He kept the stat book on TIger Woods and could've written several others about golf, the AmericanBasketball Association and Earl the Pearl.

CLEVELAND, Ohio -- During the years of Tiger Woods’ ascent, Bev Norwood kept the book on him.

The IMG public relations man, who died at the age of 66 last Wednesday after fighting cancer, didn’t write that book, which was filled with every possible statistic about everything Woods did on the golf course. When nobody could beat Tiger in the years before the digital age, Bev’s loose-leaf notebook was consulted, thumbed, borrowed and passed around press rooms more often than the PGA Tour’s stat book, and why not? The rest of the players were merely extras.

 Slight in stature,  with the given name of Beverly, he could have come off like the “Boy Named Sue” in the Johnny Cash song, but Norwood was anything but a brawler. Blessed with a dry wit and a former sportswriter’s (at the Winston-Salem. N.C. Journal) sardonic sense of humor, Bev covered golf, college football and basketball and the Carolina Cougars of the American Basketball Association.

Curious about rumors of a cult figure called Earl “The Pearl” Monroe, who was at Winston-Salem State in the same years that Bev was at Wake Forest in the same city, Norwood ventured into a game there. He was the only white face in the gym. What he remembered, besides The Pearl’s Maytag-like gyrations as he spun through the lane, was the cheer aimed at the opponents by the Winston-Salem State students in the final moment of their team’s victory on a wintry night: “Get your hat, get your coat, get your gloves, and LEEEEEAVE, (unflattering term of address for the rivals’ ancestry.)”

Hey, I wish I could be more specific. It was one of George Carlin’s “seven words you can’t say on television."

Norwood used to joke with me about Vanderbilt and Wake Forest, our respective alma maters, and their frequently difficult seasons in college football. “You may not have noticed but Wake Forest – a week after losing by 34 points at home to Vanderbilt – got an invitation to the Music City Bowl in Nashville,” he emailed in 2011. “That should create a lot of local interest. They probably have never seen a team that Vanderbilt could beat by 34.”

Mississippi State won the bowl game, leading Bev to observe, “If the Deacons had stayed home, they would have avoided a losing season. As it was, they’re 6-7.”

As a basketball reporter, Norwood saw Julius “Dr. J” Erving soar to claim a rebound against the Cougars with one hand and, without ever touching the ball with his left hand, land on the run, speed dribble through the entire defense, and  slam-dunk the ball at the other end of the court.

Norwood emailed me about it once, noting that LeBron James hadn’t done anything like that yet. Or ever.

Behind only golf, he loved baseball. He was a dedicated Indians fan. He didn’t like the idea of the franchise building a statue to Jim Thome ahead of players like Omar Vizquel who never willingly left. He never forgave the team for not bringing Kenny Lofton back after nearly reaching the World Series in 2007.

He owned season tickets for many years and, if he was on the road, his secretary knew to fax him, every day, all the stories in The Plain Dealer on the Indians game the night before. When I asked him if she could also send the golf stories I was writing from the British Open at St. Andrews, he seemed stunned to think it could be of more interest than the Tribe’s game. It once was arranged that Norwood sit in the press box at Progressive Field during a Tribe game. Just looking at his face that night was like celebrating Christmas in July.  

If Norwood was on the road in the United States, he could always be counted on to listen on his car’s “reddio,” as he called it in his Piedmont accent.

While he was at IMG, Norwood edited books on the four golf majors every year and did much more of the actual writing than he was ever credited with on several other projects. Years before he actually ran the press room at what is now called the Arnold Palmer Invitational, he enlivened press tents around golf with his wicked sense of humor.

A day after one particularly delicious aside to me, which he promised I could steal, Norwood sidled over to my seat in the press building at the Masters and said, “You have to get up pretty early in the morning to use my lines. Dan Jenkins just wrote it in Golf Digest.”

