WHAT’S CAUSING ALL THIS? | One question: Are you ready?

I feel a little bit like Triple H.

You guys know who Triple H is?

He’s a former professional wrestler, now an executive with WWE. But in his day, he came to the ring, and he had one question for the crowd. He would take the microphone, lower his voice, and after a long, dramatic pause, he’d simply ask:

“Are you ready?”

When the crowd predictably started getting louder, he would repeat it, but much louder, usually with the city before his question, like this: “Kilgore, Texas: ARE. YOU. READY?!”

If you take one look at the ETBlitz.com / Energy Weldfab Scoreboard (do it here: Energy Weldfab / ETBLITZ.com Scoreboard! | High school baseball season starts Monday), you’ll see all sorts of things: high school girls and boys basketball playoff games coming up, the second round of high school soccer’s district schedule, Kilgore College’s basketball schedule (men’s and women’s), KC softball, and now – added to the mix – high school baseball, softball, golf and track.

I have people every year, usually in September, sometimes October, to ask me if I need a break because football season, with volleyball and fall tennis and cross country, is just too overwhelming.

Guys, the fall schedule is a walk in the park compared to this!

But it’s fun!

We have so much happening. Just look:

• KC men’s and women’s basketball are both red-hot! That’s what our KC guy, Shawn Christopher, tells me, but he doesn’t HAVE to tell me this: the basketball Rangers have won six straight games, all in the Region XIV Conference, most recently a 75-72 home game over Paris on Saturday. They’re 10-5 in conference play, probably the most difficult or second-most difficult JUCO basketball conference in the country. They’re 10-2 at home, 20-6 overall, and they’ve got Tyler coming here on Wednesday. There’s a countdown clock on the KC men’s schedule on kcrangernation.com, the KC athletics website. We should pack that gym. I may give Shawn the night off and be there myself!

The Lady Rangers have lost two of their last three, but are still 8-3 in conference play, even after a 97-94 home loss to Panola College on Saturday. They’re off this Wednesday – Wednesday is just the men vs. Tyler – but they’re back next Saturday against Paris and they’ve got five games left before the end of the season and the conference tournament.

• The high school basketball playoffs are cookin.’ The girls are already in round two statewide, and the guys start the playoffs this week. Again, look at the scoreboard for everything, it’s really thorough.

But in girls round two locally, you’ve got coach Patricia Nelson’s Tatum Lady Eagles, taking no prisoners and in the state rankings all season, hosting Queen City right over here in Tatum on Monday night at 6:30. Nelson, who once coached at Kilgore in the early 2000s, has the Lady Eagles flying, no pun intended. They are 29-1 on the season (the one loss? To East Bernard on Dec. 27).

Among boys first-round games: Kilgore is facing Palestine on Tuesday at 6 p.m. in Cushing; Sabine, who went unbeaten to win the District 16-3A championship and hasn’t lost in weeks, will take on Arp at UT-Tyler on Tuesday at 8 p.m.; Troup is facing Daingerfield at Pine Tree High on Tuesday at 6 p.m.; Overton is the late game, taking on Union Grove at 8 p.m. Tuesday night at Pine Tree; and Tatum meets White Oak, although we need details on that one.

It’ll all culminate at the University Interscholastic League’s State Basketball Tournaments at The Alamodome in San Antonio: the girls playing March 3-5, the boys March 7-9.

• Have ‘ya looked at our soccer reports lately? In this area, we’ve got coach Hector Peralez’s Kilgore Bulldogs, who are 14-0-2 and cruising, ranked second in the state in the Texas coaches poll. The Henderson and Kilgore girls, who are vying for that District 15-4A championship and the only district loss between ‘em is when Henderson beat Kilgore by a goal a couple of weeks ago.

Sabine’s boys are also state-ranked, with only the loss to Kilgore, and Sabine’s girls usually find their way into the playoffs; the same with the Henderson boys. The second round of district play (all of them are in the same district) is under way, and just a head’s up: Kilgore’s teams face Center this Tuesday. Kilgore’s boys visit Center, and the girls host Center. The last time Kilgore’s boys played Center this season, it ended with Kilgore winning in overtime.

• High school baseball officially begins Monday, and there are some great matchups early, then everyone hits their tournament schedules hard. Right here at Driller Park on Monday: Kilgore hosts Sabine (says 4 p.m. on the newest schedule) and both of those teams have had big moments the last few years: Sabine had its best season in program history two years ago, and Kilgore always has a good playoff run – and now coach Eugene Lafitte is back. Lafitte got the Bulldogs to the doorstep of the state tournament in 2018, then actually got them there the following year. When I found out Lafitte was back, I found him and told him how glad I was (when you see him, ask him!). That’s not a reflection on anyone, other than I’m simply glad to see the return of a gentleman who is a phenomenal baseball coach.
• Softball is started: just about every ETBlitz.com-area softball team is now in tournament play, or will be this coming week. And track Thursdays begin this coming week, as well.

So, I’ll repeat myself, like Triple H.

Are you ready?

Ready or not, the busiest athletic period of the 2023-24 school year is upon us. Let’s have some fun.