A TIP ABOUT SPORTS • Let’s get straight to the point, shall we? We have some questions. There are no definitive answers. Speculation? Of course. I hope it’s enough.
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• Who will be the quarterback of the Cougars on the last day of the month?Perhaps most important is Sept. 7, when Texas Tech, Washington’s state of the big 12, comes to visit.
A week ago we were pretty sure of that. We are even more confident. We put our money in John Mateer. Not just because he has a little experience at WSU, that helps. Most importantly, Mateer, the Texas junior, takes more care of the ball in practice.
Ball security is further increased when the head coach has a defensive strategy and likes to force turnovers.
The other contender for the job, signing Bryant Zevi Eckhaus, also has experience. More, in fact. Although his has reached the FCS level. Even if Mateer wins the spot, it’s up to the Cougs to have a player of Eckhaus’ pedigree if needed. And those days, backup quarterbacks are needed.
• Before we leave Pullman, we want to review David Riley’s first non-conference schedule as head coach of the men’s basketball team. An interesting fact: The Cougars won’t play a real road game until December, and only three in total.
WSU’s first 8 games include 4 at Pullman, a fifth at Spokane, dominated by the Cougars (vs. old-school Dan Monson and Riley from Eastern Washington) and 3 at independent sites, plus Big Ten contender Iowa, Illinois.
However, the last four non-conference battles include games at Nevada, Boise State and UW.
The program is designed to build continuity and trust in an organization that likely wore badges in the early days of summer training.
• Yes, the Mariners have one of the most productive starting teams in baseball. And if they make the playoffs, one of those dominant starters (and more) can help out in the bullpen for a series or three.
There is a problem. We wonder if they will be able to do it. The way the bullpen is beaten doesn’t bode well in that regard.
Over the past few years, the main workplace has done a wonderful job (yes, we applaud the Jerry Dipoto guys) in matching and matching in the bullpen. Add and subtract might be a more wonderful phrase, as it seems to place enough arms to move from the starters to the clubhouse, with a stopper off in the middle.
Possibly the magic would have ended.
This season’s additions, from the Orioles’ move on Mike Baumann in April to arguably less risky trade deadline deals for Yimi Garcia and JT Chargois, haven’t paid off as Dipoto would have hoped.
Garcia impressed in 8 games with Seattle. He pitched 8 innings. He allowed 4 points earned. He’s not cool. The problem? He doesn’t lack bats like he did with the Blue Jays. Last night Kerry Carpenter’s homer didn’t miss in the eighth, and Carpenter’s home run tied a game the M’s would lose in the tenth, 3-2.
Chargois has done so since his arrival from Miami. In 4 appearances, he has yet to give up a hit. But for some reason, he hasn’t pitched in a week, sitting down since the 4-3 win over Detroit in Seattle.
Setup issues have recently made Andrés Muñoz questionable. The closest was (we double checked to make sure it was correct) 3 appearances in August. None of them were in a backup situation.
• We are attentive to the bronze medal saga of the Jordan Chiles. All the machinations, accusations, mistakes and stupidities.
In short, Chiles, the last gymnast to compete in floor training in Paris, carried out her program at the bronze medal level. However, the judges made a scoring error. The U. S. coaching staff appealed, as allowed by the regulations. His score was adjusted and he won the bronze medal.
Since then, the Romanian national team took the resolution to court, as happens in foreign sport, alleged that the call had a delay of 4 seconds and obtained a favorable resolution from the Court of Arbitration for Sport. The IOC will reassign medal to Chiles.
I understand? Well, it turns out that the head of the CAS panel works for Romania, the panel sent a non-existent email informing of the audience and the US staff. UU. no had time to prepare his defense. After the hearing resulted in the medal change, the gymnastics federation admitted that it didn’t even know who had documented the timing of the call, a video was discovered that supposedly looked like it had been submitted on time.
The video was ignored. Ironically, the committee says it’s too late.
Questions? We have a million of them. And there are no answers.
