Sports category, Page 1114
Big 12 targeting 9-game schedule without divisions for 2023, 2024 seasons
DALLAS — The Big 12′s new look for 2023 will also include a refreshed schedule format. The conference is targeting a nine-game football schedule without divisions for next year and 2024, when the Big 12 will expand to 14 schools. A conference source with knowledge of the scheduling discussions confirmed...
Source: Tom Brady fined for attempted kick of Grady Jarrett
Tom Brady was fined by the NFL on Friday for trying to kick the Atlanta Falcons’ Grady Jarrett following the play in which the defensive tackle was flagged for a disputed roughing-the-passer penalty, a person familiar with the matter told the Associated Press. The Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback was fined...
No mere ‘Meatball’ – Connor Heyward expected to take on bigger role in Steelers offense
Connor Heyward is one of two literal little brothers among the Pittsburgh Steelers, so perhaps it’s no surprise he also is filling a “kid brother” role in his position room. As such, Heyward’s brush with rookie hazing came in the form of a not-entirely flattering nickname bestowed upon him by...
Penguins forward Kasperi Kapanen looks to build on early offensive outputVideo
With his goal late in the third period of Thursday’s season opener, Pittsburgh Penguins forward Kasperi Kapanen could breathe easier. He beat Arizona Coyotes netminder Karel Vejmelka to finish a two-on-one break for the final goal in a 6-2 victory for the Penguins. It was the first time in his...
NASCAR playoffs round of 8 begins, focus back on the track
LAS VEGAS — There has been a NASCAR reset, on the track at least, with the third round of the playoffs beginning Sunday at Las Vegas Motor Speedway and a new Cup champion set to be crowned after four races. Kyle Larson was knocked out of contention for consecutive championships...
LeBron James closing in on Kareem Abdul-Jabbar’s NBA scoring record
It was Oct. 29, 2003. LeBron James played his first NBA game. The Cleveland Cavaliers lost to the Sacramento Kings, and James scored 25 points. That night, there were 2,708 names ahead of him on the NBA’s all-time scoring list. He’s caught 2,707 of them. Only one person remains ahead...
Bruce Sutter, Hall of Famer and Cy Young winner, dies at 69
Bruce Sutter, a Hall of Fame reliever and the 1979 Cy Young winner, has died. He was 69. Sutter was recently diagnosed with cancer and died Thursday night in hospice, surrounded by his family, one of Sutter’s three sons, Chad, told The Associated Press. The Baseball Hall of Fame said...
New defensemen Jeff Petry, Jan Rutta are already paying dividends for the Penguins
By most measures, the Penguins had a strong offseason, particularly in trying to retool their blue line with the additions of veteran defensemen Jeff Petry and Jan Rutta. The Penguins drew mostly strong reviews for those transactions, aimed at improving their play around their net. Perhaps the strongest endorsement came...
Steelers will be without 4 starting defensive backs, plus DL DeMarvin Leal vs. Bucs
The consensus greatest quarterback of all time is coming to Pittsburgh. And the Steelers will have to face him without four of their five top defensive backs. Safety Minkah Fitzpatrick and cornerbacks Ahkello Witherspoon, Cameron Sutton and Levi Wallace all were announced as out for Sunday’s home game against Tom...
Despite 100-loss season, Pirates GM calls manager Derek Shelton ‘an incredible partner’Video
When Ben Cherington addressed another 100-loss season by the Pittsburgh Pirates, the third-year general manager didn’t make any promises about future payroll or player acquisitions. What Cherington did make clear is he remains in lockstep with manager Derek Shelton, saying he “loved working with” the coaching staff, and the only...
Isaiahh Loudermilk preps to make Steelers 2022 debut Sunday
By all indications, the Pittsburgh Steelers were generally pleased with Isaiahh Loudermilk’s rookie season. A defensive lineman for whom the Steelers aggressively traded up for in fifth round of the 2021 draft, Loudermilk appeared in 15 games, made two starts and seemed to make his presence felt over the 288...
Steelers RB Najee Harris has been playing with steel plate in his shoe
When it comes to limiting a power running back, you’ve heard of the Steel Curtain. But what about a steel plate? Pittsburgh Steelers featured back Najee Harris played the first five games of the season with one of those in his left foot, Harris said Friday. Harris suffered a foot...
Mark Madden: Steelers need to set parameters for Mike Tomlin, limit his power with personnel
The Pittsburgh Steelers are 1-4. It’s a bad team, and the organization seems broken. There’s no foolproof way to fix it, and the timetable is hardly immediate. But I’ve got a plan. It’s based on the assumption that coach Mike Tomlin has usurped almost all the franchise’s power when it...
