Breaking News

Sports Columns

MLB deals blow to heartland

(Editor’s note: This is a national commentary on MLB’s reduction of minor league franchises from 160 to 120. The Altoona Curve survived; the State College Spikes did not but will be participating in a new MLB sponsored league for draft prospects next summer.) Minor league baseball hasn’t been able to take the field in more than a year because of the coronavirus pandemic. When it finally returns, it will look a whole lot leaner. That’s not an encouraging development for a sport that desperately needs to develop new fans at the grassroots level. In a classic game of ...

Area gyms remain silent for now

Tonight was supposed to be the first night of competition for the winter scholastic sports season, but in District 6, there won’t be any tip-offs, grappling or dives into a pool. And there might not be for quite some time. The PIAA decided not to delay the season at its meeting Wednesday, but no schools in the Mirror’s region have met the 15-practice preseason rule to begin competition tonight and likely won’t reach that mark any time soon, especially with Thursday’s announcement that all sports at K-12 schools have been shut down starting Saturday until Jan. 4 by the ...

Point-counterpoint: Was the Big Ten right in letting Ohio State in its title game?

Yes, but I think the league missed a great opportunity to show out-of-the-box thinking that would have injected some needed excitement into the Big Ten. And that would have been to allow the Buckeyes — with the Big Ten’s help — to schedule the best opponent they could find for a date this weekend. The opponent could have been Texas A&M, which had its game with Mississippi canceled. The Aggies are currently ranked No. 5 in the College Football Playoff rankings behind the No. 4 Buckeyes, No. 3 Clemson, No. 2 Notre Dame and No. 1 Alabama. Talk about a game that would move the ...

Point-counterpoint: Was the Big Ten right in letting Ohio State in its title game?

Nothing is normal about this year. Nothing makes sense. When you’re living in a world where world where nothing is normal, you cannot try to rationalize things the same way you would during usual circumstances. Usually, rules are rules. They apply to everyone. It’s how we keep order in the world. This year, we have to be able to bend the rules. The Big Ten made a rule a few months ago that seemed like a good idea at the time. It turned out to be a bad rule, one that could have caused one major problem. It could have cost the Big Ten millions of dollars. So the rule had to be ...

New identity imposing Nittany Lions’ will

Football teams often talk about an identity. Through their 0-5 start, the Nittany Lions didn’t have one, other than a losing identity. They certainly didn’t have a defensive identity as they were lit up for 30 points weekly. Nor could they throw the ball effectively, even though they ...

Penn State’s Ciarrocca hasn’t lost confidence

Lion time Today: Penn State at Rutgers, noon Records: Penn State (1-5); Rutgers (2-4) TV: Fox Sports 1 Latest line: PSU favored by 11.5 When things aren’t going well — despite Penn State’s one-game winning streak – coaches who have enjoyed past success typically refer to ...