A Grip on Sports: The Mariners offense was a bloody mess Saturday night and as a result their World Series hopes were wounded quite a bit

A GRIP ON SPORTS • How are you with the sight of blood? Squeamish, like me, turning your head before the first drop hits the ground? Or do you slow down, stick your head out the window and ask the person controlling traffic what the heck happened?

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• It’s a pertinent question this morning. After what happened in T-Mobile on Saturday night.

I was forced to turn my head away as the M’s coughed up a hard-earned season of wins and the home-field advantage in a five-game series. The 3-2, 11-inning loss to Detroit in the Division Series opener was a bloody mess from the get-go. In the middle. And in the 11th inning, when the weakness Jerry Dipoto’s front-office gang didn’t get filled at the trade deadline – bullpen depth – reared up and kicked the team in the head.

The one guy – Caleb Ferguson – Dipoto’s folks picked up, flotsam compared to the welcomed jetsam of Diamondbacks’ Josh Naylor and Eugenio Suarez, pitched Saturday. And pitched just fine.

But instead of turning to a, say, Mason Miller – a Padres’ deadline pickup – Dan Wilson was forced to go with Carlos Vargas with the stakes at a quarter-century high.

And Vargas couldn’t get it done. A walk – free base. A wild pitch – another one. And two strikeouts later, a Zach McKinstry base hit to center was the difference.

At least that was what my iPhone was telling me. Through the WorldWide Leader’s app.

Watching live was not in the cards. Heck, the phone’s play-by-play had to be hidden at times as I was introduced to 39 people whose names escape me. And one who I’ll never forget, but that story is for another day.

Anyhow, I was well aware how those of you who clog the freeways slowing down to look at the accident on the other side were out in full force. Dissection of the M’s approach at the plate, Wilson’s decisions, Andres Munoz’s dominance bled out all over the social medias.

If I didn’t know better, I would think none of you have confidence in this group of postseason near-neophytes. Just because they already trail by a game in a best-of-five series? Or is it because they have to face Tarik Skubal – this generation’s latest Sandy Koufax clone – in today’s must-win game? Or because the front of the uniforms reads “Mariners?”

All of the above?

I’m keeping the faith. Have to. The alternative is to give in to the darkness. To face mortality. To come to the conclusion I might not see an M’s World Series team before my ashes are scattered.

Nope, I’m not going quietly into that good night. I’m willing to fight. To metaphorically spill a little blood. Even if it’s my own.

• While Yankee fans bemoan Aaron Judge’s annual postseason struggles, the Seattle faithful were able to celebrate Cal Raleigh’s three hits last night. Except none of them left the ballpark. And, with the game on the line in the 11th, the true American League MVP popped out to third instead of bringing the 47,290 to their feet as one with a big fly to right. It is kind of impressive when a three-hit night during the postseason can be deemed a failure.

Oh well. The fairy-tale finish will have to wait for another day.

• It’s been a month since I have been able to watch college football. That option wasn’t available as I was trudging through the Dolomites and Umbria.

But Saturday made up for it. Somewhat.

Why? Well, there was an upset the likes of which I have never seen in my eight decades on this planet – hey, I know how old I am but unless my fingers don’t work, counting decades from the 1950s to the 2020s ends up with parts of eight.

There is no dimension in the Spiderverse in which 0-4 UCLA defeats seventh-ranked Penn State, homefield “advantage” or not.

And yet the Bruins did. With an interim head coach, whose brother was once on the staff in Pullman, that struggled to win carrying the same tag at Fresno State. With a new defensive coordinator, a new offensive coordinator and the usual Rose Bowl crowd of 70,000 empty seats.

Oh, did I mention the Bruins had lost to Utah, UNLV, New Mexico and Northwestern by a combined 68 points? Not exactly Murderers’ Row, huh?

But they won yesterday, 42-37. Against a team many thought would challenge for a national title this season.

There should be no chance for that. Just allowing a team as bad as UCLA to be in the game should disqualify the Nittany Lions from any further playoff talk. And to lose?

If they happen to be handed an at-large spot over, say, a Group of Five runnerup, the committee should be immediately exiled to Elba. Or be forced to spend a month living in Denton, Texas, though banned from eating at the Juicy Pig.

• My other takeaways from watching games pretty religiously until 4, when Kim’s reunion beckoned?

– Alabama might just be OK. The 30-14 home win over Vanderbilt – Kalen DeBoer’s team trailed 14-0 – showed that even when the Tide is forced to slum with just a five-star quarterback running the show, they can be an offensive force.

– Miami under Mario Cristobal is as good as anyone in making their fans devour their nails in the fourth quarter. C’mon, leading 28-3 heading into the final 15 minutes at Florida State and winning by six? That’s almost Cougar-like.

– Steve Sarkisian and Texas not as good as advertised? Why, I’ve never heard of such a thing. Wait, yes I have.

– Finally, not only do the Cougars have to play fourth-ranked Mississippi on the road Saturday, a road game at No. 24 Virginia is next on the schedule. By then, the Cavaliers, who won 30-27 in overtime over previously undefeated Louisville yesterday, might be in the top 10 themselves.

