While Southern California is known for its dry heat, some Californian natives are acclimatized to it, while others are not. 

The recent heatwave had the Riverside City College (RCC) campus concerned for some of our athletes such as the football team when they played their Homecoming game on Oct. 5 at 1 p.m. in over 100-degree weather. 

Students such as Estrella Ortiz and Ian Fredz, biology majors, expressed their concerns about the conditions our athletes are required to play under. 

“I believe that when the weather is over 90 degrees, no athlete should play because it could be bad for their health,” Ortiz said.

“It is certainly an unfortunate thing to have to play in 100-degree weather, though I don’t think matches should be canceled because of it, maybe more precautions should be taken health-wise in those weathers though,”  Fredz said.

While students expressed their concern for the health and well-being of athletes, the athletes on the RCC football team disagreed and stated they had no issues playing in 100-degree weather. 

Brady Jones, a quarterback on the RCC football team, said that it can feel even hotter on the turf because of the extra padding players are required to wear. However, he claims practicing in heat over 90 degrees is beneficial for the team because it gives them an edge over teams from areas with a naturally cooler climate. 

Jones’s teammates, Ja’wuan Nickson, a linebacker, and Esaia Bogar, a defensive line, shared his sentiment. Bogar even expressed that playing in the heat is something he prefers because the body is already so hot, that it’s more difficult to feel pain when injured on the field. 

All three athletes were adamant that they had never suffered any sort of injury or side effect from practicing in the heat and that they were perfectly happy with current practice and game times. 

Despite this, Bogar said, “Honestly, I think having night games, one or two a season might be fun.”

Even though the student-athletes have acclimatized themselves to the yearly heatwave, many non-athlete students have not. RCC athletic facilities may be sabotaging their attendance by choosing game times at the peak of the day’s heat. 

Once again, the athletes and students clashed on their opinions regarding game time attendance. Bogar said that the majority of the games take place from 1-3 p.m. “That’s the best time, I feel like. Just with the weather and then the audience as well, ” Bogar expressed. 

The biology majors also mentioned the reasons they have not attended a football game this season. For some students, like Ortiz, heat is a contributing factor as to why they do not attend any home games.

“I have not attended a football game this year, and heat would be a factor if I went because I would not put myself in that position,” Estrella reported. 

On the contrary, Ian has not attended any football games, but for a completely different reason. 

“No, I have not attended any football games this year. Heat was not a factor for me, but perhaps lack of advertising could be a factor in play.”