Sports category, Page 2274
Pitt releases first depth chart, but expect it to change
The first point to be made about Pitt’s first training camp depth chart is that it will change. Many times, and often for reasons only a coach could understand. Someone was late for breakfast. Someone else couldn’t answer a question during video study. Someone complained about the heat. But the...
Early game vs. Syracuse looms large for defending national champ Clemson
CHARLOTTE, N.C. — The biggest obstacle standing between Clemson and a fifth straight ACC championship might be an early season Sept. 14 matchup at Syracuse. Clemson largely has breezed through the conference schedule over the last four seasons, going 34-2 while winning four straight ACC titles and two national championships....
Local boy Graeme McDowell hopes to fulfill dream of winning Open at Portrush
PORTRUSH, Northern Ireland — Inside the entrance to Rathmore Golf Club, just past a sign offering umbrellas for sale on a rainy day, sits a replica of the U.S. Open trophy the club’s favorite son won at Pebble Beach in 2010. A large painting of Graeme McDowell hangs next to...
Rory McIlroy center of attention at British Open
PORTRUSH, Northern Ireland — On the final day of practice for the final major of the year, Rory McIlroy ripped a shot out of the light rough and began walking toward the green when he stopped in the middle of the fairway for a quick interview with Sky Sports. That’s...
AP: Ron Francis nears deal as GM of Seattle’s NHL expansion team
SEATTLE — Seattle’s NHL expansion team is close to an agreement with Hockey Hall of Famer Ron Francis to become its first general manager, a person with direct knowledge told the Associated Press. The person spoke on condition of anonymity Tuesday night because the team had not made an announcement....
Paul Goldschmidt’s homer sends Pirates to 5th loss in 6 games
ST. LOUIS — Paul Goldschmidt was looking for a single. He ended up getting a whole lot more. And it was more than the Pittsburgh Pirates could overcome. Goldschmidt hit a go-ahead, three-run homer off Michael Feliz in the seventh inning, and the St. Louis Cardinals beat the Pirates, 6-5...
Versatile Tyson Alualu unsung contributor to Steelers’ defensive line
Years of watching Dick LeBeau’s successful 3-4 defense have conditioned many Pittsburgh Steelers fans to expect a certain kind of player to handle defensive end duties. They expect a 300-pound mountain of a man who doesn’t necessarily make flashy plays but is powerful enough to occupy blockers so the linebackers...
Former Sooner Beau Titsworth sets course record during 116th WPGA Open Championship
Just like the weather throughout the day, the golfers who were competing at the 116th WPGA Open Championship at Valley Brook Country Club on Wednesday experienced a series of peaks and valleys. Well, most of them. From the start of the day, former Oklahoma Sooner and Pittsburgh transplant Beau Titsworth...
Former Auburn assistant basketball coach Chuck Person avoids prison
NEW YORK — Former Auburn University assistant basketball coach and NBA star Chuck Person’s lifelong generosity may have driven him to the poorhouse, but it saved him from the jailhouse Wednesday when a judge sentenced him in a bribery scandal that touched some of the biggest college basketball programs. U.S....
Pennsylvania ranked 7th-best state for high school football
High School Football America released its rankings for the top 10 states for high school football Wednesday, and Pennsylvania came in at No. 7. This list will create some debate. We used our algorithm to breakdown the Top 10 states in the nation, coming into the 2019 season. The list...
Penguins Prediction Rewind: Bryan Rust landed in prime spot on top line
Last summer, beat writer Jonathan Bombulie made a series of predictions leading up to the start of the 2018-19 season. Some were OK. Some of them were hilariously off the mark. In this series, Bombulie will explain what he was thinking and where his logic went off course. THE QUESTION...
Who’s next to follow Teddy Blueger’s long road to Penguins lineup?
When the Pittsburgh Penguins re-signed Teddy Blueger to a two-year contract on Tuesday, assistant general manager Bill Guerin praised the 24-year-old center’s ability to “trust the process of going through the proper steps to get to the NHL.” A look at Blueger’s career path to date shows Guerin wasn’t kidding....
Penn State picked to finish 4th in Big Ten East
Penn State was picked to finish fourth in the Big Ten East behind Michigan, Ohio State and Michigan State in a preseason poll conducted by Cleveland.com. A total of 34 media members who cover the Big Ten participated in the poll. Michigan was the choice of 20 voters to win...