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WSU: We talked earlier about the non-conference basketball schedule. We connect the story of Greg Woods here. . . and here too. Array. . . The game with UW is scheduled for December 18. Array. . . Still with the hoops, Theo Lawson has a story about Cougar alum Robert Franks still looking for a chance for him in the NBA. Array. . . The Cougars football team was picked to finish second in the West Coast Conference preseason poll. Gonzaga took fifth place. All this is part of the new local column of the SR. Array. . . We also discovered stories about a former Washington State volleyball assistant, now a Nevada coach, and some other looks at what Cam Ward is doing in Miami. Array. . Elsewhere in the (new and old) Pac-12, Mountain West and the nation, Jon Wilner at Mercury News takes a look at the Big 12 schedule and who has had the most productive mistakes among schools. … Oregon State wants to speed things up on offense, running more plays and giving its quarterbacks a chance to shine… The numbers stories on the Oregonian’s online page continue, with No. 17 going to Oregon State and Oregon . Array. . One of Washington’s strengths last season was its offensive line. This organization has almost disappeared. A rebuild is underway. Array. . Linebackers are the complete opposite. Array. . . There’s a lot going on at Oregon, from special organizations to offensive line determination to injuries that need to be factored into the coaching staff’s shared hital. Array. . . Transfers will once again play a big role for Colorado. Even in women’s basketball. …More and more people are jumping on the Utah bandwagon. …Headphone audio is now allowed, which means we’re probably going to delight at least two or three times by preventing the game from fixing what’s broken. Array. . . How will California do in the ACC? Array. . . USC relies on its cornerbacks, while across town, UCLA does the same with its safeties. Array. . . Arizona State would likely have to force a lot of turnovers to be successful. Array. . . There have been some wonderful defenses in Tucson. This Arizona organization believes it can get to that point because of its willingness to combat any and all snap. Array. In the Mountain West, the Colorado State River has formed a bond for defense. Array. . Despite all the turmoil in the state of Utah, there are still weak links that want to get stronger. …The first time a new coach does something has to be special. …Recruiting never stops. We have evidence from Fresno State. Array. . . Hawaii has two punters competing for time. Matrix. . . All New Mexico specialists want to have a wonderful season. Array. . . San Diego State will most likely be without a key running back in its first game. …Twice is in the air in the Air Force. Sorry for the pun.
Gonzaga: It’s clear from Jim Meehan’s conversations with him that Mark Few had the time of his life in Paris. On and off the Olympic basketball court. Good for him. Training is complicated, but moments like few others experienced in Paris are worth it. Array. . Former GU pitcher Marco Gonzales’ season ended due to an arm injury.
Indians: Every time their pitching team pitches nine scoreless innings, there’s about a 99% chance of winning. Spokane hosted one last night at Avista, scoring 3 times against Vancouver and tying the series at one game apiece. Dave Nichols has it todo. la information. . . . Elsewhere in the NWL, each and every home team won, with Eugene handling Hillsboro 5-1 and Everett dominating Tri-City 7-2.
EWU and Idaho: Around the Big Sky, Sacramento State gambling in the state of Oregon moved from 2026 to 2029. Be sure to update your calendar. . . . Northern Arizona’s starting midfielder needs his offensive line to bounce back after a lackluster season. . . Weber State is looking to fix this NIL problem. . . The captains were selected at Montana State. . . Montana is trying to have the most productive defensive linemen. . . In basketball news, the Bobcats have finished a few games outside of the conference. . . The women of MSU have a giant transfer organization.
Mariners: For much of the first leg of the season, the M ruled the less talented teams. This has not been the case recently. . . With the Astros rallying and Seattle losing 2. 5 games in the West, it would possibly be time to start tracking the AL wild-card standings. Oops. The M’s are 3 games out there. . . . Julio Rodriguez is still suffering from his ankle injury. . . Since the Mariners’ owners also own Root, we thought we’d pass on the news that Portland will be leaving the network for its next NBA season.
Seahawks: Homecoming can be sweet. Or bitter. The Hawks had one with some former defensive teammates while training in Nashville with the Titans. Array. . . The offense showed promise. . . . Geno Smith of joint education. Array. . . Byron Murphy too.
Sounders: Real Salt Lake had a busy summer moving window. What is the opposite of busy? Anyway, that’s what Seattle had.
Storm: A Seattle star succeeds LeBron James in one area. Off the field, for sure, but it’s important.
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• We’re wrapping up here this morning and tackling a bunch of pieces on the to-do list. Funny how they go up if you’re going off the rails for a few days. See you later. . .