It has taken me a lot of years to fully realize that most people care nothing about sports of any kind. There are those who enjoy the pageantry of college football but know nothing about the game itself. I even know some who watch their sons or daughters play some sport, and somehow learn the terminology of the game, but still know little about the game, its rules, or its strategies. Many of those people know the position their progeny plays but know nothing else.

I guess my columns are written with the sincere or perhaps slightly knowledgeable in mind. Readers who have no interest in sports might read this on occasion if they find a familiar name or event. A few folks might read this because they know me or my family. They all count.

Thursday, a chancery judge in North Mississippi issued a ruling that no school in his jurisdiction could allow a student (public or private school) to participate in any outdoor activity from 9 a.m. till 7 p.m. The ruling covered not only football, but band, softball, and any other outdoor school activity. His ruling was a knee-jerk reaction to the unfortunate deaths of two high school football players during practice sessions. One of those kids had an aneurism which burst and the other died from heat stroke. The first youngster would likely have died from any exertion while the second was overweight to the point the coroner called him “obese.” Was heat a factor? Probably. Did other school-age children die in that same period from other causes? Of course. I note that the judge did not outlaw riding in cars after dark, swimming, or even horse-back riding. This sort of “cradle to grave” judicial activism will become the norm if we don’t watch out. Fortunately, the state Supreme Court showed some common sense and vacated that judge’s order.

I meet weekly for coffee with a group of men. For the most part, they are a non-athletic bunch. One, retired lawyer Erwin Ward, played a year of football at Mississippi State. Others played some sports in high school, and another, Dick Sevier, is a regular tennis player. Four spent most of their professional lives in the oil business, and another, Shannon Williford, ran the Vicksburg petroleum port for his family’s business. Lyle Carroll was the executive director of the Mississippi Independent Insurance Agents Association. Tom Bowen retired as a vice president for Mississippi Valley Gas Company. Others are George Bishop, Graham Hughes, Donn Young (all three were in the oil business), Richard Buford (a Holly Springs native who was at Ole Miss when I was there), David Keith (retired from Bell South). Carroll, Bowen, Keith, and I all have Natchez roots, but the others hear no Natchez news because they have no family left in Natchez. A recent visitor to the coffee group was Bob Haltom. A former Natchez realtor, Haltom and his wife Glen recently moved to Ridgeland. Not much football is discussed in that bunch, with politics holding forth most of the time. Ironically, Haltom and I were in the same coffee group in Natchez!

And, That’s Official

Al Graning an be reached by e-mail atAlanWard39157@aol.com.