After several successful food drives, Operation Warm Wishes had accumulated canned fruit and boxed pasta to spare.

So the Tustin organization’s founder, TyRon Jackson, said he decided to open a market of sorts where people could “grocery shop” free of charge.

But, he quickly discovered renting a storefront for such an endeavor would be cost-prohibitive.

Then, Jackson experienced a eureka. At less than the monthly rent for his original idea, the nonprofit – which serves homeless and struggling families – could lease storage space for an entire year.

Last week, Operation Warm Wishes debuted its food pantry at Pouch Self Storage – next to the Boys & Girls Club in Old Town Tustin.

The bare-bones site is no Trader Joe’s. Lacking electricity, the garage-sized room is lit with battery-powered light bulbs. Shoppers enter through a roll-up door.

Volunteers initially organized the items by type – peas here, soup there – on shelves purchased at Costco. But the “sort of” filing system is less than perfect, Jackson admitted.

“We’re still figuring it out,” he said with a laugh.

The pantry does not keep specific hours, so visits are by appointment only. However, Jackson said, those appointments are quick and easy to come by. Whenever a call comes in, he said, “We have a lot of volunteers who can get over there quickly.”

As well as human food, the pantry offers kibble for pets. Families also can pick up fun, but nonessential stuff, such as packages of cookies.

Operation Warm Wishes gives away pre-filled bags of groceries at many of its events. “The pantry allows people to pick out what they want,” Jackson said.

As another nice touch, high school students in Operation Warm Wishes’ Make It Happen club write encouraging messages on the pantry’s brown grocery bags.

“Our whole point,” Jackson said, “is to make people feel special.”

To schedule an appointment to pick up food, call 714-363-6621.

Four Department of Motor Vehicles investigations enforcement operations held during the Los Angeles County Fair found that nearly one-fifth of the disabled parking placards checked were being misused, officials said Friday.

“We want the public to know that a person who is assigned a disabled parking placard is the only one who can legally use it,” said DMV Investigations Chief Tom Wilson in a statement. “Our goal is to achieve compliance through education and enforcement, and we ask those without a disability to save the space.”

In California, a valid placard cannot be used by anyone but the person it was issued to and they must be present when it’s in use. Additionally, individuals cannot display a cancelled or revoked placard.

During the operations – which took place on four different September days – authorities checked 1,955 placards and issued 345 citations, or for nearly 17 percent of them.

The citations did not include people without placards parking in designated stalls because, according to DMV authorities, the operation took place in the disabled parking lot and to enter every person either had a disabled placard or disabled license plate.

This is the second year the DMV has conducted enforcement at the L.A. County Fair.  Last year, of the 2,754 placards checked during five operations, investigators caught 477 people misusing them, officials said.

“If there is someone illegally taking a parking spot from a guest with a disabled parking placard, we want to know about it,” said Miguel A. Santana, Fairplex’s president and CEO, in a statement. “Those spots are designed for those who need them. So, we are happy to assist the DMV in making sure everyone is following the law.”

The citations carry a fine between $250 and $1,000.

The L.A. County Fair will run until Sept. 23.

Time isn’t really on the Galaxy’s side.

The Galaxy is in eighth place in the Western Conference with five games remaining, but the next two games are at home against the Seattle Sounders (Sunday) and the Vancouver Whitecaps (Sept. 29).

Both teams are ahead of the Galaxy in the standings.

“We have to win the game, let’s be honest,” interim coach Dominic Kinnear said. “I think if we lose the game, we’re in real big trouble. Our playoff lifeline is hanging by a thread, but in order to do that we have to stay committed to each other and play together.”

The Galaxy hopes to take advantage of a Seattle squad that had a mid-week game or, as has been the case this season, hopes Zlatan Ibrahimovic dials up some more of his goal-scoring magic.

Ibrahimovic has scored 17 goals in 22 games this season, including his 500th of his career last Saturday.

“I’ve seen all the comments and compliments I get and of course you feel more proud,” he said of reaching No. 500. “You realized more of what you have achieved and when you see the players who have done 500 and above, it is not normal players, so I appreciate it a lot and I’m very thankful for all the comments out there.”

Ibrahimovic joins Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo as the only active players with 500-plus goals.

“Like (David) Beckham said, if you score 500, you’re really old in the game,” Ibrahimovic said. “That’s pretty much how I feel, but I still have some more to give and hopefully it doesn’t stop there with 500.

“I’ve tried to make all the Swedish (people) proud for what I’m doing and putting Sweden on the map, so that is what my main goal is. Coming from Sweden, that little country, but I had a chance to play with all the big clubs and big players and still produce the goals I’ve did.”

In his short time with the Galaxy, Ibrahimovic has proved he still has the ability to score goals and carry a team. This season has also found him in an unusual position of fighting for the postseason. When you’ve played for the biggest clubs in the world, the fight is usually for Champions League positions. Winning titles has been a way of life.

“The teams I’ve played for, I’ve had the feeling like we were unbeatable, nobody can destroy us, we will destroy everybody,” he said. “Now it is like you come to a game and feels like 50-50, anything can happen.”

“I don’t want to talk about luck, because luck is for the less good teams and players, so I don’t want to have luck. I want to have quality, I want to have a stable season, stable games, where you control the games more and that is where I think the lack has been. We don’t control the games. Every time somebody attacks, it feels like we will get hurt instead of thinking, ‘This is no problem, we will take care of it.’”

Throughout the season, Ibrahimovic has tried to shield his obvious frustrations with a funny quip, but Thursday, it was obvious he wasn’t happy with the way things have gone.

“We had nine games where we didn’t lose and then we lost one and from that we didn’t win since that game,” he said. “As soon as we lose, you should come back strong, but we haven’t got out from that hole.”

The Galaxy hasn’t won since July 29 and is currently in the midst of a seven-game winless streak.

When asked if there was a situation he wouldn’t return next season, Ibrahimovic said: “I don’t know … this I have to discuss. It is not the moment to talk about that. It is something that I will discuss with the club what they want, what I want. I have five games (left), I’m happy, physically I feel strong, I feel good, I’m producing, we just need to win games and then everything is perfect.”