A well-read man, Norwood delighted in passing on little-known remarks by men like Winston Churchill, Clarence Darrow and Mark Twain. Bev especially loved this line by Mark Twain: “I didn’t attend the funeral, but I sent a nice letter saying I approved of it.”

I can’t attend Bev’s funeral Wednesday. I’ll be on assignment. But no one who knew him approves of it in the slightest.

Browns limit Dolphins to 23 yards rushing on 20 carries.

CLEVELAND, Ohio – The Browns have had tremendous difficulty stopping the run since their return to the NFL in 1999.

But Sunday they enjoyed their best day against the rush since Lyndon Johnson was in the White House, Sam & Dave’s "Soul Man" was a Billboard Top-20 hit and the Browns shut out the Chicago Bears, 24-0, in 1967.

The hosts limited the Miami Dolphins to 20 yards in a 23-10 loss at FirstEnergy Stadium. That effort matched the second-best total in franchise history, dating to the game against the Bears in 1967.

The all-time mark is four yards versus the New York Giants on Nov. 28, 1954.

The Dolphins carried the ball 23 times, averaging 0.9 yards per attempt. Lamar Miller had the longest carry of the afternoon for 5 yards.

With so much emphasis placed on rushing the passer, some observers thought the Browns could be susceptible against the run. For one day anyway it wasn’t an issue.

“We just had a great run defensive day,” defensive end Desmond Bryant said. “If we would pick up more assignments in the passing game we could have pulled out a win.”

Strong showing: Bryant was one of the Browns’ big free-agency signings and he showed why Sunday. He recorded two sacks and had four quarterback hits.

Bryant missed considerable time in preseason with back spasms, but appeared pain free against the Dolphins. The two sacks tied a career best and, dating to last season, he has sacks in five straight games.

Wallace mum: Receiver Mike Wallace, who was signed to a five year, $60 million deal in the offseason, was as quiet in the locker room as he was on the field after catching only one ball for 15 yards. He had five passes thrown his way, but none in the first half.

"I don't feel like talking,'' said Wallace.

Asked about the one catch and no targets in the first half, he said, "Ask coach. Not my game plan.''

"He caught one for 15,'' said Browns defensive back Joe Haden. "It's all good over there, but you know what I’m saying? We wanted the W. If I would have been able to make some more plays or we tried to score on defense, that would have been better for us. At the end of the day, Mike Wallace, he didn’t do too much but we still lost so it’s not a win for me.''

Patterson's revenge: Former Browns cornerback Dimitri Patterson picked Brandon Weeden off twice and almost had a third. He might've had more, but he left the game in the second half with a groin injury.

"It's always good,'' said Patterson. "It's a good feeling. At the end of the day, I want to come out and make sure I have a good game. But if I come out next week and have a bad game, this game means nothing, you know what I mean? But it was a top priority for me to come out and play well and make an impact in some sort of fashion.''

Patterson didn't attribute his picks to his familiarity with Weeden.

"I know Brandon, but if you look at those two plays, they both came off the receivers hands so I don’t want to say that’s it,'' he said. "But I was familiar with Brandon and how he plays. He’s a good, young quarterback. I just wanted to come in and show that I can make plays.''

Cameron on Weeden hits: Weeden absorbed 16 crushing blows, and kept battling. His teammates noticed.

"He's always been tough,'' said tight end Cameron, who set career highs with nine catches and 118 yards. "Last year he was the same way. He'd be in the pocket and sit in there and take hits and not really flinch at all. I don’t know how many times he got hit – way too much – but he was tough. he’s hurting out there and battled and it’s good to see that from your quarterback.''

Bess' Day: Davone Bess caught five of the 10 passes thrown his way for 47 yards, including a long of 17 yards. He's also the proud owner of the Browns' lone third down conversion, an eight-yarder in the second quarter.

Extra points: Defensive end Ahtyba Rubin sat out the game with a calf injury suffered during Thursday's practice. He was replaced in the starting lineup by Billy Winn, who suffered cramps during the game and left briefly. Craig Robertson also left the game with cramps.

