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  • What the national media is saying about Eagles hiring Sean Mannion as OC: ‘You’ll know by Thanksgiving’

    What the national media is saying about Eagles hiring Sean Mannion as OC: ‘You’ll know by Thanksgiving’

    The Eagles concluded their two-week offensive coordinator search Thursday, hiring former Green Bay Packers quarterbacks coach Sean Mannion to replace Kevin Patullo.

    After a nine-year NFL career as a backup quarterback, Mannion was hired as a coach by the Packers in 2023. Mannion was promoted to quarterbacks coach in 2025 after first serving as an offensive assistant under head coach Matt LaFleur. This past year, he was credited for further developing Packers starter Jordan Love and backup Malik Willis.

    A former Oregon State standout, Mannion will be taking over the Eagles’ play-calling duties, a responsibility he did not have with the Packers.

    What the Sean Mannion hire as Eagles offensive coordinator says about Nick Sirianni’s future

    Mannion was not widely seen as a contender for the position when the Eagles first launched their search. With the Eagles losing out on more experienced choices like Brian Daboll, Mike McDaniel, and Philadelphia native Kevin Stefanski, Mannion was a part of the second crop of possible candidates.

    After Thursday’s surprise hiring, former players and national media members have made their positions clear on Mannion joining the Eagles staff. Reactions to Mannion taking over as the team’s play-caller have been varied, but one theme seems to be consistent through them all: it is a job that comes with a lot of pressure.

    Here’s what they’re saying …

    ESPN’s Stephen A. Smith rips hiring, citing struggles of other past ‘inexperienced’ coordinators

    On First Take, Stephen A. Smith congratulated Mannion on his new job before ripping into the Eagles’ decision to hire him. Smith likened Mannion to recent failed Eagles coordinators Brian Johnson and Patullo, who also lacked national recognition (and play-calling experience) when hired.

    Sean Mannion needs to be a Jalen Hurts whisperer. Play-calling is only part of that. | David Murphy

    “It’s not that [Mannion] doesn’t deserve this opportunity. The issue is not him, it’s the Eagles,” said Smith. “They have fired the last two people they plucked from nowhere to be first-year offensive coordinators. You’re looking at Brian Johnson in 2023, fired after his first season. … Kevin Patullo is fired in his first season.

    “Two of your three coordinators [were] guys you plucked from relative obscurity that didn’t really have that much experience … I’m like, if you’re the Philadelphia Eagles, why would you do that? Why is that the way to go?”

    Smith also felt that Mannion’s inexperience could lead him to be the first person blamed if team tensions start to flare.

    “A guy comes in there, and he’s relatively inexperienced, the second things go awry, especially if you keep A.J. Brown there, it’s going to be an immediate reason to be skeptical about how this season is going to go,” said Smith. “That’s the kind of thing that caused the Eagles problems in the past, and I don’t know why they would put themselves in a position for that to be a problem again.”

    Five things to know about new Eagles OC Sean Mannion, from his playing career to his Andy Reid connection

    Chris Long rooting for his ‘old teammate,’ even if he’s playing ‘Russian Roulette’

    Former Eagles defensive end and Super Bowl LII champion Chris Long was recording his Green Light podcast when the news of Mannion’s hiring became public.

    “Sean Mannion — my old teammate?” Long said, sharing his instant reaction. “Great dude. [Expletive] great teammate”

    Mannion was drafted to the St. Louis Rams in 2015, where he shared a lone season with Long before the defensive end signed with the New England Patriots. That same year, Mannion was the third-string quarterback behind Case Keenum and Eagles legend Nick Foles.

    Sean Mannion, 33, will be the Eagles’ youngest offensive coordinator since 31-year-old Jon Gruden in 1995.

    Long will root for Mannion, but he is still not convinced being the offensive coordinator in Philadelphia is a safe bet. If he was in Mannion’s position, he would have been gunning for the Denver Broncos’ vacant offensive coordinator job instead.

    “In Philly, it feels like the trend is that you either get a great job [after], or it’s like a career suicide type [of] deal to be an OC. It’s Russian Roulette being an OC in Philly over the last five years,” said Long. “Denver seems safer, but if you’re 33 and you have a chance to be an OC in the NFL, I’m not going to stop you from taking the [expletive] job.”

    What the stats say about new Eagles offensive coordinator Sean Mannion

    FS1’s Colin Cowherd says Birds fan will know if the Eagles ‘whiffed’ again by Thanksgiving

    FS1 host Colin Cowherd, who is no stranger to making analogies, likened Mannion’s hiring to that of any young person getting their first job out of college. Like any new hire, according to Cowherd’s comparison, one factor will determine if Mannion will succeed.

    “I am always rooting for people that go into jobs where you’re like, I’m not sure they’re ready,” Cowherd said. “It’ll all come down to this: How smart is he? Smart people learn stuff faster. … Philadelphia’s whiffed on some coordinator hires. They’ve hit on some coordinator hires. You’ll know by Thanksgiving.”

    Although Mannion never coached under Rams head coach Sean McVay, he did play under the offensive guru for two seasons in 2017 and 2018. At the time, Mannion was the backup to quarterback Jared Goff. Because of this, Cowherd sees Mannion as an extension of McVay’s prominent coaching tree.

    Source: Eagles hire former Bucs OC Josh Grizzard as pass game coordinator

    Cowherd is not ready to call him the next McVay yet, though.

    “I don’t expect him to be great in, you know, he’s not Sean McVay. He worked next to Sean McVay. He is not Sean McVay. We just don’t know. … He could be brilliant. Sean McVay — he’s really become one of the coaching tree guys of note in this league, and some of them have worked, and Raheem Morris in Atlanta didn’t work. So who knows?”

    Cowherd went on to echo similar comments to Long, calling Philadelphia “the toughest coordinator job in the entire league” due to the high level of scrutiny around it.

  • Diane Richardson, Yolanda Laney, among others discuss the past and future of women’s basketball

    Diane Richardson, Yolanda Laney, among others discuss the past and future of women’s basketball

    As more eyes are being brought to women’s basketball in Philadelphia, learning about the past is a key part in growing its future.

