THE FUTURE OF TRAINING
The MVP|DRIVE
- Soft guide rollers, non-spoked wheels, and a fully foam encased drivetrain for the protection of players
- Automatic tackle shutoff kills power to the drivetrain at the moment of impact with a player.
Cover your practice field from end to end with a reliable, long range 2.4GHz controller.
Switch between turf and grass mode for optimal performance on your field. MVP is safe for use on your grass or artificial turf fields.
All the quality you expect from Rogers on field practice equipment. A sealed drivetrain and run flat tires provide for minimal maintenance. MVP|DRIVE features rugged 18oz vinyl cover, industrial zippers, and high density foam for longevity.
MVP|DRIVE features new drive technology that is built from the ground up that shortens the learning curve for your operators. Built-in smart technology steering correction, allowing for easy practice integration
Our cutting edge, high capacity battery technology is certified and tested to strict quality and safety standards. Smart, internal battery management ensures long battery life that lasts well beyond practice.
Our products will revolutionize how you train for any sport. Safely.
Now Training At
PROFESSIONAL
Pittsburgh Steelers, Baltimore Ravens, San Francisco 49ers, St. Louis Rams, Carolina Panthers, Jacksonville Jaguars, Dallas Cowboys, Oakland Raiders, Indianapolis Colts, Chicago Bears, Arizona Cardinals, New Orleans Saints, Houston Texans, Detroit Lions, Miami Dolphins
COLLEGE
Michigan, Mississippi State, Auburn, Penn State, Wisconsin, Notre Dame, Texas, Georgia, Arizona, West Virginia, Tennessee, Oklahoma State, Utah, Louisville, Miami, Montana, SMU, Dartmouth, Fordham, Bucknell, Old Dominion, Toronto, Ottawa, Harvard, MIT, Kenyon, Middlebury
HIGH SCHOOL
St. Thomas Aquinas, Smithson Valley, Phillips Andover, Hanover, Union Endicott, Ravenscroft, Harvard-Westlake, Brebeuf Jesuit, Bishop Lynch, Rancho Cordova, Valor Christian, Mountain Lakes, Wilmington, Wayland, Pingry, Salina Central, Haldane, Gulliver Prep Academy, Sports Academy
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the MVP?
The MVP stands for Mobile Virtual Player, the first ever self-righting mobile training device. Controlled remotely and powered by a motor, it’s an innovative training partner that can move at the speed of your opponent. With its size, which has been specifically engineered to replicate the weight and height of a college or pro player, the MVP can take a hit. By simulating human motion, the MVP allows players to practice tackling, blocking, pursuing, evading and throwing at a mobile target, without the impact and fatigue associated with athlete on athlete training.
How is the MVP used?
The MVP takes player-to-player and helmet-to-helmet contact out of the equation for dynamic practice drills. Additional MVP models are under development to be used for football, rugby, on grass and on field turf, and for all ages and abilities. The MVP mobile training device can be incorporated into existing training drills, and its mobility and evasiveness lets you practice dynamic game situations that were previously unsafe – or even impossible – to practice effectively.
What is the history of the MVP and its development?
In 2010 Dartmouth Football Coach Buddy Teevens instituted a no-tackling policy. The new policy ensured parents and players alike that a Dartmouth football player would never fully tackle another Dartmouth player over their four years at Dartmouth. The only time Dartmouth fully tackles is on game day. The introduction of this no-tackling philosophy allows players to remain healthier and fresher longer. As a result, the Dartmouth football team has seen a 50 percent drop in missed tackles, a better record, and an Ivy League Championship. Teevens also challenged and encouraged his (former) players who were also engineering students at Thayer School of Engineering to design a new mobile tackling device to address the problem. The MVP is a result of that challenge. The MVP debuted as the first moving non-human training device at the team camp’s opening day August 26, 2015. Today, Teevens uses multiple MVPs in his practices and is a pioneer of introducing a safer way of tackling and devising ways to practice without contact. Teevens is Chairman of MVP, LLC the recently formed start-up company responsible for designing the Mobile Virtual Player and other innovative technologies. On May 13, 2016, Teevens testified in front of congress at the Concussions in Youth Sports Prevention and Research hearing.
Are there risks associated with using the MVP?
Yes, football is inherently a dangerous sport and there are still risks associated with using the MVP. Yet, after hundreds of hours of testing, there have not been any major injuries reported. The goal of the MVP is to reduce impacts and provide a safer training environment, and thus far, it has achieved that goal.