SEATTLE SOUNDERS FC (13-10-5, 44 points) at L.A. GALAXY (10-11-8, 38 points)

Kickoff: 4 p.m. at StubHub Center

TV/Radio: Fox Sports 1; KTMZ/1220; LAGalaxy.com (English)

Update: The Sounders had their nine-game winning streak snapped 1-0 Wednesday by the Philadelphia Union. One of their wins during that streak with a 5-0 romp over the Galaxy on Aug. 18. Seattle’s Raul Ruidiaz (ankle) left Wednesday’s game early and was limited during training. Chad Marshall also left the game early, but did not suffer a concussion.

In the upper deck of FirstEnergy Stadium, in the midst of another miserable quarter of Browns football, a possum was found loose in the stands.

Anywhere else, such an occurrence would be profoundly bizarre. But in Cleveland, it felt strangely – and depressingly – fitting. The Browns hadn’t won a game in 635 days. A week earlier, they missed two extra points and two field goals to blow a winnable game against the Saints. Days later, they cut their kicker and traded one of their top wideouts to the Patriots. For the league’s preeminent bottom-feeding franchise, a rodent problem in the stadium was basically par for the course.

Around these parts, hope was pretty much impossible to come by. The Browns’ last winning season was over a decade ago. Their last playoff appearance came in 2002. Their last playoff win came on New Year’s Day, 1995, four months before their rookie quarterback was even born.

And so, as the Browns defense allowed two second-quarter touchdowns and security struggled to contain the situation in the stands, one Cleveland man, with a No. 99 jersey tucked into bright orange windbreaker pants, took matters into his own hands. He charged right up to the possum, grabbed it by the tail and held it aloft, in glorious victory.

Browns fan just secured a possum

(via steve_bertolino/Instagram) pic.twitter.com/k6Oqet5Kcs

— Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) September 21, 2018

Not long after that, everything changed in Cleveland.

When we discuss the Baker Mayfield era, years from now, the possum will probably be lost to history. (Though, as of the next morning, “Rally Possum” shirts were already on sale.) But in those moments before Mayfield entered the game late in the second quarter, before he set the Jets defense ablaze, led the Browns to their first victory in two seasons, galvanized a long-suffering franchise and opened coolers of free Bud Light across the city, all Cleveland had to celebrate was one dude catching a possum in the bleachers.

Now, though, there is hope. It came in the form of Mayfield, last April’s No. 1 overall pick, who entered Thursday night’s game late in the second quarter and immediately energized a lifeless offense. He replaced Tyrod Taylor, who would have stayed in the game, if not for a concussion. But in spite of Hue Jackson’s poor judgment, destiny intervened, anyway.

And boy, did destiny make its intentions known. On his first drive, Mayfield charged down the field before halftime, and the Browns kicked a field goal. Cleveland was still down by two scores, but the energy in the building had shifted entirely.

After the break, Mayfield proceeded to dice up the Jets defense with eye-popping precision, connecting with his wideouts in a way Taylor hadn’t come close this season. He cycled through his reads with ease and dialed up dazzling throw after dazzling throw. Long before the Browns comeback was complete, it felt preordained.

In Cleveland, where a possum loose in the stands felt more normal than actually believing in the Browns, this sentiment was totally unfamiliar. No team in NFL history had been tortured more by the quarterback position, but suddenly, here was a Browns quarterback exuding confidence, delivering dimes over the middle and in traffic, doing what no one believed he could do.

Mayfield ultimately finished 17 of 23 for 201 yards, but you’d be hard-pressed to find a Cleveland fan who remembers a single one of those incompletions. What Mayfield did on Thursday night transcended box scores.

Of course, what matters most is still to come. This is only one win. It’s a minuscule sample size to judge a quarterback. And it came against a team unprepared for Mayfield and his skill set.

But don’t bother telling that to the city of Cleveland. Let them have this one. Because after a depressing stretch of dismal quarterbacks, from Tim Couch to Charlie Frye to Spergon Wynn and Brady Quinn, the Browns have finally found a quarterback who maybe, just maybe, is capable of saving the league’s worst franchise.

For a city in desperate need of a little hope, that’s a whole lot more exciting than catching a possum.

BEST BET OF WEEK 3

Atlanta (-3) over New Orleans. The Saints needed two missed extra points and two missed field goals last week to sneak by a team that hadn’t won a football game since Christmas Eve 2016. New Orleans just isn’t right at the moment. Atlanta, meanwhile, is 5-1 against the spread in its last six home games and won each of their last two at home against the Saints. The Falcons haven’t set the world on fire this season, but they also haven’t given up 48 points at home to the Bucs.

Season record: 2-0Last week: Chargers (-7.5) over Bills — WIN

FANTASY PLAYER OF THE WEEK

Jimmy Garoppolo, QB, 49ers. In fantasy football, shootouts are your friend, and this week, with a matchup against Patrick Mahomes and the high-flying Chiefs offense, Garoppolo is going to have to sling it around for the 49ers to keep pace in Kansas City. The Chiefs have allowed 430 passing yards per game through two weeks. Count on Garoppolo to, at least, surpass 300 yards this week.

PRO FOOTBALL REFERENCE NICKNAME OF THE WEEK

Patrick Mahomes, “Fatrick”. I’m not sure where Pro Football Reference digs up the bizarre (and often hilarious) nicknames listed on their site, but they must’ve had to go to Mahomes’ elementary school playground to procure this one. As someone once nicknamed “Fartje” during a playground football game, I can sympathize.

TOP 5 … REASONS TO RETIRE FROM THE BUFFALO BILLS IN THE MIDDLE OF A GAME

5. Because it’s winter. In December and January, Buffalo is an icy winter hellscape. It’s basically unlivable. Who wants to hit someone in that cold?

