Sports category, Page 1050
Termarr Johnson ranks highest among Pirates prospects in MLB Pipeline’s updated top 100
Termarr Johnson hasn’t played a full season in the minor leagues, but MLB Pipeline already ranks the Pittsburgh Pirates’ 2022 first-round pick as the No. 1 second-base prospect and among its top 30 players overall. Ranked 26th, Johnson is the only Pirates player to crack the front half of MLB...
Pitt Take 5: Miami game starts 10-game stretch that will define Panthers’ season
Pitt embarks on a crucial 10-game stretch Saturday when it attempts to rise above third place in the ACC with a game against No. 20 Miami at Petersen Events Center. Both teams are 7-3 in the conference. A victory probably adds another brick to Pitt’s status as an NCAA Tournament...
College basketball broadcaster Billy Packer dies at 82
CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Billy Packer, an Emmy award-winning college basketball broadcaster who covered 34 Final Fours for NBC and CBS, died Thursday. He was 82. Packer’s son, Mark, told The Associated Press that his father had been hospitalized in Charlotte for the past three weeks and had several medical issues,...
Eagles, 49ers ride Jalen Hurts, Brock Purdy to brink of Super Bowl
PHILADELPHIA — The late-game meltdowns stick in San Francisco. Take the Super Bowl against Kansas City following the 2019 season. The 49ers became the third team in Super Bowl history to cough up a 10-point lead in the second half and lost to the Chiefs. Or last season’s NFC title...
Penguins give ground to Capitals with shootout loss
With more than three decades of history as heated combatants dating to their days as members of the Patrick Division, the Pittsburgh Penguins and Washington Capitals are firmly established as rivals. Both squads have ended the other’s season in the playoffs going back to the early 1990s. So something like...
Ryder extends Farmers lead to 3, Rahm gets hot on windy dayVideo
SAN DIEGO — Sam Ryder extended his lead to three shots in the Farmers Insurance Open with a 4-under-par 68 in challenging wind in the second round Thursday on Torrey Pines’ South Course, while Jon Rahm had an eagle and three straight birdies late in his 5-under 67 on the...
Bengals confident returning to ‘Burrowhead Stadium’ to face Chiefs
KANSAS CITY, Mo. — The Kansas City Chiefs have lost three straight games to the Cincinnati Bengals, including last year’s AFC title game, when they blew an early 21-3 lead in an overtime defeat before a sea of stunned fans inside Arrowhead Stadium. Patrick Mahomes, who expects to lead the...
Art Rooney II mum on potential contract extension for Mike Tomlin
Mike Tomlin has two years remaining on his contract as coach of the Pittsburgh Steelers, which historically is when he is in line to receive an extension. An exception occurred in 2021 when he was heading into the last year of his deal, and team president Art Rooney II gave...
If there’s McDonald’s in that bag, Miami coach Jim Larranaga might be ‘lovin’ it’Video
If the celebrated prankster, who appeared to carry a bag of food onto the court at Duquesne on Wednesday, wants to move his act a couple miles up to the road to Petersen Events Center, Miami coach Jim Larranaga probably won’t have him removed. “I love McDonald’s,” Larranaga said Thursday...
Art Rooney II: Improved offense in 2nd half of season led to Matt Canada’s return as offensive coordinator
The way the Pittsburgh Steelers offense in general and rookie quarterback Kenny Pickett in particular finished the 2022 season were factors in the organization retaining offensive coordinator Matt Canada for another year. Given those strides the Steelers made, team president Art Rooney II said Thursday he didn’t want to start...
2 Penn State athletes, 1 from Pitt land NIL deal with WWE
Two Penn State University athletes have landed Name-Image-Likeness deals with WWE through its “Next In Line” program. WWE said this is its third class of 15 college athletes to join the program. This class includes Penn State athletes, two-time NCAA All-American wrestler Greg Kerkvliet and Nick Dawkins, a lineman for...
For Pirates, signing South Korean pitcher Jun-Seok Shim signifies global approach to scouting
After the Pittsburgh Pirates convinced Jun-Seok Shim to withdraw from the KBO draft, where he was projected to be a top-five pick, and sign for a $750,000 bonus, they gave their top-ranked international signing the grand tour of PNC Park on Thursday befitting a first-round pick of the MLB Draft....
Carolina Panthers hire Frank Reich as new head coach
CHARLOTTE, N.C. — The Carolina Panthers have agreed to terms with Frank Reich to become their new head coach on Thursday. The 61-year-old Reich joins the Panthers after spending the past four-plus seasons with the Indianapolis Colts, where he went 40-33-1 as head coach before being fired on Nov. 7...
