Sports category, Page 373
Owners of NBA’s Pistons and NFL’s Lions part of bid to bring WNBA team back to Detroit
DETROIT — Detroit wants to bring the WNBA back to the Motor City, backed by an investor group led by the owner of the NBA’s Pistons and NFL’s Lions. Pistons owner Tom Gores submitted the bid Thursday, and it was announced Friday. The group includes Sheila Ford Hamp and her...
NFL officials spotting the football isn’t going away
The NFL will engage its Competition Committee on technology to take virtual line-to-gain measurements next season, but officials will continue to spot the football. There’s no current technology being considered that would help determine forward progress, which became a point of contention after Josh Allen was ruled short on a...
Penguins players welcome rising salary cap projections
Marcus Pettersson has good timing. When the Pittsburgh Penguins defenseman signed his current contract in January 2020, the NHL (and the world) was a few weeks away from halting operations because of covid. Today, with the league having largely surmounted the financial ramifications from the pandemic, Pettersson’s status as an...
Steelers lose linebackers coach Aaron Curry to Jets in 1st offseason change among assistants
The first change to the Pittsburgh Steelers coaching staff was revealed Friday when linebackers coach Aaron Curry left the organization to join the New York Jets. NFL Network was first to report the switch in teams for Curry. Curry spent two seasons with the Steelers and six as an assistant...
Mark Madden: Sidney Crosby’s rallying moments just mean more in Pittsburgh
Wednesday night at Utah was the essence of Sidney Crosby as a Penguin. He cuts through the slot like a magician to bury a trademark backhand in overtime. It’s the Penguins’ first visit to Salt Lake City. Lots of Penguins jerseys in the stands. Big pop for the finish. It...
Pirates announce new managers at Triple-A, Double-A, reveal minor-league staff
The Pittsburgh Pirates announced 2025 staff assignments for their full-season minor-league affiliates, Florida Complex League and Dominican Summer League clubs Friday morning. Taking over as manager of the Indianapolis Indians is Chris Truby, who will oversee the Triple-A club after serving as bench coach under Miguel Perez in 2024. Perez...
First Call: A college job for Kevin Colbert; ESPN update on Russell Wilson’s future with Steelers
Friday’s “First Call” shows us that former Pittsburgh Steelers general manager Kevin Colbert is pulling a Rodney Dangerfield and going back to school. Adam Schefter updates us on the Steelers’ plans with Russell Wilson. We look at the Penguins’ next opponent. And we preview the weekend’s local college hoops and...
Tim Benz: Let’s take the Pirates’ fan satisfaction survey together — I’m sure it’ll go well
The Pittsburgh Pirates have distributed a survey to fans in hopes of evaluating their level of satisfaction with the franchise. These are the real questions with the actual multiple-choice options for responses. Let’s take the survey together, shall we? 1. Overall, what is your impression of the Pittsburgh Pirates? A)...
Football Footnotes: Some important things that Art Rooney II didn’t say about the 2025 Steelers
When Pittsburgh Steelers owner Art Rooney II speaks, he’s not particularly demonstrative. He chooses his words carefully. He avoids speaking in absolutes. He just doesn’t say very much at all. Period. So, when you are looking for news nuggets, it’s what Rooney avoids talking about that makes for the most...
Pitt Take 5: Never too early to talk bracketology while Panthers prepare to visit Wake Forest
Pitt reaches the midway point of its ACC schedule Saturday when it ventures into Lawrence Joel Coliseum in Winston-Salem, N.C., to meet Wake Forest. Not that it matters, but Pitt is 0-6 there. Given recent history, it’s difficult to tell which Pitt team will show up: • The Panthers (14-6,...
Rory McIlroy, Shane Lowry come up aces, Scheffler back with a 67 and Henley takes Pebble Beach lead
PEBBLE BEACH, Calif. — Rory McIlroy and Shane Lowry decorated stunning views Thursday with a hole-in-one for each on different courses. Russell Henley birdied his last two holes for an 8-under 64 and the lead. And there was Scottie Scheffler, looking very much like he was never away. Scheffler, out...
Dick Button, Olympic great and voice of skating, dies at 95
NEW YORK — Dick Button was more than the most accomplished men’s figure skater in history. He was one of his sport’s great innovators and promoters, the man responsible not only for inventing the flying camel spin but describing it to generations of fans. He was an athlete and actor,...
7 players score in double figures as Robert Morris men rout IU Indy
As the seasons progress in men’s basketball, Robert Morris’ desire to make noise in the Horizon League grows stronger. The surging Colonials were deafening Thursday night at UPMC Events Center, doubling up IU Indianapolis, 106-53, for their sixth consecutive victory and 10th in the past 12 games. “We’re getting hot...