4. Because you can’t afford to have any more children. Former Bills wideout Jordan Matthews said this week that he’s a father because of his time in Buffalo. “There wasn’t anything else to do there, but each other,” he said.

3. Because your coach once benched Tyrod Taylor for Nathan Peterman. Everyone not named Sean McDermott knew this would be a disaster. Six interceptions later, it became more like performance art.

2. Because your coach then started Nathan Peterman in Week 1 the next season. Seriously, does this guy not learn?

1. Because you can literally be anywhere else. Buffalo is freezing cold. There’s nothing to do there. Niagara Falls is overrated. The football team is about all there is. And did we mention that it’s the worst in the league?

You might claim to be a fan of food, but is an image of that beloved entree on your bicep forever?

Translation: Do you wear a tattoo of your favorite meal?

Dozens of food fanatics now have that honor, after getting inked with their choice of sandwich-themed tattoos from Long Beach’s Port City Tattoo.

A salute to any lover of sliced-meat sandwiches and body art, Arby’s decided to offer the best of both worlds by covering the expenses for anyone receiving one of the numerous tattoos themed after Arby’s menu items.

“At the start of the day we weren’t sure to expect no one or tons of people,” Arby’s spokesperson Chris Potter said, admiring the long line around noon. “And it’s crazy to think the event goes for another eight hours.”

By the time the doors opened, the line of eager customers had wrapped around the building, just waiting for a chance to get into the lobby to check in.

The tattoos, designed by Port City Tattoo artist Miguel Montgomery, featured a mixture of American traditional-style tattoos with Arby’s sandwiches and logos. Some of the designs included a bald eagle with fries, a skull wearing the signature Arby’s tall hat or a simple, elegant curly fry.

“I was honestly stuck between two but I’m really liking the [tattoo of the dagger piercing the sandwich],” Long Beach resident Shiva Vijay said. “Its my first one so I don’t want to get anything too ridiculous to explain.”

For some food is no joking matter, which is why Erik Ryder was already considering a second Arby’s tattoo just after finishing his first. Although it was a one-per-customer policy, Ryder was told to check back later if things slowed down.

“The dagger piercing the burger was awesome so I had to get it,” Ryder said. “There’s not too much related to Arby’s on it that I’d have to explain why I have an Arby’s tattoo.”

The most popular choices leaned toward the simpler designs – including the wild-eyed wolf, a panther biting a sandwich or a skull wearing that tall, familiar Arby’s hat.

Some well-inked people came just to sneak in a small curly fry, however, among the myriad tattoos they already had. One last body-art tidbit, so to speak.

LOS ANGELES — Amon-Ra St. Brown knew to take the hint.

St. Brown was running down the north sideline of the Coliseum early in the fourth quarter of USC’s 39-36 victory over Washington State on Friday night when he first caught the sound of fans’ anticipation.

“I heard the crowd go loud, so the ball must be in the air,” St. Brown said. “I looked up and the ball was right there.”

It was another glimpse of the well-established connection between quarterback JT Daniels and St. Brown, the heralded pair of freshmen from Mater Dei. Daniels’ 30-yard touchdown toss to his former high school teammate positioned the Trojans ahead at the time in the back-and-forth, high-scoring Pac-12 contest.

Through four games, St. Brown has been the favorite target for Daniels, catching 20 passes for a team-best 342 yards and two touchdowns.

But as USC snapped its two-game losing skid against Washington State, a chief reason was for the rapport Daniels had also built with his more veteran pass catchers, including Michael Pittman and Tyler Vaughns.

In flashes of their emerging chemistry, Daniels lobbed a 9-yard touchdown pass in the second quarter to Vaughns, running an end-zone fade. He also hit Pittman on a short route in the third quarter that was turned into a 50-yard touchdown. For a second consecutive week, Daniels also hit slot receiver Velus Jones on a 40-plus-yard pass.

Daniels became the first USC true freshman to throw for three touchdowns in a game, surpassing Matt Barkley, who never threw more than two, and Carson Palmer, who never had a multi-touchdown game in his first fall on campus. It was likely the best game of his short college career.

In a postgame press conference, Trojans coach Clay Helton pointed to Daniels’ connection with the rest of his receivers as the biggest sign of the young passer’s progress.

Daniels chalked it up to more playing time.

“I’ve talked about it a thousand times before,” Daniels said, “and I’ll keep saying it: It just takes practice and experience. The more time that I have with them, the better I’ll get with them.”

The challenge Daniels faces is unique, if not unprecedented. He is not only starting as a true freshman, but given little time to acclimate to college. Because he graduated from high school a year early, he did not enroll at USC until the summer, meaning he did not participate in spring practices like Barkley, the first true freshman quarterback to start a season for the Trojans.

A three-way quarterback competition also lasted beyond preseason training camp and was not officially settled until six days before the season opener against UNLV, when Daniels was announced as the starter. That meant Daniels split reps with fellow quarterbacks Matt Fink and Jack Sears throughout August practices, providing even less time to work with the starting receivers.

“I felt like that hurt us the most, not having a set guy until a week before the season,” Pittman said after the win over Washington State. “It’s hard to get timing down with three different QBs. But I feel like we’re moving in the right direction. I feel like we did a good job in practice last week, so we just gotta come back with the same thing and keep it going.”

Offensive coordinator Tee Martin noted earlier this month that the difference between the speed of receivers in practice in comparison to games differed starkly.

It was considered a sort of natural adjustment period.

“The more you play with players, the more you understand where they’re going to be with routes and everything and timing,” St. Brown said. “I think it’ll continue to get better.”

“Every week, I felt more and more confident about it,” Daniels said.

The Trojans’ win over Washington State was a much-needed step for Daniels, who had not thrown a touchdown since the season opener, and has another road test awaiting in a Week 5 matchup at Arizona.

In consecutive losses at Stanford and Texas, Daniels, who was forced to shoulder a greater burden to an ineffective run game, threw three interceptions.

He was not picked off by the Cougars and appeared far more at ease, relying on a greater core of his receivers.

Pittman remarked Daniels was increasingly more precise with his passes.

