The Wetzel County Relay For Life, Mother’s and Father’s Days are over and high school football, soccer, volleyball, and cross country are about to start in a month.

Parents will be hard to satisfy with the three weeks that the high school kids have available with their coaches that the WVSSAC has allowed the past several years. Vacations are postponed and disgruntled parents will be on the warpath when these weeks coincide with their vacation times. Is it fair for parents to rearrange their schedules so that their kids can participate with their coaches and be able to play when their sport comes around? Some parents cannot change their vacations, but now that these weeks are set in stone, it’s a little easier. But, it doesn’t leave much time for the kids that play multiple sports.

Nothing can be better than for a child to say thanks to their parents for changing their vacation time so they compete and practice with their coaches and teammates. It is a very small thing for what parents have done over the years, but actually nothing could be more satisfying than to hear those words.

In dealings that I have with kids and parents through the season, it’s the same with me. It’s pretty hard for a parent or even a student to say “Thanks for coming,” “Thanks for taking time to come and take some pictures.” Some expect it, but few take a second to say those words. So, I guess that’s why a lot of parents don’t hear those words from their kids, because they don’t know how to say them themselves.

With a new season just around the corner in football, soccer, volleyball, and cross county, it will be nice if we can get on the same page. High school sports will have first dibs in the sports pages. I cover Magnolia, Paden City, Valley, Hundred, and River high schools.

Because of the number of schools I cover, it will be up to the coaches to get me stats to include in stories. You can tell from last year’s paper, who sent in the stats and who didn’t.

Football is king around here. But, as a former coach, I want to cover other sports, too. But, just like football, I will need stats on soccer, volleyball, and cross county from the coaches, if I’m to give them appropriate coverage.

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I have been told that boys’ soccer at Magnolia is in jeopardy for the 2010 season. They have the numbers, but are lacking one key ingredient, a coach.

If nobody comes through to take over the program, there are many different things that could happen. What could happen is for the boys and girls to consolidate and become a co-ed team. Magnolia started out as a co-ed team, but after a few years, the girls got their own team.

I hope and pray that a teacher comes forward and takes it over. As a former coach, it’s hard to let a team go once, or even twice, but never a third time. (Don’t look at me. That’s a story in itself.)

I’m happy to hear that Hundred High School is getting the money for new lights on its football field. The 2010 winter storm put them out of commission and they were told that they would not get the money to do so. After some soul searching, the powers that be said “Okay,” and they will get new lights. . .but not until sometime in September. This means that Friday football games at Hundred will play on Saturday afternoon. But, the good thing is that there were no West Virginia University games scheduled on the Saturdays they will have to play. County rival Valley came through and volunteered to play their game in Pine Grove and Hundred can keep the gate. Awesome, VHS!