A Maumelle High School football player in Arkansas felt something moving inside his helmet during warmups last Thursday and alerted his defensive coordinator.
The defensive coordinator found a 2-foot cottonmouth snake hidden behind the padding. The player had been wearing the helmet for nearly an hour.
Animal services officers were called. The snake, the second-most-venomous in Arkansas — refused to exit on its own.
Officers eventually had to submerge the helmet in water until the snake came out for air, at which point they bagged it and relocated it to a wooded area far from the school. The player was not bitten.
"If this snake would have bit the child, it probably would have been very fatal," said Maumelle Animal Services Director Chris Davis. "I've removed a snake out of a car vent, in the engine, purses, backpacks. In a helmet? Never. It was very unreal. You had to kind of be there and take pictures to say this was real."
Athletic director Kirk Horton said the odds of this happening were about as long as winning the lottery. The player grabbed a different helmet and continued practice. Maumelle Animal Shelter posted a public reminder: before putting on any outdoor gear, always check it first.