Madison County Red Raiders

Reprinted from The Madison County Journal, July 19, 2007 edition.

by Ben Munro

In case you’re not sure as to the exact second when Madison County will kick off its football season, the Raider team website is happy to enlighten you.

The thoroughly informative eteamz.active.com/madisoncountyfootball/ reveals a ticker that not only posts the exact number of days, hours and minutes until Madison County kicks off against Franklin County Aug. 31, but pinpoints the number of seconds remaining until the moment happens.

Now that’s what we call sports information.

As if we need further evidence, this is more proof that no other sport is so meticulously followed and ceremoniously awaited in the South. Whatever it takes to cope with a long, hot summer, we do it. Notice that we don’t tally the days, hours, minutes and seconds until the first pitch or tip-off, but for football, we countdown like it’s a NASA space shuttle launch.

Of course, the countdown for college and professional football has long been a ritualistic part of the preseason during the lean, sweltering months of June, July and August. In fact, an Athens AM sports talk radio station includes the countdown as part of its hourly sports update. As of press time, the wait for professional football exhibition action was 23 days away and Georgia’s kickoff against offensive juggernaut Oklahoma State stood at 45 days.

Fans probably await the college and pro season longer than they enjoy it.
Thankfully, high school football – aside from maybe recruiting -- isn’t followed quite as obsessively.

Still, it’s certainly a huge deal in big prep football states — like Georgia.

Viewing the Madison County web site is evidence that arrival of prep football is intently tracked in these parts.

And until the pigskin is kicked off in Danielsville, we’ll keep watching the clock.
FYI, as of the completion of this column, kickoff was 44 days, 10 hours — and 37 seconds — away.

Ben Munro is a reporter for The Madison County Journal.