Hats off: Through the “Hats Off to Our Heroes Honor Row” game-day tribute, the Browns recognized the first responders of the Cleveland Police Department who were on site for the rescue of Amanda Berry, Gina DeJesus, Michelle Knight and Berry’s daughter. Those four were in attendance as guests of the Browns.

(Reporter Mary Kay Cabot contributed to this report.)

The death came just after kickoff at about 1:30 p.m. in the 49ers' 34-28 win over Green Bay, police said, and multiple witnesses reported the man appeared to be intoxicated before he fell to a sidewalk.

SAN FRANCISCO -- A football fan fell to his death from an elevated pedestrian walkway Sunday at Candlestick Park during the 49ers' final season opener at the San Francisco stadium, police said.

The death came just after kickoff at about 1:30 p.m. PST in the 49ers' 34-28 win over Green Bay, police said, and multiple witnesses reported the man appeared to be intoxicated before he fell to a sidewalk.

The death also happened the same day a railing collapsed at the Colts' game against the Raiders in Indianapolis, injuring two fans who were leaning against the barrier above the tunnel leading to Oakland's locker room. It appeared both fans in Indiana escaped serious injury, stadium officials said.

In San Francisco, police spokesman Gordon Shyy said off-duty medics and police officers gave the man first aid until an ambulance arrived, but he was declared dead from his injuries. Authorities said he appeared to be in his 30s, and his name has not been released.

In a statement, 49ers spokesman Bob Lange confirmed the team had learned of the accident outside the stadium.

"We would like to express our deepest condolences to the family during this difficult time," he said in an email.

It was not clear how far the man fell from the Jamestown walkway, which goes around the outside of Candlestick.

The historic sports complex closes after this season and will be replaced by a shopping center. Next year, the 49ers will move into a $1.2 billion stadium at the team's Silicon Valley headquarters in Santa Clara.

Since 2003, there have been more than two dozen cases of fans falling at stadiums across the United States, according to the Institute for the Study of Sports Incidents.

Most recently in Atlanta, baseball fan Ronald Lee Homer Jr. died last month after falling 85 feet following a tumble over Turner Field's fourth-level railing. Homer's death was the third at an Atlanta stadium in the past year.

Also last month in Denver, Broncos fan Noel Robinson was injured when he fell about 10 feet from an escalator at a preseason game.

New carry-in policies apply throughout all 31 NFL stadiums nationwide: Restaurant Row

CLEVELAND, OHIO -- Want to get into Cleveland's FirstEnergy Stadium more easily? Make things clear.

National Football League's new bag policy, in place at all 31 stadiums holding games and events across the country, have a new security policy in place, says Cleveland Browns spokesman Rob McBurnett.

"Each person is permitted one clear (translucent) bag that is no larger than 12-by-6-by-12 [inches], or one fist-size clutch purse," McBurnett said in a statement by email.

Guests can substitute a 1-gallon clear plastic freezer bag, such as a Ziploc or other brand, according to NFL guidelines. The Browns team shop sells regulation approved bags emblazoned with the Browns logo.

In the wake of the bombings that maimed and killed spectators and participants at the Boston Marathon earlier this year, the organization decided to tighten restrictions on the type and size of bags visitors can bring into the venues.

According the the NFL website, prohibited items include, but are not limited to: purses larger than a clutch bag, coolers, briefcases, backpacks, fanny packs, cinch bags, luggage of any kind, computer bags and camera bags or any bag larger than the permissible size.

Non-approved seat cushions -- large traditional seat cushions that have pockets, zippers, compartments, or covers -- are not permitted. Clear seat cushions and seat pads without pockets, zippers, compartments, or covers are permitted. In cold weather fans may enter carrying blankets draped over their shoulders.

The NFL's new policy "enhances safety and will increase ingress [speed of entering], especially when taking account the 44 new screening lines, 20 new gates, and the express lanes we've incorporated at FirstEnergy Stadium in 2013," McBurnett adds.

