Conference media days are, in a word, celebrations. The lighthearted happiness fills summer doldrums with the boilerplate quotes of unbridled optimism and joy, but the players and coaches who attend the activities are loaded with the fun banter and conversation associated with the start of a new season. As the saying goes, hope springs eternal, and anyone watching these events receives first class tickets to the occasional viral quote, while wetting their appetite for a new season.
The delight offers a cooling remedy for an outside world rocked more recently by triple digit heat indexes. The dank humidity and screaming air conditioning - staples during the unbearable end of July - crack before the autumn winds shatter their way into our lives, and the glorious moment rolls baseball season's interminable, dreamy pastime directly into the rugged arena of football's gridiron.