Penn State category, Page 72
Joey Porter Jr. ready to ‘rock and roll’ for Penn State
Even if he didn’t know when his next game was going to be, Penn State cornerback Joey Porter Jr. remained prepared throughout August and September while the Big Ten’s 2020 season was still canceled because of the coronavirus pandemic. “It’s definitely hard,” Porter Jr. said via video conference Thursday. “Because...
Penn State is comfortable with options to replace Micah Parsons
In a shortened season bound to be filled with uncertainty, one thing will be concrete for Penn State. There will be no Micah Parsons. On Aug. 6, the star linebacker decided to opt out of the 2020 campaign because of the coronavirus pandemic as well as his prospects as a...
James Franklin, Penn State ready to embrace the ‘new normal’
It rained Tuesday in State College. James Franklin didn’t mind. In fact, Penn State’s football coach enjoyed it. “I would actually say it was even positive (Tuesday),” Franklin said via video conference Wednesday. “We had bad weather. We had rain, and we were able to get wet-ball work, which I...
Clairton’s Lamont Wade among contenders to serve as return man for Penn StateVideo
Coach James Franklin’s program is still waiting to learn a time and television designation for this year’s opener at Indiana on Oct. 24, but there is still plenty to talk about. The topic we’re diving into this week is the return game, especially now that KJ Hamler is a Denver...
Penn State’s 2021 recruiting stumbling, but hope still alive with football coming back
Diego Pounds was a sure thing for Penn State, until he wasn’t. And that has been an all-too-common sight in the Lions’ 2021 recruiting class, which has experienced just about every type of adversity imaginable in a cycle that certainly won’t go down as one of James Franklin’s best. Penn...
Big Ten, Pac-12 teams back in most unusual AP Top 25 pollVideo
No. 6 Ohio State, No. 10 Penn State and No. 14 Oregon returned to the Associated Press college football poll Sunday, weeks before they start playing, creating a Top 25 as unusual as this season. At the top of the rankings this week, Clemson remained No. 1 with 55 first-place...
First Call: Mike Tomlin can improve some history; NFL fines coaches for ignoring masks; Saquon Barkley checks in
Tuesday’s “First Call” dares to dream big about a Steelers fast start. We also check in on injured Penn State great Saquon Barkley. J.J. Watt identifies a problem for his Houston Texans coming to Heinz Field. And NFL coaches are paying the price if they don’t mask up. Say that...
Penn State will open football season Oct. 24 at Indiana
Penn State will begin its nine-game grind over nine weeks Oct. 24 at Indiana, according to the Big Ten’s reconfigured, conference-only schedule released Saturday. The home opener is Oct. 31 — Halloween night — against Ohio State at Beaver Stadium. The Buckeyes and Nittany Lions were ranked Nos. 2 and...
With Big Ten decision made, hard work begins for Penn State football program
On Wednesday, when the Big Ten made the decision to move forward with a football season, it was hailed as a victory for players, coaches and fans — a cause for great celebration. By Thursday, a little bit of reality began to set in. Penn State’s James Franklin is about...
Could Penn State’s Micah Parsons opt back in for this season?
When it comes to All-American linebacker Micah Parsons, Penn State coach James Franklin is like Tom Bodett in those old Motel 6 commercials. He’ll leave the light on for him. Parsons announced last month that he was opting out of his junior season at Penn State and would begin to...
Penn State TE Pat Freiermuth confirms he’s playing this fall
The Big Ten is back, and Pat Freiermuth never left. Just after the conference announced a return-to-play plan that will kick off the season Oct. 23-24, Penn State’s star tight end confirmed in an interview with the Big Ten Network on Wednesday that he will be playing for the Nittany...
First Call: Steelers-‘MNF’ ratings tank. O.J. Simpson defends Saquon Barkley. Terry Bradshaw’s new TV show.
The Steelers. Plus, a New York audience. That should jolt “Monday Night Football” ratings to open the season! Guess again, ESPN. That’s how we start Thursday’s “First Call.” We also see how O.J. Simpson is supporting Saquon Barkley. And we preview Terry Bradshaw’s new television show. Where’s the remote? A...
