On this page · 8 sections
What does the UHSAA require?
Schools offering football have received WBGT devices from the NFHS and UHSAA, and they must be used to measure heat stress during hot weather in all outdoor activities. The UHSAA encourages every school to have one. Know which category your venue is in before you read the chart.
Set the device up 15–30 minutes before the activity, 3 to 5 feet high, in a sunny spot on the playing surface away from structures that block wind. Readings are no more than 30 minutes apart, and activity guidelines change if the reading stays in a higher category for more than 10 minutes. Cold water immersion tubs are required for onsite cooling.
Reading cadence
Device set up 15–30 minutes before the activity. Readings no more than 30 minutes apart.
Placement
3 to 5 feet high, in a sunny spot on the playing surface, away from structures that may block wind.
10-minute rule
Adjust the activity guidelines if the reading moves into a higher-risk category for more than 10 minutes.
Cold water immersion
Tubs are required for onsite cooling. Cool first, transport second for suspected exertional heat stroke.
The UHSAA WBGT threshold table
Five bands, read in degrees Fahrenheit from the WBGT device. Category 2 and Category 1 are shown; Category 3 is in the note. The row colour follows the Flash alert scale your athletic trainers already see in the app.
| Cat 2 | Cat 1 | Activity limit | Rest breaks | Football equipment |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| < 79.7 | < 76.1 | Normal activities | At least three separate rest breaks each hour with a minimum duration of 3 min each | None listed |
| 79.9 – 84.6 | 76.3 – 81.0 | Use discretion for intense or prolonged exercise | At least three separate rest breaks each hour with a minimum duration of 4 min each | None listed |
| 84.7 – 87.6 | 81.1 – 84.0 | Maximum practice time is 2 h | At least four separate rest breaks each hour with a minimum duration of 4 min each | Helmet, shoulder pads, and shorts during practice |
| 87.8 – 89.6 | 84.2 – 86.0 | Maximum practice time is 1 h | 20 min of rest breaks distributed throughout the hour of practice | No protective equipment; no conditioning activities |
| ≥ 89.8 | ≥ 86.2 | No outdoor workouts. Delay practice until a cooler WBGT is reached | — | — |
Source: UHSAA Heat Acclimatization, Wet Bulb Info chart and reminders (uhsaa.org), checked 15 Oct 2026. Ranges as printed, except the Category 1 top band, taken from the reminders. Category 3 bands: < 82.0, 82.2 – 86.9, 87.1 – 90.0, 90.1 – 91.9, ≥ 92.1. If the WBGT rises into the third band during practice, football players may continue in football pants without changing to shorts.
Where does Flash fit?
Flash is a forecast for planning, not an on-site meter: UHSAA guidelines follow the WBGT device on your playing surface. 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 bands for your category. 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
After the last strike inside your radius, Flash runs your policy's all-clear timer and logs it, so play resumes on evidence.
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 UHSAA's (Category 2)
6:30 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: 84 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. The AD pushes. The bus, the trainers and the parents hear now, not at 3:45.
The device, set up at 6:05 in the sun on the field, reads 83.2: the 79.9–84.6 band. Three 4-minute breaks per hour, the cold water tub ready, the 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 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?
Keeping the readings and decisions together means a question from the UHSAA, the district or a parent is answered from one folder.
- Your venue category, and WBGT readings with times, no more than 30 minutes apart.
- The band each reading fell in and the decision it triggered: practice length, rest breaks, football equipment.
- The 14-day heat-acclimatization record: practices per day, practice time and equipment stage.
- The cold water immersion tub setup and the cool-first, transport-second plan agreed with EMS.
- 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)
- Ohio (OHSAA)
- 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)
- Vermont (VPA)
- Virginia (VHSL)
- Washington (WIAA)
- Wisconsin (WIAA)
Sources
- UHSAA — Heat Acclimatization, including Wet Bulb Info (WBGT chart and reminders) and cold water immersion. Checked 15 Oct 2026.uhsaa.org/football/HeatAcclimatization.pdf (opens in a new tab)
- UHSAA — 2026-27 Handbook, Administrative Policies & Guidelines, 30. Heat Acclimatization and Football Game Day Heat Stress Accommodations. Checked 15 Oct 2026.uhsaa.org/Publications/Handbook/Handbook.pdf (opens in a new tab)
UHSAA documents are published at uhsaa.org (opens in a new tab).
Frequently asked
No. UHSAA guidelines follow the WBGT device on your playing surface. Flash's 6-hour outlook tells you where that reading is heading — a scheduling tool, not a compliance instrument.
The 2026-27 Handbook sets game-day breaks by the Kestrel heat stress colour: in red, a 5-minute break at the end of each quarter with helmets and shoulder pads off; in orange, a 4-minute break with helmets off. Both come with open water and ice towels.
Yes. The first 14 consecutive days of preseason practice. Days 1–5 allow one practice a day and no more than 3 hours in total; days 1–2 are helmet only, days 3–5 add shoulder pads, and full equipment begins on day 6.