    The documentary series, Assist: Can’t Retire From This does just that.

    The project, directed by Melanie Page, was featured at Temple on Thursday night. Page shared a teaser of her documentary about women’s basketball greats who have come through the Philadelphia area over the years.

    The event included a panel discussion with Temple coach Diane Richardson, Temple Hall of Famer Marilyn Stephens, Philly basketball legend Yolanda Laney, and former Army coach Lynn Arturi-Chiavaro. Page’s first documentary, about women’s basketball in the Washington, D.C., area, also was screened.

    “I’m a student of basketball, but that was how I was raised in my upbringing from 5 years old,” Page said. “Seeing the Washington Mystics, it’s never left me. And here I am today, being able to tell more stories and bring the youth up to speed.”

    The Philly documentary will feature prominent local women’s basketball figures like Laney and Stephens. The DMV documentary starred Richardson from when she was the head coach at Riverdale Baptist School and Towson and an assistant at Maryland, along with Temple associate head coach Wanisha Smith, who played for Richardson at Riverdale Baptist. (Richardson also was an assistant at two other Washington-based universities, American and George Washington.)

    Page started the project during the pandemic in 2020. A DMV native, she began her storytelling there, and it gained some traction in 2021, when she released clips of her interviews from the documentary.

    The next step was to bring it to Philly. Arturi-Chiavaro played for the city’s first professional women’s basketball team, the Philadelphia Fox of the Women’s Professional Basketball League, which only lasted from 1978 to 1981.

    Diane Richardson is an advocate for the WNBA. She says Unrivaled will get Philly ready for its franchise.

    Stephens was a ball girl for the Fox and starred at Temple from 1980 to 1984. She scored 2,194 points and grabbed 1,516 rebounds, ranking second in school history in points and first in rebounds. She was inducted into the school’s Hall of Fame in 1995.

    “You can’t erase our history,” Stephens said. “We got to just stand strong and educate the generations that’s come behind us and give them the information about women’s basketball.”

    Richardson and Laney also emphasized the importance of not letting the history of women’s basketball be forgotten.

    Laney helped lead Cheyney State (now known as Cheyney University) to the first-ever NCAA women’s national championship game in 1982. Her daughter, Betnijah Laney-Hamilton, plays for the New York Liberty. Richardson is not from the area, but has become one of the biggest advocates for women’s basketball in the city since being hired at Temple in 2022.

    “We heard a question for what would you name the Philadelphia WNBA team … I would call it the Philadelphia Cradle,” Laney said. “Because we are cradling basketball history in this area and we have a different style of play in Philadelphia basketball.”

    Natasha Cloud thrilled that ‘Young Tash’ gets Philly hoops homecoming with Unrivaled: ‘I carry this city everywhere I go’

    With a WNBA franchise coming to Philly in 2030, Richardson and Laney believe the documentary will help keep the city excited.

    “Doing things right now like what Melanie is doing and just opening people’s eyes to the explosion of women’s basketball is really important,” Richardson said. “We’ve got to catch that lightning in a bottle and do it now because five years from now, we’re going to be too late.”

    Stephens, Arturi-Chiavaro, Richardson, and Laney have a hand in the history and future of women’s basketball. Page wants to keep educating folks about their impact.

    “This is the standard,” Page said. “This is how it should be. This should be the norm of what we are doing. People should know Yolanda Laney’s name off the top of their heads. They should know Marilyn Stephens. … It should definitely be the standard. That’s the message.”

  • Dan McQuade, award-winning writer, tireless community activist, and ‘Philadelphia institution,’ has died at 43

    Dan McQuade, award-winning writer, tireless community activist, and ‘Philadelphia institution,’ has died at 43

    Even as a child, Dan McQuade let his imagination run wild. “What are you doing?” his mother, Denise, would ask if she hadn’t heard any noise from his bedroom for a while. “I’m making stories,” he would reply.

    Later, as a young man about town, his compassion for fellow Philadelphians inspired his father, Drew. Dan volunteered to give blood often, donated brand-new sneakers to other guys in need, and continually reached out to people he saw struggling with drug abuse and homelessness. “His kindness was what I loved about him the most,” his father said.

    Dan McQuade was already an award-winning writer, blogger, and journalist when he met his future wife, Jan Cohen, online in 2014. To her, his jovial humor, wide-ranging intelligence, and shoulder-length hair made him unique in her circle. “I thought he was too cool for me,” she said.

    As it turned out, they were all spot on. Mr. McQuade used his quirky creativity to write memorable blogs and freelance stories about culture and sports for The Inquirer, the Daily News, the New York Times, Sports Illustrated, and other publications. He was a cofounder and visual editor at Defector Media and worked previously for Deadspin, Philadelphia Magazine, Philadelphia Weekly, and other outlets.

    His empathy, likely inspired by his parents, his wife said, led him to toil tirelessly for charitable nonprofits such as the Everywhere Project, Back on My Feet, and Prevention Point. “Service was always part of his life,” his wife said.

    His coolness, as unconventional as it sometimes was, made those he encountered feel cool, too. Molly Eichel, an Inquirer editor and longtime friend, said: “He was annoyingly smart and incredibly kind.”

    Dan McQuade died Wednesday, Jan. 28, of neuroendocrine cancer at his parents’ home in Bensalem. He was 43. His birthday was Jan. 27.

    Mr. McQuade’s annual Wildwood T-shirt report was a favorite of his many readers and fans.

    “It’s incredibly hard for me to imagine living in a Philadelphia without Dan McQuade,” said Erica Palan, an Inquirer editor and another of Mr. McQuade’s many longtime friends. “He understood Philadelphians better than anyone because he was one: quirky and funny, competitive and humble, loyal and kind.”

