Pittsburgh's Best Sports Blog with your host Tony Defeo

ESPN's Greatest NFL Head Coach of All-time

2013-05-15T17:07:00.003-07:00

My buddy Keith Thomas of Steel Curtain Rising, brought to my attention an on-going poll conducted by ESPN, asking fans to vote for the greatest NFL Head Coach of all-time.

While that is certainly a subject that can be argued about for hours, there is no question that a strong case can be made for Chuck Noll, the legendary Steelers coach who was the architect of four Super Bowl championships in the 70's. In fact, not only did Noll lead his team to four Lombardi trophies, he's the only head coach to do so--while the late Bill Walsh was mostly responsible for the 49ers winning four Super Bowls in the 80's, he retired before San Francisco won Super Bowl XXIV, following the 1989 season.

While credit has to be given to team president Dan Rooney and scouts such as Art. Rooney Jr. and Bill Nunn, Noll was in charge of assembling a Steelers squad that would eventually send nine players to the Hall of Fame. And in 1979, Pittsburgh became the first (and maybe only) NFL team to win a Super Bowl with a roster full of players who never played for another team.

No matter where he finishes in this poll, there is no doubt that Noll is one of the all-time greats.

Click on the link in the first paragraph and cast your vote.

Penguins drop Game 4 in New York--series tied 2-2

2013-05-07T21:42:00.002-07:00

What to make of NHL playoff hockey? I sure can't figure it out, and, apparently, neither can the Pittsburgh Penguins, a team that is struggling against a lower seeded team for the fourth straight year, after winning the Stanley Cup in 2009.

You may have been able to forgive last year's early round exit to the Flyers. After all, Pittsburgh just missed earning the number one seed in the Eastern Conference and had to settle for the fourth seed and a first round date with its cross-state rivals--a team that only finished a few points behind in the standings.

But this year? The Penguins are the Miami Heat of the NHL (at least in terms of talent), but unlike the top seeded Heat, who dispatched Milwaukee in four games in the first round of the NBA Playoffs, top seeded Pittsburgh is in a dog fight with an Islanders team that finished the regular season with 17 fewer points.

The Penguins lost Game 4 in New York's Nassau Coliseum Tuesday night before a raucous crowd, and the first round series now heads back to Pittsburgh for Game 5, Thursday night. Many thought Pittsburgh would dispatch the Islanders in as little as five games, but now the best a game five victory will do is send the Penguins back to that old rat's nest on the Island.

But in a league where last year's champions, the eighth seeded Los Angeles Kings, practically waltzed through most of the competition along the way to winning the Stanley Cup, the fact that New York is taking the play to the Penguins should be a surprise to no one.

People are blaming Pittsburgh for not playing "playoff hockey," but the mere fact that the style of play so severely changes in the postseason is all you need to know about the crazy nature of hockey.

Can the Penguins recover in time and get back to the kind of play that earned them the second most points in the NHL and the top seed in the Eastern Conference? Even if Pittsburgh does make it out of the first round, I can't imagine facing a tougher opponent than the Islanders the rest of the way.

It's not a shock when the Pittsburgh Pirates win, these days

2013-05-07T07:25:00.001-07:00

It's hard for a sports team to shed itself of a stigma, like that of a long-time loser. The Pittsburgh Penguins had that reputation for many years before Mario Lemieux arrived in Pittsburgh (and for a few more years after); the Pittsburgh Steelers had that reputation for decades before Chuck Noll came on the scene in 1969.

Having finished with a losing record for 20 consecutive seasons, the Pittsburgh Pirates are currently fighting that same reputation. However, after averaging a shade under 60 wins in '09 and '10, the Pirates have a nice mix of young talent in Andrew McCutchen, Neil Walker, Starling Marte and Pedro Alvarez, complemented by a group of veterans, led by pitcher A.J. Burnett and catcher Russell Martin.

After winning 72 games two seasons ago, the Pirates jumped out to a 60-44 record last year, before collapsing down the stretch and finishing 2012 with a 79-83 record. I'm not great at math, but I do have a calculator on my cellphone, and it tells me the team has averaged a tick over 75 wins the past two seasons. That may not be good enough to end years of losing, but you would think it should be good enough to end the "shock and awe" every time Pittsburgh actually wins a baseball game.

But no, unfortunately, not only are the Pirates still facing the stigma of losing more games than they win, they still have the reputation of a team that is just absolutely pathetic--if you've been paying attention, you'd know that nothing could be further from the truth.

As the roster is currently constructed, I believe the Pirates have the talent to win between 75-85 games this season. Winning 85 would obviously mean a lot in terms of shedding that "loser" label (and maybe in terms of actually making the playoffs), but I don't think it should actually shock people if it happens.

I think if the starting rotation gets a boost from a group of pitchers that include Charlie Morton, Francisco Liriano, Jeff Karstens and the young Gerrit Cole, that could go a long way towards helping Pittsburgh finish closer to 85 victories.

Right now, the back-end of the rotation is too shaky and unreliable. And while the bullpen may, once again, be among the best in baseball, it's also, once again, being severely taxed by a starting staff that often fails to reach the seventh inning. And like last season, an over-taxed bullpen could prove to be very detrimental in August and September. If there is one thing the Pirates have acquired in recent years, it's pitching depth. It would be nice if they could actually take advantage of that soon and find a couple more guys to eat up some innings.

In terms of hitting, this team is going to hit. The lineup may struggle at times, like it did during the first week of the season, but there is too much talent for the hitters to struggle like they did for most of 2011 and huge stretches of 2012.

Lastly, the Pirates may not be "winners" right now, but they're far from pathetic losers. So please, you out there are facebook and twitter with your "the Pirates won and the Penguins lost?" status updates, give it a rest.

Thank you.

Penguins look to defeat Islanders in Game 4 and take strangle hold of first round series

2013-05-07T06:53:00.000-07:00

Much like they were in their Game 2 loss in Pittsburgh last Friday night, the Penguins were again outplayed in Game 3 in New York Sunday afternoon by the Islanders, the eighth seed in the Eastern Conference, but like a lot of super-talented sports teams, Pittsburgh was able to survive in overtime and take a 2-1 lead in the first round series.

Tuesday night, in Game 4 at New York's Nassau Coliseum, the Penguins look to take a strangle-hold on the series.

