Coeur d'Alene High freshmen football camp coming up

COEUR d'ALENE — Football camp for incoming freshmen at Coeur d'Alene High School is scheduled for June 20-25.

Information: Coach Shawn Amos, samos@cdaschools.org

Vandal football team signs three transfers

MOSCOW — University of Idaho football coach Jason Eck on Tuesday announced the signings of three transfers to the 2022 Vandal football squad — including former South Dakota State quarterback J'Bore Gibbs, who was coached by Eck when Eck was offensive coordinator before coming to Idaho.

The other two transfers are former Notre Dame linebacker Paul Moala and former USC edge rusher Juliano Falaniko.

Moala comes to Idaho after playing in 23 games in four seasons for Notre Dame. He tallied 22 total tackles, including a tackle for loss. During the 2019-20 season, he intercepted a pitch against Navy and returned the ball for a touchdown.

Moala will have two years of eligibility remaining.

"We are excited to get Paul to Moscow," Eck said. "Watch his tape and you see him showing up and making plays against Georgia. If you see a guy making big tackles against Georgia, you can expect him to make plays in the Big Sky. I also enjoy being around him. He is sharp and I think he'll really be able to help us as a linebacker and as a leader."

Falaniko comes to Idaho after playing in 37 games for USC over his career. He has 22 career tackles, including 1.5 TFL and half a sack. He also has one forced fumble. He will have one year of eligibility remaining.

"Juliano is just a very physical football player," Eck said. "He came highly recommended by Johnny Nansen who was his first coach at USC. I coached with Johnny during my first time at Idaho and I have a lot of respect for his opinion. Juliano has played as a stand-up rush and outside backer for USC and we think he can be a real stout guy who can help us out and be a physical presence for us at defensive end."

Gibbs joins Eck, his former offensive coordinator, in the transition from South Dakota State to Idaho. Gibbs played in 10 games for the Jackrabbits, six in 2019 and four in the spring of 2021 before suffering season-ending injuries. He turned heads as a freshman when he led SDSU in a close game against Minnesota. He rushed for a touchdown and passed for another in the 28-21 loss. In six games that season, he passed for 1,058 yards and 10 TDs while rushing for four more before suffering a season-ending injury against North Dakota State. He has two years of eligibility remaining and can potentially appeal for a third due to an injury redshirt.

"Coach (Luke) Schleusner and I have a lot of familiarity with him, he was our starting quarterback to start the year in 2019 at South Dakota State," Eck said. "He played very well in the narrow loss to Minnesota in a real tough environment for someone's first college start. He also played very well at Youngstown State and Indiana State but unfortunately tore his ACL against North Dakota State. He tore his other ACL the next year and COVID didn't help his rehab. He's a guy who's battled adversity in his football career and just growing up in inner-city Chicago so he knows how to handle a tough situation. He is really excited to have a fresh start and can come in and compete with Gevani (McCoy) and C.J. (Jordan) for the starting quarterback position."

Vandal football has begun summer conditioning drills looking forward to the start of fall camp during the first week of August. The Vandals open the season on Sept. 3 against Washington State, with a home opener on Sept. 17 against Drake.

Golden Tate signs with West Coast League baseball team

PORT ANGELES, Wash. — Former Seattle Seahawks wide receiver Golden Tate has signed a contract to play baseball with the Port Angeles Lefties of the West Coast League for the remainder of the 2022 season, the league announced.

While Jake Locker and Jordan Poyer both played for WCL teams before their NFL careers, Tate will become the first former NFL player in the league.

“I am extremely thankful,” Tate said, “to the West Coast League and the Port Angeles Lefties for allowing me to join their league. As some might know, I was drafted twice in baseball. As a child, my first love was baseball, so I’m excited about the opportunity to compete against some of the best young players in the league. I look forward to having a lot of fun and exploring baseball more.”

Tate starred as a wide receiver at Notre Dame before being selected in the second round of the 2010 NFL draft by the Seattle Seahawks, where he played his first four seasons and was a member of the Seahawks' Super Bowl champions.

Tate then played 4 1/2 seasons with Detroit and a half a season with Philadelphia before finishing his NFL career with two seasons with the New York Giants.

While at Notre Dame, Tate also played baseball for two seasons. As a sophomore, he batted .329 and scored 45 runs in 55 games. He’s been drafted twice: first out of high school by the Arizona Diamondbacks, and then out of college by the San Francisco Giants; both times he declined to sign a professional baseball contract.

Tate was slated to debut as Port Angeles’s starting center fielder in Tuesday's game against the visiting Bend Elks.