Better on the mat than on the mic, Spencer Lee gears up for Real American Freestyle bout
Spencer Lee hit a barrier that no amount of takedown drills would help him with. While promoting the Real American Freestyle wrestling event Nov. 29 at Wintrust Arena in Chicago, the Franklin Regional graduate needed many takes to get the proper amount of “smack talk” committed to video. Lee, who...
Alex Highsmith doubtful, Cam Heyward questionable for Steelers on Sunday vs. Bears
It does not appear as if Pittsburgh Steelers outside linebacker Alex Highsmith will return to game action this week. And, suddenly, the status of a defensive co-captain for Sunday’s game at the Chicago Bears is in question, too. Highsmith was given a “doubtful” designation on the league-mandated status report Friday...
Bears will
be without all 3 starting linebackers Sunday vs. Steelers
Whoever starts at quarterback for the Pittsburgh Steelers on Sunday has caught a break in regards to the defense he faces. The Chicago Bears ruled out all three of their starting linebackers for Sunday’s home game against the Steelers at Soldier Field. Tremaine Edmunds, T.J. Edwards and Noah Sewell did...
Steelers QB Aaron Rodgers listed as questionable to play Sunday vs. Bears
His future Hall of Fame quarterback was out on the practice field Friday, taking some first-team reps just five days after suffering a wrist fracture. Not that Mike Tomlin would admit it made him feel any better about Sunday’s game. “I’m not in the comfort business,” the Pittsburgh Steelers coach...
Penn State’s Terry Smith, Nebraska’s Matt Rhule plenty familiar with one another ahead of matchup
Matt Rhule and Terry Smith have more in common than their Penn State playing days. Rhule’s 7-3 Nebraska Cornhuskers face 4-6 Penn State on Saturday night at Beaver Stadium. Rhule, a walk-on, played at Penn State in the mid-1990s. Smith was a dangerous wideout who served as a captain on...
Porous Georgia Tech defense presents potential advantages for Pitt
There can be no denying Pitt is going to have its hands full Saturday in Atlanta against Georgia Tech’s offense. The No. 15 Yellow Jackets (9-1, 6-1 ACC) boast the nation’s top offensive attack, averaging 496.7 yards, and are led by a Heisman Trophy contender in dual-threat quarterback Haynes King....
Tull Family Foundation awards over $2M to boost high school athletics
Augustine Hanover spent last season with the Obama Academy boys soccer team practicing on a beat-up baseball field pocked with holes. “We have 10-year-old jerseys and not enough soccer balls,” said Hanover, a Pittsburgh Science and Technology Academy student. On Friday, the 16-year-old joined dozens of student-athletes in the school’s...
Steelers’ pass rush prepares to bring down ‘magician’ Bears QB Caleb Williams
The reviews are in. That hot new illusionist? He’s captivating the country. “He’s been a magician,” Cameron Heyward said. “This guy,” added Teryl Austin, “is an escape artist.” And after recent tour stops in locales such as Minneapolis, Cincinnati and Baltimore, this magic man is back home for the next...
No ‘psychological warfare’ necessary in Duquesne-Robert Morris regular season finale
Robert Morris football coach Bernard Clark has no idea if the gameday staff plans to post or announce out-of-town NEC scores at Joe Walton Stadium during his team’s game versus cross-town rival Duquesne on Saturday. “We have a jumbotron. We have the ability to do it,” Clark said. “I’ve never...
Penguins goaltender Arturs Silovs scheduled to face Wild
Pittsburgh Penguins rookie goaltender Arturs Silovs is scheduled to start Friday’s game against the Minnesota Wild at PPG Paints Arena. Coach Dan Muse announced Silovs’ status following an optional morning skate in Cranberry. In 10 games this season, Silovs has a 4-2-4 record, a 2.44 goals-against average, a .918 save...
Mark Madden: The chase replaces the catch for the Pirates
ESPN’s Jeff Passan is one of MLB’s most respected journalists. But most of what he reported about the Pittsburgh Pirates this week is totally full of excrement. Passan knows better. But there’s so little content about a franchise as moribund as the Pirates, so he’ll take what’s leaked. Even if it’s...
First Call: Kaleb Johnson’s carries; George Pickens’ future in Dallas, reasons for his ‘MNF’ punishment
Friday’s “First Call” tries to figure out a way to get more playing time for Kaleb Johnson in the Pittsburgh Steelers’ offensive backfield. George Pickens talks about his future with the Dallas Cowboys, as CeeDee Lamb discusses the reasons for their temporary “Monday Night Football” benchings. We also preview Pitt’s...
Penguins defenseman Jack St. Ivany nearing return
Jack St. Ivany was a long shot to make the Pittsburgh Penguins roster out of training camp. And that shot got even longer when he suffered a suspected right foot injury during a 5-3 preseason road win against the Buffalo Sabres on Oct. 1. A puck struck his skate, and...
