Sports category, Page 353
Tough, old school defense a calling card for all four teams left in the national championship huntVideo
AUSTIN, Texas — The expanded College Football Playoff has a decidedly old-school feel: Smothering defenses have carried the last four teams still in the hunt for the national championship. If you want offense, look elsewhere this weekend. The defenses, with All-Americans spread throughout the lineups, are the story of the...
Ravens notes: Update on status of WR Zay Flowers, RB Justice Hill for playoff game vs. Steelers
Baltimore Ravens No. 1 wide receiver Zay Flowers hasn’t been ruled out for Saturday’s playoff game against the Pittsburgh Steelers. But Ravens coach John Harbaugh was far from sounding optimistic Flowers’ knee injury would be healed well enough for him to play. “It’s not a season-ending injury, so it’s just...
Pitt’s Jeff Capel knows all too well about Duke’s legacy of freshman talent
Jeff Capel paged through his earliest, childhood basketball memories in response to a question presented to him Monday during the ACC coaches’ conference call: What does Duke do to develop such outstanding freshman talent every year and provide a smooth transition from high school to almost immediate stardom in the...
Steelers notes: Mason McCormick has broken hand, Donte Jackson ‘feels good’ and could return
Five days before the Pittsburgh Steelers’ playoff game, starting right guard Mason McCormick on Monday was to be “sized for a cast and/or a brace” for a broken left hand. McCormick suffered the injury during the fourth quarter of the Steelers’ regular-season finale this past Saturday at home against the...
Steelers offensive coordinator Arthur Smith reportedly candidate for Jets, Bears head coach jobs
Pittsburgh Steelers offensive coordinator Arthur Smith is a candidate the New York Jets head coaching job, several national outlets reported Monday, and the Jets formally requested an interview with Smith. The Chicago Bears also requested to interview Smith for their head coaching gig, according to ESPN. Smith, 42, was hired...
Big Ten, SEC each have 4 top 10 teams in AP women’s poll as UCLA, South Carolina still lead way
The Big Ten and Southeastern Conference both have arguments to be considered the top league in women’s basketball. Each has seven teams ranked in The Associated Press Top 25 women’s basketball poll Monday, including four apiece in the first 10. Both leagues have been bolstered this season by conference realignment,...
Tennessee, nation’s lone unbeaten, strengthens grip on No. 1; WVU, Michigan, Utah St. enter AP Top 25
Tennessee tightened its grip on No. 1 in the AP Top 25 on Monday following a pair of lopsided wins, including one over SEC rival Arkansas, that left the Volunteers as the only undefeated team in men’s Division I college basketball. The Vols picked up four more first-place votes and...
Browns quarterback Deshaun Watson has medical setback, clouds future with team
BEREA, Ohio — Deshaun Watson’s future as Cleveland’s quarterback is more uncertain. Browns general manager Andrew Berry said Monday that Watson suffered a setback in his recovery from an Achilles tendon rupture, and the team doesn’t know if or when he’ll be available in 2025. “We’ll know more in the...
Penn State WR Omari Evans reaching full potential as CFP run continuesVideo
Despite staunch internal support, especially from quarterback Drew Allar, ongoing critiques of their collective performance have not escaped the attention of Penn State’s wide receivers. Dating to last year, the receivers arguably have been the team’s most maligned position group. As the 2024 campaign got underway, those players wanted to...
With playoffs at hand, Mike Tomlin said there’s no time for ‘pouting’ over Steelers’ 0-4 stretch
Mike Tomlin doesn’t want his Pittsburgh Steelers looking too far back — or too far ahead — as the NFL playoffs approach for his reeling team. Four weeks ago, the Steelers were riding high in the AFC and firmly in control of the North. An 0-4 stretch to close the...
Hempfield grad Jordan Crupie excels leading off 200 medley relay for IUP women’s swimming
As a junior at Hempfield, swimmer Jordan Crupie posted a time of 57.57 seconds in the 100 backstroke. That was her personal best at the time, and she anticipated trimming a few more ticks from that mark before she headed off to IUP to continue swimming. But she remained stalled...
Knoch grad Kennedy Christy finishes volleyball career at Juniata with 3rd consecutive national title
As she segued from her final collegiate volleyball season to the holiday season, Kennedy Christy accompanied some friends to Hawaii. And if anybody deserved to relax on the warm beaches of the 50th state, it was Christy. Every college athlete dreams of going out a champion, and the Knoch grad...
