Wednesday’s “First Call” has a report about a pending retirement for a former Pittsburgh Steeler. A Steelers preseason game is getting national attention.
Jameson Taillon finally had a tough day for the Yankees.
And Robert Morris hockey is bringing back a former coach.
Bye-bye, BJ
It appears that former Steeler BJ Finney is retiring. That’s according to Kellis Robinett of the Wichita Eagle/Kansas City Star.
Former K-State offensive lineman BJ Finney told me last night he has medically retired from football after playing seven seasons in the NFL, mostly with the Pittsburgh Steelers.
Not sure if that’s widely known or not. Just wanted to say congrats to him on a stellar career! pic.twitter.com/gO87uBerDt
— Kellis Robinett (@KellisRobinett) June 7, 2022
Finney played at Kansas State before signing with the Steelers as an undrafted free agent following the 2015 draft. He remained in Pittsburgh through 2019, serving as a guard and center for 66 games and 15 starts.
After leaving the Steelers prior to the 2020 season, Finney spent time with the Seattle Seahawks and Cincinnati Bengals that year. He came back to Pittsburgh and played in seven games last year.
Finney suffered a back injury in Week 13 and was placed on injured reserve Dec. 15.
Eyes on the game
According to ESPN’s Yates Field, there are six nationally televised preseason NFL games.
One of them involves the Steelers. It’ll be the game at Heinz Field on Aug. 28 against the Detroit Lions.
Preseason National TV Games:
8/4: Jaguars Raiders (Canton) 8 PM ET, NBC
8/18: Bears at Seahawks, 8 PM ET, ESPN
8/21: Ravens at Cardinals, 8 PM ET, FOX
8/22: Falcons at Jets, 8 PM ET, ESPN
8/25: 49ers at Houston Texans, 8:15 PM ET, Prime Video
8/28: Lions at Steelers, 4:30 PM ET, CBS— Field Yates (@FieldYates) June 7, 2022
Also in the preseason, the Steelers will host the Seattle Seahawks on Aug. and they’ll travel to Jacksonville on Aug. 13, and they’ll travel to Jacksonville 20. Those are both going to be local KDKA games.
Taillon touched up
Former Pirates pitcher Jameson Taillon has been red hot lately. But he hit a snag Tuesday.
The Yankees right-hander left with a no decision against the Minnesota Twins after just four innings. He yielded four earned runs on nine hits, striking out three while walking one and throwing 87 pitches.
Taillon’s ERA jumped from 2.30 to 2.73. He had collected wins in five of his previous six starts.
The Yankees ended up winning by a final of 10-4. It’s the team’s seventh straight win.
Colonial homecoming
As the Robert Morris hockey program prepares to return to competition in 2023-24, a familiar name is rejoining the team. Former assistant coach Matt Nicholson is coming back to the Colonials in that same capacity.
For six years, Nicholson was both an assistant coach and associate head coach on Derek Schooley’s staff from 2009-15. From there, he became the head coach and director of hockey operations with the Amarillo Bulls of the North American Hockey League (NAHL) until 2017, sending 24 players to NCAA Division I programs.
NEWS: Nicholson Named RMU Associate Head Coach
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???: https://t.co/EgGgXngslK#BobbyMo | ??????????? pic.twitter.com/2WQ2j4qBAc— RMU Men’s Hockey (@RMUMHockey) June 7, 2022
“I’m thrilled that Matt Nicholson has agreed to return to RMU,” Schooley said via the team’s website. “Matt was instrumental in recruiting some of the all-time greats in program history, and he has an outstanding eye for talent. That’s an aspect that will be very important as we embark on the recruiting trail. Matt was part of a special era of RMU hockey, and we’re looking forward to working together to relaunch the program.”
Nicholson spent the 2021-22 season as assistant coach at Mercyhurst. Prior to that, he served three seasons as the associate head coach and recruiting coordinator at Niagara from 2017-20.
Tim Benz is a Tribune-Review staff writer. You can contact Tim at tbenz@triblive.com or via Twitter. All tweets could be reposted. All emails are subject to publication unless specified otherwise.