Posted on 08/12/2026 2:04:54 PM PDT by MtnClimber
The Maumelle High School player wore the helmet for an hour before noticing movement underneath the padding.
Thousands of high school football players across the country are taking the practice field, preparing to kick off the 2026 season in the coming weeks, but one young man in Arkansas recently had a practice experience unlike any other.
With the Maumelle High School football team split into position groups during practice, a player noticed there was movement inside his helmet. Obviously, nothing is supposed to be moving inside a football helmet, but when he handed the helmet over to a defensive coach, nobody could have predicted what was hidden inside.
According to NBC KARK, there was a two-foot-long snake hiding underneath the helmet's padding. While there are plenty of high school football coaches who would have immediately tossed the helmet into the woods or taken care of the snake themselves, athletic director Kirk Horton called on Animal Services.
Officers for Animal Services received a report that the snake was a copperhead, which is venomous, but when they arrived to see it for themselves, it was identified as a cottonmouth, which is also venomous.
"It really was just shock and disbelief," Horton told the outlet. "I’ve got a better shot at winning the lottery than seeing this in my ten years."
Oh, and it's worth mentioning that the player didn't feel the movement inside of his helmet until an hour into practice. The snake did a great job hiding, as it wasn't one of those situations where it was discovered while the team was stretching before getting practice underway.
(Excerpt) Read more at foxnews.com ...
You beat me to it, but I brought a link. See my previous.
It’s a pit viper either way so just look for the triangular headed shape.
the kid is a SNAKE DOCTOR!
My thought as well...
Water moccasins (cottonmouths) are much more pixilated than copperheads. Also, while there are many color variations, copperheads have dark Hershey Kisses on their sides while water Moccasins have a reverse pattern with light colors.
Copperheads are more reserved and freeze when people approach while water Moccasins are more hostile. Thus, people often get bitten by copperheads when they step on them. A young 2 ft copperhead would also have a green tip on its tail.
Just yesterday I released a 6 ft blacksnake in my backyard as we have lots of copperheads around our yard and blacksnakes kill copperheads.
My wife stepped on a copperhead with open top sandals on, and it bit her. She managed to drive to the hospital and get an antivenom shot before the poison moved above her knee. The shots cost $25,000 each.
I was bitten by one three years ago but luckily my foam garden shoes took most of the venom. It left a skin sore on top of my foot and two holes through my shoe.
I still shake out my shoes out of habit.
They are pretty snotty and bitey too.
They are related. Copperhead also known as highland moccasin. Cottonmouths hang out around water. Junk snake...ugly as hell and nasty.
Well playing in this heat would make anyone snotty and bitey.
Living in Florida you get to hear quite the gamut of water moccasin horror stories. Usually involving a nest of them.
Now mistaking a coral snake for a king snake I can understand but this, nah.
Yep, and cat like eyes.
“Just yesterday I released a 6 ft blacksnake in my backyard as we have lots of copperheads around our yard and blacksnakes kill copperheads”
When I worked for a local city we would get phone calls from people in a tither because they saw a blacksnake in their yard. Their yard! Not many appreciated when I told them the blacksnakes will kill rattlers. The usual response was “You have rattlesnakes in Florida!?” Guess that was not on the brochure.
It is also wise to check shoes and boots for scorpions.
The shots cost $25,000 each.
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Are you kidding?! Did the insurance at least pay for most of it?
The BXBS paid over $12,000. We have their worldwide exec plan. The same one government diplomats have in foreign embassies. We pay no co-pay.
The $25K was the self pay amount. That really shows how unfair our health care system is.
I did not know that. But their coloration is totally different.
There a lot of moccasin nests in the lakes and rivers of S E Texas as well. When I was a kid, I used to throw lit bottle rockets into the bayou and watch them blow up inside a cotton mouth nest. Really pissed them off.
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