“One-on-ones, it’s really showing up,” Pittman said. “He’s really putting the ball where it needs to be. That’s making the difference.”

The Trojans, who moved to 2-2 overall and 1-1 in conference, have a host of issues. They have allowed more than 30 points in consecutive weeks. Their defense has struggled on third downs. Their pass rushers were unable to pressure Washington State quarterback Gardner Minshew. Their running game is up and down.

But the ongoing improvement of Daniels is seemingly the last of any problems. Instead, he might be the Trojans’ best hope for success this season.

“He’s becoming more comfortable after every game,” St. Brown said. “It’s great to see him develop. It’s amazing.”

How the Senate, the president and our nation respond to the nomination of Brett Kavanaugh as a United States Supreme Court justice could be a turning point in the moral history of our country, watched by generations to come.

And it’s not because of how the outcome will impact the balance of the Supreme Court.

Rather, this nomination process may well determine whether we as a nation — with the perspective of history — value self-interest over justice, whether winning for our team is more important than fairness and due process, whether we can look the other way on sexual assault allegedly committed by a white man in his teenage years, but bring the full force of the law against 17-year-olds of color for similar or less serious crimes.

Countless women across the nation can understand why Dr. Christine Blasey Ford, a professor from Palo Alto, waited decades to publicly tell the story that has stalled the light-speed nomination proceedings for Kavanaugh. Blasey Ford told the Washington Post in a story that ran last Sunday that decades ago while in high school at a house party, a drunken Kavanaugh pinned her down, covered her mouth to keep her from screaming and groped her.

She may not have wanted to relive the trauma. She may have thought it wouldn’t have made a difference. She may have seen what has happened when others have come forward to expose sexual misconduct. She may not have wanted to risk going on trial herself, the way Anita Hill and so many others have in the past.

But she did ultimately decide to come forward and now, as a nation, we have a responsibility to allow the time for a thorough evaluation of all the facts and not just some perfunctory interview with both parties where the only arbiters of truth have a political interest in the outcome.

Just look at what has happened in our own community when women came forward to report sexual abuse by a high-ranking and powerful figure, and those responsible for responding also had a personal interest in how the case would be handled.

In 2011, when female Orange County workers first reported being sexually assaulted by their boss, then-Santa Ana City Councilman Carlos Bustamante, the small group of people responsible for acting to protect those women instead sat on the complaints and then botched an investigation before the accusations saw the light of day and some justice resulted.

The claims were initially referred to an employee who reported to Bustamante, and Bustamante and his subordinate reportedly joked about the allegations. Even when the allegations were brought to the attention of higher-ranking officials, they were buried until the women subsequently contacted the news media.

Ultimately, charges against Bustamante were finally filed in 2012, and he pleaded guilty in 2015 to multiple felonies.

Investigations take time. And they take a real curiosity about finding the truth. Hearing testimony is just one part of that process.

Kavanaugh’s age at the time of the alleged assault should have no more bearing on the outcome of these hearings than the ages of the countless black youth who are tried and convicted as adults and remain in prison today. Or youth like Trayvon Martin, who was gunned down at age 17 by an adult who was later acquitted for the murder after claiming self-defense.

Jennifer Beuthin is the general manager of the Orange County Employees Association.

LAGUNA BEACH — On Sept. 16, the Pacific Marine Mammal Center released a group of four sea lions back into the ocean. It’s something the Laguna Beach facility does regularly, but this time the release raised some questions from onlookers.

Given reports the preceding week of at least eight Eastern Tropical Pacific orcas hunting dolphin close to shore between San Diego and Newport Beach, some wondered if it was safe to let the newly rehabilitated sea lions return to the water.

But PMMC had a well thought out game plan.

Officials selected a release site that allows rehabilitated animals to quickly resume foraging and to limit the threat of predators. They checked with Harbor Patrol and other local agencies to make sure orcas hadn’t been seen near the location.

And, ultimately, they acknowledged there’s a limit to what they can do to protect the animals once they are out of the facility.

“No matter when we release an animal off our beach, there could be sharks or orca,” Keith Matassa, a marine biologist who is director of zoological and conservation programs at PMMC, said this week.

“They have to navigate that,” he said. “There are always perils out there. It’s important they’re medically sound so they can socialize and hunt.”

It’s Poppers’ turn now

Kristen Sakamaki, veterinarian at PMMC, said she isn’t the type to cry. But she admits she probably will as she says goodbye to Poppers, a sea lion to be released with five others by PMMC within the next few days.

Poppers was found by state beach lifeguards in San Clemente, July 2 — he was dehydrated, had parasites and had contracted pneumonia. His chances didn’t look good.

Within two weeks after arriving at PMMC, however, he started eating and will likely weigh close to 90 pounds at the time of his release, Sakamaki said.

“He surprised everyone,” she said. “To me that was a miracle that he pulled through.”

Sakamaki knows the odds. When sea lions, seals and elephant seals are rescued, it’s 50-50 whether they’ll survive. Poppers has done well and, despite the continued presence of the orcas — most recently spotted near San Diego — Sakamaki is prepared to let him go.

“We’re not a permanent facility,” she said. “Our goal is to release them. In reality, some will do well, others won’t.”

Preparing animals for release

So far this year, PMMC has rescued 120 animals, of those 94 have been released. The facility is largely dependent on donations to get the animals healthy enough to survive in the wild.

Martin Dekarver, a trustee of the McBeth Foundation, has contributed more than $1 million to PMMC’s efforts. He said he is confident in its mission and he isn’t concerned about the orcas hampering their work.

“The center is there to rehabilitate animals that can’t take care of themselves and hopefully learn about the animals themselves,” said Dekarver, of Irvine. “It’s nice to save an endangered species to a certain point, but we’re not in the position to alter nature. Yes, orca are out there but it’s part of nature, it’s where they lived before. Once they’re in nature, it’s not our job to protect them in their environment.”

PMMC has a protocol in place to improve a patient’s chance of survival upon release.

