Saturday will be a special day in Selma. Hundreds of football players will participate in Selma Recreation Department’s 2015 opening day.

The day is a happy and bright scene — every jersey color imaginable will fill up Memorial Stadium for the festivities.

Last season saw 20 teams in the league. That record has now been broken with 26 teams this year.

The program has grown leaps and bounds over the years. When football director Terry Jackson started on the job in 1998, there were just six teams.

That’s a credit to Jackson and the entire department. It’s no small task to oversee registration, plan practices and schedules, deal with coaches and mommas and daddies, but they do a great job every season.

Youth football is a great activity for our young people. It teaches the value of hard work, commitment and teamwork — traits these players will benefit from the rest of their lives.

We wish all the teams the best of luck as the season begins and look forward to covering your games in the weeks ahead.

However the season ends up, we are all winners for having such a successful league in our city.