I start my 20th season of publishing on my website --EDGYTIM.com-- this Friday night. There are two things I am certain of as we kick off the 2015 season.
First, at least one highly ranked team will get beat on Friday night.
Second, all the preseason polls, predictions and forecasts all mean nothing once the ball is kicked off.
I fully expect to be "wrong" on more than a few teams when it comes to the rankings week in and week out.
Don't get me wrong: I love nothing better than going 25-for-25 in any given week, and it's actually happened once or twice over the 20+ years. It was an amazing feeling.
Did I pick your team to lose this week? Depending on the year, that might turn out to be a very good thing.
[EDGY TIM: Five names to watch in 2015]
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Prohibitive favorites? Not in IHSA football. We have no such thing.
Homewood-Flossmoor pulled off a pretty rare feat in high school circles this preseason, being named a consensus top-ranked team in Chicagoland. While the H-F fans celebrate the early accolades, also be aware that I can count on one hand (and have some fingers left) the teams who went wire-to-wire as the state's top ranked team.
Yet for me, that's the beauty of IHSA football. Teams have a chance week in and week out. Someone, somewhere across the state is getting ready to shock the world and win a big game -- or games. Someone will get out of the gates slow, catch fire at the right time and make a deep state playoff run.
So enjoy the preseason rankings, stories and such. Once Friday night gets here, put aside all the hype. Get out and go watch a local IHSA game this weekend.
It's the best time of the year.
Play Smart. Play Hard.