Fans, he says, are encouraged to come without bags and bring only necessary items.

"Fans without bags will be able to access the express lanes," McBurnett's statement says.

Fans entering without bags are allowed to access the stadium's express lanes. That change in entering the stadium, McBurnett adds, enables stadium security to check and clear an additional 4,000 fans per 15-minute interval.

For additional information on the new policy, fans should visit NFL.com/allclear

For the 2013 Cleveland Browns season, Chris Hodgson brings a load of new hot dog, tater tot variations to FirstEnergy Stadium Club level diners, while other local chef stands expand offerings. There's more to eat on the main concourse, too.

CLEVELAND, OHIO -- While the Browns eventually fell in defeat to the Miami Dolphins Sunday afternoon, I watched most of the game on flat-screen TVs. At FirstEnergy Stadium.

Why? In the "It's a Tough Job But..." category, I pulled the lucky card and got to sample some of the new food introductions on the stadium's Concourse and Club levels concession stands.

Much of it was good. A few clunkers fell hard.

But before any reviews, let's get one critical assessment out of the way: eating here is anything but cheap.

Of course, the same holds true for The Q, Progressive Field and just about any entertainment venue. Only a fool fails to miss the irony of a $4.50 bag of peanuts. So when we get to the prices, please hold your hissing for someone who doesn't experience the same sticker shock as you do.

Wander through the concrete canyon that makes up the stadium's main concourse, and there's a never-ending supply of familiar options -- this year, with a few upgrades.

-- This season, two-ounce and quarter-pound Nathan's Famous hot dogs have replaced other brands. At the Browns Bistro stand, the mild dogs run $4.75, while a Super Dog Basket (the 1/4-pound hot dog, with fries) is $9.75.
 
-- Pinzone's Market Fresh Meats' Sausages (the business itself is located at West Side Market, Stand E-6, and Pinzone's also operate a shop at 6046 Broadview Road in Parma) offers mildly spicy and sizzling hot sausage sandwiches. Sandwiches are priced at around $9.

-- I liked the light, crispy shell and ample fillings in the Fusion Roll ($7.50) made by Southern Fusion restaurant in Euclid and sold at First Down Favorites stand at the stadium. There's lots of "stuff" in it: collard greens, black beans and corn, plus chicken, bell peppers and asiago cheese. The flavor of asiago almost dominates, but the other ingredients assert themselves. If you don't count the frying, it leans towards the "healthy" side. It's somewhat small for the price, though, and the promised Chipotle Dipping Sauce wasn't available.

Upstairs on the City View Club Level, it's a fairly different world -- carpeted, quieter (though definitely bustling, especially pre-game and at halftime) and with far better views. Also: dressier, though still mostly casual, chow.

If hot dogs are standard manna for game-goers, at Hodge Podge Dogs, PBLT's & Tots they're taken to a whole other level -- somewhere between artful and crazy-good.

The PBLT stands for Pork, Bacon, Lettuce and Tomato ($10) all encasing a 4-ounce Certified Angus Beef hot dog set in a fresh Orlando Bakery potato bun. It's a masterpiece of excess, huge and very tasty, but unless you're a big eater or own stock in Prilosec, it's easily (if messily) shared.

There's plenty going on in that bun, right down to a load of smashed tater tots, on the Hodge Podge Dog on the Club level at FirstEnergy Stadium.Courtesy, Aramark

Tater Tots and chili are the other big hits at Hodge Podge. Tots straight-up (with house Yum Yum sauce) are $4.75, and they're a fun snack to share. If you're hungry and want a carbo-heavy chow, spring for the $6.50 Dawg Pound Tots, loaded with Smokehouse Chili, pepper jack cheese, hot cherry peppers and green onions. That chili leans heavily on smokiness (thus the "smokehouse" moniker), and moderately spicy fire ($6.50; the Man Bowl is $9). While I didn't love it on balmy game day, check back with me when the flurries start to fly.