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WSU: Around the (current, old and future) Pac-12 and the nation, ESPN’s GameDay is headed to Eugene again. It will be there for Saturday’s game. No. 2 Oregon hosting No. 8 Indiana. … Utah State had the week off. From games. Not questions. … The story about former USC quarterback Mark Sanchez and what happened in Indianapolis is so convoluted, we are refraining from comment. … San Diego State is still glowing after the Friday night win over Colorado State.

• Here are the results for (current, old and future) Pac-12 teams this week, listed chronologically. The schedule below also includes any game in which mining news about turned out to be nearly impossible.

– Arizona 41, Oklahoma State 13: It was a game the Wildcats were supposed to win. They did. Yep, this is not last year’s Arizona squad. 

– UCLA 42, No. 7 Penn State 37: We mentioned this upset above. Its ramifications echoed throughout the college football universe. And may end up costing James Franklin his well-paid position.

– No. 21 Notre Dame 28, Boise State 7: The Broncos hung in against the homestanding Irish. But in the end Maddux Madsen’s four interceptions were too much to overcome.

– Washington 24, Maryland 20: For much of Saturday’s road game, the Huskies’ offense looked impotent and victory seemed unattainable. Then the fourth quarter happened. Washington roared back for victory over the previously undefeated Terps. … There are always grades. And instant impressions.

– App State 27, Oregon State 23: Rock bottom? WSU fans, thinking of their team’s bowl prospects, probably hope the Beavers’ road loss isn’t. That they can lose at least twice more. Heck, one more OSU defeat and the rest of the season becomes a series of bowl-game stand-ins. John Canzano wonders how many other bumps are ahead, and will there be enough of them to throw some coaches over the side.

– Arkansas State 31, Texas State 30: The Bobcats gave up a touchdown in the final seconds to fall in their conference opener.

– TCU 35, Colorado 21: Deion Sanders’ team’s poor play is not helping the Hall of Famer’s health. Quarterback play is not helping but it is not the only problem. 

– Duke 45, California 21: Yep, the Bears played as expected. Poorly. Especially in the second half.

– Fresno State 20, Nevada 17: The Bulldogs are developing an identity. They feature a punishing run game. And find ways to win. The Wolf Pack found that out.

Gonzaga: The Kraziness didn’t seem all that crazy. Impressive? Yes, in many ways. The Zags once again have dudes. And Theo Lawson has words to describe what happened Saturday in the Kennel. … Theo also talked with the newest practice player, still-to-be-NCAA-approved Grand Canyon transfer Tyon Grant-Foster. … Tyler Tjomsland has photos that do the same thing. … Jim Meehan makes an appearance in the S-R pages with Steele Venters’ feelings about being healthy enough to play in Saturday’s scrimmage.

EWU: It wasn’t all that pretty – a 1-4 team vs. a 0-5 squad usually isn’t – but the Eagles held on to a 35-27 homecoming (and Dam Cup) win over Portland State. Dan Thompson has the game coverage and a notebook from Roos Field. … Elsewhere in the (current and future) Big Sky, for most of the game against Idaho State in Pocatello, it seemed obvious why fourth-ranked Montana had not left Missoula yet. Winning on the road is hard. The Griz rallied to get it done, 42-38. … No. 5 Montana State used big plays from every unit to top No. 13 Northern Arizona in Flagstaff. … Seventh-ranked UC Davis scored two fourth-quarter touchdowns to top host Cal Poly 34-20 and win the Golden Horseshoe. … Northern Colorado received some good news during its bye week. … Southern Utah led early but fell to undefeated Tarleton State 52-42 in Texas. … Utah Tech lost 23-17 at Central Arkansas

Whitworth: The Pirates pulled away for a 28-14 Northwest Conference-opening win over host Pacific (Ore.) Saturday.

Preps: There was an important cross country race in the area Saturday. Of course Greg Lee and his notebook were there. He has this story on the Battle for the 509. … We can also pass along a roundup of other events yesterday. … Finally, Dave Nichols summed up what happened over the weekend in high school football in his Friday Night (High)Lights column.

Chiefs: Dave was in the Arena last night for Spokane’s home game with Prince George. It ended similarly to the Chiefs’ Friday game against the same team in Canada. Dave has the story from the 4-3 defeat.

Mariners: We shared our thoughts above. We share the game story and much, much more here, including Jacob Thorpe’s thoughts from T-Mobile. … Not only was the Northwest media out in full force, so were the national brands. … Do not forget, the Tigers were the best team in baseball for at least half of the season.

Seahawks: In case you forgot – and considering the secondary’s health going in, that might be a healthy attitude – the Hawks host Tampa Bay today. Seattle’s pro teams went 1-1 yesterday (see the Sounders’ section below). Could the same happen today? Or is 0-2 more likely?

Sounders: It has been eight years since Seattle has won at home vs. the Timbers. That’s a long time to wait for a 1-0 victory like happened last night.

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• This is not a sports story. But former Sports Illustrated star Rick Reilly finally wrote something I agree with wholeheartedly. And worry will cause a major injury on the trail behind my home. Until later …