The lies the men in blazers told us …
A GRIP ON SPORTS
Is even the specter of the college football playoffs ruining the regular season? Ha. Read on.
• For years and years those in powerful positions told us lies. No, we're not talking about politics or the government. We're talking about the bowl representatives. Remember how they told us a college football playoff would devalue the regular season? How the October and November games would lose their luster because everyone would focus on January? (And, they quietly added, how it would hurt the bowls?) Liars. Have you been watching college football this year? Me too. Even more so than usual. I watch SEC games to see which overrated team will almost lose to another overrated team. I watch Pac-12 games to see which home team will kick away another win. Heck, for the first time since 1964, I'm even really interested in Notre Dame. All of those things will affect the football playoffs this season. And the narratives. Wow. Is the SEC West better than the NFC West? Is Baylor – Baylor? – really good enough to play for the national title? Can anyone from the Big Ten rise from the pile of Midwestern slop and be in the Final Four? What will cause Jameis Winston's next suspension? If Oregon's offensive line is healthy, will it ever lose? But all this was supposed to disappear with the coming of a playoff. We were told people would build a cocoon in September and only break out of it in December or so. But, if anything, the conversation has gotten louder. Take perennial power USC for instance. The Trojans lost at Boston College early on. A death blow, right? Due to the loss, they should be insignificant in the national title picture. But they aren't. Somehow they are still in the running. At the very least, they have a hand in deciding who will be the last quartet. How often in the past has a Notre Dame visit to Los Angeles in November had an effect on the national title? Yep, a lot. And this year it will be the same. It's a minefield out there. Mississippi State at Alabama. Baylor at Oklahoma. Michigan State at Michigan. Notre Dame at Florida State. Washington at Oregon. And on and on. So much for the regular-season-devaluation theory. If anything, this time of year is even more important. One misstep doesn't end hope, it just kicks in the desperation. And the conversation.
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• WSU: The Cougars aren't in the college football playoff conversation, but like every other power five conference school, they may have a say in who is. But not this week. This week they have a bye. Jacob Thorpe, however, doesn't take a bye from his Pac-12 notebook. Or his power rankings. Or his morning post today. He will also hold a live chat today. ... ESPN.com's Pac-12 blog has some numbers concerning this weekend and quarterback rankings. ... It's Wednesday, so there are a few conference-centric notebooks out there. The subject of the week? The poor record of Pac-12 schools in conference home games (4-14). ... Finally, I couldn't agree more with this Bud Withers' column. Let's hope Bud's words reach commissioner Larry Scott and he has an epiphany. Maybe then the curtain will part and we can see the sausage being made (and yes, I was going for a world record in mixed metaphors, one-sentence division). By the way, here is the Mike Pereira piece Bud refers to.
• Gonzaga: Jim Allen has his college soccer notebook today and it focuses on the area teams who have to regroup a bit, including the Zags.
• EWU: Thanks to injuries, coach Beau Baldwin has had to delve deep into his roster to keep the Eagles humming. As Jim's story today shows, that's been working. ... Weber State is going to honor one of its best quarterbacks ever.
• Idaho: The Vandals are actually going to be playing in Moscow this Saturday. And they actually have a shot to end the nation's longest losing streak. It is homecoming, after all. John Blanchette has more in this blog post.
• Shock: Another week, another star leaving Spokane for a bigger market. Jim Meehan has a story and blog post on Terrance Sanders (pictured) bolting Spokane for Jacksonville. I wonder if there is any correlation between the change in ownership, now headed into its second season, and the loss of the higher profile players.
• Chiefs: Spokane won a shootout last night, defeating Seattle on the road, 3-2. The Chiefs also apologized publicly for an incident last Friday during the national anthem. The latter piece of news leads Chris Derrick's WHL notebook. ... An Everett player won the league's player of the week award for the second time in three weeks.
• Preps: Yes, the postseason is already upon us. Greg Lee covered a district title soccer match in Idaho yesterday. ... We can also offer a roundup of other prep action.
• Seahawks: With all the hand-wringing after the Cowboy loss, this Sunday's game at St. Louis has seemed to be forgotten a bit. If the Hawks are still looking back – I don't know if they are, but it seems a bit like it – then one loss can turn into two. ... The offense needs to get back to basics and hit on all cylinders. (From a trash-bag full of mixed metaphors to a pocketful of clichés; we're on a roll.) ... How about a bit more tackling? ... Seattle made a roster move yesterday. However, this guy isn't coming to town anytime soon.
• Sounders: The big news coming out of Seattle yesterday? A minor league team. Really? Doesn't get my blood racing, that's for sure. ... This weekend match with L.A. does, though, and Clint Dempsey and DeAndre Yedlin will be there after playing for the national team last night.
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• OK, that's it. We're closer to next weekend than last. At least we will be sometime today. Until later ...
