A Grip on Sports: NFL may be able to deal with lawsuit about racism, but add in allegations of game fixing, and it explodes

A GRIP ON SPORTS • There is no worse nightmare for a large corporation than not being able to control a story. To have someone else set the agenda. To take the focus away from a big event. All of that is happening to the NFL right now.

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• A lawsuit filed yesterday by Brian Flores, the former coach of the Miami Dolphins, shook the league to its core. Here it is, right in the middle of the most hyped two weeks of the season, and the NFL not focused on football. It is playing spin control.

Flores’ lawsuit has two elements. There is the core issue: Racism that is supported by numbers, anecdotes and a wayward text, among other things. No one with any personal integrity would argue the playing field has ever been level when it comes to hiring head coaches. Why that is serves as the main issue here. The bottom line: Black coaches are treated differently. Not because of who they are but what they are.

Flores, by filing a federal lawsuit against the league and some of its member teams, is trying to change that. He has shined a light on an issue that’s been understood but kept under a basket forever. That it may throw a blanket over his career doesn’t seem to all that material to a man who, obviously, has had enough.

But there is another aspect to his lawsuit that may detract the public from his core message. He’s accused the Miami owner of not only asking him to break tampering rules, but to throw games to ensure the franchise a higher draft pick. And the latter came with a financial incentive.

Sounds a lot like game fixing, doesn’t it?

Racism? The league can deny it like always. Sweep it under the rug. A large majority of its fans won’t really care. It doesn’t impact their lives. It is wrong, sure, but it is the reality we live with.

Mess with their pocketbook? Now that’s serious. How many of you heard the news, immediately wondered if other owners asked for the same thing – former Browns coach Hue Jackson hinted it was the case in Cleveland – and decided such actions may have destroyed your fantasy team’s chances of taking home the Paper Towel Trophy – and the $743 that goes with it.

Or wonder if the $100 you put on the Browns to upset Pittsburgh was stolen away not by ineptitude but by malfeasance?

Foundations of the league, meet the wrecking ball. Swung by a man who just had enough.

• We mentioned signing day pretty significantly Wednesday. Now that it is over (though the window to sign national letters of intern continues for a while), we can focus on the result in a couple ways.

The schools and the players. It’s the latter we are really worried about here. (The former is covered below).

Yesterday was huge in the lives of a bunch of young men (and women, though football signings earns the majority of the publicity). For many, the idea of a college football scholarship has been something they’ve been thinking about every night after turning the lights outs. It’s been the core of their dreams, the Holy Grail that has informed their workouts and pushed them to run one more wind sprint.

And Wednesday they were able to five the ethereal a shape. Pen on paper and it was official. In a lot of cases, family and friends were gathered round, sharing in the happiness. For some it was just another step in what they hope is a lifelong career. For others this is the doorway to a future that wasn’t coming any other way.

No matter the circumstances, the day was special. A culmination and a beginning, all wrapped into one package.

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Gonzaga: The road beckons. Due to virus-caused pauses and rescheduling, the Bulldog men are on the road a lot as the West Coast Conference winds down. Five of their final eight are away from Spokane, starting tonight in San Diego, the appetizer of a road trip that includes an entrée in Provo against Brigham Young. Theo Lawson has the preview of tonight’s game (6 p.m., ESPN2) and the key matchup. … The key Torero player is also the subject of this story from San Diego. … Around the WCC, with San Francisco coming to town, BYU’s men can finally put their bad week behind them. … The Cougar women are 16-1 and will face GU this week.

WSU: We mentioned signing day above. The Cougars put the finishing touches on their 2022 class with nine more signees (there is also the early signing period in December). Colton Clark tells us the nine high school players are all part of Jake Dickert’s plan to bring in players the staff can develop. … The men’s basketball team is headed to the Bay Area on a trip coach Kyle Smith believes will say a lot about his team. Colton has a preview of what we can expect. … Elsewhere in the Pac-12 and college football, we have signing day stories from just about everywhere in the conference, including more than one from Washington, now helmed by Kalen DeBoer. The Huskies focused on the state. … Oregon signed its first class under Dan Lanning, focusing on speed. … Oregon State’s class was tiny – only three players. Johnathan Smith talked about that and more. … After a lot of turnover, Karl Dorrell feels there is a new energy in Colorado. … Utah just wants to stay on a roll. … Lincoln Riley has USC on a roll too. It’s different in Los Angeles these days. … The same can be said about Tempe but in a bad way. Will Herm Edwards keep the head coaching job? He just lost his right-hand man. … Arizona put together an outstanding recruiting class after an awful season. That’s rare. … In basketball news, the Bay Area trip is also crucial for Washington and nearly unstoppable Terrell Brown Jr. Stanford and California are better at home. … Does Colorado have a hex on Oregon in Boulder? The Ducks have never won there. … A freshman has found his niche with UCLA. The Bruins travel to Tucson with another showdown with Arizona. The Wildcats are beat up some. … USC and Arizona State are also on the docket.

EWU: The Eagles added six players to the 10 they signed in the early period. Dan Thompson introduces you to them in this story. … As the Rams prep for the Super Bowl, we can pass along another Cooper Kupp story. … Around the Big Sky, Montana State added five recruits. Central Valley High star Luke Abshire is part of the recruiting class. … Montana rounded out its class. … Northern Colorado is dealing with other things right now. … Weber State has a key coaching position to fill but a full class of recruits. … UC Davis added 10 players Wednesday.

Idaho: With new coach Jason Eck in place for this round of signings, the Vandals added a bunch of players. Peter Harriman goes over the large group of high school, junior college and transfer athletes.

Preps: The signing day hoopla encompasses the local high school athletes as well. Gonzaga Prep’s Kaz Melzer signed a letter of intent with Stanford, a school that offers as much academic opportunity as athletic. Dave Nichols has the story. … Dave also covered the first game of what will be a week-long group of high school spirit competitions, which will have COVID-19 restrictions in place. He was out at Eastern Washington where Cheney swept Rogers in the first year of the “Railroad Rumble.” … Dave has a roundup as well. … Madison McCord has a feature on Deer Park senior wrestler Nathan Gregory.

Chiefs: An overtime goal from Reed Johnson lifted Spokane to a 3-2 win over Prince George at the Arena. Kevin Dudley was there and has this story.

Storm: Seattle made it official. Former Lewis and Clark star guard Briann January will play her 14th (and last) WNBA season with the Storm. … Breanna Stewart also has a new contract, officially.

Seahawks: How will Seattle address its cornerback issues?

Mariners: The Seattle farm system is still top-ranked by Baseball America.

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• We have a previous engagement tonight, so we won’t be able to supply a TV Take from the Gonzaga game. Pity. It always seems warmer in the living room when the Zags are playing in San Diego. Until later …