ORLANDO, Fla. — Standing on a makeshift football field atop a soundstage in the middle of flashing lights, dancing cheerleaders and screaming fans, Hank Williams, Jr. lifted his cowboy hat and belted out the words that for more than 20 years have become synonymous with the start of the NFL season.

Hank Williams, Jr., the man who popularized the lyrics “Are you ready for some football?” was in Florida on Thursday recording the opening promo an upcoming season that, right now at least, is still in limbo, with owners and players trying to strike a new labor deal.

Williams said he has sympathy for both the fans who are crossing their fingers that the season begins on time and those around the negotiating table. In more than two decades associated with the league, he said he feels like a man in the middle of a fight between his friends.

“We were in there recording the audio and I said, `Why are we doing that, they aren’t gonna play it,”‘ Williams joked. “But I know a lot of people in the football world — the owners, the players, the marketing directors, and some of the great retired (players). So I see where they’re coming from. I said, `Well if we’re going to Orlando to shoot this thing, I guess they’re gonna play.”