A Grip on Sports: We give thanks for a lot all the time but this week brings the NFL, which should be a national holiday

A GRIP ON SPORTS • It may not be Thanksgiving but on this Thursday, we want to give thanks anyway. To the Mariners, for exiting our view just in time.   

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• Yes, we understand the M’s could still stage some sort of miracle rally and chase down the Astros in the West. Or maybe the Royals in the wild card. After all, they are just 5.5 games back in both, with 22 games remaining. It could happen. It might happen.

But we’re not holding our breath – even after last night’s offensive explosion in Oakland. If something miraculous does occur, we’ll embrace it. But until Gatorade turns into wine (or something of that sort), we’ll switch our focus to football. All types of football.

College football? Sure. We are just at the start of the most-anticipated season in years. New conferences, new pay scales, new playoffs, new TV … wait, scratch that. The same old TV problems. Still, overall, college football is evolving. Fast.

The NFL? You bet. It may not be navigating of a sea change like its collegiate counterpart, but, heck, around these parts it is. Somewhat. We haven’t seen change like this in the Northwest in more than a decade. A new coach. A new attitude. And a same old opponent. Denver is in Seattle to begin the season, just as it was two years ago. This time, Russell Wilson won’t be. The players who eventually joined the Seahawks in the trade that offseason will, though, and that’s good for Seattle.

Still, it may not be as exciting as, say, Friday night’s game, in which two NFL teams venture across the sea to play a regular-season game in the Southern Hemisphere for the first time. But, you know, Brazil. The NFL. Packers. Eagles. São Paulo. Maybe an Elon Musk sighting. Who knows? And, with the game exclusively on Peacock, who will see?

Remember the good old days, when DirectTV, Comcast, the NFL, the Big Ten Network, Disney and all of us just got along? When everyone made fun of Larry Scott and the Pac-12 Networks? Ya, that one week in 2012 was so great.

• The Pac-12 is trying to survive, right? Trying to show it is still relevant in the new world order. Its two surviving members, Washington State and Oregon State, have two seasons to build a narrative. Prove they still belong at the highest level of college athletics. On and off the field.

The on-field aspect started well last weekend. Both won. Handily. Over Big Sky foes, sure, but ask Oregon how easy that is sometimes.

But what if no one pays attention? The schools’ first games on The CW Network, the Pac-12’s main broadcast partner this season, did OK in the all-important eyeball ratings. The Cougars’ drew 223,000 folks to their 12:30 game Saturday, Oregon State another 381,000 to its 3:30 contest. Not great. Not awful.

This week might be a bit tougher, despite both schools playing more recognizable foes on established networks. Why? Overlapping game times. The Cougars, hosting the Big-12’s Texas Tech, kick on Fox at 7 p.m. The Beavers, at San Diego State, a half-hour later on the CBS Sports Network. We know the fans of the two schools want to support each other, but that will be tougher this week.

And it’s even tougher when you add in Oregon hosting Boise State at 7. The game is on Peacock, peeling away a few eyeballs that might have watched.

The hill the Pac-12 must climb this season is hard enough. Any roadblocks to higher viewership just seem like piling on. And deserves a flag.

• Which brings us to Washington’s win over Weber State. A relatively easy victory. With one caveat. An injured tight end.

The fact Quentin Moore’s injury was caused by a hit from a player who shouldn’t have been on the field is a tempest in a coffee pot in some ways. Yes, Weber linebacker Garrett Beck left the field. Realized his mistake. Came back on after the snap. Tackled Moore from behind. Should have been flagged. But the injury may have happened even if everything was as it should be.

The issue? The Big Ten crew, with former Pac-12 referee Francisco Villar in charge, missed the illegal entry completely. Whiffed. And the conference ended up having to apologize. Which means: The game was blacked out for some in a carriage dispute; an obvious penalty was missed; and Husky fans were able to express outrage.

It’s almost as if UW never switched conferences.

