There are numerous things I could talk about today, but there are a couple of things that have irked me this week.

I&8217;m a pretty mellow guy, and it takes quite a bit to get me riled up. However, there are a few things that are sacred to me &8212; my wife, the planets in our solar system and college football, and two of those have changed.

I&8217;m sure by now you&8217;ve heard about the reclassification of three planets, but what you may not have heard about was that the NCAA has changed its label for Division I schools.

I can hear you saying, &8220;big deal,&8221; but hear me out on this. Apparently our friends at the NCAA decided that the 1-A and 1-AA labels make one appear better than the other, and are also concerned about basketball and baseball programs being called 1-AA, thus giving them a negative connotation (football is the only sport in which the 1-A and 1-AA labels applied).

By now I&8217;m sure you&8217;re wondering what the new name for each division will be, and you&8217;d better prepare to be disappointed.

What we had all come to know and love as Division 1-A will now be referred to as &8220;Football Bowl Subdivision&8221;, while our friends in 1-AA are now known as the &8220;NCAA Football Championship Subdivision.&8221;

The NCAA even hired a marketing firm to come up with this name.

This really is indicative of the entire problem with the NCAA. In an era when college baseball is riddled with steroids (some would say it has a bigger problem than the pros), college basketball and football teams are virtually running unchecked cheating machines, disciplinary problems run rampant, schools are compromising academics to keep athletes eligible and the pursuit of marketing bucks has outpaced the desire to simply field a quality football team that represents its school well, the pinheads in Indianapolis worry that the poor little guys in 1-AA are getting their feelings hurt.

Boo hoo.

It&8217;s really great to know that guys like this may be in charge of your children or grandchildren&8217;s athletic future at some point, isn&8217;t it?

But, on a lighter note, football season has arrived, as tonight the Green Wave of Cathedral will head up to Vicksburg to take on their biggest rival in St. Aloysius.

Natchez, ACCS, Trinity, Huntingdon and several other area teams will kick off Friday, while Vidalia, Block and Ferriday will tangle Saturday in the Vidalia Jamboree.

The 2006 football preview will also be hitting newsstands Friday, so be sure to pick one up to find out about your favorite team before you head to the stadium Friday night. Sports reporter Rick Breland and I have put in plenty of hours on it, and we believe it will be useful for you throughout the season.

Football &8212; and familiarity &8212; is here. Let&8217;s just make sure the biggest change we see in this area is the new logo on Cathedral&8217;s helmet.

Tim Cottrell is the sports editor of The Natchez Democrat. He can be reached by phone at 601-445-3632 or by e-mail at

tim.cottrell@natchez.democrat.com