An early start to college football’s Saturday
A GRIP ON SPORTS
I hope the bacon is already cooking. The pancake batter better be mixed and ready to go. And the oranges cut in half, waiting to be squeezed. Why? The Cougar game is about ready to start. Brunch before the game or lunch at halftime? You decide. Read on.
• It's not often you get the chance to wake up early, prepare breakfast and watch Washington State play football. Usually the Cougar game is on after lunch or sometime around dessert. Not today. The desert battle kicks off at 11 a.m. in Tempe, which, thanks to the magic of time zones, means a 10 a.m. start here in Eastern Washington. Heck, the sun's not even up as I write this and I do believe the radio coverage is about to start. Not that I'm complaining. No, sir. Early games mean a full afternoon of "me" time, though my evening can't begin until after the postgame call-in show. And considering the Cougars' recent history in Tempe, I'm afraid there could be some upset Coug fans. The last five time WSU has ventured into the Greater Phoenix area to play the Sun Devils, it has yielded at least 31 points. And it has yet to score more than 28. Needless to say, the Cougars haven't won any of them. Doesn't matter who the head coach is or was, WSU has lost. In 2004 and 2006, under Bill Doba, there were 45-28 and 47-17 losses, respectively. Paul Wulff's teams failed to score in Sun Devil Stadium, losing 31-0 in 2008 and 42-0 in 2010. In Mike Leach's first try (pictured), WSU lost 46-7. If there is a house of horrors for Washington State these days, it is located in Tempe. So the early start might just be a good thing. Shake it up and all that. The oddsmakers don't think so, however. They have installed the Sun Devils as a 16-point favorite. Looking back at the last five games, I would be tempted to give the points and take ASU. But I'm not a betting man. Unless it's on whether I can down my scrambled eggs before halftime. Take the under.
• The Eastern Washington Eagles won their third consecutive Big Sky football title last night in a rainy and windy Portland. Somehow, the crowd was announced at more than 4,000, though TV images seemed to show less than 500 in the stands. (I paused one long shot and counted what I could see; it was easy to do.) No matter how many people were in Providence Park to see it, what Eastern accomplished is pretty remarkable. The Big Sky has always been dominated by the Montana schools, whose resources and fan bases have given them a huge edge over the years. But now you would have to include the Eagles in the mix every season. The title – Eastern and Montana State can tie atop the standings but the league includes non-conference meetings in its head-to-head tiebreakers, so EWU has that going for it – earns the Eagles the conference's automatic berth in the FCS playoffs. As one of the nation's better teams, also expect Eastern to be given a high seed and a first-round bye. Then look for it to host a second-round game in early December. The playoff pairings will be announced Sunday.
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• WSU: While Jacob Thorpe is in Tempe eating In-N-Out and enjoying the 70-degree weather, the Cougar basketball team was opening its home season with an 80-68 win over Idaho State. Sean Kramer, who filled in for Jacob, also has this blog post. ... Jacob has his usual Saturday morning items – you better get to them quick – including an advance, keys to the game and probable lineups for Washington State and Arizona State. Finally, Jacob has his morning post with links. ... ESPN.com's Pac-12 blog has its usual mailbag. ... Forget four teams. We need an eight-team playoff.
• Gonzaga: The men will host a Division II school in the Kennel tonight. Jim Meehan has an advance. Expect another win. ... The women went on the road to Bozeman, Mont., last night, started 17-0 and blew past Montana State, 89-60.
• EWU: Jim Allen was among the wet and wind-blown in Portland last night and he has this game story. ... Montana and Montana State still have the most intense rivalry in the Big Sky. ... Weber State tries to continue a modest two-game winning streak. ... Southern Utah would just like to earn a win in a season short of them.
• Chiefs: The Chiefs headed across the mountains last night and earned a 2-1 win against Seattle. ... Portland also posted a road victory, 4-3 in Kelowna. ... Victoria handed Everett a 3-1 defeat. ... The Tri-City Americans made another roster change.
• Preps: The playoffs continued despite last night's wet weather, with Central Valley earning a second consecutive trip to the 4A soccer finals, where the Bears will face Jackson for the title today. ... Lakeside dropped a 1-0 decision in the 1A semis. ... In football, Republic routed Cusick 68-13 – Chris Derrick has the story and Jesse Tinsley has these photographs – while Lind-Ritzville/Sprague edged Waitsburg-Prescott 17-14 – Greg Lee has the story.
• Seahawks: There are two main themes from yesterday concerning the Hawks: Pete Carroll professed his undying love for Marshawn Lynch, whom he wants around as long as possible; and other than the two men in the middle of the offense (Max Unger) and defense (Brandon Mebane), the Hawks are about as healthy as they've been in a while. ... Ricardo Lockette was hit with a fine for a hit in Kansas City. ... You have questions about the Cardinals? Here are some answers. ... There is still everything to play for.
• Mariners: The Rays have whittled their managerial choices to three folks. Two of them have strong Seattle connections.
• Sounders: The conference semifinals, which begin this weekend in Los Angeles, feature two coaches who have a long history with each other. ... Health is still a bit of a worry for the Sounders, though Leo Gonzales seems to be fine.
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• Hope this was posted early enough for you to finish before the WSU kickoff. I practiced my best Ben Franklin advice to make that happen – and hopefully I'll also be healthy, wealthy and wise. Until later ...
