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Pac-12 woes and Seahawk scenarios

| October 16, 2018 1:09 AM

It was an interesting weekend, but not much to shout about in the Northwest.

I’m not counting Coeur d’Alene High, which somehow could be better than last year’s Colson Yankoff crew that lost to Pocatello Highland in the state final.

Shawn Amos may be “taking them one at a time” — the mantra of every coach — but bagging a fourth state title in his 22 seasons HAS to flit through his dreams every few nights.

The Vikings are really, really special.

Anyhow, let take a look at some recent antics in the college and pro world, just to see what we make of them.

Sound like a plan?

Good.

HMMMM ...

Well, now you can bet the farm that the Pac-12 won’t have a representative in the college football playoffs.

Washington was the only team with an outside chance, but Huskies needed to run the table and hope for a rash of upsets high in the rankings just to get a sniff.

UDub couldn’t hold up its end of the deal, losing in OT at Oregon.

The Pac-12’s problem is that there are a slew of really decent teams — Washington, Oregon, Stanford, USC, Wazzou and even Colorado — but no powerhouse that might make a dent in the minds of all those folks with a distinct Eastern or Southern bias.

Realistically, a Pac-12 team would have to go unbeaten to make the final four, and after just six weeks, everyone has at least one loss.

Maybe next year.

HMMMM ...

Speaking of the Pac-12, that was an awkward Media Day for the conference’s coaches.

We knew it would be, what with a federal investigation swirling around the place.

Per the Arizona Daily Star ...

“Commissioner Larry Scott was asked to discuss the additional allegations surfacing out of the past two weeks from the federal trial in New York.

“On Wednesday, former Adidas consultant T.J. Gassnola testified that he paid five former basketball recruits, including eventual UA star Deandre Ayton, on behalf of the shoe company.

“Oregon, Arizona, Washington, Utah and USC have all been mentioned either in the federal complaints or during the current trial, but Scott said that didn’t indicate the conference had a ‘systemic problem’ with compliance.

“Allegations have been made about a lot of schools nationally,” Scott said. “We are eager to see what comes out of the trial, what comes out of NCAA investigation, as are our schools.”

Scott spoke of efforts the conference and its schools have made since the investigation was announced in September of 2017 — and the task force it assembled — while also noting he’s confident that Pac-12 schools will take any new information from the trials “very seriously.”

Yep, Commish, that’s a heckuva good idea.

Maybe some schools should have taken things “very seriously” sooner than this.

HMMMM ...

Finally, the Seahawks.

We’re assuming, obviously, that the Rams will win the NFC West in a stroll.

So after the Hawks whipped hapless Oakland 27-3 in London, I guess the question among you 12s is whether Seattle could yet sneak into the playoffs as a wild-card team.

We never say never here, but in the case of the Seahawks, it might be close to never.

Sitting at 3-3 isn’t exactly devastating, and you don’t see many juggernauts wandering around the NFC.

Ah, but the schedule ...

The Seahawks obviously have to tackle the Rams again, this time in Los Angeles, but it’s the non-divisional tests that make a wild-card spot look like a mirage.

Seattle still has to play Detroit, Green Bay and Minnesota in its unfortunate match-up with the NFC North, along with Carolina and the top two teams in the AFC West, the Chargers and — gulp — the Chiefs.

As a final downer, the Seahawks’ three wins have come against teams with a combined record of 5-13, and three of those victories belong to Dallas — principally because the Boys get to muddle around in the dismal NFC East.

Honestly, I wouldn’t plan time off for a Hawks playoff trip.

- • •

Steve Cameron is a columnist for The Press.

A Brand New Day appears from Wednesday through Saturday each week.

Steve’s sports column runs on Tuesday.

Email: scameron@cdapress.com

Facebook: Steve Cameron

Twitter: @BrandNewDayCDA