A GRIP ON SPORTS • It’s a holiday. Labor Day. The traditional end of summer and the start of football season – as well as the pennant races. Now that you’ve put your white pants away, we will help you get ready for the next couple months. Read on.

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• So what’s going to happen in September and October? I’ve been trying to figure that out, staring into a crystal chandelier for a few minutes last night in hopes of divining the future. But, alas, I’m am now more a seer than the amazing professor Marvel was in the “Wizard of Oz,” so I’ll just have to call on past experience for my predictions.

• This time next week ... Cougar fans will have forgotten all about the Portland State debacle. What, you immediately assumed I am forecasting a win in New Jersey? That’s not what I said. They will have forgotten about the loss to Portland State, that’s what I said. It could mean WSU upset the Scarlet Knights, or it could mean the Cougars were beaten so soundly their fans will be totally preoccupied on the most recent loss. ... The Mariners will have made another move in the American League wild card standings. On Sept. 1, the M’s were eight games out and had seven teams to jump over. Now, after winning five consecutive games, they are six out and have just five to get past. If the trend continues, oh well, you get the picture. ... Eastern Washington will be 1-1 though the Eagles will find Northern Iowa a tough out. Cooper Kupp, however, will catch a few footballs. ... We will be still talking about Kam Chancellor. ... Idaho will be 0-2. ... The Seahawks will know a heck of a lot about the abilities of their offensive line. The St. Louis Rams have made excellent groups look like five blocks of granite (in an unmovable way), so the Hawks’ patchwork group might just be exposed. Or Tom Cable will be next in line for sainthood.

• This time next month ... We will be still talking about Kam Chancellor. ... A postgame press conference in the Palouse – somewhere on the Palouse – will turn contentious. And someone will get yelled at. ... The M’s will be back in the headlines, despite Seattle hard-to-comprehend fascination with the Seahawks. I mean, who wants to read about a winner all the time? ... Though everyone will be 100 percent healthy in Pullman, that won’t be the case with every college football team in the area. It’s a tough sport and some young man will see his season end. It’s always nicer when his head coach shows some appreciation for his sacrifice. ... Fred Jackson will be considered the most important free agent signing of the season. ... The Vandals will be wondering if its football team will be allowed to stay in the revamped Sun Belt Conference. ... Cooper Kupp will continue to catch a few footballs.

• This time in November ... We will know who the M’s new general manager will be. The Twitterverse will be still making fun on the hire. ... There will be a cacophony of sound from Pullman concerning the status of coach Mike Leach, much of it led by folks who wear Crimson sweatshirts to work on Fridays. ... We will be still talking about Kam Chancellor. ... A Cougar fan in Renton – wearing a Crimson sweatshirt – will point out on Seattle sports talk radio some Friday that Leach took the Cougars to a bowl game in his second year. And then he’ll ask why Chris Peterson isn’t being held to the same standard. ... Beau Baldwin’s name will have been floated for the first open college football job. Baldwin will pooh-pooh the rumors because, after all, he doesn’t want to live in East Hickory, Iowa or West Stevensville, Georgia. Mainly, though, it's due to the fact he can't take Cooper Kupp with him. ... The Hawks will have played a couple stinker games and there will be panic in the faithful. Russell Wilson will tell everyone to relax and drink their $3-an-ounce water. They will. Because Russell said to.

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• WSU: The Cougars are looking forward as well, but they, rightfully, can’t see past their next opponent, Rutgers. Jacob Thorpe was at practice last night and has this report, which also has a couple video interviews. That dovetails nicely with his story in today’s paper. ... Jacob has a morning post with links available for today. ... Rutgers is struggling off the field and is No. 1 in USA Today’s misery index. However, WSU is No. 6. Does that make the Cougars a five-point favorite? ... It was not a good first weekend for the Pac-12 conference. ... One of the five losers was Arizona State, who had a chance to make a statement and dropped the ball. ... We mentioned injuries above. UCLA had one of those season-enders this weekend. Tough to take.

• EWU: The Eagles may have lost, but at least the Oregon game is in the rear-view mirror. Jim Allen has a look back at the 61-42 loss. ... The Ducks weren’t happy with the way their defense played either. ... Eastern’s volleyball team is on a roll.

• Indians: The Northwest League season is over. And it ended the same way most of the games did, with an Indians’ loss. Sunday it was 9-2 to Tri-City. The playoffs begin today. The Indians are not part of them.

• Seahawks: The Hawks are always willing to admit when they’ve made a mistake. At least it seems that way. John Schneider traded Christine Michael, a second-round pick three years ago, to Dallas for a conditional draft choice. Not much return for a guy who the team felt could be Marshawn Lynch’s replacement down the road. But the right move. ... The Hawks are putting together their practice squad with a couple of former UW receivers highlighting the list. ... Four of Seattle’s cut players signed elsewhere. ... So where do the Hawks stand headed into the 2015 opener?

• Mariners: Five consecutive wins, all on the road, have buoyed the M’s spirits. Of course, few are paying attention right now. The latest win came yesterday afternoon in Oakland, 3-2, and Tom Wilhelmsen continued his outstanding work as the most recent closer. ... The M’s bats have come alive. So who gets the credit?

• Sounders: Clint Dempsey’s recent hamstring injury means he won’t play for the USMNT this week in a friendly with Brazil. Instead, he will continue to heal and play with Seattle. ... The Sounders’ owner has interests outside of soccer.

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• Not sure if any of my prognostications will come true. But more than likely 50 percent of them will be right and 50 percent will be wrong. After all, everything is 50/50. Until later ...

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