SCHUYLKILL HAVEN — With temperatures recently in the 90s, thoughts of footballs being tossed around or pads clapping are rarely on people’s minds.

But like it or not, high school football is just around the corner.

For many, the beach is still calling and sun worshippers are still sucking up rays.

This past Wednesday, though, at Schuylkill County’s premier indoor complex — Schuylkill Haven Area High School’s Sports Performance Center — the 2025 season unofficially began.

That’s when the annual Schuylkill County Football Coaches Association Media Day was held, the 22nd year since its inaugural event back in 2004.

Players from Marian, Panther Valley and Tamaqua, as well as Blue Mountain, Mahanoy Area, Minersville, Nativity, North Schuylkill, Pine Grove, Pottsville, Schuylkill Haven, Shenandoah Valley, Tri-Valley and Williams Valley, gathered to break bread and get acquainted for the upcoming season — which kicks off Aug. 22 and ends a week before Halloween.

For the uniformed, heat acclamation gets cooking this coming Monday for most of the scholastic teams throughout Pennsylvania, and the “first official” practice is the following week, Aug. 11. Most teams will hold one scrimmage before opening week.

Panther Valley’s third-year coach Mark Levine sees it as a new beginning for his program.

“The (players) have been in the weight room since January, so they’re very anxious to finally get things going,” Levine said.

The PV mentor also mentioned this event has carried over to other sports in the Schuylkill League.

“The other sports are trying to (emulate) what we have, so it does draw a great (media) crowd. The kids get to exchange some thoughts and it creates a great atmosphere.”

Not only were the players, coaches and media present, but the coaches felt it was a great move to bring in officials.

“It helps to have the officials fill you in on any new rules changes,” said Chuck Kutz, who has returned to Blue Mountain as the head coach after a few years of absence.

There’s nothing major in the rules changes; except for a fumble out of bounds, which now will be returned to the line of scrimmage instead of the spot of the fumble.

“Summer goes fast after July Fourth,” said veteran Tamaqua head coach Sam Bonner, who admits that he lost quite a few quality players to graduation. “Hey, I don’t like to use the word rebuilding, but we have a good senior group, and they’ve worked hard … they’re great leaders. So we do have some leadership, and it is coming from those seniors.”

Bonner called it a “great event, and every year it gets bigger. It is a good way to bring the players in, and they mingle with each other before we start playing.”

The figures back up the Blue Raider head coach as 14 schools, 59 athletes and 23 media outlets were in attendance, which was more than last season.

Billy O’Gurek is now a second-year head coach at Marian Catholic, a tradition-rich program that owns a state championship.

The mentor is juiced for the season to begin.

“You can’t go to too many places in Pennsylvania and see this type of operation,” said O’Gurek said, who is adding a new title as the school’s athletic director. “This only helps to promote Schuylkill County teams. This is the kickoff and it is hard to believe that it starts next week already.

“Our guys are ready, they’ve been working to this point. When you get to this day, you know it’s coming.”

Yup coach, it has arrived.

So for football players and coaches, it’s time to put the swimsuits away, and store the paddle boards and inner tubes in the rafters. High school football has arrived.