Each animal goes through a detailed regimen, as staff looks for healthy blood work and a solid weight. They watch to see how aggressive an animal is when competing for fish and animals are checked for injuries to their flippers or eyes to make sure they are nimble and can get away from predators.

“If there are any problems, you have to think long and hard if they’ll be released,” Sakamaki said.

Most animals stay at PMMC for at least four months to regain their health. Then, once released, they face an adjustment period.

“They have to figure out how to get fish, where to sleep and who to hang out with,” Sakamaki said. “They need to learn how to be a sea lion again.”

Sakamaki said the recent orca sightings don’t alarm her as much as shark sightings do.

“Sharks have this awful ability when they clamp down,” she said. “They rip and twist, so sea lions and seals come in with horrific injuries and are still alive. I’ve never seen an orca injury.”

Alisa Schulman-Janiger, a marine biologist who has been identifying California killer whales, archiving their sightings, and studying their behavior for more than three decades, has kept watch on the Eastern Tropical Pacific orcas since they were first sighted in the region about two weeks ago near San Diego.

Generally, she said, the killer whales have focused on hunting dolphins, which have more blubber than sea lions. There are hundreds of thousands of dolphins in the area — swimming in large pods and making noise.

“I don’t think the risk for sea lions is extremely high,” Schulman-Janiger said. “But we also don’t know what they’re eating at night or during other hours of the day when no one is watching.”

Typically, transient orcas are the ones that eat mammals including sea lions, seals and gray whales, she said. The last know sightings of the transient Biggs — the ones Schulman-Janiger is familiar with — was in December 2017 near San Diego.

Further north, the Marine Mammal Center in Sausalito has rescued 519 animals this year.

Like PMMC, the center has selected a release area that offers an optimal outcome for its patients. To date, 272 pinnipeds have been released back into the wild — including 119 sea lions and 116 elephant seals.

Their pinnipeds are released off Point Reyes National Seashore — close to cold, deep waters of the continental shelf which allows them to find food. Orca attacks are not a factor in the area’s location, said Shawn Johnson, director of veterinary science at the center.

“Reports of orca whale attacks on California sea lions along our rescue range — from Mendocino County to San Luis Obispo — are an extremely rare occurrence,” he said.

The Los Angeles Football Club earned three points Saturday afternoon in an unlikely way, bettering MLS cellar-dwellers San Jose off a pair of goals from defender Walker Zimmerman that kept the Black & Gold near the top of the Western Conference.

Looking to jump ahead of the struggling Earthquakes (4-18-8), which came into the match with a league-low four wins and 20 points, LAFC began with plenty of energy.

Throughout the first half, LAFC went at the San Jose net from a variety of angles. Attempts to link up play between attackers, including striker Adama Diomande, who started for the first time since Aug. 5, were repeatedly turned away. However, the aggression yielded nine corner kicks in the first 45 minutes, and 12 for the match.

On LAFC’s eighth attempt in the 41st minute, Zimmerman missed his header off a Carlos Vela cross but the ball caught his left shoulder and was redirected into the net just the same.

Zimmerman’s first league goal of the season, on Vela’s ninth assist, was LAFC’s third finish off a corner kick.

The forward-defender pair doubled LAFC’s season tally for corner-kick goals in the 68th minute when Vela hit the team’s 12th attempt into the box and again found Zimmerman, this time for a clean header, providing the Black & Gold some breathing room heading into the latter stages of the match.

Vela took over full-time captain duties following the transfer of Laurent Ciman. The 29-year-old Mexican international is the first LAFC player to reach double-digit goals and assists in a season.

For Zimmerman, who scored a headed goal for the U.S. men’s national team in June in a pre-World Cup friendly against the eventual winner France, the performance came at an important moment as he hashes out a new contract with LAFC.

Unlike last Saturday’s contest against New England, LAFC remained strong down the stretch, securing goalkeeper Tyler Miller’s ninth clean sheet of the season.

LAFC’s 50 points have it in the running for a top-two seed in the Western Conference, behind Sporting KC and FC Dallas.

LAFC (14-7-8) has five games remaining after Saturday’s 2-0 win.

The Orange County high school sports schedule for Saturday, Sept. 22.

FOOTBALL

NONLEAGUE

St. Michael’s vs. Trinity Christian (Monterey) at Pacific Grove High, 2 p.m.

GIRLS VOLLEYBALL

SURF LEAGUE

Corona del Mar at Edison

ORANGE COAST LEAGUE

Santa Ana at Estancia, Orange at Calvary Chapel

NONLEAGUE

Village Christian at Laguna Beach

Nike Tournament of Champions (Mater Dei)

BOYS WATER POLO

TOURNAMENTS

SOUTH COAST CLASSIC

Laguna Beach, Huntington Beach, Santa Margarita, San Clemente, Costa Mesa, Edison,Newport Harbor, Dana Hills, Beckman, Capistrano Valley, Corona del Mar, Orange Lutheran, Northwood,Mater Dei, Foothill, Servite, Los Alamitos, El Toro, Esperanza

BULL RUN

JSerra, Sonora, Segerstrom

DIAMOND BAR

Fullerton, Pacifica, University

KATELLA VARSITY

Katella, Kennedy

NONLEAGUE

Don Lugo at San Juan Hills

According to the annual Centers for Disease Control Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System, obesity rates continue to rise in the U.S. In 2017, seven states had obesity rates of 35 percent or higher.

Obesity rates by state

In 1990, the state with the highest rate of obesity among residents was Mississippi, at 15 percent. By 2006, its rate had more than doubled. Colorado had the lowest rate, 17.6 percent.

Risks Associated with ObesityThe CDC says many medical conditions are associated with obesity. The most prevalent obesity-related diseases include:High blood pressureHigh cholesterolDiabetesHeart diseaseStrokeGallbladder diseaseOsteoarthritisSleep apnea and respiratory problemsSome cancers (endometrial, breast and colon)

U.S. rise

World rank:Since 1980, the obesity rate has doubled in 73 countries and increased in 113 others. According to the World Obesity Federation, the U.S., Kuwait and Scotland had the highest rates in 2014.

