Big East Commissioner Val Ackerman will retire in August, ending a transformative era
NEW YORK — Big East Commissioner Val Ackerman will retire at the end of August, the conference announced Monday. Ackerman, 66, has served in that role since 2013, presiding over the rebirth of the conference following the decision a year earlier for the Big East to split. Ackerman led the...
Penguins forward Justin Brazeau vows to be ready while a healthy scratch
Perhaps few people represent the surprising nature of the Pittsburgh Penguins’ success this season better than Justin Brazeau. The burly power forward scored the team’s first goal of 2025-26 during a season-opening 3-0 road win against the New York Rangers while setting career highs in goals (17) and points (34)...
Former Pitt tailback Desmond Reid hopes speed, route running, special teams skills propel him into NFL
The last eight months have been a frustrating time for Desmond Reid. This past fall, playing in his final collegiate season with Pitt, Reid dealt with a nagging ankle injury that cost him nearly half the season and persisted well into 2026, impacting critical pre-NFL Draft workouts and preparation. In...
Penguins goaltender Stuart Skinner scheduled to start Game 2 against Flyers
Pittsburgh Penguins goaltender Stuart Skinner is scheduled to start Game 2 of his team’s first-round playoff series against the rival Philadelphia Flyers at PPG Paints Arena on Monday. Coach Dan Muse announced Skinner’s status following an optional morning skate in Cranberry. During Game 1, Skinner made 17 saves on 20...
NFL Draft HQ 2026: Who the Steelers might pick, position breakdowns, mock drafts and more
Pittsburgh will be the center of the football universe when the NFL Draft takes place on the city’s North Shore this week. The first round is set for Thursday, with rounds 2-3 on Friday and rounds 4-7 on Saturday. The 2026 NFL Draft kicks off at 8 p.m. Thursday and...
First Call: How Steelers could deal with Broderick Jones’ ‘setback’; Will Howard to get QB1 reps if Aaron Rodgers doesn’t signVideo
After a busy weekend, we wrap up a lot of what’s going on in Monday’s “First Call.” Broderick Jones might be dealing with a neck setback. Art Rooney II spoke about the prospect of drafting a quarterback. We also discuss the crowded National League Central, check in on a former...
Steelers LT Broderick Jones ‘limited’ at minicamp, ‘nothing’s changed’ in neck injury recovery
The Pittsburgh Steelers opened up their voluntary minicamp Monday with starting left tackle Broderick Jones on hand and participating — to a degree. Jones did not play in the final six games last season after he suffered a neck injury, one from which he has not yet recovered fully. “Obviously,...
Tim Benz: As Acrisure Stadium hosts NFL Draft week, here are the top 25 Steelers picks since the building opened
The Pittsburgh Steelers have drafted 25 rookie classes since Acrisure Stadium replaced Three Rivers Stadium in 2001. Last week at “Breakfast With Benz,” we tried to determine the best player from each of those draft classes. With draft week upon us at Acrisure, we conclude our retrospective by ranking the...
Joe Starkey: Everything you ever (and maybe never) wanted to know about the 21st pick of the NFL Draft
Maybe you don’t think about the number “21” outside of reflecting on Roberto Clemente. Neither did I until a few weeks ago. Turns out there’s a ton of 21 out there. All you have to do is look. For starters, we are living in the 21st century, which is either...
Madden Monday: About the Pens-Flyers Game 1 — ‘If we want to point fingers, I don’t have enough hands’
Not only did the Pittsburgh Penguins lose their 2026 playoff opener to the Philadelphia Flyers on Saturday night at PPG Paints Arena, they also did so in concerning fashion. The team managed just 17 shots on goal during the 3-2 loss. The power play was feckless on both of its...
For Pirates, it will be ‘weird’ to see Andrew McCutchen wearing a Rangers uniform
The Pittsburgh Pirates are preparing to see a familiar face this week, even though they admit that it will be unusual for Andrew McCutchen to be wearing a different uniform and even a new number. After spending 12 of his first 17 seasons with the Pirates, including the past three,...
NBA playoffs roundup: Shae Gilgeous-Alexander, Thunder trounce Suns in Game 1
OKLAHOMA CITY — Shai Gilgeous-Alexander scored 25 points, and the Oklahoma City Thunder began their title defense with a 119-84 rout of the Phoenix Suns in Game 1 of their first-round Western Conference playoff series on Sunday. The reigning league MVP made just 5 of 18 field goals but went...
Minor league report: Nailers’ opening round schedule against Royals announced
The ECHL released the schedule for the opening round of the Kelly Cup playoffs on Sunday. Having won the North Division, the Wheeling Nailers will face the Reading Royals. The schedule for that best-of-seven series: April 24 – Royals at Nailers, 7:10 p.m. April 25 – Royals at Nailers, 7:10...