Russia’s path to 2024 Olympics takes shape, Ukraine objects
LAUSANNE, Switzerland — Russia’s path to sending a team to the Paris Olympics next year became clearer on Thursday amid fierce objections from Ukraine. The International Olympic Committee indicated on Wednesday it favors officially neutral teams from Russia and its ally Belarus at the 2024 Olympics despite a plea from...
Elena Rybakina, Aryna Sabalenka to meet in Australian Open women’s final
MELBOURNE, Australia — What all seemed so different, so daunting, even, about trying to win a Grand Slam title to Elena Rybakina a little more than six months ago is now coming rather naturally. And if she can win one more match, she will add a championship at the Australian...
First Call: Another interview for Brian Flores; Steelers ‘unsung’ hero; Clint Hurdle on Bryan Reynolds
Thursday’s “First Call” has another job interview for Pittsburgh Steelers assistant Brian Flores. One Steeler is highlighted as an “unsung hero” in the NFL. We recap another busy night in the Metropolitan Division while the Penguins were idle. And former Pirates manager Clint Hurdle shares his thoughts on Bryan Reynolds....
Pirates sign South Korean pitching prospect Jun-Seok Shim
The Pittsburgh Pirates have officially signed Jun-Seok Shim and will introduce the 18-year-old South Korean pitching prospect Thursday at PNC Park. The 6-foot-4, 218-pound right-hander is ranked the No. 10 international prospect by MLB Pipeline and second among pitchers. “We are excited to add Jun-Seok to our organization and start...
U mad, bro?: Readers angry about Steelers criticism, Tremaine Edmunds speculation, Ivan Provorov column
Pittsburgh Steelers fans are still trying to rationalize another season without a playoff win. We’re already making excuses for the team chumping out in free agency. Some Pirates fans are dubious of Andrew McCutchen’s return. And my Ivan Provorov column was a big hit! What I mean by that is...
Tim Benz: Penguins, Capitals very much in the same boat as they prepare to lock horns
At the start of the NHL season, many expected the Pittsburgh Penguins to be in a dogfight to continue their streak of 16 consecutive playoff appearances. So far, that prediction has played out exactly as foreseen. Through 47 games (out of 82), the Penguins are 24-15-8. That translates to just...
There’s no explaining some of the plays that led Pitt to victory against Wake Forest
There were a few funny elements to Pitt’s 81-79 victory against Wake Forest on Wednesday night. Not funny, “ha-ha,” but funny strange. Set aside for a moment that Pitt won its seventh of 10 ACC games, a victory total that’s been unreachable by a Panthers team for the previous six...
Minor league report: Penguins fall to AmericansVideo
Forward Valtteri Puustinen recorded two assists for the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins in a 3-2 road loss to the Rochester Americans at Blue Cross Arena in Rochester, N.Y. on Wednesday. Goaltender Filip Lindberg made 26 saves on 29 shots for Wilkes-Barre/Scranton while forwards Sam Houde and Alex Nylander each scored goals for...
Duquesne men’s hoops game interrupted by apparent food delivery attempt
Following Duquesne’s 72-58 comeback win over Loyola Chicago on Wednesday evening at UPMC Cooper Fieldhouse, coach Keith Dambrot and his players might have to give credit to an unlikely source for sparking their rally. With 16:10 to play during the second half between the Dukes and Ramblers, officials stopped play...
Joe Toussaint scores 22 as West Virginia beats Texas TechVideo
LUBBOCK, Texas — Joe Toussaint scored 14 of his 22 points in the second half, Seth Wilson hit a career-high five 3-pointers and finished with 15 points and West Virginia beat Texas Tech, 76-61, on Wednesday night, the Red Raiders’ eighth consecutive loss. Erik Stevenson scored 16 points and grabbed...
Rahm struggles to 1-over 73 in 1st round at Torrey PinesVideo
SAN DIEGO — Jon Rahm struggled to a 1-over-par 73 at Torrey Pines South, which has become one of his favorite courses, while Sam Ryder, Aaron Rai and Brent Grant shot 8-under 64s on the more forgiving North Course on Wednesday to tie for the first-round lead at the Farmers...
Duquesne rallies in second half to top Loyola Chicago, 72-58
Staring at a nine-point halftime deficit against Loyola Chicago, a team that entered Wednesday night in last place in the Atlantic 10, Duquesne was at risk of suffering a deflating loss, which would have been its third straight. However, steadily, the Dukes mounted a comeback, outscoring the visiting Ramblers by...
