Sports category, Page 1931
With 2 veterans still out, rookie Kevin Dotson appears in line to start for Steelers
In discussing the possibility of Kevin Dotson starting for the Pittsburgh Steelers, coach Mike Tomlin on Tuesday said, “There is some angst here.” If that’s the case, the way things are trending it’s becoming increasingly likely that Tomlin and the Steelers could have plenty of angst-filled moments leading into Sunday’s...
Pitt accepting ticket deposits for men’s basketball while hoping fans can attend
Pitt’s ticket office is accepting deposits for the 2020-21 men’s basketball season, with the hope that fans will be allowed in the Petersen Events Center for games. Currently, no fans are permitted at any Pitt athletic event through September, but university officials said a $100 risk-free deposit will ensure priority...
Steelers’ Maurkice Pouncey to remove Antwon Rose Jr.’s name from helmet
Maurkice Pouncey, a co-captain and the Pittsburgh Steelers’ second-longest tenured player, indicated he will remove Antwon Rose Jr.’s name from the back of his helmet. “I want to make sure (police) understand I inadvertently supported a cause of which I did not fully comprehend the entire background of the case,”...
Penn State TE Pat Freiermuth confirms he’s playing this fall
The Big Ten is back, and Pat Freiermuth never left. Just after the conference announced a return-to-play plan that will kick off the season Oct. 23-24, Penn State’s star tight end confirmed in an interview with the Big Ten Network on Wednesday that he will be playing for the Nittany...
Pirates taking a swing at solving their strikeouts, other problems at the plateVideo
After the Pittsburgh Pirates struck out 45 times while being swept in a four-game series by the Reds, Derek Shelton couldn’t wait to get out of Cincinnati. The Pirates manager blames the whiffs partly on his insistence of an aggressive approach at the plate and partly on strong pitching performances...
First Call: Steelers-‘MNF’ ratings tank. O.J. Simpson defends Saquon Barkley. Terry Bradshaw’s new TV show.
The Steelers. Plus, a New York audience. That should jolt “Monday Night Football” ratings to open the season! Guess again, ESPN. That’s how we start Thursday’s “First Call.” We also see how O.J. Simpson is supporting Saquon Barkley. And we preview Terry Bradshaw’s new television show. Where’s the remote? A...
U mad, bro? Readers furious over Alejandro Villanueva’s helmet debate. ‘Fixed’ NFL games. Pirates problems.
This week’s “U mad, bro?” ranges from the Steelers, to a Big Ten reboot, to Pirates ineptitude, to Justin Timberlake. It also ranges from substantive to silly. Alejandro Villanueva’s agenda. Mason Rudolph’s helmet. Accusations of NFL officials on the take. And covid-19 propaganda. Aside from that … eh, it’s rather...
The long, strange football history of Pitt-Syracuse. And it’s getting odder by the year.
Saturday marks the 75th college football game between Pitt and Syracuse. And one word sums up the history of this series. Weird. It’s one of the strangest, goofiest rivalries in terms of historical trends that you will find. Just look at Syracuse’s three most recent trips to Heinz Field. 2020...
Pirates impressed with Ke’Bryan Hayes’ defensive instincts at 3rd base
Derek Shelton was the first to pump the brakes on the hyperbole surrounding the defensive play of Ke’Bryan Hayes by reminding everyone there was a seven-time Gold Glove third baseman in Colorado by the name of Nolan Arenado. Now, the Pittsburgh Pirates manager marvels on a nightly basis at Hayes’...
Attendance limits force Neshannock football mother to experience ‘worst fear’ from afar
Landon Shaffer’s parents were allotted one ticket for his high school football game, so his mother resorted to watching a video stream on her cell phone. “You look for little identifying things because it’s so small to tell who’s who,” Veronica Shaffer said. “It’s hard to see.” The first two...
Luis Castillo outduels JT Brubaker as Reds shut out Pirates for their 8th consecutive loss
The Pittsburgh Pirates were looking for a bounce-back game by JT Brubaker, as the rookie right-hander was seven days removed from his worst start of the season. What they got was a pitcher’s duel. And Brubaker was better, just not good enough to win. Brubaker pitched four scoreless innings before...
NCAA sets Nov. 25 start date for men’s, women’s basketballVideo
The NCAA men’s and women’s basketball season will begin Nov. 25, the day before Thanksgiving. The Division I Council voted Wednesday to push the start date back from the originally scheduled Nov. 10 as one of several precautions against the spread of coronavirus. The later start date coincides with the...
