A Grip on Sports: It will be harder to hunker down and watch sports on TV for a while as the weather may no longer be an excuse

A GRIP ON SPORTS • While out walking the dogs – ours and our son’s – Thursday morning, the drizzle prompted a thought. It’s almost the end of May. Where is the sunshine? The warmth? Turns out the answer was just around the corner. Figuratively. In reality, just around the corner there was more rain.

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• Instead of sitting inside this weekend, watching the Mariners or NBA or NHL or the greatest spectacle in sports, how about enjoying the start of summer, weather version.

Yep, the sun is coming to the Inland Northwest. Rays. Heat. Sweat. All those things. And more.

Three days – Monday is, of course, Memorial Day – with a chance to hit a trail. Three days to plant a few more flowers. Three days to, I don’t know, wander down to Avista Stadium by Sunday and indulge in an American tradition?

That last one? Sitting in the sun, cheering for the home team, enjoying a hot dog with ketchup and watching your arms turn the same color as the condiment.

Sunscreen people. It’s been a while since the sun has been this prominent.

Want to avoid such dangers? There is an alternative. Hunker down in the man cave with the modern equivalent of a wall drawing. Turn on the TV and watch … well, what exactly?

In order of our preference: Sunday’s Indy 500 (9:30 a.m. Fox); the Mariners against those cheatin’ Astros (Friday, 5:10 p.m., Saturday, 1:10 p.m., and Sunday, 11:10 a.m., all on Root); NBA playoffs (New York vs. Indiana, Friday and Sunday, 5 p.m., TNT and Minnesota vs. Oklahoma City, Saturday, 5:30 p.m., ABC); NHL playoffs (Canada’s last hope, Edmonton, vs. Dallas, Friday, 5 p.m., ESPN and Sunday, noon, ABC and Carolina vs. Florida, Saturday, 5 p.m., TNT); and the NCAA softball Super Regionals (pretty much all day Friday and Saturday on ESPN’s networks).

Your results (and preferences) may vary.

• A year too late. That’s what die-hard Oregon fans are saying this morning. That and a few cuss words, I’m sure.

Last season was the best in Eugene in history. At least up to the Rose Bowl. When the top-seeded Ducks had to face eighth-seeded Ohio State. It was Oregon’s first game in a month. It came against the team that would ultimately win the title. And it was a rematch of a Big Ten regular-season game UO won by a point.

Why? The seeding was out of whack. The ACC, Big 12 and Group of Five representatives were pre-slotted in that two of the three would carry the third and fourth seeds – no matter what.

It wasn’t the best way. And every football fan knew it. Thursday, the folks who ran the CFP finally did away with the format. Next season, teams will be seeded by the committee and then slotted into the correct spot.

What would that have meant for Oregon? Simple. After the long layoff, they would have faced the Indiana (No. 8 seed) vs. Boise State (No. 9) in the Rose Bowl. A tough test, sure, but not Ohio State tough.

The same seeding, and long layoff, issue hit Georgia as well. Instead of playing Notre Dame (seeded seventh) in the quarterfinals, and losing, the Bulldogs would have met No. 7 seed Tennessee, unless the Vols were upset by No. 10 SMU. Wait. That might have been just as tough.

Seeding is, and will be, always based on perceptions of regular-season results. They will never be perfect. But they don’t need to be, not when you are setting up a tournament that includes the best 12 – or soon-to-be 16 – teams in the nation. At least in the committee’s eyes.

The idea is to create compelling matchups throughout. That didn’t happen in 2024. It has a better chance in 2025 and beyond.

• It’s been a while since Washington’s spring prep sports haven’t ended on Memorial Day weekend. A decade, actually. Since 2015. Pre-pandemic. Which makes it easy to forget it can happen. And will this year.

Some sports, such as fastpitch softball and tennis, hold their State tournaments this weekend. Others, including baseball and track and field, will wait until the last weekend of the month.  

The pandemic hit spring sports hard, eliminating two years of State playoffs. And throwing our understanding of their yearly structure a little off-kilter. For the first time in a decade, Memorial Day falls early enough in the calendar to end some seasons the week after.

