NORTHWEST NOTES: Wednesday, July 20, 2016
Bayley, Hatley advance at Pacific Northwest Amateur
WALLA WALLA, Wash. — Derek Bayley of Rathdrum and Reid Hatley of Hayden Lake advanced Tuesday to the Round of 64 at the Pacific Northwest Men’s Amateur at Wine Valley Golf Club.
Bayley, coming off a record victory against the pros in the Rosauers Open Invitational last weekend in Liberty Lake, shot a pair of 71s and finished tied for 16th at 2-under 142. Hatley shot 72-71 and tied for 25th at 1-under 141.
James Grierson of Australia was medalist after shooting 67-65—132, 12 under par.
Vandals announce Hall of Fame class
The Idaho athletic department recently announced the Vandal Athletics Hall of Fame Class of 2016.
The class includes basketball standouts Ken Maren and Kelli Johnson, football’s Tom Hennessey and Doug Fisher (football and track and field), Bud and June Ford (lifetime contributions), Packey Boyle (athletic training), and the 1959 Pacific Coast Conference Northern Division men’s golf championship team.
Bud and June Ford of Coeur d’Alene have been generous and enthusiastic supporters of Vandal athletics. They were key figures in leading the Kibbie Dome renovations and are honored with the Bud and June Ford Room, which not only provides a social setting for Vandal football games, but is a venue used for receptions and banquets throughout the year.
Maren came to Idaho from Milwaukee, Wis., in 1957 and become one of the most dominant big men in Vandal history. He was an assistant coach after graduation and eventually turned to teaching. He first taught at Post Falls High before returning to Wisconsin where he coached and taught until retirement.
Johnson, a native of Moscow, was a standout guard — and 3-point shooter — for the Vandals from 1994-98. After graduation, she turned her attention to sports broadcasting and is a highly regarded reporter for CSN Bay Area. Her career has taken her around the country into the nation’s top markets.
After 30 years, Hennessey’s single-season record of 180 tackles still stands and he remains third on the all-time career list. A stellar athlete out of Boise, he was a key component of Idaho’s highly successful run in the Big Sky Conference in the 1980s.
Fisher, a dual-sport athlete from Lewiston High, not only left his mark on Idaho athletics as a football player and discus thrower, but after graduation he built a legacy of kindness and generosity as a teacher and coach in Moscow. He was an NCAA qualifier in the discus. He passed away earlier this year.
The late Boyle was inducted into the National Athletic Trainers Hall of Fame and was an athletic trainer for the U.S. Olympic ski team. His career started in Sun Valley. He was an athletic trainer at the University of Arizona before taking the head job at Idaho. He died in 1972.
The 1959 golf team was the lone championship team in that sport for more than 40 years. The group of John Rosholt, Rusty Sheppard, Don Modie, Ray Kowallis, Bob Pierce, Dave Smith, Jim Kraus and Norm Johnson posted a record of 7-1-1 en route to the title.
Eastern football tabbed third by media, fourth by coaches
Eastern Washington was pegged to finish third by the media and fourth by the coaches as the Big Sky Conference preseason football picks were released Tuesday at the Big Sky Conference Football Kickoff in Park City, Utah.
Northern Arizona was picked to finish first in both polls, but after that the next four spots were scrambled. Montana was picked second by the media, followed by Eastern, North Dakota and Portland State. The coaches picked Portland State and Montana in a second-place tie, followed by EWU in fourth and North Dakota in fifth.
There was a difference of just 33 points in the top five teams in the media poll, with all five receiving first-place votes. All but Montana received a first place vote from the coaches, and the difference in votes among the top five teams was 27 points.
Southern Utah, last year’s surprise outright champion in the league, was picked seventh in both polls. Montana State, which along with Eastern were the preseason No. 1 picks a year ago, was tabbed eighth by the media and was in a seventh-place tie with Southern Utah for seventh. Jeff Choate, the former Post Falls High football coach and athletic director, is in his first season as head coach at Montana State.
A year ago, Eastern started 0-2, won six straight games and then finished with losses to NAU, Montana and PSU to miss the playoffs. The Eagles were 6-5 overall and 5-3 in the Big Sky to finish in a four-way tie for fourth with NAU, North Dakota and Weber State. After Southern Utah, Portland State and Montana shared the No. 2 spot and joined the Thunderbirds in the NCAA FCS playoffs.
The Eagles open the season Sept. 3 at Washington State. Montana State opens the Choate era Sept. 1 at Idaho.
