Owls Scrimmage Positive

The Owls scrimmage with St. Marys had a lot of positives last Friday night at Parkway Field. One of the most exciting parts of the scrimmage was the Owls passing game. Cody Coats had a couple of nice passes and a touchdown pass. Also, the play of the Owls offensive line has been good. Owls Coach Jeff Puglio has had to deal with a couple of injuries along the line, but others had responded when called upon.
Alot of talk about the Owls schedule and how difficult it is. It's sad that that's the first thing everybody talks about when mentioning this Owls team. I'm excited and know that this team can be pretty good, if the offensive and defensive lines play well.

Love the Way the Media looks at the NFL

If your a Bills fan you know what I'm talking about. The National Media overlooks the Bills. The Bills have a huge following and it is evident by the Bills backers clubs throughout the nation. When the Bills and Steelers play on the field there are alot of transplants in attendance rooting on them. Last year the Bills played the Panthers in Charlotte. My son Tyler, who lives there, told me that the parking lot they tailgated in was full of Bills fans. He said during the game when the Bills scored, the place went nuts. My sister lives in LA. She went to see the Bills play in Seattle a couple of years ago and it was full of Bills fans. Then why does the national media overlook this team. It seems that the major market teams get better coverage. But, when you look at the sidebars concerning teams like the Bills there seems to be more support for them in their market. Take the TV ratings for individual games. Green Bay, Pittsburgh and Buffalo all always have better ratings for their games then teams like the Giants, Jets, Patriots, Dolphins. I could go on and on. And, the NFL wants to put a team back in Los Angeles. They've had two teams in the past and couldn't support anyone of them. Los Angeles is a baseball town. New York is a baseball town. Buffalo and Pittsburgh are football towns. Nuff said.

Pirates Headed in Right Direction?

Are the Pirates heading in the right direction? Yesterday I talked about how Chan Gailey, I feel, is the right man for the Bills in leading them back to the playoffs. The Pirates have alot of young talent seeing alot of action now in Pittsburgh. Take Neil Walker for an example, he had another game winning hit last night a three run triple in the Pirates 5-2 win over the Cardinals on WESB. Pirates Manager John Russell doesn't seem to have the same fire that a Chan Gailey does in Buffalo. I know many Pirates fans are sick of the losing attitude in the Burgh. And, Russell is not who I would want piloting the Pirates. If the Bucs are to take the next step and make the playoffs, in a couple of seasons, a different style manager would be required. Russell is to laid-back with the media too. I think that will be his undoing.

Where are the Bills Headed?

I'm excited about the NFL season and the Buffalo Bills. Thas right, Im fired up and looking forward to the Chan Gailey era in Buffalo. is he the right hire? Well, time will tell. What about GM Buddy Nix? I'm excited with what he is doing too. Remember, these two guys have to rebuild the team, change the defense to a 3-4 and upgrade the offense. Are they a playoff team? No. Too many question marks, starting with the quarterback spot. But, I'm sure this team wlll be more exciting offensively than under Dick Jauron. Speaking of Jauron, I can now see why he is not considered a good coach. he's not a leader, Like Gailey. That you can see just from training camp.

Everyone is talking about who will be the starting quarterback on opening day for the Steelers. Alot of fans like Dennis Dixon. But, Byron Leftwich has the experience.
Remember one of the two will get the nod and lead the team for a few weeks while Big Ben serves his suspension. I think Leftwich should be the one. You do not want to start the season 1-3 of even 2-2 and then have Big Ben take over and a change of direction. The offensive line has to jell and then the running game take-off. This could be one of the most interesting Steeler seasons because of all of the ifs.

Owls Football Schedule is a Tough One

I continue to hear comments about the Owls football schedule. After Clearfield left District 9 and later Punxsy finding a football schedule for the Owls became a difficult proposition for BAHS AD Tim Walter. The Owls would have had no league representation and down to just a few games. Face it. The landscape changed after Clearfield dumped Bradford after the Owls started to beat them on a regular basis. When Clearfield Coach Tim Janocko absorbed a 56-35 spanking in front of the home fans in 2006 the writing was on the wall and he and his football program bolted for a District 6 League. As for the District 10 football schedule suck it up and let's go play football. If the parents and players get behind Coach Jeff Pulio and his program the Owls could make a statement sooner than later. Teams want to be the best, winners and not losers, so to get there you have to play the best. The Owls open the season at home to Olean on September 3 at 7pm on 1490 WESB, 100.1 The Hero and WESB.com.

