Well ladies and gentlemen, it’s that time again.

For those fans who had to wait an entire year to whet their appetite, the 2012 basketball season is here and in full swing.

It is just a few weeks into the season and already the different county teams have faced tough foes from both Franklin and the surrounding area.

This particular time of year has a special meaning for me. When I first was hired at The Franklin County Times I started off by covering basketball.

That’s right folks, I have been here and working in my current job for a whole year now.

Time flies when you’re having fun, and I cannot think of a better way to pass the time than cover the games I do in multiple sports.

I grew up playing baseball and football and watching just about everything else on ESPN, so naturally my love for sport and competition helped steer me into the career path I’m in.

It did not take me very long to pick up on the key rivalries around the county.

Belgreen, Phil Campbell, Red Bay, Tharptown and Vina are competing against each other in some way or other for most of the year, and Russellville, being such a large school, must leave the county for most of its opponents.

The Golden Tigers do not have to look far though, as the likes of Muscle Shoals and Lawrence County  are not so far away.

I’ve lived in this world as Sports Editor of the FCT for a year now, and I can’t think of a better way to make a living.

I have met so many players and coaches, principals, fans and others that I no longer feel out of place.

I am a part of the sporting world around here now, or at least I feel that way.

I may be reporting from the sidelines, but there are worse things in life I could be doing, and certainly none that I would choose.

When the 2012 season tipped off, I was immediately looking forward to covering the county’s rivalry games yet again.

There were so many good games between Belgreen and Phil Campbell, Red Bay and Phil Campbell and Russellville and its opponents last season, and I was forced to wait a year before I could watch those match-ups again.

But the wait is over, and the game is on.