NCAA sets Nov. 25 start date for men’s, women’s basketballVideo
The NCAA men’s and women’s basketball season will begin Nov. 25, the day before Thanksgiving. The Division I Council voted Wednesday to push the start date back from the originally scheduled Nov. 10 as one of several precautions against the spread of coronavirus. The later start date coincides with the...
Big Ten changes course, aims for October start to football
The Big Ten is going to give fall football a shot after all. Less than five weeks after pushing football and other fall sports to spring in the name of player safety during the covid-19 pandemic, the conference changed course Wednesday and said it plans to begin its season the...
Wisconsin chancellor says Big Ten football on hold until questions answeredVideo
The University of Wisconsin chancellor said Tuesday that Big Ten football will remain on hold until there are answers to questions about covid-19 testing and tracing, along with possible long-term heart issues related to the coronavirus. Chancellor Rebecca Blank said once the Big Ten leaders have their concerns addressed “we...
Big Ten presidents to discuss starting footballVideo
Big Ten university presidents will meet Sunday to hear a presentation about playing a fall football season after all — maybe as soon as late October — amid pressure from parents, players, coaches and even the president to kick off. A person with direct knowledge of the situation told the...
Penn State stops workouts for ‘several’ sports programs because of positive covid-19 tests
Penn State has shut down sports activities for “several” of its athletic programs after an influx of positive tests for coronavirus. The school reported 48 positive results out of 920 tests given to athletes from Aug. 31 through Sept. 4, a 5% positivity rate. As a result, the university said...
Penn State lands latest Class of 2022 commitment, 4-star Ken TalleyVideo
Penn State landed another four-star recruit in the Class of 2022. The Lions picked up a pledge from Philadelphia, four-star end/linebacker Ken Talley, on Tuesday. He is the first defender to join the six-member group and is the second junior-to-be to do so this month, as four-star offensive tackle Drew...
Former PSU QB Trace McSorley survives Ravens cuts, which offered no surprisesVideo
OWINGS MILLS, Md. — Former Penn State quarterback Trace McSorley survived the Baltimore Ravens’ final cut and is poised to return for a second season behind Lamar Jackson and Robert Griffin III on the depth chart. Baltimore’s initial 53-man roster, formed after Saturday’s moves, offered no real surprises. The Ravens...
Penn State football doctor: 30-35% of covid-19-positive Big Ten athletes had myocarditis
New data helps illustrate what Big Ten commissioner Kevin Warren might have meant when he described “too much medical uncertainty and too many unknown health risks” as reasons for postponing the Big Ten’s 2020-21 fall sports season. During a State College Area school board of directors meeting on Monday night,...
Steelers sign another former Penn State receiver, DeAndre Thompkins
The Pittsburgh Steelers added a former Penn State wide receiver to their roster for the second time in three days, announcing the signing of DeAndre Thompkins on Sunday. Tompkins left Penn State tied for fourth in school history with two punt-return touchdowns and 21st in career receiving yards (1,245). The...
Steelers, ex-PSU OL Stefan Wisniewski: ‘The Big Ten is going to look really stupid not playing’
Late during a 10-minute video conference call with media that mostly dealt with his role on the Pittsburgh Steelers offensive line this season, Stefan Wisniewski cracked a smile. It was one part incredulity, one part an attempt at restraint. “I don’t know how to say this without offending lots of...
Will the Giants play their opener against the Steelers? Saquon Barkley won’t rule out boycotts.
Of course, Steelers fans want to get off to a 1-0 start against the New York Giants. They don’t want it to happen this way, though. On Thursday, New York Giants star running back Saquon Barkley said he and his teammates aren’t ruling out the possibility of boycotting games this...
First Call: Steelers, Ravens considering Clowney? Nebraska players sue Big Ten.
Friday’s “First Call” starts with an unlikely free-agent target for the Pittsburgh Steelers. A former Steelers coach makes some headlines discussing our nation’s civil unrest. The Big Ten is getting sued over its football cancellation. And an honor for Tony Dungy that may help the late, great Bill Nunn’s legacy....
After opt-outs, Pitt’s Jaylen Twyman, PSU’s Micah Parsons still named preseason All-American
Jaylen Twyman continues to make news — even after opting out of the 2020 season. Twyman, who would have been a junior defensive tackle at Pitt this season, was named Tuesday to the Associated Press’ preseason All-America first team. Penn State linebacker Micah Parsons joins Twyman as two of 11...
