THOMASVILLE – A key date in the season of Georgia High School Association (GHSA) football teams occurs Monday, Aug. 1. That’s the date set aside for teams to strap on full pads and hit for the first time.

After summer workouts and team camps where shorts and helmets were common, the time to don the full gear is upon teams like the Thomasville Bulldogs. First-year head coach Jonathan DeLay talked about his team practicing for the first time this fall.

“There will be a lot of enthusiasm that day because we’ll finally get to put the pads back on,” DeLay said. “That’s one thing at Thomasville you don’t have to worry about is kids being physical. That first day in pads is usually one of those where at some point you have to go, ‘Okay, that’s enough.’ They will be chomping at the bit.

“That’s what is exciting, to see the excitement in the kids; ‘Hey man, we’ve got pads on today. We get to go and be physical. We get to go run and hit something, not just in shorts and a helmet.’”

This week is declared as acclimation week by the GHSA as players get acclimated to the heat.

Thomasville will play at Valdosta on Aug. 12 in its preseason scrimmage. The Bulldogs will open the regular season on Aug. 19 at Brooks County.