College football is over, albeit for a short period of time, and high school football ended six weeks ago.
Those broad-minded enough to like more than football have changed focus to basketball. Baseball is more than two months from starting, six months from being remotely interesting.
Golf is starting to pick up, although there’s already plenty of swinging and swearing, when weather permits, on area courses.
For part of the populace, it of the narrow parameters and belief that spring football is actually more than just practice, it’s time for the requisite whine: “Ain’t nothin’ to do or watch now.”
Right. The mantra of the mundane, the complaint of the complacent, the grumble of the grumpy.
And, of course, wrong.
One can start next week off by listening to one of last season’s top rookies in the AL and getting a little barking in at the same time. Former Georgia standout Gordon Beckham is the second speaker for Mercer’s “First Pitch” dinner at the University Center, and he had a better year than speaker No. 1, Jeff Francoeur.
Oops, is there a Mercer jinx? Eh, no, Frenchy was struggling before he visited campus a year ago and filled the University Center floor for dinner, a talk and some baseball chatter afterward.
Beckham isn’t as big a name, yet. Here’s a chance to catch a kid who is most definitely on the rise in Major League Baseball, while being reminded that it’s not a bad thing to start thinking about taking in some college baseball.
After all, it was a year ago that Beckham was starting his final season at Georgia. And right here, 89 miles from Foley Field, Mercer has a quality home schedule. Six of the Bears’ first seven games are at home, and no, a college baseball game doesn’t sound like a bunch of ball bearings being dropped.
No, it’s not like softball at Central City Park. There’s pitching and defense, too.
The date is still not set, and neither is the speaker. But soon enough, we’ll get word of the guest speaker at the Macon Touchdown Club’s year-end jamboree.
Lane Kiffin had to back out. He’s good at that.
The Club has had Phillip Fulmer, Jim Tressell and Mike Smith in just the past few years. And right now, the top candidate is among the dean of head coaches in the Southeast and something of the anti-Bobby Petrino.
Then, of course, the Georgia Sports Hall of Fame induction weekend is Feb. 19-20.
There’s no better year to rustle up some money and go, or inspire your bosses about the tax writeoffs of a table — I’m not sure if it’s deductible, but there are people who can smell a loophole at four miles — or donation of a table or tickets.
I’m not buying economic reasons for less than a sellout, because Macon and Middle Georgia have more than a few hundred people with some disposable income they’ve saved for 40 years. A ticket doesn’t just support the Hall but shows faith and enthusiasm in Middle Georgia, for future potential hall of famer, for the state of Georgia.
Good grief, Louisiana’s ceremony is televised on Cox Sports TV every year. It’s just getting started on building a facility, and the ceremony and building aren’t located in anywhere near as convenient a location as Macon — it’s four hours from New Orleans; imagine Valdosta — and they don’t have nearly as many whiners and moaners about the location.
They show up and support it, from Hall members to “public servants.” An interesting concept indeed. And when Louisiana politicians are doing more for the public, well, that’s mind-boggling.
Plus, let’s see, this year’s ceremony covers Georgia (Suzanne Yoculan and Larry Rakestraw), Georgia Tech (Al Ciraldo), Mercer (Sam Mitchell and Ed Everett), the Braves (Ernie Johnson) and Middle Georgia high school football (Ron Simmons).
The spectrum of golf, football, baseball, basketball, men and women, black and white, World Series, national championships, the national College Football Hall of Fame, the NBA will be on display.
Just as noteworthy is the execution of the ceremony, which allows one to get happily lost in the past for a few hours.
And that’s not all.
There are future Division I male and female basketball prospects at the likes of Wilcox County, Central, Wilkinson County, Rutland, Washington County among others, many of whom are hoping to make Macon for the state high school basketball Final Four.
A young man who is currently No. 313 in NCAA Division I scoring history — you read that right if you can read right – has six more home games left before he and Mercer — which also has one Courtney Ford ranked in the top 100 nationally this season in six categories, and is in the top 60 percent of those ranked in double-doubles and triple-doubles — host the A-Sun conference tournaments to see who goes to the NCAAs.
Yeah, the NCAAs. And yes, James Florence could easily be among the top 100 scorers in NCAA men’s basketball history when the A-Sun tournament starts here in 41 days. You read that correctly, as well.
He passed Reggie Miller in last Friday’s game and will overtake Nick Collison and Gerry McNamara this Friday.
All of this awaits us in about an eight-week span.
So yet again, right here in the land of cherry blossoms and Mama Louise’s phenomenal cooking, there’s only nothing to do for those who are proficient at doing nothing.
Contact Michael A. Lough at 744-4626 or mlough@macon.com
