How do you hit the ground running and keep from tripping over atree root?

Answer: Run on a sidewalk or a smoothly paved road. Better yet,run on either a track or football field.

Area football coaches are eager to begin preseason practice.Mississippi Private School Association teams got started a weekearly and have been sweating, perspiring and shedding pounds sinceMonday.

Brookhaven Academy head football coach Herbert Davis Jr., justescorted his Cougars through three days of grueling practice atPercy Quinn State Park. They ate, drank and played football. Forsure, they didn’t have to be rocked to sleep at night.

Football fans are eagerly anticipating the 2008 footballcampaign. Private and public schools are planning footballjamborees one week prior to the official kickoff.

Looking ahead, it promises to be an offensive show at severalschools if the respective offensive lines continue to develop.Semmie Smith, a junior running back at Brookhaven, surpassed 1,000yards rushing last season and should make another strongperformance.

Three seniors possessing showtime magnitude are quarterbacksSeth Avants of Bogue Chitto and Jamie Collins of Franklin County,and Lawrence County running back Kendrick Hardy who is consideredone of the best college prospects in Mississippi.

Several of The DAILY LEADER’s 2007 All-Lincoln County andAll-Area players are returing this season. We’ve already mentionedfour of them. Others are linebacker Kolby Byrd of BrookhavenAcademy, wide receiver Antoine Smith of Loyd Star, offensivelinemen Cortez Lyons of Brookhaven and Fred Tillman of Bogue Chittoand placekicker Chris Lowman of Brookhaven.

On defense, some top returnees are linemen La’Terrius Williamsof Brookhaven and Will Gatlin of Brookhaven Academy, pluslinebackers Jarvis Wilbert and Chavon Middleton of Brookhaven andsafety Nathaniel Sbravati of Brookhaven Academy.

All-Area stars joining Collins and Hardy on the offensivereturnee list are running backs Jordan Hunt of Franklin County andJosh Armstreet of McComb Parklane, and placekicker Jace Carlock ofFranklin County.

On defense, tackle Bobby O’Quinn and linebacker Alex Smith givethe Franklin County Bulldogs a strong duo. In the secondary, JohnCraft of Wesson returns. Craft also quarterbacks the Cobras.

When the cold winds of December finally arrive, there will be anew group of heroic standouts who have stepped forward and enjoyedoutstanding campaigns. Sounds exciting!

How hot is it?

The heat index passed 100 degrees last Sunday and stayed there.Afternoon showers brought some relief to the weary residents of theMagnolia State.

The rain has avoided some areas of Lincoln County. In fact, it’sbeen so dry in some places that a local resident said he sawcatfish walking out of his pond which had shriveled to just a merepuddle.

Personally speaking, our vegetable garden has struggled throughalmost drought-like conditions. The only salvation was a lawnsprinkling system.

We were blessed with tomatoes and cucumbers thanks to the waterhose. The butterbeans have battled blight, bugs, parched ground andrabbits. The rabbits have leveled our neatly planted rows of okrathree times. I feel like Elmer Fudd stalking that rascally rabbitnear sundown.

If you like fried rabbit or rabbit stew, this is the wrong timeof the year to harvest the long-eared critters. The flesh istainted by parasites.

There doesn’t seem to be much relief in sight. Only a tropicaldepression, featuring several days of rainfall, could rescueparched pastures and flower beds.

On the agriculture side of life, we have spoken to a fewfarmers/cattle ranchers who are feeding recently harvested hay totheir stock in July. Hay is supposed to be a winter resource whenthe grass isn’t growing.

Meanwhile, in northern areas of the USA, residents have been upto their necks in flood waters since April. Go figure.

Numerous prayers have been voiced this summer, asking for rainin Dixie. God hears our prayers but He must be busy solving othermore important problems.

California has been ravaged by forest fires and earthquakes inrecent months. Certainly, there are major problems on the WestCoast.

San Francisco recently hosted a large Gay Parade, complete withalmost completely nude males and females strolling down the middleof the street. God must be shaking his head in disgust. A majorsponsor of the event was McDonald’s Restaurant, home of the BigMac.

Go figure.

Write to sports editor Tom Goetz, c/o The DAILY LEADER, P.O. BOX551, Brookhaven, MS 39602 or e-mail sports@dailyleader.com