I didn’t realize it before, but late Monday I shared something in common with high school football teams. 

Both had first days. 

Monday marked the first day of practice and simultaneously it was my first day back from my honeymoon. What a way to get back to work then to cover a couple of practices. 

I first made my way to Richlands before visiting Northside’s practice. Sports editor Paul Thompson went to Southwest before watching Dixon practice. These were the only Onslow County teams who hit the field in the afternoon. 

Jacksonville, White Oak, Swansboro and Lejeune practiced in the morning. 

For Swansboro, though, the saying the early bird gets the worm was taken a step greater as the Pirates did their “Midnight Madness,” practicing at 12:01 a.m. Monday. 

We have video on www.jdnews.com, so check it out. Also, we have several pictures of Monday’s first day of practice, and we will have several more of other teams in the upcoming days, so pick up a copy of the paper to see them. 

Now back to the action.