The concept was born on a bus ride home from a road trip late in Steve Pikiell’s tenure at Stony Brook. Now in his third season at Rutgers, Pikiell asked his trusted strength and conditioning coach what he could do to maximize his players’ talents.

“I had an opinion but I like to base my opinion on things I can back up with facts,’’ said David VanDyke, who now works with Pikiell in the same position at Rutgers. “So we started off with heart-rate monitors.’’

The idea, VanDyke said, was to monitor each player’s movement patterns in real time in an effort to make objective decisions on playing time. It was a good idea in principle.

But, as it turned out, it almost cost VanDyke his job.

“When we first started using the heart-rate monitors, I wanted to wear them in a game. Coach (Pikiell) wasn’t too sure and I was like, ‘No, we’re going to do it,’ and then four or five of (the monitors) came off in the middle of the game,’’ VanDyke said, laughing at the memory, prior to a recent Rutgers practice. “We were playing Vermont at home, we were up by 15 or something and we ended up losing. I thought it was over for me.’’

Pikiell can laugh about it, too — if only because his team went on to win the America East championship that season.

“All of the (monitors) were falling off (and) then I got tired and said, ‘Enough,’’ Pikiell said. “Now, it’s to the point that I don’t even know they have them on. But that first go-around, he kind of had to figure it out, too. But I was like, ‘Enough with the new technology. We need a guy to rebound.’ The computer chip doesn’t tell them how to do that.’’

Rutgers has held basketball practices for more than 100 years, but the days of simply rolling out the balls and ordering the players to practice until they’re tired are over.

In an effort to maximize the team’s practice effort over the course of a five-month season, Rutgers uses cutting-edge technology to study everything from how to prevent fatigue-related injuries to why a player is (or isn’t) giving max effort.

It’s one-part an attempt to gain a competitive edge, one-part simply trying to understand more about players in an age when every major college program in America is seeking the slightest advantage to move up in the standings.

“What’s great about the technology is we have a baseline that shows what our guys are good at, what they’re not-so-good at, and how they’re performing in real-time,’’ VanDyke says. “So we might be in a practice and say ‘let’s start at 50-percent, then get up to 75-percent, and then work ourselves up to game-speed and then tamp it down a bit from there. So it’s not just ‘work until you get tired.’ This technology makes it less subjective so we’re able to make better decisions. That, to me, is where it holds it’s value.’’

NJ Advance Media had an exclusive look at how Rutgers is putting its players to the test with wearable technology and other interactive tools to measure performance both in games and during practices.

“When I took this job I knew development (of the players) would be a huge part of it,’’ Pikiell said. “I think we do great job of developing guys. But Dave and his staff, they get the most out of our guys physically, mentally and nutritionally.’’

***

Three days after defeating Minnesota, the Scarlet Knights held a practice at the RAC in preparation for a Saturday evening clash at Iowa. One by one, the Rutgers players left the locker room, took a few steps onto the RAC floor and made a pitstop at a training table set up by VanDyke. The Rutgers strength coach had 15 Polar Team Pro heart-rate monitors and the same amount of Catapult chips spread out on the table in front of his laptop.

VanDyke distributed the Catapult — a donut-hole-sized chip deliver real-time performance data to his laptop — to each player. Then, VanDyke strapped the heart-rate monitor underneath each player’s jersey on their chest.

“Everything that we do with the technology has to be integrated in a way where I’m not asking them to do more,’’ VanDyke said. “So I’ll put the heart-rate monitors on. The Catapult goes in their tank top in between their shoulders. If you watch any college basketball game and see a player from behind, if you notice he has a little bump above the name on the back of their jersey, it’s usually a Catapult.’’

Before setting foot on the court, each player makes a beeline to a mat set near the bleachers. It’s a Sparta Science device designed provide an objective measure of how players react to gravity with scientific assessments and to provide evidence-based training prescriptions.

If this all sounds like it’s analysis paralysis, know this: Pikiell believes it’s a reason why the Scarlet Knights have avoided the injury bug throughout his tenure.

“It was a huge problem for us before I got here,’’ Pikiell said. “I remember seeing a (TV) graphic of how many guys missed games and then we would have guys missing practices. Now, very rarely do we have guys miss games or practices. That’s a credit to what Dave and (certified athletic trainer) Rich (Campbell) do and I’m blessed to have them.’’

In Eddie Jordan’s final campaign, Rutgers players were sidelined for a total of 55 games due to injury.

In Pikiell’s first two seasons, Rutgers players were sidelined for a total of 14 combined games (11 in 2017-18; 3 in 2016-17) due to injury.

“I think it’s the system,’’ VanDyke said. “It’s everything that we do. It’s the emphasis Coach puts on the data. He makes what I do with the team a priority. He and I have a level of trust now — and we’ve been working together for 13 years so he trusts that I know what he needs to get the guys to do what he wants them to do. It’s Rich and I, our communication about what’s going on with guys so that we know how we can address certain things. A lot of it is just the time that we put in in the offseason to develop their bodies, to be able to be resilient to the stress that can handle it. It’s the whole system of trying to make them better, trying to make them play well over a longer period of time, backing it off at certain times, and periodizing it the right way so that they’re doing a little bit more than they can do and not trying to over-tax them.’’

Of course, even the most sophisticated technology will never allow a team to avoid the kinds of freak injury like Eugene Omoruyi suffered when he missed three games due to a dislocated knee cap.