    A journalism star at the University of Pennsylvania in the early 2000s, Mr. McQuade was a writer, sports editor, and columnist for the school’s Daily Pennsylvanian, and managing editor of its 34th Street Magazine. He earned two Keystone Press awards at Penn, was the Daily Pennsylvanian’s editor of the year in 2002, and won the 2003 college sports writing award from the Philadelphia Sportswriters Association.

    He went on to create Philadelphia Weekly’s first blog, “Philadelphia Will Do,” and was a finalist for the Association of Alternative Newsmedia’s best blogger award. He served an internship at the Bucks County Courier Times in Levittown and worked for a while at the Northeast News Gleaner.

    Often irreverent, always inventive, he filed thousands of notable stories about, among other things, the Wildwood T-shirt scene, the origin of “Go Birds,” sneaker sales, Donald Trump, Wawa hoagies, the Philly accent, parkway rest stops, the Gallery mall, soap box derbies, and Super Bowls. His stories sparkled with research and humor.

    An avid reader himself, Mr. McQuade enjoyed reading local tales to his son, Simon.

    “Dan was a truly authentic and engaging person,” Tom Ley, editor-in-chief at Defector, said in an online tribute. “His curiosity was relentless, and his interests were varied and idiosyncratic.”

    For example, Mr. McQuade wrote in Philadelphia Magazine in 2013 that Sylvester Stallone’s famous training-run montage in Rocky II — it started in South Philly and ended two minutes of screen time later atop the Art Museum steps — actually showed city scenes that would have had the actor/boxer run more than 30 miles around town. “Rocky almost did a 50K,” Mr. McQuade wrote. “No wonder he won the rematch against Apollo!”

    In 2014, he wrote in Philadelphia Magazine about comedian Hannibal Buress calling Bill Cosby a rapist onstage at the old Trocadero. The story went viral, and the ensuing publicity spurred more accusations and court cases that eventually sent Cosby to jail for a time.

    When he was 13, Mr. McQuade wrote a letter to the editor of the Daily News that suggested combining the Mummers Parade with Spain’s running of the bulls. Crossing Broad’s Kevin Kinkead said he had “an innate gift for turning the most random things into engaging reads.”

    This story about Mr. McQuade appeared in the Daily News in 2014.

    “Without Dan’s voice, Philly Mag wouldn’t be Philly Mag,” editor and writer Brian Howard said in a tribute on phillymag.com. “And, I’d argue, Philadelphia wouldn’t quite be Philadelphia.”

    Other colleagues called him “a legend,” “a Philadelphia institution,” and “the de facto mayor of Philadelphia” in online tributes. Homages to him were held before recent Flyers and 76ers games.

    “Sometimes,” his wife said, “he inserted himself into stories, so readers had a real sense of who he was because he was so authentic.”

    Daniel Hall McQuade was born Jan. 27, 1983, in Philadelphia. His father worked nights at the Daily News for years, and the two spent many days together when he was young hanging around playgrounds and skipping stones across the creek in Pennypack Park.

    Mr. McQuade (left) and his father, Drew, shared a love of Philly sports and creative writing.

    Later, they texted daily about whatever came to mind and bonded at concerts, Eagles games, and the Penn Relays. He grew up in the Northeast, graduated with honors from Holy Ghost Preparatory School in Bensalem, and earned a bachelor’s degree in English at Penn in 2004.

    He overcame a serious stutter as a teen and played soccer and basketball, and ran cross-country and track at Holy Ghost. He married Jan Cohen in 2019 and they had a son, Simon, in 2023. They live in Wissahickon.

    Mr. McQuade was a voracious reader and an attentive listener. “He never wanted to stop learning,” his wife said. He enjoyed going to 76ers games with his mother and shopping for things, his father said, “they didn’t need.”

    He was mesmerized by malls, the movie Mannequin, the TV series Baywatch, and his wife’s cat, Detective John Munch. During the pandemic, he and his wife binged all 11 seasons of Baywatch.

    Mr. McQuade doted on his wife, Jan, and their son, Simon.

    He could be loud, his mother said, and Molly Eichel described his laugh as “kind of a honk.” His friend and colleague Alli Katz said: “In 50 years I’ll forget my own name. But I’ll remember his laugh.”

    He was a vintage bootleg T-shirt fashionista, and his personal collection numbered around 150. He named Oscar’s Tavern on Sansom Street as his favorite bar in a recent podcast interview and said he would reluctantly pick a pretzel over a cheesesteak if that was the choice.

    Dan McQuade collected over 100 bootleg sports T-shirts and showed them off as art.

    In September, Mr. McQuade wrote about his illness on Defector.com under the headline “My Life With An Uncommon Cancer.” In that story, he said: “Jan has been everything. My son has been a constant inspiration. My parents are two of my best friends, and I talk to them every day. Jan’s parents have been incredible.”

    He also said: “I believe there are no other people on earth with my condition who are in as fortunate a situation. … For the past thousand words you have been reading about a bad break I got, but if only everyone in my position had it this good.”

    Mr. McQuade and his wife, Jan Cohen, married in 2019.

    His wife said: “He was truly the best guy.”

    In addition to his wife, son, and parents, Mr. McQuade is survived by his mother-in-law, Cheryl Cohen, and other relatives.

    Survivors give advice about mourning their loved ones, as told to The Inquirer’s obit writer

    Visitation with the family is to be from 9 to 10 a.m. Thursday, Feb. 5, at St. Martha Parish, 11301 Academy Rd., Philadelphia, Pa. 19154. Mass is to follow from 10 to 11 a.m.

    Donations in his name may be made to the Everywhere Project, 1733 McKean St., Philadelphia, Pa. 19145.

  • Some classrooms in a storied Philly high school saw ‘untenable’ below-40 temperatures Friday

    Some classrooms in a storied Philly high school saw ‘untenable’ below-40 temperatures Friday

    No teaching happened inside some Central High classrooms Friday: temperatures were just too low.

    Inside Kristen Peeples’ room, a thermometer read below 40 degrees. Multiple classrooms inside the storied Philadelphia magnet were so cold that classes had to relocate for safety, staff there said.

