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Fink worthy of Blair County HOF announcement

I was so pleased to hear the recent announcement that Artie Fink Jr. will be inducted into the Blair County Sports Hall of Fame. Fittingly, Fink will be the first local golfer to be inducted (he is also being honored for his impressive bowling exploits). I’m a little older than Fink, so I’ve had the pleasure of seeing many of the championship trophies he’s racked up over the years. Early in his golfing career, it was clear that he was the longest hitter in the area. Over time, I became even more impressed by the effort he put into becoming one of the most accurate ...

Rudel: Conference realignment can take toll

College football has been built on tradition, and all this conference poaching and realignment is threatening that tradition. The heavyweights, like Penn State, will survive and maybe even thrive. Others may be destroyed. A year after enticing USC and UCLA to the Big Ten, the conference has now added Oregon and Washington, effective with the 2024 season. The move brings the Big Ten to 18 schools, which is not a round number and leaves open the distinct possibility of further expansion. Speculation abounds. Notre Dame has always made geographic and big-brand sense for the Big Ten, ...

Reaching for Messi is not new

Lionel Messi’s first appearance in a South Florida soccer stadium this season created high drama, and he wasn’t even wearing cleats. Messi’s formal introduction as the newest addition to the Inter Miami CF roster attracted a near-capacity crowd for an event that had all the trappings of a championship celebration. This wasn’t the first time an American city rolled out the red carpet for a superstar who was seeking a new experience, big payday, elusive team championship or fulfillment of a personal goal. Teams that are flush with cash doggedly pursue athletes who they view ...

All will suffer from realignment

The realignment frenzy in college athletics is all about football. And all that money, of course. There is barely a consideration of how these seismic changes will affect every other team on campus. From grueling road trips to missed classes to mental health challenges, it’s hard to see anything positive in all this dollar sign-driven nonsense if you’re an athlete who doesn’t happen to suit up for the pigskin squad. “I chose to play in the Pac-12 because of the ability to play close to home and in front of family,” said Shannon Cunningham, an Arizona State softball ...

Young Bucs fun, but also frustrating

The biggest move the Pirates made at the trade deadline was going all in on playing the young guys. They ditched veterans Rich Hill, Carlos Santana, Ji-Hwan Bae and Austin Hedges. As a result, it’s been nothing but the “Young Bucs’’ ever since. It’s been Endy Rodriguez behind the plate, Henry Davis in right field, Liover Peguero up the middle and Jared Triolo as well. For as much excitement there’s been just as much frustration. They’re fun and play the game with a flair unbeknownst to Pittsburgh in quite a while. They’re frustrating too as they’re young and ...

Golf trying to manage ball distance

There’s a fairly big battle brewing in the game of golf today. I’m not talking about Rory McIlroy vs. Scottie Scheffler or even the PGA Tour vs. LIV Golf. I’m talking about a battle to roll back the golf ball, developing and utilizing a ball that would travel a shorter distance than it does today. The concept has been around for years, but in March the USGA began a process to do just that when it announced a proposed Mode Local Rule that would limit golf ball distance for elite competitions beginning in January 2026. The USGA has set aside a comment period to invite ...