In addition to a pair of fresh salads and a selection of meatball options (bowls, $6.50, sandwiches, $9), this season chef Rocco Whalen introduces Rocco's Supreme Pizza at his Rosie & Rocco's stand. It's a big slice of very crisp thin-crust pizza with a smear of sauce, a decent veneer of cheese topped with sandwich-sliced pepperoni, sausage crumbles, slices of tiny sweet peppers and bites of banana peppers and halved cherry tomatoes. At $7.50 it's one of the most satisfying moderately priced items in the place.

On a couple of occasions at Michael Symon's B-Spot restaurants, I've enjoyed his Thin Lizzy burger, with cheddar cheese and loaded with griddled onions ($9.75). The one I had here was dense and tough, and tepid. (Ironically, my brother and nephew, who happened to be seated on the Lakeview Club level, later off-handedly reported the identical experience.) The rosemary-laced Lola Fries ($4.75), happily, were spot on. I'm not a huge bacon-in-everything guy, but the Vanilla Bean Apple Pie Bacon shake ($7) was a lot of fun, quirky and tasty.

Carbonara Frites at Sawyer's Street Frites, sold on the Club level at FirstEnergy Stadium.Lynn Ischay, The Plain Dealer

This season, Sawyer has introduced Confit Peach Chicken Wings ($13.75). The wings are first confited, slowly cooked then cooled in oil, then later flash-fried to crisp them They're doused with seriously hot Sriracha sauce, its flavor belying a sweet hint of summer tree fruit sweetness. As to the degree of heat, the jury remains out: I found them moderately hot and flavorful, but a fellow sampler could barely utter the word "wow!" You may want to share an order to sample. You'll definitely want to order a beer.

Speaking of that, one overall observation about the food from the Club level stations. Almost across the board, everything ranged from salty to very salty. If you're sodium-sensitive or averse, be aware.

Come to think of it, maybe that's why so many nine-buck-plus beers are purchased...

For Cleveland Browns 2013 season, visitors will find "chef action" food stations, expanded menus and Chris Hodgson's HodgePodge on the stadium's Club level; new sausage stands, barbecue tent, upgrades and broader selection of beers on the Concourse: Restaurant Row.

CLEVELAND, OHIO -- Loyalty and love, through thick and thin, are two big traits for Cleveland Browns fans.

Oh, and at least one other thing: big appetites.

Which is why more thought than most of us would guess goes into the food offerings sold during Browns games at FirstEnergy Stadium.

Brent Stehlik, Browns executive vice president and chief revenue officer says that in world where ever more sophisticated tastes exert themselves -- especially in a food-lovers town like Cleveland -- the same old same old doesn't fly.

“I think we’ve worked hard to improve the food throughout the stadium over the past few years," Stehlik says. "When I was growing up going to games, it used to be mostly hot dogs and nachos and peanuts. Fans today expect more. We like to be able to provide different offerings, for all of our fans at the stadium."

The Lakewood native recognizes the different constituencies that all attended the same game at FirstEnergy. The crew seated in the Dawg Pound and the ones up in Club level seating all want something tasty. Just what that is means different things to different people, Stehlik says.

"It’s about providing different kinds of value to different customers. Some fans just want to grab a beer and a hot dog – and we have those different types of amenities. If you’re in the stands you can head over to C-Town Eats on the concourse and grab a hot dog and a beer." While there are C-Town Eats on the Club level, four stands operated by popular Cleveland chefs offer upscale food options, too.

"Food should be a reason people want to game to a game, rather than a deterrent," Stehlik say.

Two major foodservice corporations produce game day fare: Aramark Corporation, which operates the food concessions for Club level guests and those who occupy FirstEnergy's suites as well as for special events, and Delaware North, which operates concessions on the main concourse, end zones, mezzanines, the upper deck and some other areas.

Fattar Thomas heads Delaware Norths operations at FirstEnergy Stadium.