Recent stats and studies

The Huffington Post recently published an article titled “Everything you know about obesity is wrong” that examines how the medical community has failed to help overweight people and goes so far as to say it has ruined millions of lives.

Obesity in California

The portion of the population considered obese went from 9.9 percent in 1990 to about 25 percent in 2010, according to the California Department of Public Health.

Body mass index

The BMI was introduced in the early 19th century by Belgian mathematician Lambert Adolphe Jacques Quetelet to provide a quick way to measure obesity in order to assist the government in allocating resources.

Normal BMI is 18.5-24.9. A National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute chart shows what the index defines as being overweight to being extremely obese.

Discover the joys of rabbit ownership or help a worthy cause at these events coming up soon. Plan ahead so you can attend.

Bunny Expo: Bunny Bunch Rabbit Rescue is holding its annual Bunny Expo from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Sunday, Oct. 14. In addition to health checks for exotic pet, the event will include an agility course, Halloween pet shoot, Halloween costume contest, grooming, a Veggie Grill vegan lunch and more. Admission is free. Bunny Bunch, a nonprofit, no-kill shelter and adoption center, is located at 10534 Bechler River Ave., Fountain Valley, For more information, go to bunnybunch.org or call 833-372-2248.

Help save animals during disasters: SoCal Animal Response Team’s 13th annual fundraiser will be 1-4 p.m. Sunday, Oct. 21. Wine, appetizers, raffle prizes and information on how to educate the public on helping animals in the aftermath of disasters like floods, fires and earthquakes. Hi-Time Wine Cellars, 250 Ogle St., Costa Mesa. Tax-deductible tickets, $25 each, available at bit.ly/2xGIJ60, or email Susan Keyes at scartdonor@gmail.com. Deadline to purchase tickets is Friday, Oct. 12. Learn more about SCART at scart.us.

When the LA Rams and the Los Angeles Chargers play Sunday it will be the first regular-season game between two Southern California NFL teams since Nov. 13, 1994, when the Rams and Raiders played at Anaheim Stadium, and the first local matchup at the Coliseum since those teams played on Oct. 20, 1991.

After Sunday, the Rams and Chargers won’t have a regular-season meeting until 2022.

CHARGERS (1-1) at RAMS (2-0)

When: Sunday, 1:05 p.m. PT

Where: L.A. Memorial Coliseum

Line: Rams by 7

TV: KCBS/2

Radio: 710-AM, 1330-AM (Spanish), 640-AM, 980-AM (Spanish)

If you are viewing on a mobile device and can’t view the stream below, click here for live updates.

The latest video and headlines on the Rams:

• Is Goff merely a ‘system quarterback’? Rams push back on that idea.
• Rams’ defense has been brilliant, but Chargers might be able to find a couple holes.
• ‘Fight for L.A.’ might take a while, but Rams, Chargers coaches have shared history.
• Who are the 10 most important NFL players in Los Angeles?
• Whicker: Chargers, Rams profited from Tommy Prothro’s vision, but he didn’t.
• All agree that Austin Blythe should start for the Rams, even the lineman he replaced.
• Kartje: L.A. NFL teams built to last through new stadium and beyond.

The latest video and headlines on the Chargers:

• Rams’ defense has been brilliant, but Chargers might be able to find a couple holes.
• ‘Fight for L.A.’ might take a while, but Rams, Chargers coaches have shared history.
• USC’s Uchenna Nwosu returns to Coliseum as Chargers linebacker on the rise.
• Lamp still ‘a step behind’ in joining Chargers offensive line.
• Whicker: Chargers, Rams profited from Tommy Prothro’s vision, but he didn’t.
• Pouncey and Chargers’ line face difficult test with Rams’ familiar interior.
• Alexander: For Philip Rivers, some elements of Rams defense are hauntingly familiar.
• Kartje: L.A. NFL teams built to last through new stadium and beyond.
• Who are the 10 most important NFL players in Los Angeles?

Safety Adarius Pickett talks about UCLA’s mindset after the bye week, how the Bruins improved during the open date and what he expects this week from Colorado.

Long snapper Johnny Den Bleyker talks about giving his mom a recovered fumble against Fresno State as a birthday gift, the team’s mindset after an 0-3 start and how he spent his day off on Saturday.

Media day on Monday will be slightly more useful than the crystal ball you’ve been using to try to predict the Clippers’ future, but until owner Steve Ballmer is bellowing from the sidelines at the regular-season opener against the Denver Nuggets on Oct. 17, there’s no real telling how it will go.

For the pre-preseason anyway, optimism reigned. The “re-shaping” Clippers are healthy and determined to compete on the floor and in the free agency sweepstakes next summer, when they could have two max salaries to offer.

The answers to the big, $50-some million question – who will be the Clippers’ headliners next season? – will have a lot to do with more immediate questions, such as …

1. Will Jimmy Butler really get himself traded to the Clippers?

Butler reportedly had Tom Thibodeau, the Minnesota Timberwolves’ president of basketball operations and coach, fly to L.A. last week so he could tell him he wants to be traded. Butler’s preferred destinations include the Brooklyn Nets, the New York Knicks and, most preferably, the Clippers, according to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski.

Butler reportedly appreciates the Clippers’ ability to pair him with a second star. (Someone such as, say, new Toronto Raptor Kawhi Leonard?)

Butler is one of the game’s elite two-way players, but the question is whether the Clippers want to trade for a player they could sign next offseason without surrendering assets? Also, how much should a team invest in a 29-year-old who’s had knee issues and has put on Thibodeau miles?

2. Can the Clippers stay healthy?

There isn’t an NBA team that doesn’t want its players available to play, but there wasn’t another NBA team last season that had to use 37 starting lineups last season.

The Clippers had 11 players miss a combined 264 games because of injuries and still remained in playoff contention until the final few games and scored more points (8,937) last season than any other since the team moved to Los Angeles in 1984.

