News for CougGroup 3/24/2019
FOOTBALL:
Washington
State coach Mike Leach happy with quarterback competition early in spring camp
UPDATED:
Sat., March 23, 2019, 7:37 p.m.
By Peter
Harriman Spokane S-R
PULLMAN –
He didn’t sweep into Pullman with the force of a tornado, and he hasn’t thrown
an iconic touchdown pass to a receiver sliding into a snowbank to win the Apple
Cup, like his father.
But there
is another Bledsoe wearing No. 11 for the Washington State football team, and
in the Cougars’ second spring workout, he had a pretty good day.
Drew
Bledsoe’s record-setting career at Washington State – throwing for 9,373 yards
and 66 touchdowns before departing after his junior season as the first pick in
the 1993 NFL draft – has him on the highest level in the pantheon of great WSU
quarterbacks. His towering throw dropping out of a snowstorm into the arms of
Philip Bobo sliding into the end zone in the 1992 Apple Cup is the stuff of
Cougar legend.
John
Bledsoe has made a quieter entrance, walking on at WSU in 2017. But as a
redshirt sophomore, he got reps with the starters Saturday.
In a
7-on-7 period, he showed a deft touch on a sideline fade and a corner fade in
the end zone to Rodrick Fisher. In 11-on-11 work at the conclusion of practice,
after throwing an interception to safety Chad Davis, he lofted a ball to a
wide-open Easop Winston in the end zone. Just like Dad in the old days.
“I thought
he did pretty good; He’s gotten better as time went on,” WSU coach Mike Leach
said of Bledsoe’s performance.
In truth,
how much more could he say when the Cougars were still in shorts, jerseys and
helmets? They don’t put on pads until Tuesday. Senior wide receiver Calvin
Jackson was somewhat more effusive.
“He’s more
comfortable than last year in his throws, his reads and his checks,” Jackson
said of Bledsoe.
The real
action at quarterback this spring is between seniors Trey Tinsley and Anthony
Gordon.
Except for
a pair of interceptions thrown in the middle of the field, Tinsley looked
economical and efficient in his time running plays.
“As long as
I’m on time and accurate, I’ll be able to play,” Tinsley said, echoing advice
from his father. “I was never the fastest or the best athlete.”
Leach
voiced the obvious.
“Tinsley
and Gordon are ahead of everybody,” he said. … “They operate like guys with some
experience.”
The
specter hovering over their competition is Gage Gubrud, a graduate transfer
from Eastern Washington who is rehabbing a foot injury suffered in winter
conditioning and won’t join in until summer workouts. The situation is what it
is, Tinsley said.
“It’s just
another guy to come in and compete with,” he said. “We compete spring,
summer and
fall.”
That
Darwinian aspect of spring ball isn’t the only thing going on, according to
junior free safety Skyler Thomas.
Thomas
noted that defensive backs benefit from working against WSU’s deep group of
experienced receivers and its varying strengths.
“They’re
all pretty good,” Thomas said. “Everyone helps me improve in certain things.”
In
addition to the crossing routes and receivers working to the sidelines that are
Air Raid offense staples – and were featured in WSU’s opening spring practice
on Thursday – the offense spent considerable time attacking the middle of
defenses with draws and shovel passes to running backs, especially when
linebackers were deep and cornerbacks were playing off.
Tinsley
and Gordon each looked adept in executing those fakes.
“Trey and
Anthony are great. This is going to be crazy, a great run,” Jackson said.
Leach said
somebody has to emerge as a starter among his quarterbacks because he won’t
play two. Putting the quarterbacks in a position to be competitive is important
this spring and in preseason camp, Leach said.
“Toward
the end of camp, we have to make a decision,” he said.
:::::::::::::::::::
WSU
BASEBALL: Cougars Drop Series-Finale at No. 22 UC Irvine
From WSU
Sports Info
Cougars
Drop Series-Finale at No. 22 UC Irvine
IRVINE,
Calif. (March 24, 2019) – Washington State held an early lead but dropped its
series-finale at No. 22 UC Irvine Sunday afternoon.
