Any fool could see it. It was like he was toying with the defenders all game, and simply chose the most dramatic moment to fully express his potential as the pinnicle of the human athlete. Even on films, it's as if he's running at normal speed, and everyone ELSE is in slow-motion. Look at his legs - they're a blur. He had such intangible gifts too, like the patience to let his blocks develop. At times in college, he looked lazy...getting "only" 5 or 6 yards on a sweep and not running over everyone. He was waiting. He was waiting for that crease...like against the Detroit Lions, when he cut back and edged inside between the left guard and tackle, then cut it outside and hit the afterburners...making yet another long 55-yard TD run look like child's play. In my own opinion, he was at his best when he improvised, much the way Barry Sanders would. Only, Bo was bigger, stronger, and faster, if not quite so "nifty" as was Barry's unique style. Bo did it with the grace and strong sprinting speed of a Cheetah - over 100 yards, nobody would get him from behind. He was at his best on busted plays. Recall the famous long run in the Super Bowl by Marcus Allen, where he simply changed direction and wound up running up the middle instead of the sweep to the left? He got a long TD. Bo did this all the time. Dennis Smith barely slowed him down on that TD run. Boz did little better, being dragged into the endzone on Bo's back in that famous Monday night game. Boz looked like a toy. Bo Decimated the morale of Cincinatti's defense when he took a busted play, again designed to run to the left side, and busted it outside down the right sideline....from his own 4 yard line. He busted another left-designed play out to the right sideline against the hapless Seahawks for yet another 44-yard TD run. And back up the middle instead of the play designed right in a cold night in Denver for 61 yards, stumbling over and fighting through defenders until breaking into the clear. He did it again and again and again, and if memory serves, he's still the only man in NFL history to have 2 or more carries from the line of scrimmage of over 90 yards in his career. He is the athlete that comes along not once in a generation, but once in a lifetime. I recall his NFL days as well, running Denver Bronco All-Pro safety Dennis Smith flat over en route to a long TD run, and another 5-yard run in that famous Monday Night Game in Seattle where he ran over Seahawks LB Brian "Boz" Bosworth, had another long TD run where he ran clear out of the stadium, and looked like a "man among boys" according to announcer Frank Gifford. 221 yards in that one. I personally witnessed, from my place in the Auburn student section, Bo run over, around, and by Deion Sanders of Florida State on different plays. I've seen him blow up Ronnie Lott. I watched him drag 3 Cincinnati Bengal defenders halfway into the endzone before he went down on about a 6-yard scoring run. He's just simply someone that amazes me and I've yet to see anyone close to his ability. It's just such a shame his career got cut short in a routine tackle that was quite tame by any standards. He's seriously a running back that would have challenged the 2,000 yard season rushing threshhold on a regular basis, had he played football exclusively. He did it all in parts of only four seasons. I think had he played baseball exclusively, he might have wound up with the career home run record without the roids that Barry Bonds got help from...and in any case would have gotten the record for most strikeouts as well. - On June 5, 1989, Jackson ran down a long line-drive deep to left field on a hit-and-run play against the Seattle Mariners. With speedy Harold Reynolds running from first base on the play, Scott Bradley's hit would have been deep enough to score him against most outfielders. But Jackson, from the warning track, turned flat footed and fired a strike to catcher Bob Boone, who tagged the sliding Reynolds out. Jackson's throw reached Boone on the fly. Interviewed for the "Bo Jackson" episode of ESPN Classic's SportsCentury, Reynolds admitted that he thought there was no way anyone would throw him out on such a deep drive into the gap in left-center, and was shocked to see his teammate telling him to slide as he rounded third base. - After a poor at bat he was known to snap the bat over his knee, or with his helmet on, over his head. - He began to show his true potential in 1989, when he was voted to start for the American League All-Star team, and was named the game's MVP for his play on both offense and defense. His great plays in the game included a monstrous home run off Rick Reuschel of the San Francisco Giants which landed an estimated 448 feet from home plate - in his first All-Star at-bat. He also beat out an infield hit that resulted in the game-winning RBI. In addition to this, he had a stolen base, making him one of only two players in All-Star Game history to hit a home run and steal a base in the same game (the other is Willie Mays). Legendary baseball announcer Vin Scully (calling the game for NBC-TV) was moved to comment, "And look at that one! Bo Jackson says hello!"
  • neion deion did it in 4.29 in 1989 thats fuckin fast
  • bob costas youre an idiot its pretty much physically impossible to run forty yards in under 4 seconds. do you know how fast you would have to accelerate, and how long you have to stay at maximum speed for? plus, as you get older, your legs get stronger and guess what that means: you go faster. running the sixty yard dash is cheetah like fast. maybe this high school of yours is a zoo.
  • to "bobcostas" Yeah, you definitely are full of it. You're fastest at SIXTEEN? The human body isn't even fully DEVELOPED at 16!! Your brain obviously hasn't! no, no, no...athletes begin to lose strength and speed at around age THIRTY. Physical peak usually occurs sometime in the mid-20's when the body and brain are fully developed and age hasn't yet begun to take it's toll. Otherwise, you would have Olympic champions in track and field or pretty much anything involving strength and speed...swimming, even...when they are 16. The only reason GYMNASTS are good so young is due to flexibility. Let's see how many Olympic champions coming up are under 18. I betcha the vast majority of gold medalists will be between 21-25 years old, and of course some sports age isn't such a big factor, like archery.
  • No way Boy Jackson ran it in 3.9 or 4.12...he was probably more in the 4.3-4.4 range and to the people who are saying it is IMPOSSIBLE to run the 40 yard dash in under 4 seconds...for those of you have been keeping up on the olympics...that guy Bolt from Jamaica ran a 3.6 40
  • Bo Jackson was 230 but he was taking steriods which make you both stronger and faster. He ran a 4.14 but that wasnt electonically timed.
  • Yes it is true, in fact, Bo probably ran faster. I was on the track team at Auburn University when he was there (I was a grad student and was there training for the U.S. Olympic trials) Most people don't know this, but Bo placed 2nd in the NCAA national championships indoors in the 60 running about 6.1 seconds for 60 yard fully automatic timed (most football times are not fully timed, but hand timed on a clock. This meaan Bo ran 5.80 hand time for 60 yeads, which is 4.80 for 50 yards, and 3.8 for 40. Further, Bo was so strong he was fastest at 30-40 yard distances. One last thing. The ding dong below said that someone was wrong when the said Bo was 230 and he was only 210. HA! Bo was not only over 235, probably more like 245., 210 is about the size if a skinny quarterback. I lived around Bo Jackson for two years, this guy was one of the simply the most impressive athlete and athletic speciman I ever saw. Period. I was a a decathlete, and competed against Daley Thompson, Gold medal winner from Great Britain. By Comparison, Daley was fat. Bo was a stud among studs. I am willing to be his 30 time was more like 3.7 hand time. By the way, when he placed in the top 3 at the NCAA meet, he beat a couple of guys from Tennessee and Georgia who made the Olympic team the next year. So the writer was wrong and saying he hung with them. Hell, he beat them. Had he cut 10 pounds and got down to 235, he'd a made the Olympic team as a sprinter too.

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