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ERICRISBERG—THEASSOCIATEDPRESSFILE Oakland Raiders head coach Jack Del Rio answers questions during a minicamp in Alameda. Del Rio and his returning coaching staff give the Raiders continuity. ByJimmyDurkin BayAreaNewsGroup NEW ORLEANS Jon Condo, the sec- ond-longest tenured Oakland Raider, looked around the field at one point during the offseason program. He's been here since late in the 2006 season and seen more than 100 coaches — including seven head coaches — come in and out of build- ing, each year with new names to learn and personalities to under- stand. "I was just observing, noticing, 'Man, we've got all our coaches back from last year,'" said Condo, a Pro Bowl long snapper. "That's the first time since I've been here. It's pretty good, because it's all about chemis- try, about players knowing what to expect from their coaches." The Raiders open the season at 10 a.m. Sunday in New Orleans against the Saints and coach Jack Del Rio won't be getting an assistant de- fensive backs coach clued in on the game day routine or wondering if his tight ends coach is properly prepar- ing. Every coach, from 1 through 24, is back in his same role as the Raid- ers look to build on their 7-9 record from last season and make a run at the playoffs and the AFC West title. Del Rio never experienced such continuity during his nine seasons in Jacksonville, where there were no fewer than three coaching changes per season during his first head- coaching job. In retaining everybody, Del Rio said the offseason process was smoother as the staff poured over the ways to improve the team. "It's a people business," Del Rio said. "I think the time and the re- lationships are important. We work hard at the relationships and I think having that and having that with our staff and having this staff with the players, I think there is value in it. NFL Raidersbankingoncontinuity With same coaches, all they have to worry about now is winning games Sunday: Oakland Raiders at New Orleans Saints, 10a.m., TV on FOX. TUNEIN By Cam Inman Bay Area News Group Colin Kaepernick's national-an- them protest is still a hot-button topic across America but not nec- essarily in the locker room. An Aug. 28 players-only meet- ing set the San Francisco 49ers on their course regarding Kaepernick's quest to stem racial injustice and police misconduct. "That's really been the last time as a team we've ever talked about the situation," 49ers coach Chip Kelly said Friday. "We recognize and respect Kap's decision, and his constitutional rights to do what he's doing. "It's sounds like it's been a pos- itive change. There's been a lot of positive things come out of it." A week after Kaepernick pledged $1 million toward community pro- grams, 49ers CEO Jed York did the same Thursday on behalf of the franchise, with those funds ear- marked for the Silicon Valley and San Francisco community founda- tions.. "Anytime there's conversation about injustices in this country, it's a positive," Kelly said. "And now, in- stead of just conversation, to take it a step further, like both Colin has NFL KELLY:POSITIVES FROM KAP'S LEAD 49ers haven't discussed Kaepernick's protest of national anthem since last month's team meeting CAM INMAN – BAY AREA NEWS GROUP 49ers coach Chip Kelly talks about Colin Kaepernick and Monday's season opener. DENIS POROY — THE ASSOCIATED PRESS FILE San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick has been refusing to stand during the national anthem, and coach Chip Kelly said they haven't talked about it as a team since a players-only meeting on Aug. 28. Monday: Los Angeles Rams at San Francisco 49ers, 7:20p.m., TV on ESPN. TUNEIN By Jenna Fryer AP Auto Racing Writer Chris Buescher's task, should he accomplish it Saturday night at Richmond International Raceway, is no small feat. Buescher will try to parlay his improbable victory at a rain- shortened race this summer into a coveted berth in the Chase for the Sprint Cup champion- ship. Making NASCAR's play- offs would be a coup for Bue- scher and Front Row Motors- ports, an improbable participant in the Chase. Buescher is eligible for the Chase by virtue of his August victory at Pocono. But the rules require the 16 drivers that make the Chase to be ranked 30th or higher in the standings, and Buescher is barely at that mark. He goes into Saturday night's race with an 11-point lead over David Ragan for 30th in the standings. So Buescher, last year's Xfinity Series champion, needs a plan on how to race the regular-season finale. "We are not in a full defen- sive mode," he said Friday at the Virginia race track. "We can't go out and just try to run ev- ery lap and stay out of every- one's way. We don't have that luxury. We are coming out here to race aggressively for every po- sition, every point we can possi- bly get, without taking unneces- sary risk." There are three scenarios in which Buescher can make the Chase without relying on the results of any other driver, and all require him to finish at least ninth. That's probably a stretch considering Buescher has just two top-five finishes through 25 races this season. NASCAR SPRINT CUP Buescher on verge of claiming berth in Chase Staff Report RED BLUFF The Red Bluff High School girls tennis team played its first league match of the season Thursday, hosting Pleasant Val- ley, and won 5-2. Pleasant Valley is the reign- ing section champion, so it was a great team win, said coach Den- nis Poulton. "The hard work over the sum- mer is paying off for the Spartans, who are 6-0 so far this season." In the first match Red Bluff's Maggie Winning fell to Nicole Flint 7-5, 7-6 (7-5). Cleo DuFrain beat Abbey Gassaway 6-0. 6-1; Megan Boone beat Shivangi Btel 6-1, 6-0; and Victoria Yates lost to Daisey Farris 6-2, 6-4. In doubles play, Ryder DuFrain and Audra Brown beat Krishna Btel and Anna Brodesser 6-0, 6-3; Ellie Christianson and An- gela Ferrell beat Dutra Gordy and Kalley Arington 6-4, 6-1; and Jo- elle Alexander and Lindsay Harri- son beat Georgi Miada and Sami Monrow 6-0, 6-1. The team's next match is sched- uled for Sept. 20 at Shasta High School in Redding. GIRLS TENNIS Spartans get to 6-0 with win over PV By Howard Fendrich The Associated Press NEWYORK For quite a while, No- vak Djokovic's opponent in the U.S. Open semifinals, Gael Mon- fils, looked as if he didn't want to win — or even be there at all. That premeditated "great strategy" of hoping to lull the No. 1 seed and defending cham- pion into complacency and mis- takes, as Monfils described it later, worked briefly, yet did not prevent a two-set deficit. So he transformed back into his en- tertaining, athletic self. A sweat- soaked Djokovic sought help from a trainer for aches in both shoul- ders, and what was no contest suddenly became one. Monfils forced a fourth set, and Djokovic ripped off his white shirt angrily a la "The Incredible Hulk." The ultimate outcome was only briefly in the balance, though. Djokovic regained the upper hand, as he so often does, reach- ing his 21st Grand Slam final and seventh at the U.S. Open with an eventful and, at times, bizarre 6-3, 6-2, 3-6, 6-2 victory over Monfils on Friday. "Well, it was a strange match," said Djokovic, who will face No. 3 Stan Wawrinka in Sunday's final, "as it always is, I guess, when you play Gael, who is a very unpredict- able player." Never more so than on this muggy afternoon, with the tem- U.S. OPEN TENNIS Djokovic has odd victory over Monfils 49ERS PAGE 2 RAIDERS PAGE 2 NASCAR PAGE 2 TENNIS PAGE 2 SPORTS » redbluffdailynews.com Saturday, September 10, 2016 MORE AT FACEBOOK.COM/RBDAILYNEWS AND TWITTER.COM/REDBLUFFNEWS B1