Sports category, Page 1046
Eagles backup lineman accused of rape ahead of Super Bowl
CAMBRIDGE, Ohio — Josh Sills, a reserve offensive lineman for the NFC champion Philadelphia Eagles, has been indicted on rape and kidnapping charges that stem from an incident in Ohio just over three years ago, authorities said Wednesday. Sills, an undrafted free agent who appeared in just one game this...
Griner return, free agency could spark charter flight change
Brittney Griner’s return to the WNBA this summer after being traded in a dramatic prisoner swap in December with Russia has collided with free agency, creating potential travel complications for the league out of safety concerns for her. If Griner, who is a free agent but has said she’ll return...
Mark Madden: Penguins need a shakeup, and trading Jake Guentzel would bring good return
With the NHL trade deadline one month away and the Pittsburgh Penguins in a funk, the usual strategy beckons: Trade all our bad players for all their good players. Something like Jeff Carter, Kasperi Kapanen and Danton Heinen to Chicago for Patrick Kane. That deal won’t be discussed by either...
Pat Riley: Kareem never had potential, ‘only greatness’
Pat Riley remembers just about every detail surrounding the events of Dec. 29, 1961. It was a cold night in Schenectady, New York. A little snowy, the roads a little icy. And when the bus carrying the opposing team from New York City arrived, all of Riley’s Linton High teammates...
First Call: Return of a Heinz Field ketchup bottle; Twitter doubts Tom Brady’s retirement; Calvin Austin III runs againVideo
Wednesday’s “First Call” features a return of an Acrisure Stadium favorite and a potential return to the Pittsburgh Steelers roster. Pitt and Penn State both have big games Wednesday night. Tuesday was an exciting evening in the Metropolitan Division. And some fans are a bit dubious of Tom Brady’s latest...
Without Mike Miles Jr., No. 15 TCU takes down West Virginia
FORT WORTH, Texas — Damion Baugh had 16 points and 10 assists, big man Eddie Lampkin Jr. made an unexpected return from injury and 15th-ranked TCU overcame the absence of top scorer Mike Miles Jr. to beat West Virginia 76-72 on Tuesday night. “We’re fighters, no matter what,” Baugh said....
Tom Brady retires at 45, insisting this time it’s ‘for good’Video
TAMPA, Fla. — This time, Tom Brady says he’s done for good. The seven-time Super Bowl winner with New England and Tampa Bay announced his retirement from the NFL on Wednesday, exactly one year after first saying his playing days were over, by posting a brief video lasting just under...
Damar Hamlin teams with American Heart Association to promote CPR awareness
Buffalo Bills safety Damar Hamlin, who went into cardiac arrest and was resuscitated on the football field last month, is partnering with the American Heart Association to promote CPR awareness. In a video posted to Hamlin’s Instagram account, the former Pitt and Central Catholic player issued a three-step challenge: learn...
Tim Benz: Bengals LB Joseph Ossai isn’t acting like a media victim, so let’s stop trying to turn him into one
Fret not for Cincinnati Bengals linebacker Joseph Ossai. He’s been positioned as a media victim by Twitter. It’s the safest, most protected spot in the world. No one can criticize him now. I mean, apparently, no media member can even ask him a question without a “DEFCON 1” online rebuke....
Kenny Pickett ‘snubbed’ for Baltimore’s Tyler Huntley as Pro Bowl replacement — and it’s not going over well in Pittsburgh
Maybe someday, Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Kenny Pickett will get to a Pro Bowl. He’s a first-round pick. As a rookie, the Pitt grad won six games as a starter after the bye to help the Steelers to a 7-2 record down the stretch. Plus, he only threw one interception during...
Pirates pitcher David Bednar visits Bell Acres family for season ticket holders appreciationVideo
A Bell Acres family recently had a special guest stop by their home to thank them for being Pittsburgh Pirates season ticket holders. Pitcher David Bednar and the Pirate Parrot were welcomed by the Semonik family on Jan. 29. The team shared the experience on its official Twitter page with...
Aquinas Academy’s Vinnie Cugini breaks WPIAL basketball all-time scoring record
There’s a new all-time leading scorer in WPIAL basketball history, but the newly crowned record holder had a somewhat subdued celebration. Aquinas Academy senior Vinnie Cugini broke the WPIAL record with a 33-point effort Tuesday night, bettering a mark that had stood for 30 years, but was slightly disappointed the...
