A GRIP ON SPORTS • Saturday morning is here. The best four or five hours of every week. This Saturday includes a lot of sunshine. Which carries possibilities. And responsibilities. Read on.

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• Look outside. If you’ve seen a nicer day on tap this year, I don’t want to hear about it. And, if you live in the Midwest and South, sorry. Not just about the weather. (Insert rim shot here.) The Inland Northwest is going to be special today. Like it was yesterday. So I don’t want to take up too much of your time. You want to get out in the backyard and start digging around in the dirt. It was fun when we were 5, right? Now it’s called “yard work.” Or maybe you want to pull the bike off the garage ceiling and take off down the road. It was fun when we were 5, right? Now it’s called “cardio.” Or maybe you want to grab the kids, pile into the car, drive to the park and kick the soccer ball around. It was fun when we wee 5, right? Now it’s called “parenting.” Why in the heck did we take all the joys of our youth and turn them into a responsibility? Just so we could feel like we are accomplishing something on sunny days? OK then. Get out in it. But only after you check out the links.

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• WSU: There is football practice this morning in Pullman. Practice all over the country, actually. Jacob Thorpe examines a dozen other colleges and what they are trying to accomplish this spring. They all have one thing in common. They play Washington State next season. ... The baseball team pounded the ball and pounded Arizona State last night. Jacob was there and has this story. ... Track season is in full swing. ... It’s Saturday alright. And that means we have the mailbag from ESPN.com’s Pac-12 blog to pass along. It has a WSU answer included. ... The NCAA Final Four is this weekend in Indianapolis. The women’s Final Four. The one with Pac-12 teams in it. Northwest Pac-12 teams. Washington and Oregon State. How did that happen? Hard work, mostly.

• Gonzaga: The NCAA’s director of officiating called Mark Few recently. I'm guessing to apologize. It seems most of us watching on TV knew the 10-second rule better than the three guys working the Zags’ game against Syracuse. That’s sad. ... The women's basketball team is looking forward, not back. According to Jim Allen's story, the cupboard should be pretty full next season. ... The baseball team opened a road series with Pacific with a win. ... Portland fired a good basketball coach recently and hired a guy who has been trying to get a college head coaching job for years. Will Terry Porter be able to succeed at Portland?

• EWU: Eastern Washington held its pro day yesterday and Jim has a story about it.

• Empire: The Empire struck ... no, I’m not using a Star Wars reference. Yes, you’re welcome. They did win last night, though, defeating Iowa 54-51 at the Arena. Jim Meehan has the story and Colin Mulvany the photographs.

• Chiefs: The Chiefs have a new hope (has that for sneaking in a Stars Wars reference in the next paragraph?) after skating past Victoria in Canada. The 4-1 win means there will be another game in Spokane. ...  Portland was swept out of the first round of the WHL playoffs. Yesterday the coach was swept out of town.

• Seahawks: The Hawks needed depth on the defensive front line so they brought back a wily veteran who has had success here before, Chris Clemons. ... The offseason workout dates are set.

• Mariners: You ready for the regular season to begin? Well, if you aren’t, these stories, from the Times’ Ryan Divish, should get you in the right mindset. He covers everything from the front office to the back of the bullpen. ... The roster is about set, even if you aren’t set for the opener. ... The M's win? Nope. But they didn't lose either.

• Sounders: If the Sounders lose today, changes may be coming. ... Jordan Morris wasn’t happy to miss his last shot at the Olympics. It’s showing.

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• Get. Get out the door. Enjoy the day. Live dangerously. Climb a mountain. At least walk around Costco or something. Until later ...

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