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WSU: As we love to say, recruiting never sleeps or stops or something. Just ask Washington State. The football recruiting is still going on, even if the Cougars have a roster that seems to be above the House settlement limits. Greg Woods lets us all in on the most recent developments. … The Cougar track and field teams will have 30 representatives at the NCAA meets next week. That’s the second most in school history. We can pass along a roundup of all the area school’s contingents. … Recent WSU standout receiver Kyle Williams, along with Eastern record-holder Efton Chism III, are turning heads in New England. … Elsewhere in the (current, old and future) Pac-12 and the nation, John Canzano catches up with what’s going on in the mediation between the conference and the Mountain West. His column is short on details thanks to a cone of silence on everything. … Jon Wilner has a look in the Mercury News at the new CFP seeding format. … What college football programs have done the most in the century’s first quarter? This Athletic ranking includes five either former or soon-to-be Pac-12 schools. … Washington is included, even if the Huskies didn’t have as good of a nutritional presence as they have now. … Just how has Arizona State’s athletic director done in his first year? … Utah State has made changes to its roster, just like everyone. … In basketball news, the Utah men have brought in some pieces but still has roster needs. … Another Arizona nonconference game has been folded into a special event. … UCLA’s softball program is on the road for the Super Regionals. That hasn’t happened much. … Another Arizona pitcher entered the transfer portal. … Will Arizona State still be included in the NCAA baseball tourney after its season-ending four-game losing streak? … Oregon State will be in for sure.

Gonzaga: The Zag men have decided to recreate their run to the 2021 NCAA title game during next year’s nonconference schedule. At least it seems that way. Mark Few’s latest schedule addition? Creighton. In the Kennel on Nov. 11. Theo Lawson has more in this story. The nonconference schedule includes Oklahoma, Creighton, UCLA and Baylor, four of the Zags’ final five opponents in 2021. … Who will be part of the GU roster in the fall? There are still openings and Theo has another story looking at a couple players who seem interested in joining the fun. … Top-seed San Diego lost its opener to Loyola Marymount in the WCC baseball tournament early Thursday. Which gave second-seeded Gonzaga a great chance to avoid the Toreros. Except the Zags were blasted by red-hot Saint Mary’s, losing 14-6 Thursday and dropping into today’s elimination game (noon) against USD.     

EWU and Idaho: Around the Big Sky, once again we have to say it. Recruiting never stops. Not at Montana. Not in football or basketball. … Cal Poly picked up a JC receiver. … Sacramento State expects big crowds with Mike Bibby in charge of its men’s basketball program.

Preps: We already mentioned the State tournaments being contested this weekend, including softball. Madison McCord has a preview of them, leading off with undefeated Mt. Spokane’s quest for the GSL’s first title since 2007. … With the State meet next weekend, the District 6 track and field meet is underway in Hermiston, Ore. We can pass along this coverage. … There is also this on Central Valley’s elimination loss in boys’ soccer.

Indians: A long and productive outing from its starter. A good day at the plate from a returning prospect. Add them together and you get Spokane’s 7-3 win Thursday night over visiting Tri-City at Avista. Dave Nichols has all the information in this story.

Mariners: George Kirby threw his first pitch of the 2025 season Thursday night. In Houston. It ended up in the middle of Jeremy Peña’s back. And that was just part of the M’s troubles which resulted in a 9-2 series-opening loss. It did not help that Julio Rodriguez’s back tightened up on him and he had to watch. … It looks as if Logan Gilbert and Bryce Miller will be back soon. … The Athletic decided to put together a lineup of the best players of the first quarter of this century. And finished it with a fan survey. I had a couple different choices, including a different outfield – Ichiro has to be there somewhere – and a different second baseman – there is no way I can vote for Jose Altuve for anything. … How bad are the Rockies this season? The worst. As in the worst first 50 games ever.

Sonics: The playoff excitement shows us what we are all missing.

Seahawks: Don’t miss Jayson Jenks’ Athletic interview with K.J. Wright and Bobby Wagner concerning leadership. There are lessons to be learned. And some nostalgia.

Sounders: The Club World Cup bonus structure has not been well received by Seattle’s players. The Times’ story on their complaints ran in the S-R today.

Reign: Seattle’s goalkeeper will be around for a while.

Storm: The home opener is on tap tonight. Undefeated Phoenix visits.

Media: One more story on “Around the Horn.” It’s from one of the show’s most often-seen – and muted – guests.

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• In a former life as a high school basketball coach, it was always hard to wait until Memorial Day passed to begin the summer part of the season. And, yes, every prep sport has a summer part of the season. This year, the players have to wait until June 2 to begin supervised team activities like weight lifting and skills workouts and camps. Until later …