The
Cougars received two hits from Rob Teel and a pair of doubles from Andres
Alvarez but the Anteaters used a three-run homer in a four-run fifth inning
that broke open a 3-3 tie. UC Irvine improved to 15-4 overall and are picked to
finish second in the Big West Conference.
In the
first, the Cougars used four straight two-out hits to push two runs across as
RBI-singles from Teel and Collin Montez gave WSU a 2-0 advantage.
In the
fourth, Teel led off the inning with a lined single into center and Montez was
hit by a pitch. Following a sacrifice bunt, Koby Blunt brought home Teel with
an RBI-groundout to shortstop for a 3-0 advantage. In the bottom half, Irvine
cut the lead to 3-2 with a two-run homer to left centerfield.
In the
fifth, the Anteaters used a Cougar throwing error to tie the game at 3-3 before
a three-run homer to left field made it a 6-3 UCI lead.
In the
seventh, Andres Alvarez led off the inning with a double the other way down the
right field line and later scored on a two-out single to left field by Kodie
Kolden. UCI answered in their half of the seventh with two runs for an 8-4
advantage.
INSIDE THE
BOX SCORE
Kyle
Manzardo singled in the 1st to extend his hitting streak to a team season-best
10 games
Collin
Montez singled in the 1st to extend his hitting streak to 7 games, on-base
streak to 18
Trent
Sellers worked a perfect 8th inning, recording a pair of strikeouts
NEXT UP
The
Cougars will wrap up their four-game road trip with a nonconference contest at
Loyola Marymount Monday at 2 p.m.
::::::::::::
The CF.C
Buzz Board: Opponents' success has rewards for WSU
By Jackson
Gardner, Cougfan.com
WHAT'S UP
and who's down on Planet Coug? The quiver is stocked and the arrows are flying
across three sports this week. And yes, the Pac-12 is now down to one team left
in the Big Dance, and that's not good news for Washington State.
Back the
Pac
March
Madness is in full swing and while WSU hasn’t participated in the tournament
for 11 years, fans have more than enough reason to back the Pac – and it’s
because of the paycheck WSU will receive for simply being part of the Pac-12.
The money comes from the NCAA Units that are given to a conference for the
collective number of games they play in during the tournament; essentially every
game a Pac-12 school plays equates to a $150,000 payout for every school in the
conference. So between the games played by ASU, Oregon and UW, Washington State
is up to roughly $900,000. More wins mean more money. WSU athletics needs the
money, so if there is ever a time to back the Pac, it’s during March Madness.
Alas, Oregon is the only remaining Pac-12 team left, with UW falling to North
Carolina 81-59 Sunday and ASU losing to Buffalo 91-74 on Friday to
Buffalo. Oregon meets upstart UC Irvine
on Sunday evening.
Midnight
Maneuvers
It’s a
little late to be making the case that Mike Leach should restructure the
Cougars' winter conditioning program, but I’m going to do it anyway. I get that
Midnight Maneuvers is intended to build a little character while players get
their work in, and that is all fine and well, but when you weigh the pros and
cons objectively, there are more cons than pros. I'm no medical professional,
but even I know high-intensity conditioning – which dramatically raises your
internal body temperature – in freezing temperatures is very unwise. Second,
conditioning on an icy practice field is a sprain, or worse, waiting to happen.
There is only one injury we know of that was a direct result of Midnight
Maneuvers and it was a big one – grad transfer QB Gage Gubrud fracturing an
ankle. But would it be crazy to speculate WR Jamire Calvin, now on one of those
leg scooters, could have been injured during Midnight Maneuvers too? How many
others over the years? It just seems the risk is not worth the reward. Leach is
a creative guy, there can be other ways to condition players while building
character without threatening anyone's health.
Gardner
Minshew's chauffeur
The
colorful quarterback tweeted this past week that he needed a lift from Spokane
International Airport to Pullman. Whichever one of his followers made the trek
down US-195 did so without incident because Minshew has been on the Cougars'
spring practice sidelines at his high-octane, vocal best. Students who don’t
even own cars pledged they would carry Minshew on their shoulders from Spokane
to Pullman if he would allow it. It just goes to show Minshew’s celebrity
status in Pullman is on a level of its own and it isn’t going away anytime
soon.
