Sports category, Page 280
TribLive writers offer predictions for 2025 Major League Baseball season
Opening Day is set for Thursday across Major League Baseball, and TribLive writers Kevin Gorman, Jerry DiPaola and Justin Guerriero and columnist Tim Benz have thoughts on how the season will shake out. Here’s a look: Award winners NL MVP Kevin Gorman: Shohei Ohtani, Dodgers Jerry DiPaola: Juan Soto, Mets...
Players rocking T-shirts are everywhere in March Madness. Why? ‘It’s part of that dripper vibe’
Mouhamed Dioubate would love to tell you he had a good, practical reason to start rocking a compression shirt underneath his Alabama jersey. That it keeps his arms warm. That he loves the way it feels. That it’s a tribute to the old school days of Patrick Ewing and Chris...
Now with Arizona, Caleb Love takes on Duke again
NEWARK, N.J. — He’s back. If there’s a single player Duke or any of its fans would love to not run into when the stakes are this high, Caleb Love would be that player. Love used to play for Duke’s biggest rival, North Carolina. Now he plays for Duke’s next...
West Virginia hires Ross Hodge of North Texas as men’s basketball coachVideo
West Virginia hired Ross Hodge of North Texas as its men’s basketball coach Wednesday. The 44-year-old Hodge replaces Darian DeVries, who left after one season for Indiana. Hodge agreed to a five-year deal. Terms of the contract weren’t immediately disclosed. “Ross Hodge is a proven winner and leader who has...
NFL competition committee proposes moving touchback to 35 and making dynamic kickoff permanent
The NFL competition committee is recommending making the dynamic kickoff rule permanent and moving touchbacks to the 35-yard line in hopes of generating even more returns. The competition committee released several potential rule changes for 2025 on Wednesday, including an expansion of instant replay that will be considered next week...
Numbers to know for each of the 16 teams remaining in March Madness
The smaller the number, the larger the impact at this year’s NCAA Tournament. Arkansas, the No. 10 seed in the West Region, is the only double-digit seed still alive heading into the regional semifinals. All four No. 1 seeds and three of the four No. 2 seeds are still standing....
Penn State’s Blue-White Game to continue, follow scrimmage format
STATE COLLEGE — Despite a nationwide trend of major college programs canceling spring games, often citing the length of the 2024 season, Penn State has no plans of doing so — both for this year and in the future. The annual Blue-White Game is set for 2 p.m. April 26...
Mark Madden: Steelers remain incompetent at managing quarterback position
Rampant speculation holds that Aaron Rodgers will announce that he’s a Steeler at Pat McAfee’s live event April 9 at PPG Paints Arena. If that’s the initial confirmation of Rodgers’ commitment, the Steelers will have lost control of that situation from the very first moment. A legendary logo becomes reality...
On Russ, Rodgers, Rudolph: A brief history of the Steelers’ recent QB tragic comedy
Bon voyage, Russell Wilson. We hardly knew ye! Oops, sorry. We hardly knew yinz. The veteran free-agent quarterback signed a one-year contract with the New York Giants on Tuesday. After just one season and 12 games as the Steelers starting quarterback, the Wilson era is over practically before it began....
First Call: Pat Freiermuth contacts Aaron Rodgers; Russell Wilson can still help Steelers from New York
In Wednesday’s “First Call,” Aaron Rodgers is making contact with at least one Pittsburgh Steelers target on offense. We investigate how Russell Wilson still may be able to help his now-former team. There is an update on the recovery of ex-Steeler James Daniels. We tell you if Alex Ovechkin is...
‘It’s time to win’: Manager Derek Shelton sets expectation for Pirates to make a playoff push
From the start of spring training, Derek Shelton set an expectation for the Pittsburgh Pirates this season. It was a simple and straightforward message to deliver, one that’s harder to accomplish. “It’s time to win,” Shelton told TribLive. “That’s the only focus.” The Pirates followed back-to-back 100-loss seasons in 2021-22...
Neck guards remain optional for Penguins and all NHLers
Joona Koppanen will usually stand out in just about any room he enters. At 6-foot-5, he is a hard fellow to miss. But even in the realm of the Pittsburgh Penguins dressing room, which is stocked with a handful of future members of the Hockey Hall of Fame, Koppanen is...