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WSU: Texas Tech and Washington State have a football history, though not much of one in the competitive sense. There have been many intertwining personnel connections, however. And they continue this weekend, including players and coaches. Greg Woods introduces us to one such connection this morning with his story on the two offensive coordinators. It’s a connection we didn’t know and wanted to pass along with a big thumbs up. … Former WSU (and Lake City High) baseball player Kyle Manzardo is back in the big leagues and this time is more comfortable with his most-common lineup spot. He’s a designated hitter for the Guardians. … The Red Raiders are pretty beat up after last week’s one-point overtime home win vs. an FCS school. … Elsewhere in the (new and old) Pac-12, the Mountain West and the nation, Jon Wilner unveils a new column today, covering media coverage of the West Coast. It’s where we pulled our viewership numbers from this morning. … Wilner has another new feature in the Mercury News, a look at Utah and BYU. … The Beavers, who play San Diego State on Saturday, had a 55-yard scoring play. Nick Daschel breaks it down. … The OSU offensive line had a lot of fun. … Oregon needs to bounce back this weekend against Boise State. It also needs to control the Broncos’ running game. The game with Ohio State seems to loom over everything. … Colorado has a big game Saturday in Lincoln, Nebraska. It’s also big for the Big 12. … Does Utah actually have a player nicknamed Superman? Yes it does. … A Ute football player might play basketball too. … Stanford and California can earn more money this season. … The run defense is better at USC. … UCLA is still working as the Big Ten opener looms. … Arizona State football feels different this season. … You will have to have ESPN+ to see Arizona play Northern Arizona this week. … In the Mountain West, there is trouble at Wyoming but patience might just be better. … Hawaii’s backup quarterback is ready if needed. … New Mexico always has issues. … Utah Tech visits UNLV. … Air Force’s opponent, San Jose State, has a familiar coach. … Colorado State hosts Northern Colorado. … Stanford has an NCAA-title streak that dates back to the 1970s.

EWU: Dan Thompson turns his eyes today on the FCS as a whole, with an emphasis on the Big Sky. He looks at how the Eagles, and others, used their 12th game this season to play other FCS foes. … Elsewhere in the Big Sky, a Montana football player has a great nickname. … There is a connection between Maine and Montana State.

Idaho: The Vandals’ near-historic upset in Eugene (they were more than a six-touchdown underdog) attracted Bruce Feldman’s attention in The Athletic. He delved into UI’s losses due to NIL, the Vandals’ way it deals with them and their coaching losses as well. It’s an interesting piece.  

Indians: As David Bowie once articulated, changes happen. Avista Stadium is a great example four decades later. Dave Nichols delves into the most-recent work going on at the Fairgrounds, work that must be done for next season. Jesse Tinsley has a bunch of photos as well. … Dave also has this story on the Indians’ 8-4 win at Everett last night. … Elsewhere in the Northwest League, Vancouver lost 10-7 at Eugene, but Hillsboro could not make up ground, losing 5-2 at Tri-City.

Seahawks: We referred to the Hawks’ season of change above. Dave Boling delved into the main element of it this morning in the S-R. The changeover from Pete Carroll to Mike Macdonald. … The new coach wants to bring in a different culture but, at the same time, honor the team’s history. … The offense and defense each have new aspects. … It’s time for DK Metcalf to have his best season. … The Hawks are pretty healthy. … The NFL’s first week isn’t easy to bet. One sure thing from this Athletic column? The Seahawks will cover. How does anyone know?

Storm: Seattle gets another shot at Breanna Stewart and the Liberty.

Mariners: The 16-3 win was a welcome relief for the M’s. And their fans. … Ken Griffey Jr. was in the building.  

Kraken: Training camp is about to open. With a new coach in charge. Sound familiar?

Tennis: We watched a lot of U.S. Open tennis again last night. Jessica Pegula’s biggest career win. The last men’s quarterfinal. It was fun. More on tap today, with semis on the agenda.

Golf: We don’t understand why there is even a debate. Scottie Scheffler’s win in Paris – at a near major – and his PGA Tour Championship title clinched the player of the year award. As they should have. Heck, with the year he’s had, a win in either, coupled with Xander Schauffele not adding another big win on his resume, makes the vote a formality.

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• If you are like a great majority of Americans, your favorite season begins tonight. Enjoy it. By the way, we won’t be writing here this weekend (though we are still contemplating doing something Saturday morning). It’s our 50th high school reunion weekend and we have a lot planned. Golf, brunches, dinners, you name it. Until later …