::::::::
Pullman
may soon allow short-term rentals such as Airbnb
With
nearly 50 such dwellings identified in the city, planning commission considers
changes
Moscow
Pullman Daily News March 23, 2019
Updated March 23, 2019
The
Pullman Planning Commission on Wednesday will discuss city rules regarding
short-term rentals, including dwellings marketed through services like Airbnb.
The
discussion is in response to a complaint that forced two Pullman residents to
sell a home they were renting out through Airbnb and VRBO.
Tami Grady
and Bobby Austin told the Daily News in January they canceled about $35,000 in
reservations and were trying to sell their 1,500-square-foot home on Crithfield
Court after the property was found to be in violation of city zoning code.
The city
began investigating whether their home violated zoning rules after a neighbor
filed a complaint in December stating it was being used as an occasional guest
rental.
The city
informed them their R2 residential zoning classification only allowed them to
operate a traditional bed and breakfast establishment, which requires them to
live in the house. Grady and Austin, however, did not buy the house to live
there, and only wanted to use it for short-term rentals.
According
to a memo from Pullman Planning Director Pete Dickinson to the Pullman Planning
Commission, city and legal staff have reviewed the code during the past few
weeks and found the land use category of “rooming and boarding house” could be
construed to include short-term rentals.
He wrote
that the planning department now officially interprets the code to classify a
short-term rental as either a bed and breakfast or a rooming and boarding
house, depending on the situation. A room and boarding house does not require
the owner to live there.
The memo
states the city found 49 short-term rentals in Pullman offered through Airbnb
and HomeAway. It goes on to state that “if Pullman has almost 50 existing STRs,
and the planning department has received only one complaint about an
established STR, perhaps a reconsideration of the city’s regulations is in
order.”
Chicken
property regulations
The
Pullman Planning Commission on Wednesday will also address regulations
regarding which residences are allowed to keep chickens.
A Pullman
family is requesting the city change its rules after they discovered their
3,010-square-foot lot on Professional Mall Boulevard is not large enough to
have chickens according to city rules. Kevin Lassiter, a 17-year-old Pullman
High School student and 4-H member, used to own three chickens at the property.
Current
city zoning code states that for homes to have fowl on the property, they need
a lot size of at least 10,000 square feet and a minimum of 2,000 square feet of
land per animal.
The Board
of Adjustment upheld these rules after the Lassiters appealed, but the planning
commission asked for a discussion of this issue to be on Wednesday’s agenda.
:::
To see the
images/photos included with the column below, use this URL link:
https://www.seattletimes.com/sports/uw-husky-football/laughing-stock-in-letter-to-pac-12-executives-former-refs-ream-conferences-officiating/
‘Laughing
stock’: In letter to Pac-12 executives, former refs ream conference’s
officiating
March 21,
2019 at 3:01 pm Updated March 21, 2019 at 3:44 pm
By Jon Wilner
San Jose Merc News
Pac-12
Hotline /
In a
letter sent to Pac-12 executives following the 2018 season, three former
football officials offered a sharp, detailed critique of the conference’s
officiating program and asked “for necessary changes in a positive manner.”
Mack
Gilchrist, Charles Czubin and Fred Gallagher, who have more than 100 years of
experience as Pac-12 officials, directed their criticism at commissioner Larry
Scott and vice president for officiating David Coleman, but they did not let
general counsel Woodie Dixon off the hook.
“We do not
appreciate the direction this Conference is headed under your direction by
disgracing its long and respected heritage,’’ they wrote to the conference in
late December.
[ ⇓
See the full letter and other exchanges below ⇓ ]
Calling
the Pac-12 officiating program a “laughing stock” within the Power Five, the
authors focus on several core issues, including Dixon’s controversial
interference in the replay review process last season, bowl assignments,
position supervisors, the authority of instant replay officials and the
conference’s training program.
