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The Spokesman-Review Newspaper
Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883

A Grip on Sports: Idaho on the rise, WSU’s athletic budget takes the fall and M’s hope Ty France is OK

A GRIP ON SPORTS • Whenever we read good news about the Idaho athletic program, a little voice in our head immediately yells out “Way to go, Idaho.” We’ve watched Toy Story way too much.

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• Ya, when we first heard Hamm, voiced by Cliff Clavin, er, John Ratzenberger, congratulates Mr. Potato Head in that movie, we knew we would have a problem. For some reason, such things stick with us. And it has. Strangely enough, that seems to be the goal of the Vandals as well. To stick with us, at least as far as football is concerned.

Their 7-5 mark last season would some pretty average for some programs but, considering the desert the program has wandered through since returning to the FCS level, it was something akin to the Promised Land. Not only did the Vandals have a winning record for the first time since the return, new coach Jason Eck led them to the postseason as well.

With the Jerry Rice Award winner Gevani McCoy returning at quarterback, Idaho expects to do even more this fall. And it looks as if others also believe the Vandals will succeed.

When Athlon magazine released its FCS preseason top 25 yesterday, UI was ranked seventh nationally. Not only that, it was the second-highest rated Big Sky Conference school, trailing only fourth-ranked Montana State, the FCS runner-up in 2022.

It could be the national magazine didn’t realize the late defections from the defense. Or it could be the offense won’t be as productive as last year with more film to study. We won’t know that until fall. In the late spring, the Vandals are flying high.

And those who have faithfully supported the program through all the ups and downs – last year was only the third winning season this century – have high hopes.

• The Mariners had high hopes when the season began. They still do, despite their sloppy start. Two home wins over the woeful Oakland A’s aren’t enough to wash away the doubt either.

The problem scoring runs returned last night, even against the A’s staff. The injuries did as well, with the bullpen operating a couple arms down and the offense now facing the distinct possibility Ty France may miss time.

If you saw his hit-by-pitch last night, and the pain he seemed to be in, you would think the first baseman will have to miss a few days at the least. He probably should, just to rest what turned out to be a bad bruise on his wrist – the X-rays were negative.

If last year was filled with good luck, it seems to some degree that scale is evening a bit for Seattle.

• Larry Scott left the Pac-12 with $50 million in his pocket. And left the conference with some surprise bills. The Comcast fiasco – the league office knew the cable company was overpaying for more than a decade to the tune of $50 million and did nothing about it – may or may not land on his desk. A lawsuit filed by two former employees should determine his culpability in that regard.

But the newest Easter egg, which we know about courtesy of John Canzano’s reporting, is over the top. And is all Scott’s to bear. The conference has to pay a $10 million remodeling bill for the overpriced and unneeded San Francisco headquarters. Seems the contract stipulated leaving the place as it was when Scott decided to rent it more than a decade ago. Ripping out all the work done for the lucrative – that’s sarcasm folks – Pac-12 Network and other integral needs such as the always-right replay command post – that’s sarcasm too.

Why is this important? The bills have to be paid by each school.

And it seems Washington State president Kirk Schulz has determined the athletic department is responsible. Even though, you know, the department itself had no input whatsoever concerning the decisions Scott made. Who did? Only the conference presidents and chancellors, like Schulz or his predecessor, Elson Floyd.

Nice oversight everybody.

Schulz announced Monday cost-cutting in Pat Chun’s department, citing the Comcast bill and a couple of other issues as his reasons. Which just proves the fallout from mistakes, like other things, runs downhill. Even in Pullman.

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WSU: Colton Clark has the nuts and bolts behind Schulz’s decision in this story. He keeps it straight, just reporting the news. We don’t have to. The conference’s CEOs in past dozen years failed in their fiduciary duty as far as the league office is concerned. But they won’t have to cover the extra work when positions aren’t filled. Nope. That will fall on folks making a tiny percentage of the recompense the CEOs do. Nice job everyone. … The basketball team is going to play in this fall’s Basketball Hall of Fame Tip-Off Tournament in Connecticut. Colton has that story as well. … The Pac-12 announced the baseball awards yesterday. A couple Cougars were honored. … Elsewhere around the Pac-12 and the nation, the baseball tournament began. And there were a couple upsets, including Arizona topping rival Arizona State for the first time this season, USC rallying past UCLA and Oregon, as expected, defeating California. … Washington sees this week as a chance for validation. … Speaking of upsets, the Stanford women’s golf team, which had the lowest combined score by a large margin in the stroke play part of the NCAA tournament, was upset by Wake Forest in the first round of match play. … Ever hear that old saying “and a doctor shall lead them?” No? Well, that could happen at Oregon State this fall. Sort of. … The Beavers don’t think the conference financial woes will hit them like they hit WSU. … Colorado is a good place for a fresh start these days. … Same with Arizona. … UCLA’s basketball team has reached overseas for a talented recruit. … Oregon stayed in the Midwest.

Idaho: Besides the Vandals and Montana State, there are four other Big Sky schools in Athlon’s preseason top 25. Montana is 10th. … The Bobcats picked up another transfer.

Preps: The State golf tournaments are underway. Jim Meehan has this story on the 4A/3A results. … As the downtown stadium nears completion, the Spokane School District is going to ask the City of Spokane to rename a nearby street after Joe Albi. Jim Allen has that story.

Indians: This week’s heavy schedule started yesterday at Avista, with Spokane’s pitching staff sleep-walking through a doubleheader. Or were the pitchers just walking? Either way, they walked 11 Vancouver batters in the 14 innings and lost both games. Dave Nichols was there and has this coverage. … Tyler Tjomsland also has a photo gallery from the near-perfect day, at least weather-wise.

USL: Jim Allen returns with an update on the city’s new soccer franchises, which will play in the downtown stadium.

Seahawks: Tariq Woolen was a revelation last season, with the rookie corner among the best, if not the best, at his position. He just underwent some arthroscopic knee surgery. … Geno Smith wants to keep playing until he’s at least 40.

Mariners: The 3-2 win also included the first incident of fan interference we’ve seen this season. It cost Julio Rodriguez an at-bat. …If Rodriguez and Jarred Kelenic were hot at the same time? That would be a sight to behold. … Why is Oakland so bad? Mainly because the owner wants it that way. He’s taking the franchise to Las Vegas.

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• Did you know Ratzenberger had a voice part in the first 22 Pixar movies? “It’s a little-known fact Sammy.” He was every movie until Soul. Some were small parts. Others, like his turn as the transport truck in Cars, were key elements. For a guy who played one of the most annoying characters in television history, he’s had a great career. Until later …