A Grip on Sports: No matter how bad it gets, there is always a bright side to sports

A GRIP ON SPORTS • You have to love optimists. In the face of a rainstorm, they always seem to see a patch of blue sky ahead. It’s a wonderful way to go through life. Which is why we’re not going to belittle those folks who are sure there will be college football in the fall.

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• It may have slipped past your notice, what with all the bad coronavirus news floating around yesterday, but the coaches released their poll. Clemson was the No. 1 pick followed by Ohio State – who has vowed to score 100 points against Michigan this year – and Alabama. The SEC has four teams in the top 10 and six in the top 13.

The Pac-12’s highest-ranked team is Oregon, at nine, with USC 17th and Utah checking in at 20. Washington received votes. WSU? The Cougars picked up six points, three less than Mike Leach’s new team, Mississippi State.

It just seems so optimistic right now to even have a poll, but god bless ‘em. If the season does go off as planned, the usual suspects will be the usual suspects for the national title hunt.

The most overrated team? That would be 11th-ranked Auburn, which lost most of its offensive line and way too much elsewhere. Most underrated? It just might be Alabama. Third seems a little low for a program that gathers in five-star recruits like most of us collect gray hairs in the pandemic.

• It doesn’t look as if Eastern Washington or Idaho will be battling for an FCS playoff berth come November. Mainly because it doesn’t look as if there will be FCS playoffs this fall.

The Big Sky Conference athletic directors and presidents met yesterday. During and after those meetings, multiple reports surfaced the conference was moving football to the spring, joining a growing movement among their FCS brethren. Nothing official was announced, however, but the implications were clear.

If the Big Sky decides to make the move, it will mean more than 50 percent of the FCS schools will not be available for a fall championship. The NCAA would then cancel it or, if possible, move the playoffs to the spring.

We should find out more today.

• Yes, it seemed weird to be able to hear birds chirping. The usual wildlife at a major golf championship, those folks who scream “you the man” or “get in the hole” had disappeared, replaced by the natural sounds around Harding Park yesterday.

Weird, sure. But also better. When Bryson DeChambeau broke his driver, it was refreshing to be able to hear his interaction with others, including, in a way, us. He conducted a dialogue with the ESPN cameraman as he walked down the seventh fairway, letting us inside the ropes on the first day of the PGA Championship.

It was just another odd aspect of an odd major. The PGA is being played on a municipal course in the middle of a big city. There are no fans. There are long breaks in the coverage as studios are disinfected between groups.

But one thing isn’t weird. It’s a major and Brooks Koepka is near the top of the leaderboard.

Who does the guy think he is, Jack Nicklaus? No, that role is being played by Tiger Woods, who is in red numbers despite being in his late 40s. Everyone, and by that I mean ESPN, CBS, millennials throughout the world, advertisers and just about anyone with a pulse, is optimistic Woods will be on the leaderboard come the weekend.

It would be something special, wouldn’t it?

(By the way, former ESPN producer Lee Fitting tweeted a graphic yesterday – we have inserted a picture – that included Nicklaus’ finishes in 76 majors between 1960 and 1979. Look at the 10-year span between 1970 and 1979. In that time, he finished out of the top 10 just five times. He won eight titles, finished second seven times and had five thirds. No one in history ever showed up at the golf majors like Nicklaus.)

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WSU: As we mentioned, the Cougars gathered in six points in the coaches’ poll. Theo Lawson takes a look at what that means. … Larry Weir talked football and basketball yesterday with the voice of the Cougars, Matt Chazanow. It’s part of the latest Press Box podcast. … Around the Pac-12 and college sports, conference representatives, included commissioner Larry Scott, held a call with the #WeAreUnited reps last night. They will meet again next week. … How do the revamped conference-only schedules rank? … Washington athletic director Jen Cohen met with the media yesterday. The school is not going to hold much in the way of in-person classes. … Oregon is proud to be the Pac-12’s top-ranked team, but is there more in store for the Ducks? … An Oregon State player wants more safety protocols in place. … Utah’s ranking is sort of a surprise. … Yes, USC is ranked, per usual. … Was Arizona State overlooked? … In basketball news, Oregon State picked up a player who can’t wait to play in the Pac-12. … Tad Boyle is so glad McKinley Wright is coming back to Colorado. … Arizona State is going to have a target on it.

EWU and Idaho: Ryan Collingwood spent yesterday evening trying to get a definitive answer to what the Big Sky was going to do this fall. Neither he nor anyone else was able to lock it down. … Elsewhere in the Big Sky, the decision, and the reports of what it seems to be, is the subject of much speculation and angst throughout the conference footprint. The stories range from Missoula to Greeley and everywhere in between. … Wednesday, Larry spoke with a FCS expert, Sam Herder, for the Press Box pod. … The conference’s schools are still charging sports fees. … In basketball news, a former Montana assistant has a new job.

Preps: The trend on the West Coast seems to be to postpone high school sports until the new year, hoping a possible vaccine or other measures to control the virus’ spread will allow widespread participation. That’s not the case in Idaho. The Idaho High School Activities Association Board of Directors has decided to plunge head long into fall sports after a brief delay. Dave Nichols has more in this notebook. … The Seattle Times’ Jayda Evans takes a look at mascots in the state of Washington.

Chiefs: The Western Hockey League has pushed back the start of its schedule more than two months. Dan Thompson has more on the now-scheduled Dec. 4 start of league play.

Mariners: The M’s and Angels played a day game yesterday and it went by quickly. Mainly because Dylan Bundy was dominant. The Angels’ right-hander struck out 10 in a complete-game 6-1 victory. … To reach the new roster limit, the M’s cut a couple players yesterday, recently acquired pitcher Bryan Shaw and rookie José Marmolejos.

Seahawks: DK Metcalf is ready to go. … How long will Chris Carson be the Hawks’ No. 1 running back? … The Hawks are still looking to add to their pass rush.

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• I’m optimistic today is going to be a good day. Why? It’s going to be cool, in the high 70s. There will be just a few clouds. The TV is working well, even the ESPN+ streaming I’m using to watch the PGA’s morning rounds. The coffee pot is full. I have doughnuts. Work is done. What could go wrong? Until later …