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Expectations can transfer quickly

By Bill Contz For the Mirror Portal has become very busy place Next month’s battle for the coveted Land Grant trophy has Penn State traveling to East Lansing to face a Michigan State squad off to a fast 7-0 start, one that has quickly served to put their pandemic-interrupted 2-5 finish in 2020 under first-year head coach Mel Tucker in the rearview mirror. The Spartans’ surprising start can be partly attributed to a staggering 20 new signees courtesy of the transfer portal. For those of you keeping score at home, that equates to a hefty 24% roster overhaul (assuming an 85 ...

For Wazzu coach, no jab, no job

You’re never going to convince guys like ex-Washington State coach Nick Rolovich to get the shot. It’s a waste of breath. The best scientists and all the evidence in the world couldn’t. Losing a $3 million-a-year job didn’t. Even public pleas from the likes of Alabama’s Nick Saban, Clemson’s Dabo Swinney and Georgia’s Kirby Smart — guys who command genuine respect in the business — failed to make a dent. Rolovich, who was hired in January 2020, was fired for cause by the university Monday after blowing through a deadline mandating that state employees get ...

A Lion tragedy remembered: 50 years ago, Detroit player died during NFL game

It was 50 years ago when something took place on an NFL field that had never happened before and has not happened since. A somber overcast hung over Detroit on that Sunday in October, perhaps an omen for the tragedy about to unfold. Altoona’s Ed Flanagan, the Lions’ all-pro center, was joined in his annual dustup with linebacking great Dick Butkus of the Chicago Bears. The Lions were down by five points with less than two minutes to go. Detroit marched into Bears’ territory when wide receiver Chuck Hughes snared a 32-yard pass from Greg Landry that moved the ball at the ...

PSU fans really can’t complain

I watched The NitWits TV show after the loss to Iowa and I got a kick out of the panel’s comments. But then again, what would one expect from Penn State homers? Keith Conlin seemed to believe that the game was over by the time Sean Clifford was hurt. Apparently he had a crystal ball that showed that an excellent Iowa coaching staff would fail to make any adjustments in the next two-plus quarters to what Penn State was doing. Look at what happened to Texas against Oklahoma Saturday. And for that matter, I can remember a Top-5 ranked Penn State team that was probably better than ...

College football has tough choices to make

If a 12-team format is the future of the College Football Playoff —- and odds are that it still is despite a recent detour on the road to expansion — among the many details that need to be worked out is when it would start. There are two choices that will be considered by the administrators who make up the CFP management committee. Hold the first round the second weekend of December, which would create what some members of the committee believe is an unfair advantage for playoff teams that don’t play conference championship games while also bumping into what has become the ...

Buying or selling these NFL storylines?

The NFL schedule isn’t even a quarter complete, thanks to the expansion of the season to 17 games. Already, though, there’s all sorts of chatter — some of it actually reasoned — about what’s ahead. And what’s occurred. Such as: n Urban Meyer won’t see Thanksgiving (or perhaps even Halloween) as Jaguars coach. n Dallas has its best team since Jimmy Johnson (remember him?) was in charge. n Cincinnati has its best team since Boomer Esiason was slinging passes. n Big Ben the quarterback moves about as well as the hands on Big Ben the clock. Sure, there are dozens of ...