    Normally, Peeples relishes engaging classroom instruction and discussion. On Friday, it was all about survival; conditions were “untenable,” she said. While some rooms were comfortable, many were freezing. Some were overly hot.

    Philly schools reopened Thursday. Some students returned to snowbanks, burst pipes, and frigid classrooms

    Classes that were supposed to be in rooms too cold for occupancy just moved around the school — which enrolls over 2,300.

    “One class, I shared an empty space with another teacher,” said Peeples, who “couldn’t teach given the volume of people in the room, but at least we were able to be somewhere warm. Another period, we sat in the library while students worked independently, but again, not tenable for direct instruction.”

    Central High School is shown in the freezing temperature on Friday, January 30, 2026.

    With bitter cold still bearing down on the region, some Philadelphia schools continued to cope with difficult conditions for the second day in a row on Friday — old heating systems struggling to keep up with subfreezing temperatures, giant piles of snow surrounding schools that made getting in and out difficult for students and staff.

    All Philadelphia School District schools and offices were closed Monday for a full snow day; Tuesday and Wednesday were virtual learning days as city plows cleared streets.. Superintendent Tony B. Watlington Sr. has said that safety was his first priority in making the decision whether in-person instruction could resume, and made the call to do so Thursday.

    But staff at some schools said they thought that was the wrong decision, given conditions in some district buildings Thursday and Friday.

    In North Philadelphia’s Taylor Elementary, for instance, two burst pipes rendered five classrooms unusable, according to a staffer who asked to remain anonymous because they were not authorized to speak to a reporter.

    Classes had to be combined to account for the out-of-commission rooms. And some rooms were chilly, in the 50s.

    “This heating system is just very old and struggling,” said the staffer.

    Taylor officials asked the district to pivot to virtual instruction Friday, but their request was denied.

    Arthur Steinberg, Philadelphia Federation of Teachers president, said the district’s decision to reopen all schools was “reckless, and a contradiction of their claim of exercising ‘an abundance of caution’ when making such decisions. Forcing students, families, and staff to navigate still-treacherous commutes after a historic snowfall and freezing temperatures was careless.”

    Monique Braxton, a district spokesperson, said safety remains paramount and that district and city officials worked round-the-clock to ready buildings as best as they could.

    “Across the district, teams are responding in real time to heating concerns, snow and ice conditions, and other weather-related issues as they arise,” Braxton said in a statement. “When conditions do not meet district standards, we work closely with school leaders to take appropriate action and communicate directly with our families.

    We will continue to closely monitor building conditions throughout this bitter cold period and make adjustments as needed as, while temperatures remain below freezing.”

    At Central High, several classrooms were so cold they were unusable. This was the reading inside a classroom on Friday.

    Shivering, and slipping

    On Thursday, Penrose Elementary, in Southwest Philadelphia had heating problems some entrances were/ tough to access because of unplowed snow, and a ramp that students with disabilities use to get into the school was blocked. Burst pipes at Vare-Washington Elementary, in South Philadelphia, made six classrooms, the cafeteria, the gym and the entire basement unusable Thursday.

    Those schools were in much better shape Friday. But children and adults were still shivering, and slipping, at other schools.

    By the end of the short school day — the district had long planned half days for Thursday and Friday, with parent conferences scheduled — the temperature in Peeples’ classroom at Central had dropped even lower.

    Teachers and students were in a tough spot, Peeples said, but administrators and building engineers were also put in “an impossible situation” through no fault of their own. They have been working diligently to move students and teachers to warm learning spaces, Peeples said, plowing, shoveling, salting sidewalks and parking lots, and tending to fussy heating systems.

    Philly could close 20 schools, colocate 6, and modernize 159: Superintendent Watlington shares his facilities plan

    At Taylor in North Philadelphia, staff were told by the district that three of the five unusable classrooms will be fixed and ready for learning on Monday — hopefully.

    Watlington recently proposed a facilities plan that would close 20 district schools and modernize 159 over the next 10 years, but the list of schools to receive upgrades has not been divulged.

    The $2.8 billion plan also banks on $1.8 billion from the state and philanthropic sources, money that is far from assured.

  • Flyers takeaways: Travis Konecny is ‘tired’ of losing, Sam Ersson’s struggles, and one bright spot from Boston

    Flyers takeaways: Travis Konecny is ‘tired’ of losing, Sam Ersson’s struggles, and one bright spot from Boston

    BOSTON ― Last week’s seemingly galvanizing trip west, which resulted in the Flyers grabbing five of a possible six points against some of the NHL’s best, looks to have been just another false dawn, as the sinking Orange and Black dropped their third straight game at TD Garden on Thursday.

    Here are three takeaways from the Flyers’ 6-3 loss to the Bruins, which marked the team’s 10th defeat in the last 12 games.

    Flyers fall 6-3 to Bruins in a game that felt doomed from the start

    ‘It’s frustrating’

    Travis Konecny leads the Flyers in goals (21), assists (29), and points (50), and is second behind Noah Cates (plus-15) among the team’s forwards with a plus-eight rating. The veteran sniper fired a hat trick in Columbus on Wednesday and followed it up with a goal and an assist in Boston a night later.

    But while Konecny has played like an All-Star and led from the front of late, the alternate captain’s raw emotion after Thursday’s game made it clear that he’s only concerned with stacking wins.

    “Yeah, it’s frustrating because I’ve been through this so many times. I’m tired of missing the playoffs,” said Konecny, who has seen recent Flyers seasons slip away at this time of the year. “That is kind of all I look at right now, just want to get points for the team, and we need to figure something out.”

    The answer was a painfully honest one from a player who has endured a lot of losing in recent seasons and is desperate to return to the playoffs after a five-year hiatus. Flyers head coach Rick Tocchet has talked about wanting guys who care and aren’t going to “accept” losing, and Konecny, who has matured and grown immensely as a leader in recent seasons, is clearly one of those guys who wants to be part of turning things around.

