Sports category, Page 1897
Alabama’s Saban tests negative for covid-19 in follow-up; could return SaturdayVideo
TUSCALOOSA, Ala. — Alabama coach Nick Saban tested negative in a follow-up test for covid-19, leaving open the possibility of a return to the sideline for the Georgia game. Alabama head athletic trainer Jeff Allen said Saban’s test came back negative Thursday. If he tests negative again Friday and Saturday,...
Kyle Larson requests NASCAR lift suspension, 6 months after making racial slurVideo
CHARLOTTE, N.C. — NASCAR is in the process of reviewing a request by Cup driver Kyle Larson to return to competition after he was suspended indefinitely from the sport in April for using a racial slur during an iRacing event. A NASCAR spokesperson told the Observer on Friday that Larson...
Kansas hopes to have coach Les Miles back at West Virginia
Four games into the season, West Virginia finally will welcome thousands of people to a home football game. Kansas plans to have coach Les Miles there, too. Miles announced last week he tested positive for covid-19 and has quarantined at his home. In a video Sunday, Miles said his health...
Browns’ Odell Beckham sits again; Baker Mayfield getting better entering Steelers gameVideo
CLEVELAND — Baker Mayfield finally fired some passes Friday — none to Odell Beckham Jr. Beckham missed another practice with the Browns because of covid-19 protocols, but Mayfield, who has been slowed this week by sore ribs, appears ready to play in Sunday’s hyped AFC North matchup against the unbeaten...
Diontae Johnson, David DeCastro will not play Sunday for Steelers vs. Browns
For their big AFC North game Sunday, the Pittsburgh Steelers offense will be without a Pro Bowl selection and a second-team All-Pro from last season. David DeCastro and Diontae Johnson on Friday were ruled out of Sunday’s game against the Cleveland Browns. Neither practiced Friday because of injuries suffered during...
Year after helmet swing, Myles Garrett won’t seek out Rudolph, vows ‘clean’ game vs. SteelersVideo
Myles Garrett expects to get booed by the handful of fans at Heinz Field on Sunday but not because of his helmet swing heard ‘round the AFC North last year. “We are the Browns,” Cleveland’s star defensive end told reporters Friday. “I expect to get booed (for that reason).” Garrett...
Steelers defense vows to fix third-down woes
Total defense, rushing, passing, turnovers, yards per play, sacks, pressures, completion percentage, negative-yardage plays. You name it, the Pittsburgh Steelers defense ranks in the top 10 in the NFL. And in many of those, at No. 1 or among the best five. But there is one recognizable defensive statistic for...
Mark Madden: Blackhawks’ situation with aging stars sounds very familiar
When NHL free agency hit last weekend, Chicago made moves with an eye toward the future. It traded winger Brandon Saad, a two-time Stanley Cup winner. It let goalie Corey Crawford walk via free agency. He also won two Cups. The Blackhawks want to skew younger. The Blackhawks’ core four...
Steelers continue to be haunted by struggles on opening possession of games
After a one-game reprieve of sorts, the Pittsburgh Steelers offense last week was back to its ineffective ways during its first possession of a game. The Steelers’ first offensive drive Sept. 20 lasted 11 plays, traveled 63 yards and reached the Houston Texans’ 15-yard-line. But, in their next game against...
5 things to watch: Can good work week lead Pitt to victory?
Every week, with most of the game preparation behind him, Pat Narduzzi gets on his Thursday Zoom conference call and either assures reporters “the hay’s in the barn” or “we’ve had a good week of practice.” Sometimes, he mentions both things. This week, with Pitt (3-2, 2-2 ACC) preparing for...
Colts’ retests for covid-19 come back as negative
INDIANAPOLIS — The Indianapolis Colts closed their practice facility Friday after “several individuals” tested positive for covid-19, then the retests came back negative. “Earlier this morning, we were informed that four individuals within the organization tested positive for covid-19,” the team said in a late-morning statement. “The four positive samples...
First Call: Ex-Steeler wanted Le’Veon Bell back in Pittsburgh. Ravens mad at Bengals. Aaron Donald’s surprising revelation.
Friday’s “First Call” gives us an ex-Steeler who wishes Le’Veon Bell would’ve come back to Pittsburgh instead of going to Kansas City. Another AFC coach admits his team wanted Bell. Aaron Donald’s surprising quote about his huge game last week. And the Ravens are mad at the Bengals. Better luck...