Column: The only rivalry in golf is about tours, not playersVideo
PEBBLE BEACH, Calif. — Jon Rahm began his year by winning two in a row on the PGA Tour. Rory McIlroy began his year with birdies on the last two holes to win in Dubai. This would seem to have the look of golf’s latest rivalry in the making, except...
Andy Reid turned a 6-inch binder into a Hall of Fame resumeVideo
Andy Reid was an unknown assistant in Green Bay when Eagles owner Jeffrey Lurie took a chance on hiring Brett Favre’s position coach to revive a struggling franchise in Philadelphia. A newspaper headline greeted Reid’s arrival with a headline that said: “Andy Who?” Everybody knows his name now. Reid won...
Pitt’s Capel gets another chance to coach against Carolina’s Davis, whom he used to emulate
The relationship between Pitt coach Jeff Capel and North Carolina’s Hubert Davis, whose teams meet Wednesday night at the Dean Dome in Chapel Hill, N.C., stretches back to the 1990s in Capel’s backyard in Fayetteville, N.C. Only Davis might not be aware of the origin. In those days, Davis was...
AP source: Texans hire DeMeco Ryans as head coach
HOUSTON — DeMeco Ryans has been hired as head coach of the Houston Texans, a person with knowledge of the decision told the Associated Press on Tuesday. The person spoke on the condition on anonymity because the hiring had not been announced. The move gives him his first head coaching...
Broncos get Sean Payton as coach in deal with Saints
ENGLEWOOD, Colo. — The Denver Broncos have agreed to a deal with the New Orleans Saints that will make Sean Payton their head coach, a person with knowledge of the accord said Tuesday. The person, who spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because the teams hadn’t announced...
Steelers’ WR3 over the 2nd half the season, Steven Sims makes case to keep role in ‘23
The longest passing play of what was arguably the biggest win of the Pittsburgh Steelers’ season wasn’t thrown to whom you might expect. The clutch, skillful 28-yard catch over the middle at the two-minute warning of the Jan. 1 primetime victory at the rival Baltimore Ravens wasn’t by Diontae Johnson,...
Aaron Rodgers believes decision could come in ‘couple of weeks’
GREEN BAY, Wis. — Green Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers said he doesn’t expect to make a decision on whether to play next season until after the Super Bowl. Rodgers, 39, has said he is still making up his mind on whether he wants to return to the Packers for...
NFL salary cap will be $224.8 million in 2023
The NFL’s salary cap will be $224.8 million in 2023, an increase of $16.6 million. The league informed teams of the new cap figure on Monday in a memo obtained by The Associated Press. Overall, the cap is up $42.3 million from 2021, when it was at $182.5 million after...
WVU opens football season with 3-game stretch of games vs. Penn State, Duquesne, Pitt
West Virginia’s 2023 football schedule opens with a distinctly Pennsylvania flavor, featuring back-to-back-to-back nonconference games against Penn State, Duquesne and Pitt. The Mountaineers open Sept. 2 at Penn State in the third-longest series in school history. The series has been dormant since the most recent meeting in 1992, but it...
How quickly can Penn State’s new-look wide receiver group come together in 2023?
Penn State’s top three wide receivers accounted for 1,577 yards and 11 touchdown receptions in 2022. Solid numbers, but nothing special. A year earlier, Jahan Dotson produced 1,182 yards and 12 touchdown catches in 12 games. The Nittany Lions’ improved run game impacted the 2022 pass game numbers. PSU churned...
Boxer Klitschko joins fight against Olympic path for RussiaVideo
GENEVA — Olympic gold medalist Wladimir Klitschko has joined Ukraine’s fight against IOC plans to let some Russians compete at the 2024 Paris Summer Games. The former heavyweight champion suggested in a video message published Monday that sports leaders will be accomplices to the war if athletes from Russia and...
Taurasi to take part in USA Basketball training camp
Diana Taurasi’s USA Basketball career isn’t done just yet. The five-time Olympic gold medalist will take part in a national team training camp in Minnesota next month. Taurasi told The Associated Press last summer that she would consider playing with USA Basketball if she was healthy enough. She injured her...
Pitt’s Jeff Capel talks about love of wine, fine art, friendship with Mike Tomlin
When Jeff Capel sits down for one of his regular chats with reporters, the subject is always basketball. Eventually, however, the conversation Monday flowed toward Capel’s love of wine and fine artwork and his friendship with Mike Tomlin. Right, no kidding. All three topics are parts of Capel’s life away...