    “Some guys spoke after the game, I think everyone knows where we’re at,” said Konecny. “We just got to execute. And like I said, there’s mistakes all over the ice, but you ask any of the leaders, it starts with us. Their second goal, I made a mistake there, and [we] can’t be doing that game after game. I think we all need to look in the mirror.”

    There has been much social media debate about the 28-year-old Konecny, who has played 22 career playoff games but none since the 2020 COVID-19 bubble, but the Flyers could use more guys like him, and it’s concerning to think where this team might be without him.

    Flyers right wing Travis Konecny has been red-hot with 16 goals and 31 points over his past 28 games.

    Sam’s struggles

    Sam Ersson’s struggles are well-documented, as the Swede’s .856 save percentage is the lowest among the 56 NHL goalies who have played at least 15 games this season. The analytics are no better, as according to Money Puck, Ersson’s minus-18.1 goals saved above expected is the third-worst mark in the NHL and 25 goals worse than his partner, Dan Vladař.

    But Thursday provided a perfect snapshot of the enigma Ersson has been, as his performance showcased why fans have grown so frustrated with the backup netminder, but also featured some flashes of why the Flyers have stood by Ersson for so long despite his struggles.

    Ersson started the game brilliantly, shutting down Marat Khusnutdinov from in close just 14 seconds in, followed by a couple of 10-bell saves on Sean Kuraly from point-blank range that showcased the netminder’s athleticism. Ersson, who was always going to need to have a big game given the Flyers’ tired legs on a road back-to-back, was keeping the Flyers in it.

    Flyers takeaways: Sam Ersson is ‘in the mud’ and needs to get out; Garnet Hathaway finally breaks through “I don’t know if the sarcastic che

    But then the Mr. Hyde side of Ersson reared its ugly head as it has so often over the past two seasons. Ersson was in good position to stop Viktor Arvidsson’s one-timer from 25 feet out, but the shot from the right faceoff circle, which Arvidsson didn’t get all of, snuck through the goalie’s five-hole for Boston’s opener.

    The script soon repeated itself, as after Ersson made a few big saves to close the first period, he allowed another soft goal early in the second period. Fraser Minten was the beneficiary this time, as just like on Arvidsson’s tally, his shot beat Ersson five-hole on the ice. The goal served as a backbreaker as the Flyers had begun the second period strongly and were close to halving the deficit.

    Ersson’s talent was on display minutes later, as down 3-1, he made a miraculous, toe save on Andrew Peeke, albeit right before Casey Mittelstadt flipped home the rebound.

    “I don’t know, it’s not just [Ersson], just some of the goals, weakside stuff that we are giving up, that’s a tough one for any goalie when you give weakside goals up,” said Tocchet.

    Ersson, who did not speak with the media post-game after leaving the contest after two periods with a lower-body injury, allowed five goals on 20 shots and was culpable for two tough goals against.

    While Ersson has shown flashes and stretches of being an NHL goalie, he has been far too sporadic and unreliable the past two seasons for a Flyers team that needs a steady backup. A restricted free agent at season’s end, his days in Philly look to be numbered.

    Grebenkin’s growth

    If there was a silver lining from Thursday’s loss, it was the effort of winger Nikita Grebenkin.

    The 22-year-old, who has been in and out of Tocchet’s good graces over the course of the season, had one of his best games since being acquired by the Flyers last March in the Scott Laughton trade.

    Elevated to the top line for the game alongside Konecny and Christian Dvorak, Grebenkin, who Rasmus Ristolainen said “brings energy every day,” seemed to be directly involved in most of the Flyers’ best moments offensively.

    Flyers winger Nikita Grebenkin is starting to play the type of game that Rick Tocchet is looking for from the power forward.

    With 12 minutes gone in the first period, Grebenkin pounced on a puck in the neutral zone with speed and carried into the Boston zone. As Tocchet has so often pleaded with the Russian to do, Grebenkin used his 6-foot-2, 210-pound frame to strongly shield the puck from Jonathan Aspirot before shifting it quickly from his backhand to forehand to try and jam one by Jeremy Swayman.

    Swayman stopped the initial shot, but a crashing Dvorak slammed home the rebound. While the goal was ultimately disallowed as Grebenkin was ruled to have interfered with the goaltender, it was the kind of power forward-type play teammates enjoy seeing from the youngster.

    “I just love how hard he works,” Konecny said of Grebenkin. “He’s trying to learn the details of how to play the right way and he’s a great guy, too, so I love working with him. ”He’s got a lot of skill, too. So I think the more opportunity he gets, he’ll just keep running with it.”

    Grebenkin was also involved in the Flyers’ first goal that stood, as directly after he fired a shot on goal, he delivered a big hit on Mark Kastelic that knocked the Bruins’ tough guy off his skates and prevented him from retrieving the puck. Seconds later, Dvorak deflected a clearing attempt from Kuraly into the slot for a wide-open Konecny to score.

    Grebenkin would be rewarded for his efforts with a goal at the end of the second period, as he was first on the scene to bury a rebound after Konecny’s breakaway and follow-up attempt were both stopped by Swayman. In 13 minutes, 43 seconds of ice time, Grebenkin registered a goal, five shots, and one hit, while leading the team with four scoring chances at five-on-five, according to Natural Stat Trick.

    It remains to be seen if Grebenkin retains his spot on the top line come Saturday, but his encouraging performance in Boston suggests he’s earned more ice time and deserves a longer look there.

  • Reports: Former Penn State running back Nick Singleton breaks foot at Senior Bowl practice

    Reports: Former Penn State running back Nick Singleton breaks foot at Senior Bowl practice

    Nicholas Singleton, who just wrapped his senior season at Penn State, suffered a broken foot during a Senior Bowl practice on Thursday in Mobile, Ala., according to Rich Scarcella of The Reading Eagle.

    Scarcella first reported the news, citing Singleton’s father, Tim, who told The Reading Eagle that Nick injured the fifth metatarsal bone in his right foot and will undergo surgery early next week.

    Singleton is considered one of the top running backs in the 2026 NFL Draft. During his four-year career at Penn State, he rushed for 3,461 yards — with his season best of 1,099 coming in 2024-25.

