Tuesday, June 12, 2007.

Ask me to name three starters on any single Idaho State basketball team—ever—and I wouldn’t be able to do it. Except for one: 1976-77. Steve Hayes, Ed Thompson, Greg Griffin. I’ll probably get skewered for not recalling the other two, but that team was emblazoned in the mind of every Idahoan who watched on TV as the Bengals upset UCLA 76-75 in one of the classics in the NCAA Tournament. Most unforgettable was ISU’s coach, Jim Killingsworth. “Killer” tormented everyone in the Big Sky during the mid-70’s—and Sunday he passed away at the age of 83. Killingsworth guided the Bengals to three Big Sky regular season championships and two NCAA Tournament berths (the other was in 1974).

The ’77 stunner came just two years after the retirement of Bruins legend John Wooden and his 10 national championships in 12 years. There were only 32 teams in the NCAA’s at the time, and the first round was held at campus sites. Idaho State got a home game in Pocatello, beat Long Beach State 83-72, and was off to Provo to play UCLA (before it was known as the Sweet 16). Hayes, the seven-footer from Aberdeen, poured in 27 points with 12 rebounds to lead the Bengals to the unimaginable, crafted by the crusty but caring Killingsworth.

Gene Bartow was in his second season in the thankless job as Wooden’s successor and had gone 52-8 going into the matchup with Idaho State. Bartow’s ninth loss with UCLA would be his last, as he left to form the athletic department at Alabama-Birmingham. By the way, the Bengals eventually lost in their shot at the Final Four, falling to UNLV 107-90. And that would be Killingworth’s final game at ISU, as he moved on to resurrect the moribund basketball program at TCU.

No doubt Rod Jensen would like to get back out West, and the former Boise State coach is one of four finalists for the head coaching position at Eastern Washington. Jensen’s been an assistant at UNC-Greensboro the past two seasons for one-time SMU coach Mike Dement. Jensen spent 12 years as Bobby Dye’s defensive coordinator of sorts before taking over the Broncos when the veteran coach resigned in 1995. He went 109-93 in seven seasons as Bronco coach and was fired five years ago. Following his departure from BSU, Jensen spent two seasons under Pete Gillen at Virginia, then sat out the 2004-05 season after resigning from UVA.

When Chris Ault endured a 2004 season that was unacceptable to him, he decided Nevada needed an infusion of new offensive energy. And so was born the Wolf Pack’s new “Pistol” attack, where the quarterback lines up a couple steps behind the center. The shortened shotgun approach is designed to complement both the running and passing games. It’s worked against everyone in the WAC at one time or another, except on Boise State. Ault will get another shot at taking down the Broncos with his Pistol on national TV when the Pack and BSU hook up for a Sunday night ESPN game October 14. Nevada’s offense has made some other inroads, though.

In "American Football Monthly," a magazine that trumpets itself as "The No. 1 resource for football coaches,” the Pistol is the May issue cover story, complete with photo. The headline says, "The Nevada offense: An exclusive analysis of the hottest offense in football." It’s a two-parter featuring the running attack in May and the passing game in June. Ault told the Reno Gazette-Journal that during his May tour of California and Nevada high schools, he bets the magazine was on the coach’s desk of 65 of the 75 he visited. "I don't think people have really understood the magnitude of where this program has gone the last three years, and in particular with this Pistol offense," said Ault in the RGJ. Now he seeks to finally hit the target against the five-time defending WAC champion.

A one-time opponent of Chris Carr may help give the former Boise State star an expanded role with Oakland this season. Says The Sporting News: “Look for rookie wide receiver Johnnie Lee Higgins to make the Raiders as a return man. His great speed gives him the ability to break a big gain at any time. Plus that would allow Chris Carr to stay fresh for his duties as a cornerback in passing situations.” Higgins was Oakland’s third-round draft pick in April out of UTEP. He was a sophomore with the Miners in 2004 when Carr came across him during his senior season with the Broncos. Higgins had three catches for 43 yards and a touchdown in BSU’s 47-31 win in El Paso.

The Boise Hawks open their season a week from tonight. As usual, the team won’t take shape until late this week as the Cubs now try to sign their draft picks and shuffle the rest of their minor league player inventory. One guy who hopes a spot on the Hawks roster is reserved for him is former Centennial High star Jordan Latham, who just finished his second season at College of Southern Idaho. Latham was drafted by the Cubs last year in the 29th round—Chicago would have retained his rights until draft day, so he took advantage after the Golden Eagles’ campaign was done and signed on. He’ll be ready for wood bats, in Boise or elsewhere. CSI plays in the Scenic West Conference, which utilizes wood bats. Latham was 9-1 this spring with a 1.84 ERA.

This Day In Sports…June 12, 1997:

Boise’s new bowl game gets official sanctioning from the NCAA 10 years ago today to play that December. It would hook up in the summer of ’97 with the World Sports Humanitarian Hall of Fame to become the Humanitarian Bowl, matching the Big West champion against a team from Conference USA. The game was crucial to the Big West Conference, which had lost its bowl affiliation when the Las Vegas Bowl dumped the league after the 1996 season.

(Tom Scott hosts the Scott Slant segment Sunday nights at 10:30PM on KTVB’s Sunday Sports Extra and anchors five sports segments each weekday on 1350 KTIK/The Ticket. He also handles color commentary on KTVB’s telecasts of Boise State football.)

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