Gallagher,
who has served as the instant replay official in the College Football Playoff,
also told the Hotline that both Coleman and Dixon have entered his replay booth
during games to ask about replay decisions and sideline conduct situations.
“I said,
‘Woodie, I’m in the middle of something’’’ he recalled.
Gilchrist
retired after the 2017 season. Gallagher and Czubin say they “were retired” by
the conference after the 2018 season.
“They said,
‘We need you to move on,’’’ Gallagher said. “I spent 43 years in the
conference. I love it. I love the schools. I hate what’s going on.”
The
conference declined to comment on the contents of the letter, which was sent to
both Scott and Coleman via certified mail on Dec. 26 and arrived just after the
New Year.
By
February, the authors had received no response. Follow-up emails were sent to
Coleman on Feb. 11-12, seeking a response and “open discussion” about the
concerns.
Coleman
answered immediately that the officials would receive “a response to the
letter.”
Two weeks
later, having not yet received the response, the officials mailed a copy of the
original letter to this reporter with the following explanation: “We are
hopeful that you will read it and view our sincere concerns. Our purpose is to
make sure that it is not swept under the rug and it is presented to the Sibson
Firm.”
On Feb.
22, the conference revealed that it had retained Sibson Consulting to conduct
an independent review of the football officiating program. That process,
according to a conference spokesperson, was the cause of the delayed response
to the officials — Scott and Coleman were waiting until they knew the identity
of the outside firm.
A copy of
the original letter to Scott and Coleman also was sent to the four athletic
directors serving on the Pac-12 officiating sub-committee, which pushed the
conference to hire Sibson: Arizona State’s Ray Anderson (chair), Colorado’s
Rick George, Oregon’s Rob Mullens and Oregon State’s Scott Barnes.
In early
March, the officials received an email response from Scott, who indicated in
the final paragraph that he would “share your letter with the outside experts.”
“That’s
the one thing we wanted to hear,” Czubin said.
That
process is already underway. The letter has been shared with Sibson, according
to a conference spokesperson, and Gallagher, Czubin and Gilchrist will be interviewed
as part of Sibson’s due diligence.
The letter
was the first item on the agenda Wednesday at a previously scheduled meeting
between Coleman and the Pac-12 Football Officials Association, a voluntary
organization not affiliated with the conference. (Football officials are
independent contractors.)
The
association, according to a source with knowledge of the meeting, “did not
condone the contents of the letter or approve of it being sent to the
conference.”
The letter
focuses on the authors’ view of the culture, processes and policies
underpinning Pac-12 officiating and what they consider to be questionable
decisions by the leadership team.
“It’s disappointing it got to this point,’’
Czubin said, “but we’re trying to shed light on it. We’re not trying to be a
cause célèbre …
“The
officiating culture is one of honesty and integrity. People can boo, and we may
make mistakes. But there has always been integrity. The Pac-12 being a media
conglomerate now, there’s a chasm between the officiating people and the Pac-12
people.”
• • •
The first
specific topic addressed in the letter begins: “Let’s start with the Woodie
Dixon incident.”
This
refers to Dixon calling into the command center in San Francisco and
influencing the replay review process on a targeting no-call during the
Washington State-USC game.
Dixon’s
actions were recorded by the instant replay official, Gary McNanna, and
eventually became public in the infamous Yahoo report in early October.
That
incident — arguably the most serious crisis of Scott’s tenure as commissioner —
caused such damage to the integrity of Pac-12 officiating that it eventually
drove the athletic directors to push for an independent review by Sibson.
“Mr.
Scott,” the letter says, “you know from personal experience this is not the
first time (Dixon) has far overstepped his bounds, reference the former
Supervisor of Officials.”
Tony
Corrente served as head of Pac-12 officiating for three years before abruptly
resigning midway through the 2014 season, citing personal and professional
differences as the reason for his departure.
Gallagher
recalled a conversation with Corrente, a longtime NFL official: “Tony told me,
‘I just resigned,’ and then it was ‘Woodie this’ and ‘Woodie that.’’’
