News for
CougGroup 1/17/2018
~Tyler
Hilinski~
Rest In Peace
May 26,
1996 – Jan. 16, 2018
//////////////
WSU MARCHING BAND SINGS ALMA MATER, HONORS TYLER HILINSKI
From Spokane KREM-TV website, link below to video of the
band singing preceded by an advertisement. on.krem.com/2DgyAhG
//////////////
Link to Daily Evergreen slideshow
“WSU community comes
together to remember Hilinski”
https://dailyevergreen.com/24593/news/wsu-community-comes-together-to-remember-hilinski/#slideshow803193
………………….
From: WSU Sports Info
Date: Wed, Jan 17, 2018 at 10:46
PM
Cougs Gut out a Win Over
Washington in the First Half of the Boeing Apple Cup
1/17/2018 WSU Women's
Basketball from WSU Sports Info
PULLMAN, Wash. - In an
emotional night on the Palouse, Washington State (9-10, 2-5 Pac-12) found a way
to win, defeating Washington (6-12, 0-7 Pac-12), 78-75, in overtime in the
first half of the Boeing Apple Cup Wednesday night.
Down two with :20 seconds to
play in regulation, the Cougs got the look they needed when Chanelle Molina
drilled a three from the top of the arc, off an offensive rebound from Nike
McClure who secured a career-best 16 boards in the game, to put the Cougs ahead
68-67. Needing a stop, the Cougs saw their hopes for a win nearly dashed when a
controversial call went against WSU with just 3.5 seconds to go. The foul sent
the Huskies' leading scorer to the line where Amber Melgoza would shoot two for
the win. With Beasley rocking, Melgoza made just one of her attempts to give
the Cougs clemency and send the game into overtime.
Granted new life, the Cougs put
the Huskies in a huge hole right off the opening tip as Borislava Hristova,
quiet in the fourth, exploded for seven of her 25 points to start the
extra-period to put the Cougs up 75-69 with just over two minutes to play. From
there, WSU would hold on despite a rough night at the free-throw line, clamping
down on the Huskies when it mattered most while McClure dropped in the
game-sealing bucket with :05 to play to finish off the home victory.
Stat of the Game
The Cougs blocked a season-best
12 shots, the second-most in a single game in program history trailing only
their 14 block night against Colorado to end the 2016-17 regular season.
Moments of the Game
Bobi's 3 in OT to put the Cougs
up 6 75-69 with 2:13 to play in OT - Watch the final minutes of OT on the
@Pac12Network#GoCougs pic.twitter.com/w6dxfFn6rL
- WSU Women's Hoops
(@WSUWomensHoops) January 18, 2018
Chanelle Molina for the lead
from downtown #GoCougs pic.twitter.com/DEYiB7RRYV
- WSU Women's Hoops
(@WSUWomensHoops) January 18, 2018
Nike hits the layup for her 2nd
career double-double 10 pts and 14 rebounds with just over 6 min to play in the
game #GoCougs pic.twitter.com/GhSiDW3msc
- WSU Women's Hoops
(@WSUWomensHoops) January 18, 2018
The set, the spike, the kill
for Nike - Watch more on @Pac12Network #GoCougs pic.twitter.com/vZ6SKoDIg9
- WSU Women's Hoops
(@WSUWomensHoops) January 18, 2018
Not in Nike's house #GoCougs
pic.twitter.com/vHOP8yKCXv
- WSU Women's Hoops
(@WSUWomensHoops) January 18, 2018
Things You Need To Know
The Cougs snapped a five-game
skid against the Huskies with the win while snapping a three-game losing streak
in Pac-12 play.
It was the first overtime game
of the season for WSU. The Cougs played three overtime games in 2016-17, the
last a 68-67 win at Wyoming in the WNIT.
Borislava Hristova posted her
eighth 20+ point effort of the year and 18th of her career, leading all scorers
with 25 points. She tied her career-high with four three-pointers.
Nike McClure's double-double
(16 points, 16 rebounds) was her second of her career and fourth of the season
for WSU (the previous three tallied by Louise Brown). Both her 16 points and 16
rebounds were career bests for the redshirt-junior while her six blocks were a
season-high.
