First Call: Steelers react to death of Clark Haggans; Pirates try to get right in Miami

Thursday’s “First Call” has some Steelers reaction to the death of Clark Haggans. The Pirates are looking to get back on track against a tough opponent. A painful highlight against the Steelers is a favorite of one of the men who authored it.

Plus, we have Duquesne basketball news, and a unique admission by one of the Steelers’ AFC North rivals.

Remembering a teammate

Various Steelers are taking time to honor former player Clark Haggans. He died in Ft. Collins, Colorado on Tuesday.

Former safety Mike Logan shared a post of rememberance on Facebook. Retired nose tackle Chris Hoke went on 93.7 The Fan and said, “Clark was an amazing football player. But just a great friend, a great person (and) teammate. This is a tough one to swallow.”

Wide receiver Nate Washington sent out a tweet of Haggans holding the Super Bowl XL trophy on the field in Detroit.

????️ #53Forever pic.twitter.com/SFhiNZvXcQ

— Nate Washington (@nwash85) June 21, 2023

Current Steeler Joey Porter Jr. posted an Instagram story stating, “Love you uncle. You will be missed. Rest in paradise.” His father and Haggans were not only teammates with the Steelers, but also at Colorado State.

According to an official release from Larimer County, Haggans was found dead in a private residence in Fort Collins. It says, “the cause and manner of death are pending further investigation and that no foul play is evident.”

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Going fishing

Losers of nine in a row, the Pirates try to turn their fortunes around in Miami. They start a four-game series against the Marlins Thursday. It’s Mitch Keller against Braxton Garrett on the mound. Miami begins the series at 42-33, six games behind the National League East-leading Atlanta Braves.

Meanwhile, the Pirates are suddenly five games out of first place, mired in fourth place of the NL Central thanks to their current slide.

As a pitching staff, the Marlins have been good lately. The club has won five of its last seven, posting just a 2.43 ERA, with a 65-7 strikeout to walk ratio during that span.

Miami also has the fourth best team batting average in the National League at .260. By comparison, the Pirates are 12th at .240. The Marlins are led by Luis Arraez and his .398 batting average, best in Major League Baseball. He has gone 5-for-5 three times already this month. Jorge Soler has 21 home runs, tied for third most in MLB with Matt Olson of the Atlanta Braves.

Hurts to watch

During a recent appearance on the “Slow News Day” podcast, Buffalo Bills quarterback Josh Allen was asked to disclose his favorite play as a passer in his football career.

He picked the 98-yard touchdown bomb to Gabe Davis last year against the Steelers.

Josh Allen's favorite play of all time?

His 98-yard bomb to Gabe Davis vs. the Steelers.????

The Bills QB joined @bykevinclark on 'Slow News Day' and broke down one of his coldest throws. pic.twitter.com/kq3ScMVm1I

— #RingerNFL (@ringernfl) June 21, 2023

Allen started by crediting offensive coordinator Ken Dorsey for having the guts to call that play from the two-yard line, throwing into the wind.

“The steel that he had to be able to call that play there and allow us to execute it,” Allen said. “Then Gabe obviously runs a good route. And (I) throw it and get hit by Minkah Fitzpatrick . But I’m laying there in the end zone and I can see on the big screen Gabe running. And there’s nobody to catch him. So that was a pretty fun one.”

Allen and Davis would hook up for a 62-yard strike later in the game as well, and the Bills went on to roll 38-3.

Iceberg, right ahead!

With all the news going on about the lost submarine near the Titanic wreckage, people are now unearthing a tweet Marlon Humphrey sent out in May. The Baltimore Ravens cornerback claimed to have been unaware until recently that the Titanic was a real ship, and its sinking was a real event.

Not just a movie.

Was today year old when I found out the Titanic was real….that’s wild lowkey

— marlonhumphrey.eth (@marlon_humphrey) May 12, 2023

Humphrey explained his shock upon learning that news during a recent appearance on the “Rich Eisen Show.”

“They should have made that part more clear,” he said. “They’ve got a lot of people growing up, watching it, thinking the Titanic is fake.”

That’s my favorite part of the interview. Apparently it’s not Humphrey’s fault that he knew nothing about this important moment in world history. It’s James Cameron’s fault instead.

Gateway to the west

The Duquesne men’s basketball program is down one assistant coach. Longtime Keith Dambrot assistant Charles Thomas is leaving the school for a rival in the Atlantic 10. He’ll be joining Travis Ford’s staff at St. Louis.

Welcome to Team Blue!

Charles Thomas (@charlesthomas_4) is joining the staff as Assistant Coach ????⚪️#TeamBlue pic.twitter.com/kb8UDad1ev

— Saint Louis Men's Basketball (@SaintLouisMBB) June 21, 2023

Thomas arrived on Duquesne’s campus with Dambrot six years ago. Before that, he was an assistant with Dambrot at Akron for seven seasons.

It’s unclear who will replace Thomas. Other assistant coaches currently on staff for Dambrot are Dru Joyce III, Rick McFadden and Terry Weigand.

Thomas’ twin brother, Carl, also left the Dukes in 2022 to be the head coach at Cleary University.