The BulleTin • Friday, augusT 13, 2021 B3
FOUR-PAGE PULLOUT
B3
S PORTS
The BulleTin • Friday, augusT 13, 2021
PAC-12
FOOTBALL
COVID issues can
result in forfeits
Pac-12 teams that
cannot play because of
COVID-19 issues will likely
be forced to forfeit games
this season.
The conference an-
nounced Thursday it is
reinstituting its forfeiture
policy after it modified its
rules last season because
of the pandemic.
Last season, a game
that could not be played
because of COVID-19
problems with either
team was canceled and
deemed no contest. This
season, COVID-19 will not
be automatically consid-
ered an excused absence.
“If an institution is
unable to play a contest
through its own fault, it
shall forfeit such contest
to its opponent,” the con-
ference said.
A forfeit will count as
a conference victory for
a forfeiting team’s oppo-
nent.
“The Pac-12 rule pro-
vides the Commissioner
with discretion to deter-
mine whether an institu-
tion is at fault or primarily
at fault for an inability to
play a contest based on
the facts of the situation,”
the conference said.
The Pac-12 announced
earlier this month that
regular COVID-19 testing
will no longer be required
for vaccinated individuals.
Vaccinated individuals
will also no longer be im-
mediately subjected to
quarantine after exposure
to an infected individual.
Regular testing will still be
required for unvaccinated
players, coaches and staff.
— Associated Press
NBA
Leonard agrees to
deal with Clippers
LOS ANGELES —
Kawhi Leonard is return-
ing to the Los Angeles
Clippers on a four-year
maximum contract, tying
himself to the franchise
long term.
Leonard, an unre-
stricted free agent,
agreed to return to the
team last week while still
working out the structure
of his contract. A person
with knowledge of the
contract said Thursday
that the fourth year is a
player option; he will earn
$176 million over the
length of the deal.
The final season runs
through 2024-25 — the
same season the Clippers
hope to open their new,
proposed arena in Ingle-
wood, California. Leon-
ard’s deal also is equal in
length to that of team-
mate Paul George, poten-
tially keeping the All-Star
duo together for years.
Leonard is currently
recovering from a par-
tially torn ACL in his right
knee, an injury that could
sideline him for much, if
not all, of next season. In
Leonard and George’s first
two seasons together,
the team advanced to
the postseason’s second
round and the Western
Conference finals, but is
still seeking its first NBA
Finals appearance.
In a prepared release
announcing the signing,
Lawrence Frank, Clippers
president of basketball
operations, called Leon-
ard a “transcendent player
and a relentless worker.”
“This agreement marks
another important mo-
ment for our franchise
and our fans, as we strive
to create a champion-
ship-caliber organization,”
Frank said. “For now, we
will do whatever we can
to support him in his re-
covery from injury. ”
— Los Angeles Times
bendbulletin.com/sports
COLLEGE FOOTBALL | COMMENTARY
Pressure on Ducks? Nope. It is
Ohio State’s season to kick away
BY JOHN CANZANO
The Oregonian
T
he other day I was
talking to a colleague of
mine who covers Ohio
State’s football program and he
mentioned that the Buckeyes
have a major concern.
Brace for the horror.
The kicking game.
It turns out Ohio State’s
freshman kicker missed a cou-
ple of field goals in the spring
game. He only made one suc-
cessful field goal all of last sea-
son. The Buckeyes were so con-
cerned they went to the transfer
portal and brought in a gradu-
ate transfer kicker from North
Carolina. The whole thing has
generated some angst in the
event that Oregon plays the
Buckeyes close on Sept. 11 in
Columbus.
Talk about first-world foot-
ball problems.
I want to giggle at the absur-
dity of it. But I wonder if what
Oregon has here is a chance to
make Ohio State uncomfortable
in a way it hasn’t been lately.
The Buckeyes haven’t lost a reg-
ular-season game under head
coach Ryan Day. They really ha-
ven’t even been challenged. He’s
officially 23-2 overall with his
only losses coming to Clemson
and Alabama in bowl season.
See Ducks / B4
Sean Meagher/The Oregonian, file
Oregon football coach Mario Cristobal addresses his team following
the Ducks’ 2021 Spring Game in Eugene in May.
Prep sports
NEW YEAR, NEW COACHES
Central Oregon high schools
will see several significant
coaching changes for the
upcoming fall season
BY BRIAN RATHBONE • The Bulletin
O
n Monday, high school
sports will officially
return with practices in
preparation for the upcoming fall
season starting the final week of
August.