The Islanders are young, upstart and talented, and they may have dictated the play in the last two games, but like a lot of upstart teams new to the playoff scene, another loss before the home crowd (New York has dropped seven straight home games, dating back to before the last time they made the playoffs in '07) would put their chances of advancing on life-support, with Game 5 in Pittsburgh Thursday night.

As for the Penguins, the number one seed in the Eastern Conference, they've suffered three straight early round exits to lower seeds--including two straight first round losses to the Lightning and Flyers, respectively--and a loss in Game 4 could severely damage the team's (and fans') psyche.

Many people think Pittsburgh is built to win the Cup, but a loss to the Islanders would make a lot of fans fearful that the team isn't even built to get out of the first round of the Stanley Cup playoffs.

Penguins escape with overtime victory in New York. Take 2-1 series lead over Islanders

2013-05-05T21:43:00.001-07:00

For the fourth straight year, the Penguins are struggling in their opening round Stanley Cup playoff game. But unlike last season, when the team fell behind, 3-0, in the first round to the Flyers, Pittsburgh has taken a 2-1 series lead over the upstart Islanders, thanks to a 5-4 overtime victory Sunday afternoon before a fired up New York crowd in the Nassau Coliseum.

After being dominated in Game 1, the Islanders stormed back from a 3-1 deficit to take Game 2 in Pittsburgh Friday night and stormed out of the gate with a 2-0 lead in Game 3, Sunday afternoon. The Penguins responded and scored four unanswered goals to take a 4-2 lead into the third period, before New York scored two goals to send the game into overtime.

Pittsburgh won on a Christ Kunitz power play goal early in the first overtime to escape with a 5-4 victory.

Entering the Stanley Cup playoffs, Pittsburgh was the odds-on favorite to at least make it out of the Eastern Conference, but as we've seen so many times before in playoff hockey, seeds mean very little, and each series is a grind.

Should be interesting to see how both teams respond in Game 4.

Mike Wallace tweets and real gay bashing

2013-04-30T07:17:00.002-07:00

Social media has a strong presence among celebrities in 2013, and former Steelers receiver, Mike Wallace, is a celebrity (in a professional athlete sort of way), so it's only natural that he would share his views on a controversial subject via twitter, and it's only natural that people would strongly react.

The controversial subject in this case is journeyman NBA player, Jason Collins, coming out as the first openly gay active player in a major professional sports league.

It's a tremendous revelation by Collins, especially considering the dominant culture in most male sports locker rooms. How many players have made stupid homophobic remarks after being asked if an openly gay athlete would be accepted in their locker rooms? I'm sure you can guess the kind of comments I'm referring to--no sense trying to go back and find them on the Internet.

With that in mind, Wallace is the latest athlete to come under fire for a homophobic remark when, following Collins' admission on Monday, he tweeted: "All these beautiful women in the world and guys wanna mess with other guys. SMH."

Wallace later went on to tweet: "I'm not bashing anybody don't have anything against anyone I just don't understand it." And finally, he tweeted: "Never said anything was right or wrong I just said I don't understand!! Deeply sorry for anyone that I offended."

In terms of gay-bashing, I'd say Wallace's comments were pretty benign. But in terms of stupidity, Wallace's comments were pretty dumb, if only because he should have known people would react to them and call him homophobic.

I'll take the same stance I took with Ravens' quarterback, Joe Flacco, when he came under fire for saying "retarded" during a press-conference in the lead-up to the Super Bowl. People reacted negatively to Flacco, and rightfully so--when you're on that kind of stage, you really need to watch everything that comes out of your mouth--but my retort to that was, how many of us hear ordinary people use the word on a daily basis and never give them grief for it?

Same thing with gay-jokes or gay-bashing. How many ordinary people do that everyday? Tonight, I'll be going to play pick-up volleyball and basketball with a group of guys I know through my boss. And knowing those guys like I do, I almost guarantee there will be gay slurs and homophobic remarks flying around like sharp elbows from Robert Parrish or Bill Laimbeer.

I probably won't call any of them on it and tell them what they're saying is wrong. So for me to go on twitter and criticize Wallace for what he said would be a bit hypocritical.

And for any of you out there in Internet Land (especially those of you who like to engage in sports debates on blogs and message boards), how many of you use the word "homo" or "fa@@ot" when either talking about a professional athlete or when insulting a fellow sports fan you are having a disagreement with?

Mike Wallace should have known better (why any celebrity would tweet anything even remotely controversial is beyond me), but remember to also criticize your friend the next time he or she makes a homophobic remark.

This is the time when a pitcher like Paul Maholm would really be valuable on the Pirates' staff

2013-04-16T06:38:00.000-07:00

Prior to the start of the 2012 MLB season, I had many intense arguments with other Pirates fans about why the team would allow a solid pitcher like Paul Maholm, the eighth overall selection in the 2003 amateur draft, to leave and instead sign veteran starter A.J. Burnett to a two year deal. Many argued that Maholm wasn't a power arm--a true ace--and the team needed that kind of guy to anchor the staff.

As it turns out, Burnett was a key acquisition--maybe the best free agent pick-up the team has had in years--and has not only established himself as Pittsburgh's ace, he's become the true clubhouse leader a young team learning how to win sorely needs.

Having said all that, what's wrong with having BOTH Burnett and Maholm on the same staff? The thing is, Maholm should never be the ace of any staff. However, that doesn't mean he can't be a valuable member of one.

Maholm is now with the Braves and has started off the season 3-0 with a 0.00 ERA. How good would Maholm look on a pitching staff with Burnett, Wandy Rodriguez and a soon-to-be arriving Gerrit Cole?

This might seem like revisionist history, but as I said earlier, I've always been a Maholm fan. He may not be Stephen Strasburg (or Cole), throwing 99 mph, but not everyone can be that guy. What Maholm is, however, is an innings eater and a solid contributor.

Every staff needs a Paul Maholm. Unfortunately, for a team like the Pirates, it's usually an either/or scenario in cases like these.

That's too bad.

Pirates sweep Dusty and the rest of the Reds right out of PNC Park

2013-04-15T07:18:00.000-07:00

The final game of the three game series between the Pirates and Reds Sunday afternoon at PNC Park started off like most recent "final" games of a series in-which Pittsburgh took the first two.

