A Zag hangover

Sports Editor Joe Palmquist mentioned this morning how today’s sports headline “Over in a blur” described both Gonzaga’s last-second loss and the sports department’s rush to get a full complement of news in the paper on tight deadlines.

“Everybody worked really hard it sports, and it was 1 a.m. before we knew it. What Steve (Bergum) and John (Blanchette) turned out essentially in an hour is pretty amazing.”

Joe continued by describing an odd sense of relief that has replaced the shock of the Zags’ dramatic defeat. “It’s kind of fun to put stuff in the paper that the whole town is excited about, but it’s A LOT of work.”

Well, not the whole town loves the Zags. Editor Steve Smith told of receiving a couple of phone calls complaining about the Zags coverage on Page 1, and how it’s displaced more “important” international political stories. Despite Steve’s feeling that this was a coordinated phone-in campaign, he said he’s “kind of glad to get sports off A1 tomorrow.”

Not so fast. The GU players and coaches are arriving home this afternoon, and we’re covering the aftershock of last night’s game. This will likely wrap up our NCAA Zags coverage, but the story could be on Page 1 again tomorrow.

Also today, a nice profile of Clarence Freeman, a pioneer and Spokane legend who died at the age of 96.

A reader questioned whether the story about the dog buried alive was news and belonged on Page 1. And a staffer questioned whether the story about Spokane County considering the sale of the Public Health Building deserved more prominent display.