PSAC West teams opened up action this past week in impressive fashion. In seven games featuring PSAC West teams, the PSAC West team won five of them. IUP had a bye week to open the season. Clarion 40, Lock Haven 3 The Golden Eagles won the first game under new head coach Chris Weibel 40-3 over Lock Haven on Thursday. QB Connor Simmons led the offensive attack with 407 yards passing, fifth most in a game in school history. Clarion built a 17-0 lead before Lock Haven got on the board. ... Read More
Temple snaps 74-year losing streak against Penn State, 27-10
Temple (1-0) capitalized on foolish mistakes to snap Penn State’s (0-1) 40-game win streak today at Lincoln Financial Field by a final score of 27-10. This is the first time the Owls have beaten Penn State since 1941. Penn State dominated the first period of play; in the first offensive drive, true freshman Joey Julius put Penn State on the board with a 34-yard field goal following a 33-yard rush from freshman wide receiver Brandon Polk. The Nittany Lions took a 10-point lead after junior ... Read More
Pat Narduzzi gets first win; Pitt survives Youngstown State
The Pat Narduzzi era of Pitt football got off to a good start on Saturday. Behind a solid rushing attack, the Panthers got Narduzzi his first career victory as a head coach with a 45-37 victory over Youngstown State at Heinz Field. It certainly wasn’t the way the way he would have drawn it up, but Narduzzi was certainly happy with the final result. “A win is a win is a win,” said Narduzzi. “There’s pretty wins and there’s ugly wins and this one was probably somewhere in between. Some ... Read More
Robert Morris drops season opener to Dayton
This afternoon Robert Morris hosted the Dayton Flyers, a team that has had the Colonials’ number for years. The newly energized hosts would end up losing in controversy with a final score of 27-24. True freshman Matt Barr made his collegiate debut, showing off both an accurate arm and quick feet. Finishing with 14 completions on 34 attempts, Barr threw for 156 yards and one touchdown. While only completing 14 passes, Barr hit his receivers on many of his attempts, but they struggled to hold ... Read More
AM Joe: Pitt, Penn State or West Virginia?
Good morning, Pittsburgh. Here's your day in sports for Thursday, September 3, 2015. What's on tap for today: The day starts out with some FCS football, as local Northeast Conference rivals Duquesne and Robert Morris both start the season off at home. The Dukes will host Kentucky Christian on the bluff, while Bobby Mo will host Dayton for the first game on the new turf at Joe Walton Stadium. Both games start at noon. ESPN Radio 970 WBGG-AM (RMU), 1320 WJAS-AM (Duquesne) At Heinz ... Read More
Penn State takes on Temple in season opener
After waiting almost nine months, Nittany Lion fans are just a few hours away from seeing their boys take the field against Temple in the season opener. Penn State will start its 129th season at Lincoln Financial Field at 3:30 p.m. on Saturday; ESPN will broadcast the game. In the 44 matchups the teams have had, Penn State has come out on top in 31 of them, including last year’s 30-13 rout of the Owls in November at Beaver Stadium. What to Look For The Lions will be returning seven ... Read More
Pitt vs. Youngstown State: Preview, Prediction and more
Saturday afternoon at Heinz Field will mark a day of firsts. It will be the first game of the 2015 season for both the Youngstown State Penguins and the Pitt Panthers. It will also be the first game for new Penguins head coach Bo Pelini, who took the job after being fired from Nebraska. It also marks the debut of new Pitt head coach Pat Narduzzi, who since accepting the job has instilled a lot of energy and hope into the Panthers program. One of these coaches will get their seasons off ... Read More
AM Joe: Friday night lights return to Western Pa.
Good morning, Pittsburgh. Here's your day in sports for Friday, September 4, 2015. What's on tap for today: It's Fireworks Friday in Washington, Pa. as the Wild Things (40-53) are back at home following a 4-0, 11-inning win last night. First pitch against the Windy City Thunderbolts is at 7:05 p.m. 95.3 WJPA-FM The Pirates (79-53) will need to turn things around quickly if they want to catch the St. Louis Cardinals (86-47) in the National League Central. The Bucs have an opportunity ... Read More
Robert Morris ready to shake up NEC after down season
In recent years, Robert Morris football has hit a bit of a snag. Going an abysmal 1-10 last season, second-year coach John Banaszak looks to continue coaching up the young Colonial players. Mix in a rash of injuries and the inability to keep possession of the ball, Robert Morris has plenty of room for improvement. The defense allowed 377 (34.3 per game) points while the offense could only muster 109 (9.9 per game) which would land Robert Morris in the basement of the NEC. Linebacker Mike ... Read More
Cal football program continues to put players in NFL
When playing football at a high level, the goal is to advance to the next level of competition. For Division I athletes, the next step tends to lead toward the NFL. But for Division II athletes, chances of getting looked at by an NFL squad are rare. Somehow, though, Cal (Pa.) has found a way to put players into the NFL. Heading into the regular season, the Vulcans have three former players currently on NFL rosters — Rontez Miles (S, N.Y. Jets), Tommie Campbell (DB, Jacksonville) and Dewey ... Read More