Can you smell that?

No, its not the smell of overcooked hamburgers or stale beer left over from Labor Day.

Nope, that smell is definitely pigskin.

This time every year, I get a little bit antsy because football season is back. And I’m sure just about every red-blooded American feels the same.

Although the feeling is the same, everyone reacts to kick-off a little bit differently.

My buddy, Alex, is the type of guy who will reference a game from this season to one he read about from 20 years before he was born.

My friend J.C. will yell football as loud as he can and flail his arms around in exuberance. I would be a liar if I didn’t admit to being this kind of fan.

But no matter what we do, we do in agreeance.

And you want to know why we all get a little happier around this time of the year? Because everyone has hope.

We all can have dreams of our team bringing home a big shiny trophy and having a grotesque championship ring on its players’ fingers.

I know most of us will never have one of those on our hands, but which sports fan among us hasn’t been bored one day and looked on Ebay to see if an athlete has fallen on hard times and has had to sell his or hers? I know I have.

Another reason why we love our football is because it’s the greatest drama there is – that’s true of all sports.

I have heard “Grey’s Anatomy” is a great show and I respect William Shakespeare, but this William says you need to look no further than a football game to see gut-wrenching drama.

You never know which team is going to win. You never know who is going to be today’s hero. And best of all, none of this stuff is scripted.

Oh, you think Big Brother has no script and neither does the Hills? Poppycock, I say.

There is no way people can be that annoying in real life and have not had some sense knocked into them.

TV producers have to make up villains for you to hate, while with football it just comes with the territory.

As a New Orleans Saints fan, I hate the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and the Carolina Panthers. No one has to tell me to loath them, and they don’t have to diss my mother. I just look at the schedule and see those teams on the docket twice, and my blood begins to boil.

So to everyone, I wish you good luck, and have a happy football season.