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What can you do in roughly four seconds? Think about it. Maybe even count it out -- one, two, three, four. Did something come to mind? There's not much you can accomplish in that short amount of time.

Or is there?

If you are an NFL prospect, you can potentially change your life in just over four seconds. And that's what might have happened for Kalon Barnes, Tariq Woolen and Tyquan Thornton at the NFL combine in early March.

That trio -- Barnes, a cornerback from Baylor; Thornton, a receiver from Baylor; and Woolen, a cornerback from University of Texas San Antonio -- had the three fastest times in the 40-yard dash. Barnes was clocked at 4.23 seconds, which narrowly missed the record of 4.22 seconds set by John Ross in 2017. Woolen is No. 6 all time at 4.26 seconds. And Thornton is among the fastest receivers all time at 4.28 seconds.

Aside from being three of the fastest human beings on the planet, they have something else in common as well. They all trained together at XPE Sports in South Florida with Matt Gates and Tony Villani. It's a gym attached to a building with a go-kart track, bowling lanes and a roller skating rink, but the people having the most fun are the current and future NFL players looking for one thing -- speed.

Current NFL players like CeeDee Lamb and Courtland Sutton, who trained for their own NFL combines, still work out at XPE Sports in the offseason. Lamb said there's no better place to prepare for the NFL.

"If you come here with speed, they're just going to make you faster," Lamb said. "They help you use your speed to your advantage."

While Barnes, Thornton and Woolen had the three fastest times overall, they weren't alone atop the leaderboards at the combine. XPE Sports also trained the fastest tight end (Chigoziem Okonkwo from Maryland at 4.52 seconds), running back (Isaih Pacheco from Rutgers at 4.37 seconds) and safety (Nick Cross from Maryland at 4.34 seconds).

And Boise State receiver Khalil Shakir (4.43 seconds), Nebraska tight end Austin Allen (4.83), Florida cornerback Kaiir Elam (4.39) and Toledo safety Tycen Anderson (4.36) also posted impressive times.

"It was an unbelievable week," Gates said. "I've been doing it a long time and had some fast guys. Top to bottom, never anything like that. It was a pretty special week overall."

Gates has been training players for the NFL combine since 2003, and Villani got started in 2002. Both originally worked with Hall of Fame receiver Cris Carter, who had a similar training group to XPE Sports called the FAST Program.

Villani started XPE Sports, which has been in South Florida since 2009, and Gates was training NFL players at different gyms before the two joined forces about five years ago. The players who have trained at XPE Sports, whether for the NFL combine or in the offseason, include Jamal Lewis, Hines Ward, Takeo Spikes, Osi Umenyiora, Anquan Boldin, Eric Berry, Maurkice and Mike Pouncey, Mark Ingram, Travis Kelce, Kareem Jackson, Lamb and Sutton, among many others.

"The guys, they take this so seriously," Sutton said of Gates and Villani. "They love coming in here and watching guys get better. They want to see you have that success. There's no sketchy things on the outside. They purely want to see us have the success and maximize our potential. It's one of the best feelings. I tell them all the time, 'I'm not going anywhere else.' This is home."

Barnes came to XPE Sports based on their reputation, saying "their history with speed is there." For him, it wasn't just about getting fast because he already had that ability prior to training with Gates and Villani. Barnes holds the Texas high school record in the 100-meter dash (10.22 seconds) and was a member of the track team at Baylor.

Woolen said he ran the 40-yard dash in 4.34 seconds prior to working with XPE Sports, and he was a track star in high school in Texas. And Thornton ran the 100 meters in high school in Miami in 10.50 seconds, as well as the 200 meters in 21.07 seconds.

"I knew how fast they were," Lamb said. "I didn't think they were going to do that (at the NFL combine). It was great."

Gates and Villani teach their players how to improve as runners, while also showing them techniques that help with their respective positions. The highlight of the XPE Sports training is a modified treadmill called the SHREDmill, which is self-powered by the athlete and uses no electricity. It is designed to teach the proper running form, while also working on stride length, stride power and acceleration.

The players come to XPE Sports in January and train six days a week to prepare for the NFL combine. In addition to working on speed, they also do lower and upper body workouts, field work like catching the ball and running routes, and they have regular massages and meals prepared by a chef. Former players like Boldin work with the receivers, and XPE Sports also brings in former NFL general manager Jerry Angelo to help players prep for the interview process at the combine.

Gates said the goal of XPE Sports is to help players improve in all aspects of the game prior to the NFL combine and the NFL Draft to increase their draft stock.

"It can't be just a fast 40," Gates said. "You have to jump high, you have to change directions well, you have to put up a good bench, you have to interview well. All of that. Everything has to be on point. ... We want them to do everything well."

But as Gates said, the 40-yard dash is "the sexy event," which is why Barnes, Thornton and Woolen got all the buzz. They knew they would crush the event, but it was a matter of who would be the fastest.

Woolen said "we had a friendly wager going on who could run the fastest," and he said the training sessions were awesome as they watched each other get better over several weeks.

"It was a lot of friendly competition throughout the whole training process," Woolen said. "There were times that I beat them. It was fun. When we got to the combine, we said we'll see who's the fastest. Next thing you know at the combine, Kalon Barnes was the one."

Now, for these prospects, it's about getting ready for the NFL. They know they have the speed, but they have to show they can play as well. Thornton, who is 6-foot-3, 182 pounds, had 62 catches for 948 yards and 10 touchdowns in 2021. Barnes, who is 6-foot, 186 pounds, had 23 total tackles (21 solo) and one interception last year. And Woolen had 25 total tackles (17 solo) and one interception last season.

CBS Sports NFL Draft analyst Ryan Wilson said Woolen should be drafted in Round 2, and Barnes and Thornton have the potential to be selected as early as Round 4.

"I'm real blessed to have this opportunity," Barnes said. "There's a lot of guys on this journey that didn't get to where they want to be. Going to the next level, I just want to show my abilities. Not only am I fast, but I can play football, too. Now, we can just focus on what we do on the field, and I'm excited about that."

NFL teams covet speed. And Barnes, Woolen and Thornton proved they can run at the NFL combine. They got faster at XPE Sports, and we'll see soon enough how that carries over to their overall production at the next level.