Still crazy after all these years

… many positives, but many questions Many colleges and universities are either requiring or encouraging their students to take the Covid vaccine. This is part of the effort to reach “herd immunity,” which is the point where people have either received the vaccine or have had the virus. That would lead to negating the worst of the coronavirus.  To achieve that, 70 percent of the people will need to have one or the other, and the U.S. has a way to go to reach that — as does Pennsylvania.  For football fans who want to see games in person this fall, many are not thinking about herd immunity — but they should.  The new acting physician general of the state visited Penn State last week, but she was not ready for give any kind of diagnosis of what might happen in Beaver Stadium — or in any stadium.  Full or part capacity? A story about the Penn State visit outlined some of the issues facing the schools and the state as they wrestle with getting the pandemic pu...

Maybe Aaron should "get on with the rest of his life" like Chuck Noll told  Terry to do 40 years ago … recalls Mark Malone and Cliff Stoudt and his reaction to their drafting One thing you have to say about that septuagenarian Terry Bradshaw: He calls it like he sees it — something that he could not do as a player.  And at 72, he still has an impressive gig with Fox Sports where he can go on and on about the game — and people love him. Even more than they did as a player who won four Super Bowls in six years, earning MVP in the final two of them.  So, when he called out Green Bay diva extraordinaire Aaron Rodgers last week, no one should have been surprised.  Rodgers is simply being childish So, how did this problem start and get to the point when Terry has to call out a QB who will some day join him in the NFL Hall of Fame? Terry went on a popular talk show and did not hold back his disgust for Rodgers’ behavior since he insists that he will not pl...

Artie Burns: Where is he now? … Is Kevin Colbert overrated? The only true evaluation of an NFL Draft can occur after five years when the players truly have an opportunity themselves.  With that in mind, I have been going back over the Pittsburgh Steelers 2016 draft, and the evaluation is gruesome.  In reality, they made only one quality pick, and showing how poor the team is, not one of them is still with the Steelers, and their number 1 pick is not playing in the league.  Was this Kevin Colbert’s worst draft? Some think so, though there were some other weak ones.  Looking at 2016 The number one pick was criticized by many from the outset. For instance, this is what Yahoo Sports says now about what they said then, Pittsburgh Steelers Grade we gave then: C- Funniest line in retrospect: “Reaching for need is a sin.” It’s funny because it’s true. Best evaluation in retrospect:  We hated the Artie Burns pick then, just as you, dear Steelers ...

How many fans will fill stadiums this fall? … $45 million in lost ticket revenue alone The pandemic has wrecked havoc with many colleges and universities, but the entertainment sector, aka athletics, have had a major reckoning.  Last week, Penn State announced its final numbers, and they were grim — as expected.  The question is whether or not that can ever be recouped. Will all of Beaver Stadium and other football facilities be filled this fall? Chances are that the crowds will return, but how many will be allowed in the stadiums, particularly if the students and other fans have not received the Covid vaccine? The grim news The information was given to the Penn State faculty last week,  Penn State is on pace to see athletic department revenue decline by about $60 million this fiscal year while operating at about a $35 million loss, a significant impact that was characterized as close to a best-case scenario during the pandemic, according to Athletic Direct...

This is what they needed; Alan Faneca, first round pick, 2021 NFL Hall of Fame inductee … the next Rashard Mendenhall? In 1972, the Pittsburgh Steelers drafted running back Franco Harris to be the key running back in what Coach Chuck Noll built into a trapping offense that highlighted the guy who always found himself in Joe Paterno’s doghouse.  Steeler fans who watched the team draft Mean Joe Greene and Terry Bradshaw in Noll’s first two years, guys who found their way into the NFL Hall of Fame, were incredulous. Penn State’s premiere running back was Lydell Mitchell.  Shortly after that, my high school friend and teammate, Danny Bender, who was living and working in Pittsburgh, asked me during a break in our playground basketball, “Why didn’t they draft Lydell Mitchell?” I simply said, “Just you wait.” And Franco was worth the wait. Franco is still the greatest running back in Steelers history with four Super Bowl rings and a membership in the NFL Hall of Fame....

… “Can you imagine Dan Rooney saying that?” Sometimes, sons are a “chip off the old block.” In the case of Art Rooney, II, he is a block, but certainly not a chip.  His father took a woeful franchise and built it into one that in just over a decade, had won four Super Bowls in just six years — after having never even reached the playoffs for almost 40 years.  That was due to hiring a superb coach, one whom fans derided as “Chuck Who?” when he was named as the mentor of the Pittsburgh Steelers.  The team built off that Noll legacy for two more Super Bowls, but today, winning that ultimate prize is not the goal of the franchise.  Or at least that appears to be the case after 13 years in the hinterlands — though the coach let one get away a decade ago.  I have been a Steelers fan since 1955 when I was first old enough to understand what that meant.  But, achieving another Super Bowl in my lifetime? “ The substandard is the standard ” When...