Fall is my favorite season. Among the chief reasons: the cooler weather here in the South, the Labor Day/Halloween/Thanksgiving celebrations and the traditional start of the TV season (though things are rapidly changing on that front). But mainly, it’s football. It’s always been football. Should the show go on during a pandemic? That, honestly, is above my pay grade. I’m glad it’s not my call.

I was in my high school’s marching band (drumline), so I spent a lot of Friday nights at football games. The pro game is loads of fun. I do keep torturing myself by watching Falcons games and playing fantasy football (I’m pretty decent in that area but not lately). And don’t get me started on unique passion of college football fans. Yes, some get crazy — I wouldn’t put myself in that cohort — but the culture, the rivalries, the constant controversy and debate, it doesn’t get much better to me. (Just read this from ESPN’s Ivan Maisel. And, yes, much about college sports must be reformed. But that’s a post for another day.) It’s nice that the University of Georgia, where I completed my undergraduate studies, is a national championship contender year in and year out. As a longtime resident of the Atlanta area, I keep up with Tech and State, too.

The college season won’t feel like it’s fully back until SEC play begins next weekend. The Big Ten recently reversed course, and that conference will get going in late October. I have a hunch the Pac-12 will follow suit sooner rather than later. It’s cliche to say things are unconventional in 2020, but it’s true. (Everything is wack, right? Notre Dame — welcome to the ACC!) Maybe Georgia And Georgia Tech — bitter in-state rivals who tragically won’t be square off this November — will meet in the College Football Playoff. Really? Nah, I doubt it. By they way, did you catch any of College GameDay these past two weeks. It certainly was … different.

I won’t be making any predictions at this point. (If I had to throw four schools out there for the CFP, I’d say Clemson, Georgia, Ohio State and Notre Dame). Anything seems possible. But here are some good resources/links to stay informed:

Websites

• FBSchedules and Matt’s College Sports on TV
• The Athletic (love, love, love the Audible podcast with Stew and Bruce)
• ESPN (has some of the best reporters in the business)
• Saturday Down South
• The Paul Finebaum Show (a few off-the-rails phone calls go viral every year)
• AJC (nobody covers UGA like Chip Towers)

2020 Schedules

• Georgia Bulldogs
• Georgia State Panthers
• Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets
• SEC, ACC, Sun Belt
• 2020-21 bowl schedule (fingers crossed!)

NFL/FALCONS PREVIEW

The Falcons’ season opener was concerning. Yeesh. The defense (especially that shaky secondary) looked bad in a double-digit loss to Seattle. The AJC sports page has not been kind to coach Dan Quinn, and I can’t blame them. How much longer can ownership stick with the man after back-to-back 7-9 years? I won’t lose all hope after one game, but it’s not looking good. Atlanta’s division is brutal, too. Time is ticking. Super Bowl prediction: Chiefs over Saints.

Websites

• ESPN (I heart Mina Kimes)
• The Athletic
• AJC (D. Orlando Ledbetter and Jason Butt do great work)
• 506 Sports and Sports Media Watch
• Football Night In America

2020 Schedules

• League
• Falcons
• Thursday Night Football (Week 8, Oct. 29, Falcons at Carolina)
• Sunday Night Football
• Monday Night Football (Week 5, Oct. 5, Falcons at Green Bay)

FANTASY FOOTBALL CORNER

I’ve called my Yahoo franchise “Church of Ryantology” for years. Creative, huh? I swear I came up with the name before Jonah Ryan of Veep. (When can that brilliant show come back?) In Matt Ryan (our savior) we trust — despite that Super Bowl fiasco we’ll never discuss again. There’s also Buddy (the father), Rob (the son) and Rex Ryan (the holy ghost). Plus, we’ve got Nolan Ryan, Ryan Atwood of The O.C., Ryan Howard of the Philadelphia Phillies as well as the U.S. version of The Office; TV host Ryan Seacrest; star athletes Ryan Lochte and Ryan Braun; politicians Tim Ryan and Paul Ryan; the awesome Ryan Tedder; the not-so-awesome Ryan Adams; actors Ryan Reynolds, Ryan Gosling and Ryan Phillippe (what a trio!); actresses Amy Ryan, Meg Ryan, Jeri Ryan and Debby Ryan (check out Netflix’s Insatiable) … the list goes on and on. I’m sure I’m missing some folks.

Well, I lucked out in my league’s draft this time around. It was held last week. I landed the top overall pick. (My younger brother is the commissioner; other teams are managed by various friends and family members.) I, of course, went with Carolina’s Christian McCaffrey. I’ll also be pulling for: QB Brady (suddenly I’m a fan of all NFC South squads); RBs Connor and Gordon III; WRs Landry, Lockett and Miller; TEs Kelce and Goedert; Myers (Seahawks kicker); and the Arizona and Baltimore defenses. It’s a solid core to kick off this campaign. I prevailed in my Week 1 game, and I’m feeling alright about things.