I have to say, this has been the most exhausting college football offseason I've had as a blogger. I've written through the past five offseasons, but this one takes the cake.
Primarily, it's the scandals that have gotten to me. I have a folder on my computer with Cecil Newton's building permits, Jim Tressel's emails, the Fiesta Bowl report, a screenshot of Darren Woodruff's Facebook page, and segments of Danny Sheridan's SEC Media Days interview. That only encompasses the ones that left digital detritus in my documents however; plenty more have come and gone in the same time frame. Just when it looked like we were getting ready for the season, Texas A&M decided to get antsy about the Big 12.
I know it wears on all of you a lot, but it's tough on us folks on the other side of the blogging relationship too. I'm pretty sure I've written more evening and weekend posts this offseason than in the four prior combined. It's supposed to be a time to recharge and get ready for the upcoming season. Instead, I have the same kind of feeling I typically get around the second week of November: a bit fatigued but gearing up for the stretch run. Except now, the "stretch run" is four months instead of four weeks.
More than ever, the beginning of this year will be a release. I wish it could just wipe away the off-the-field nonsense, but the A&M affair looks like it will be dragging on into the season and Charles Robinson is back to work on the things he tabled to get the Miami report out. I should be putting out a post or two to cap off our season preview series, but all the off-field garbage has me more ill-prepared for the season than I've been since joining on here at TSK.
I wish I had some kind of profound words to introduce 2011's edition of college football, but I don't. I'm all out of offseason material. I've got nothing left.
Thursday evening can't get here soon enough.