December 28, 2019 3:45 am
BALTIMORE (AP) – The Baltimore Ravens have already clinched the top seed in the AFC playoffs and will rest several key starters in Sunday’s regular-season finale against the Pittsburgh Steelers. That doesn’t mean the Ravens don’t have incentive to win. Baltimore has long been locked in a rivalry with the Steelers and could possibly knock Pittsburgh out of the playoff hunt. The Steelers can get in with a loss, but their best path to the postseason is to win Sunday and have Tennessee lose to Houston. Quarterback Lamar Jackson and running back Mark Ingram are among those Ravens who are expected to be inactive.
December 27, 2019 3:46 am
ARLINGTON, Texas (AP) – Penn State has hired Kirk Ciarrocca as offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach. He held the same role for Big Ten foe Minnesota for the past three seasons. Ciarrocca replaces Ricky Rahne, who was named the head coach at OId Dominion earlier this month. Penn State plays Memphis in the Cotton Bowl on Saturday. Ciarrocca grew up as a Nittany Lions fan and has deep ties to Pennsylvania. He guided the Gophers’ offense to a breakout year as quarterback Tanner Morgan set single-season program records for yards and touchdowns.
December 25, 2019 8:15 am
PITTSBURGH (AP) — Mason Rudolph’s star-crossed season is over. The Pittsburgh Steelers placed the second-year quarterback on injured reserve on Tuesday, two days after Rudolph hurt his left shoulder in the third quarter of a loss to the New York Jets. The move clears up Pittsburgh’s quarterback picture heading into the regular-season finale against the Baltimore Ravens. Rookie Devlin “Duck” Hodges will make his fifth straight start for the Steelers (8-7), who are in a tie with Tennessee for the final wild-card spot in the AFC. Paxton Lynch will serve as Hodges’ primary backup. The Steelers signed former Ohio State star J.T. Barrett to the practice squad on Tuesday to provide depth. Pittsburgh needs Hodges to be more careful with the ball. He’s thrown six interceptions over his past two games and was pulled in the second quarter against the Jets after tossing picks on two of the Steelers’ first three possessions. While Tomlin stressed he had no issues with Hodges’ preparation or his approach, Pittsburgh’s offensive limitations at this point require avoiding the kind of mistakes that have forced the Steelers to play from behind during a two-game losing streak that’s put their playoff chances in a precarious position. There’s little chance the Steelers turn to Lynch. A first-round pick by the Denver Broncos in 2016, the Steelers signed Lynch to the practice squad in September and he’s done limited work with the starting group. Hodges will have to play without center Maurkice Pouncey, who is out with a left knee injury sustained one snap before Rudolph went down. Running back James Conner is questionable with a quad injury suffered in the first half against New York. Conner, a Pro Bowler last season, has missed extensive time already this year with a lingering shoulder issue. It’s been much the same for Rudolph. He beat out Josh Dobbs during training camp to become the top reserve behind starter Ben Roethlisberger. Rudolph took over when Roethlisberger was lost for the season with a right elbow injury in Week 2, but missed time in October after getting knocked unconscious by Baltimore safety Earl Thomas in a loss to the Ravens on Oct. 6. He returned to lead Pittsburgh to three consecutive victories before an ugly 21-7 loss to Cleveland on Nov. 14 that ended with Rudolph getting into a fight with Browns defensive end Myles Garrett, a brawl that culminated with Garrett ripping off Rudolph’s helmet then hitting Rudolph in the head with it. Garrett later accused Rudolph of using a racial slur shortly before the fight, an allegation Rudolph denied and one the NFL said it had no evidence of. Rudolph started the following week against Cincinnati but was yanked early in the second half in favor of Hodges, who sparked the team to three straight victories before floundering through a four-interception performance in a loss to Buffalo. Hodges started against the Jets but was removed in the second quarter after throwing two more picks. He returned in the fourth quarter after Rudolph went down. The 24-year-old Rudolph passed for 1,765 yards with 13 touchdowns and nine interceptions in 10 games. Tomlin said Rudolph’s injury does not require surgery but he will not play again this season even if Pittsburgh manages to reach the playoffs. The Steelers do not control their own destiny to reach the postseason. There are several scenarios in play. The clearest path includes Pittsburgh beating the AFC North champion Ravens (13-2) while hoping AFC South champion Houston beats Tennessee.