U.S. Open gets back to basics with tough test at Winged FootVideo
MAMARONECK, N.Y. — Waiting for the green to clear ahead, Sergio Garcia looked behind him at the five holes he played Wednesday at Winged Foot and recited a list of clubs that rarely come out of his bag. A 6-iron into the opening par 4. A 5-iron on the next...
Ben Roethlisberger sore, but elbow fine on heels of season opener for Steelers
After playing all 64 snaps Monday night, getting sacked twice, hit five times and attempting 32 passes, Ben Roethlisberger offered some good and bad news following his first start for the Pittsburgh Steelers in a calendar year. The good? His right elbow, surgically repaired 12 months ago, was no worse...
Former Penguins president Jack Kelley dies
Former Penguins president Jack Kelley, who coached Boston University to two national titles and was the first coach and general manager of the New England Whalers, died Tuesday, USA Hockey announced. He was 93. Kelley was president of the Penguins from 1993-98. His grandson is Andy Saucier, the team’s video...
SirVocea Dennis aging well as a young Pitt linebacker
Perhaps you’ve heard about Pitt’s starting linebackers Wendell Davis, Cam Bright and Phil Campbell III: Athletic players who bring the necessary elements of speed and athleticism to the three positions. But linebackers coach Rob Harley will tell you — without even being asked — there is competition every day at...
Former Steelers TE Heath Miller on Hall of Fame nominee list
Heath Miller is among the first-time nominees eligible for the Pro Football Hall of Fame Class of 2021. Miller retired after the 2015 season following an 11-year career with the Pittsburgh Steelers in which he set virtually every team receiving record for a tight end. Miller finished his career with...
Gov. Wolf: Schools will receive updated guidance on sports spectators this weekVideo
The state Department of Education will release updated guidance this week regarding spectators at interscholastic sporting events, Gov. Tom Wolf said Wednesday. The new guidelines come in response to Monday’s federal court ruling that declared Wolf’s gathering limits unconstitutional. Wolf had imposed a 250-person restriction on outdoor gatherings and a...
Steelers open practice week with expansive injury list
Five members of the offensive line, including four starters from the season opener, did not practice for the Pittsburgh Steelers on Wednesday as they began on-field preparations for the home opener Sunday against the Denver Broncos. Tackle Zach Banner (knee) already was ruled out of playing Sunday and is expected...
Pac-12 football plans remain on holdVideo
Any plans for the Pac-12 to join the Big Ten in returning to football are on hold because of health policies in two states within the conference. The Big Ten changed course Wednesday and said it will begin an eight-game football schedule Oct. 23. The Pac-12 also has reconsidered starting...
This date in sports history: Sept. 17Video
1920 — The forerunner of the NFL, the American Professional Football Association, is founded in an automobile showroom in Canton, Ohio. Twelve teams pay a $100 fee to obtain a franchise. 1938 — Don Budge completes the grand slam of tennis with a four-set victory over Gene Mako in the...
Steelers TE Heath Miller, Peyton Manning among 2021 Hall of Fame candidates
Peyton Manning and Charles Woodson are among 14 first-year eligible candidates for the Pro Football Hall of Fame. Joining the two-time Super Bowl champion quarterback and the star cornerback/safety on the ballot are former Steelers tight end Heath Miller, receivers Calvin Johnson, Wes Welker and Roddy White; running back Steven...
Baltimore Ravens add former Steelers tight end to practice squad
OWINGS MILLS, Md. — The Baltimore Ravens on Wednesday added free agent tight end Xavier Grimble to their practice squad, supplying in-house veteran depth at a thin position. Grimble, who appeared in 47 games over the previous four seasons with the rival Pittsburgh Steelers, was on the Ravens practice field...
Pat Narduzzi labels Pitt’s Kenny Pickett ‘the most underrated quarterback in the country’
Pat Narduzzi is certainly no neutral observer, but that hasn’t stopped him from beating the drum for quarterback Kenny Pickett. "I think he is the most underrated quarterback in the country." @CoachDuzzPittFB on why you should watch out for @kennypickett10 ?#PackerAndDurham pic.twitter.com/WcevCg7Vf2— ACC Network (@accnetwork) September 16, 2020 Appearing on...
State lawmakers urge Gov. Wolf to sign bill, let schools set spectator limits for sports
A bipartisan group of state lawmakers gathered Wednesday and urged Gov. Tom Wolf to sign House Bill 2787, legislation that lets individual schools set spectator limits for sports. The governor received the bill Friday. “You’ve said at press conferences that you want to work with the Legislature. Here’s a golden...
