Short days and days off from school are a nice break for students, but what about student athletes? A lot of the time, teams will have practice or even a game on a day that’s supposed to be a break.
Harford County sports teams are not allowed to have practice on an early dismissal day but can
have a game. Varsity football player Jeffery Tidey stated that “having a game on a half day is annoying
because all you want to do is go home or hang out with friends but you have to be back at the school
for a game… it cuts your free time short.”
Coaches aren’t quite as affected by games on half days. According to varsity field hockey coach Carla Harward, “[she] has to work a full day anyway, it’s not much different than a game on a regular day. As for the students, it’s definitely inconvenient.”
Harford County allows athletic teams to play games and host practices on days off. Student athletes often times have other things to do on a day off. Varsity field hockey player Samantha Crone adds that “most of the time the practices on off days are at weird times, so it;s hard to schedule work
or other things around practice.”
While practicing on days off may be inconvenient it is sometimes necessary. Coach Harward states that she, “only holds practice on an off day if there is a game the next day, [she] does it to mentally and physically prepare the athletes for the upcoming game.”
Student athletes also find it useful to have practice or a game on a day off. Crone commented that “I get having a practice on a day off if you have a big game coming up, it’s not always what I want to be doing but I can understand it sometimes.” According to Tidey he would “much rather have a game on a day off than a practice because games are more fun.”
Crone commented that “it’s necessary to take the time you do have off to rest your body and recover.” All athletes need time to recover, according to a study done by students of the sports sciences at the University of Central Florida, the body takes at least 72 hours to recover enough for further muscle growth after an intense workout.