Aliyah Chambers and Will Davis
eSomethin staff
As the annual 2026 Powderpuff game approaches on Oct 13, student players are advocating for permission to wear athletic rubber cleats, raising questions among athletic supervisors about player safety and injury prevention.
The powderpuff rule sheet states “cleats CANNOT be worn on the field.”
Students involved in the annual girls powderpuff games feel that there is a clear need for a change.
Varsity soccer player and former powderpuff player Bella Revill said, “Wearing cleats gives us better grip and you can easily tear something with no grip on the field, I have firsthand experience.”
Revill suffered a significant knee injury about a month ago while playing soccer. The injury was a non-contact turn.
Powderpuff players run on the slick turf field just as much as any other athlete does – so why not let them wear cleats, too?
Wearing cleats is crucial for traction control. Standard running shoes lack the versatile grip necessary for sharp cuts, sudden stops and acceleration. This is why sports like soccer, football, lacrosse, and rugby all require athletes to wear them during games.
Former powderpuff player Lucy Pafford said “we should be able to wear cleats because it would help us grab flags without slipping and falling on the ground and be more safe. Why would other schools get the opportunity to but we can’t?”
Coaches involved in the powderpuff game agree that cleats are important for elusive movements of the players
Dirk Conner, head coach of Perrysburg’s varsity football team, said “I think it would benefit so much, having traction on the field and being able to actually cut, and change directions which is an incredibly important part of not just football but any athletic endeavor.”
The concern with wearing cleats
Conner also acknowledged concerns around wearing cleats.
“The only concern I would have is powderpuff is for anybody to sign up and it is for people who haven’t really trained year round or developed their bodies, and there is concern behind the downside, especially with girls, because atomically they are really different. Would be the cleats catching and your knees giving out, like that would be the only concern that I would have,” Conner said.
Some students and faculty all share the same concern – injury. But the obvious answer to this is, if you don’t want to get hurt, then don’t play. You risk getting hurt in everyday sports that so many students participate in during the school year.
Powderpuff is a sport that students play to win. It’s very competitive and sometimes that’s not for everyone.
Current powderpuff player and senior Bella Jaworski said “it’s hard to play when your concern is not slipping and getting hurt. Every sport who plays on the turf is able to wear cleats.”
Schools all around the NLL give their students the option to wear cleats or not. Ottawa Hills, Southview, Northview, Lake High School, Anthony Wayne High School, Clay High School, Fremont Ross, Findlay all allow their players to wear cleats.
Why is it that Perrysburg High School is the only school in the NLL where students don’t have the right to choose whether they can wear cleats or not?
Perrysburg athletic director Chuck Jaco said, “I think with any policy, you have to look at the history. Rules are made because of things that have happened, so I’m going to assume that this rule is accurate, and that it is a 20 year old rule. There had to have been a reason, I mean every rule that we make in the department is made because something had to have occurred, and agreed that ‘we need to address that.’”
Players involved in football at Perrysburg are also agreeing with the thought of making change.
Varsity quarterback Brady Maxwell thinks “it is actually safer to wear cleats on the turf than shoes, because you may slip and tear your ACL.”
Varsity linebacker Hayden Knoblauch says “the fact that they are wearing tennis shoes makes it less competitive, and could cause more injury.”
There are signs the rule will change
Assistant principal Brad Turski stated “It would be more unsafe for players to wear sneakers due to the lack of traction and slipping. It doesn’t make any sense that they wouldn’t be able to”
Principal Justin Fults was shocked hearing the rule stating “not having been here for very long, I think this may have been something that was put in place a while ago, that I have no knowledge of. However, there have been multiple things in the last eighteen months that I have questioned, and may need to make changes.”
Fults acknowledged that some players may not own a pair of cleats.
Before players sign up for powderpuff they must get their parents to sign a waiver. The waiver states that “by signing this form, you are aware that you are at risk of injury Perrysburg schools will not be held liable for any accidental injury while playing the game.”
Since students and parents sign this waiver it should be in the players hands whether they wear rubber cleats or not.
Sacrificing everyone’s physical safety in the name of equality (not everyone has cleats) can end up hurting everyone. It’s better to have some or most players safely equipped for the game then none of them. Powderpuff is a sport at the end of the day that students sign up to play.
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