McClure's 16 rebounds were the
most by a Coug since Louise Brown's 16 against Oklahoma State last season.
Kayla Washington recorded a
career-best 11 rebounds while posting nine points before fouling out of the
game while Chanelle Molina added 13 points to go with three rebounds and four
assists.
WSU was without its second and
third top scorers for most of the game as Alexys Swedlund missed her
second-straight contest due to injury while Louise Brown played just seven
minutes before leaving the game with flu like symptoms.
The Huskies finished the game
with three in double-figures led by Amber Melgoza's 22 points and seven
rebounds. Hannah Johnson added 13 points and 16 rebounds while Jenna Moser
finished with 11 points.
WSU outshot the Huskies 44.4%
(32-of-72) to 35.9% (28-of-78) but hit just 7-of-18 (38.9%) from the line while
the Huskies made 11-of-14 (78.8%).
…………….
Reports: WSU set to hire Chun as AD
FAU
leader expected to replace Moos at Pullman school; news conference postponed
following death of football player
By
Stefanie Loh, Seattle Times
Jan 17,
2018
Washington
State has found a successor to replace Bill Moos.
After a three-month long search, WSU
announced Tuesday that it will hire a new AD. It was first reported by ESPN
that Patrick Chun will be the Cougars’ new boss, which was confirmed by a
Seattle Times source.
A news conference had been scheduled
for 11 a.m. today, but the school announced Tuesday evening it was postponing
it following the apparent suicide of football player Tyler Hilinski. A new date
for the news conference hasn’t been set.
Chun comes to WSU from Florida
Atlantic, where he has been the athletic director since 2012.
Chun brings a strong fundraising
history — something that WSU President Kirk Schulz stressed was important in
any potential athletic director hire. It’s a skill that’s essential for WSU’s
long-term athletic success because the Cougars’ athletic department closed last
fiscal year with a projected $8.5 million budget deficit, and prior to last
year, ran deficits of more than $10 million for three-consecutive years.
At FAU, Chun secured a $16 million
donation from the Schmidt Family Foundation that was the largest single gift in
school history, and went toward the construction of a new athletics facility.
In August 2013, FAU signed a 10-year agreement with Learfield Sports as its
exclusive corporate sponsorship sales unit in a deal that’s expected to
generate $25 million in revenues.
Chun also spearheaded the
procurement of donations to help fund a new FAU academic center, a tennis
complex, the addition of sand volleyball courts, and the renovation of FAU’s
soccer field.
Prior to his term at FAU, Chun spent
15 years at Ohio State, where he was involved in development, endowment
building, strategic planning, management and leadership. Chun left Ohio State
as the executive associate athletic director, and oversaw a 20 percent increase
in overall giving to the Buckeyes’ athletic department and three-straight years
of new fundraising records.
“Pat is one of the premier, young
athletic administrators in the country,” said Ohio State athletic director Gene
Smith, who has worked with and mentored Chun over the years. “He’s extremely
talented and gifted and he’s got multiple experiences in the industry.
“He was my right-hand man when he
was here. His expertise and biggest asset is external relations. He was a huge
fundraiser for us and raised millions of dollars.”
Chun started his Ohio State tenure
in athletic communications in 1997 and was promoted six times before he left in
2012. He moved from communications to development in 2002, to become director
of the Buckeye Club, and over the next three years, he raised more than $22
million.
In 2005, Chun was named Ohio State’s
director of development with a focus on major gifts and endowment projects. He
led the charge in the fundraising and completion of Ohio State’s $21 million
football facility renovation, and also raised money for a $5.1 million softball
stadium project, a $3 million boathouse and a $3.3 million indoor tennis
facility. Chun also played an instrumental part in helping Ohio State sign a
10-year, $128 million multimedia rights deal with IMG College that, in 2009,
was the largest multimedia rights deal in intercollegiate athletics history.
That fundraising clout is
well-documented, but what makes Chun stand out is his people skills, say both
Smith and former WSU quarterback Jack Thompson, who was on WSU’s athletic
director search committee.
“He’s a people person,” Smith said.