Jared Goff nearly perfect to open Pro Bowl Games for NFC
ORLANDO, Fla. — Detroit quarterback Jared Goff delivered a near-perfect performance in “passing the test” and helped the NFC take a 14-7 lead over the AFC during the opening night of the Pro Bowl Games on Thursday. Goff, after getting some help from Green Bay running back Josh Jacobs via...
John Mobley Jr., Bruce Thornton lead Ohio State to 83-64 victory over Penn StateVideo
UNIVERSITY PARK — Freshman John Mobley Jr. had 19 points, Bruce Thornton scored 17 and Ohio State cruised to an 83-64 victory over Penn State at Rec Hall on Thursday night. Mobley hit three 3-pointers and added eight assists and six rebounds for the Buckeyes (13-8, 5-5 Big Ten), who...
Victor Wembanyama is an All-Star, 1 of 6 1st-time selectionsVideo
NBA coaches are, obviously, convinced: Victor Wembanyama is one of the league’s best players. The San Antonio star and 2023-24 rookie of the year is an All-Star for the first time, one of the 14 players announced Thursday night as members of the reserve pool for the Feb. 16 event...
Bills coach Sean McDermott upbeat despite falling short of Super Bowl berth yet againVideo
ORCHARD PARK, N.Y. — Difficult as it was for Sean McDermott to wrap up yet another Bills season ending short of a Super Bowl berth, there was nothing Thursday dissuading Buffalo’s coach from believing more opportunities lay ahead. Having an elite quarterback in Josh Allen helps. So does knowing the...
Here’s what Jeff Capel believes is necessary for Pitt to become a ‘really good’ team
Pitt won 22 games in 2023-2024, and perhaps to an outsider that seems like a nice season. In another world, at another time, maybe. It’s almost three times the victory total in former Pitt coach Kevin Stallings’ last season (2017-18), and more than the total Jeff Capel’s teams collected during...
Eagles are new America’s Team in Super Bowl vs. Chiefs
Move over, Dallas Cowboys. There’s a new and unlikely America’s Team in the NFL — at least for the Super Bowl. The Philadelphia Eagles have become the popular choice among many football fans who want to see the Kansas City Chiefs lose for various reasons. Despite a fan base known...
NFL had fewest concussions since league began tracking 9 years ago
NFL players suffered the fewest concussions in a season in 2024 since the league began tracking data nine years ago. The total decline from 2023 was 17%, including all practices and games in the preseason and regular season. League executive Jeff Miller and NFL chief medical officer Dr. Allen Sills...
NASCAR champ Joey Logano tunes out critics, insists playoff format is ‘very entertaining’
Joey Logano has found a way to tune out months of negativity. Critics? Naysayers? Anyone who thinks his third Cup Series championship was a fluke? “I can’t hear it because my trophies, they kind of, like, echo around me,” Logano quipped during a Zoom call with media Wednesday. Logano won...
Utah Hockey Club narrows the choice of a name to 3 finalists. It won’t be the Yeti or WasatchVideo
SALT LAKE CITY — The Utah Hockey Club has chosen three finalists for the permanent team name it will adopt beginning with the 2025-26 NHL season. The franchise will use a final round of fan voting to decide among the Utah Mammoth, Utah Hockey Club and, now, Utah Outlaws. The...
Max Scherzer agrees to a $15.5 million, 1-year contract with the Toronto Blue Jays, AP source saysVideo
Max Scherzer is joining the Toronto Blue Jays, agreeing to a $15.5 million, one-year contract Thursday, according to a person with direct knowledge of the deal. The person spoke to the AP on condition of anonymity because the agreement had not been announced and was pending a physical. The 40-year-old...
Unusual betting patterns surrounding play of Terry Rozier in 2023 game with Charlotte investigatedVideo
MIAMI — Unusual betting patterns surrounding the play of then-Charlotte Hornets guard Terry Rozier in a game nearly two years ago are now under investigation by federal prosecutors, part of the same probe that led to the lifetime ban of Toronto Raptors player Jontay Porter, the NBA confirmed Thursday. The...
Heat icon Dwyane Wade reveals cancer diagnosis, with kidney surgery over a year ago
MIAMI — Having kept the matter private including during his interview sessions when a statue of his likeness was unveiled on the steps of the Kaseya Center in October, Miami Heat icon Dwyane Wade revealed on his podcast this week that he had a cancerous tumor removed from his kidney...
