Ricks’ Switch Will Impact Region’S Sports

There’s no reason to panic.

Yet.

Four, five years from now, check back and the situation might be different.

We’re speaking of Ricks College’s decision to sack sports when it becomes BYU-Idaho and the impact it might have on Region 18 of national junior college sports.

Add in the fact that Colorado Northwestern appears ready to jettison Region 18 ties, and that Dixie and Utah Valley are positioned to offer four-year athletic programs and Region 18 might need a lifeline.

However, that’s not in the immediate future. Dixie and Utah Valley are perhaps five years from making their moves. Colorado Northwestern is still a Region 18 member.

In June, North Idaho College athletic director Jim Headley was sitting in a Region 18 meeting, discussing numerous topics. Ricks’ departure wasn’t one of them. Within days, though, the Rexburg school announced its exit.

“I was shocked,” Headley said. “I called (Ricks’ A.D.) Garth Hall and he said, `It’s a shock to me.’ It’s devastating to the region because Ricks has been a high quality program from the get-go.”

Soon Ricks will get gone, leaving behind a disjointed conference. The problem is the pool of replacement schools is shallow.

“We’ve got the toughest region in the nation in all sports,” NIC wrestling coach Pat Whitcomb said. “I hate to see Ricks go, but you don’t let this region die because of what one school did.”

Ricks was NIC’s travel partner in basketball, so adjustments will have to be made.

“I don’t think there’s a fear (of the region crumbling), but it’s in the backs of our minds,” Headley said. “The biggest thing is to talk with some schools and see if they’ll come in.”

Otherwise, the old - and tiresome - debate whether NIC should join the NWAACC (Washington/Oregon community colleges) will resurface.

A common misperception is that NIC is saddled with high travel costs by belonging to Region 18, since some of the schools are in Utah and Colorado. However, Headley did a cost analysis several years ago on Region 18 travel versus NWAACC and discovered Region 18 was “only about 10 percent higher.”

“I know there will be a push to join the NWAACC - there are people out there that want that,” Whitcomb said. “My philosophy is you want to be in with the best. You don’t try to win a state title in college. You want to win a national title.

“It’s going to be interesting.” Especially in a few years.

Panhandling

The lowdown on Idaho and its more prominent football opponents this fall, courtesy of Lindy’s magazine.

Lindy’s picks Washington to win the Pac-10 and rates the Huskies No. 14 in its poll. Oregon checks in fourth in the Pac-10 and 32nd overall. Washington State is ticketed for No. 78 and ninth in the Pac-10. West Virginia, No. 66, is picked sixth in the eight-team Big East. Boise State is favored to win the Big West and is rated No. 68 overall. Idaho is pegged for second and No. 79, but I don’t know if that Meehan fellow who wrote the article can be trusted.

Former Moscow High star Andrea Lloyd Curry’s WNBA season ended recently when she tore up her knee. The injury could end her decorated 15-year pro career. “It’s one of those things where you see how things go,” she told the Minneapolis Star Tribune of her future.

Arizona State’s hunt for an A.D. continues. Ex-Vandals A.D. Pete Liske, presently at Toledo, interviewed but failed to land the job.

Idaho basketball has one less potential headache to worry about. Recruit Roland Coppage, a prep guard from Kansas, is eligible after passing his SAT.

Coppage probably will redshirt. Fellow incoming freshman Bret “Mr. Kansas” Wise figures to play and could start.

An early guess on UI’s starting five: Bethuel Fletcher at point, Corry Beavers at off guard, Rodney Hillaire and Eric Collier at forwards, and Chris Monroe at center. Wise, Matt Gerschefske and Justin Logan could factor into the first unit.

Idaho has scheduled a road basketball game against BYU this season. The Cougars will visit Idaho the following season.

Two golfing musts - the Old Works in Anaconda, Mont., and Trickle Creek in Kimberley, British Columbia. The Nicklaus-designed Old Works measures 7,705 yards from the tips and carries a rating of 76.6. Black slag bunkers and huge, multi-tiered greens make it a visual treat. It’s a bargain at $38, sans cart.

Trickle Creek essentially was cut out of the side of a mountain. The immaculately maintained, well-designed course is fairly tight and entirely scenic, from abundant deer to stunning views of Kimberley.

Triple plays are rare in baseball, rarer still in softball. But that didn’t deter Jamie Dalvini, Amy Nivette and Nicole Yaniga from turning three for Interstate Office Supply in a CdA girls’ rec-league game.

Grad school/Front row

OK, Kaniel Dickens isn’t an Idaho grad, but the former Vandals forward launches his pro career with Utah’s summer league team July 21. Utah’s July 25 game versus Houston and July 26 game against Chicago will be on ESPN2.

Dickens, a second-round draft pick, pocketed nearly $5,000 for signing a couple thousand of his rookie cards.

Rumor du jour

Lance West successfully kept a low profile during Washington State’s search for an athletic director. But the Marshall A.D. and former Vandals assistant A.D. did interview before WSU chose Portland State’s Jim Sterk.

Idaho’s Mike Bohn also maintained a behind-the-scenes presence in the WSU sweepstakes. He had sincere interest, but didn’t go full bore for the job because a drawn-out search would have hurt him on the home front. Bohn essentially became a fall-back candidate.