“When you meet him, you’ll understand that. He loves connecting with people.
Thompson said the search committee
interviewed eight finalists last week in a central location. Chun stood out for
his passion, Thompson said, adding that all but one of the eight finalists were
sitting athletic directors.
“He interviewed early and he woke us
all up. And then, he was the leader,” Thompson said. “I’m a very happy guy. He
was far and away my favorite. He’s impressive. We got the best one. Kirk Schulz
hired the best candidate. He went national, and the list of candidates we had
was so impressive.
Chun also has experience managing an
outspoken, high-profile football coach with a big personality. He hired Lane
Kiffin away from Alabama in December 2016, in what was seen as a risky move at
the time due to Kiffin’s failed head coaching stints at USC and Tennessee and
his sometimes-abrasive personality.
“It was a controversial hire,”
Thompson said. “But the backstory to that was such that it mitigated concerns.”
Smith said Chun also consulted him
during the Kiffin hiring process.
“Hiring Lane was pretty important.
It was risky, and he managed it extremely well,” Smith said.
The hire has panned out. Kiffin last
season led the Owls to their best season in program history, finishing with an
11-3 record, a win over Akron in the Boca Raton Bowl, and a Conference-USA
championship.
Kiffin, like WSU’s Mike Leach, is
known for his tendency to speak his mind and opine on a variety of subjects. In
a tweet in December, Kiffin called Leach “my hero in press conferences” after
Leach, during a news conference, went on a rant about the need to expand the
College Football Playoff.
Chun is a 1997 graduate of Ohio
State. He also has a masters in sports leadership from Duquesne, and will move
to Pullman with his wife and three daughters.
………………….
WSU community comes together to
remember Hilinski
January 17, 2018 Evergreen
Students gathered to sing the WSU
alma mater, "Washington, My Washington," to pay respects to WSU
football player Tyler Hilinski on Wednesday afternoon.
Current and past WSU football
players and coaches shared their condolences over social media to Tyler
Hilinski, along with notable figures in the Pullman community.
Former WSU wide receiver River
Cracraft:
My brother. I love you man
#YoureInPeaceNow3 pic.twitter.com/XOVS4Gkfbh
— River (@rivercracraft) January 17,
2018
WSU freshman quarterback John
Bledsoe:
God, let Tyler find peace. Everyone
please pray for the Hilinski family tonight. Heaven received a very special
person. pic.twitter.com/mx4i1MoOhK
— John Bledsoe (@johnbledsoe11)
January 17, 2018
Former Cougar wide receiver Gabe
Marks:
I love you Klink
I don’t think I can express what I’m
feeling right now about the loss of my brother.
I love you #3
— Gabe Marks (@throwitupto9) January
17, 2018
Former WSU quarterback Ryan Leaf:
I’m so fucking angry, I can’t stop
crying. Every human life is precious. All I wish is that I could’ve been in
that apt in Pullman, looked that amazing young man in the eyes & said
you’re loved Tyler! I’m just like you & I’ve been here & there is hope,
hugged him & never let go.
— Ryan D Leaf (@RyanDLeaf) January
17, 2018
WSU strength and conditioning coach
Jason Loscalzo:
For I am convinced that neither
death nor life neither angels nor demons neither the present nor the future nor
any powers neither height nor depth nor anything else in all creation will be
able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord
Rom8:38-39 #RIP3
pic.twitter.com/51vwuaxBCd
— Jason Loscalzo (@jason_loscalzo)
January 17, 2018
WSU redshirt senior linebacker Nate
DeRider:
Rest In Peace Klink. You were such a
fun, loving guy and made everyone laugh around you. Thought & Prayers to
the Hilinski family. #RIP3 pic.twitter.com/5yoYf9MCNz
— Nate DeRider (@natederider)
January 17, 2018
WSU inside linebackers coach Ken
Wilson:
I am broken tonight, trying to find
the words. I love you and will miss you my son. You brightened the lives of
everyone around you! You brought more joy to this earth than you will ever
know! May you Rest In Peace! #Ty3 pic.twitter.com/cHquUF5DZr
— CoachKen Wilson WSU! (@CoachKWils)
January 17, 2018
Former Cougar quarterback Jason
Gesser:
Please… all @WSUCougars come
together for the Hilinski family and the @wsucougfb family. They will need more
than thoughts and prayers. They and everyone connected to this will need love
and support for the rest of their lives. #RIP3 Love you always brother
https://t.co/6GX934AmTK
— Jason Gesser (@jasongesser)
January 17, 2018
WSU special teams coach Eric Mele:
Love you #3
Go with God brother
Prayers for the Hilinski family
WSU 24-Hour Line: 509-334-1133
WSU Counseling & Psych Services
(CAPS) 509-335-4511
— Eric Mele (@CoachMeleWSU) January
17, 2018
Former WSU wide receiver Isaiah
Johnson-Mack:
What a great human being, one of the
nicest people I knew. I’m so shook up by the situation. Love you forever bro.