    He finished with 54 touchdowns (45 rushing and nine receiving) to break the university’s career rushing and total touchdowns record. He’s also the program’s career leader in all-purpose yards (5,586).

    The Governor Mifflin High School graduate had a down year this past season, but managed 13 rushing touchdowns for 549 yards, as Penn State finished 7-6 overall, 3-6 in the Big 10.

    While Singleton, among 15 others, did not participate in the Pinstripe Bowl, the Nittany Lions beat Clemson, 22-10, in the final game of the 2025 season.

  • As Josh Shapiro calls for ICE to leave Minneapolis, his GOP challenger Stacy Garrity wants Minnesotans — and Pennsylvanians — to cooperate with agents

    As Josh Shapiro calls for ICE to leave Minneapolis, his GOP challenger Stacy Garrity wants Minnesotans — and Pennsylvanians — to cooperate with agents

    As Gov. Josh Shapiro makes the case on national television for ICE to leave Minneapolis, his Republican challenger Stacy Garrity has a different view: Minnesotans should cooperate.

    Garrity, the state treasurer and GOP-endorsed candidate, said “it’s best to cooperate” with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, in an interview Thursday night at the National Constitution Center following an appearance on a conservative podcast.

    The retired U.S. Army colonel also praised Tom Homan, President Donald Trump’s border czar assigned to take over the Minneapolis operation, as “spot on” in his recent remarks calling for a de-escalation of the conflict between residents and federal officials, and that residents should comply.

    “He said it best: Cooperate and take down the rhetoric,” Garrity said, noting her time as U.S. Army military police officer gives her a “different perspective.”

    The race between Josh Shapiro and Stacy Garrity for Pa. governor has officially begun. Here’s what you need to know.

    Garrity’s comments came days after she received an endorsement from Trump in the Pennsylvania governor’s race. The president on Tuesday evening called Garrity a “true America First Patriot, who has been with me from the beginning.”

    Shapiro, meanwhile, has become more outspoken about ICE’s operations in Minnesota over the last few days while on a national media blitz for his new memoir released this week, Where We Keep the Light. The former Pennsylvania attorney general, known as a careful and deliberate communicator, has now repeatedly called for ICE and the Border Patrol to leave Minneapolis, arguing that the operations are “outside the bounds of law” and “must be terminated.”

    Pennsylvania does not have a sanctuary policy restricting cooperation with ICE by state law enforcement, but several jurisdictions in the state do have such policies, including Philadelphia.

    Gov. Shapiro tells Stephen Colbert he’s planning for the possibility of federal troops entering Pa.

    Garrity was in Philadelphia on Thursday for a live taping of the conservative podcast Ruthless. The event was hosted by Americans for Prosperity, a national libertarian advocacy organization. She largely talked about what led her to politics in 2020 after a long career in the military and private sector, as well as her work as the state’s treasurer.

    When asked whether she was concerned by the shooting of Alex Pretti, an intensive-care nurse at a Veterans Affairs hospital in Minnesota, Garrity said she had not seen the videos of Border Patrol agents fatally shooting Pretti and that she “always waits for the investigation” before forming an opinion. Pretti’s death marked the second killing of a U.S. citizen by federal agents in Minneapolis this month, leading to mass protests and public outrage.

    “The investigation will come out, and then any corrective action that needs to be taken, or we’ll see what the results are,” she said. “I’m going to withhold any judgment until the investigation.”

    ICE tactics in Minneapolis set off political firestorm from Philadelphia City Hall to Washington

    In the case of Pretti’s death, Trump said the U.S. Department of Homeland Security is leading the investigation, and he is “going to be watching over it.” Minnesota officials have called for an independent investigation and have protested as federal officials have blocked local authorities from investigating.

    Earlier this week, Shapiro said his staff has been preparing for the chance that Trump sends a surge of ICE agents to a Pennsylvania city like Philadelphia or Pittsburgh.

    If Trump does send more ICE agents to Pennsylvania, Garrity said Pennsylvania officials should cooperate here, too.

    “It’s always good to cooperate with ICE, especially when they’re doing targeted actions,” Garrity added.

  • Cubans scramble to survive as U.S. vise on island tightens in push to oust government

    Cubans scramble to survive as U.S. vise on island tightens in push to oust government

    HAVANA — Cubans are hustling to become more self-sufficient as the U.S. government tightens its economic noose over the communist-run island in a move experts say is meant to force a popular uprising and usher in a new government.

    A sharp increase in U.S. sanctions was already suffocating Cubans when critical oil shipments from Venezuela were disrupted after the U.S. attacked the South American country and arrested its leader.

    The long-term repercussions of those halted shipments have yet to hit Cuba, but its people are not waiting.

    Some are installing solar panels while others are growing their own crops or returning to a simpler way of life, one that doesn’t rely on technology or petroleum.

    “It’s how you survive,” said Jose Ángel Méndez Faviel. “It’s best to depend on yourself.”

    Méndez recently moved from the center of Havana to a farm in the rural community of Bacuranao because of Cuba’s severe blackouts. At the farm, he can cook with firewood and charcoal, something unthinkable in a darkened city apartment.

    Méndez said he doesn’t know what to make of President Donald Trump’s threats against Cuba, but he’s not taking any chances. He’s stocking up on gasoline, charcoal, and produce, which he began planting three months ago at his farm.

    Méndez also is thinking of buying back his old horse that he sold in favor of motorized equipment to transport vegetables he sells at local markets.

    “You don’t need fuel for a horse,” he said. “We need to go back in time.”

    ‘Very close to failing’

    Before the U.S. attacked Venezuela and disrupted oil shipments to Cuba, the island already was struggling with chronic blackouts, soaring prices, and a lack of basic goods.

    With experts warning of a potentially catastrophic economic crisis, some wonder if Cuba is reaching its breaking point. For Trump, who signed an executive order Thursday that would impose a tariff on any goods from countries that sell or provide oil to Cuba, it’s all but guaranteed.