Football Footnotes: Constant QB conversation drowning out other interesting Steelers-Bears storylines
Aaron Rodgers’ wrist. Mason Rudolph’s momentum. Rodgers’ record in Chicago versus the Steelers stinking in Soldier Field. These have been the storylines all week in advance of Steelers-Bears in Chicago on Sunday afternoon. But the quarterback-dominated headlines are swallowing up some other significant Steelers talking points. We get to those...
Texans harass Josh Allen, pick up 8 sacks in win over Bills
HOUSTON — Houston’s dominant defense sacked Josh Allen eight times and Calen Bullock forced three turnovers, with his second interception sealing the Texans’ 23-19 win over the Buffalo Bills on Thursday night. Allen took consecutive sacks on the Bills’ final possession, leading to a fourth-and-27, but Buffalo gained 44 yards...
Slow start to 2nd half dooms Pitt in loss to Central Florida
Pitt coach Jeff Capel said earlier this week that the Panthers were getting close to figuring out what kind of basketball team they are. That remark came on the heels of a 34-point beatdown of Bucknell at Petersen Events Center, Pitt’s first game after getting clobbered at West Virginia. The...
Robert Morris men rally but come up short vs. St. Bonaventure
Robert Morris’ bid for a second signature road win in men’s basketball fell short Thursday night in Olean, N.Y., as St. Bonaventure held off the Colonials’ second-half challenge to pull away for a 75-61 victory at Reilly Center. Double-doubles by Frank Mitchell and Cayden Charles powered the unbeaten Bonnies (5-0),...
Pirates avoid arbitration with Jack Suwinski, Yohan Ramierz
Outfielder Jack Suwinski and right-handed reliever Yohan Ramirez were considered candidates to be non-tendered this offseason. Instead, the Pittsburgh Pirates avoided arbitration with both Thursday by signing them to contracts for the 2026 season. Suwinski was projected to make $1.7 million by MLBTradeRumors.com after batting .147/.281/.253 with seven doubles, three...
Finally admitting his weight — 311 pounds — Darnell Washington is making plays for the Steelers
As a 6-foot-7 and a newly confirmed 311 pounds, Pittsburgh Steelers tight end Darnell Washington always has been one of the biggest humans in any game he has played. As such, he, by now, well knows that opponents are expecting him to turn to his size and physicality when he...
Aaron Donald content to leave playing days behind as the Rams prepare to honor him
LOS ANGELES — Aaron Donald’s commitment to pursuing greatness made him a Super Bowl champion, a Los Angeles Rams legend and one of the best defenders in NFL history. Donald has shown the same resolve in retirement, shifting his full focus to family and off-field ventures after stepping away from...
Steelers OC Arthur Smith has ‘trust’ in QB Aaron Rodgers’ decision about starting status for Bears
Aaron Rodgers returned to practice Thursday, but the Pittsburgh Steelers are no closer to resolving the identity of their starting quarterback Sunday than they were a day earlier when the work week started. Wearing a protective covering over his injured left wrist, Rodgers was limited to individual drills in practice....
Alex Highsmith returns to Steelers practice; Jaylen Warren, Ke’Shawn Williams upgraded
Alex Highsmith returned to practice Thursday. The true test won’t come until Friday, however, in regards to his availability for the Pittsburgh Steelers’ upcoming game. “It feels good walking around,” Highsmith said after Thursday’s practice at UPMC Rooney Sports Complex, “but I haven’t tested it in regards to truly getting...
Mariners will retire Randy Johnson’s No. 51 during the 2026 season
SEATTLE — Hall of Fame left-hander Randy Johnson will have his No. 51 retired by the Seattle Mariners during a pregame ceremony on May 2, 2026, the club announced Thursday. In June, the Mariners said Johnson’s No. 51 would become the fifth number retired by the franchise, joining Ken Griffey...
Pitt offense, still ACC’s leader in points per game, aims to bounce back vs. Georgia Tech
When Mason Heintschel walked off of the field at Acrisure Stadium last weekend, he experienced something new as a collegiate athlete. Pitt’s freshman quarterback, for the first time in six games since taking over as starter Oct. 4, lost. Previously, the Panthers (7-3, 5-1 ACC) were 5-0 with him under...
Two more 40-and-over U.S. women are aiming for Olympic medals in Cortina
CORTINA D’AMPEZZO, Italy — Lindsey Vonn won’t be the only 40-and-over American woman aiming for a medal in Cortina during the upcoming Olympics. The U.S. bobsled team boasts 40-year-old Kaillie Humphries Armbruster, who has won three Olympic golds, and Elana Meyers Taylor, a 41-year-old who has collected five Olympic medals....
