Tree of Life

12 Jan

Plans unveiled for a new stadium in Pittsburgh by Dominic Errico

published in category: Uncategorized on Thursday, January 12th, 2012 – 10:41 am

There's going to be a new stadium in Pittsburgh by the end of the summer.

Have no fear, nothing is going to happen to PNC Park or Heinz Field, and of course we also have the Consol Energy Center. What we don't have is a home for two of the other pro sports teams that call Pittsburgh home.

The Pittsburgh Riverhounds, a member of the United Soccer League, announced plans to build a $7 million dollar stadium on the site of the Trib Total Media Ampitheater in Station Square. The 3,500 seat stadium will be financed privately, which is a nice departure from how stadiums usually get built with taxpayer money in this town.

In addition to the Riverhounds, the Pittsburgh Passion women's football team will also play their home games there in the future. The stadium will also hold concerts and other local events, which should help boost the economy.

The Riverhounds have not had their own home since they started play in 1999. Recently they have been calling Chartiers Valley High School their home. It should be a nice boost to finally have a place to call their own.

The Passion should also get a nice boost as they move from historic Cupples Stadium in the South Side and head one mile down the river.

I like the location for this stadium because there should be a lot more parking and easier access at Station Square, plus fans can also park downtown and take the "T" over to Station Square.

There is also a lot of entertainment options at Station Square which should see a nice boost as a result of the new stadium.

Highmark has the naming rights to the stadium and Trib Total Media and #1 Cochran will also be contributing financially. If you want to see a few pictures of what the stadium is going to look like check them out over at www.riverhounds.com

— No Comments ↓
Posted in Uncategorized

 

10 Jan

Summing Up the 2011 Pittsburgh Steelers by Jon Pennline

published in category: Pittsburgh Steelers on Tuesday, January 10th, 2012 – 8:39 am

Well, here we are; the end of the football season a month earlier than Steelers fans are accustomed to. In what is usually a down year, following their Super Bowl appearance last season, the Steelers still rebounded to post a 12-4 record. It was the same 12-4 record that got them a first round bye in 2008 and 2010, but crushing losses to Baltimore gave the Ravens the tie-breaker by the end of the season. Looking back, this season definitely had fewer headlines that last year's Super Bowl run, but there were still some storylines, nonetheless. Here's a list:

Injuries

Say what you want about not making excuses for injuries and "the standard is the standard", the Steelers entered the playoffs in bad condition and exited the playoffs in worse condition. The season started with Willie Colon tearing his triceps in week one against the Baltimore Ravens.

Meanwhile, James Harrison and Lamarr Woodley, two of the premier pass rushers in the league, only played four games together, without injury. Harrison broke an orbital bone in week 4 against the Houston Texans and Lamarr Woodley severely pulled his hamstring in week 8 against the New England Patriots. While Harrison eventually returned, Woodley was in and out of the lineup through the rest of the season and was highly ineffective.

Ben Roethlisberger was limited early in the year with a sprained foot, only to become immobile by the end of the season with a sprained ankle. The offense also lost Maurkice Pouncey before the playoffs started, as well as feature back, Rashard Mendenhall. Max Starks, who came in to replace the terrible Jonathan Scott, tore his ACL in the playoff game against Denver.

Then there's the defensive line, as a whole. Aaron Smith went on IR with a neck injury after week five, Casey Hampton suffered a serious knee injury on the first drive against the Broncos, Chris Hoke had season ending neck surgery, and Brett Keisel -arguably the best defensive lineman all season for the Steelers- had a severe injury to his groin.

Losing to Good Teams

In year's past, the Steelers were always able to seize the moment and come up with the play to win big games. This season, that did not happen. Other than their win against the New England Patriots, the Steelers failed to win a pivotal game during the regular season. In week nine, the Steelers had a chance to even the score against the Ravens after getting demolished in week one. With roughly two and a half minutes remaining in the game, the Steelers defense allowed Joe Flacco and the Ravens to drive 92 yards down the field for a game winning touchdown. The loss ensured that the Steelers would have to have a better record than the Ravens to win the division, losing any chance of a tiebreaker situation. Six weeks later, the Steelers had an opportunity to take the division as well as home field advantage throughout the playoffs. Instead of beating the 49ers to improve their record to 11-3, they were bludgeoned in one of the worst performances on Monday Night Football in recent team history.

