PIAA football begins today, already.

I haven't had a summer vacation in a long time and it still feels way too short.

This morning, in just a few sleepless hours for me, the high school football season kicks off with a full sheet of regional scrimmages and a few reportorial homecomings for me. The two local gridiron teams, Schuylkill Valley and Hamburg, each have Saturday morning exhibitions with Schuylkill County schools.

At 10 a.m. in Hamburg, Tamaqua Blue Raiders visit for a scrimmage. Then, at 11, Schuylkill Valley will be in Minersville, just two miles from my hometown.

My first steady job in newspapers came via sports, and I've always missed covering games, and essentially getting paid to watch sports. This fall I hope to implement some more initiatives with the Sports section of The Item, and by next week's edition those changes will become more and more evident to readers of both the print and online versions of the paper.