On this page · 8 sections
What does the OHSAA require?
Section 3 of the OHSAA sports medicine regulations applies to every sport played outdoors or in a hot, humid environment, and is meant to be reviewed with coaching and sports medicine staff before any August practice. Football candidates in grades 7–12 must complete five days of non-contact acclimatization before any physical contact: no pads on days one and two, shoulder pads added on days three and four, full equipment on day five, still without contact.
Schools test the air with a WBGT index before practice or a game. The reading is taken before practice and at least every 30 minutes during it, and the intensity and length of practice are adjusted to the band. The OHSAA also strongly recommends cold-water immersion tubs on site, so a suspected exertional heat stroke is cooled before EMS transport.
Reading cadence
Before practice, then at least every 30 minutes during practice. The band sets the intensity and length of the session.
Football acclimatization
Five non-contact days before any contact: no pads days 1–2, shoulder pads days 3–4, full equipment day 5.
Cold-water immersion
Tubs strongly recommended on site: cool a suspected heat stroke to 102°F before EMS transport.
Games
Officials may set breaks mid-period for water and equipment off. Football periods can be shortened by mutual agreement.
The OHSAA WBGT threshold table
Five bands, read in degrees Fahrenheit from the WBGT index: one table for the whole state. The row colour follows the Flash alert scale your athletic trainers already see in the app.
| WBGT (°F) | Activity limit | Rest breaks | Equipment |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 79.7 | Normal activities | Three separate 3 minute breaks per hour | None listed |
| 79.8 – 84.6 | No time limit listed | Three separate 4 minute breaks per hour | Helmets and other equipment should be removed when the athlete is not directly involved with the competition, drill or practice and it is not otherwise required |
| 84.7 – 87.6 | Maximum practice time of 2 hours. Considering postponing practice to later in the day. Allow athletes to change to dry shirts and shorts at defined intervals | Four separate 4 minute breaks per hour | FB: Limit to helmet, shoulder pads, and shorts during practice |
| 87.8 – 89.7 | Maximum of 1 hour of training. No additional conditioning allowed. Consider postponing practice to later in the day. Allow athletes to change to dry shirts and shorts at defined intervals | Four separate 5 minute breaks in that hour | FB/LAX: No helmets, shoulder pads, or other equipment is permitted |
| Over 89.8 | No outdoor workouts. No indoor workouts unless air conditioned | — | — |
Source: OHSAA 2026-27 Handbook for Member Schools, Sports Medicine Regulations, 3.38 (p. 96, ohsaa.org), verified 15 Oct 2026. Ranges as printed. The chart is a wet bulb globe temperature index, not air temperature.
Where does Flash fit?
Flash is a forecast for planning, not an on-site meter: OHSAA guidance runs on the WBGT reading taken before and during practice. Flash's 6-hour WBGT outlook tells you at 1 pm what the 4 pm reading is likely to be, so you can move practice instead of cancelling it.
Heat: plan, don't cancel
The outlook runs per field for every hour of the afternoon, against the five OHSAA bands. Shift the start, swap the equipment plan or go indoors before the cars arrive.
Lightning: up to 60 minutes ahead
Strike-level prediction on a 1×1 km cell, refreshed every 2 minutes. Up to 99.6% lightning prediction accuracy on a one-hour window, measured against NLDN ground-truth strikes — method published.
Accuracy methodReturn to play: the all-clear timer
OHSAA General Sports Regulation 30 suspends activity until 30 minutes after a storm leaves the 10-mile zone. Flash runs that all-clear timer after the last strike inside your radius and logs it.
Weather Command Center
Flash Heat and WBGT prediction 6-hour WBGT outlook, heat index, air temperature and dew point per 1×1 km cell
What does a planning day look like?
Illustrative example · Not live weather — the readings are examples, the rules are the OHSAA's
6:15 pm · The reading that decides the day
The band you land in sets the clock, the breaks and the pads.
Flash 6-hour WBGT outlook for the practice field: 83 by 3 pm, into 84.7–87.6 by 4 pm. The athletic director flags the football session.