Steelers Move Pouncey to Center

The Steelers have moved their first round pick center/guard Maurkice Pouncey to center at training camp Monday. Steelers center Justin Hartwig was signed to a four year deal in 2009. But, the Steelers were impressed with Pouncey's performance at center inthe preseason win over the Lions on WESB. Let's face it; the Steelers offensive line has to be better this year. That means a better running game and less pressure on the passing game. Remeber, the Steelers will start the season without quarterback Ben Roethlisberger, who will serve a suspenion to start the campaign. If Pouncey makes the team better up the middle put him there.

Bills Injury Woes Mount

The Bills are again racking up injuries at an alarming rate. Running backs Freddie Jackson and Marshawn Lynch are both out of the lineup for several weeks. Lynch has a sprained ankle and Jackson a broken hand. The Bills led the league in players on injured reserve last season. Conditioning and the Bills off season weight program were cited as the problems last season.
But, these injuries are just bad luck. As for the Bills performance in last Friday's loss to the redskins on The Hero, typical of a rebuilding team without a clear-cut quarterback and a new defense. The Bills are switching from a 4-3 to a 3-4 this year.

Big 30 Game Unknown

The annual Don Raabe Big 30 classic, which pits graduated seniors from Pennsylvania against New York, is Saturday night at 7pm at Bradford's Parkway Field. You'll hear the game on 1490 WESB, 100.1 The Hero and on line at mybradfordradio.com, streaming live.
The defenses are usually far ahead of the offenses in all star games. what should we expect Saturday night. Well, both coaches feel they can move the ball. But, Wellsville's Frank Brown, who is coaching the New York All Stars, says what makes all star football games unique is the fact you can not scout your opponent and have no film study to look at. A guess, New York 24 Pennsylvania 14

Schobel Released by Bills

The release of Bills Pro Bowl veteran defensive end Aaron Schobel is no surprise.
Schobel didn't figure in the Bills plans and would have to move from end to linebacker in the new 3-4 defense. Plus Schobel failed to inform the Bills in a timely fashion thathe still wanted to play. Plus, he missed all of the off season workouts and mini-camps too. The Bills drafted defense ends and linebackers who fit their new defensive scheme. Schobel is not a 3-4 man and would have been a back linebacker at best.

Congrats to Bradford Drillers

Congratulations to the Bradford Drillers. They finished the round robin part of the Cooperstown, New York baseball 11 and 12 year-old tourament Tuesday by going 4-2. If you heard the boys on WESB's Sports Forum last Friday you would have heard a bunch of kids having fun with team front and center. And, a great job by the Barry Bacha and the other coaches. This team is focused with the right attitude to boot.

Steelers Getting Banged-up

Injuries are apart of training camp. But, it's out of control at Steelers camp at St. Vincent College in Latrobe. Steelers running back Rashard Mendenhall suffered a pulled hamstring Monday. Guard Maurkice Pouncey and linebacker Jason Worilds both have hamstring injuries. Pro bowl nose tackle Casy Hampton hurt his hamstring last Saturday and is limited in camp.
My doctor told me that nine times out of ten a hamstring injury is because your not in shape. I should know. And, then there's the hamstring injuries resulting from not stretching properly too. You see far fewer hamstring injuries in high school football then in the pros. It's a shame, because those guys are getting payed to be in shape.

Notes on the Bills and Steelers

New Bills Coach Chan Gailey is making all of his offensive linemen wear knee braces during training camp practices. This is a great idea. A lot of college football teams do this during games too and it makes a lot of sense. Why lose a lineman to a knee injury in camp.

Steelers kicker Jeff Reed wants a long term contract. The Steeler's aren't negotiating. Reed ought to be excited that he has a contract at all after some of his off field incidents.
Why is that athletes believe they are above the law.