As summer draws to a close and we wave goodbye to beach days and suntans, some may be feeling a little bit of the summertime blues.

Rest assured, though, plenty of fun is just around the corner.

For many, the coming months will be filled with hot apple pie, colorful leaves, sweaters and all things pumpkin, but another sector of the population is preparing for a weekly series of good old-fashioned American football.

As stadium lights lit up opening games all over southwest Michigan last week, people all over the region got a taste of many Friday nights to come.

For the next two months, people in Niles, Buchanan, Cassopolis, Dowagiac and Edwardsburg will start their weekends cheering on local athletes.

Pom poms and letterman jackets will clutter sidelines, the scent of hot popcorn wafting through the air as fans sip on hot chocolate to stay warm in anticipation for the main event: when the home team runs down the hill to take the field.

For the last several weeks, we have been taking the same preparatory run, getting ready for the start of the fall sports season. In today’s paper, you’ll find the result, the second annual Kickoff publication.

Once again, we interviewed coaches and photographed players from area sports teams. You’ll get a taste of what is to come this season, schedules for all area sports teams, team photos and more.

Again this season, we created six separate magazine covers — one for each of the Brandywine, Buchanan, Cassopolis, Dowagiac, Edwarsdburg and Niles school districts. If you received the wrong edition and would like to pick up a copy with your school on the front, you can do so at our office, which is located at 217 N. Fourth St., in Niles.

Our fall sports magazine doesn’t just feature football players, though. Plenty of area athletes running cross country and playing volleyball, tennis, soccer and golf deserve attention, too.

Many of these teams and individual have the chance to win district, regional or even state titles. The season looks like it will shake out to be an exciting one, with many teams already taking home big wins and invitational trophies. We’re eager to see what happens as the rest of the season unfolds.

For the next several months, readers will get to read about that progress in our newspapers, but this annual magazine serves as a keepsake that athletes can hold onto for years to come.

So while it may be sad to send the kids back to school and pack away the bathing suits, we look forward to many fall nights filled with screaming fans, blowing whistles and fired up athletes.

We hope to see you there.

 

Ambrosia Neldon is the managing editor at Leader Publications. She can be reached by phone at (269) 687-7713, or by email at ambrosia.neldon@leaderpub.com.