A Grip on Sports: As traditions fall this time of year like so many maple leaves, everyone who wants to just sit back and watch college football can hope it gets better next year

A GRIP ON SPORTS • Remember the days of #Pac12AfterDark? Where fun once flowed freely in the late hours of Saturday nights during football season, realignment put a crimp in the hose. Replaced, it seems, by #BrunchWithTheWest. Ya, I know. Not nearly as catchy. Or fun, either.

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• Tradition is a fleeting, and a fleeing, entity in college football these days. What was cherished yesterday is somehow, someway no longer a part of today. The change agents are obvious, though the leaders of the pack do their work mainly in the shadows.

The executives who run ESPN and Fox, the driving forces behind conference realignment the past decade, are more than anonymous to the casual fan. They are akin to the Wizard of Oz, if the Emerald City was home to competing magicians conjuring their black arts behind a curtain of cash and long-term contracts.

The rest of us? Cowering like the Cowardly Lion, squeezing our tails, hoping our favorite school isn’t left behind by the next wave.

Here it is, the last 10 days of November and Washington State is playing a football game in the Shenandoah Valley. A game that kicks at 10 a.m. Pullman time. And is only available through ESPN’s wonky streaming platform, the one that somehow has a plus sign attached to the self-proclaimed WorldWide leader’s call letters. When it comes to the user experience, a minus sign would have been more honest.

You know who else attached to the new-world Pac-12 is solely on ESPN+ tomorrow? Texas State. Hosting UL Monroe. That’s how tough the Cougars’ two-years in the wilderness has become. They are facing the nation’s 21st-ranked team, James Madison, and the best broadcast carrier available isn’t ESPNU or FS2 or, heck, even Apple-also-with-a-plus-sign, it is the service usually reserved for middle-of-the-pack MEAC or Big South-OVC games.

Thank goodness that’s going the way of the dodo before it becomes a tradition.

Next season the reformed Pac-12 will have its football games on CBS and USA and The CW. Not the most-traditional of college football platforms – outside of the first one – but easier to access at home. For the most-traditional of fans.

• It could be worse. At least WSU’s game is starting at a decent time in Harrisonburg, 1 p.m. Former Pac-12 member Arizona, now a proud member of the second-level Big 12, faces Baylor on Saturday in a game that kicks off at 11 a.m. in Tucson. On TNT. If they want to get three hours of parking-lot tailgating in pregame, the latest a Wildcat fan can start is 8 a.m. That sounds like a lot of fun.

At least it will be 52 degrees. And dry. Rain isn’t expected until the second half.

• There are a couple great Pac-12 games tomorrow. Only they are in the Big Ten.

No. 16 USC, fighting for playoff relevance (and Lincoln Riley’s buyout), visits sixth-ranked Oregon in what could have been a precursor to the Pac-12’s title game. Instead, College GameDay is in Eugene to see which school will be eliminated from the CFP chase. Kick is slated at 12:30 p.m. And it happens to be on CBS.

At least there is one #Pac12AfterDark contest in view. Washington travels to Pasadena to play UCLA in the iconic Rose Bowl (7:30, NBC), another circumstance that highlights the transitory nature of tradition in the sport these days. After all, this could very well be the Bruins last home game in the venue despite being a once-proud signee of a lease that runs through June of 2044.

Hey, if it’s going to be #BigTenAfterDark in the future, it might as well be in an NFL cathedral sponsored by a digital financial services company.

Nothing screams tradition more than that.

• Wait, we overlooked the better example of tradition being tossed to the trash heap. The Big Game. The 128th meeting between the home of the Hoover Institute and hundreds of eucalyptus trees, Stanford, and the hippies from across the Bay at Cal, kicks at 4:30 p.m. On the ACC Network.

Do you have access to that?

• Enough about Saturday. At least there is some tradition left in the NFL.

Except the Seahawks seem to have kicked the traditional curse of losing their 10 a.m. games east of the Mississippi. They were great in the Pete Carroll era and have been even better under successor Mike Macdonald. How does 5-0 sound?

The almost two-touchdown favorite Hawks kick off in Nashville on Sunday at that time (FOX). If they win, they will be 30-11 in their most-recent 10 a.m. starts.

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WSU: The Cougar defense, after the back-to-back almost 60-point debacles early in the season, has become a stone wall at the goal line. How has defensive coordinator Jesse Bobbit and his guys turned it around? Greg Woods is here to tell you. … Hey, recruiting never stops. Even after a player says he is “committed” to a school. Greg has this story on another high school football player switching to WSU. … Elsewhere in the (current, old and future) Pac-12 and the nation, Oregon State has a bye week as the Beavers prep for another showdown with Washington State. But it’s not an empty week. There is always the old standby, who will be the next OSU football coach, to fill the empty hours. Another name to know? A familiar one. Jonathan Smith. … It’s time for picks. Jon Wilner has his in the Mercury News. … John Canzano has his on his Substack. … Switching gears, the state of college cross country (and track) is in flux, with a foreign influx at the heart of much of it.

• Here are the rest of the (current, old and future) Pac-12 games this week, with the latest Associated Press rankings and listed chronologically. All are on Saturday. The schedule below also includes any game in which finding news turned out to be nearly impossible.

– Baylor at Arizona (10 a.m., TNT): It has not been a good week for the Bear athletic program. And the Wildcats intend to make it worse. 

– No. 16 USC at No. 6 Oregon (12:30 p.m., CBS): The Commanders have a bye this week. So Marcus Mariota will be in Eugene and be the guest picker. … The Trojans have welcomed a lot of guests from the transfer portal, which is part of a new college football tradition. … The Ducks have welcomed many players from Southern California, something Riley and USC has not been able to stop completely. 