    “Cuba is really a nation that is very close to failing,” he recently said.

    But Cubans scoff at that assertion, especially those who remember the so-called “Special Period,” when cuts in Soviet aid sparked the 1990s deprivation that eased when Venezuela became an ally under former President Hugo Chávez.

    Yadián Silva, a nurse and driver of a classic car who has seen tourism plummet, said Cubans aren’t dumb.

    “We have problems, and we know we have a lot of problems,” he said. “But when things happen in Cuba, it’s because people truly feel they should happen. Not because someone from the outside says, ‘do this.’”

    On a recent weeknight, tens of thousands of Cubans clutched flaming torches and joined an annual march to remember national hero José Martí. Many of them were university students.

    “We are a dignified people, a people eager to move forward, eager to prosper, who do not believe in threats and are not intimidated by any reprisals from the enemy,” said Sheyla Ibatao Ruíz, a 21-year-old law student. “If we have to take up arms, we will be the first to do so.”

    Before the march began, a presenter addressed the massive audience that included Cuban President Miguel Díaz-Canel.

    “This is not an act of nostalgia, it is a call to action,” said Litza Elena González Desdín, president of the Federation of University Students in a speech that included references to Trump.

    A day later, Christopher Landau, U.S. deputy secretary of state, noted that the U.S. embraces Martí “because he shared that passion that we have for freedom.”

    “We hope that by 2026, Cubans will finally be able to exercise their fundamental freedoms,” Landau said Wednesday in a recording played at a small gathering at the U.S. embassy in Havana. “The communist Castro regime is tottering; it won’t last much longer. After 67 years of a failed revolution that has betrayed the Cuban people, it’s time for the change that the people on the island are yearning for.”

    ‘We’ll ride bicycles’

    Last September, Ángel Eduardo launched a small business to install solar panels. He called it “Con Voltage,” a word with double meaning in Cuba that can refer to doing something well.

    He said he was fed up with studying in the dark and being forced to write in a notebook instead of a computer to obtain his degree as an automation control engineer.

    Eduardo started rigging pieces to light a single bulb for his home and ended up learning how to install solar systems thanks to a combination of a friend, Chat GPT and social media.

    He now has installed dozens of systems across Cuba, averaging one to two installations a day since November on an island where daily demand for electricity on average surpasses 3,000 megawatts when only about half that is available during peak hours.

    Eduardo said he saw a surge in calls from people in Havana seeking solar systems ever since the disruption in oil shipments from Venezuela.

    Growing a business is something that 62-year-old Niuvis Bueno Zavala has been pondering. A retired Russian interpreter for the Cuban government, she now runs a small wooden shack near the sea that sells drinks but not food.

    “I’ve never had it this hard,” she said, adding that she might start selling homemade food. “There’s always a helping hand to assist us. But now those helping hands can’t reach us. We’re blocked from all sides.”

    Many Cubans decry the embargo, including retired pilot Pedro Carbonell.

    The 73-year-old recently waited more than two hours to buy gasoline. He said Cubans have to keep fighting.

    “If we don’t have fuel, then we’ll ride bicycles,” he said, recalling how Cubans walked a lot during the Special Period. “Our wine is bitter. But it’s our wine. Do you understand? And we don’t want anyone from somewhere else coming here and telling us how to drink our wine.”

  • DOJ has opened a federal civil rights probe into the death of Alex Pretti, deputy AG says

    DOJ has opened a federal civil rights probe into the death of Alex Pretti, deputy AG says

    WASHINGTON — The Justice Department has opened a federal civil rights investigation into the shooting of Alex Pretti, the Minneapolis resident killed Saturday by Border Patrol officers, Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche said Friday.

    “We’re looking at everything that would shed light on what happened that day and in the days and weeks leading up to what happened,” Blanche said during a news conference.

    Blanche did not explain why DOJ decided to open an investigation into Pretti’s killing, but has said a similar probe is not warranted in the Jan. 7 death of Renee Good, who was shot by an Immigration and Customs Enforcement officer in Minneapolis. He said only on Friday that the Civil Rights Division does not investigate every law enforcement shooting and that there have to be circumstances and facts that “warrant an investigation.”

    “President Trump has said repeatedly, ‘Of course, this is something we’re going to investigate,’” Blanche said of the Pretti shooting.

    Steve Schleicher, a Minneapolis-based attorney representing Pretti’s parents, said Friday that “the family’s focus is on a fair and impartial investigation that examines the facts around his murder.”

    FBI to take over federal investigation

    The Department of Homeland Security also said Friday that the FBI will lead the federal probe into Pretti’s death.

    Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem first disclosed the shift in which agency was leading the investigation during a Fox News interview Thursday evening. Her department previously said Homeland Security Investigations, a departmental unit, would head the investigation.

    “We will continue to follow the investigation that the FBI is leading and giving them all the information that they need to bring that to conclusion, and make sure that the American people know the truth of the situation and how we can go forward and continue to protect the American people,” Noem said, speaking to Fox host Sean Hannity.

    Homeland Security spokesperson Tricia McLaughlin said Homeland Security Investigations will support the FBI in the investigation. Separately, Customs and Border Protection, which is part of DHS, is doing its own internal investigation into the shooting, during which two officers opened fire on Pretti.

    DHS did not immediately respond to questions about when the change was made or why. The FBI did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

    It was not immediately clear whether the FBI would share information and evidence with Minnesota state investigators, who have thus far been frozen out of the federal investigation.

    In the same interview, Noem appeared to distance herself from statements she made shortly after the shooting, claiming Pretti had brandished a handgun and aggressively approached officers.

    Multiple videos that emerged of the shooting contradicted that claim, showing the intensive care nurse had only his mobile phone in his hand as officers tackled him to the ground, with one removing a handgun from the back of Pretti’s pants as another officer began firing shots into his back.

    Pretti had a state permit to legally carry a concealed firearm. At no point did he appear to reach for it, the videos showed.