Fantasy Sports: Chase Claypool, Travis Fulgham emerge; Explaining those data problems that hit many leagues
No. Your commissioner wasn’t mining for your data. It wasn’t a weird computer virus to worry about along with coronavirus. It wasn’t a hack of your fantasy football league from Russia or China. It was an error from your platform’s service provider that kept you in fantasy-limbo throughout Sunday afternoon....
Tim Benz: Dwayne Haskins to Steelers? Theory adds up. Stats, actions from Washington do not.
I feel bad for Steelers quarterback Mason Rudolph. During a week where he has to relive every image of Myles Garrett clonking him on the head with his own helmet, the NFL rumor mill is kicking him in the crotch. OK, maybe not that directly. No one is writing that...
5 things to watch in Week 6: Some WPIAL conferences may crown no champion
Some WPIAL football conferences may have no champion this season. The WPIAL announced this week that no conference champion would be recognized if canceled games could have changed the outcome. In the Class 2A Allegheny for example, Apollo-Ridge and Serra Catholic are both undefeated but their head-to-head matchup was canceled...
Braves 1 win from World Series after pounding Dodgers in NLCS Game 4Video
ARLINGTON, Texas — Marcell Ozuna homered twice, MVP candidate Freddie Freeman delivered the go-ahead hit off Clayton Kershaw and the Atlanta Braves moved within one win of ending a two-decade World Series drought by routing the Los Angeles Dodgers 10-2 on Thursday night. The Braves took a 3-1 lead in...
This date in sports history: Oct. 16Video
1932 — After a 0-0 tie earlier in the season, the Green Bay Packers beat the Chicago Bears, 2-0. 1964 — Rochester High School graduate Babe Parilli of the Boston Patriots passes for 422 yards and four touchdowns in a 43-43 tie with the Oakland Raiders. 1968 — Americans Tommie...
Wheeling Nailers to open 2020-21 season on Dec. 12
The Wheeling Nailers, ECHL affiliate of the Penguins, will open their 2020-21 season on Dec. 12 with a home contest against the Indy Fuel at WesBanco Arena. On Thursday, the ECHL released its schedule from Dec. 11 through Jan. 14 for the the 13 teams that will participate in a...
Rams’ Aaron Donald looking forward to tormenting 49ers againVideo
THOUSAND OAKS, Calif. — San Francisco already knows what Aaron Donald is capable of. He has a sack for the Rams in their last six meetings with the 49ers. The 49ers will spend this week breaking down a performance at Washington in which the most dominant defensive tackle in the...
Carlos Correa hits walkoff homer to keep Astros alive in ALCSVideo
SAN DIEGO — Carlos Correa homered with one out in the ninth inning, and the Houston Astros beat the Tampa Bay Rays, 4-3, on Thursday behind sensational pitching from five rookies to remain alive in the AL Championship Series. Correa drove a pitch from Nick Anderson to straightaway center field,...
Hatton copes with jet lag to lead CJ Cup at Shadow CreekVideo
NORTH LAS VEGAS, Nev. — Tyrrell Hatton felt grumpy from not getting much sleep, and then he felt he was in a dream when he was 5-under-par through the opening five holes of the CJ Cup at Shadow Creek. The reality of Thursday was that even coming off an emotional...
Chiefs are signing running back Le’Veon Bell, as reported by the NFL NetworkVideo
Running back Le’Veon Bell didn’t last long on the free-agent market after being released by the New York Jets. The Chiefs are signing Bell to a one-year deal, the NFL Network reported Thursday evening. The Chiefs later tweeted, “Welcome to Chiefs Kingdom, Le’Veon Bell!” Terms with the 28-year-old former Pittsburgh...
Pitt QB Kenny Pickett not 100% healthy, but Pat Narduzzi feels good ‘with where he is right now’
Pat Narduzzi doesn’t like to talk about injuries, especially when the information might help an opponent’s preparation. But Pitt’s coach did offer 57 words Thursday when he was asked about quarterback Kenny Pickett’s left ankle that was injured in the second half of the Boston College game. He didn’t give...
Pitt lives, hopes to survive on Cornerback Island
Pat Narduzzi has been preaching, teaching or designing defensive strategy for 30 years. He believes in recruiting athletic, tough-minded cornerbacks who don’t mind — in fact, prefer — pressing up against wide receivers at the line of scrimmage and covering them with little help from safeties. So it was no...
Steelers seek to prevent Browns from scoring early, playing with lead
Through five games this season, the Cleveland Browns are averaging 19.0 points per game in the first half. To put that figure into perspective, last season the Pittsburgh Steelers averaged 18.1 points… for their full games. In advance of Sunday’s AFC North showdown between the teams at Heinz Field, much...