BIG SKY CONFERENCE
PRESEASON FOOTBALL POLLS
First-place votes in parentheses
Media poll
1, Northern Arizona (8), 287 points. 2, Montana (7), 283. 3, Eastern Washington (5), 269. 4, North Dakota (2), 262. 5, Portland State (3), 252. 6, Weber State 174. 7, Southern Utah 162. 8, Montana State 157. 9, Cal Poly 153. 10, Northern Colorado 111. 11, Idaho State 58. 12, UC Davis 56. 13, Sacramento State 50.
Coaches’ poll
1, Northern Arizona (8), 132. 2 (tie), Portland State (2), 121; Montana 121. 4, Eastern Washington (2), 112. 5, North Dakota (1), 105. 6, Weber State 83. 7 (tie), Southern Utah, Montana State 73. 9, Cal Poly 66. 10, Northern Colorado 43. 11, Sacramento State 30. 12, Idaho State 24. 13, UC Davis 23.
Kupp named Big Sky Preseason MVP
Picked to defend his title as the Big Sky Conference’s offensive MVP, Eastern Washington senior wide receiver Cooper Kupp was a unanimous choice on the 2016 Big Sky Conference Preseason All-Conference Team announced by the league.
Kupp, a consensus All-American his first three seasons in the program, was the lone Eagle honored.
In 2016, Kupp could be the first wide receiver and just the fourth player overall in what will be the 54-year history of the Big Sky Conference to earn first team All-Big Sky honors four seasons. The others are Weber State’s Trevyn Smith (RB 2006-09), Weber State’s Scott Shields (K 1995-97, Punter 1996, SS 1998) and Charvez Foger (RB 1985-88).
In 2015, Kupp became only the second wide receiver in 42 years to win the Big Sky Conference Offensive MVP Award, and continued a long legacy of Eagles to win the award. Eastern players have now won the honor 11 times in the last 15 seasons, and 12 times overall.
Through his junior season, Kupp has established eight Big Sky Conference records, as well as 18 school marks and seven NCAA Football Championships records. His 122.4 average reception yards per game is currently a FCS career record, while his other six FCS records were set during his freshman season.
His average of 10.4 catches per game in 2015 was also a league record (sixth all-time in FCS), to go along with six career marks he set in just three seasons — all ending with first team All-Big Sky accolades. Kupp even passed for a pair of touchdowns in the 2015 season and had another via punt return, giving him 58 total touchdowns scored and 60 accounted for in his 39-game career (all as a starter).
In just three years, he already ranks second in FCS history in touchdown catches (56, two behind the record of 58 set by New Hampshire’s David Ball from 2003-06), second in reception yards (4,764, 486 behind the record of 5,250 set by Elon’s Terrell Hudgins from 2006-09) and fourth in receptions (311, 84 behind the record of 395 set by Hudgins).
His career catches, yards and TDs are all Big Sky records.
He recently concluded his fourth year working at the Manning Passing Academy as a college counselor/coach. While in high school he previously attended the camp, which is run by Archie Manning, the father of NFL quarterbacks Eli and Peyton Manning. Archie is a former New Orleans Saints teammate of Cooper’s grandfather, Jake Kupp.
Eastern retains President’s Cup
For the second straight time and third in the last seven seasons, Eastern Washington University won the Big Sky Conference Presidents’ Cup for the 2015-16 school year, the league office announced.
Eastern finished ahead of runner-up Weber State and third-place Montana.
Besides winning last year, the Eagles were also victorious in the 2009-10 school year.
The Presidents’ Cup is unique in collegiate athletics in that it reinforces the Big Sky’s dedication to the academic side of the student-athlete experience. Overall athletic success is combined with team grade point averages, Academic Progress Rates (APR) and All-Conference performers with grade point averages of at least 3.0.
Helping propel Eastern to the top of the Presidents’ Cup standings was a league-leading 35 All-Conference athletes finishing with a GPA of 3.0 or higher. EWU finished fourth in the athletic portion, were third in the APR standings at 979.7 and tied for fourth with an average GPA of 3.31.
Eastern Washington’s women’s basketball, men’s tennis and women’s soccer each had an average GPA of 3.49 or better, with soccer leading the way at 3.7. EWU had 13 of 14 programs with a 3.0 or higher.
The Eagles finished with 105.83 athletic points after women’s basketball and women’s cross country each provided second-place finishes. EWU also had top-four finishes from soccer, men’s cross country, football and both indoor and outdoor women’s track and field.