Commentary by Denton Ramsey

Hey Alabama football fans… are yall ready?

Opening weekend for football has already begun and I’m loving it.

For most high schools, the action started last week and regional action begins as early as tonight.

And for most colleges, the fun begins on Saturday.

Personally, I love this time of year.

Football is starting up.

Baseball is winding down for playoffs.

And also this year, we have the Olympics going on in Athens, Greece with some superb athleticism being shown on a daily basis.

But, I digress.

We’re here to talk about the game of football.

And football is a “golden god” here in Alabama, right?

It’s a new season.

Everyone is 0-0 in regional play.

Undefeated.

It’s time for a new year, a new group of kids, and a new season of football.

I’m sure most of you have plans to attend games, whether it’s high school or college (or both for that matter).

As the sports editor for The Demopolis Times, you know I’ll have a busy weekend.

Last week in high school football in the local area, West Alabama Prep took on Marengo Academy, losing a heart breaker, 19-16.

It was my first true taste of high school football in Alabama.

And as I stood on the sidelines, watching as the Titans took to the field, I couldn’t help the feeling of wanting this young team to beat the Longhorns.

It’s been almost 30 years since the last time the Titans beat the Longhorns.

And although they came close last Thursday, VERY close, they still lost the game.

But it was a very entertaining game and I am very glad that I was able to witness the fun and excitement for this year’s Titans team.

On Friday evening, I was able to watch as Demopolis destroyed Sumter County.

The game was over before the opening kick-off ever even occurred.

Talk about a blowout… the Demopolis defense didn’t allow a single first down until there was about 2:00 left in the first half.

It was awesome.

And again, it was a very entertaining game and the crowd was incredible.

I look forward to continuing to cover the Tigers all season long and into the playoffs (and hopefully all the way to winning the state championship).

On Saturday, college football began when the University of West Alabama in Livingston played their season opener against Division 1-AA Samford in Birmingham.

And they put up a great fight, losing by 14.

The UWA football team should be proud of their effort and hopefully they will get their first win this weekend at home when they face Tuskegee in the conference-opener.

Meanwhile, most of the other local colleges in Alabama had off until this coming weekend.

The University of Alabama will play Utah State at home on Saturday.

The University of Alabama at Birmingham plays host to Baylor University (a school where I once attended from 1997-2001) on Saturday, while Auburn takes on Louisiana-Monroe.

So, Alabama football fans, enjoy your weekend.

The entertainment and excitement only now has just begun.

And the regular season is 10 weeks long.

It’s only a matter of time before we find out who will still be throwing the hits around come November.

Until then, all the teams are pretty much on even ground.

Regional action begins tonight, and now is when the “real season” gets underway.

It’s time to play some football.

Denton Ramsey is sports editor for The Times.