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

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I come bearing links

From Spokane -- Hello there, Coug fans! You may have noticed that at the top of the page it doesn't say, "Christian Caple." That's because I am not, in fact, Christian Caple. I'm his replacement, the guy who will take over his beat covering WSU football, basketball, etc. His loss. I've taken a pit stop on the road to Pullman to immerse myself in one of life's great treasures: New Hire Paperwork. But that doesn't mean I don't have time to pass along the daily links from around the Pac-12, and introduce myself, I suppose.

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Washington State fans and alumni work a little harder than most. When over half the seats in the stadium are filled with butts that had to travel four-plus hours to get to the game, you don’t need to question the size of their fanhood. Pullman’s isolation begets dedication, and that kind of devotion deserves equally enthusiastic media coverage.

It’s through no fault of the reader that we’re having a midseason transition in coverage right as the football season is starting to get juicy, and I’ll do my best to make the shift as seamless as possible. We’ll be bringing you all the same features in print and on the blog as we did before, and adding some fun new things as well.

This is a fresh start and we’re not locked into anything. It’s your blog and I want to know what will make it more enjoyable and informative for you. If you like videos and podcasts great, I’ve done plenty. Or are X’s & O’s breakdowns more your thing? We can do that, too. Unit grades? Position analysis? The world of WSU athletics is your oyster.

But we can handle all that later. Let’s get to those links

WSU: CougCenter's Jeff Nusser has some ideas for improving the Seattle Game ... Mike Leach addressed the media on Monday during his usual press conference.

CAL: The Golden Bears defense gets thinner by the day ... Despite getting benched against Oregon, Jared Goff will likely remain the starter at QB.

Arizona: The Wildcats look to rebound from their first loss of the season ... They'll deal with a hungry USC team.

Arizona State: The Sun Devils have fiery new helmets ... they've been talking about Notre Dame all summer.

Colorado: Paul Richardson is trying to stay patient.

Oregon: Bucky Brooks breaks down Oregon QB Marcus Mariota's NFL prospects ... The BCS favorites are clustered at the top.

Oregon State: Watch out, the OSU offensive line is starting to get healthy ... Sean Mannion and Brandin Cooks are a deadly combination.

Stanford: Obviously, Stanford graded out well following the WSU game.

UCLA: The Bruins have come a long way ... Utah won't surprise UCLA on offense.

USC: Lane Kiffin's firing has jump started the coaching carousel ... Dick Harmon says Kiffin's departure will have far-reaching impacts.

Utah: The Utes need a better home field advantage ... Quarterback Travis Wilson will honor a departed friend when he takes the field on Thursday.

Washington: Head coach Steve Sarkisian deflects USC rumors ... UW is cutting out the distractions as they prepare for Stanford.



Jacob Thorpe
Jacob Thorpe joined The Spokesman-Review in 2013. He currently is a reporter for the Sports Desk covering Washington State University athletics.

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