First Call: Steelers could have kryptonite for Dillon Gabriel's 'superpower'; horrible night for Philly sports

Friday’s “First Call” examines a potential tactical advantage for the Pittsburgh Steelers’ defense against Browns quarterback Dillon Gabriel.

Tyler Glasnow’s start may be forgotten given how that Dodgers-Phillies game ended Thursday night, but it sure was a good one.

And a Penn State hockey player had a four-goal night — but it wasn’t Gavin McKenna.

Among the trees

On Tuesday, Steelers coach Mike Tomlin described Dillon Gabriel’s ability to process as his “superpower.”

That’s lofty praise for a rookie quarterback.

A superpower that the Steelers’ defense has illustrated in the past has been its knack to deflect passes at the line of scrimmage. Cameron Heyward and T.J. Watt are particularly good at that skill. Rookies Derrick Harmon and Yahya Black have shown an aptitude for it as well.

Gabriel is just 5-foot-11. So one might think he’d be a candidate to get a pass or two batted down Sunday. But defensive coordinator Teryl Austin says that isn’t necessarily the case.

“If you are a quarterback who’s not as tall as the prototype, if you’re at this level, you’ve learned how to throw and find the windows and get the ball to the open people. We don’t put a whole lot on height. We do that with anybody. Any quarterback, we’re trying to get balls.” Austin said.

It’s Austin’s belief that if Gabriel managed to avoid that problem at Oregon to the degree that he guided the Ducks to a Big Ten championship last year, he must have ways to overcome his lack of size.

“If you’re a quarterback at this level, most of the time you’re able to slide and find windows and throw the ball. I think he’s done that,” Austin added. “He is a prolific guy in terms of touchdowns to interceptions, number of yards. He’s done a good job of navigating wherever he’s been. I don’t think it would be any different here. It’s just our job to try to make it miserable.”

In his first game as a starter in England last week, Gabriel managed to complete 19 of 33 passes. However, plays like this one from Jalen Redmond will be what Watt, Heyward and company will be attempting to replicate.

Jalen Redmond tipped pass pic.twitter.com/yw3nnDjWLl

— Sean Borman (@SeanBormanNFL) October 5, 2025

To Austin’s point, though, Gabriel managed to avoid any interceptions, threw two touchdowns and finished with a passer rating of 94.0 in his first start.

Best effort

A day after Jameson Taillon and the Chicago Cubs beat Quinn Priester and the Milwaukee Brewers in the National League playoffs, another former Pirates pitcher got a crucial start in the other N.L. Divisional Series.

Tyler Glasnow was on the hill for the Los Angeles Dodgers against the Philadelphia Phillies in Game 4 of that best-of-five. The Dodgers were looking to close it out at home and move on to the National League Championship Series.

Glasnow did his part, striking out eight Phillies over six innings of shutout baseball. But the game went to the 11th inning tied 1-1 before it was decided on a throwing error by Philadelphia pitcher Orion Kerkering.

THE @DODGERS WALK IT OFF AND ARE #NLCS BOUND! pic.twitter.com/7GKwsscWkZ

— MLB (@MLB) October 10, 2025

As for that Cubs-Brewers series, in Game 4 at Wrigley Field on Thursday night, Chicago won 6-0 to force a decisive Game 5 on Saturday in Milwaukee. The winner gets the Dodgers in the next round. Mt. Lebanon’s Ian Happ homered for Chicago.

IAN HAPP STARTS THE GAME WITH A BANG ????

CUBS LEAD 3-0! pic.twitter.com/Dj0Fq10ot6

— MLB (@MLB) October 10, 2025

By the way, it was a tough night for our friends down the turnpike. Not only did the Phillies get eliminated, but the Eagles lost to the New York Giants, 34-17, on “Thursday Night Football,” and the Flyers lost 2-1 to the Florida Panthers.

‘Odds’ and ends

We’ll start with Pitt as we take a look at the odds board in local college football for Saturday’s games. We’ll use ESPNBet numbers for these lines.

• The Panthers are 9½ point underdogs at Florida State. Both clubs are 3-2. The Seminoles are ranked No. 25 in the country. They opened the season by beating Alabama, but are coming off back-to-back conference losses to Virginia and Miami. Kickoff in Tallahassee is at noon. This will be the second start for Pitt’s Mason Heintschel after the freshman quarterback’s stellar debut last weekend against Boston College.

• Penn State is a 21½ point favorite at home against Northwestern. That’s a 3:30 p.m. kickoff. Both teams are 3-2. Penn State needs to control the ball better in this game. Via ESPN, the Nittany Lions are 125th in the FBS with an average time of possession of 26:54, compared to Northwestern’s 14th-ranked average of 32:59.

• West Virginia has lost three in a row and is idle before tackling UCF on the road next weekend.

On the FCS level, the 3-3 Duquesne Dukes have a homecoming game at 1 p.m. vs. 0-5 Saint Francis. This is the last year in the NEC for the Red Flash before they drop to Division III. Duquesne owns a 40-10 record over Saint Francis in their all-time series.

It’s also homecoming for Robert Morris at 2 p.m. The Colonials come in at 1-4 for their NEC opener against Central Connecticut State (3-3, 1-0). The Blue Devils beat RMU in New Britain last year, 35-33 in double overtime, in what may have been the NEC’s game of the year.

More sports

• 'There's a blend there': Penguins mix of youth and veterans showing instant success, not just symbolism
• Penguins debut new yellow jerseys in home opener
• Steelers DC Teryl Austin: OLB Nick Herbig ‘has earned the right to be on the field more’

Happy Valley highlight

Penn State hockey phenom Gavin McKenna made his home debut against Clarkson on Thursday night. But it wasn’t McKenna who was the star of the game.

The presumptive No. 1 NHL draft pick next summer had two assists, but JJ Wiebusch had four goals.

It's just roller hockey for the beauty at this point!! ????‍♂️????‍♂️#WeAre #HockeyValley pic.twitter.com/6gLLartaco

— Penn State Men’s Hockey (@PennStateMHKY) October 9, 2025

Unfortunately for the folks at Pegula Ice Arena, nobody else scored for PSU, and they blew a 4-2 lead to fall 6-4. The teams will rematch Friday.

As for the Robert Morris men’s hockey team, their regular season begins next week at Michigan. The women are at home for a weekend series against RIT. Both clubs are 2-2 to begin the season. This will be the first Atlantic Hockey America series for both teams.

Listen: Tim Benz and Rotowire’s Jef Erickson host their weekly podcast