Starting pitcher Phil Irwin made his Major League debut for the Pirates thanks to Wandy Rodriguez's hamstring injury, and before you knew it, Cincinnati was up, 5-0. Pittsburgh's offense looked pretty lifeless (what else is new?), and as a fan, I prepared myself for the traditional postgame fodder from Clint Hurdle and his charges: "Hey, today didn't go so well for us, but we took two out of three from a very good Reds' team, and it's always the objective to win the series."

The Pirates trailed by that same 5-0 score heading into the seventh inning, before erupting for four runs in the bottom of the seventh--including a solo shot by back-up catcher Michael McKenry and a run scoring double by Travis Snider that should have been a two-run jack, but was mistakenly ruled a ground-rule double due to fan interference that wasn't.

Cincinnati got a run back in the top of the eighth, but in the bottom of the inning, McKreny, who has shown a flair for dramatic home runs during his short time with the Pirates, hit his second in as many innings-this time a two-run shot--to tie the game, 6-6.

Later in the inning, Starling Marte, who so far this season looks like the 2012 version of Andrew McCutchen but with a translator, jacked his very own two-run homer to put Pittsbugh up for good.

The Pirates would add on two more in the inning and walk away with a very sweet--and against type--sweep of last year's NL Central Champions.

I know it's still early, and despite their current hot streak of five victories in six games, the Pirates are still only 6-6.

But it was a magical weekend at PNC Park, the kind of magic that hadn't been felt around here since early August of last season.

And maybe that sweep was a character builder--sometimes the objective heading into a series should be to take every game.

That's what champions do.

Steelers re-sign Stevenson Sylvester to one year deal

2013-04-03T09:01:00.000-07:00

As reported by beat writer Ed Bouchette, the Steelers have re-signed inside linebacker Stevenson Sylvester to a one year deal. Sylvester was eligible to be a restricted free agent after the 2012 season but was non-tendered by Pittsburgh and became an unrestricted free agent.

It's probably no surprise that Sylvester didn't receive many offers in free agency. After missing significant time due to a knee injury suffered last August, Sylvester appeared in 10 games in 2012 and recorded one defensive tackle.

A fifth round choice out of Utah in the 2010 NFL Draft, Sylvester was a special teams standout in his first two seasons, and with the Steelers recently signing veteran Larry Foote to a three year deal, in addition to providing depth at inside linebacker, special teams is where Sylvester will be expected to contribute in 2013, provided he makes the team out of training camp.

The stupidity of Major League Baseball's April scheduling

2013-03-25T06:40:00.000-07:00

It's officially spring, but living in Pittsburgh, you wouldn't know it, as several inches of snow fell during the evening, and the city looks like a "Winter Wonderland" this morning.

Major League Baseball's 2013 campaign kicks off next week--including the Pirates' home-opener against Chicago at PNC Park next Monday afternoon. Only problem is, the forecast for next Monday is a high of 48 degrees with a 60 percent chance of precipitation. I'd say the chances of a postponement look pretty decent.

Of course, this is nothing new. MLB has these kinds of weather problems every April, but if you ask me, the schedule makers are their own worst enemies when it comes to this kind of stuff.

Logistically, I don't know if bad weather can be completely avoided early in the season, but I do know that MLB could at least increase the odds of its first week getting off to a much better start. Take a look at next Monday's schedule.

In addition to the Cubs opening up in Pittsburgh, Miami travels to Washington to take on the Nationals; San Diego plays at the Mets; the Angels travel to Cincinnati for an interleague game; the Red Sox open up at New York; and the Royals open up in Detroit.

As I said, bad weather can't be avoided totally, but what are the odds of most of those games being interrupted because of precipitation? I'd say, right now, the odds are pretty good.

However, had baseball reversed the location for most of those opening day match-ups, weather would almost certainly NOT be a problem.

Robert Morris knocks off defending champion, Kentucky, in first round of NIT

2013-03-20T08:25:00.001-07:00

Rocky lives!

Ever see the original Rocky, where decorated and undefeated world heavyweight champion Apollo Creed is told the top contender for his big New Year's Day bout won't be able to fight due to an injury? Creed, his manager and promoter scramble to come up with a worthy opponent, but none are available. The Champ then comes up with a novel idea of selecting a local unknown fighter from Philadelphia (the location for the big fight), and promoting it as a sort of goodwill gesture as a way to generate interest in what he thinks will be a quick knockout. "I'll drop him in three."

Creed picks "The Italian Stallion," Rocky Balboa out of a book, and the rest, as they say, is history.

Rocky gives Creed the match of his life and loses in a split decision, but in Rocky II, he defeats Creed and wins the title.

For the Robert Morris men's basketball team, there is no need for a sequel, and even if there was, there is no way they can possibly top what transpired Tuesday night at the Sewell Center in Coraopolis, Pa.

The Colonials won the NEC regular season championship but lost out on an automatic bid to the NCAA tournament after losing in the conference tournament. The consolation prize was a trip to the second-tier NIT, but like Rocky Balboa, there opponent was a traditional college basketball heavyweight, the Kentucky Wildcats, the defending National Champions, who received a bid to the NIT after a rare down season. The Wildcats were a No. 1 seed, but since their venue is being used for NCAA tournament games this weekend, they were forced to travel to play No. 8 seed Robert Morris in its 3500 capacity gym.

It was a nice bone to throw a small school, and it certainly generated a great deal of excitement, especially considering Kentucky coach John Calipari, who grew up minutes from the campus, was returning home.

However, the Colonials did Rocky one better and knocked off Kentucky, 59-57, in the biggest win in school history.

Life really does imitate art.

Did Pitt get jobbed by the NCAA tournament selection committee? Probably

2013-03-18T18:43:00.003-07:00

For years, I've had a running joke (with myself) that whatever seed people are predicting for the Pitt Panthers in the days and weeks leading up to Selection Sunday, just add two to that number, and you'll probably have your seed for Pitt.

And it's fitting that my prediction for the Panthers this time was a six seed. Actually, that was the prediction of most people much smarter and more knowledgeable about these things than yours truly.

However, like a lot of previous selection shows, I placed my hands on my head and said "what" when Pitt's No. 8 seed was revealed. I really don't know why I was surprised because it was par for the course.