Tim Benz: A completely logical, totally achievable wish list for the 2025 Pirates
Last year, I ended up being a little too optimistic in my projection for the Pittsburgh Pirates. The BetRivers over-under win total was 78.5. I had them at 81 wins. They came in under with 76. I’m not going to allow myself to be disappointed again. This year BetRivers’ over-under...
With Evgeni Malkin sidelined, Penguins routed by Lightning
Pittsburgh Penguins forward Evgeni Malkin was scratched from his team’s lineup for a 6-1 loss against the Tampa Bay Lightning at Amalie Arena in Tampa, Fla. There was no substantive word on his status. The team announced he would not be playing prior to the game in a social media...
Arkansas’ John Calipari not backing off relying on freshmen in NIL, transfer portal eraVideo
Moon native John Calipari embraced the one-and-done era like few college basketball coaches, becoming one of the best annually at bringing in talented freshmen and routinely getting them to Final Fours before shipping them off to the NBA. The formula served him well during his 15-year run at Kentucky that...
Reports: Patriots sign WR Stefon Diggs as new target for Drake MayeVideo
FOXBOROUGH, Mass. — The New England Patriots have signed free-agent wide receiver Stefon Diggs, according to multiple reports, giving quarterback Drake Maye a prime target as he heads into his second season. ESPN reported on Tuesday night that the deal is for three years and $69 million, with $26 million...
Steelers claim veteran offensive lineman Lecitus Smith off waivers
The Pittsburgh Steelers added a veteran interior offensive lineman to their offseason roster, claiming Lecitus Smith off waivers from the New England Patriots on Tuesday. Smith, who will be 27 when training camp opens, has appeared in 18 NFL games since he was a 2022 sixth-round pick of the Arizona...
Russell Wilson officially leaves Steelers, agrees to 1-year contract with Giants, per reports
In a move that signals the Pittsburgh Steelers will have no returning quarterbacks for the second year in a row, Russell Wilson agreed to a one-year contract with the New York Giants, according to ESPN and NFL Network reports. Wilson, who started the final 12 games of the 2024 season,...
Nashville group finds partner in search for land that could become the site of an MLB-ready stadiumVideo
NASHVILLE, Tenn. — Music City Baseball is teaming with a property company in hopes of buying land that one day could serve as the home of a Major League Baseball team. The deal between Music City Baseball and Lincoln Property Co. announced Tuesday is designed to secure land for a...
There’s no easy answers for slowing down rising level of pitching injuries at all levels of baseballVideo
GOODYEAR, Ariz. — Figuring out a cause for the skyrocketing number of arm injuries among pitchers is easy. Finding a solution could prove much more challenging. Major League Baseball issued a 62-page report in December that showed how the focus on throwing with increased velocity and using maximum effort on...
Viktor Hovland’s pursuit of hitting pure golf shots is really not that complicatedVideo
Golf doesn’t have to be that complicated. Viktor Hovland only makes it sound that way. Hovland was confounding as ever at the Valspar Championship. His confidence was so low that he arrived at Innisbrook uncertain if he was even going to play, and then, five days later, he delivered two...
Pitt loses 3 more scholarship players, including the Diaz Graham twins
The roster spots continue to open up for Pitt and coach Jeff Capel. Three more players, including a starter and two others who were part of Capel’s rotation most of the season, entered the NCAA transfer portal Tuesday, joining little-used forward Marlon Barnes, who previously announced his plans to transfer....
Linebacker Tony Rojas among Penn State players sidelined at start of spring camp
James Franklin met with reporters ahead of Penn State ‘s spring camp opening on Tuesday. Franklin addressed several key items, including injury updates for a few Nittany Lions. Penn State linebacker Tony Rojas, offensive tackle Anthony Donkoh and tight end Andrew Rappleyea will not be “fully available” at the start...
Stylistic versatility: Those left in the NCAA Tournament have proven they can win a lot of ways
Houston and Gonzaga met in a second-round NCAA Tournament matchup last weekend in Wichita, Kan., that could as easily have been played in the Final Four, the way Kelvin Sampson’s and Mark Few’s teams had played throughout the season. The Cougars were No. 1 in scoring defense, more than a...
Saint Francis to transition from Division I to III beginning in 2026
Saint Francis is reclassifying its 22 athletic programs from NCAA Division I to Division III, the university announced Tuesday. The news comes on the heels of an NCAA Tournament appearance by Saint Francis’ men’s basketball team, the university’s first since 1991, as the Red Flash won an automatic bid by...
