October is here. If I were to rank the months, October would be near the top. It is a fun month. 

Prep football is in full force with several games having big implications riding on the outcome. A certain crisp enters the air on a more regular basis. It is the first month you can really tell that fall is upon us.

The leaves begin to turn colors as does other foliage in the area. October can be and often is one of the prettiest months of the year.

If it just wasn’t a dog gone election year. The candidate signs kind of take away from some of that beauty.

Then there is Halloween. Decorating the house, buying candy, eating candy, dressing up. How much fun is that? 

Prep thoughts

I’m still trying to get a good grasp on the playoff formula for Great Bend and Class 5A football. I know it is the overall record first in seeding with margin of victory second, up to 21 points per game. That much I get. But unlike the district setup, the strength of schedule is not equal among the 16 teams on each half of the state.

Nonetheless, I keep looking at standings and possible matchups for the Panthers to start the post season. With three weeks left, it looks like the chances are good Great Bend will host a Salina team, Topeka West, Newton or Goddard Eisenhower to start the playoffs. 

It is in the second round things might get fun. How about a second round battle with former coach Tony Crough and Andover. Right now that would be the case. The game would be right here in Great Bend. That would be a fun game, huh?

There is a lot of football left between now and the post season. A lot could change. We will keep an eye on things.

Former Barton athlete/coach update

At the Mike has kept up with the success of former Barton volleyball coach and current KU coach Ray Bechard. This time we will take some space to talk about his son, Brennan Bechard. Bechard played basketball for one year at Barton before transferring to KU where he was a preferred walk-on for the Jayhawks basketball team for three seasons.

After graduation, Bechard stayed on the staff, first as graduate student manager and now as Director of Basketball Operations. Saturday night at Late Night in the Phog, he cost Coach Bill Self $10,000. It was the second straight year he did so.

But it was in a good way. You see, every year two students are selected and if they, or someone they select, hits a half-court shot, Coach Self writes them a personal check for $10,000. Independence sophomore Jordan Stiers selected Bechard. After one warm up (which counts if it is made), Bechard drained the half-court shot sending Allen Field House into a frenzy. After two straight years, the pressure next year will be large.

The referee house

Every year football officials have three meetings they have to attend. Rules meetings take place around the state during the month of August. KSHSAA football administrator Mark Lentz travels the state to run these. To be a certified official, you must attend this meeting. Recently the state started having on-line rules meetings every other year.

In addition there are a pair of area meetings run by an area supervisor each year. The first meeting takes place the week before the season starts. This meeting many times doesn’t bring much substance except to rehash some of what was discussed at the rules meetings. 

The second meeting, the last week of September, is generally a very informative meeting. Officials are able to cuss and discuss some of the situations that have taken place up to that point of the season as well as some other things the state wants to emphasize.

And finally

It’s been a while since we touched on fashion. I gave you my At the Mike tips to start the summer off right. I hope all you proudly wore your crocs and blacks socks all summer long. I know I did. 

First we will address this white after Labor Day thing. I would like to know who made that rule. That is like saying it’s not okay to have a Farrah Fawcett rug hanging on your wall in the basement. That’s just silly. Of course it okay. Just be careful when eating mashed potatoes and gravy in that white shirt.

How about wearing a collared shirt with sweats? It this okay? Absolutely. I would advise you to wear your dress pants. A collared shirt goes nicely with them. You can even wear your crocs with those sweats and collared shirts.

Just in case you are curious, yes you may also wear a sweater with your sweats. Flannel shirts as well. Crocs still go well with both.

How about wearing a button shirt under that sweater? That, too, it okay. After all, layers help keep you warm in the cooler weather. You can even wear the collar up on the button shirt if you choose.

So there you have some fall fashion tips. Stay stylish. 

Mike Marzolf is a guest columnist for the Great Bend Tribune and his views don’t necessarily reflect those of the paper. He can be reached at MarzolfM@bartonccc.edu.