This has been going on for years, and you might think I'm just a paranoid fan, but check out the final top 25 rankings that came out on Monday.

Every team ranked ahead of Pitt is seeded pretty much where that ranking says it should be. As for the Panthers, however, their 20th ranking doesn't mesh with where they are seeded in the West bracket. When a team is seeded eighth, one can assume the selection committee doesn't think it's any better than the 29th program in the country.

It's clear Pitt was under-seeded, but perhaps, this time, that's a good thing. Had the Panthers been a higher seed, say a 5th or 6th seed, a lot of fans would have raised their expectations for a deep run in the tournament. It's no secret the program has yet to have that one watershed tournament moment where it's reached a Final Four. Until it does, nothing short of that will really matter.

However, this season, if Pitt gets by Wichita St. and then knocks off No. 1 seed, Gonazaga, that would be quite the remarkable achievement--the Panthers have never defeated a higher seed in the tournament--and anything after that would be gravy.

And maybe the committee did Pitt a favor this time by seeding it so low. Many consider Gonzaga a weak No. 1 seed, and a lot of people consider the West bracket a pretty weak bracket. Perhaps, in the West, a No. 8 seed is on par with a No. 6 seed in another region.

I don't know, but I do know the Panthers were seeded too low. Perhaps, this time, they can prove it on the court and finally have the one shining moment we fans have been waiting forever to experience.

The Panthers re-establish old Big East legacy in final years of conference tournament

2013-03-14T19:16:00.001-07:00

The Panthers lost, 62-59, to Syracuse in their Big East tournament opener on Thursday afternoon to close out the program's final chapter in the legendary conference before heading to the ACC next season (provided they don't meet up with a Big East foe in the NCAA tournament) and will now wait to see where they begin play in the Big Dance, starting next Thursday or Friday.

In terms of what the loss means to Pitt's NCAA seeding, it probably doesn't mean much. In Joe Lunardi's latest pre-Selection Sunday bracket, he has the Panthers as the 5th seed in the West. I don't know if it was updated before or after Thursday's loss to the Orangemen, but I can't imagine Pitt dropping much below a 6th seed at this point.

A nice run MAY have elevated the Panthers to a 4th seed, but 4th, 5th, 6th, what's the difference, really?

It's just a shame the Panthers exited Big East tournament play on such a sour note because it was similar to how they exited Madison Square Garden for many years in the 80's and 90's.

For nearly two decades, Pitt's participation in the Big East tournament was on par with a jobber wrestler's at a Garden-hosted battle royal. In other words, the program was usually one and done. In fact, the Panthers never won more than one game in any conference tournament, even during the late 80's, when they had the likes of Charles Smith, Jerome Lane and Sean Miller on the roster.

It wasn't until the 2001 tournament that the spell was lifted in a rather improbable fashion, when Pitt, a league doormat in the late-90's under Head Coach Ralph Willard, entered the tournament under new Head Coach Ben Howland after barely finishing over .500 in the regular season and won three games in three nights to reach the program's first conference final.

The Panthers lost to Boston College, unfortunately, but this proved to be a catalyst for future tournament success, as they would go on to reach the conference final a total of seven times in eight seasons and captured championships in 2003 and 2008.

The '08 championship was especially satisfying, as Pitt won four games in four nights and polished what could have been a 7-10 seed in the NCAA tournament into a No. 4 seed.

However, the Panthers soon returned to their former, downtrodden legacy and only won one conference tournament game over the last five seasons.

Oh well, the best Pitt team I ever witnessed, the one that reached the Elite Eight behind Dejaun Blair, Sam Young and Levance Fields, lost in the opening round of the '09 Big East tournament. And that '08 championship team? It lost in the second round of the NCAA tournament to Michigan State.

It just would have been nice to see Pitt return to its mid-00's legacy for just one final weekend at the Garden.

James Harrison released and my reaction: Have I been desensitized?

2013-03-10T13:06:00.000-07:00

The Pittsburgh Steelers released legendary outside linebacker James Harrison on Saturday after six awesome seasons as a starter. Harrison, 34, and the Steelers tried to come to an agreement on a pay-cut, but when the two sides were at a permanent impasse, the 2008 NFL Defensive Player of the Year was sent packing.

I do a lot of blogging for Behind the Steel Curtain, so it stands to reason I also do a lot of reading on the site. On Friday, when Harrison's release was imminent, I remarked that I was "Kind of glad." Some fellow fans took exception to this and said I was being disrespectful to, not only Harrison, but to the many Steelers fans who count No. 92 as their favorite player.

Of course, when I said I was kind of glad, I meant that, hopefully, it would help the team's very real financial woes, and perhaps, pave the way for a future Deebo to rain down hell on future opposing quarterbacks.

Was I being disrespectful? I don't see it that way. I've been watching the Steelers since 1980, and I've seen dozens of legends come and go, so maybe I've become desensitized to the comings and goings of athletes. Besides, it's inevitable. It's like what George Carlin said about pets: "Every pet is a tiny tragedy waiting to happen."

What I mean is, sooner or later, your favorite athletes are going to have to call it a career. Other than Brett Favre, who may or may not come back in his 60's, no athlete has ever defeated time.

When it comes to the Steelers, I'm an eternal optimist. I just did a wikipedia search on 11 linebackers who played for Pittsburgh over the years, and I counted 48 trips to the Pro Bowl. Everyone knows the Steelers have a rich history with finding and developing LEGENDARY linebackers.

Why should it suddenly stop just because Harrison left the team? Some fans were saddened by the news. I'm not. I view the Pittsburgh Steelers as an industry sort of like the television industry, and I view my favorite players sort of like favorite television shows. I can count dozens of televisions shows that have brought me great joy over the years. Every show eventually "jumped the shark," and was canceled. However, the TV genre has continued to crank out memorable show after memorable show and has continued to provide me with wonderful memories.

That's how I view the Steelers and their players. James Harrison was just another "favorite" that provided me with great memories over the past half-decade, and while he might be gone, I know there will be future "favorites" to enjoy.

I'm excited about the next great superstar linebacker to come through Pittsburgh. Chances are, he's already on the roster.

No reason to shed a tear.