What might be possible when the Clippers’ players are available to play?

3. Who are those players?

With Wallace’s signing, the Clippers have 17 players for 15 roster spots, including veteran point guard Patrick Beverley, who has a $5 million non-guaranteed contract and is one of a “hundred” guards currently with the team, as Coach Doc Rivers joked last week.

Their stockpile of guards entering training camp Tuesday in Hawaii includes Beverley, Wallace, Avery Bradley, Lou Williams, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Jerome Robinson, Milos Teodosic, Sindarius Thornwell and Juwan Evans.

The Clippers must shed two players, either by cut or trade, by opening night. That’s a good thing, said Lawrence Frank, president of basketball operations: “Guys have to earn it, there’s great competition.”

4. What about the young guards?

How do first-round draft picks Gilgeous-Alexander (No. 11 overall) and Robinson (No. 13) fit in, especially with so many guards vying for playing time?

Gilgeous-Alexander, a 6-foot-6 Canadian with a 6-11 wingspan and on-court savvy, is the Clippers’ most-heralded rookie since Blake Griffin nearly a decade ago. As a freshman at Kentucky, Gilgeous-Alexander averaged 14.4 points, 5.1 assists and 1.6 steals in 33.7 minutes per game. In the NBA’s summer league, he averaged 19 points, 4 assists and 2.3 steals.

Robinson, meanwhile, has the respect of his first-year peers, who predicted in this year’s rookie survey that the Boston College product is the second-most likely player to have a successful career.

“I love the young guys,” said Rivers, who gets to figure out how best to develop them.

5. Is Tobias Harris a star?

Sports Illustrated ranked Tobias Harris as the 65th best player in the NBA. Harris is betting that he’s better than that.

SI pointed out that Harris is not as “imposing,” “decorated” or “famous” as Blake Griffin, who was traded to Detroit last January in the transaction that brought Harris to L.A., where he averaged career highs in 3-point shooting percentage (.414), points per game (19.3), assists per game (3.1) and steals per game (1.2).

This summer, he participated in the Team USA minicamp. This “pre-preseason,” as he and Clippers big man Boban Marjanović called the first episode of their new web series, “Bobi + Tobi,” he provided laughs. And when the season starts, the league will see whether he should be considered, and compensated like, a star.

HOUSTON — The Angels are bringing an ugly losing streak home to begin what will likely be Mike Scioscia’s final week as manager.

The Angels’ 6-2 loss to the Houston Astros on Sunday was their fifth in a row on the final trip of the season, dropping the team to 75-81, a season-worst six games under .500.

In Scioscia’s first 17 years, the Angels never had back-to-back losing seasons. At the end of his 10-year contract, Scioscia is facing the possibility of three straight losing seasons unless the Angels can win their final six to finish at .500. They have three against the Texas Rangers starting Monday, followed by three against the Oakland A’s starting Friday.

Making matters even worse, Andrelton Simmons left the game with sore right knee after he tumbled awkwardly after fielding a bouncer and making a throw in the seventh inning. Simmons walked gingerly for a few minutes before coming out of the game.

“It doesn’t feel horrible, it doesn’t feel great,” Simmons said after the game. “It doesn’t necessarily feel like there is something major going on. We just have to wait till tomorrow to see if the soreness goes away.”

Simmons said he is “hoping” he will be able to play on Monday.

The Angels are hoping they can get some better pitching that what they’ve seen during this unsightly losing streak.

The Angels gave up 58 runs in the five losses, two at Oakland and three in Houston. That included a franchise-record four straight games allowing at least 10 runs. The Angels even gave up seven runs in the game they won, on Tuesday.

“I think there’s a lot of youth on the field, a lot of youth in the bullpen,” Scioscia said. “There will be growing pains. The guys still have their stuff. We went through that one week where we were getting at least to a certain point in the game with our starters and we were winning games. That evaporated this week. It was tough.”

Jaime Barría pitched five innings on Saturday, and no other Angels starter on this trip lasted more than four innings.

Skaggs started this one on a pitch count of 65, he said. It was just his second outing since returning from a month on the disabled list. He lasted just 54, coming out after 2-1/3 innings with four runs on the board.

Skaggs gave up a two-run homer to Yuli Gurriel in the first inning on a curve that he hoped to bounce, but left up. An out later, Marwin Gonzalez doubled down the left field line. He scored on an Evan Gattis single.

After a perfect second, Skaggs gave up another run in the third, on two hits and a hit batter, and his day was over.

“I felt good,” he said. “I made some good pitches and some bad pitches. Overall, a rough day. They hit my mistakes. Falling behind in the count, it’s tough to pitch against a team like this.”

LOS ANGELES — UCLA’s group chat is bursting with messages at all hours of the day. More than 100 players are on it, and of all the messages from all the players, there is a common theme.

“No negativity,” long snapper Johnny Den Bleyker said.

Despite an 0-3 record entering conference play, UCLA emerged from the bye week encouraged by its improvements in practice. Head coach Chip Kelly dubbed it “improvement week.” Now the Bruins hope to show their improvements in their conference opener at Colorado on Friday.

“Some things haven’t swayed our way,” safety Adarius Pickett said, “but as long as we continue to stay together and continue to push forward, we will have success in the end.”

UCLA’s success has been subtle. The Bruins allowed just one special teams return against Fresno State, a minus-2-yard punt return, when they entered the week as one of the worst coverage units on kickoff and punt return in the country. Kelly said he was encouraged by the steady improvement in tackling that resulted in fewer missed tackles.

Until they get their first official victory, the Bruins have to subsist on their small wins as they slog through one of the toughest schedules in the country. The combined record of the three opponents UCLA has already faced, Cincinnati, Oklahoma and Fresno State, is 10-1.

The Buffaloes, one of the final 21 undefeated teams in the country, are on the cusp of breaking into the AP Top-25 for the first time since 2016. Colorado (3-0) received 83 votes in this week’s poll, checking in at No. 26 overall.