Friday Football Footnotes: Steelers must address plenty of specific areas if they are to hang with Tom Brady, Bucs
The Pittsburgh Steelers are eight-point underdogs to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers at home. That’s not something this fanbase is used to seeing. But they are used to seeing Tom Brady shred the Steelers defense. And that’s usually when the defense has been good. Without T.J. Watt, this year’s Steelers defense...
Tim Benz: Penguins put early season advantages on display in season opener
If this version of the Pittsburgh Penguins wants to be what it thinks it can be, then it needs to do a lot more of what it did in Thursday night’s 2022-23 regular-season opener. Wait. Save it. I’ll fill in your response here. “Oh really, Tim? You mean, beat a...
30 years after Sid Bream’s slide, the Pirates still can’t escape the fallout
More than anything, John Wehner remembers a sound in the locker room. The Pittsburgh-born Pirates infielder was part of the team that lost Game 7 of the 1992 National League Championship Series, 3-2. “It’s dead silent except for the clubhouse guys. Out of breath. Heavy breathing,” Wehner said. The clubhouse...
5 things to watch in Week 7 of high school football
Football coaches will always say Week 7 isn’t the time for nonconference games, since the playoffs are less than a month away and nobody wants to get hurt now in a “meaningless” game. That aside, this week’s schedule has a few attractive matchups that might be meaningless in the standings,...
Brian Robinson’s 1st touchdown lifts Commanders past Bears
CHICAGO — Brian Robinson scored plenty of touchdowns during his stellar career at Alabama. The rookie’s first as a pro came at a big moment. Christian Holmes recovered a muffed punt by Velus Jones deep in Chicago territory to set up a 1-yard touchdown by Robinson midway through the fourth...
Mathis runs for 163, Legg’s FG lifts WVU over Baylor 43-40Video
MORGANTOWN, W.Va. — Tony Mathis rushed for a career-high 163 yards and two touchdowns, and Casey Legg kicked a 22-yard field goal with 33 seconds left to lift West Virginia to a 43-40 victory over Baylor on Thursday night. Mathis came up big in the absence of West Virginia’s leading...
Penguins beat Coyotes in season-opener as Sidney Crosby collects 3 points
In a career that never ceases to register a new milestone or achievement, Sidney Crosby reached another marker that carries significance unlike any other Thursday. For Crosby or for anyone else in a Pittsburgh Penguins jersey. Stepping onto the ice of PPG Paints Arena, Crosby began his 18th campaign with...
Fans celebrate return of ‘Big 3,’ long for more playoff success as Penguins open season
When they took the ice Thursday night at PPG Paints Arena for the Penguins’ 2022-23 season opener, Sidney Crosby, Evgeni Malkin and Kris Letang made history. This season begins the 17th consecutive that Crosby, Malkin and Letang have played together in Pittsburgh, tying Derek Jeter, Mariano Rivera and Jorge Posada...
Once part of the Steelers future, then forgotten, CB James Pierre getting another shot
A year ago this week, James Pierre was basking in the glow of a game-clinching interception during a game in which he was an every-down outside cornerback. It would have been easy to imagine then that, a year later, Pierre would be preparing to play a significant role in a...
Penguins forward Teddy Blueger misses season opener due to injury
Forward Teddy Blueger was absent from the Penguins’ lineup for their season-opening game Thursday against the Arizona Coyotes at PPG Paints Arena. An undisclosed injury has hobbled Blueger, typically the Penguins’ fourth-line center, since he was injured during a practice session in Cranberry on Sept. 28. Since then, he has...
Activation of Steelers WR Calvin Austin ‘possible,’ but ‘he’s a little rusty’
Speedy rookie Calvin Austin III could be worth a shot to help jumpstart the Pittsburgh Steelers’ ailing offense. But with two additional weeks remaining before he must be activated off the injured reserve list, Austin’s NFL debut isn’t necessarily coming Sunday. “It’s still possible,” offensive coordinator Matt Canada said Thursday....
Heinz History Center unveils plans to honor Immaculate Reception 50th anniversary
The Immaculate Reception has been called the greatest play in NFL history and it turns 50 on Dec. 23. Thursday morning, the Western Pennsylvania Sports Museum, part of Pittsburgh’s Senator John Heinz History Center, announced plans for celebrating that 50th anniversary. Starting on Nov. 9, Sports Museum officials said the...
