May 8, 2020 4:00 am
UNDATAED (AP) – The Kansas City Chiefs will open defense of their Super Bowl championship by hosting Houston on Sept. 10 in the NFL’s annual kickoff game – pending developments in the coronavirus pandemic, of course. The Texans won a regular-season game at Arrowhead Stadium in 2019, then blew a 24-0 lead in the divisional round of the playoffs. Another highlight of the opening weekend will have Tom Brady’s regular-season debut with Tampa Bay against Drew Brees at New Orleans on Sept. 13 – the first matchup of 40-plus quarterbacks in NFL history.
May 6, 2020 3:47 am
UNDATED (AP) – While planning to play a full regular-season schedule, the NFL has formulated a ticket refund plan for canceled games or those held without fans. In a memo sent to the 32 teams by Commissioner Roger Goodell and obtained by The Associated Press on Tuesday, a uniform baseline for full refunds on any tickets purchased directly from the clubs was prepared. As for the secondary market, the league received pledges from Ticketmaster and SeatGeek to make full refunds available for all ticket sales within no more than 30 days of cancellation. StubHub, however, will do so only where required by state law. Each team will communicate directly with its fans over the next few days with specific details on potential refunds. The NFL will reveal its 2020 regular-season schedule on Thursday night. The 2020 season is set to kick off on Sept. 10, with the first full weekend of games on Sept. 13-14.
May 5, 2020 3:45 am
NEW YORK (AP) – Mike Trout and Gerrit Cole aren’t the only major leaguers with a big financial incentive to get back on the field. While they head a starry quartet that would take in more than $200,000 per game, 65 players would earn at least $100,000 each time their team wins or loses. That’s according to an Associated Press analysis of their contracts. Most rookies and those making the minimum would get nearly $3,500 each from a major league payroll of about $24 million per game. Clubs would benefit, too, with huge revenue streams flowing from regional sports networks and national broadcast contracts.
May 5, 2020 3:41 am
The NFL is moving its five games scheduled for London and Mexico City this season back to U.S. stadiums because of the coronavirus pandemic. All five regular-season games will be played at the stadiums of the host teams. Scheduled were two home games for the Jacksonville Jaguars at Wembley Stadium in London and two at Tottenham’s new facility, with the Atlanta Falcons and Miami Dolphins as hosts. The Arizona Cardinals were to be the home team for the game at Azteca Stadium in Mexico City. Opponents had not been announced.
May 4, 2020 3:43 am
UNDATED (AP) – The NHL could have trouble getting non-Canadian resident players into that country should the league decide to resume the 2019-20 season soon. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said Sunday that players would at a minimum need to follow quarantine protocols if they were to arrive in Canada while the border remains closed due to the pandemic. Trudeau said anyone who arrives from another country will have to follow all the rules of quarantine in an extremely strict manner. However, he added that an agreement between Canada and the NHL hasn’t been brokered. The Associated Press reported earlier this week that Edmonton and Toronto were being looked at as possible “hockey pod” cities that could host the remainder of the NHL season during the summer months. Games would be played in air-conditioned arenas without fans.
May 2, 2020 3:50 am
UNDATED (AP) – The US women’s soccer team has suffered a partial loss in court. A federal court judge in California has dismissed the team’s claim of unequal pay in a lawsuit against the US Soccer Federation. However, U.S. District Judge R. Gary Klausner has ruled that claims of unequal travel and medical staff can go to trial. Players claim they have not been paid equally under their collective bargaining agreement to what the men’s national team receives under its labor deal. The women’s team filed suit in March 2019, asking for more than $66 million in damages under the Equal Pay Act and Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. Klausner left intact claims the USSF discriminated in its use of charter flights, hotel accommodations, medical support services and training support services. Players intend to ask the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals to overturn Klausner’s decision, a move that could delay the trial into 2021 or later. A trial is scheduled for June 16 in federal court in Los Angeles.
May 2, 2020 3:43 am
Big changes are happening in the historic Washington High School gymnasium. The basketball court is being torn up and crews will soon be putting down a brand new floor. Athletic Director Mike Bosnic says the original floor was put down back in 1932 but in the mid-80’s that was replaced with a maple floor. After some damage a short time later, that floor was then replaced with the current oak flooring that was donated. Bosnic says such oak flooring is unique for basketball courts. He says the new floor will be maple once again. As for what the new floor will look like, Bosnic says officials are still discussing that. Demolition work on the current floor began earlier this week and is wrapping up. He expects the entire project to take about three weeks to complete.
May 1, 2020 3:52 am
The Bengals have released quarterback Andy Dalton, clearing the way for reigning Heisman Trophy winner Joe Burrow to lead a team that remade itself in the draft. Dalton set several Bengals passing records in his nine seasons and led the team to a club-record five straight playoff berths without winning a postseason game. Coach Zac Taylor benched Dalton for three games last season, an indication his time in Cincinnati was finished. Burrow was taken first overall in the draft last week.
May 1, 2020 2:07 am
Our celebration of High School State Championships has come to a close (for now), but we’ve got a couple of title games still up our sleeves.
Over the past month, we’ve rolled back the clock, a little at a time, featuring nearly a dozen state championship games involving Washington County high school teams from the past decade. Tuesday night, we re-play the last of the high school games for this month. We had planned one more game but the network was unable to provide us with the archive to that game.
So, we’ve decided to close this week with two college NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP games. The first includes Washington & Jefferson College baseball, the second features California University of Pennsylvania women’s basketball. And we’re working on plans for May, all the while hoping that things return to “normal” soon.
Our broadcasts air at 1 pm and again at 7 pm. Championship Classics are available on WJPA-AM (1450) and online. LISTEN HERE! Here’s the remaining schedule:
Friday–California University of PA vs. California Baptist, 2015 NCAA Division II Women’s Basketball National Championship
April 30, 2020 3:44 am
UNDATED (AP) – Derek Jeter was a first-ballot Hall of Famer a few months ago, but he’ll have to wait an extra year to be inducted at Cooperstown. The Hall of Fame has announced that it has canceled the July 26 induction ceremony because of the coronavirus pandemic. Instead, the class will be included with any additional new choices at next year’s induction festivities. Jeter’s class includes outfielder Larry Walker and catcher Ted Simmons, along with former union head Marvin Miller. A record crowd of over 70,000 had been expected this summer at the small town in upstate New York to honor Jeter, the former Yankees captain who came within one vote of unanimous election in January. This will be the first year without an induction ceremony since 1960.
