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The Spokesman-Review Newspaper
Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883

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It’s April? No foolin’?

COUGARS

FROM PULLMAN -- Can't believe April is already here. As an April Fool's joke, I'm not going to pay my rent today. Isn't that hilarious?

...

A college instructor of mine always began Day 1 of his journalism course with a lecture about why April Fool's jokes in the newspaper are a bad idea. I realized, after a bit, that he was right, so we won't bother with a farce as we jump straight into some real, genuine news. ... So March, basketball season and the first third of WSU's spring football practices are behind us. Huh. Seemed to all happen at once. WSU conducted its fifth practice of the spring and first scrimmage on Saturday, spending the second half of practice running 42 or so plays at Martin Stadium. We wrote this story for the newspaper, along with this blog post with some more notes, video and scrimmage stats. ... More details of Ryan Leaf's arrest emerged yesterday, and we wrote this story for the newspaper after speaking with the authorities in Montana. This AP story includes the news that this may not have been an isolated incident. ... Brian Floyd has this practice recap at CougCenter.

Around the Pac-12 ... Arizona made some big plays, both offensively and defensively, in its scrimmage Saturday. An Arizona-bound hoopster is used to traveling. ... Arizona State looked about as expected in its first scrimmage. ... Washington feels empty after a disappointing basketball season. The Huskies are excited about their new football coaching staff. ... Jim Mora is enjoying his new life at UCLA. ... USC's backup quarterbacks are earning the trust of Lane Kiffin. There are plenty of highights at the Trojans' practices, but not on the field. ...  A story about Utah's wildcard linebacker. ... Ryan Thorburn thinks Tad Boyle pushed all the right buttons during Colorado's run to the NCAA tournament this season. ... Oregon opens spring practices with high expectations, as usual. Previewing the Ducks' linebackers. ... And Oregon State's linebackers. ... One way Oregon and Oregon State can improve their programs? Keep the best talent in-state.

That's all for now. We'll be back later with our video interview of the day, which features running back Marcus Mason.

Christian Caple can be reached at christianc@spokesman.com. Twitter: @ChristianCaple



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