THE CHEAP SEATS with STEVE CAMERON: Strength coming from depth for some

I’ve been going full tilt, and I’m really tired.

You’ve probably known that same feeling, finding yourself exhausted from all the work you have to give.

OK, who cares?

Those two sentences are just the warm-up for today’s column.

It doesn’t really matter if I’m gassed (which I’m not), and whether you’ve toppled over from mega-chores isn’t actually relevant.

No, our spotlight is on athletes, and the fact that occasionally they’re running on fumes, too.

During one of Arizona’s last drives on Sunday, Seahawk defensive tackle Leonard Williams faced the sideline and tapped his chest.

Williams had been dominating the line of scrimmage, with a series of tackles, quarterback hits and 2 1/2 sacks.

You want him on the field — but not if he’s hit the wall, and that tapping-his-number move is the universal message.

“I need to get some breath, or I’m gonna fall to my knees.”

Williams sat out a few plays and got right back into the wars.

But the point is that a terrific specimen like Williams, playing well enough to stuff Cards running back James Conner and keep QB Kyler Murray dashing for safety, can get tired.

Not for long, but still.

WHAT I’M saying is that, no matter the sport, games can be won or lost with depth.

If you’ve got it — if back-ups can fill in quickly and without much drop-off — your roster is golden.

If you have to live and die with your first unit, though, the odds say that you’ll run short of lungs when it’s time to win or lose.

The Seahawks’ defense has been rebuilt to the point that coach Mike Macdonald can survive injuries or exhaustion.

There’s quality depth just about everywhere.

It’s pretty rare that Murray can’t skitter his way to open grass and make a big play.

But he couldn’t do it this time.

“Our front seven are dawgs,” said Hawks safety Julian Love, “and we’ve got more to pick them up when we need it.”

The opposite happened to Washington State during last weekend’s battle at Oregon State.

The Cougs came into the game with a better record and better key players — especially quarterback John Mateer.

Wazzu is hurting for depth on defense, though, and it had turned up a week earlier when they ran out of fuel in pursuit of New Mexico quarterback Devon Dampier.

Dampier is the collegiate version of Kyler Murray, and even though WSU held down his passing production (11 of 25 for 174 yards and one TD), Dampier wore out the Cougs on the ground.

Dampier dashed and darted for 193 yards on 28 carries, scoring three times himself as the Lobos rallied to win 38-35.

That trouble in Albuquerque hinted that the Cougs might need a lot of big plays in Corvallis, and even so, the Beavs’ physical game might wear out Wazzu.

It happened just that way.

Oregon State won a crazy shootout 41-38 on a last-second field goal, as the Cougs just couldn’t make a play when they needed it.

The two teams ran up and down the field at Reser Stadium, rolling up 868 yards — eventually wearing out Wazzu.

WE MAY see depth working in favor of the locals this week, however.

Gonzaga has had talent pretty much every season, but the Zags rarely have gone very deep on the roster.

In fact, the closest they’ve come to winning a national championship was 2017, a team that was loaded up front and pounded most teams into the floor.

That was the year some outrageous officiating cost them the title game against North Carolina.

This season’s Zags go eight or even nine deep with bona fide talent.

They’ve already faced the adversity of post Graham Ike picking up two fouls VERY early in a couple of games.

No problem.

Sophomore Braden Huff has rolled right into the lineup, taken Ike’s spot (they’re even both left-handed) and the Zags haven’t slowed down for a second.

Gonzaga’s depth will get a fair test this week at the Battle 4 Atlantis in the Bahamas.

The Zags play three straight days, beginning with a bout against West Virginia on Wednesday.

That’s followed with a game on Thursday against Louisville or Indiana, and then a finale on Friday — which could be the tournament title game, and we might see the Zags matched with Arizona and old friend Tommy Lloyd.

Three games over three days, not to mention a trip into the Atlantic Ocean, will give the Zags a test.

And no question we’ll learn about their depth.

Email: scameron@cdapress.com

Steve Cameron’s “Cheap Seats” columns appear in The Press four times each week, normally Tuesday through Friday unless, you know, stuff happens.

Steve suggests you take his opinions in the spirit of a Jimmy Buffett song: “Breathe In, Breathe Out, Move On.”