A high school football player in the Little Rock suburb of Maumelle got a scary surprise during practice last week.

The teen says he felt some unusual movement inside his helmet following team warm ups and took his headgear to a coach for help. After examining the helmet, the assistant coach discovered a two-foot long cottonmouth hiding behind the padding. Animal control officers were called to the scene and removed the venomous reptile with a pair of tongs after forcing it out of its hiding place by submerging it in water. Wildlife officials say the player had the snake in his helmet for more than an hour and was lucky he was not bitten.

The cottonmouth is one of six species of venomous snakes that are native to Arkansas.