Jerry DiPaola stories, Page 32

Mt. Lebanon graduate Colby Sorsdal started five seasons and 46 games at William & Mary, but his football career is far from finished. .@WMTribeFootball @colby_sorsdal is a day 3 prospect who wasn’t invited to the combine was has 4 critical components; he has size, he has experience , moves very...

Aaron Rodgers has moved on, and Sean Clifford is moving in after the Green Bay Packers drafted the former Penn State quarterback in the fifth round of the NFL Draft on Saturday. Clifford was the 149th player chosen overall. Clifford was Penn State’s starting quarterback for the past four seasons,...

Unless your last name is Manning, college players can’t manipulate the NFL Draft to land in a desired spot. Former Pitt linebacker SirVocea Dennis’ professional fate rested with the 32 NFL teams, but ending up in Tampa, Fla., with the Buccaneers on Saturday surely looked like a predestined event. Dennis,...

After Izzy Abanikanda worked out for pro scouts inside Pitt’s indoor practice facility last month, he was asked what he wanted the NFL to know about him. “I want them to know I’m a dedicated, disciplined, humble man, on and off the field,” he said. But he added, without shame,...

Carter Warren’s loyalty, sadly, was not rewarded after he decided — with his teammates on Pitt’s offensive line — to return for a sixth season in 2022. After eschewing an invitation to the 2023 Senior Bowl, Warren played and started in only the first four games before suffering a season-ending...

When a safety gets his hands on the football as often as Ji’Ayir Brown did for Penn State, the NFL is sure to notice. The San Francisco 49ers made the investment in Brown on Friday night when they drafted him in the third round. It was the 87th pick overall...

As a child, Frederick Henry Scruggs refused to drink his milk, insisting to be served juice. So his father, Frederick, named him Juicy, a label that morphed into Juice in middle school, stuck through his days at Cathedral Prep High School in Erie and later at Penn State. Which was...

Tight end Brenton Strange, who was a favorite end zone target of Penn State quarterbacks over the past four seasons, was chosen by the Jacksonville Jaguars on Friday night in the second round of the NFL Draft. He was the 61st player chosen overall. Strange was the sixth tight end...

Casey Jo MacPherson’s competitive mindset first surfaced on her preschool playground in Eugene, Ore. Pitt’s new gymnastics coach was so young at the time, her parents had to relate the story to her. “When I was really little, my parents told me about (how) I was at preschool, and I...

When Calijah Kancey was chosen 19th overall by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on Thursday night, Pitt could boast of first-round choices in consecutive drafts for the first time in 15 years. Kancey joins quarterback Kenny Pickett who went 20th overall to the Pittsburgh Steelers in 2022. Defensive back Darrelle Revis...

At the moment, the space that will house Pitt’s $240 million Victory Heights Arena and Sports Performance Complex is occupied by a tall crane and several construction vehicles moving tons of dirt. But athletic director Heather Lyke sees the facility that will rise from that dirt setting Pitt up for...

When Jeff Capel was an assistant coach at Duke in 2014, he accompanied the team to the Petersen Events Center for a game against Pitt. He walked onto the floor to carry out his duties, but that was only part of what he wanted to accomplish that night. He also...

Dick Groat, who died Thursday of complications from a stroke at the age of 92, played baseball and basketball with equal flair. • Baseball MVP, two-time World Series champion and 14-year MLB pro with the Pittsburgh Pirates and St. Louis Cardinals. • Star basketball player at Duke, college Hall of...

New Penn State coach Mike Rhoades landed a significant addition from the NCAA transfer portal Wednesday when former Moon star Puff Johnson announced plans to enroll this year. Let’s Rock #WeAre pic.twitter.com/Af2bpiMfEv— Puff Johnson (@PuffJohnson14) April 26, 2023 Johnson, who led Moon to a PIAA championship in 2019, is transferring...

In what appears to be another busy offseason, Duquesne coach Keith Dambrot recently turned his roster retooling efforts toward point guard Kailon Nicholls, a rising freshman, and 6-foot-7 forward Andrei Savrasov, a transfer from Georgia Southern. Both have made verbal, non-binding commitments to the Dukes, according to reports. Nicholls, a...

From Hank Poteat in 2000 to Damarri Mathis last year, the names of 57 Pitt players were called in 21 of the past 23 NFL drafts. The exceptions: 2012 and 2013 when Pitt’s recruiting and player development were set back by the loss of two head coaches – Dave Wannstedt...

Roger Kingdom spoke to Herb Douglas only a week ago. Thinking about their final chat, Kingdom was saddened like so many others when he heard Herbert P. Douglas Jr., the oldest living U.S. Olympic medalist, died Saturday at the age of 101. Pitt Icon Herb Douglas, the oldest living US...

Former USC and Texas tight end Malcolm Epps, who appeared last year on the John Mackey Award watch list, decided to transfer to Pitt, according to a post on his Instagram account. View this post on Instagram A post shared by Malcolm Epps (@_itsepps) Epps (6-foot-6, 250 pounds) has 37...

Casey Jo MacPherson, who has served since 2011 as an assistant coach at Missouri, Western Michigan and Arkansas, has been named the fourth head coach in Pitt gymnastics history. She replaces Samantha Snider, who was relieved of her duties April 3. Athletic director Heather Lyke said in a statement that...

Zack Austin became the second of two transfers to sign with Pitt this offseason, leaving coach Jeff Capel with two scholarships available for the 2023-24 season. Capel announced the signing Friday after Austin had revealed his decision to transfer to Pitt on April 11. Austin, a 6-foot-7 wing forward with...

Pitt is faced with the possibility of losing junior forward Blake Hinson, who has decided to test the 2023 NBA Draft process while retaining his collegiate eligibility. Pitt officials made the announcement Friday morning. Hinson could remove his name from draft consideration and return to Pitt. The deadline to decide...

Pitt will try to end West Virginia’s six-game winning streak in the basketball version of the Backyard Brawl when the Panthers travel to Morgantown, W.Va., on Dec. 6 for the 190th meeting between the two rival schools. The game will mark the first time since 2012 that Pitt and West...

Pitt coach Jeff Capel made his biggest move of the offseason official Thursday morning when he said former Rhode Island combo guard Ishmael Leggett has signed and submitted the paperwork necessary to enroll this year. Leggett announced Monday on his Twitter account that he had verbally committed to the Panthers....

Center John Hugley, who was Pitt’s leading scorer and rebounder during the 2021-22 season, will transfer to Oklahoma, on3.com reported. NEWS: Pitt transfer John Hugley has committed to Oklahoma, he tells @On3sports. Story w/ quotes: pic.twitter.com/7DfSv7sZ3F— Joe Tipton (@TiptonEdits) April 20, 2023 “I chose Oklahoma because it just felt...

The Pittsburgh Pirates concluded a 5-2 road trip through St. Louis and Denver on Wednesday with their second 14-3 victory of the three-game series sweep of the Colorado Rockies. Admittedly, it’s too early to make any definitive evaluations, but some surface differences have emerged between the 12-7 Pirates of 2023...