#RIP3 ❤️ pic.twitter.com/AD3CZRQxV7
— Isaiah Johnson-Mack
(@ijohnsonmack9) January 17, 2018
WSU first lady Noel Schulz:
My heart aches for the Hilinski
family, @wsucougfb family & other friends of Tyler #RIP3. #CougFamily is
strong in these challenging times. Strong means helping each other & strong
means reaching out for help when YOU need it. #BeSafeCougs
— Noel Schulz (@WSU_Noel_Schulz)
January 17, 2018
ASWSU President Jordan Frost
My deepest condolences and prayers
go to the Hilinski family. May God give them peace and restoration in this
time. Cougs, if you or someone you know is impacted by this loss please reach
out to our 24 hour counseling line 509-334-1133.
— Jordan Frost (@ASWSU_Pres) January
17, 2018
WSU Sigma Nu
We are deeply saddened for the loss
of a coug. Prayers go out to friends and family. Never forget you are loved. We
will miss you deeply #3 pic.twitter.com/8AgstoPNOD
— WSU Sigma Nu (@Wazzu_Sigma_Nu)
January 17, 2018
//////////////////
Commentary Up Front: Remembering the
late Keith Jackson
By A.L. “BUTCH” ALFORD JR. Lewiston
Tribune
Jan 17, 2018 Updated 12 hrs ago 4
Remembering the late Keith Jackson
Keith Jackson, longtime voice of
college football, died Friday.
Keith Jackson, ABC television's
signature voice of college football, died Friday in Los Angeles, at age 89. He
was aptly revered as a 1954 graduate of today's Washington State University.
Jackson deserved his multiple WSU
honors. In 2014, WSU named a building after him, the broadcast building at the
Edward R. Murrow College of Communications. He was given the university's top
recognition, the Regents' Distinguished Alumnus Award, in 1978. He gave many an
address, from commencement to Murrow symposiums. He was a major financial
supporter, having contributed more than $1 million for the Murrow College,
athletics and the Lewis Alumni Centre.
On the national scene, Jackson was a
five-time national sportscaster of the year, he worked at 10 summer and winter
Olympics, on ABC's "Wide World of Sports," was the play-by-play man
for the inaugural season of the NFL's "Monday Night Football" in 1970
(alongside Howard Cosell and Don Meredith) and in a 52-year career wasbest
known as ABC's voice of NCAA football.
The New York Times obituary called
him the "voice of college football."
But only a few might remember this:
His first professional gig was in Lewiston. That's where it started, eventually
leading to Rose Bowls and Olympic Games.
Following his graduation from
Washington State, Jackson started at Lewiston radio station KLER in 1954.
Initially, he worked part time and from then full time for five months at the
Lewiston station at 2829 Country Club Drive.
The station began operation June 4,
1953, owned by Cole Wylie of Sunnyside, Wash. The call letters KLER were
transferred to Orofino later, after the purchase of the station in 1957 by
Lewis-Clark Broadcasting Co., which later became 4-K Radio Inc., and today is
McVey Entertainment Group.
Then came the Jackson climb starting
in 1955.
