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Sports

SLP Football Team Looks to Stay Cool in August Heat

A spate of heat-related deaths among high school football players this summer serves as another reminder to the Orioles that they need to stay hydrated and healthy in the hot weather.

As the football team neared the end of a recent Tuesday practice, the temperature was 82 degrees, the sky was mostly sunny and all that was left for the players were sprints.

But first, they needed a water break, so they headed for the drinking fountain by a building behind the school.

As practices for fall sports begin around Minnesota and the country, the effects of the heat on young athletes are again being highlighted, especially in a year when many states are seeing record temperatures.

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In no sport is that spotlight brighter than football.

This year alone, heat has been a contributing factor in the deaths of four players and one coach.

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While all of those deaths happened in Southern states, Minnesota isn’t immune from heat-related tragedy. On Aug. 1, 2001, Minnesota Vikings offensive lineman Korey Stringer died of heatstroke, a day after collapsing at training camp.

Even though incidents like Stringer’s collapse and death are rarer in Minnesota than in other states, Orioles first-year head coach Vince Varpness and his staff aren’t taking any chances.

“We try to give water breaks every 15 minutes,” he said.

The coaching staff also weighed each player on Aug. 15, the first day of practice. This serves as a baseline by which they can monitor their players, who are weighed on each practice day.

“We try to keep the kids’ body weight up,” Varpness said.

This is important because losing as little as three percent of one’s body weight increases the likelihood of contracting heat-related illnesses, according to the National Federation of State High School Associations Sports Medicine Advisory Committee.

At the end of that Tuesday practice, Varpness stressed the need for his players to drink sports drinks as well, since they replace sodium and electrolytes lost through sweat—something water can't do.

A graph on the Minnesota State High School League website produced by kinesiologists W. Larry Kenney and Tasha Kulka in 2002 lists recommended uniform guidelines for football players based on temperature and relative humidity.

According to this graph, the Orioles were safely within the area to practice in shorts, as they did on Tuesday.

As the Orioles add two-a-day practices and pads heading into the second week of practice, preparation and recovery become even more crucial.

“We have Gatorade inside for the guys,” Varpness said. “We also have a trainer here every day and a doctor at every game.”

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