UNLV football beats the heat with practice at Raiders indoor facility

Compared to the four days of training camp that preceded it, the UNLV football team’s fifth practice was a breeze.

As the temperature outside reached a high of 114 degrees on Tuesday, the Scarlet and Gray beat the heat by practicing indoors at the Las Vegas Raiders’ climate-controlled facility in Henderson.

Head coach Barry Odom put his team through a two-hour workout under pleasant, room-temperature conditions, and afterward was all smiles about getting out of the sun.

“You look at consecutive days of 110 [degrees] for us, [it’s] a chance to have a little bit of a break, to have another good practice, change the scenery a little bit,” Odom said.

UNLV and the Raiders have shared Allegiant Stadium for home games since that venue opened in 2020. UNLV has used the Raiders’ indoor field once before, during camp in 2021, and the timing was right to do it again as the Scarlet and Gray practiced for the fifth consecutive day on Tuesday.

Odom said UNLV athletic director Erick Harper and Raiders president Sandra Douglass Morgan have been in communication about possibly using the indoor facility at some point during camp, and Tuesday turned out to be the most opportune time. The Raiders are currently out of town, conducting their training camp in Costa Mesa, Calif., leaving the air-conditioned Henderson facility available for the Scarlet and Gray to borrow.

“What a great opportunity for our team and our program,” Odom said. “For us to have a working relationship with the Raiders, Sandra Morgan and the Davis family, I’m so grateful that our kids had the opportunity. It’s good for us to be able to at this point in camp get a break.”

Temperatures have steadily risen since UNLV opened camp, starting with a high of 103 degrees for Day 1 on Aug. 2 and cresting on Tuesday with the third consecutive day above 110 degrees. The team has held early practices beginning at 8:30 a.m., but temperatures have still approached or exceeded 100 degrees by the time the final whistle blows around 10:30 a.m. Cramps have been a not-uncommon occurrence, despite the coaches halting the action for extended water breaks in shaded areas.

The team has Wednesday off and will return to practice on Thursday and Friday.

Mike Grimala can be reached at 702-948-7844 or [email protected]. Follow Mike on Twitter at twitter.com/mikegrimala.