Random Thoughts: wiffleball, football

SCOTT TRUXELL/independent sports editor

This week’s edition of Random Thoughts centers around the return of wiffleball in Wren, the start of the 2021 high school football season, intriguing matchups, Pigskin Pick’E and the life of an independent team.

Welcome back

After being called off last year due to COVID-19, the Wren Wiffleball tournament and festival returns this week in the official Wiffleball Capital of Ohio.

This year will mark the 29th annual event and it’s a welcome site to see, and it’s nice to see the finishing touches being put on Wrenway Park for this year’s games.

Good luck to each of the teams participating in this year’s tournament.

Football

The 2020 high school football season begins this week, a week earlier than previous years due to the expanded OHSAA playoffs.

Things will get underway Thursday night with an intriguing matchup between Shawnee and Lima Central Catholic. The bulk of games will be played on Friday night, then Delphos St. John’s and Delphos Jefferson will meet on the new turf at Stadium Park on Saturday night.

Best of luck to all area teams.

Week No. 1

Some other new area matchups that caught my eye: Marion Local at Wapakoneta, Spencerville at Elida and Columbus Grove at Pandora-Gilboa.

I’m all for tradition but it’s also nice to see some different matchups dot the Week No. 1 non-conference schedule.

Predictions

The first Pigskin Pick’Em feature of the 2021 season will appear on Thursday’s Sports page. Check back to see which area teams are predicted to win, then compare them with your own thoughts and selections.

More predictions

Speaking of predictions, there was good response to last week’s preseason football picks for the Northwest Conference and Western Buckeye League.

Fans are passionate about their teams which is nice to see. Some agreed with the picks and some disagreed, which is fine. They’re educated guesses, but so many things can happen to alter the course of events during any season.

It’s always fun to make predictions, then go back and compare them to the actual final standings at the end of the regular season.

30 percent

Due to the early start and the fact that Labor Day seems to be late this year, 30 percent of the high school football regular season will be played before Labor Day.

The life of an independent

With no conference or league affiliation, this is Lima Central Catholic’s varsity football schedule this year: home games against Spencerville, Worthington Christian and Fort Loramie, plus a game against Beverly Fort Frye at a neutral site, London High School.

Other road trips for the Thunderbirds this season will be to Delphos St. John’s, Willard, Licking Valley and Galion.

It’s safe to say it’s a wide and varied schedule and it’s difficult to find games once conference and league games are underway. Plus, some schools shy away from successful programs like Lima Central Catholic.

As always, if you have thoughts or comments on any of the above topics, feel free to email me at sports@thevwindependent.com.