The Panthers scored 73 points on Sunday.....but they needed five extra minutes

2013-03-04T06:56:00.002-08:00

The Pitt Panthers defeated the Villanova Wildcats, 73-64, in overtime on Sunday afternoon in the last Big East game played at the Peterson Events Center.

Pitt trailed by nine points in the second half, but thanks to their always stingy defense, as well as some timely shots at the end, they were able to tie the game and won it going away in the extra period.

It was the first time I had a chance to witness a Pitt basketball game this season, and I must say, the contest was.............a typical Big East battle. Meaning, tons of defense, and painful looking offense.

The Panthers typically have a suffocating defense, and this season is no exception. Through Thursday, they ranked fifth in scoring defense, and Sunday's performance against Villanova more than confirmed that ranking.

However, as most Pitt fans know all too well, the team has come up short many times in the NCAA tournament, and the reason why, according to most fans and experts is two-fold:

They always meet up with a team that has a "Go to" guy. AND, they very rarely seem to have one of their own. Over the years, it's hard to argue with either sentiment; the proof has been in the pudding since 2002.

It's hard to predict if the Panthers will run into another "Go to" guy again in the NCAA tournament, but I do know their options for one of their own are, once again, pretty scarce. Senior guard Tray Woodall leads the way with 11.5 points per game, and as a team, Pitt isn't even in the top 50 in scoring offense.

Right now, the Panthers are 11-6 in the Big East, with one game left at pretty paltry Depaul to finish out the regular season. Assuming Pitt wins that game, 12-6 is certainly a good way to exit the legendary conference it has called home since the early 80's. And, regardless of what happens at Madison Square Garden next week, the Panthers figure to have a respectable seed in the NCAA's after missing the dance a season ago.

One has to wonder, however, if the team's lack of scoring will once again leave Pitt fans wanting more.

Fake News: Pirates sign Jamie Moyer

2013-02-27T13:24:00.001-08:00

As a small-market baseball team, the Pirates often have to use unconventional methods in order to compete with the big-market teams like the Yankees and Dodgers. One such method is acquiring players who once held great potential in their respective organizations before falling on hard times.

Players such as Jose Tabata, Lastings Milledge, Andy LaRoche and even Nate McClouth, who was traded away at his highest value and then reacquired in the hopes of re-discovering the promise he once held in Pittsburgh, have all been brought into the fold in recent years. Some players, well, mainly, no players, have flourished.

The Pirates also aren't shy about taking fliers on veteran players, such as 41 year old relief pitcher Jose Contreras and 35 year old bench player Brandon Inge.

And that brings me to the team's latest signing: 50 year old pitcher Jamie Moyer. That's right, you read it here, first. Moyer, a sixth round pick by the Chicago Cubs in the 1984 amateur draft, hopes to compete for a spot in the back-end of Pittsburgh's starting rotation.

After struggling a bit in the mid-to-late 80's, Moyer had his break-out year in 1990, when he posted a 12-9 record with the Baltimore Orioles. However, Moyer's greatest year may have come in 1999, where at the tender age of 36, he pitched 228 innings, posting a 14-8 record to go along with 137 strikeouts.

Said team general manager Neal Huntington regarding the move: "When you talk about Jamie Moyer, you're talking about one of the more talented pitchers to come out of the Cubs organization in the mid-80's. We feel he could compete with Jeff Karstens for a starting job."

Lakers owner Jerry Buss and "Showtime"

2013-02-25T06:58:00.006-08:00

You know how, sometimes, you may know something, but you don't really appreciate the magnitude of it until you see it in print? That's how I felt when I read the obituary of long-time Los Angeles Lakers' owner, Jerry Buss, who passed away last week at the age of 80.

The Lakers were a successful NBA team prior to Buss purchasing the franchise in 1979, having appeared in 15 NBA Finals and winning six championships since coming into the league in 1949.

However, what they did under Buss was truly extraordinary, and that brings me to what I saw in print while reading about Buss' accomplishments as an owner.

In 34 seasons with Buss as the majority owner, Los Angeles appeared in 16 NBA Finals and won an astounding 10 championships. That means, if you're around my age (late 30's/early 40's), and you started following the Lakers at an age when most kids get really into sports (around 7 or 8), you've witnessed your favorite basketball team play in the finals pretty much ever other season; that is simply incredible. Talk about spoiled. A Lakers fan must view the NBA Finals as just another round of the playoffs by now.

And the 10 championships? As a huge fan of the Pittsburgh Steelers, I take great pride in my team's record six Super Bowl titles, but the team has been around for 80 seasons. The Lakers have won 10 titles since 1980! That means, if you've been living in Los Angeles for the past 34 years, your city has had to make plans for a victory parade one of out every three seasons.

Again, does it get boring?

Maybe comparing the Lakers to the Steelers is a bit unfair. It's like comparing apples to oranges. Unlike in the NFL, where you need a lot of play-makers in just about every area of your team in order to truly be successful, all an NBA team really needs is two or three top-flight players in-order to become a legit championship contender. After that, it's just a matter of having the right role players and a coach to make it all work together.

Still though, 10 titles in 34 seasons is nothing to sneeze at.

Showtime.

My ex-girlfriend turned me into a Flyers fan.....at least for a week

2013-02-20T06:08:00.002-08:00

Last April, on the very day that the Penguins were set to take on the Flyers in Game 1 of the first round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs, my girlfriend of three years decided she was going to waive me from the team and broke up with me.

I was reeling and emotionally distraught, of course. I mean, why wouldn't I be? After all, I was in-love. It's a painful thing, right?

Little did I know how painful. Even though I was only half paying attention, I noticed the Penguins had blown a three-goal lead to Philadelphia and lost in overtime, 4-3. And that's when I realized just how crazy love can make us. That loss by Pittsburgh actually gave me joy, I mean, we're talking great joy, and I decided I was going to be a Flyers fan, at least the rest of the first round.

The Penguins lost again in Game 2, and were humiliated in Game 3 and I wasn't a shamed to show my joy in front of my friends and co-workers. They couldn't believe it and actually thought I was jinxing the team. Hey, tell that to my ex; she drew first blood, not me. The third loss was especially lovely for me since Sidney Crosby, the team's star and golden boy of hockey, acted especially punkish and was in the middle of a game-long brawl between the two teams. My ex girlfriend LOVED Crosby and thought he could do no wrong.

