A GRIP ON SPORTS • It was cold and wet yesterday. Basketball weather? Sure. But in the midst of March Madness football enters stage left. And so it begins. Read on.

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• The sports year is an eternal circle, isn't it? When one sport dies down, another rises up to take its place. Baseball finishes its Fall Classic and football is in full swing. Football bowls everyone over then basketball jumps in. Basketball starts to slow and baseball travels south for the spring. Over and over again. For decades the rhythm was simple, three sports that covered the entire year. But season creep began long ago and now the overlap is long and tedious. And football, the 800-pound gorilla, sits wherever it wants – as exhibited by spring football beginning this week in the Palouse. Idaho kicks it off today, Washington State takes center stage Thursday. Yes, it is practice, and only practice. But it is football and football is the No. 1 sport in America these days. Oh, sure, football in these parts is nothing like some areas of the country. The WSU spring game in late April won't draw 80,000 folks to Joe Albi as such events will across the South. But for diehard college football fans – and there are quite a few of those in the Northwest – spring football is the beginning of the fall season, a first glint of optimism to hold onto for the summer. There are always questions that have to be answered each spring, position battles that need to be won. This year in Pullman, there are more than usual it seems, what with the turnover on the defensive staff and the graduation of the most prolific passing quarterback in school history. Will Luke Falk (pictured) grab the quarterback job with both hands and never let it go? Will Alex Grinch's first Cougar defense have a different look than its predecessor's? Which player will surprise everyone with his physical transformation? Those and other questions begin to be answered this week.

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• WSU: Jacob Thorpe won't be at the beginning of spring practice tomorrow as he is helping out with the basketball coverage this week. But he does have an advance of the workouts in today's paper, a look at 10 players to watch and a morning post here on the blog. That should get you going. ... Jacob also has his weekly college baseball notebook, which leads with the Cougars' tough road trip. ... Back to football, ESPN.com's Pac-12 blog has a couple of posts, one looking at each coach's best team as well as the trio that will lead each North school's offense. ... Arizona State fired basketball coach Herb Sendek yesterday and Bud Withers has some thoughts on the move. ... The NCAA was forced to release some documents yesterday concerning the USC investigation. It is easy to see why it didn't want the public to read them.

• Gonzaga: Of course the first thing that popped into everyone's mind when Gonzaga earned the right to play UCLA in the Sweet Sixteen was the 2006 game between the schools. Yours too I bet. Jim Meehan talked with some of the key players in that game for this story. ... Withers takes a look at the artistry that is Przemek Karnowski. ... Tom Clouse has a notebook as the women begin their preparation for Saturday's Sweet Sixteen matchup with Tennessee in the Spokane Arena. ... The baseball team had one bad inning against UW. That was enough.

• EWU: This was not available on the website yesterday when I was putting together the links, but I thought I better pass along the story of the Eagle women and their final WNIT game.

• Idaho: Sean Kramer has a preview in the paper of today's spring football start as well as a blog post.

• Shock: Jim Meehan is doing double duty with the Shock and has this piece on the team's new quarterback. Spokane opens its Arena season Saturday in Phoenix.

• Chiefs: The WHL playoffs begin this week. Tri-City, which just barely made the field, hopes to shock a foe or two.

• Preps: Spring sports are rolling, so it is time to roll out the season previews. Jim Allen kicks it off with this feature on GSL soccer as well as a preview of the GSL and GNL. ... Chris Derrick covered a GSL softball battle yesterday.

• Seahawks: When the NFL draft rolls around at the end of next month, the Seahawks will have 11 picks, most of any team. They won't have a first-round pick, however, and, barring trades, won't get to pick anyone until the 63rd selection.

• Mariners: With the lineup seemingly set, the rotation rounding into form and even Sports Illustrated on board, it seems as if it is time to begin the season. ... J.A. Happ doesn't believe his struggles in yesterday's 6-4 loss to the Padres will carry over. ... Willie Bloomquist seems to be passing every test.

• Sounders: It just sort of seems appropriate that a friendly would end in a draw, doesn't it? Seattle scored quickly last night, Tijuana answered with two goals, then the Sounders scored late to earn a 2-2 draw. ... Getting to CenturyLink was a mess as traffic in downtown Seattle was awful last night due to a wreck. ... Everyone on both teams, it seems, had something to say, including coach Sigi Schmid. ... The Sounders played without Clint Dempsey last night and may have to do without their star for a while. Dempsey is back in town after injuring a hamstring while working with the National Team.

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• Talk about a busy basketball weekend. It's on its way. And we will talk about it here. Football can wait. Until later ...

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