I've Got a Fever
August 24, 2007 08:59 AM | General
August 24, 2007
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| Steve Slaton |
MORGANTOWN, W.Va. -- I came down with a fever last night. No need to worry. I don’t need medicine, a homespun remedy or more cowbell to get better. I’ve had this before -- it lasts about four months.
I know just when I got it, too. While working on the computer last night I could hear my boys in the next room ‘ooohing’ and ‘ahhhing’ over a huge hit during the Packers exhibition game against the Jaguars. Through the hoots and hollers I could tell they were rewinding the DVR to get repeated looks at a linebacker literally knocking the helmet off an unsuspecting wide receiver who had dared to run a route over the middle.
“Come here Dad,” came the call. “You’ve gotta see this.”
I walked over and took a look at the spectacular collision. I ooohed, too.
A short while later while working on my game charts for WVU’s season opener, I took an Internet surf to an audio stream of the George Washington-Capital high school football game. There I sat listening to the very first game of the high school season.
I really knew I had the fever when I called the radio station in Elkins to get a score on the only other game of the night featuring Elkins against East Fairmont. My interest deepened when the guy on the other end of the line told me East Fairmont returned the opening kick of its opening game for a touchdown. Wow that’s neat, I thought.
My mind began to wonder exactly how the first game will play out next Saturday for the Mountaineers. Who will make that classic hit that we’ll be talking about in the parking lots for hours after the game? Who will make that zig-zagging run that defies the laws of gravity (we’ve got some pretty good candidates for that one)? What Mountaineer newcomer will explode onto the scene and quickly become established as a fan favorite?
A quick glance at the team’s depth chart certainly provides us with many possibilities for the last question. Seven true freshmen appear on the list -- some you’ve heard a great deal about and others very little.
The next week will fly by like a Steve Slaton run against Georgia. I just can’t wait to get to next week.