Westmoreland County campus clippings: Norwin grad Mike Shanahan honored at Indiana
Indiana football assistant Mike Shanahan (Norwin) was named the FootballScoop Offensive Coordinator of the Year after helping the Hoosiers (11-2) reach the College Football Playoff, where they lost to Notre Dame, 27-17, in the first round. Shanahan, who played at Pitt and served as a two-year captain for the Panthers,...
Giants owner says GM Joe Schoen, coach Brian Daboll are staying put after 3-14 season
The New York Giants are sticking with general manager Joe Schoen and coach Brian Daboll. Owner and team president John Mara announced Monday that he and co-owner Steve Tisch decided to move forward with the Giants’ current leadership even after a 3-14 season that ranks among the franchise’s worst. “Now...
Kris Letang continues to mentor the Penguins’ younger defensemen
Owen Pickering was star-struck when he first encountered Kris Letang. And for good reason. It was at the NHL Draft in Montreal on July 7, 2022, and Pickering was just selected by the Pittsburgh Penguins in the first round with the 21st overall selection. Anybody who would have been on...
Mark Madden: Time for the Steelers to send a message and bench George Pickens
Saying what the Steelers should do often contradicts what the Steelers do. They are perfectly content to lose using their method. But the Steelers should make wideout George Pickens inactive for their playoff game Saturday night at Baltimore. It’s time to quit ladling out horse manure about the team’s alleged...
Jaguars fire coach Doug Pederson, keep GM Trent Baalke after ‘best team assembled’ wins just 4 games
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — Doug Pederson is out as Jacksonville’s head coach after the franchise’s “best team assembled” won just four games. Jaguars owner Shad Khan fired Pederson on Monday, a day after a 26-23 loss at Indianapolis in overtime. It was the team’s 18th loss in its last 23 games....
Madden Monday: Expect Steelers’ return to Baltimore to go from ‘bad to worse’
There is some hope within the Pittsburgh Steelers fanbase that a second time around in Baltimore will be better than the first. There is a good reason for that. That reason is it couldn’t go much worse than the first time. The Steelers dropped their regular season road game against...
First Call: A Bengals DB trashes George Pickens; ESPN reboots the Mike Tomlin trade speculation
Monday’s “First Call” features a Cincinnati Bengal talking trash on Pittsburgh Steelers receiver George Pickens. There’s Mike Tomlin trade speculation … again. We have playoff gambling odds for the Steelers and Penn State. Mason Rudolph got more playing time for the Tennessee Titans. Diontae Johnson made his debut for the...
Level Green’s Brandon Svoboda helps United States win IIHF World Junior championshipVideo
Forward Brandon Svoboda, a native of Level Green, scored a goal for the United States in a 4-3 overtime victory against Finland in the championship game of the International Ice Hockey Federation’s (IIHF) World Championship tournament at the Canadian Tire Center in Ottawa. This marked the first time in program...
Teddy Stiga scores on OT breakaway to give U.S. 2nd straight world junior title over FinlandVideo
OTTAWA, Ontario — Teddy Stiga scored on a breakaway at 8:04 of 3-on-3 overtime to give the United States a 4-3 victory over Finland on Sunday night in the world junior hockey championship game. The Boston College forward beat goalie Petteri Rimpinen through the leg pads to end it. The...
Hideki Matsuyama has record-setting PGA start, wins The Sentry
KAPALUA, Hawaii — Hideki Matsuyama got the new season off to a smashing start Sunday when he broke the PGA Tour record to par for 72 holes by closing with an 8-under-par 65 for a three-shot victory over Collin Morikawa in The Sentry. Matsuyama made an 8-foot birdie putt on...
Penguins drop another Metropolitan Division game, losing to Hurricanes
The Pittsburgh Penguins completed the first half of the 2024-25 season in a fashion that has been far too quotidian in their first 41 games. A loss against a Metropolitan Division rival. On Sunday, the Penguins were defeated by the Carolina Hurricanes, 4-3, in overtime at the Lenovo Center in...
Coco Gauff beats Iga Swiatek again as U.S. wins United Cup for 2nd time in 3 yearsVideo
SYDNEY — Coco Gauff overcame second-ranked Iga Swiatek 6-4, 6-4 in the opening singles of the United Cup mixed teams tennis event and the United States went on to win the final by beating Poland 2-0 on Sunday. Taylor Fritz beat Hubert Hurkacz 6-4, 5-7, 7-6 (4) at the Ken...
Steelers heading to Baltimore for wild-card game following Chargers’ win against Raiders
Failing to get the help they needed Sunday to secure a higher playoff seed, the Pittsburgh Steelers will make another trip to Baltimore to kick off the postseason. The Steelers (10-7), who take a four-game losing streak into the playoffs, will be the No. 6 seed in the AFC. That...