Matt Fitzpatrick delivers another playoff winner to beat Scottie Scheffler at RBC Heritage
HILTON HEAD ISLAND, S.C. — Matt Fitzpatrick was in a playoff at Harbour Town against an American favorite Sunday, facing a large and noisy gallery cheering and chanting for his opponent — Scottie Scheffler this time, the No. 1 player in the world. It was practically a repeat from three...
NHL playoffs roundup: Sabres score 4 3rd-period goals to beat Bruins in Game 1
BUFFALO, N.Y. — Mattias Samuelson scored with 3 minutes, 24 seconds left, and Buffalo overcame a two-goal deficit in the final eight minutes to beat the Boston Bruins, 4-3, on Sunday night in the Sabres’ first playoff game in 15 years. Tage Thompson scored two goals 3:42 apart to tie...
A crowd scientist is helping the Boston Marathon manage a growing field of 30,000-plus runners
BOSTON — Running the Boston Marathon is tough enough without having to jostle your way from Hopkinton to Copley Square. So race organizers this year turned to an expert in crowd science to help them manage the field of more than 32,000 as it travels the 26.2 miles through eight...
Francisco Lindor defends manager Carlos Mendoza after Mets drop 11th straight game
CHICAGO — The losses are piling up for the New York Mets, and Francisco Lindor thinks the criticism surrounding the team is about to get very loud. It’s already pretty noisy. New York dropped its 11th consecutive game when closer Devin Williams blew a ninth-inning lead in a 2-1 loss...
Pirates farm report for April 19, 2026: Edgleen Perez’s 9th-inning double lifts Bradenton to victory
INDIANAPOLIS (Triple A, 6-15) lost 4-2 to Omaha (Royals). 1B Nick Cimillo (.161) had an RBI double. C Rafael Flores Jr. (.208) was 1 for 4 with a double. LF Tyler Callihan (.253) went 2 for 4. CF Ronny Simon (.348) was 2 for 3 with a walk. DH Endy...
Cup of Joe (Starkey): Flyers looked like 2016 Penguins in Game 1, as Rick Tocchet outcoached Dan Muse. Time to simplify
Cup of Joe: Starkey on sports in 400 words or less (sometimes more) It’s one thing to move Evgeni Malkin to the wing. It’s quite another to move him to defense — yet that is where Malkin found himself too many times in the Penguins’ Game 1 loss to the...
Tyler Reddick passes Kyle Larson on the final lap of OT to win NASCAR Cup Series race at KansasVideo
KANSAS CITY, Kan. — NASCAR driver Tyler Reddick is riding the kind of Cup Series hot streak that Michael Jordan once enjoyed in his playing days. Oh, you can bet the NBA Hall of Famer is enjoying this one, too. Reddick roared by Kyle Larson on the final lap of...
Pirates get strong 7-inning start from Mitch Keller to save bullpen, beat Rays for series win
The Pittsburgh Pirates followed one of their longest games with one that was short and sweet, thanks to a strong start by Mitch Keller. With the bullpen needing relief, the veteran right-hander went above and beyond. Keller held the Tampa Bay Rays to two runs over seven innings and had...
Penguins rookie Ben Kindel continues to show maturity and a physical nature as a teenagerVideo
Ben Kindel wasn’t planning any kind of grand celebration for his 19th birthday Sunday. After all, he has to get to work on Monday as an employee of the Pittsburgh Penguins. “Obviously, a big game tomorrow,” the rookie third-line center said. “Probably keep it pretty chill.” Kindel and the Penguins...
Penguins aim to better handle Flyers’ physicality, intensity in Game 2Video
The tone for the remainder of the first-round showdown between the Pittsburgh Penguins and Philadelphia Flyers has been set. The physicality, feistiness and excess of after-the-whistle confrontations between the two rivals that dominated Game 1 on Saturday appear likely to continue. After the Penguins’ 3-2 series-opening loss at PPG Paints...
NFL Draft top prospect profile: Zion Young, Missouri DE
TribLive is highlighting the top prospects leading up to the 2026 NFL Draft in Pittsburgh. The three-day event is April 23-25. Zion Young Position: Defensive end Height/weight: 6-foot-5¾/262 pounds College: Missouri Young has the size and strength to be an edge-setter along with rushing the passer. The 22-year-old senior led...
Bengals get star defensive tackle Dexter Lawrence from Giants for 10th pick and extend him
The Cincinnati Bengals acquired three-time Pro Bowl defensive tackle Dexter Lawrence from the New York Giants for the 10th pick in the upcoming NFL draft. The teams announced the deal Sunday after agreeing to it Saturday night pending a physical. Cincinnati then signed Lawrence to an extension that pays him...