Decision: run at 4 pm under the 2-hour cap with four 4-minute breaks an hour, or push to 6:30 pm, as the OHSAA suggests considering. The AD pushes. The bus, the trainers and the parents hear now, not at 3:45.
WBGT reading before practice: 82.6, the 79.8–84.6 band. Three 4-minute breaks per hour go on the plan; helmets come off when players are not in the drill. Next reading by 7:00.
Flash lightning alert: a strike is predicted inside the site radius within the next 60 minutes. The field clears.
Last strike inside the radius. Flash starts the 30-minute all-clear timer.
All clear. Practice resumes; the alert log records who was warned, when, and when play returned.
What should the athletic director keep on file?
Section 3 does not set a records rule. Keeping these together still means a question from the OHSAA, the district or a parent is answered from one folder.
- WBGT readings with times: before practice, then at least every 30 minutes during it.
- The band each reading fell in and the decision it triggered: practice length, rest breaks, equipment.
- Each football player's five acclimatization days, including candidates who reported late.
- The emergency action plan, with cold-water immersion before EMS transport for suspected heat stroke.
- The Flash alert log: lightning alerts, who was notified, the all-clear, and the 6-hour outlook the schedule decision was based on.
Which other states publish WBGT policies?
Every state page follows this template: verified thresholds, the reading cadence, what to keep on file, and where the WBGT forecast fits.
State by state
Same instrument, different bands — the WBGT forecast travels with you.
- Georgia (GHSA)
- Texas (UIL)
- Florida (FHSAA)
- Arizona (AIA)
- Arkansas (AAA)
- Colorado (CHSAA)
- Hawaii (HHSAA)
- Illinois (IHSA)
- Kansas (KSHSAA)
- Massachusetts (MIAA)
- Mississippi (MHSAA)
- Missouri (MSHSAA)
- Nevada (NIAA)
- New Hampshire (NHIAA)
- New Mexico (NMAA)
- North Carolina (NCHSAA)
- West Virginia (WVSSAC)
- Oklahoma (OSSAA)
- Alabama (AHSAA)
- California (CIF)
- Connecticut (CIAC)
- Iowa (IHSAA / IGHSAU)
- Kentucky (KHSAA)
- Louisiana (LHSAA)
- Minnesota (MSHSL)
- Nebraska (NSAA)
- New Jersey (NJSIAA)
- New York (NYSPHSAA)
- South Carolina (SCHSL)
- South Dakota (SDHSAA)
- Utah (UHSAA)
- Vermont (VPA)
- Virginia (VHSL)
- Washington (WIAA)
- Wisconsin (WIAA)
Sources
- OHSAA — 2026-27 Handbook for Member Schools, Sports Medicine Regulations, Section 3, Heat Acclimatization and Exertional Heat Illness Prevention, pp. 95–96. WBGT bands, reading cadence, football acclimatization, cold-water immersion. Verified 15 Oct 2026.ohsaaweb.blob.core.windows.net/files/SchoolResources/Handbook.pdf (opens in a new tab)
- OHSAA — Sports Medicine page, ohsaa.org, with WBGT, cold-water immersion and exertional heat stroke references. Verified 15 Oct 2026.ohsaa.org/medicine (opens in a new tab)
OHSAA documents are published at ohsaa.org (opens in a new tab).
Frequently asked
No. OHSAA guidance runs on a WBGT reading taken before and during practice. Flash's 6-hour outlook tells you where that reading is heading — a scheduling tool, not a compliance instrument.
Before practice, then at least every 30 minutes during practice, adjusting the intensity and length of practice to the band.
In the 87.8–89.7 band, yes: football and lacrosse players may not wear helmets, shoulder pads or other equipment. The 84.7–87.6 equipment limit is written for football.
Yes. All football candidates in grades 7–12 complete five days of non-contact acclimatization before any physical contact. Cross country requires 10 days of practice before competing, and ice hockey has a four-day period.