Pittsburgh mounted a comeback and won Games 4 and 5, but it was too little, too late, as the Flyers won Game 6 to clinch the series.

I thought it was poetic justice. When my girlfriend and I first got together, the Steelers, my favorite team, won Super Bowl XLIII. When she broke up with me for some other guy, the Penguins, their favorite team, lost in the first round of the playoffs to their blood rivals.

Some of my friends still can't believe I rooted for Philadelphia. To repeat: love will make you do crazy things.

Racists sports viewers

2013-02-13T07:08:00.001-08:00

I grew up watching a lot of sports on television with my late grandfather, and just about every time the starting lineups of each team were announced, he would do a "count" of how many blacks/Latins/minorities of any kind were playing for each team vs. how many whites were playing.

You could say it was his first official statistic of the game, and if the number of minorities far outweighed the number of caucasians, well, he wouldn't change the channel, but he sure would make a negative comment about it.

Apparently, his level of joy with regards to watching a sporting event correlated with the proportion of whites to minorities.

My grandfather, who would be 90 today (God rest his soul) was a great man, but he came from a "different" era, let's just say, and the whole equality thing was something he probably needed another couple of decades to get used to.

I bring this up because just last week, in the days following Super Bowl XLVII, a couple of people I know were actually complaining about the "overwhelming" amount of African Americans participating in the game. And they weren't just talking about the players, either. They also had a problem with the black referee; Jennifer Hudson, who sang America the Beautiful; Alicia Keys, who performed the National Anthem; and, of course, Beyonce, the star of the halftime show.

Heck, Richard Dent, the all-time great defensive lineman for the Chicago Bears, even presented the Lombardi trophy to the Baltimore Ravens during the post-game ceremony.

"It's the biggest sporting event in our country, and we have to watch a bunch of blacks?"

I didn't realize Beyonce wasn't an American--someone should probably check her visa.

White people crack me up. I can say that because I am, in fact, a white person, and I can tell you I've never derived any pleasure, or lack thereof, from the proportion of white people to minorities while watching a sporting event.

Being from Pittsburgh and a huge sports fan, the only colors I care about are black and gold. If you're wearing those colors and trying to win for one of my teams, I have no problem with you. In fact, even if you're not wearing one of my team's colors, the only problem I'll have with you is the fact that you're trying to beat my team. Why? Because I'm not a racist and, oh yeah, this is 2013.

Haven't we progressed enough as a society? I guess not.

Speaking of Pittsburgh, one of the things my city has become over the last quarter of a century is a pretty big hockey town. In case you haven't noticed, hockey is a sport played by predominantly white athletes. I'm not a huge hockey fan, but I've followed the sport enough to know I've never once heard a white person complain about the overwhelming number of caucasians involved in the game.

In fact, I'm almost positive that some white people become hockey fans simply because "there aren't so many blacks running around." My ex girlfriend's dad and step mom mysteriously stopped watching the Steelers and became rabid Pens fans, and knowing them like I do, I'm almost positive one of the bigger selling points was the whole "caucasian persuasion."

The NFL is like 65% black, and some white people have a problem with that.

The NBA is like 80% black, and being from Pittsburgh I KNOW some white people have a problem with that.

However, the NHL is less than one percent black, but nobody really complains about it, well, except for black people. I'm pretty sure there are a lot of black people who don't watch hockey because "there are so many whites skating around." However, not to sound like a real 70's era bleeding heart liberal, but I'm willing to give African Americans a pass when it comes to stuff like that. Why? Look around you. White people out-number black people by like 9 to 1 in America.

Just walk outside. How many black people do you see?

Turn on your TV. How many black characters are on your favorite shows? How many black people are anchoring your nightly newscast?

African Americans are pretty much out-numbered everywhere they go, not just in hockey.

Finally, ever watch the Olympics? How many events are dominated by African Americans? Not many, but you never hear anyone say things like, "Man, I can't watch this sand volleyball. Nothing but whites."...."Skiing? I'm not watching a bunch of white people ski down a hill. I mean, you can't even see them because their white skin blends in with the white snow!"........"Curling? They're white AND Canadian!"

You never hear comments like that, of course, but when it comes to track and field..................................

National letter of intent day

2013-02-06T13:46:00.001-08:00

I don't know when certain events like the NFL Draft and Selection Sunday first started to take off as pseudo national holidays, but I've been following both for decades.

Speaking of sports activities that don't get your heart racing (unless you're an NFL prospect or an NCAA college basketball team sitting on the bubble), National Letter of Intent Day(the day when highly touted college football recruits make it official and pick a school to play for) has started to gain traction in recent years as a significant day in the sports world.

Not for me, of course. However, that didn't stop me from spending the entire morning worrying about Tyler Boyd and whether or not he would honor his verbal commitment he made to Pitt last month and sign on the dotted line.

When I woke up this morning, I had no idea who Boyd even was, but by about 9:30, getting this kid to play for the Panthers was paramount to the program's future in my eyes.

As it turned out, Boyd did sign with the Panthers, and he'll be calling Oakland home for the next four years (or less if he leaves early for the NFL Draft).

I must admit, I don't know much about college recruiting, nor do I care to know much about it. However, there are people out there who live and breathe this stuff, and every now and then, I'll engage in a conversation with one of these folks about who the top recruits are in the country. For me, it's sort of like having a discussion about physics with a CMU grad. In other words, I'm totally lost.

However, I do find it fascinating that, in places where college sports dominates, National Letter of Intent Day is a huge deal. As a sports fan in a major city with three professional teams, I've always been intrigued by regions where college athletics is the only game in town, and people pin their hopes and dreams on the actions of 18 and 19 year olds.

And when it comes to high school recruits, I'm even more befuddled that people spend so much time and energy worrying about the decisions of 16 and 17 year old kids.

My job requires me to supervise kids in that age-group, and let me tell you, if Tyler Boyd worked for me, it would probably take years to train him to do his job properly. Yet, there are thousands of Pitt fans who are pinning their hopes for a long-awaited BCS-berth on his playing abilities.

And if today is important for Panthers fans, the excitement is probably 10-times greater in places like Alabama, Florida and Arkansas.

Apparently, Pitt did pretty well with its 2013 recruiting class. Although, according to ESPN, the program didn't even finish in the top 40.