But this season the Scarlet Knights have miraculously avoided wear-and-tear injuries to the delight of Pikiell, who looks for a piece of wood to knock on whenever this topic is discussed.

“It’s a big credit to DVD (VanDyke),’’ Rutgers’ fifth-year senior center Shaquille Doorson said. “It’s what he’s focused on, making sure we don’t over-tax our bodies in risk of injuries and he works to make sure our bodies are in tip-top shape.’’

***

The work that VanDyke does for the Scarlet Knights both in the weight room and on his computer is evident in how the players have changed their bodies for the better, according to Pikiell.

“You’ve seen the changes in these guys, from Myles Johnson to Geo (Baker) to Gene Omoruyi,'' the Rutgers coach said. "To see where they’ve gone from freshmen to now, it’s really remarkable. He takes a lot of pride in it, and the kids love him, too, because they understand what he tells them works.’’

The poster-child for VanDyke’s success is Doorson, the Scarlet Knights’ 7-foot-2 center. While sitting out the 2015-16 campaign with an injured foot, Doorson ballooned to over 300 pounds.

Not long after he arrived in the spring of 2016, Pikiell quipped that Doorson couldn’t dunk due, in part, to being out of shape.

“I could dunk,’’ Doorson said earlier this week, correcting the record. “But it didn’t look cute.’’

And now?

“Oh, now I can dunk,’’ he said, smiling. “You can see it in games.’’

Shaq Doorson just dunked on the entire country of Canada. pic.twitter.com/N0NySLWvVQ — Brian Fonseca (@briannnnf) February 6, 2019

In the first six months under VanDyke’s tutelage, Doorson trimmed 53 pounds. He has maintained that 275-pound weight over the past 2 1/2 years and is now averaging career highs in minutes (18.3), points (3.8), rebounds (4.5), blocks (1.1) and field-goal percentage (.652).

“My body has changed totally, especially after I got injured and gained some weight,’’ Doorson said. “DVD came into my life and he basically saved me. I can jump higher, run faster, do everything better. My body is still not in top shape, and DVD is going to help me get even better than I am now.’’

To that end, Doorson embraces the technology that Rutgers’ coaching staff uses to track how his body responds to training.

“It’s a big difference from what we used to have,’’ Doorson said. “All the technology he uses allows us to work hard at times when it’s needed and sometimes, when our bodies need rest, he lets the coaches know not to go as hard as we usually go. A lot of practices I ask him how I did, and he’ll tell me I have to go harder because I need to go as hard as I play in games. So you have to make sure you’re always on the right level to play.’’

Rutgers strength and conditioning coach David VanDyke (center) works with center Myles Johnson at practice on Tuesday, February 26, 2019. Andrew Mills | NJ Advance Media for NJ.comAndrew Mills | NJ Advance Media

***

With three regular-season games to go, Rutgers has six Big Ten wins — matching the combined number of conference wins from the past two seasons. At 13-14 overall and 6-11 in Big Ten play, the Scarlet Knights stand tied for ninth place in the Big Ten standings.

There are many reasons for the team’s resurgence and the technology implemented in practices like Wednesday’s 90-minute session is one of them, according to Pikiell.

“People don’t realize how important your strength-and-conditioning guys are,’’ Pikiell said. “In the offseason they have more hours (with the players) than we do. But when I first got here, we had a lot of injuries and a lot of different things. Dave was the first guy I hired and I knew how great he’d be. You gotta keep guys healthy. You gotta keep them on the court. Our season is the longest of any sports. We start in June with this thing, and you can tell every guy is bigger, stronger and faster than they were before.’’

Having worked with Pikiell since his Stony Brook days, VanDyke knows exactly what the Rutgers coach is looking for in an ideal player.

“Everything is dependent on style of play and what kind of athlete the coach is looking for,’’ VanDyke said. “Coach Pikiell wants big, strong, tough guys. He wants to be physically powerful, intimidating. He wants that kind of body (for his players).’’

VanDyke says a key to making the technology work is being open-minded to the data the computer spits out.

“I was very fortunate when we got here because Coach Pikiell asked me what we needed and (Athletics Director) Pat (Hobbs) was amazing,’’ VanDyke said. “It was ‘whatever we needed, let’s make sure you have it’ and we got the top-of-the-line best stuff we could get and we’ve been doing this for the last three years.’’

As for the result, VanDyke said: “What we’ve found over the last three years is our practices have gotten more intense. They’ve also gotten shorter because there’s that inverse relationship between volume and intensity. You can’t go very long or you’re going to get hurt. But we’ve been doing this for the last three years and we’re starting to get a pretty good sense of what our guys can do.’’

Pikiell is admittedly “old-school’’ in many of his coaching tactics, but he says he trusts his strength staff and their modern-day technology.

“I still make decisions on what I think is best,’’ he said. “I don’t care what the computer says sometimes. And he’s not offended by that; he just wants me to have that feedback. That’s the great part of it. It’s not like we’re drawing a line in the sand on this stuff. It’s just another helpful tool. It gets me thinking and it really helps me with practice times, how long we go. It really helps with nutrition and sleep and the rehab. So he’s an invaluable guy.’’

Keith Sargeant may be reached at ksargeant@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @KSargeantNJ. Find NJ.com Rutgers Football on Facebook.