Antonio Brown

With all of the hype surrounding Mike Wallace, Antonio Brown was even more impressive by the end of the season. Last year's sixth round pick out of Central Michigan, Brown became the first player in NFL history to record over 1000 yards receiving and returning in one season. He was the perfect disruptor for defenses that decided to focus solely on Wallace. Not only was Brown voted team MVP but he was also elected to the Pro-Bowl. His biggest play of the year was his 79 yard touchdown to seal the game against the Cleveland Browns in week fourteen.

Turnover Ratio

The Steelers were ranked dead last in turnover differential in the AFC at -13. The offense committed a combined 13 turnovers in their week one match up with Baltimore and week fifteen match up against San Fransisco. Ben Roethlisberger, alone, had 19 turnovers (14 int's, 5 lost fumbles) and the defense only forced 15 turnovers ALL SEASON. It's one thing to be the best defense against the pass, as the Steelers, statistically were, but the downfall of their season hinged on their inability to take the ball away. The biggest reason? No pressure on the quarterback. As mentioned before, the Steelers were missing James Harrison and Lamarr Woodley for most of the year which also explains why the team ranked 17th in sacks. Conversely, the Steelers were ranked first in sacks, fifth in interceptions and first in forced fumbles in 2010.

The biggest story of 2011-2012 season will actually come a few months down the road. Who will be in Pittsburgh and who will not? Casey Hampton's injury certainly places his career in jeopardy. While Hines Ward has already publicly stated that he is coming back for a fifteenth season, Aaron Smith, Chris Hoke, Brett Keisel and James Farrior could all retire. Also, the draft in April will be interesting since it is loaded with defensive players in the back half of the first round. With the 24th pick, the Steelers will surely look to find a defensive tackle or inside linebacker.

— No Comments ↓
Posted in Pittsburgh Steelers

 

09 Jan

The Standard is Substandard-Steelers lose by Dominic Errico

published in category: Ike Taylor, Pittsburgh Steelers on Monday, January 9th, 2012 – 9:10 am

John 3:16 in the bible says "For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life."

Tim Tebow has quite a few more believers after throwing for, coincidentally, 316 yards and two scores. The biggest pass play of the game was the 80 yard game winner in overtime to Demaryius Thomas on the first play from scrimmage. I thought the NFL went away from "sudden death" this year.

The Steelers were heavily banged up heading into this game, but coach Mike Tomlin loves to preach about how "The standard is the standard." Well today, the standard was substandard.

Even being down their starting center (Pouncey), starting running back (Mendenhall), starting safety (Clark), and losing Brett Kiesel and Casey Hampton early in the game, I thought the Steelers would have more than enough firepower to defeat Tim Tebow and the Broncos. I was wrong.

Ike Taylor, who many including myself touted as a Pro Bowler, got shredded for over 204 yards by Thomas, to go along with the pass interference and holding calls he got flagged for repeatedly. He looked clueless out there. Worst possible time to have his worst game of the year.

The Steelers dropped some easy catches early on to fizzle out promising drives and the Broncos took advantage with a huge 20 point outburst in the second quarter to take early control of the game.

The Steelers got things under control and a late fumble by Willis McGahee allowed the Steelers to score the game tying touchdown. The Steelers even had the ball at the Denver 50 yard line with time ticking down in regulation but could not get the ball into Shaun Suisham field goal range.

They elected to bypass a 67 yard attempt as time expired. If you have no faith to at least let the kicker try it from that range in Denver of all places, then why is he on the team in the first place?

You have to credit the Steelers for fighting all the way to the end. It would have been very easy to knuckle under when down 20-6 but the team did a great job getting the game to overtime.

Major kudos to Isaac Redman who ran for 121 yards on 17 carries for an astounding 7.1 average per carry. He ran hard and with a purpose and should factor prominently in the backfield next season.

Overall it was just way too many mistakes for the Steelers to overcome. The effort was not good enough against a team many called "the worst playoff team ever."

Maybe God really is a Tebow fan after all.

— No Comments ↓
Posted in Ike Taylor, Pittsburgh Steelers

 

05 Jan

Bruce Arians talks on Wild Card Playoff Week

published in category: Pittsburgh Penguins, Pittsburgh Steelers on Thursday, January 5th, 2012 – 4:31 pm

Steelers' Offensive Coordinator Bruce Arians spoke to the Pittsburgh media after Thursday practice. Here is that transcript:

How'd Ben look today?

"A little better. He got some of it [practice]. He's moving around… OK. Not as good as he was, but OK."

If you see Ben struggling will Charlie go in?

