Cardinals and Tigers and Eagles open their 2008 football seasons this weekend

What seems to be a later start for the high school teams also seems to be an earlier start for the university squad as local football gets going this weekend.

Taylor County High School begins its 2008 season tomorrow night at home vs. Monroe County.

The Cardinals looked as if they were going to get blown out in Tompkinsville last year, but the Falcons had five fumble exchanges at center and Taylor County won the 2007 opener.

Coach Rodney Turpin's club should go 7-3, maybe 8-2, during regular-season play.

However, the district and regional titles will still go through Somerset. But, with several key additions, TCHS has a better than 50-50 chance to grab its second regional crown.

Campbellsville University kicks off the Perry Thomas era at home on Saturday vs. Cumberland (Tenn.) University.

With the addition of many new players, the Fighting Tigers should be improved from last season, but talks of a .500 or better record might be stretching it.

A 3-8 mark would be improvement, a 4-7 record would be much improved and anything above that would be a great turnaround campaign for CU.

Campbellsville High School is the last of the locals to open up and has the toughest debut, visiting Class A state runner-up Lexington Christian.

The schedule, the toughest of any area team, also includes cross-town rival Taylor County next week plus battles with Green County, Danville, Marion County and Glasgow and tough district tilts with Lynn Camp and Williamsburg.

A 5-5 season against that tough slate would not be too shabby and could also precede a couple or three play-off wins and a legitimate chance at the school's third regional football title.

Green County, which opens with a tough Hazard team on Saturday, again appears as the top team in the area.

Kentucky and Louisville play on Sunday afternoon in a game that has to be considered a toss-up.

Make it U of L 21-17, and eight wins in the last 10 years for the Cardinals.

Also, for the season, the crystal ball sees Louisville going 7-5 (other victories over Tennessee Tech, Kansas State, Connecticut, Memphis, Middle Tennessee and Syracuse) and the Wildcats 6-6 (with wins over Norfolk State, Middle Tennessee, Western Kentucky, Arkansas or South Carolina (but not both), Mississippi State and Vanderbilt).

UNBELIEVEABLE: I said when I started doing all-time lists, there was no reason I couldn't adjust them.

I did get several calls and e-mails about who readers thought should have made the lists.

But when I started whittling my lists to a manageable number, while I did have him on my athletes' list, I very erroneously left off a very deserving football player.

Two of my best friends told me I had left him off and I didn't believe either until I went back and saw in print myself that I had royally goofed up.

I knew when I started this task, it would be one where I would make mistakes.

However, there's no way you could list the Taylor County all-time football greats and not list the leader and outstanding quarterback for the 1999 regional championship team.

I don't know how I did it, and you can bet it wasn't intentional, but BRANDON GUPTON has to make any list of all-time Taylor County High School football greats.

He is, more than likely, the best passing quarterback in Cardinal gridiron history.

And, while I'm wiping egg off my face, add to my list the name of ALLAN SMITH, a great Taylor County wide receiver and former first-team all-stater.