The calendar has turned to September and that means high school football is back.
The gridiron will be hot with all 11 Harford County teams scheduled for action, with nine games today (Friday) and one Saturday, though Tropical Storm Hermine may win out in that one.
The only game pitting two Harford teams against each other will be in Joppatowne, where a bit of history will unfold. Fallston will make the trip and for the first time in its 40-year history, Dave Cesky will not lead the Cougars to the sideline.
Cesky is on medical leave for the season, an issue he declined to talk about, only saying in an email, "I want my privacy until I recover."
That said, Jimmy Grant, an 18-year assistant to Cesky, is taking the reigns and is more than capable of handling the job. Grant is also doubling as the Fallston athletic director.
A new rivalry will be created at Harford Tech, where the Cobras will host York Tech in what is being billed as the "Battle for the Mason-Dixon Line." At stake is the newly established rotating trophy going to the winner and bragging rights for top technical school. At the conclusion of the game, the teams will line up on the respective 40-yard lines and the trophy will be presented.
Two other games will be played in Harford County tonight. Patterson Mill will host Winters Mill, while John Carroll, winners of all 12 games a year ago, will entertain Calvert Hall.
Three Harford teams will begin play in Cecil County. Edgewood and new head coach Bryan Hansrote will travel to Perryville, while Havre de Grace and new head coach Brian Eberhardt will visit North East. C. Milton Wright will venture the farthest up Route 40, playing at Elkton.
Two teams, Aberdeen and North Harford, will round out tonight's schedule with games in Baltimore County. Aberdeen will play at Perry Hall and North Harford will travel to Hereford. All nine games have 7 p.m. starting times.
Saturday's lone game has Bel Air hosting Dulaney, also at 7 p.m.