"We'll just see how it goes there. That's not something you decide on Thursday. That'd be a spur of the moment situation, how we both feel about it. You can't make that decision on Thursday."

Was it something specific that Ben did during the [Cleveland] game?

"No, 'cause he was good in the fourth quarter, he moved around, made some great throws on third downs. Adrenaline does a lot for you in a ballgame that you don't have on Monday. When you wake up, the adrenaline is not there. I'm sure it happened during the game sometime, he thought in the third quarter, but adrenaline gets you through ballgames especially tight ones like that."

Any regrets on playing him in San Francisco?

"None at all."

What have you learned watching him with the ankle, anything you've changed?

"Well obviously he's not as mobile as he was. We make a lot of plays outside the pocket that aren't happening. But the biggest thing is the ball will go higher on him. But nothing out of the ordinary."

Is there anything beyond the injury to Ben that's causing struggles offensively?

"I think field position has a lot to do with that. We're gaining yards but we're not scoring in the red-zone. Our red-zone offense has really slipped on us. The other night the clock ran out, we had two more downs but we only had five-seconds. There were times that situationally if we could play better in the red-zone we'll score more points."

Are you worried about Pouncey being able to play?

"Yeah. Yeah I am. See what happens with the response of his ankle tomorrow."

Did Pouncey have a setback in Cleveland?

"No."

Was it yesterday?

"Yeah. With this things you never know, it could be weather related, it can be anything. He didn't sting it in practice it just got sore. We'll see what happens tomorrow."

On Denver's defense giving up more points of late

"They obviously miss Brian Dawkins, leadership wise. They have outstanding speed on defense. Outstanding pass rushers. Solid cover corners. And a young group of safeties trying to take Brian's place. There have been some mistakes that they've cleaned up. But, I think they'll be more than ready for us. They're an outstanding group."

Does Dawkins' presence in the lineup affect how much they blitz?

"No, they just blitz the next 'cat' they're kind of like us, 'next man standing,' 'next guy in line.' The young kids have played pretty well for them. They have made some mistakes that are obvious on film but they play pretty hard and fast. [Dawkins] is a special 'cat' because he's a linebacker when he's blitzing, but the young guys will be fine. They've got everything, every package in the book. 2-deep, 3-deep, 0-coverage, they're an outstanding front."

Any concerns about Redman holding onto the ball?

"No, gosh no. He had two fumbles but he's been great all year and I have all the confidence in the world in him as a runner, as a pass receiver and a blocker."

When will Redman get rest in the game since he's also the third-down back?

"He'll get rest when we're on defense. There's no time for rest now, man, this is the playoffs"

What's your confidence in John Clay:

"John Clay is a young guy earning more time. He's earning our trust and as he plays well in the game we'll play him a little bit more. He can handle the blocking part of it, it's the assignment part of it the young guys struggle with sometimes. But he's been more than ready the last two weeks and when we've had to have him in there we've done OK."

Will Chad Spann get in only in emergency?

"Yeah, Chad, we might use him in a special situation but we don't want to throw him out there too fast."

Have you faced a lot of teams that press, man-coverage like the Broncos:

"Oh, yeah, many many. The Browns are probably the best at it. And the Browns do a great job of holding and grabbing and pulling on receivers within the five-yard frame. They were a really great warm up for these guys we're going to play."

How important is it for your receivers to be able to beat that?

"If we can't beat it we won't win."

Does press-man take out or make harder the screen game for your receivers?

"It does. It takes it out some. They don't play it all the time. They mix it in and out, but that part of it there are other answer to that too. We'll use what we have to to get the ball out to those guys."

Can you remember a year when you'd dealt with all this injuries?

"Close to it last year. Last year was more IR guys. This year it's week-to-week, day-to-day who can and who can't. You just go with the flow, man, you just take what's there and go with it."

— No Comments ↓
Posted in Pittsburgh Penguins, Pittsburgh Steelers

 

05 Jan

Is Mendenhall Finished in Pittsburgh? by Jon Pennline

published in category: Pittsburgh Steelers on Thursday, January 5th, 2012 – 8:50 am

Picture this: It's April 26, 2008 and the Steelers have the 23rd pick in the draft. Despite having major woes at offensive line, Pittsburgh selects a running back out of Illinois to become the feature back once Willie Parker's contract is up after the following season. At 5'10 225 pounds, the running back not only runs a smooth 4.45 40-time but also shows the ability to be a power back as well. In his final year of college ball, he records over 2000 total yards and 19 touchdowns.