The coaching landscape in
Central Oregon looks familiar to
the previous year. However, there
are a few significant coaching
changes to local school’s fall
varsity programs.
Perhaps one of the biggest changes
is at Summit High, where Ban Tat
will take over for Jill Waskom, who
turned Summit into one of the most
formidable volleyball programs in the
state. Waskom, who started coaching
the Storm in 2007, led Summit to two
state championships and six state title
appearances.
This marks the first high school
coaching job for Tat, who has been
involved in the Central Oregon club
volleyball scene since graduating from
Oregon State in 2004 and moving to
Bend.
“There is a lot to navigate running a
program from the top down,” Tat said.
“Big props to Jill for the program and
girls she has helped develop. … Can’t
thank them enough to leave a pro-
gram in such good standing.”
Dean Guernsey/The Bulletin
Summit High School’s new volleyball coach Ban Tat, center, holds conditioning drills on the track at Summit High School on
Wednesday. Practices for fall sports officially start on Monday.
“There is a lot to navigate running a program from the top down.
Big props to (former Summit High volleyball coach) Jill (Waskom)
for the program and girls she has helped develop. … Can’t thank
them enough to leave a program in such good standing.”
— Ban Tat, new Summit High volleyball coach
Tat is already familiar with several
of his players through his work in club
volleyball for nearly two decades.
“It was the next step for me in my
coaching career,” he said. “I know a lot
of girls in the program. That has made
it easier and helped me through the
process.”
Volleyball is not the only sport at
Summit that will be under new lead-
ership. Joe LoCascio will replace Ron
Kidder, who led the Storm boys soccer
team to consecutive Class 6A state ti-
tle games in 2018 and 2019.
At Redmond High, a familiar face
has returned to the football sidelines.
Brent Wasche, who was the Panthers’
coach in 2018, replaces Seth Womack,
who in 2019 was Wasche’s replace-
ment.
Wasche, who coached in Port An-
geles, Washington, in 2020, is excited
to return to the school where multiple
players that were freshman in his pre-
vious season as the team’s head coach
are now seniors.
“It is a pretty neat deal,” Wasche
said. “It is nice taking over a program
when you have a relationship with the
seniors.”
The Panthers are coming off a suc-
cessful season in which they went
5-1 and claimed an Intermountain
Conference championship in the
shortened season played just this past
spring.
“Seth did a great job with the pro-
gram,” Wasche said. “It feels like a
whole different scenario than it was
a few years ago. Right now, instead of
looking at Week 1, we are looking for
bigger goals. We want to see if we can
repeat and see how far we can go in
the playoffs.”
See Coaches / B5
NFL | PRESEASON
49ers excited to see debut for Trey Lance
BY JOSH DUBOW
AP Pro Football Writer
Jeff Chiu/AP
San Francisco 49ers quarterback Trey Lance throws a pass at training
camp in Santa Clara, California, on Tuesday.
Coach Kyle Shanahan knows
that in the big picture, it won’t
matter how well Trey Lance
plays in his exhibition debut
for the San Francisco 49ers.
That doesn’t dampen Sha-
nahan’s excitement to see his
rookie first-round quarterback
take the field in a game for the
first time Saturday night when
the Niners host the Kansas City
Chiefs in an exhibition game.
“It’s fun to watch quarter-
backs go out there for the first
time,” Shanahan said Thursday.
“But I don’t get nervous for the
person or anything like that.
It’s fun to watch. I know no
one’s going to remember how
his first preseason game is, but
they will the next day. That’s all
right. I know rookies get some
butterflies. It is a big deal for
them. But the reality of it is it is
an experience for them. I think
Trey is going to make the team
so he doesn’t have to go out
there and just freak out about
that. But he knows a lot of eyes
will be on him.”
A lot of eyes have been on
Lance ever since the 49ers
drafted him in April after trad-
ing three first-round picks for
the No. 3 selection.
San Francisco is working
Lance in gradually behind
starter Jimmy Garoppolo,
but the rookie has impressed
during training camp.
But there are some things
he can’t truly experience until
game action, like how to deal
with getting the play call from
the sideline in a loud stadium
and how to make the decision
about when to slide, dive head-
first, go out of bounds or take a
hit when scrambling.
Shanahan wants Lance to
stay on his feet on scrambles in
practice to avoid any chance of
an injury but drills him after-
ward on what he would have
done in a real game. He’s been
pleased with the answers so far
but now gets to see it for real.
See 49ers / B4