July the fourth comes and goes, and soon it's August. And through those dog hot days of August, we know that those kids are sweating and bleeding and hitting on the practice field. The humid weather is at its peak, but we know it won't last forever. The week of the first game draws nigh. There are predictions, there is analyzing, there is discussion.
Every team is undefeated, and optimism reigns supreme.
Finally, in weather so hot it is almost unholy, the first preseason game kicks off. We watch and we get excited, even if our team isn't playing. We find our seat, and get teary when the Million Dollar Band strikes up for the first time, Yea Alabama. We haven't heard that since last fall, and it gives us chills. Those days we live for, the autumn Saturdays when OUR game is contested by OUR team on fields of glory, have begun.