COLUMBUS, Ohio — While schools start for Columbus City Schools on Aug. 26, athletics has already gotten underway. This week their opponent is the heat.
At Eastmoor Academy High School, coach James Miranda is making sure his Warriors are ready to compete this season.
"Just getting back to football has been great. I got great numbers, the kids are working hard,” he said.
Besides the opponents on the field, players are battling one they can't see.
"There’s sweat all in the eye, your eyes are red, can't even see. My arms are sweaty. You can't catch the ball. It's hot!” said one of the team captain’s DiaMonte Salley.
He said the sun is harder on them than coach Miranda at times. If they're not careful the excessive amount of heat can be dangerous.
"I tell them like after they come out the play, like don't sit down, like make sure you're moving so your body can get the blood going through,” he said.
That means they'll take more water breaks, wear less padding and practices could be shorter.
"Kids will grunt and then we water them up and then they find out that they're still alive and they're still resilient. So yesterday we knew it was going to be hot and we went away from full pads, and we just went uppers and today we stayed the same,” said coach Miranda.
Miranda said if it's too unbearable they could move practice indoors or delay it. They haven't had to do that yet.
"Everything's almost a day in advance in terms of perpetration for your body. So, we just have to keep them focused on that,” said Miranda.
This Friday Eastmoor Academy hosts Saint Charles.
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