December 24, 2019 3:56 am
The Marlins and catcher Francisco Cervelli have agreed to a one-year, $2 million contract, pending a physical. Cervelli played in 48 games this year for the Pittsburgh Pirates and Atlanta Braves, batting .213 with three home runs and 12 RBIs.
December 24, 2019 3:55 am
TAMPA, Fla. (AP) – Central Florida won the Gasparilla Bowl as Richie Grant and Tre’mon Morris-Brash had first-quarter defensive touchdowns in the Knights’ 48-25 rout of Marshall. Grant had a 39-yard interception return on Marshall’s third play and Morris-Brash brought back a fumble 55 yards for a score that put UCF ahead, 21-0. Dillon Gabriel was 14 of 24 passes for 260 yards, tossing two scoring passes in the third period and running for a TD later in the period.
December 23, 2019 3:48 am
EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. (AP) – Le’Veon Bell helped deal his former team’s playoff hopes a big blow, leading the New York Jets to a 16-10 victory over the banged-up Pittsburgh Steelers. The Steelers entered the game controlling their postseason destiny and would have clinched a berth with wins in their final two games, but now need some help. They also have more injury concerns as running back James Conner, center Maurkice Pouncey and quarterback Mason Rudolph all left with injuries. Bell ran for 72 yards while facing the team with which he spent his first six NFL seasons. Steelers close out the regular season Sunday at Baltimore and need to beat the Ravens and have the Titans lose to Houston.
December 20, 2019 11:33 am
PITTSBURGH (AP) – The Pittsburgh Steelers have cut reserve safety Kameron Kelly hours after he was arrested during a dispute with police at a bar. The 23-year-old Kelly is charged with two counts of making terroristic threats and one count of resisting arrest. Authorities say they were called to the bar after an employee reported Kelly for becoming disorderly. The situation escalated when an officer stepped on the foot of Kelly’s female companion. Kelly told police the woman was with him and became aggressive with officers, according to the complaint.
December 19, 2019 3:42 am
UNDATED (AP) – The New York Yankees have introduced the new ace of their pitching staff. The Yanks and Gerrit Cole have finalized the record nine-year, $324 million contract they agreed to during the winter meetings last week. His deal is the largest for a pitcher in both its total and its average annual value of $36 million. Cole was 20-5 with an AL-leading 2.50 ERA and a major league-leading 326 strikeouts for Houston last season.
December 17, 2019 3:45 am
NEW YORK (AP) – Kansas has become the fifth team to occupy the top of The Associated Press men’s basketball poll already this season. The Jayhawks picked up 47 of 65 first-place votes to move up one spot on the rankings. They unseated Louisville, which dropped to third following last Tuesday’s 70-57 loss to Texas Tech. Gonzaga claimed 15 first-place votes to climb from sixth to second. Former No. 1 Duke moved up three spots to fourth, just ahead of Ohio State. Kentucky, Maryland, Oregon, Virginia and Baylor round out the top 10. No. 23 Penn State is ranked for the first time in 23 years. The poll doesn’t include North Carolina, which had been ranked since February 2014.
December 15, 2019 8:02 am
STATE COLLEGE, Pa. (AP) – Lamar Stevens scored 13 of his 18 points in the second half and grabbed 11 rebounds to lead Penn State to a 73-71 win over Alabama. Curtis Jones scored 18 points, Myreon Jones added 17 and Mike Watkins grabbed 10 rebounds for Penn State (9-2) who trailed 40-34 at halftime.
