Let me get this out of the way quickly: I am sorry.

I am issuing a mass apology in advance because I know my limitations and know that no matter how hard I try, this fall season is going to fall short of the normal standards that my father has kept up throughout the years.

I am sorry because I simply know that I am going to fail somebody. There is a horrible Michael Keaton movie from the early '90s called "Multiplicity," where he clones himself over and over again to try to take care of the many issues he has to juggle throughout the day. Right now, cloning sounds like a pretty good idea as with over 20 teams in action starting next week, there is no way that I will please everyone no matter how hard I try.

I am sorry because I know at some point I am going to misspell a player's name. This is the biggest cardinal sin of sports, especially in the high school years as we try to build scrapbooks for kids that they can enjoy when they grow older. That's the last thing I want to do, but human nature dictates mistakes will be made. I will do my best to ensure this doesn't happen, but if it does, accept my apology in advance.

I am sorry because I know some sports are going to be left behind. I have been blessed to have a full-time job that allows me a flexible schedule that will let me get to as many games as possible during the year. We also are lucky to have help from the daily papers who will share their stories to us from time to time, which I am truly

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grateful for. But some team or teams may not get the usual royal treatment my father gives all schools.

I am sorry because sometimes the shoes are too big to fill. Now, I wear a size 13 and have since I was 14 years old and my father only sports a 10.5, but you get what I am saying. My father's desk is littered with rosters, schedules, phone numbers and he has an amazing ability to know exactly where he will be for the next two weeks when he is in the middle of the season. I barely know how to get home sometimes. If something happens and you believe it needs attention, please write us. We are going to do everything in our power to make this season run smoothly, but I can't give the 70 hours a week my father gave to this job. There is simply not enough time in the week.

I am sorry because I have to see my father's face and see how desperate he is to help without the ability to do it. As I explain what is going on to him as far as previews go, I can see a sadness that I am not a big fan of in his eyes. Rarely can a person say they would rather be working than in the comfort of their home, but I know he would give anything to be waking up at 5:15 a.m. to go do the Groton-Dunstable football preview.

I hate apologizing and am as stubborn as they come. I hate admitting I am wrong and rarely will give in during an argument. But I know that I am going to be in the wrong quite a bit this fall.

I am going to get to every game my free time allows me. All I can offer to the four local schools is that I will give as much of my time to them as possible to continue the job my father has so valiantly done for the past 27 years. I know that I can't do as well as my father has done, but I will do as well as I can do.

And if it isn't enough, all I can say is, I am sorry.