Greg Bailey WCNC Sports Director

Every year it seems to come sooner and every year it seems to get better. The first Friday of the high school football season never loses its magic.

When I moved to Charlotte I knew what to expect from the Panthers after covering the Cowboys, Chiefs and Seahawks. I had seen my share of big time college basketball, covering Roy Williams' great teams at Kansas, and later great individual players like NBA rookie of the year Brandon Roy. I had been exposed to the magic world of NASCAR. And I'd seen my share of great golf on the PGA Tour during my 15 years in television.

But I had no idea that high school football was this good in North Carolina. Great coaches, great programs and great speed everywhere. One of the first stories I did last year was the trio of big time, division one recruits at Butler High - all in the same defensive backfield. (And yes, I know they had 11 or 12 players on that team sign scholarship players. That's amazing in its own right.) Last week I asked a veteran college football recruiter if he'd ever heard of anything like Eddie Whitley, Spencer Adams and Robert Blanton enticing recruiters from around the country in the same defensive backfield at the same school.

The answer was quick, "No." The coaches at Michigan didn't believe it. That these 3 great athletes at their summer camp could all possibly play for the same team.

It's true and now we're ready for more.

The offenses here are so much more advanced than what I'd covered before. Speed at every skill position and the understanding of how to attack defenses.

That makes for great stuff on Friday nights. We'll deliver great hi lites, as always, but we'll also keep an eye on defenses this year. We'll crank up our Friday coverage every week at 6 pm with our hit of the week segments from the previous weeks' games. (There's great speed on defense, too.) We'll also add a roundtable discussion on the HS Gametime website to start the conversation about next week's games. Look for that to be posted first thing Monday mornings.

This is the best part of our jobs. Every year great stories and great players emerge. The magic is back on Friday nights and we're ready to rock on HS Gametime.

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