A Grip on Sports: The next two weeks are needed, if only for Seahawk fans to rebuild their energy after the taut NFC title win over Los Angeles

A GRIP ON SPORTS • Hangovers are never fun. Painful? Sure. Debilitating? Possibly. But enjoyable? Well, maybe. When the hangover is not triggered by adult beverages but instead is caused by smiling too much. As is the case for those of you who call yourselves 12s.

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• OK, sure. Imbibing might have been involved Sunday. But Monday, as I traveled around town doing the usual errands, I didn’t seem much evidence of that. There were way too many smiles on faces when the Seahawks’ success came up.

If there were headaches too, no one I ran into seemed to be exhibiting the signs. Winning, and winning over a rival as the Hawks accomplished Sunday afternoon, is a better hangover cure than Excedrin. Or dunking your head in a bucket of cold water. Or a Slurpee. Or a spicy breakfast. Or whatever.

The glow of their team earning its fourth Super Bowl berth was all the medicine needed. That and the curative powers of laughter at the Rams’ expense.

I’ve come to believe one reason the NFL is still good with two weeks leading up the Super Bowl is the league’s scientists have used rigorous studies about the recuperative powers of football fans. The first week is needed to rebuild the body’s stress-coping mechanisms. The second is when angst and dread return. Without at least a few extra days of smiles and high-fives, there is no chance fans could be 100% by the bacchanal that is Super Bowl Sunday.

Fans of the other 30 NFL teams? They will be fine. Even Rams and Bronco fans (maybe). But those of the participating franchises? No chance they would be ready to undergo the stress again this Sunday. Their body, like that of a 42-year-old offensive lineman, wouldn’t bounce back. Wouldn’t be able to give a full effort. Wouldn’t enjoy the game with the energy it deserves.

The extra seven days are gift from the football gods. A chance for all of us to take a deep breath. To digest the fruits of the Hawks’ victory. To enjoy the moment – if only for a moment.

This time next week? The smiles will have turned into Curt Cignetti-like frowns. Drake Maye’s picture will have replaced Matthew Stafford’s on your voodoo dolls and dart boards. Malcolm Butler will taunt you in your restless dreams.

And the Excedrin bottle will need a refill.

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WSU: The Cougars’ basketball fortunes, at least in the win/loss column, have been spotty recently. But the recent run of players coming through the program has engendered an historic number of standout NBA players. Cedric Coward, who also played at Eastern Washington, and Jaylen Wells will show their wares in this season’s Rising Stars Challenge. … Is Ace Glass the next to pop up in that event? It’s a long way off, but as Greg Woods tells us, Glass just secured his third WCC Freshman of the Week award this season. … Elsewhere in the (current, old and future) Pac-12 and the nation, Jon Wilner’s weekly ranking of the conference’s future basketball teams in the S-R also includes his thoughts on how close it will be next season to the bottom of the Power Five. … John Canzano has a mailbag from Monday we can pass along. … Top-ranked Arizona almost coughed up an 11-point lead in the final 82 seconds of its Monday night game at BYU. But a big block by a smaller guard kept No. 13 BYU at bay. … Colorado’s defense is failing the Buffs in Big 12 play. … It’s a key time for USC basketball, both teams. … Arizona State is on the longest Big 12 road trip. To UCF. … Boise State’s “glue guy” is a physical presence. … Utah State has some time before its next game so the players were given some time off. … The Washington women, ranked 25th, have won four consecutive games. They finally got their game in at Rutgers and won in a rout.

• In football news, with the CFP situation for 2026 resolved – the Big Ten and SEC couldn’t agree so the status quo remains in effect – it’s time for the Pac-12 office to make some announcements. Wilner returns with this look in the S-R at what’s ahead. … San Diego State is ready to find out. … Oregon won’t be a part of that but it well could be next in line, after Indiana’s success, of schools in the running for their first national title. … Washington has added a quarterback transfer. … The story we linked yesterday about Colorado and fines? It caused a bit of a stir. … Utah poached a football general manager from USC. … Finally, the ACC released its 2026 schedule.

Gonzaga: Courtney Vandersloot was a star in Spokane. She’s also a star in Chicago, her off-and-on longtime WNBA home. That showed recently when she showed up on an NBC show based in the city. Greg Lee delves into her appearance on “Chicago Med.” … We missed yesterday. Did a lot of reading in advance of the latest Associated Press’ men’s basketball rankings. And thought the Zags might drop. They actually jumped up two spots. Jim Meehan has more in this story. … Rui Hachimura seems amiable to doing whatever the Los Angeles Lakers need.

EWU: We linked this Athletic story yesterday on Eagle legend Cooper Kupp, his departure from the Rams, its fallout and the last laugh. The story ran on the S-R site today. … Elsewhere in the Big Sky, while Montana State was winning the FCS title, a couple Montana-born broadcasters were working the game. … A Cal Poly grad will be playing in the Super Bowl as a New England rookie. … Portland State seems to have filled a need at quarterback with a Kalispell Glacier high school player. … Northern Colorado’s women are challenging for the regular-season basketball title after a recent win over Northern Arizona.

Seahawks: Mike Macdonald seems laser focused. Sure of what his team needs to do to be successful. And rarely allows others to peek inside. Dave Boling decided to delve into Macdonald’s personality, how it contrasts to some of his successful Seattle predecessors and how it translates on the field with his team. … This is the first Super Bowl trip for Macdonald as a head coach, with all its responsibilities. … Nick Emmanwori is aggressive. On the field. And, as we found out Sunday, on the sidelines as well. … He and Jaxson Smith-Njigba are on a mission. … How can one owner, Jody Allen and Paul’s trust, be so successful with the Seahawks and mess up so badly with the Blazer? John Canzano has no explanation. … A Sam Darnold story? I’m on a mission to find a new one every day between now and the Super Bowl. … Not going out of my way, though, to find stories on the last time these franchises met for the title. They will be out there.

Mariners: Seattle has always been on the lookout for top international talent. The M’s seem to be closing in on another player with potential.

Sounders: We linked this Times’ story on Paul Arriola’s comeback from knee surgery a while ago. It is on the S-R site today.

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• The next couple weeks will be fun. Busy, sure. For everyone. But fun. Until later …