As Fall Practices Open Aug. 10, MHSAA Puts Heat Safety Front and Center

With practices for all Fall 2026 sports cleared to begin Monday, Aug. 10, the MHSAA is asking every one of our high school programs to take the heat seriously — and after multiple regions across Michigan approached record-high temperatures this summer, that message could not land at a better time. The plan is specific, and that is what makes it worth reading. Schools begin monitoring the heat index at the activity site once the air temperature reaches 80 degrees, and activities should cease when the heat index climbs above 104. Below 80, there is no combination of heat and humidity that curtails play. This is the Model Policy for Managing Heat & Humidity, adopted as a rule for postseason competition back in 2013. Football gets its own on-ramp: only helmets the first two days, shoulder pads added on days three and four, full pads held off until the fifth day of team practice. Keith Dunlap and the preseason publication Heat Ways round out the guidance, right down to hydration — the NFHS advises a 6-to-8 percent carbohydrate formulation as the max for a sports drink.