Sports category, Page 490

SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. — With the expanded College Football Playoff locked in through 2031, questions still remain about what the rest of the postseason will look like. One thing is certain, there will still be bowls. “College football cannot have a postseason that only provides 12 opportunities,” Nick Carparelli, executive director...

ATHENS, Ga. — Georgia’s Kirby Smart agreed to a contract extension Thursday that makes him the highest-paid coach in college football with an annual salary of $13 million. Smart got a bump in salary of $1.75 million annually as part of the deal, which ties him to the Bulldogs through...

GEORGETOWN, Ky. — Michael Blowen can step outside his house any day of the week and visit retired racehorses at Old Friends, the thoroughbred retirement farm he founded in Kentucky two decades ago that attentively cares for former winners and losers alike. From his home’s backdoor, Blowen can watch one...

Troy Schooley loves the traditions of the Pittsburgh Marathon, and he also gets excited at new things that take place every year. On Sunday, during the marathon and half marathon through the streets of Downtown, more than 42,000 runners, walkers and hand-cyclists will be joined by a group of athletes...

Off the goaltender’s mask, off a defenseman’s back, nothing but net. Well, at least in the net. That is how Colorado’s Casey Mittelstadt got his first goal of the NHL playoffs this year, and it is not the only one. Several players have scored by ricocheting the puck in off...

The Pittsburgh Steelers declined the fifth-year options for running back Najee Harris and quarterback Justin Fields, making them eligible for free agency after the 2024 season. Harris was scheduled to earn $6.97 million in 2025 had the Steelers exercised his option. Fields, who was acquired from the Chicago Bears in...

It’s a position group at which the three of the four players who played most often in 2023 will enter this season with an average age of 31.3. Two of those three missed time because of injury; the other has sat out practice regularly in a continued maintenance effort after...

In a Michigan basement decked out in maize and blue, a father sat with his son. They’d bond over a football video game. One with a story mode that would transport the 7-year-old into a college dorm room, where letters from fans filled his mailbox, the campus newspaper teased a...

The “Pitt Special” no longer will be a surprise, but Pitt and UCF plan to get together again this decade after the schools announced a home-and-home football scheduling agreement Thursday. Pitt will serve as host Sept. 12, 2026, at Acrisure Stadium. The teams will meet again Sept. 15, 2029, in...

On Sunday, the Pittsburgh Penguins announced that they would not renew the contract of AHL head coach J.D. Forrest in Wilkes-Barre/Scranton. It didn’t take long for people to start doing some simple calculations as to who may fill that job. A name that was immediately advanced was Sheldon Keefe. Discussion...

Despite a draft that has gotten positive reviews, not all Pittsburgh Steelers fans are happy about the organization’s efforts last weekend. Others just didn’t like my coverage of it. We also have some angst over the Steelers’ QB situation, baseball pitch counts and general disdain over how the Pirates “have...

Thursday’s “First Call” finds a reported sticking point between Kyle Dubas and Mike Sullivan regarding the Pittsburgh Penguins’ coaching staff. Troy Fautanu’s agent has a theory on his client’s alleged knee red flags. The Steelers have their options when it comes to Najee Harris’ fifth-year option. Pressley Harvin III has...

The Pittsburgh Pirates bottomed out in the Bay, especially when they had chances to cash in. If the Pirates (14-18) losing 13 of their past 16 games to complete a freefall from first place in the NL Central to the basement of division standings in a two-week stretch isn’t alarming,...

INDIANAPOLIS (Triple-A, 14-12) played small ball in a 14-5 win over Buffalo (Blue Jays). C Yasmani Grandal (.250) hit three singles and had three RBIs, DH Jake Lamb (.391) smacked two doubles and a single and drove in two runs, and Ji Hwan Bae (.391) hit three singles and a...

TAMPA, Fla. — Steven Stamkos wants to hoist the Stanley Cup again with the Tampa Bay Lightning. The 34-year-old captain, who can become a free agent this summer, reiterated Wednesday that he’d like to remain with the only franchise he’s played for in a stellar 16-season career. And general manager...

Just a few minutes into the Indiana Fever’s media day, general manager Lin Dunn was asked to compare Caitlin Clark to a pair of Birds — Sue, whom Dunn drafted No. 1 overall in 2002, and Larry, who turned the NBA’s Boston Celtics into an instant contender in 1979. Whether...

SCOTTDALE, Ariz. — Before the realigned Big 12 — sans Oklahoma and Texas —even kicks off, the expanded College Football Playoff’s new revenue structure has created a perception that the conference is no longer the equal of the Big Ten and SEC. Instead of a Power Five, college football now...

The wave of incoming rookies such as Caitlin Clark, Angel Reese and Kamilla Cardoso and the return of popular players A’ja Wilson and Kelsey Plum of the defending champion Las Vegas Aces have led to unprecedented demand for WNBA games on one of the world’s largest ticket resale platforms. StubHub...

The Pittsburgh Pirates ended their West Coast trip to the Bay Area the same way they started it: by getting shut out. The Oakland Athletics got an early lead on solo home runs from Abraham Toro and Tyler Nevin and cruised to a 4-0 win Wednesday afternoon to sweep the...

LOUISVILLE, Ky. — As a record crowd cheered, American Pharoah rallied from behind and took aim at his remaining two rivals in the stretch. The bay colt and jockey Victor Espinoza surged to the lead with a furlong to go and thundered across the finish line a length ahead in...

The Pittsburgh Penguins dismissed multiple front office staffers on the business side of operations Wednesday. The precise number of cuts is not publicly known. Penguins president of business operations Kevin Acklin issued a statement regarding the dismissals: “This season, we have taken time to evaluate our business operations and concluded...

Robert Morris graduate Russ Olsen (Class of 1982) has made a seven-figure gift — called “transformative” by university officials — to boost several elements of the RMU men’s and women’s basketball programs. The Olsen Basketball Excellence Fund will enhance special projects, nutrition initiatives, recovery tools, equipment and technology, facilities, travel...

Koby Brea, who led the nation in 3-point shooting for Dayton, will play his final season at Kentucky. Brea announced his decision on social media Wednesday and is the fifth player this week and sixth overall to be signed out of the transfer portal by new coach Mark Pope. Brea...

CHAPEL HILL, N.C. — First-team Associated Press All-American RJ Davis is returning to North Carolina to play his fifth season of eligibility, which could have him ultimately contending for the school and ACC career scoring record. The school and Davis announced the decision in social media posts Wednesday. The 6-foot,...