Now fast forward to 2011.

That same back as had two season-ending injuries (cracked shoulder; torn ACL), stirred up controversy and unnecessary attention via social media, and is going into a contract year with one solid season of work in four years.

Rashard Mendenhall is a Pittsburgh Steeler, but maybe his time is quickly running out. The running back suffered a torn ACL last week against the Cleveland Browns, an injury which zaps speed and agility from running backs. Just look at Terrell Davis; Super Bowl MVP, 2000 yard rusher, 3-time Pro Bowl, 3-time All Pro. In 1999, Davis tore two ligaments in his knee and was forced to retire by 2002. While Mendenhall's injury may not be as severe, would the Steelers benefit from paying him a healthy contract, or would they be better suited to draft running backs in the late rounds like they have with wide receivers?

For some fans, seeing Mendenhall leave the city may create a feeling of relief; from twitter and"fumble machine", to not hitting the hole fast enough and tip toeing, Rashard has not endeared himself to the Pittsburgh faithful. In my opinion, Mendenhall is a very talented player whose most recent injury was plain bad luck. At the same time, his first four seasons in Pittsburgh have been uninspiring for the most part. Yes, he ran for nearly 2400 yards in the last two season while scoring 20 rushing touchdowns, but he is 24 years old and has already received two major injuries; the second injury, capping off a below average season. In a position that already involves a short career span, Mendenhall has proven to lack durability from the beginning.

The timing of his injury is extremely detrimental to his chances of returning considering, it takes about 6-8 months to recover from an ACL injury which means he will have a late start to the 2012-2013 season. Chris Johnson, who was selected right after Mendenhall in the 2008 draft, just finished the worst season of his career thanks to a late start in training camp. While Johnson's holdout was the reason for his ineffectiveness on the field, it only further proves how difficult it is going to be for Mendenhall to return to mid-season form after recovering from a major knee injury.

With his contract season looking more and more daunting, Mendenhall will have two choices in the Spring of 2013: A) Receive a contract considerably lower than most feature backs in the league; B) Go somewhere else and hope a team offers him a ton of money.

Obviously, the rest of the market affects whether or not he decides to choose B but, given how cocky and arrogant he appears to look on twitter, my guess is that he will not choose option A. This is the same player who lost his endorsement to Champion after the controversy involving his Bin Laden tweets became a nationwide story. He's also the same player who agreed with Adrian Peterson over the analogy that the NFL was "modern day slavery"; a statement the Rooneys weren't too fond of, I'm sure. He also has not endeared himself to some of his teammates, such as James Harrison who called Mendenhall a "fumble machine" in his interview with Men's Journal.

The Steelers took Rashard Mendenhall in what was considered a steal on draft day. He was projected to go in the middle of the first round but fell to 23 after the Cowboys selected Felix Jones. Rashard has shown, at times, that he is a talented and capable back but it appears his four years in Pittsburgh have been mired with injuries, inconsistencies and general "misunderstandings". Although he ran for nearly 1300 yards in the 2010-2011 season, he'll most likely be remembered for fumbling the ball in Super Bowl XLV which effectively ended a possible game winning drive and secured the franchise's second Super Bowl loss in eight chances.

— No Comments ↓
Posted in Pittsburgh Steelers

 

04 Jan

Steelers-Broncos Pre-Game Show

published in category: Pittsburgh Steelers, Sports Talk Radio on Wednesday, January 4th, 2012 – 12:22 pm

The Steelers take on the Broncos in the first round of the NFL Playoffs. TribLIVE Radio will be broadcasting live from Monte Cello's in Cranberry (Address is 30325 Perry Highway Cranberry Twp, PA 16066)starting at 2pm taking you right up to kickoff. Ken Laird, Daniel Dudley and Former Steeler and Super Bowl Champion Mike Logan will all be live at Monte Cello's analyzing the Steelers-Broncos game. Come out and get ready for the game at Monte Cello's in Cranberry and stay to watch it there with Steelers fans or if you can't make it out to Monte Cello's, listen to the show live starting at 2pm on Sportstalk.triblive.com.

— No Comments ↓
Posted in Pittsburgh Steelers, Sports Talk Radio

 

03 Jan

Orange Bowl Preview by Daniel Dudley

published in category: College Sports on Tuesday, January 3rd, 2012 – 2:49 pm

The West Virginia Mountaineers (9-3) will face off against the Clemson Tigers (10-3) Wednesday night in the Orange Bowl, in what should be a high-scoring affair.

