February 3, 2023 5:50 am
Thornton was a second-round selection by the Steelers in 1977 out of Northwestern State, a small school in Shreveport, Louisiana. The New Orleans native played all six of his NFL seasons with the Black and Gold, and was a member of the Super Bowl XIII and XIV championship teams in 1979 and 1980. Thornton gained 86 total yards and scored his first postseason touchdown against the Miami Dolphins in the 1979 divisional game. He also caught a 22-yard pass in Super Bowl XIV against the Los Angeles Rams.
February 3, 2023 3:51 am
PHILADELPHIA (AP) — Philadelphia Eagles quarterback Jalen Hurts is ready for a big matchup in the Super Bowl. The Eagles can win their second Super Bowl in franchise history with a win over the Kansas City Chiefs. Hurts and Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes are both Texas natives. They are both NFL MVP finalists. And they will be the first Black QBs to face off in a Super Bowl. The Chiefs beat the Eagles in October 2021 when Hurts threw for 387 yards and two touchdowns. Mahomes threw for five.
February 3, 2023 3:49 am
CINCINNATI (AP) — Cincinnati Bengals running back Joe Mixon has been charged in a warrant with pointing a gun at a woman and threatening her. Mixon faces a misdemeanor charge of aggravated menacing, according to documents filed Thursday in Hamilton County Municipal Court and obtained by The Associated Press. No attorney is listed for him in court records. According to the warrant, Mixon pointed the gun at the woman and told her, “You should be popped in the face. I should shoot you, the police (can’t) get me.” The incident occurred on Jan. 21, the day before the Bengals beat the Buffalo Bills in a divisional-round playoff game.
February 1, 2023 11:51 pm
WPIAL Wrestling Team Tournaments hit full speed tonight with 16 teams vying for championships in each class. The top four seeds in each bracket host four-team groups in Wednesday for first round and quarterfinals. We’ll have the Canon-McMillan matches on WJPA-AM (1450) with the Trinity and Peters Township matches from Butler on WJPA-FM (95.3). The survivors of each of those groups moves to the WPIAL Semifinals/Finals, Saturday, Feb. 4, at Peters Township (Class 3A starting at 10 am) and Chartiers-Houston (Class 2A starting at 12 noon). WPIAL Brackets CLICK HERE
Wednesday, Feb. 1
Class 2A
First Round at #1 Burgettstown
Burgettstown 70, Southmoreland 6
Mt. Pleasant 38, Montour 28
Quarterfinal
Burgettstown 42, Mt. Pleasant 25
First Round at #2 Quaker Valley
Quaker Valley 42, Jeff-Morgan 36
McGuffey 35, Freedom 34
Quarterfinal
Quaker Valley 44, McGuffey 21
First Round at #3 Burrell
Burrell 71, Knoch 3
Laurel 57, Central Valley 12
Quarterfinal
Burrell 39, Laurel 19
First Round at #4 Highlands
Highlands 42, Indiana 33
Frazier 48, Hopewell 12
Quarterfinal
Frazier 45, Highlands 30
Class 3A
First Round at #1 Waynesburg
Waynesburg 54, Fox Chapel 9
Plum 32, North Allegheny 22
Quarterfinal
Waynesburg 48, Plum 14
First Round at #2 Canon-McMillan
Canon-McMillan 49, Penn-Trafford 15
Norwin 36, Greater Latrobe 30
Quarterfinal
Canon-McMillan 56, Norwin 9
First Round at #3 Butler
Butler 41, Peters Township 26
Hempfield 34, Trinity 33 (Crit. D–Most Wins 7-6)
Quarterfinal
Hempfield 32, Butler 31
First Round at #4 Connellsville
Connellsville 46, Franklin Regional 18
West Allegheny 44, Pine-Richland 19
Quarterfinal
Connellsville 36, West Allegheny 24
February 2, 2023 3:56 am
CHAPEL HILL, N.C. — On Wednesday night, Pitt took down North Carolina for the second time this season after Jamarius Burton sank the game-tying and game-winning free throws with seconds remaining on the clock. With 24 seconds to go trailing by one, Pitt head coach Jeff Capel called for the ball right to go right to Burton out of a timeout. After Burton got the matchup that he liked, he took the ball inside on a drive and was fouled on his floater attempt. After hitting both clutch free throws, Burton and the Panthers had retaken the lead. North Carolina’s Caleb Love missed his game-winning attempt with .6 remaining, with Nike Sibande in his face and getting a piece of the shot. Burton finished with 19 points and five rebounds in the win, and Pitt guard Nelly Cummings led the team with 21 points on 8-for-11 shooting.
February 2, 2023 3:49 am
CAMBRIDGE, Ohio (AP) – Philadelphia Eagles reserve offensive lineman Josh Sills has been indicted on rape and kidnapping charges that stem from an incident in Ohio just over three years ago. The NFL on Wednesday put the rookie who has played just four snaps this season on the commissioner’s exempt list. That means he can’t practice, play or travel with the Eagles as they prepares for the Super Bowl. A grand jury indicted Sills earlier this week. His attorney said Wednesday that the allegations are false. Sills is due in court on Feb. 16, four days after the Eagles are to play Kansas City in the Super Bowl.
February 1, 2023 8:42 am
TAMPA, Fla. (AP) – Tom Brady has announced his retirement. Brady won a record seven Super Bowls for New England and Tampa. He is the most successful quarterback in NFL history and one of the greatest athletes in team sports. He posted the announcement on social media in a brief video lasting just under one minute. He says this time it’s for good.
February 1, 2023 3:54 am
ENGLEWOOD, Colo. (AP) – A person with knowledge of the pact tells The Associated Press that the Denver Broncos have agreed to a deal with the New Orleans Saints to hire Sean Payton as their head coach. The person says the Broncos will send a first-round pick in this year’s draft and a future second-rounder to the Saints in order to get Payton in Denver. The Saints will send a third-round pick to the Broncos. Payton stepped down as the Saints’ coach last year but remained under contract with the team. The person spoke to The AP on condition of anonymity because the teams hadn’t announced the agreement.
February 1, 2023 3:55 am
HOUSTON (AP) – DeMeco Ryans has been hired as coach of the Houston Texans, giving him his first head coaching job and bringing him back to the place where he started his playing career. Ryans joins the Texans from the San Francisco 49ers, where he spent the past two seasons as their defensive coordinator.
February 1, 2023 3:56 am
KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) – Donna Kelce is going to have to pull out her custom jersey – the one with Kansas City Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce’s front stitched to Philadelphia Eagles center Jason Kelce’s back – one more time this season. For the first time in Super Bowl history, a pair of siblings will square off on the NFL’s biggest stage. Kelce helped the Chiefs return to their third championship game in four seasons on Sunday night when they beat the Bengals for the AFC title. Jason has the Eagles back for the second time in six years after their NFC title win over the 49ers.