– Kansas State at No. 13 Utah (1, ESPN2): The Utes’ quarterback situation is still marred by Devon Dampier’s injury woes. 

– UL Monroe at Texas State (2, ESPN+): Believe it or not, the Bobcats are still alive for a bowl berth. Despite a five-game losing streak in the middle of the season. All it takes is two more wins. Starting with a visit from a Warhawks team dealing with a six-game losing streak.

– Colorado State at Boise State (4, FS1): This is a game the Broncos need to win. The Rams? They will start a new quarterback.

– California at Stanford (4:30, ACCN): Wilner tells us the Cardinal seem, for the first time in years, all in with football. Financially and otherwise. Will it mean anything against the Bears this season? Maybe not.

– Arizona State at Colorado (5, ESPN2): No matter who wins, this one should be fun. If not for all the injuries. … Deion Sanders says goodbye to a couple players who have been with him at two stops.

– Washington at UCLA (7:30, NBC): Even in the midst of the season, money for the players is front and center on most head coaches’ agenda. … It is also an issue with the Bruins right now. … Retention has helped the Huskies build a solid defensive front, one of the keys to success in college football.

– Utah State at Fresno State (7:30, CBS Sports): The Bulldogs could still play in the Mountain West title game.

– San Jose State at San Diego State (7:30, FS1): The Spartans will try to overcome a week that saw huge coaching-staff changes against an Aztec team that seems headed to the MWC title game. … The San Diego State athletic department is asking the students for more money.

• In basketball news, if you have a chance, watch the video of the last few seconds of the USC men’s triple-overtime win at home over Troy. It is wild. … Colorado hosts UC Davis tonight. … Utah suffered a bad home loss, falling to Cal Poly. … Arizona State won in Hawaii. … Colorado State faces Denver. … The California women topped Saint Mary’s on Thursday night. … Utah State won during the day.

Gonzaga: Theo Lawson sounds a bit like Rick Steves as he describes his recent trip to Malaga, Spain. All in search of Mario Saint-Supery’s roots. The freshman point guard has moved has moved across the world and into the GU starting lineup recently. Theo delves into what made Saint-Supery such a successful basketball player. The secret? Bocadillo. … The Zag women lost their third consecutive game Thursday night, falling in a somewhat neutral site game against South Dakota State, 72-63, in Sioux Falls. Greg Lee watched and has this game coverage. … Former Gonzaga star Domantas Sabonis will miss some time with a knee injury. But it won’t end his season.

EWU: A win Saturday at Cal Poly (2 p.m., ESPN+) not only will give the Eagles a win over the school’s former coach, Paul Wulff, and his struggling program, it will also move them to .500 on the season. Dan Thompson has this preview that delves into Eastern’s biggest strength. … Elsewhere in the Big Sky, Missoula is the place to be Saturday, what with the Brawl of the Wild deciding the conference football title. … Northern Colorado views Saturday’s game as a must-win one. … Sacramento State is taking a huge gamble with its football program next season. … In basketball news, the Weber State men won Thursday while the women lost. … The Northern Arizona women fell as well. 

Idaho: The Vandals will finish below the break-even mark in Thomas Ford Jr.’s first season as coach. But a win Saturday on senior day will deny Idaho State its chance at breaking even as well. And earn UI the Potato State Trophy. Peter Harriman has a preview of the rivalry game – and a description of the wooden trophy.

Whitworth: The Pirates return to the NCAA Division III playoffs Saturday, hosting Chapman University in the Pine Bowl (noon, ESPN+). Ethan Myers has this preview of Whitworth’s attempt to run its winning streak against the Orange, Calif., school. My connection? In a younger life, I spent half-a-year as the Panthers’ interim sports information director.

Preps: The State football playoffs roll on this weekend, with three Spokane-area teams playing host in the quarterfinals. In the 2B ranks, Freeman welcomes Okanogan tonight at 6 in a game that will be played on the Scotties home field. Newport is at Roos Field on Saturday (1 p.m.) against Adna. In the big schools, Gonzaga Prep hosts a 4A quarterfinal Saturday as well, with Graham Kapowsin, and its highly regarded sophomore quarterback AJ Tuivaiave, in town for a 1 p.m. kick. Tuivaiave already holds scholarship offers to UW and Oregon among other schools.

Seahawks: It was Bad Sam Darnold playing quarterback for the Hawks last week in Los Angeles. How does the team get Good Sam to return this week in Tennessee? By being supportive. … The Hawks may have to make a decision about its secondary. In the offseason. … Seattle is one of two teams handling the dynamic kickoff better than the rest. … A tight end that is a target in the passing game? That is new. … There is a receiving-record chase happening in Seattle. … Grey Zabel practiced Thursday. Yes, four days after his knee injury happened.

Kraken: Down by two goals in the third period, one the road? No problem for Seattle. The Kraken scored three times and won 3-2 over the Blackhawks.

Mariners: What are the M’s plans with Colt Emerson? The 20-year-old will be given a good chance to earn a roster spot in the spring. … The franchise announced some key promotional dates for next season. Randy Johnson’s number retirement date is atop that list. … Emmanuel Clase was once a Spokane Indian. He’s now something a pariah as Cleveland’s closer is caught up in MLB’s most-recent gambling scandal.

Sounders: The 2026 schedule, the last one before the MLS switches to a winter-based slate, is out.

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• I have this other worry about tradition. That one day in the near future one of the hosts of College GameDay will ban the Cougar flag unless a fee is paid. Or an administration will hide it behind their school’s flag because, you know, the marketing guys think it is important. And a streak that is not only a tradition unlike any other but is organic instead of artificial, will end. Until later …