First Call: 1 Steeler loves his ‘Madden’ rating; Penguins legend Ron Francis gets new gig
In Wednesday’s “First Call,” at least one Steeler is happy with his EA Sports “Madden NFL 20” ranking. Brooks Koepka is big-timing Tiger Woods. And a new gig for a Penguins legend. Madden madness The EA Sports ratings are out for this year’s “Madden NFL 20” video game. And everybody...
Documentary highlights Team Israel’s journey to 2017 World Baseball Classic
From Tel Aviv to Jerusalem to Seoul, South Korea, Team Israel made history in 2017 by qualifying for the World Baseball Classic for the first time in its nation’s history. The team’s underdog journey to the world stage inspired the making of a documentary “Heading Home, the Tale of Team...
British Open preview: Possible challenge for Koepka; McIlroy’s homeland pressure; Tiger lays low
As is always the case when we get ready for a major golf championship, Brian Taylor of Real Golf Radio joins us on the Breakfast With Benz podcast. Brian comes on to speak with us about the British Open at Royal Portrush in Northern Ireland. Among the topics we outline:...
Steelers 2-a-days, plus 1: Tegray Scales, Christian Scotland-Williamson, Conor Sheehy
Editor’s note: From now until the first practice of training camp at Saint Vincent, the Trib will be running through the Pittsburgh Steelers’ 90-man roster, assessing each player’s outlook for the 2019 season. The breakdown will go through the roster in mostly alphabetical order, (at least) two per day, between...
Tim Benz: Can Penguins coach Mike Sullivan be empowered by his contract extension?
It’s our final “money quote” post, looking at the interview Trib columnist Mark Madden conducted with Pittsburgh Penguins head coach Mike Sullivan on 105.9 the X last week. Here, we examine Sullivan’s recent contract extension. Empowering the head coach rarely has been a priority for the Penguins. That’s not to...
Tim Benz: Pirates better off ‘living in the past’ than the present
If current Pittsburgh Pirates players are upset about their organization living in the past, I have an idea to fix that. Do something worth remembering in the present! A recent report stated some Pirates players asked management to stop showing a promotional video that was geared around them watching Willie...
Former Pitt-Greensburg coaches Strickland, Williams, land head coaching jobs elsewhere
A pair of former Pitt-Greensburg coaches landed lead positions at new programs. Sean Strickland, who led the UPG men’s basketball team for seven years before a two-year stint as women’s associate head coach at Penn State Beaver, is the new associate head coach of the women’s program at Muskingum in...
Pirates score twice in the ninth, beat Cardinals 3-1
ST. LOUIS — Colin Moran wanted to hit the ball hard, and in the air, with two on in the ninth inning of a tied game. He didn’t, but it turned out well anyway. Moran drove in the go-ahead run with an infield single and the Pittsburgh Pirates scored twice...
Pirates farm report for July 16, 2019
INDIANAPOLIS (Triple-A, 47-46) was too late for this edition. RHP Eduardo Vera (5-7, 6.27) is expected to start for the Indians on Wednesday night. Next: Wednesday vs. Syracuse (Mets), 1:35 p.m. ••• ALTOONA (Double-A, 49-42) lost 4-2 to Trenton (Yankees) despite outhitting the Thunder, 13-7. Eight of nine Curve batters...
Bushy Run Legion tops Hempfield East for District 31 title
Bushy Run didn’t win the District 31 American Legion regular-season title, but it heads into the Region 7 tournament on a roll. The region tournament opens Friday at Latrobe, and Bushy Run is playing like a team that wants to be playing a few more weeks, maybe even a month....
Georgia leads growing SEC pack chasing powerhouse Alabama
HOOVER, Ala. — Kirby Smart talks about the Georgia taking “that next step.” Quarterback Jake Fromm wants the Bulldogs “to get over the hump.” In the SEC, that step — or hump — is beating Alabama. Georgia has pushed the Crimson Tide to the brink in a SEC championship game...
Tiger Woods tries to get up to speed for year’s final major at British Open
PORTRUSH, Northern Ireland — Tiger Woods was on the practice range when the gates at the British Open opened Tuesday, and before long, he was on the tee and ready to go. He just didn’t go for very long. Woods played a full round at Royal Portrush when he arrived...
