Washington State football coach Nick Rolovich was having a pretty decent season by Washington State football standards (a very good season by my Cal Bears standards), but he and four of his assistant coaches just got fired for refusing to get vaccinated—a requirement for all Washington State employees. It may have had something to do with religion (we all know god is not a fan of vaccinations and doing whatever you can to help save the lives of those around you), but Rolovich hasn’t given many details to back up his refusal. It must be a huge letdown players and the team’s fans. It’s also going to hit Rolovich in the pocketbook as he had one of the highest salaries of any state employee: $3.1 million. (Maybe that salary is bigger news than the firing.)

+ Even if you’re not a college football fan, you’re probably familiar with the achievements (or at least the voice) of Ed Orgeron. Well, just “twenty-one months after going undefeated, winning a national championship and putting together perhaps the greatest single season in college football history, LSU announced that it had reached an agreement to part ways with Orgeron at the end of this season.” This is a story about a remarkable fall from grace, but it’s also a story about the remarkably outsized role of football at some universities. If you have a subscription to The Athletic, here’s a deeper look into an interesting story (with an even more interesting editor’s note): He lost track of who he was’: Inside Ed Orgeron’s fall from celebrated son of Louisiana to LSU coaching pariah. Editor’s note: This story has been updated to reflect that the woman Ed Orgeron encountered at a gas station was not pregnant, as previously reported.