Coaches, doctors stress importance of Las Vegas athletes needing to pass sports physicals to play

LAS VEGAS (KTNV) — With fall sports returning to action in August, practice is underway for many football and volleyball teams across the Las Vegas Valley.

That means it's time for local athletes to pass physicals to be able to take the field or the court.

WATCH | Coaches and doctors discuss the importance of physicals

Especially in football, with athletes practicing and performing in the desert heat, it's critical to make sure that players are being safe.

"As a coach, we can't let anybody out there practicing that doesn't have it," Liberty head coach Rich Muraco told me.

"Super important to the sport and to make sure they're healthy," Bishop Gorman head coach Brent Browner said.

WATCH | Nick Walters and a local physician show you the process

Local doctors who perform sports physicals understand the importance of checking every player's ability to withstand heat and physicality.

"We're always afraid that our child will be the one child that is exercising really hard in the heat and that one will go to heaven," Sunshine Valley Pediatrics doctor Wesley Robertson said. "We as physicians and pediatricians, that's our biggest responsibility is to make sure we don't have that child going out."

CCSD schools began official football practices this week and every player participating had passed a physical. Where they did the examination can differ between teams and players.

Many teams bring physicians on site to conduct the physicals. This is common with public and private schools. Other players go to their own doctors for the exam.

"We just had a physical night not too long ago at Liberty," Muraco said. "I think it's important for families to be honest and get a licensed physician to go ahead and do their physicals. They've expanded how they do the physicals. They give them a functional movement piece now."

"We'll have some doctors come in and they'll actually do physicals on campus," Browner said. We have kids that go to different their own providers. But we try to facilitate it at the school so they can all get it done. We try to do that right before the end of school so that lasts them the whole year."

An inexpensive option for a sports physical in Southern Nevada can be found at CareNow Urgent Care, which offers discounted sports physicals for only $35, with the promotion valid from May 6 through August 31, 2025.

WellNow Urgent Care locations provide physicals for school, sports, and camp, starting at $60 and with the option of walk-in appointments. CVS MinuteClinic offers sports physicals at various locations in Las Vegas.

"The most important thing is an examination of the heart," Doctor Robertson said. "Multiple times we'll pick up somebody with an arrhythmia, premature ventricular contractions that need to be evaluated just by examining them."