Any Good Tricks for Rain Games

Garbage bag + kitty litter= DRY BALL

This is probably common sense to most of you, but I've been a part of two different programs that learned this hard lesson: take plenty of towels to EVERY game so that it becomes habit. Then, you probably won't forget towels to games when the forecast is calling for rain. Doh!

Pack dry clothes for after the game...socks, underwear, sweats, shoes.

Tell the snappers not to squeeze the ball

we had thursday snap in the shower practice with the shower blasting them right on the center's butt

we also taught centers how to scoop the ball up (gun or UC) not really needed too much for just rain

but for MUD, the scoop snap is a good tool to have them know

I finally found a response that I wrote on Calande's website several years ago about playing in the rain:
Rain is an equalizer of a sort. It slows a fast team down, somewhat negates power, and can limit the high powered passing game. A single score may be all it takes.

1. Try to score first before the field gets too vile. The area between the hashes may get worn, but the water may be deeper towards the boundary. Try to find the least vile area of the field in pregame.

2. Avoid plays that require sharp cuts or complicated ball handling. Handoffs instead of pitches with a sloppy ball. Or better still QB keeps.

3. Use your simplest blocking schemes. Pulling and trapping can be difficult on a muddy field

4. Hopefully you have practiced snapping with a wet ball. 20 minutes before game time is too late!

5. Have two footballs ready and rotate them in every play.

6. Half time adjustments: kids who are wet and cold aren't going to hear a thing you say. And it never fails that as soon as you come into a warm room from outside in the cold, you have to pee. So let em towel off and relieve themselves before you talk to them. Big difference between 80 degrees and wet, and 38 degrees and wet.

7. If you use wristguards: Laminate them and bring lots of spares because when they get wet, the ink runs.

8. Bring a folding canopy tent or two to keep on your sideline and keep stuff that you need to keep dry under.

9. You can never have enough large plastic bags!

10. Pop passes are OK, the long throws with a wet ball are a problem. Screens, and short stuff, they work. If you want to throw, bring in a new, dry ball to do so.

11. I've always liked the composite balls in the rain. They don't become water logged.

back in the day when we played on grass/mud all the time

I used to work power wishbone actions that matched our blocking up front for 10 minutes a week when I thought it was going to be muddy


won more than my share of games just mashing folks with it, and only worked it 10 minutes a week as an action just for this purpose

it had to match the ol stuff though

I just made sure they got 20 good ones in a row


I didn't watch tooooooo close

Don’t decide to game plan coming out in empty and 3x1 sets I in a rain game if your team hasn’t done that all season…