He went to work at KOMO-TV, a new
ABC affiliate in Seattle, combining sports and news broadcasting. His proudest
achievement there was accompanying the University of Washington rowing crew to
Moscow, where he did the first live sports broadcast from the Soviet Union,
despite serious hassles over equipment, censorship and accessibility to the
event site. It was on to the ABC radio network in 1965, television freelance
assignment and permanently to ABC television in 1968 with "Wide World of
Sports." Then came football, pro basketball and more football, until
retiring after the 2006 Rose Bowl.
In all the football years, he was
known for his homespun phrases. Linemen were not guards and tackles; they were
"the big uglies." Running backs didn't drop the ball; there was a
"fuumm-bull!" Of an undersized player, he said, "He's a
little-bitty thing, a bantam rooster. But he's young. If he keeps eatin' his
cornbread, he'll be man-sized some day."
And there was his signature phrase:
"Whoa, Nellie." But he claimed he seldom used that phrase. It became
famous when used by television comedians and impersonators. But he had that
Southern accent and way, born in Carrollton, Ga., 50 miles west of Atlanta,
near the Georgia-Alabama border.
Jackson explained his good-ol' boy approach:
His great-grandfather Jefferson Davis Robison, who had plowed many a field
holding the reins of a mule, loved two phrases: "Dad gummite" was
one. The other was "Whoa, Nellie." When growing up on the Georgia
farm, Jackson's mule was named Pearl.
After graduating from Georgia's
Roopville High School, he served a four-year overseas stint in the Marine Corps
and then attended WSU on the GI Bill.
But he studied criminology and
political science. When listening to the school radio station and a student
broadcast of a football game, Jackson thought, "I can do better than
that." The professor in charge of the broadcasting program handed him a
tape recorder and told him to go cover something. He chose a basketball game at
Pullman High School. The professor was impressed and the world lost a budding
criminologist. By 1952 Jackson was calling WSU Cougar games on the school
station.
Another reason Jackson loved WSU? He
met Terri Johnson, a fellow student, and they later married. Terri's parents
later lived in Spokane. They were managers of the WSU golf course during
Jackson's college years.
My personal introduction to Jackson?
It was in 1953 and 1954, when I was a high school golfer, and Jackson was
partial to the old Lewiston Country Club. We played a dozen or so times
together, with Jackson and a couple of his buddies, and I sometimes won the bet
- for a round of Pepsi.
Our last conversation was in 1988,
by telephone, for an Up Front column upon his return from the 16-day XV Winter
Olympic Games at Calgary. It was notable for the U.S. winning only six medals,
including two gold - well less than the 29 of the Soviet Union and 25 of East
Germany. The U.S. sports world was upset.
Jackson explained: Many are calling
for huge U.S. Olympics financial investment. Instead, "we've got a
grassroots problem." Once an athlete is chosen for a U.S. Olympic team,
the talented individual is taken care of just fine. The problem, instead, is
during the athlete's younger developmental years. It's at the age of 10 or 12,
when the young athlete needs a funded community program.
The Jackson space ride began at WSU.
But his professional start was in Lewiston, when he still had a bit of a
Southern accent.
…………………..
SPOKANE
After Tyler Hilinski’s suicide,
Cougar fans urge focus on mental health
UPDATED: Wed., Jan. 17, 2018, 9:41
p.m.
By Chad Sokol Spokane S-R
Hilinski’s apparent suicide spurs
House panel to approve prevention bill
Get the FACTS
Sabrina Voltava, a
suicide-prevention advocate in Spokane, teaches people to use an acronym,
FACTS, to help them notice when others may be likely to attempt suicide.
F is for feelings. “Do they feel
sad, lonely, in pain?” Voltava said. “Were they really, really down, and then
all of a sudden they seem elated for no reason?” Feelings of hopelessness,
guilt, shame and anxiety all can contribute to a person’s risk of suicide.
A is for actions. Voltava said
people might be struggling if they begin “giving away things that are important
to them, quitting doing things they used to love doing” or “getting their
personal affairs in order.” Additional warning signs may include drug or
alcohol abuse, aggressive or reckless behavior, talking or writing about death
or destruction, or making plans or acquiring the means to harm oneself.
