IT Is Game Day!!

Finally, the time for talking is over. The hay is in the barn. All that is left to do is kickoff the season and the "Drive for Five" tonight against Bowling Green.

To be honest, I don't know what to expect tonight, other than a great game. Both teams have so many new players who will be making their debuts tonight that the only thing anyone can really know is that there are a lot of unknowns.

I know that I have a hard time believing that this will be my seventh season at Troy. Seems as if it was just yesterday that I was getting ready to face my former school, Marshall, in the 2004 season-opener. It has certainly been a wild ride since that day, when Demarcus Ware sacked Stan Hill three times in a 17-15 Trojans victory.

Since I became a part of the Troy athletics family the Trojans have posted a 44-30 record. They have won four straight Sun Belt Conference titles and have been to four bowl games.

Even more remarkable, at least to me, is the fact that this will be my 16th season in college athletics. Even more amazing is that, in 15 previous football seasons, I have had just one losing season. Entering the 2010 campaign, the teams I have worked with have gone a combined 124-59.

That is a credit to the coaches and student-athletes I have been blessed to work with.

That has certainly been the case during my time here at Troy. The coaches and student-athletes are great to work with and it is certainly easy to want to see them do well.

A lot has been made of the fact that this is Coach Larry Blakeney's 20th season at Troy, which is a remarkable accomplishment in this day. It is also important to note that this will be his 41st overall football season as a coach, all of which have been spent in the state of Alabama.

I, for one, hope to see many more seasons for Coach Blakeney on the Troy sideline.

Every year there are pregame jitters for the season-opener. I am sure that will be no different today, especially with so many new players taking the field for the Trojans. With that being said, I know the Trojans are prepared and ready to get after it.

Like the commercials say, "Be there when IT happens!" Well, IT all starts today.

I can't wait.