What was your best resource for starting MVP, LLC?
The best resource for starting MVP has been the team of talented and committed people. They developed an idea into a product, and have the perseverance to constantly work to improve it. It’s important to add that a key element has been student-athletes who are both engineers and entrepreneurs, working in an environment where people and resources are readily available.
What about the MVP is so appealing to the masses and has led to an abundance of media exposure?
While the interest in the MVP can be attributed to numerous factors, the integration of technology with athletics coupled with the awareness of health and safety aspects of sports, provide a great environment for our company and the products we are developing. Sports related concussions and more broadly, the well being of athletes at all levels, has become an increasingly controversial topic. Just as alarming to health and safety concerns is data indicating a decline in football participation rates. That said, we are at a pivotal moment in the history of our sport where we need to embrace the need for changing the way the game of football is played (and practiced). MVP answers that call.
Who has tested the MVP?
Dartmouth College was the first football team to test and practice with the MVP. It debuted as the first moving non-human device at the team camp’s opening day on August 26, 2015. This spring (March-May 2016), the MVP was beta tested by leading football programs at the high school, collegiate and professional level including: Baltimore Ravens, Pittsburgh Steelers, Michigan State University, University of Minnesota, Central Michigan University, University of New Hampshire, Western Michigan University, Harvard University, St. Thomas Aquinas High School (FL), and Davenport University. The MVP was also tested by premier Rugby teams including USA Rugby’s Seven’s Olympic Teams (Men’s and Women’s).
What does the future look like for MVP?
We believe the road ahead holds great opportunity for MVP. As a company we are focused on meeting the demand for safer and more effective ways to train, coach and practice all sports. That demand is evolving and growing with improved understanding and broader awareness of how contact sports can affect players at all ages and levels. The MVP is an innovative and promising product that we want to have at the right place at the right time.
built for the Gridiron
The MVP will revolutionize your football practices
Current Teams Training With MVP
Reviews of MVP|DRIVE by Elite Programs
MVP|DRIVE Drill Video
Don’t take our word for it, listen to what the pros think!
You can use it for a quarterback, too, to move the pocket. It can move on a dime. We’ve even had a couple of managers race it.
It speaks volumes to what our school is doing to promote player safety,” says uOttawa Head Coach Jamie Barresi. “When I made the request, and outlined the positives for our players’ health, it was a very fast yes from our department.
I think it is the greatest piece of football equipment that has been invented in the last couple years, I think it’s the cat’s meow, we could use it for a lot of things: tackling drills, pass rush… probably every NFL team has them… and we have 5 of them I told my coaches that they are expensive and very valuable so they should use them and I think they will.
They’re worth their weight in gold.
Well to me it’s not the toughness, it’s the tackling. Tackling is a lost art, guys don’t know how to use their arms. There’s a great new invention of mobile dummies, that you can actually remote control and they can tackle moving targets and do that all spring. So I think that’s a great new invention to help the game to teach how to tackle at all levels, but probably too expensive for junior high. But that’s a great new invention. I think you’ll continue to see those types of innovations in the sport where tackling becomes a better art form.
On why he decided to have the remote-control dummies?
Just seeing the technology. Being able to hit a moving target. We’ve used the donuts that came out last year, they really helped guys put their on the side. But it’s not the same as going to the ground, taking something to the ground and getting your body accustomed to going to the ground without using your head
The applications we are quickly finding are really endless, you know it never gets tired, it runs at an appropriate football speed. All the position groups are getting an opportunity to use it, and it’s funny you really just put it on the field and watch the guys and they show you the applications… they say hey get it to do this, it has been fun over the last several days watching that grow.
New Age of Rugby
Rugby Training Made Smarter
Is this the future of rugby training? My club needs one of these!
The MVP has really helped me with my rugby team. We have a strict four-step tackling technique where we teach safe tackling. Last year the players had to tackle each other and one of our players ended up with soft tissue damage, so I let them tackle me, which made for a long day. I saw the tackling dummy and we were one of the first rugby teams to get one… It has reduced a lot of our injuries this season.
It is exciting to see the equipment that’s being used in sports develop in response to the growing need that athletes have to protect their bodies; protect their heads while still being able to get valuable practice reps and be able to practice their technique in an environment that’s going to make it safe for them as an athlete.