COLUMN: The time is upon us
It’s the fourth Friday in August. The air has been a bit more crisp. The Jefferson County Fair has come and gone. Kids are headed back to school. Summer is winding down. Those signs all point to one thing — it’s football season in the Ohio Valley.
Tonight the first full slate of games in Ohio commence, for some teams that started a night earlier, for those on the other side of the river, a week later, but for all intents and purposes it’s football time.
There is nothing quite like the first week of football in this area.
To get here, a long summer of build up, practices and anticipation. Optimism throughout every community as they speculate how their team will do. Debates in the coffee shops and diners and around barber chairs about who should be starting at quarterback. Discussions about schedules and who might be a playoff team. Many a coach and player alike asked how the team is looking this year. And now it’s finally here.
Those debates will be settled and questions answered on a 10-week journey that starts with tonight.
And, a fast journey it will be. In what will seem like no time at all, we’ll be scoreboard watching in Week 10 to see who gets a Week 11. It is called the fastest 10 weeks for a reason, after all.
But, from the time tonight when players strap up the pads and tie their cleats, until then, lets enjoy the ride.