Octagon Observations: Don't Blame "sugar"

On a scale from 1 to 10, how are you feeling about this Broncos training camp roster so far? Also, what’s your overall reaction to the Broncos’ 2024 schedule? — Ed Helinski, Auburn, N. Y. Hey Ed, great questions, so let’s get to the first one first. The bottom line is it’s still too early to say, mostly because the pads haven’t come on yet and won’t until training camp.

In the latest edition of the Nuggets Ink podcast, beat writer Bennett Durando and sports editor Matt Schubert are joined by esteemed author and former Nuggets beat writer Mike Singer. Among the topics discussed: Mike weighs in on what went wrong for the Nuggets after they were eliminated by the Minnesota Timberwolves 4-3 in the Western Conference semifinals.

A lot of wide receivers know what to say when they get asked about the dirty work that is usually an afterthought for a glamor position. Of course, blocking is important. Yeah, we take pride in it. A big block can be as consequential as catching a touchdown. Josh Reynolds? The glint in his eye when the subject comes up during organized team activities gives away two things simultaneously: First, this isn’t just lip service.

Hey, if it worked for Uga XI, it’ll fly for Ralphie VI, right? Fun fact: The Georgia Bulldogs started a redshirt freshman, Earnest Greene III, at left tackle last fall. So Geoff Schwartz will concede that Jordan Seaton might be ready to kick tails and flip pancakes for the CU Buffs only a half-year or so removed from the prep ranks.

Two days after the Pac-12 took its final competitive breath, the conference lost its soul. Bill Walton passed away Monday after 71 years of a life like no other, ever. The cause: cancer. Left unsaid: a broken heart. Walton might have been the greatest player in college basketball history. He won two NCAA titles with UCLA and two more in the NBA (with Portland and Boston) and was a no-brainer Hall of Fame inductee. He was the world’s preeminent Grateful Dead fan, a cycling enthusiast, a passionate environmentalist, a voracious reader and an iconic sports broadcaster. He was as brilliant as he was goofy, as genuine as he was colorful, as joyous as he was loquacious. Oh, could he talk. My first conversation with Walton, years ago, was by telephone.

Molly Grabill wasn’t too thrilled with how she’s been running lately. Monday was a different story. At the 44th Bolder Boulder, the Superior resident and San Diego native won the women’s citizen’s race for the second consecutive year. A former six-time All-American at Oregon, Grabill, 31, is the first repeat champion — men or women — since Lilly Guerra won the women’s races in 2002-03. Grabill said she came in with the intent to win, but added, “I mean, there was Laura (Thweatt) and Gwen (Jorgensen) in the race and I’ve just kind of been in a little bit of a slump since the (U.