The Steelers stink. There, I said it. Losers of three straight, the current standard just isn’t up to the standard that coach Mike Tomlin so often talks about. The Steelers have looked horrendous in their last two games on the road. The Miami debacle was bad. But the loss to the Ravens, losers of four straight, was perhaps worse. With so much on the line in the now tight AFC North, the Steelers didn’t show up. I would need several pages to write about all that was wrong and bad. The Steelers had better get it together soon. Next they host red hot Dallas at home. They will be the underdog, even playing in their beloved Heinz Field. It’s time to look in the mirror, guys. For a team that talked about going to the Super Bowl, this kind of play just isn’t acceptable.
• Ben Roethlisberger has a history of playing very poorly coming off an injury. Big Ben should have not even made the trip to Baltimore, because he was that bad. Sure, he rallied his team when it was too late. But that doesn’t make up for an abysmal performance by the future hall of famer. Roethlisberger was off all day, which made me wonder if the much criticized Landry Jones could have done better. He certainly couldn’t have played any worse than Ben did. The Steelers are now in a fight to win the division they looked like they would run away with. It’s up to Big Ben to lead the way, or this season will soon go down in flames.
• Devastating is the only word I can use to describe the injury to IUP star quarterback Lenny Williams, and what it might mean for the Crimson Hawks. Williams, one of the best players in the country, went down early against Mercyhurst with what is being called a potentially serious knee injury. Though the Hawks won the game, they lost their most dynamic player. There are no words to accurately describe how big this loss is. With Williams, IUP is a team that could contend for a national title. Without him, the Crimson Hawks are just not the same. Curt Cignetti has done a fantastic job since coming to town. He’ll have to do his best coaching ever to get his team to win without Lenny Williams.
• Penn State is on fire. The Nittany Lions have won five in a row, and are starting to dominate their opponents. Who saw this coming? The win over Iowa was one of the most impressive wins in recent history. Penn State rolled up nearly 600 yards on offense, while the defense smothered the Hawkeyes. Saquon Barkley isn’t being mentioned much for the Heisman Trophy, but he’s among the best in college football. He put on another impressive show under the lights. Penn State will be favored in its last three games, and if they win those will end up 10-2. Again, who would have believed that after the loss to Pitt? I love it!
• Pat Narduzzi criticized his defense after the home loss to Virginia Tech. I wonder what he said to them after they gave up 51 points to Miami? Pitt is really struggling and seems to be getting worse, not better. I think if they played Penn State right now they’d get manhandled. Narduzzi and his staff have their work cut out for them as they finish out the season.
• The Pens started slowly, but have really come on lately. It’s probably no coincidence that their recent surge has come when Sidney Crosby came back from a concussion. Crosby, who dominated the World Cup, has picked up where he’s left off. He’s now taken the NHL’s scoring lead, despite missing several games to open the season. And Sid has proven once again that he is the best player in the world today.
• Game Seven of the World Series lived up to the hype. Many are calling it the greatest Game Seven ever, although Pirates’ fans would argue that nothing will ever top Bill Mazeroski’s walkoff homer against the Yankees in 1960. I picked the Cubs to win it, and I’m glad for that city. I’ve made several trips to Chicago for baseball over the years and absolutely love going there. Those fans are going nuts, and deservedly so. I just wish the late Harry Caray, the legendary announcer for the team, had lived to see this. I also feel for long suffering Indians’ fans. They were one out away from winning the Series in 1997, and now have lost the series after leading three games to one. Plus, they dropped the final at home in extra innings, no less. Talk about devastating.
• The Cubs won the World Series in spite of manager Joe Maddon. I’ll never understand why this so-called baseball genius burned out his star reliever Aroldis Chapman in Game Six, when the Cubs had a big lead. Chapman had nothing in the tank when the Cubs needed him to finish off Game Seven. I also can’t figure out why he pulled starter Kyle Hendricks in Game Seven after just 4 2/3 innings, when Hendricks was rolling and had thrown a mere 63 pitches. Had the Cubs lost Game Seven Maddon would have been the reason. He would have been the biggest goat, no pun intended Chicago fans, since Steve Bartman. Speaking of Bartman, may the guy finally live his life in peace.
