I’ve had HBO since 2005 but really don’t watch it a lot. I got it originally for “The Sopranos,” but it mostly just serves as a means to watch a movie on demand when I have some time to kill. That looks like it will change this fall.

The HBO series “Hard Knocks” is set to feature the Cincinnati Bengals training camp this season.

Wow. There is plenty of drama out of the Bengals every year, be it from Chad Johnson Ochocinco or a random player getting arrested, the Bengals never fail to create quality news. If one team can possibly live up to the “get your popcorn ready” fun factor of last year’s Cowboys and Terrell Owens, it’s the Cincinnati Bengals.

That’s probably because the Bengals have lacked maturity in recent years:

[Marvin] Lewis said he had been approached in seasons past, but didn’t think the Bengals were mature enough. He’s not worried about the camera giving an artificial hue to the most important part of the season.

At any rate, I’m excited. The Bengals are getting some national exposure and for once it’s not undeniably negative. I’ve been to Georgetown, KY for training camp before (and to Wilmington, OH in the old days). With “Hard Knocks” in town, I may have to make another trip down this offseason.

In related news:

• James Walker ominously discusses the “Hard Knocks” curse.
• In Bengals news, former Bengal great Willie Anderson has retired.
• Cincinnati is one of the top ten cities for new grads.
• Remember Chris Benoit (a wrestler/murder with an autobiographical DVD titled “Hard Knocks”)? His former doctor, Phil Astin, was sentenced to ten years in prison.