A Grip on Sports: There will be a competition between the Raiders and Seahawks this season though their preseason game isn’t at the crux of it

A GRIP ON SPORTS • In honor of the Seattle Seahawks opening their 50th training camp Wednesday, I have decided to put together a string of 50 consecutive columns on the team and their Super Bowl chances this season. Or 50 words. Today. Whichever seems easiest.

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• Neither option seems plausible though. Or possible.

The former because I’m not that disciplined. Or, more likely, because I would wake up some random August Tuesday having forgotten the plan. And just starting writing a treatise on tacos and their relationship to the zen of sports.

Wait, I’ve already done that.

The latter? No way I can write just 50 words on anything. Not even tomorrow’s grocery list. Heck, it takes me 50 words just to describe the type of apples I want.

Everyone will have to settle for some random thoughts I have this morning about the Hawks, the Raiders and some old guy’s mantra about always competing.

You see, while sitting in O’Hare this morning awaiting our flight back to the land of no humidity, I began to wonder if anyone would be interested in story links to Raiders’ happenings.

After all, the wizened white Nike wearing Pete Carroll is in charge of Las Vegas’ ongoing crapshoot known as the Raiders. Anyone else wondering if his tenure will end up akin to that of Ace Rothstein? Or more like Moe Greene’s?

My vote is he’ll experience some success, a la Ace in “Casino” but it won’t be too long before he’s wearing Coke bottle glasses and peering onto the field trying to determine which guy out there is Tyler Lockett and which is Geno Smith.

But, ultimately, every NFL coach ends up like Greene in “The Godfather,” albeit the bullet is metaphorical and usually isn’t much of a surprise.

No matter. That’s for down the road. Today’s path takes us into the importance of competing. And whether Seahawks’ second-year coach Mike Macdonald is in competition with not only Carroll’s Seattle ghost but his extremely live reincarnation with Vegas.

Both are tough opponents.

Last season, Macdonald’s first as a head coach after his successful tenure as Baltimore’s defensive coordinator, the only opponent was Carroll’s long-fade into mediocrity since the Legion of Boom years. That’s about all the 12s – and even casual fans – could remember.

Macdonald went into the season a 20.5-point favorite. And won, though he probably didn’t cover.

But this season is different. Carroll has resurfaced. And not just anywhere. The Raiders aren’t what they once were – who is? – but they are still a national brand. With a devoted following. In a neon-bright setting.

Carroll has always been luminescent. Bright enough of a light to attract not just attention but veterans who return to play for him over and over. Heck, Jamal Adams is now in the silver and black. Enough said.

Macdonald? The contrast couldn’t be starker, could it?

Not just the age difference, which seems wider than the 35 years. Or the head coaching experience gap, which is numerically less than half that – 17– but actually greater in NFL math.

The styles seem as different as, say, John Harbaugh and Deion Sanders. With Carroll, surprisingly, more akin to the latter.

It’s no surprise, though, that Macdonald is the former, after spending years working for the Ravens’ Super Bowl winner, and his preferred style of play, if anything, is more conservative. Old school even.

Carroll loves physical football as well. But how he motivates his charges to embody that love is different than just about any other NFL head coach, no matter their age. His always-compete mantra is accompanied by a looseness that seemed perfect for the LOB and perfectly deplorable the last few years of his Seattle tenure.

Will his Raiders be competing with Macdonald’s Seahawks? In one area, sure. If Carroll can turn around Las Vegas, 4-13 last season,  after the failures of more schmoes than show up each weekend at the Orleans, the pressure rises on Macdonald.

Why? Like all changes, replacing Carroll wasn’t met with universal acceptance. His successor’s 10-7, non-playoff result wasn’t blow-everyone-away special. Nostalgia grows each day, with Carroll’s befuddled looks of 2023 slowly fading, replaced by memories of his constant energy in 2013.

All that is available on Macdonald is the present. If eight weeks into the season Las Vegas is 6-2 and Seattle is 3-5, expect at least 50 podcasts on the irony of the situation. And all of them will be more than 50 words.

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WSU: The old adage about too many quarterbacks is having a bit of a rebirth in Pullman. As Greg Woods tells us today, the Cougars need to cull the herd a bit, with four players seemingly fighting for the one starting spot. Having four talented wide receivers would seem to be not enough. Having four talented quarterbacks would seem about three too many. … Elsewhere in the (current, old and future) Pac-12 and the nation, Big Ten commissioner Tony Petitti is in the news this morning, partly because his conference his holding it media days, partly because he’s making the rounds. Both Jon Wilner and John Canzano have columns on what Petitti has said recently. … Christian Caple talked with Washington coach Jedd Fisch at the Las Vegas media day.  … Questions? Here are some answers from The Athletic’s Stewart Mandel. … Stanford needs to name a quarterback. … Will Oregon’s Evan Stewart be able to play this season? And will defensive back Daylen Austin not be available due to his trial? Only Dan Lanning may know. … The Oregon State position previews continue with defensive tackles. … Colorado’s are on the offensive line. … Arizona? Special teams. And offensive line. … Boise State’s past is influencing California’s present. … In basketball news, where do you fall on the NCAA-tourney-expansion debate? … USC guard Alijah Arenas, who already has had to overcome an offseason traffic accident, will be out for a while. He needs knee surgery. The rehab will eat into his season. … The Colorado men are headed to Australia. … Utah State is trying to use the summer as it was intended. To get better on the court.

EWU and Idaho: Around the Big Sky, Northern Colorado’s women’s basketball team had a great year in the classroom. … Northern Arizona has made some changes in its athletic administration.

Preps: A travel volleyball team made up of local high school players won a recent tournament in Croatia. That news leads off the latest S-R local briefs column.

Indians: Spokane had taken three consecutive games heading into Wednesday night’s contest at Everett. The AquaSox ended that mini-streak, though, with a 4-1 victory. Dave Nichols has all the particulars.  

Shock: Not many local football coaches at any level have experienced as much success as Adam Shackleford experienced with Spokane’s Arena League franchise. Liam Bradford talked with Shackleford and delves into his current roles in the game.

Storm: Bobby Wagner not only has fond memories of his time in Seattle, he also has a new family. Wagner recently bought a piece of the Storm franchise.

Kraken: Seattle has extended the contract of a younger player.

Mariners: Occasionally Good Luis Castillo takes a start off. Replaced by Evil Luis, whose fastball straightens, his slider doesn’t break sharply and he’s knocked around some. That’s a time-honored tradition. Evil Luis was on the T-Mobile mound Wednesday and it resulted in an 10-2 loss for Seattle.

Seahawks: Dave Boling points out three Hawks who need to perform at the top of their game for the team to have success. Funny thing. Two of the three have huge local connections. … The offense is right on schedule. … No training camp opening would be complete without some mention of the injured players.

Auto racing: NASCAR is returning to Southern California. To a new venue. To Coronado, a San Diego area, and its naval base.

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• I don’t know how high up my flight is, but we’re somewhere over the western Midwest. Chicago is in the past. Thank goodness. Hot. Muggy. And some of the worst drivers I’ve ever experienced. The rules of the road? Suggestions. If that. I saw more right turns from a left lane in five days than I’ve seen in my entire life combined. Until later …