Beautiful Sunday.

That 1972 hit by a group named Daniel Boone became a very recognizable tune on the radio stations back in the day.

You may also remember the Monkees’ “Pleasant Valley Sunday” in 1967.

This latest installment of my look back at YESTERDAY - a trip back in time to the late 1960s and the 1970s- is a recollection of what Sundays in October were to those of us who were in our preteens or teens during the time.

These were the days of basic cable and watching your teams play on a Sunday afternoon was a true treat.

Top of the morning ... Whether you were out late carousing at your usual establishment - usually in New York or New Jersey when the age to purchase alcohol in those states was 18 - or not, you usually made it to your Sunday church service. A big moment then was being an usher for the service. There was a group of us who always took pride in being there, and you always dressed in a shirt and slacks. Does it trigger a memory?

Sunday Dinner ... It was referred to as Sunday dinner, but we always had it after our Church service at our one grandmother’s house, who always served the traditional European meal of chicken soup, and chicken and rice. If she wasn’t choking, it was off to the local diner for a late breakfast. Did anyone go to Herman’s in Slatington or the Boulevard Drive-In in Lehighton?

Those Fabled Football Highlights ... After our meal, it was a tradition to turn on the RCA or Motorola TV and flip the channel with your forefinger and your thumb to both WBRE-Channel 28 and WNEP-Channel 16, who would show Notre Dame and Penn State highlights. Ray Scott called the Penn State show and Lindsay Nelson was the voice for Notre Dame - You had to love Nelson’s colorful jackets on the Mets’ broadcasts. I honestly couldn’t remember which station had them, but they were classic videos with few camera angles and little crowd noise.

The NFL Today ... In the mid-1970s, CBS’ The NFL Today was a must watch before any game. Who could forget the classic simple graphics of helmets and players clashing and its signature intro music that created an aura of importance . The unlikely trio of Brent Musberger, Phyllis George, and Irv Cross became a fixture. Jimmy “The Greek” Snyder took a subtle approach to introduce the gambling concept into the game, and he became an iconic figure before his downfall.

The A Team ... Pat Summerall made his mark with Tom Brookshire as CBS’ top team, and they were TV’s first candid, homespun tandem that gave viewers a comfortable feeling.

Other Football ... NBC would lead with the legendary play-by-play broadcaster Curt Gowdy, who had such a natural flow along with his partner Al DeRogatis - who was a folk-type hero as his partner - to those who followed the games.

Peter Puck ... Nationally televised hockey was a hard sell and remains so today, but NBC introduced animated character Peter Puck for its Hockey Game of the Week. The hockey puck-shaped cartoon character explained the game’s history and rules in segments during the end of the first or second period, or sometimes both of them. It became an overnight sensation until it ended in 1975.

NBA on ABC ... It’s hard to forget the classic Sunday afternoon games on ABC in the mid-1970s when the Milwaukee Bucks always seemed to be the Game of the Week with then Lew Alcindor as their center. ABC had the hug, white score at the bottom of the screen that automatically flipped with each basket. Chris Schankel’s melodic, deep voice kept your attention, and he was the perfect straight man for partners like Jack Twyman and Bill Russell.

NBA on CBS ... CBS took a shot on airing NBA games in the mid- to late-1970s and Musburger was among a bevy of play-by-play announcers for the games that also featured various color commentators. The network introduced a players’ version for the game H-O-R-S-E as well as “Red Auerbach on Roundball ‘’ to help attract viewers. I remember a catchy opening tune with moving, colorful player graphics (You’ll see the best in basketball when you watch the NBA, when you watch the NBA on CBS.)

Closing Thought ... Sundays in the 1970’s were days when you watched your sports and then ventured to the playground to play a game of football, basketball, or maybe even street hockey. Those days helped us shape and form what our sport weekends are today.