Asked if
he had any knowledge of Dixon influencing a call on the field or in the replay
booth (beyond the incident in the Washington State-USC game), Gallagher said:
“I can’t honestly say if he has.”
He did,
however, cite two examples of Dixon and Coleman entering the replay booth at
Stanford Stadium during games. Gallagher was the instant replay official both
times.
He didn’t
recall the opponent or date of the incident with Dixon but believes it was
either 2012 or 2013.
“The door
didn’t lock, so we put a wedge in the bottom to keep people from coming in,’’
Gallagher explained. “He forced his way in. He kept pushing the door to move
the wedge.”
Dixon
entered the replay booth and, according to Gallagher, asked about the conduct
of the opposing coach.
“I have no
idea, Woodie,” Gallagher responded. “I’m not looking at the coaches. That’s not
my job.”
Coleman’s
entry into the replay booth was more recent — he was hired in 2015 — and
involved a replay decision, although Gallagher could not recall the specifics
of the play.
“He said,
‘Fred, why didn’t you stop the game?’’’ Gallagher said. “I told him, ‘Because
it was a no-competitive effect play.’” (Replay officials don’t stop the game to
review every mistake.)
The
presence of Dixon and Coleman in the replay booth could be interpreted as a
rulebook violation based on Rule 12 (Instant Replay), Section 4, Article 3A,
which states:
“All
equipment used reviewing a play during the replay process and the personnel using
that equipment shall be located in a separate, secure location in the press
box. This room shall not be available or accessible to any person not directly
involved in instant replay.”
• • •
The letter
goes on to state that after Dixon’s involvement became public in the Yahoo
report, the conference made changes to its process:
“After the
latest incident there is no question the Conference was far more concerned
about covering this up and finding the source of the info, rather than dealing
with Woodie. You did so by removing a very valuable training tool for IR
(instant replay).”
That
training tool, the authors explained, is Quik Ref.
Described
as a “reporting device,” Quik Ref is an online system that allows on-field and
replay officials to file reports on their games.
“The
information in that Yahoo report,” Czubin said, “was on Quik Ref.”
Pac-12
instant replay officials were able to log-in to Quik Ref and read reports from
other games, then use an online video platform, Hudl, to watch the relevant
plays.
“You use
it as a training tool. We’d call each other and say, ‘What did you see
there?’’’ Gallagher explained. “Then they took it away” after the Yahoo report.
“As of
that date, nobody has access to other games, to prevent leaks,” Czubin said.
“We’re all cut off from access. It’s hurt the replay process.”
• • •
The
authors also accuse Coleman of undermining the authority of the instant replay
officials.
On a
conference call in mid-November, the letter explains, Coleman informed referees
and replay officials of a new protocol: The replay supervisor in the
conference’s command center in San Francisco, not the booth officials, would
have “final say” on all replay matters, according to Gallagher.
The NCAA
rulebook (Rule 12, Section 1, Article 2) seemingly gives authority to the booth
official:
“The
replay official may reverse a ruling if and only if the video evidence
convinces him beyond all doubt that the ruling was incorrect. Without such
indisputable video evidence, the replay official must allow the ruling to
stand.”
However,
there appears to be some nuance to this rule, as Rule 12, Section 4, Article 3A
states:
“As an
ongoing experiment, a collaborative decision-making model during instant replay
reviews that is in full compliance with Rule 12 is not limited to the press box
of a stadium.”
In the
SEC, for example, the instant replay official in the booth is the final
authority on all replay decisions.
The letter
also goes into great detail about the role of position supervisors, the
conference’s development program and bowl assignments.
At the
close of the note sent to the athletic directors serving on the officiating
subcommittee, the authors write:
“Gentlemen,
It is our sincerest desire that this committee recognize and implement the
necessary changes to correct and improve this deteriorating officiating
program. We stand ready to assist you with any questions/clarifications in your
endeavors.”
Officials
Letter by on Scribd
Pac-12
officials email to c… by on Scribd
Pac-12
officials email (1) … by on Scribd
Pac-12
officials email to c… by on Scribd
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