Well, it’s here – the month of August. We ‘ve gone through the only non-high school game month of the year, July, and now the countdown to the end of the summer begins.

Sad, isn’t it? But there will be some key August dates you’ll want to keep in mind, locally, regionally, and nationally, so let’s walk you through a few:

WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 7

Now, Nashua’s Coffey Post won’t be competing, but the Senior American Legion Northeast Regionals will be held at Gill Stadium in Manchester beginning on this date and going through the weekend. We’ll see if Portsmouth’s Booma Post can go through this gauntlet and head to the World Series in Shelby, N.C. Anyway, if you’re looking for postseson baseball nearby, head to Gill.

THURSDAY, AUGUST 8

Are you ready for some football? You better be, as the New England Patriots will host the Carolina Panthers at Gillette Stadium at 7 p.m.for their first of two preseason home games, as they play only three (the format ever since the NFL a

SATURDAY, AUGUST 10

Get in that Olympic spirit as this is the date of the Men’s Basketball Gold Medal game in Paris. The U.S. certainly should be there with all its talent, and should also come away with the gold. But then again, as they say, that’s why they play the games.

This is also the day of a possible final deciding game of the FCBL finals, as the playoffs start on August 5 with semifinals, best two out of three, and if everything goes the distance, Saturday the 10th will be it. Nashua is not going to be there, but we’ll see who will.

SUNDAY, AUG. 11

This will be the date of the women’s Olympics Gold Medal Game, and you have to figure the U.S.should be in great shape to capture that as well.

And, of course, this will be the day of the Olympics closing ceremonies in Paris.

THURSDAY, AUGUST 15

The Patriots will have their second preseason game – the last one at home – vs. the Philadelphia Eagles at 7 p.m. It’ll be interesting if this one is the dress rehearsal for the starters.

This is also the first day of a four-game weekend Red Sox series at Baltimore, which as of this writing was atop the American League East and pretty much considered the division favorite. Camden Yards has always been a favorite spot for Red Sox fans to travel to, and when the Orioles were a losing team at times it seemed like a Red Sox home away from home game. That may not be the case this time, but there will be a lot of New Englanders there, to be sure.

FRIDAY, AUGUST 16

Some may feel this is the most important date in August – the first day high school football teams are allowed to hold official practices. There have been captains practices, or skills/fitness sessions (no equipment whatsoever), but this time everyone shows up and takes the field. And three weeks later, on Thursday-Friday-Saturday Sept. 5-7, the season begins, but we’re getting ahead of ourselves.

MONDAY, AUGUST 19

All the other high school sports will now get into the act, as practices will begin for soccer, golf, field hockey, volleyball, you name it. They are allowed to start practices on this day, so check with your favorite school to see what teams start official preseason practices when.

SUNDAY, AUGUST 25

The Patriots will wind up the preseason at the Washington Commanders in Landover, MD. in a national TV game at 8 p.m. Should be interesting, for about 10 minutes. No one of any consequence will be playing in this one.

TUESDAY, AUGUST 27

This is Coach Wants to See You, Bring Your Playbook Day. Words that no one on the bubble of making an NFL team wants to hear. They all have to be down to 53 players by 4 p.m. Will the Patriots cut anyone of consequence? We’ll see.

WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 28

The high school season officially begins as Division I golf teams can hit the links for regular season matches. Some play Wednesday, some on Thursday, and the other Divisions mainly start the following week. It is underway.

THURSDAY, AUGUST 29

Ready for soccer? The high school soccer season starts on this date, and the Nashua South boys open with a chance to avenge their tourney ouster in last year’s quarterfinals, facing the team (with changes, of course) that dethroned them last year, the new Division I defending champion Bedford at Stellos Stadium. Should be fun.

There’s your August, folks. Enjoy, but try to squeeze in the golf and the beach since it’s still summer, OK?

Tom King can be reached at tking@nashuatelegraph.com, or on X, formerly known as twitter, @Telegraph _TomK.