After falling from Pac-12 South champions in 2016 to division cellar-dwellers in 2017, the Buffaloes are rising again with quarterback Steven Montez and receiver Laviska Shenault. Shenault is the leading receiver in the conference with 151.7 yards per game.

The Bruins have faced a string of talented receivers, including Oklahoma’s Marquise Brown and CeeDee Lamb and Fresno State’s KeeSean Johnson. Pickett, whose team-high 40 tackles are nearly twice as many as the next-closest teammate, is taking the team’s positive attitude into yet another tough matchup.

“It’s nothing too serious,” the redshirt senior said. “It’s a lot of things in the world that are really serious. It’s not that serious, it’s just fun.”

Modster transferring to junior college

Redshirt sophomore quarterback Devon Modster intends to transfer to a junior college, Kelly said Sunday. Modster, a former Tesoro star who finished third in the quarterback competition this summer, announced he was planning to transfer last Friday after practice.

“We support him in his decision,” Kelly said. “He was in a really good battle with both Wilton (Speight) and Dorian (Thompson-Robinson) and actually was the (No. 2) quarterback for the last two weeks, and it’s still in the process, but felt like he wanted to go play now.”

Modster can play at a junior college this season then earn immediate eligibility if he enrolls at an FBS school as opposed to sitting out a year by transferring directly to an FBS school.

The Bruins have four scholarship quarterbacks remaining with Speight, Thompson-Robinson, redshirt sophomore Matt Lynch and redshirt freshman Austin Burton. Speight has missed the past two games due to injury, but has increased his activity in practice and appeared to participate fully in all drills during the opening viewing period Sunday.

Quick hits

Outside linebackers Elijah Wade and Jaelan Phillips appeared to practice fully Sunday during the opening viewing period. Wade had been limited in a yellow jersey since training camp with an undisclosed injury. Phillips was in and out of practice last week and was not seen on the field during the viewing period last Friday. … Linebacker Je’Vari Anderson and receiver Christian Pabico were in yellow, non-contact jerseys. Anderson participated in warm-ups but then joined Pabico (leg) on the stationary bike. … Linebacker Mique Juarez did not appear to be on the field during the viewing period.

ATLANTA – A comeback not even Tiger Woods saw coming a year ago.

A chaotic celebration that golf hasn’t seen even in the best of times.

Woods delivered the perfect ending to his amazing return from four back surgeries on Sunday with a performance that felt like old times. He left the competition feeling hopeless as he built a five-shot lead early and hung on to win the Tour Championship.

Woods raised both arms over his head after he tapped in for par and a 1-over 71 for a two-shot victory over Billy Horschel, the 80th victory of his PGA Tour career and his first in more than five years.

“It was a grind out there,” Woods said. “I loved every bit of it.”

It felt like a coronation coming down the 18th green, his second shot to the par 5 safely in a bunker in front of the green. The crowd came through the ropes and walked behind him, similar to when he won the Western Open in 1997 for the first dose of Tigermania.

This was better. It was bigger.

One year ago, Woods was still waiting for his lower back to fuse and wasn’t sure he could ever play again. He told stories of being unable to get off the couch to watch his kids play soccer, much less to chip and putt.

He was becoming a legend only in video highlights.

Woods brought it all to life over four days at East Lake, and the players who have taken turns at No. 1 during his absence caught the full brunt of it. Rory McIlroy faded early. Justin Rose faded late.

All that was left was the 42-year-old Woods in that red shirt blazing brighter than ever and a smile he couldn’t shake walking up to collect another trophy.

More to come on this story.

Tiger Woods has officially recorded his first PGA Tour win since August 4th, 2013

pic.twitter.com/3pkkajheNE

— FanDuel (@FanDuel) September 23, 2018

Now eligible to return from suspension, offensive lineman Boss Tagaloa is already shaking things up on UCLA’s latest depth chart.

The former defensive lineman who missed the first three games of the season due to a violation of athletic department policy is officially listed as the co-backup center with Zach Sweeney on UCLA’s depth chart released Sunday in advance of the team’s conference opener at Colorado on Friday.

Tagaloa was seen snapping the ball to quarterback Dorian Thompson-Robinson during practice Sunday while Michael Alves, UCLA’s starting left guard, snapped the ball to Wilton Speight. Tagaloa, who is still listed behind freshman Christaphany Murray at center, also appeared to get snaps at right guard with the No. 1 offense during a drill last week.

Thompson-Robinson and Speight are still listed as co-starters at quarterback on Sunday’s depth chart as Speight continues to recover from a back injury. Devon Modster, who had been the third co-starter on the depth chart, was dropped from the depth chart as the redshirt sophomore announced he will transfer last Friday.

Speight appeared to fully participate in all drills during the open viewing period of Sunday’s practice, although head coach Chip Kelly said before practice that he had not yet asked the grad transfer quarterback how close he is to feeling 100 percent healthy.

Freshman Martell Irby made his first appearance on a depth chart this season, jumping into a three-way tie for the starting running back position. He, Joshua Kelley and Bolu Olorunfunmi are listed as co-starters this week. While working in a heavy rotation of running backs against Fresno State, Irby led the group with nine carries for 35 yards. Olorunfunmi got the official start against the Bulldogs but had only four carries for 7 yards. Kelley, who was the starter to begin the year, did not have any carries against Fresno State.

Freshmen are also taking control of the nose tackle position as Otito Ogbonnia and Atonio Mafi were listed as co-starters this week. The freshmen alternated starts during the first three games, with Mafi starting most recently against Fresno State, despite Chigozie Nnoruka regularly being listed as a possible starter. However, this week, Nnoruka was officially bumped down the depth chart, being listed as the solo backup.

Redshirt sophomore Marcus Moore moved from defensive line to outside linebacker last week during practice, in part to alleviate thinning depth at the position, and is now listed as a co-backup behind Keisean Lucier-South. The space was once filled by Mique Juarez, but the former five-star prospect has been nursing an undisclosed injury for nearly three weeks. Moore is listed as a co-backup with sophomore Rahyme Johnson.