    Videos emerge of previous altercation

    The change in agency comes after two other videos emerged of an earlier altercation between Pretti and federal immigration officers 11 days before his death.

    The Jan. 13 videos show Pretti yelling at federal vehicles and at one point appearing to spit before kicking out the taillight of one vehicle. A struggle ensues between Pretti and several officers, during which he is forced to the ground. Pretti’s winter coat comes off, and he either breaks free or the officers let him go and he scurries away.

    When he turns his back to the camera, what appears to be a handgun is visible in his waistband. At no point do the videos show Pretti reaching for the gun, and it is not clear whether federal agents saw it.

    Schleicher, the Pretti family attorney, said Wednesday the earlier altercation in no way justified the shooting more than a week later.

    In a post on his Truth Social platform early Friday morning, President Donald Trump suggested that the videos of the earlier incident undercut the narrative that Pretti was a peaceful protester when he was shot.

    “Agitator and, perhaps, insurrectionist, Alex Pretti’s stock has gone way down with the just released video of him screaming and spitting in the face of a very calm and under control ICE Officer, and then crazily kicking in a new and very expensive government vehicle, so hard and violent, in fact, that the taillight broke off in pieces,” Trump’s post said. “It was quite a display of abuse and anger, for all to see, crazed and out of control. The ICE Officer was calm and cool, not an easy thing to be under those circumstances!”

  • Judge bars federal prosecutors from seeking the death penalty against Luigi Mangione

    Judge bars federal prosecutors from seeking the death penalty against Luigi Mangione

    NEW YORK — Federal prosecutors can’t seek the death penalty against Luigi Mangione in the killing of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson, a judge ruled Friday, foiling the Trump administration’s bid to see him executed for what it called a “premeditated, cold-blooded assassination that shocked America.”

    U.S. District Judge Margaret Garnett dismissed a federal murder charge that had enabled prosecutors to seek capital punishment, finding that it was technically flawed. She wrote that she did so to “foreclose the death penalty as an available punishment to be considered by the jury” as it weighs whether to convict Mangione.

    Garnett also dismissed a gun charge but left in place stalking charges that carry a maximum punishment of life in prison. In order to seek the death penalty, prosecutors needed to show that Mangione killed Thompson while committing another “crime of violence.” Stalking doesn’t fit that definition, Garnett wrote in her opinion, citing case law and legal precedents.

    A man impersonating an FBI agent tried to get Luigi Mangione out of jail, authorities say

    In a win for prosecutors, Garnett ruled that prosecutors can use evidence collected from his backpack during his arrest, including a 9mm handgun and a notebook in which authorities say Mangione described his intent to “wack” an insurance executive. Mangione’s lawyers had sought to exclude those items, arguing the search was illegal because police hadn’t yet obtained a warrant.

    The rulings could be subject to appeal. Garnett gave prosecutors 30 days to inform her of any plans to appeal her death penalty decision. A message seeking comment was left for a spokesperson for the U.S. attorney’s office in Manhattan, which is prosecuting the federal case.

    Garnett acknowledged that the decision “may strike the average person — and indeed many lawyers and judges — as tortured and strange, and the result may seem contrary to our intuitions about the criminal law.” But, she said, it reflected her “committed effort to faithfully apply the dictates of the Supreme Court to the charges in this case. The law must the Court’s only concern.”

    Mangione, 27, appeared relaxed as he sat with his lawyers at a brief, previously scheduled hearing about an hour after Garnett issued her written ruling. Prosecutors retained their right to appeal the decision but said they were ready to proceed to trial.

    Mangione’s lawyers didn’t address the decision during the hearing. But his lawyer Karen Friedman Agnifilo said afterward that her client and his defense team were relieved by the “incredible decision.”

    Jury selection in the federal case is scheduled to begin Sept. 8, followed by opening statements and testimony beginning on Oct. 13. The state trial’s date hasn’t been set yet. On Wednesday, the Manhattan district attorney’s office sent a letter urging the judge in that case to schedule a July 1 trial date.

    Thompson, 50, was killed on Dec. 4, 2024, as he walked to a midtown Manhattan hotel for UnitedHealth Group’s annual investor conference. Surveillance video showed a masked gunman shooting him from behind. Police say “delay,” “deny” and “depose” were written on the ammunition, mimicking a phrase used to describe how insurers avoid paying claims.

    Mangione, an Ivy League graduate from a wealthy Maryland family, was arrested five days later at a McDonald’s in Altoona, Pa., about 230 miles west of Manhattan.

    Following through on Trump’s campaign promise to vigorously pursue capital punishment, Attorney General Pam Bondi ordered Manhattan federal prosecutors last April to seek the death penalty against Mangione.

    It was the first time the Justice Department was seeking to bring the death penalty in President Donald Trump’s second term. He returned to office a year ago with a vow to resume federal executions after they were halted under his predecessor, President Joe Biden.

    Garnett, a Biden appointee, ruled after a flurry of court filings in the prosecution and defense in recent months. She held oral arguments on the matter earlier this month.

    In addition to seeking to have the death penalty thrown out on the grounds Garnett cited, Mangione’s lawyers argued that Bondi’s announcement flouted long-established Justice Department protocols and showed the decision was “based on politics, not merit.”

    They said her remarks, which were followed by posts to her Instagram account and a TV appearance, “indelibly prejudiced” the grand jury process that resulted in his indictment a few weeks later.

    Prosecutors urged Garnett to keep the death penalty on the table, arguing that the charges allowing for such punishment were legally sound and that Bondi’s remarks weren’t prejudicial, as “pretrial publicity, even when intense, is not itself a constitutional defect.”

    Rather than dismissing the case outright or barring the government from seeking the death penalty, prosecutors argued, the defense’s concerns can best be alleviated by carefully questioning prospective jurors about their knowledge of the case and ensuring Mangione’s rights are respected at trial.

    “What the defendant recasts as a constitutional crisis is merely a repackaging of arguments” rejected in previous cases, prosecutors said. “None warrants dismissal of the indictment or categorical preclusion of a congressionally authorized punishment.”