Should I be concerned about it? Nah. Alabama's recruiting class probably doesn't know how to stock shelves, either.

And I'm sure they spend way too much time playing " Angry Birds" on their cell phones.

Super Bowl XLVII the greatest ever? Let's hold off for at least a day or two before we make that proclamation.....Whoops, too late, I guess

2013-02-05T07:10:00.000-08:00

In society, "now" thinks that anything that happens is the greatest or worst thing to ever happen. No matter what age we may live in, present society is like a 25 year old, it thinks its problems and triumphs are way more important than anyone else's. Take, for example, the yearly proclamation of the world coming to an end--I think we have a few such proclamations each and every year these days. How long have societies been predicting the end of the world all throughout history? It's been going on for as long as man has been walking upright, yet, it didn't stop the "now" society from going out and buying bread and milk in the days leading up to December 21st, 2012, because everyone thought the Mayan calender was suggesting the end of the world was imminent (by the way, if you thought the end of the world was upon us, why would you buy extra food)?

I digress.

I opened with that little back-drop because I think it's funny that some players (mainly Ravens) and pundits are suggesting that the just concluded Super Bowl XLVII, in-which Baltimore outlasted the 49ers, 34-31, to win their second Lombardi trophy, was the greatest one ever played.

I guess I can see people like Ravens' linebacker Terrell Suggs exclaiming that it was the greatest Super Bowl ever. After all, it was the the first championship in his 10 year career, and the first is always the sweetest.

As a fan, I know Super Bowl XL is pretty special to me because the Steelers won their first Super Bowl in over a quarter of a century when they knocked off Seattle, 21-10.

Of course, I'm not suggesting that Super Bowl XL was a great game, far from it, nor am I saying the 47th Super Bowl wasn't a great game, it was an awesome game.

However, there have been many great Super Bowls in recent memory. Since Super Bowl XXXII, where the Broncos outlasted Green Bay, 31-24, to end a 13-year run of dominance by the NFC, most Super Bowls have been memorable. What about Super Bowl XXXIV following the '99 season, when the Titans overcame a 16-0 second half deficit to tie the game and set up an exhilarating finish. With the Rams back in front, 23-16, following a 73 yard touchdown pass from Kurt Warner to Isaac Bruce in the final moments, Tennessee was frantically driving for the tying score in the final seconds, when St. Louis linebacker Mike Jones tackled Tennessee receiver Kevin Dyson just one yard short of the goal line as time ran out to preserve the victory for the Rams.

What about Super Bowls XXXVI and XXXVIII, which were almost carbon-copies of one another? In both games, the Patriots jumped out to early leads only to have their opponents, St. Louis and the Panthers, respectively, tie the game in the final moments thanks, eerily enough, to touchdown receptions by journeyman receiver Ricky Proehl, who played for the Rams in '01 and Carolina in '03. However, in both cases, Tom Brady drove New England downfield in the closing seconds to set up the Super Bowl winning field goal by Adam Vinatieri.

What about Super Bowl XLII, where Giants wide receiver David Tyree made a catch for the ages to help set up the game-winning touchdown pass from Eli Manning to Plaxico Burress with 35 seconds left to stun a New England team that came into the game with an 18-0 record and was a victory away from perhaps having the right to call itself the greatest team of all-time?

A year later, Steelers' linebacker James Harrison intercepted a pass from Warner, now playing in Arizona, and galloped 100 yards to put Pittsburgh ahead, 17-7, at halftime. The Cardinals then overcame a 20-7 fourth quarter deficit to take a 23-20 lead in the final moments, before Ben Roethlisberger and Santonio Holmes teamed-up to rescue the Steelers from defeat with the game-winning touchdown pass with 34 seconds remaining to not only give Pittsburgh the Super Bowl triumph, but also a record number of Lombardi trophies.

I'd say Super Bowl XLIII was a pretty good one.

With so many great Super Bowls in recent memory, I find it puzzling to call Super Bowl XLVII the best ever.

Back in '76, after the first nine Super Bowls were boring and mostly one-sided, I could understand people calling Super Bowl X, in which Pittsburgh outlasted the Cowboys, 21-17, the greatest and most exciting Super Bowl ever. And three years later, after the Steelers once again out lasted Dallas, 35-31, in Super Bowl XIII, I could see people proclaiming THAT Super Bowl the greatest of all-time.

A decade later, when the 49ers came back to defeat Cincinnati with a Joe Montana to John Taylor touchdown pass with 34 seconds left, I could see people getting behind that Super Bowl as the greatest ever. After all, most Super Bowls in the 80's weren't just boring, they were three or four touchdown blow-outs.

Super Bowl XLVII had a lot of drama. It also had a quarterback in Joe Flacco who came of age and proved that he had what it took to win the "Big Game." It had Ray Lewis going out as a champion after 17 glorious and controversial years. It had a 108 yard kick-off return by Jacoby Jones. It also had Colin Kaepernick, the young San Francisco quarterback who nearly brought his team back from a 28-6 deficit before falling just short in the final moments.

The game even had a 35 minute delay thanks to the lights going out in the Superdome.

Yes, Super Bowl XLVII had a lot, but so did most of the recent Super Bowls. Let's wait a while before we proclaim it the greatest one ever.

It's all right for Suggs to say that, but not for the rest of you out there......unless you're Ravens fans.

My Super Bowl Meccas

2013-02-04T18:45:00.001-08:00

Last week, Ravens quarterback Joe Flacco called hosting the Super Bowl in the open air of the New York metro area a "stupid" idea--he called it something else, but we won't go there right now.

Anyway, I agree with Flacco's sentiment. When I think of Super Bowls, I don't think of places like New Jersey and MetLife stadium, the site of Super Bowl XLVIII, I think of summer touristy places like Miami and Southern California.

I even think of New Orleans and the Superdome. It might not be a tropical paradise on par with Southern Florida, but it's certainly one of the more famous Super Bowl sites in the 47 year history of the event.

If I had to rank my Super Bowl Meccas, I'd go with New Orleans at number three. The city has hosted 10 Super Bowls, with seven coming at the Superdome--site of the just completed Super Bowl XLVII.

