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Everybody loves the underdog

A few days after the film “American Underdog” was released, I was able to work with Hall of Fame quarterback Kurt Warner in what was Ben Roethlisberger’s final game at Heinz Field. Warner was color analyst for Westwood One’s national broadcast, working alongside Kevin Harlan. Not surprisingly, Harlan joked with Warner about the film during the broadcast since it was based on Warner’s amazing NFL career. Warner did not allow Harlan’s light-hearted ribbing to distract him from in-game analysis. He offered several unique insights about Roethlisberger’s career that only he ...

Baseball providing timely release

By Jim Caltagirone For the Mirror Americans are well aware that the cost of everything continues to rise. Depending on the source, the factors that are cited for runaway inflation vary. The specific reason why all but three MLB teams enjoyed an increase in average attendance through the first third of their 2022 home schedule, when compared to last season’s overall home average, is similarly variable. With discretionary income at a premium, only Texas, Cincinnati and Oakland are suffering a drop in average home attendance compared to 2021 numbers. All three teams sport ...

Additions should benefit Big Ten

The additions of USC and UCLA into the Big Ten in 2024 will brighten the traditional Big Ten brand of historic American universities and their athletic programs. In four ways, these additions will benefit Penn State. First, it will bring more revenue to State College and the surrounding communities, via fans of these universities. Secondly, the growing conference will also help Penn State recruit more major talent, giving athletes the opportunity to play against UCLA and USC, schools possibly too far away to consider for those on the east coast. Third, the Big Ten will be ...

Pac-12 going the way of the former SWC

By Paul Newberry The Associated Press Kyle Kallander has a unique perspective on the latest round of chaos in college athletics. As the final commissioner of the late, great Southwest Conference, he knows nothing is sacred. Certainly not these days, when everyone is chasing the almighty dollar more than ever. History and tradition? Those terms carry no weight in what has essentially become a game of Risk, with the Big Ten and Southeastern Conference taking turns rolling the dice to determine how to divvy up the world of college football. “Depressing is the first word that ...

Steelers’ best bet must be Trubisky

By Bill Contz For the Mirror With July here, spirited debate will soon rage as to when Kenneth Shane Pickett should be formally installed as the heir to Ben Roethlisberger’s throne. With veteran Mitch Trubisky in the same locker room, I contend that this debate would be a tad premature. Recent history tells us that when lottery pick QBs are pressed into service during their inaugural campaigns we can expect, at best, pedestrian results. Trevor Lawrence and Zack Wilson both struggled mightily on terrible Jacksonville and New York Jets teams last season while top pick Joe ...

Age may be catching up with Nadal

By Howard Fendrich The Associated Press WIMBLEDON, England — It was impossible not to think ahead, to what awaits Rafael Nadal, while watching him sigh as he discussed how “very sad” he was about pulling out of the Wimbledon semifinals because of a torn abdominal muscle. It was impossible not to think back to just a month ago, when Nadal at 36 became the oldest champion in French Open history, then expressed doubt about whether he would even show up at the All England Club because of chronic pain in his left foot that required nerve-numbing injections just so he could play in ...