Gilman lineman Hunter Goodwin knows what it feels like to be overcome by heat. It has never happened to the 6-foot-5, 290-pound senior while he has played for the Greyhounds, but when he was younger, he passed out a few times in hot weather, including once in a recreation league baseball game and once on a hike.
"I could feel myself getting fatigued and then I got real lightheaded. It felt like nothing was in my head, it was just floating around," he said. "And then my eyes, I would blink harder and when I opened them up, it would be a little bit hazy at first. Then you just get dizzier and dizzier. You don't have a super-nauseous feeling, but I didn't feel good and then I would pass out."
While heat is an equal-opportunity oppressor on the football field, big linemen such as Goodwin can be especially susceptible to the sultry combination of heat and humidity that has left Central Maryland sweltering all summer.
"Any person who's overweight is going to be stressed more by the heat that someone who is a little bit more physically fit," said Archbishop Spalding athletic trainer T.J. Morgan, president of the Maryland Athletic Trainers' Association. "That's not saying these guys aren't physically fit, it's just their sheer size causes their body to have to work harder to do the same things as somebody 100 pounds lighter."
The first two days of private school practice, Tuesday and Wednesday, temperatures were in the mid-90s. The forecast calls for cooler mid-80s temperatures the first day of public school practice today, but high humidity could push the heat index higher, and temperatures could rise again in the next few weeks.
"Those big bodies are going to generate more body heat and, in my opinion, it puts them closer to heat-related illness," Joppatowne coach Bill Waibel said.
Football coaches and athletic trainers preach the importance of being in shape and staying hydrated from the first day of summer conditioning right through the end of the season.
Goodwin, a Wake Forest commitment, knows the importance of both. At Gilman, he has gotten into much better shape than he was when he passed out when younger, and he knows he needs a lot of water to replace the weight he loses at practice -- about 8 pounds in Wednesday afternoon's 21/2-hour workout in 96-degree heat.
"Hydrating, especially this summer when we're sweating this hard, you really realize how important it is," Goodwin said, "so you've got to keep that constant flow of water in you. That way you can sweat, but you still feel good. Drink when you're not thirsty. Drinking water the morning of is not preparing. You have to start two or three days in advance."
Dunbar coach Lawrence Smith has seven 300-pounders on his team, including 6-3, 350-pound Darius Banks, who practices what Smith preaches.
"Football's a year-round sport," Banks said. "You've got to train every season. Running or getting on the bike or just jogging helps you stay in shape. And during the summer, I drink at least a gallon of water a day, sometimes two when I'm working out."
Heat can be a big safety issue for high school athletes in all sports, but football players wear a lot of padding that can hold in heat.
Coaches take extra precautions and react to the slightest sign of heat illness, because if they don't, the result could be deadly. Four high school football players died from heatstroke last season in the United States, according to the 2009 Annual Survey of Football Injury Research. Since 1995, 31 have died of heatstroke.
"We're looking for the guy who's lagging behind," Morgan said. "The guy who's not able to keep up, can't keep up for a reason. Either he's not in shape or he's beginning to suffer. We look at cramping, too, as an early sign of heat illness. If you're cramping, you're going to be removed from practice and hydrated, because that slows the heat process."
When fall practice begins, players move gradually over the first few days from working out with just helmets to working out in full gear so they can acclimate to the heat. Area jurisdictions also have rules limiting outdoor practice as the heat rises. When the heat index reaches 106 degrees, Maryland Interscholastic Athletic Association teams can do nothing more than walk-throughs. Code Red days mean walk-throughs only in Howard County, and in Baltimore County, practice is limited to one hour.
Coaches and trainers try to be proactive in all measures of warm weather. Players have access to water anytime they want it. They get breaks when they start to feel overheated, and even a headache could put a player on the sideline. Players weigh in and out of practice to make sure they replenish lost fluids each day.
"Heat is our No. 1 concern over the first few days," Wilde Lake coach Mike Harrison said.
"You can have hot afternoons until the first of October. We just all have to be vigilant and make sure we're forcing fluids into the kids. They need to be hydrated and they need to know the warning signs. When they feel dizzy, they need to verbalize it so we can respond appropriately. One of the responsibilities we have is to ensure the kids' safety."
katherine.dunn@baltsun.com