The Front Row with MARK NELKE September 19, 2010

Whoever invented the crawler - that bar at the bottom of the TV screen which constantly runs snippets of news - is either a genius or a maddening fool.

On one hand, it's an easy way to catch up on the news of the day. But, more often than not, you catch the end of some breaking news - ... breaks leg, out for season - and you have to wait for the next cycle to find out who the heck it was.

After a while, it didn't even have to be news to make the crawler. For a while, Tiger had his own header, followed by anything to do with him.

Tiger spotted hitting golf balls ... Other famous people express outrage and/or support for world's No. 1 golfer ... Fender on Tiger's car says tree hurt.

WATCH THE crawler enough, and you start believing you saw things on there that may or may not have actually appeared. Here are some things we thought we saw on the crawler recently ...

Virginia Tech edges Post Falls (Idaho) High, avoids 0-3 start ... 49ers still trying to gain 1 yard, score touchdown vs. Seahawks ... Team that didn't bail on Seattle wins second WNBA title ... Mariners advance runner to third base ... Can't find game you want to see on TV without having to pay extra for it? Tough noogies ... Spokane Shock challenges Super Bowl champs to winner-take-all game ... General public forgets which two teams actually accepted invitations to join Pac-10 Conference in 2011 ... Mariners runner scores, game stopped for ceremony ... Felix takes no-hitter into the 20th inning ... Cougars stand in way of Locker's Heisman hopes ... ESPN helps Greater Spokane League schedule football games with 5A Inland Empire League teams so North Idaho schools don't have to traipse all over the Northwest to find games ... Idaho turns down future football series with Washington State, says games would hurt strength of schedule ...

Mark Nelke is sports editor of The Press. He can be reached at 664-8176, Ext. 2019, or via e-mail at mnelke@cdapress.com.