College football is almost upon us!

The autumnal cool breezes are not quite in the air just yet and make no mistake we are still in the heart of summer, but despite all that, one of the great signs of fall is about to descend on us.

College Football!

Ahhhh the revelry of collegiate football.  The pageantry, The tailgating, the pre-game parties, the anticipation the week before, then game day with the marching band, the fan enthusiasm, the packed stadiums, the student section, and finally seeing the players run out of the “tunnel” sporting brand new jerseys.  

You can’t beat the excitement, and it is all part of the awesome atmosphere of collegiate football!

Admittedly there has been a lot to damper us in the off season.  Talks about players and their NIL contracts, the transfer portal, teams switching conferences, coaches being replaced, a few random arrests and other controversies— but all that gets thrown to the sidelines once the season arrives.

Call it selective memory relapse if you must, but once the games begin all that mentioned in the last paragraph becomes but a distant memory, lost in the color cavalcade of watching nearly 80 players wearing our favorite school colors run onto the field for the opening game.

Things might be a little weird this year.

For example:  The Big Ten now has eighteen teams!  There is no more Pac Ten Conference.  Oklahoma and Texas are now in the SEC.  And you want something really bizarre?  How about Stanford and California now playing in the Atlantic Coast Conference.

Let’s repeat that for the geographically non-inclined:  California and Stanford will now be competing all the way across the United States of America, in the Atlantic Coast Conference.  From the Pacific Ocean to the Atlantic Ocean.  As my Grandpa used to say, “put that in your pipe and smoke it!”

All that weirdness aside, it should be a great season.  Georgia, Ohio State and Oregon are the favorites to bring home the National Championship, but surprises could come from a variety of other locations and schools.

Locally, Northwestern and Illinois both are predicted in the bottom half of the Big Ten, but both teams have enough talent where they could surprise.  New quarterbacks are on the docket for both squads, so we will see how that works out.

This weekend we get a little taste, and then next weekend you can open up the floodgates.  College Football is back! 

…and for those needing a break from politics, burned out from the Olympics, and bored with baseball…not a moment too soon!