C is for changes – any changes in
behavior or emotion that might require a loved one’s intuition to detect. These
can include changes in sleep, eating habits and personality, such as becoming
more withdrawn, losing interest in personal appearance, or becoming more
talkative and outgoing. If someone is acting different from usual, Voltava
said, it never hurts to ask how they’re doing.
T is threats. “That could be a
direct clue or indirect,” she said. “They might be saying things like, ‘I want
to kill myself. I want to die.’ Or they might say things like, ‘Pretty soon you
won’t have to worry about me,’ or things like, ‘I’m such a burden, people would
be better off if I was gone.’”
S is for situations, such as getting
into trouble at school, at home or with the law; being exposed to suicide or
the death of a peer under other circumstances; and other life changes that can
feel overwhelming. Voltava said people should especially consider significant
losses that have occurred in the past two to three weeks.
Condolences have poured in for the
family of Washington State University quarterback Tyler Hilinski, who was found
dead of apparent suicide in his Pullman apartment on Tuesday night.
After news of Hilinski’s death
surfaced, members of the college football community took to Twitter to share
the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline – (800) 273-8255 – and plead with
people to seek help for themselves and others who are struggling.
“Absolutely heartbreaking news,”
wrote Oregon State quarterback Jake Luton. “I pray that everyone, athletes
included, PLEASE seek the help you need.”
Others wondered why someone like Hilinski,
a vibrant and well-liked 21-year-old with a promising football career, would
choose to end his life. “Hard to believe someone who seemed to have so much
going for him could be so troubled,” one Twitter user wrote.
In 2015, suicide was the second
leading cause of death among people ages 15 to 34, and the 10th leading cause
overall in the United States, according to the Centers for Disease Control and
Prevention. The number of documented suicides that year, 44,193, dwarfed the
number of homicides, 17,793.
Sabrina Voltava, a
suicide-prevention advocate in Spokane, said males are about four times as
likely as females to die by suicide. And most people who attempt suicide
grapple with mental illness or substance abuse, or both, although sometimes
those conditions go undiagnosed.
“Depression is our No. 1 risk factor
for suicide,” Voltava said. “Across all ages, 90 percent of people who die by
suicide have a diagnosable mental health issue at the time of their passing.”
And for about 60 percent of people who take their own lives, she said, “it’s
depression that they’re dealing with.”
Voltava founded FailSafe For Life, a
nonprofit devoted to educating people about suicide risks, in 2016. She is
motivated by the deaths of her brothers, Zach and Kacey, who ended their lives
within six months of each other in 2003.
Zach, who died at 22, “was a recent
college graduate with a degree in plastics engineering,” Voltava said. “Just a
very, very bright man.”
Kacey, who was 23, “just had a new
job offer,” she said. “He had kind of a rough year earlier in the year, but it
seemed like things were turning around for him.”
Speaking generally, Voltava said
people often mistakenly assume that others who are “successful” or
“high-functioning” are mentally healthy and at low risk of suicide.
“Usually when someone is struggling with a
mental health issue, we still correlate it with bad life circumstances,” she
said. But, “no one is immune to mental health problems.”
Voltava urged people to routinely
ask their loved ones how they’re doing, if they are OK, and to really listen.
She said that in the wake of her brothers’ deaths, it was difficult for her
family to learn about all the warning signs they had missed.
“We didn’t know what to look for,” she said.
“I didn’t realize this information was out there. I didn’t realize there was
something I could do.”
Pullman police said in a statement
Tuesday night they had found Hilinski’s body beside a rifle and a suicide note
after he did not show up to football practice earlier in the day. They said a
gunshot wound to his head appeared to be self-inflicted.
Chief Gary Jenkins said officers
interviewed Hilinski’s friends, coaches and teammates Wednesday in an effort to
“recreate the events that transpired before his death.” Hilinski’s family
arrived in Pullman on Wednesday morning from their home in Irvine, California,
and will also be interviewed.
Jenkins said the department will
continue conducting interviews throughout the week with those who may be able
to provide evidence, but he doesn’t expect that police will be able to report
any new information until next week at the earliest.
Spokesman-Review reporter Theo
Lawson contributed to this story.
