A Grip on Sports: We love the underdog story from Daytona but hate much of what led up to it
A GRIP ON SPORTS • Where were we when we last could feel comfortable cruising the Net? Oh, yes. Battling a love/hate relationship with a certain holiday.
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• Is there a man alive that doesn’t feel that way about Valentine’s Day? No, really. I’m wondering. Maybe there is a segment of American males who lean toward the love it part. And another segment, a larger segment, perhaps, who lean the other way. But most of us are ambivalent with a capital A.
A scarlet A if you will.
Though you may ask, on this day when you awoke with your V-Day hangover (albeit from chocolate or something else), what this has to do with sports. We will answer this way. What in life doesn’t have something to do with sports?
Everything that happens in the world of bats, balls and nets seems to elicit either love or hate. As did what happened over the weekend just finished.
(As an aside, I almost ranked the weekend’s events on a presidential scale, to honor today’s holiday. But whenever I inch even a little into something that has a tinge of the political, I get the “stick to sports” emails. There are enough crud to ignore on Mondays. I don’t need more.)
– Hate: There was a huge crash early in the Daytona 500 yesterday. The field of NASCAR’s premier event was decimated by it. And then there was a long rain delay. The race didn’t finish until after 9 p.m. on the West Coast.
– Love: A guy who hasn’t won on the circuit in 357 tries took the checkered flag. And, after Michael McDowell broke into the lead, everyone behind him seemed to take it hard, crashing into each other.
– Love: The Mariners are bringing back the Big Maple, James Paxton on a one-year deal. Or whatever part of a year Paxton stays healthy for. Though the left-hander has shown dominance at times, he’s never been what one would call durable. But the veteran’s presence should help hold the line as more and more young pitchers build experience.
– Love: The M’s could have an entire left-handed starting rotation. Maybe they should play their home games in Yankee Stadium.
– Hate: Missing the Drew Timme Show Saturday. I’ll watch today, but the way Timme dominated USF and its doughnut defense (the Dons have a hole in the middle) was impressive, even only in highlight form. By the way, I am having a doughnut for breakfast.
– Love: With the easing of COVID-19 restrictions in the area, the Zags will be able to have the player’s families in McCarthey for what little is left of the 2021 regular season. My wife was on Ancestry.com all night, searching for long-lost connections to GU’s women’s players. She’s sleeping right now but I don’t think she found any.
– Hate: Dan Thompson has a story in today’s S-R about a couple Chiefs who will not be in Spokane much this season. Turns out Luke Toporowski and Bear Hughes, two recognizable names, have been playing on loan this season in the United States Hockey League. The agreement got them on the ice, but they won’t be allowed back with the Chiefs until the USHL season ends. And then for only six games or less.
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Gonzaga: We linked Jim Meehan’s story above concerning the crowds at the McCarthey Athletic Center. Mark Few feels it is a big deal. … Elsewhere in the WCC on Saturday, Pepperdine held off Saint Mary’s to move into a tie with BYU for second place.
WSU: Charlisse Leger-Walker scored 29 points last night, tying her career high and boosting her into the Pac-12 scoring lead, but the Cougars lost at Arizona State. … USC’s win in Pullman on Saturday was interesting, even for the Trojans. … Going into the matchup with the Huskies, Noah Williams is, as always, confident. … Around the Pac-12 and college basketball, there was one game Sunday, with Arizona State holding off visiting Oregon State. … Oregon defeated Arizona on Saturday when Chris Duarte connected on a late 3-pointer. … Colorado’s loss at California could really hurt McKinley Wright’s chances of showing off his talents in the NCAA Tournament. … UCLA avoided a similar resume-killing loss at Washington, but just barely. … Utah’s loss to Stanford was not an upset, which doesn’t console the Utes a bit. … In football news, Tyler Slough leaving Oregon shakes up things a bit in the North. … The search for a new commissioner shouldn’t take too long.
EWU: Running back Tamarick Pierce has a lot to live up to wearing No. 24 in the Northwest. But he embraces the Marshawn Lynch comparisons. Ryan Collingwood has more in this story. … In hoops, we have more on the Eagle men sweeping Montana State. … Elsewhere in the Big Sky on Saturday, Weber State bounced back in Missoula.
Idaho: We didn’t access this story yesterday morning, but the winless Vandal men’s team took Idaho State to overtime Saturday night. They still came up just short.
Seahawks: It seems as if Russell Wilson is actually good with the hiring of Shane Waldron as offensive coordinator.
Mariners: Besides the signing of Paxton, we have more M’s news to love. Their minor league prospects seem to be stouter these days. … What are your expectations for Seattle this season?
Sounders: It’s been an off-season of change for Seattle but don’t count the Sounders out. Ever.
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• You know what I love looking at but hate having to deal with? Yep, snow. It is going to be coming down all day, which means either I shovel a few times or wait until it stops and fire up my Mack truck-sized blower. Or hope Kim gets the urge for some exercise and does it instead. Which of those three options do you think would cause me less pain in the long run? Until later …