My number two Mecca Super Bowl city would be Miami. The City has also hosted 10 Super Bowls. Five of those Super Bowls were played at the old Orange Bowl, with the last one being Super Bowl XIII between the Steelers and Cowboys following the 1978 season. The other five have been played at Sun Life Stadium, the current home of the Miami Dolphins. The most notable Super Bowl played at that stadium was probably Super Bowl XXIII between the 49ers and Bengals. San Francisco won in dramatic fashion when Joe Montana hit John Taylor for a touchdown pass with 34 seconds left. Back then, the venue was known as Joe Robbie Stadium.

My number one Mecca Super Bowl city isn't really a city, but just the venue known as the Rose Bowl in Pasadena, California. The Rose Bowl has hosted five Super Bowls, and Super Bowl XIV, played on January 20th, 1980, between the Pittsburgh Steelers and Los Angeles rams was attended by 103,985 fans--a Super Bowl record for attendance that still stands to this day. Unfortunately, the NFL has a sort of unwritten policy of not hosting Super Bowls at cities or regions without franchises, and since there hasn't been an NFL team in the Los Angeles metro area since the mid-90's, the last Super Bowl played there was Super Bowl XXVII between the Cowboys and Bills following the '92 season. It's a shame the league doesn't break its policy and hold another Super Bowl at the Rose Bowl. It's simply a gorgeous place to play a football game, and the backdrop, with the mountains in the horizon, is just an awe-inspiring sight.

I've never been to a Super Bowl in any of these cities (or venues), but if I could afford to attend one, these are the three places I'd like to see the Big Game.

Joe Flacco's poor choice of words

2013-02-01T19:30:00.000-08:00

The build-up of Super Bowl XLVII between the 49ers and Ravens hasn't been without controversy, and Baltimore quarterback Joe Flacco was right in the middle of one on Monday, when he called the idea of hosting a Super Bowl in a cold-weather city sans domed stadium "retarded."

Naturally, 2013 being what it is, people jumped all over Flacco for his very poor choice of words, and rightfully so. Using that word is quite insensitive, especially for someone in the public spotlight, and the Ravens' quarterback quickly issued an apology.

As a Steelers fan, I've never been much of a Flacco supporter (for many reasons that should be quite obvious), but regardless of what I think of his quarterbacking abilities, it's been fairly obvious for quite some time that he's a pretty decent guy.

The only thing I'll say about the sanctimonious-types out there (and they are certainly always in abundance in the Internet Age) who jumped down Flacco's throat for the ill-advised remark, remember to have that same reaction the next time someone says "retarded" in one of your real-life encounters.

In today's PC society, very rarely do public or even private citizens make racially or ethnically insensitive remarks, but when they do, someone is usually quick to call the person on it, and rightfully so.

However, I hear people use the word "retarded" almost on a daily basis, yet, 9 times out of 10, it goes in one ear and out the other with very little reaction from people.

Next time a public figure uses that word and you get "outraged" and want to jump to your nearest message board to give said public figure an Internet beat-down, think about the last time you, one of your friends, or just some person at a bar used that word.

If you said the word, did you apologize for it? If your friend used that word, did you call him or her on it? If some guy at a bar used that word, did you ask him to step outside?

Probably not on all three counts.

Don't be so hypocritical.

The Penguins have lost two games in a row. I guess that means the season is over, right?

2013-01-27T15:01:00.001-08:00

You would have thought the Pittsburgh Penguins were a returning P.O.W and Pittsburgh fans were that P.O.W's family the way everyone showed up to greet the team for its 2012/2013 home-opener this past Wednesday night at the Consol Energy Center.

Of course, the 2012 portion of the current campaign had to be wiped off the schedule because of a work-stoppage that lasted until January 19th. Therefore, some might say the fans were like that all-too forgiving spouse after being the victim of a extra-marital affair.

Actually, that's a bit unfair of me. I get where Penguins fans were coming from with their yearning for hockey to resume after such a long layoff. I could never understand the fans who permanently walk away from a sport after a lockout or strike.

Major professional sports leagues have unions, and unions have collective bargaining agreements, and sometimes, when there is a disagreement with that agreement, work-stoppages happen.

I realize that, to your average hard-working fan, millionaires fighting with billionaires over how to divide their enormous, gigantic money pie can be a huge turnoff, but if you really love a sport, can a work-stoppage (even one that cancels an entire season) really turn you off to the point where you refuse to ever watch again?

If so, I have to question your fan-hood.

Anyway, that was a huge digression from the topic.

The Penguins started off 2-0 after victories in Philadelphia and New York last weekend, and there was that above-mentioned anticipation for game number three. Only problem was, Pittsburgh laid a huge egg and dropped the home-opener to the Toronto Maple Leafs by a score of 5-2.

Friday night, the Penguins fell at Winnipeg and are now 2-2 on the season.

Does this mean it's time to panic? No, but by the emotional highs and lows that hockey fans have been experiencing this week, you'd think so.

I think if the Penguins' start to the season has taught us anything, it's that the NHL is a marathon, not a sprint.

You hockey fans out there, if you don't cool it, you're going to burn yourselves out by March.

Panthers on two game winning streak after 69-61 triumph over UConn

2013-01-20T10:43:00.002-08:00

Just when it looked like the Pitt Panthers were on their way to a repeat of last season's dismal finish, they responded with two fairly impressive victories over Villanova and Connecticut last week to improve to 3-3 in the Big East Conference and 15-4, overall.

Obviously, Pitt isn't out of the woods just yet with regards to being a lock for the NCAA field of 68, but it's on its way to perhaps getting back some of that swagger it has been missing recently.

Of course, a lot of the Panthers' success depends on their guard-play, as New Zealand phenom, center Steven Adams, hasn't really shown up yet and is only averaging 6.6 points per game--will Pitt ever get anything out of a prized freshman big man not named Dejuan Blair?

The Panthers are number one in the Big East in points against, but they're sixth in the conference (and 71st, nationally) in points scored.

That will be a problem come tournament time--a problem not unfamiliar with the program. The defense is nice, but Pitt will have to find a scorer or two to depend on if a tournament berth (and run) is realistic.

But we'll cross that bridge when we get to it. Right now, the Panthers are 62nd in the all-important RPI rankings.

Fortunately, the Big East is second in conference RPI, and that will certainly help come Selection Sunday--a court-storming victory over a team like No. ranked Louisville wouldn't hurt any, either.