The No. 15 Tigers' spread offense is paced by Quarterback Tajh Boyd (3,578 yards, 31 touchdowns) and Wide Receiver Sammy Watkins (77 receptions, 1,153 yards). While, Geno Smith (3,978 yards, 25 touchdowns) and Stedman Bailey (67 receptions, 1,197 yards) lead the No. 23 Mountaineers' Air-Raid attack.

WVU and Clemson, both average at least 33 points per game, over 440 yards of total offense, and have scored over 40 points in a combined total of 9 times this season.

So, if you enjoy defense this isn't the game for you.

The Tigers and Mountaineers defenses are ranked 61st and 62nd in the country, each giving up 26 points per game.

Here are the 5 keys for West Virginia to leave Miami as the Orange Bowl Champions.
1. Find a running game. WVU is ranked 98th in rushing yards per game and will be playing without leading rusher, Dustin Garrison. So, they need to figure out a way to get over 100 yards rushing. Shawne Alston, will have to carry the load, Andrew Buie will back up, and expect WR Tavon Austin to be a factor in the running game as well.
2. Protect the ball. They cannot give Clemson extra chances to score and expect a very suspect WVU defense to bail them out.
3. Know what where Clemson's Sammy Watkins is at ALL times! He is their "Game Breaker" he has theability to end the game quick.
4. Force QB Tajh Boyd into bad mistakes with the Pass Rush. It's not easy to bring him down with a sack, because of his elusiveness, but in Clemson's three losses he's threw five interceptions.
5. X-Factor: Tavon Austin. Get him the ball early and often. Sometimes Dana Holgorsen keeps him out of the gameplan until the second half, but if they want to keep up with Clemson, they will get him a lot of touches not just in the return game.

Prediction: WVU 41 – 38. First one to 40 wins this one.

— No Comments ↓
Posted in College Sports

 

03 Jan

Offense Needs to Break Out in Playoffs by Jon Pennline

published in category: Pittsburgh Steelers on Tuesday, January 3rd, 2012 – 2:48 pm

The Pittsburgh Steelers will make their 27th playoff appearance in franchise history when they take on the Denver Broncos in Mile High Stadium on Sunday. In their previous 26 appearances, the Steelers have a combined record of 33-20 which includes 8 AFC titles and 6 Super Bowl trophies, unmatched by the rest of the league.

The driving force behind their accolades has been the defense, starting with the Steel Curtain in the 1970's and continued today with the likes of James Harrison, Troy Polamalu and many others.

This time around, it may be the offense's turn to carry the load. The defense is still playing at a championship level despite missing their pass rushers for most of the season. However, the offense, spearheaded by an elite quarterback and three electrifying wide receivers, as been stuck in neutral all season. While Ben Roethlisberger threw for over 4000 yards this year, his 21 turnovers (14 int, 7 fum) should be the bigger story.

The Steelers ranked 12th in offensive yards but 21st in total scoring. Averaging 20.3 points per game, the Steelers have only scored more points than the Denver Broncos of the 12 playoff teams. Furthermore, they have averaged just 15.6 ppg on the road, an alarming stat going into a matchup with a defense that plays well at home.

Why aren't the Steelers scoring? Turnovers. With 27 turnovers during the regular season, the Steelers finished -13 in turnover ratio, the worst of any playoff team in history. Say what you want about the defense failing to take the ball away. They have. But the Steelers, playing against two tough defenses on the road (Baltimore and San Fransisco) turned the ball over 12 combined times.

The time is now for the offense to step up and make enough plays to win games. Their task doesn't get any easier with the recent news of Rashard Mendenhall tearing his ACL. But, as Mike Tomlin always says, "the standard is the standard". Ben Roethlisberger needs to dig for the same road playoff magic that led the Steelers to Super Bowl XL. That year, Ben's passer rating in three AFC road games was 148.7, 95.3 and 124.9 respectively. With the Patriots, Packers, Lions and Saints all possible opponents for the Steelers, assuming they get past Denver, the offense needs to play at a level where they can survive in a high scoring game.

The Steelers' defense has been the staple for decades but, with the "new" NFL being geared towards the offense, it's time for the Steelers to get with the times. They have the talent to win with their offense, but the scheming and execution will be the biggest challenge as it has been all season.

— No Comments ↓
Posted in Pittsburgh Steelers

 



Podcasts