High school football can be dangerous. It is dangerous – from the physical hits, to the strain on players’ bodies on the field and in the weight room.
But at this time of the year, there is one fearful concern Georgia coaches face:
Heat.
When teams begin practice sessions Monday, that concern will be uppermost in their minds.
The GHSA practice policy for heat and humidity lists suggested requirements and guidelines for the scheduling of practices and the ratios of workout/rest/hydration times. The policy mandates a tool to measure the practice environment called the Wet Bulb Globe Temperature, which measures heat and humidity. Measurements are taken every hour, beginning 30 minutes before practice sessions.
Calhoun coach Clay Stephenson thinks today’s heat policies haven’t dampened Georgia’s ability to produce the best players in the nation. Greene County coach Terrence Banks thinks there is a thin line between toughness and smarts this time of year. And Georgia Military coach Bobby Rhoades relies on Wet Bulb readings and proper hydration to combat what’s to come.
Here are their tricks of the trade:
Calhoun’s Stephenson: “It’s always a balance. You look at it 20 years ago, compared to today. I don’t feel like Georgia is putting out any less stellar football players. I think the talent has gotten better in the last four years with these regulations in place. The policies from the GHSA are for player safety. You know the policies, and you can even reign it back more, if you need to. I feel that good coaches (do that) at good programs. Safety is a top priority. We set the time of day that we practice. … Back 20 years ago, we were still at camps right now. But the way that the calendar goes, we have to start so early that practice times are key. It’s tough to get out there in the middle of the day and have to practice.”
Greene’s Banks: “The first thing … every coach should be mindful that you can’t preach hydration enough. You can’t talk about that first precaution enough. One thing we did was to get our kids 1-gallon water jugs and put their names on them, and it’s good to see them empty those things in the locker room. It’s important for today’s game. So preaching hydration first is so important. I think the second thing is that coaches need to continue to practice in the morning as long as we can, prior to teachers coming back to school. Our trainer weighs our kids in and out of practice, so we can see the reduction in body/water weight and monitor it. I’ve had the same athletic trainer for nine years, and that’s very important to me. Coaches need to be conscious of water breaks and find cool areas on the field to allow the kids to relax. And when we are ready to put on shoulder pads, we sometimes ask ourselves, ‘Is the helmet required?’ for these drills because that helps keep kids cool off, too, without the helmet on.
Georgia Military’s Rhoades: “We follow the GHSA-mandated Wet Bulb policy. Our trainer gets out about an hour before practice and starts taking those measurements and advises me on the limitations for that day. The trainer continually checks the measurements throughout the day. We mandate 3- or 4-minute breaks every 20 minutes, based on the level of heat. We have water available, and my policy is, ‘If you need water, go get water … just make sure we know you are going.’ I try to walk around and if anyone looks like they are struggling, I’ll pull them aside. If they need to be pulled out, we do that. We have tubs down here with ice, and if there ever is an episode we have an emergency action plan in place that was developed by our trainer. We take all these things very, very seriously.”
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