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Safety concerns dogging NASCAR

CHARLOTTE, N.C. — NASCAR’s beleaguered new car somehow made it out of Talladega Superspeedway in the cleanest race yet of this year’s playoffs. It did little to quell the safety concerns surrounding the Next Gen car that debuted this season. The first four playoff races were a disastrous mess of car fires, broken parts and blown tires, and after Alex Bowman became the second driver sidelined with a concussion, the veterans snapped. Denny Hamlin, a three-time Daytona 500 winner for Joe Gibbs Racing and co-owner of 23XI Racing with Michael Jordan, led the charge by calling for a ...

Defense saves PSU’s turnover-prone offense

UNIVERSITY PARK — Penn State took a step backward Saturday. The Nittany Lions were inept offensively, turning the ball over five times, but rode their defense to a 17-7 victory over Northwestern before 105,524 on a rainy day at Beaver Stadium. “I understand the challenges the offense can face on a rainy day,” defensive tackle and team leader P.J. Mustipher said. “That’s why we have a defense. We have their backs, and they have ours.” Penn State’s defense allowed just 31 rushing yards and drew seven punts. The Lions opened the game by forcing five straight ...

Fitzgerald deserves patience

By Neil Rudel nrudel@altoonamirror.com Some nitpicking as the Nittany Lions prepare to complete the pre-bye portion of their schedule: Northwestern has proven over its history to be among the tougher jobs in the Big Ten. With its rigid academic standards, lack of tradition and top-notch facilities — though that’s going to change — Northwestern has struggled to consistently beat the upper level of the Big Ten. In that regard, what Pat Fitzgerald has accomplished has been remarkable. Now in his 17th season, Fitzgerald is 110-93, including a pair of Big Ten West ...

Pa’s elk herd thrills hunters and others

The restoration of elk in Pennsylvania represents a great conservation success story. Native elk were found throughout Pennsylvania in the early 19th century but were all but eliminated from the state by the late 1800s, except for a small population in the area around Elk County. The Pennsylvania Game Commission began an elk restoration program in 1913 by releasing animals obtained from Yellowstone National Park, South Dakota and a private preserve in Pennsylvania. This effort continued until 1926 with 177 elk being transplanted into the central, northeastern and northcentral regions ...

Point-counterpoint: What is your prediction for Penn State in October?

Feels like Lions are better, seeing 3-1 over next four By Neil Rudel nrudel@altoonamirror.com Sean Clifford said earlier this month the Nittany Lions “want to win every game this season.” While that may be obvious, it was also a surprising disclosure considering the team’s 11-11 record of the last previous two years — with Clifford at the helm. Penn State is not in an unusual position. For the fifth time in the last six seasons — 2020 being the lone outlier — the Nittany Lions have started 4-0 or better. And now that the appetite has been whet, everyone is pointing ...

Lions now 4-0 but fall short of ‘standard’

UNIVERSITY PARK — James Franklin has a statistical priority list that he recites to the media after each game. They include which team wins the explosive plays, the penalty and turnover battles, drive-start position and now the middle eight minutes (last four of the second quarter and ...