How rising temperatures and an accelerated start date are reshaping practice schedules across the state
As temperatures reach blistering record levels across the state this summer, Georgia high school football coaches are struggling to keep players safe, while at the same time doing everything they can to keep players prepared for the 2026 season.
According to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, July 2026 was the hottest month on record ever for the United States and the seventh hottest July ever in the state of Georgia. The NOAA said 2026 is on pace to set a new record for the hottest year globally ever.
Combine the extreme heat with the earliest start ever for the GHSA football regular season, and you’ve got coaches struggling to find the right balance of when to practice with players trying to maintain their academic responsibilities.
How Georgia Coaches Are Adjusting Practice Times to Beat the Heat
“We have had to move our practices to early mornings before school,” said Dean Fabrizio, head football coach at Lee County High School, who admitted it’s not practical for many players and their families. “That has certainly created logistical issues for us, but when it is hot like this, you have to adjust.”
At North Gwinnett, head football coach Eric Godfree said he too has tried to make early-morning practice times before school work, though that limits how long his team can spend practicing.
“Our first period starts at 7:10 a.m., and we have coaches with morning duties (in the school),” Godfree said. “We have done morning practices to try to avoid the heat, but we just can’t go as long.”
Godfree said if the team can’t practice in the mornings, he at least tries to stagger practices between early afternoon and late evening. “This past week we practiced in the evenings on Monday and Wednesday, from 7 to 8:45 p.m., then on Tuesday and Thursday we went right after school,” Godfree said.
Littleton: “If We’re Going to Have to Play in It, We Need to Get Used to It”
Two head coaches interviewed for this story are in opposite regions of the state, but they prefer to keep practice times consistent, regardless of the heat.
McEachern head football coach Kareem Reid said he keeps his team in a routine.
“Our normal practice time is 4 to 6 p.m., except for one day a week when we practice at 6 a.m.,” Reid said. “Typically, that’s Thursday mornings for us.”
Given the way his team looked in their big 40-10 win over Kell High School this past week in the Corky Kell + Dave Hunter Classic, I wouldn’t change a thing either.
In Tifton, Georgia, where the heat and humidity can be rough, Tift County head football coach Jeff Littleton said he is looking forward to the multi-purpose covered facility that his team will soon be practicing in.
“The temperature (in the facility) is 15 to 20 degrees lower than practicing in the direct sunlight,” Littleton said.
Prior to the construction of the covered facility that the Blue Devils will begin practicing under, Littleton said he preferred to practice in the afternoons immediately following school.
“I like for our team to practice from 4 to 6 p.m.,” Littleton said.
He said he feels if his team can get acclimated to practicing in the heat, that will help once the season starts.
“If we’re going to have to play in it, we need to get used to it,” Littleton said.
He did say the team makes sure to follow the wet bulb guidelines.
“Of course we monitor the wet bulb, which dictates if we can practice and the number of breaks we can take,” Littleton said. “It’s in the GHSA bylaws that if the reading is 92, you cannot practice, and between 90 and 92, practice has to be limited.”
For some coaches, the decision to not practice in the early morning hours before school comes down to the same reason for not practicing in the extreme heat: safety. Worth County head football coach Jeff Hammond is one of those.
“Our county is one of the largest in South Georgia land-wise, so I have players who live 30 minutes or longer from our school, and I am just not comfortable having these kids driving on these rural roads in the dark after just waking up to get here by a 6 a.m. practice,” Hammond said. “It’s just not safe.”
Morning practices before school are not an option for Crisp County head football coach Justin Newman either.
“No morning practices for us,” Newman said.
He said his program has tried it before, but ran into problems with players either getting to practice on time or getting to school on time.
“You try to handle it the best you can,” Newman said, preferring to do as much preparation indoors immediately following school before heading out to the practice field. “We have what we call the After School Special, which we use for film and study hall right after school. That allows us to start practice a little later in the day.
“We usually practice from 5 to 7:15 p.m., but we had one day this week where we waited and went 5:45 to 7:45 p.m.,” Newman said.
Newman also pointed to an advantage Crisp County High School enjoys that many other programs do not.
“We are lucky to have an amazing athletic trainer in JP Hamilton, who ensures we have everything we need,” Newman said.
Crisp County is indeed lucky to have Hamilton. Current figures say that only about 40% of Georgia high schools have access to a full-time athletic trainer.
Hamilton has spent 13 years as the head athletic trainer for Crisp County High School athletics and tries to be present at all outdoor activities, especially the summer afternoon football practices.
Hamilton said there are many factors to consider when it comes to guarding against the heat.
“It’s definitely a crapshoot to work around, but everyone’s setup is different,” he said. “Some have the wonderful indoor facilities that have no issues, while others do not, especially the smaller school districts.”
While many schools are beginning to consider using indoor practice facilities for not only football, but for other sports and activities, Hamilton said there are simpler and less expensive ways to help curb the heat issue.
“I personally wish school systems in Georgia started later in the year like they did in previous years,” Hamilton said.
Understanding the GHSA’s Wet Bulb Globe Temperature Rule
One of the most important parts of Hamilton’s duties is monitoring the device known as the WBGT, or wet bulb.
Following heat-related tragedies during the summer football practices of 2011, the GHSA Executive Committee voted to begin use of the Wet Bulb Globe Temperature device starting the next athletic year, in 2012.
This device replaced the measurement of the heat index, which schools were using previously, including at the time of the student-athlete deaths in 2011.
According to the GHSA guidelines, the wet bulb device is required at all outdoor practices and provides a more detailed measurement of the conditions that can cause heat-related illness or injury.
“We don’t go by the heat index any longer, which only factors two things: humidity and temperature,” Hamilton said. “The WBGT is made up of the four following factors: temperature, humidity, direct sunlight, and wind.”
A combined measurement of all four of those factors produces a number. If that number reaches 92.0 and is consistent for 15 minutes, then activities are shut down. Measurements between 90 and 92 require that practice time be limited, and during GHSA-sanctioned events, frequent water breaks are taken.
Whether it’s practicing early in the morning or later in the afternoon, teams are trying to do whatever they can to maintain their level of practice repetitions. As you can see from the few coaches I spoke with, there is no doubt about it: The heat does affect how teams prepare and practice.
Maybe that indoor facility isn’t such a bad idea after all.