"We’ve gotten more requests from fans for local items – 'Do [you] carry any local Cleveland products?'," Thomas says. "That’s become more prevalent over the years. In our case, it’s more along the lines of name vendors, produced locally."

As a result, Thomas says, stadium concession have been adding vendors such as Pinzone's Meats which sell fresh sausage sandwiches; Cleveland Whiskey, which distills in downtown Cleveland; added Thirsty Dog draft beer at some taps, and expanded the selection of Great Lakes Brewing Co. beers, adding Burning River Ale and Commander Perry to couple with the brewery's popular Dortmunder Gold.

That cultural shift has also changed the way more of the stadium's specialty foods are sourced, prepared and served. Growing interest in fresh ingredients fashioned into dishes created by local chefs has meant a change in stadium fare across the U.S. Stehlik says that Aramark is proving to be a forerunner in that direction.

"Aramark has hit the nail on the head with what they’re doing here – local chefs, local products, house-made – all of that makes this [eating at the stadium] more of a Cleveland experience," Stehlik says.

Jessica C. Jacobson, general manager for Cleveland Browns Hospitality Group, which is operated by Aramark, takes pride in that achievement. Even though Aramark employees produce the food sold under the Cleveland chefs' banners -- Michael Symon's B Spot Burgers, Rocco Whalen's Rosie and Rocco's, Jonathon Sawyer's Street Frites, and the latest, Hodge Podge by two time Food Network contestant Chris Hodgson (Hodges, in downtown Cleveland) -- the chefs active participation is essential.

"The chefs are very active in this," Jacobson says. "We talk frequently, they and their people come in on game days, and they are HUGE Browns football fans. I’ve said this many times: having the opportunity to work with these chefs has been the highlight of my career. We have this vast amount of culinary knowledge and resources we’re surrounded by."

Scott Kuhn, founder of Driftwood Restaurant Group which operates the Hodge Podge stand along with Hodgson, sees the space in the stadium as a chance to expand while filling a niche.

"And this give the fans more choices of foods they like, and want to eat, while at a Browns game," Kuhn adds.

Business aside, Hodgson's enthusiasm bubbles when he considers the thrill of opening a stand in the place that houses the team he loves.

"I grew up as a Browns fan, and to be part of it is exciting. To have our food, and street food, available there – which is a big part of my background in Cleveland – then share it with a big group of people, that's way cool," he says.

Why more hot dogs? After all, they're ubiquitous throughout the stadium. Although, with the range of toppings Hodgson works into his menu of offerings -- dogs topped with stuff like pulled pork or jalapeno-laced cole slaw, a mayonnaise-like aioli hit with fiery Sriracha sauce or hot pepper relish -- you'd be hard-pressed to find any elsewhere in Browns town that are quite like his.

"We really wanted to have a menu that people would buy at the stadium," Hodgson reasons. "[Hot dogs] are an average Joe’s food taken up a notch. Everyone loves hot dogs, everyone loves pulled pork and everyone loves tots. It was a natural."

No surprise that hot dogs happen to be the biggest seller among the general concession stands operated by Delaware North. Probably even less of a surprise is where beer fits in with the game day experience.

"Among the younger generation coming up, beer pairings are increasing, just as a few years back it was wine tastings and pairings," Thomas says. "And this generation coming of age aren’t like our fathers; my Dad drank Bud or Millers, or Coors, or the light selections, and that’s what they wanted when they went to a game. This generation drinks what they like -- and that happens to be more and more craft beers on tap or in bottles."

As a result, he says, those offering have been increased at stands that sell adult beverages. At the same, price resistance becomes an issue -- especially when a premium brew costs close to $10.

"Of course we want to have items for the generational fans and others who doesn’t want to spend extra for the premium beers," Thomas says. "We’ve always had a $5 beer in the stadium. But then people complained they had to hunt for the less expensive beers -- and it WAS tougher to find last year, and I had a conversation with fan services regarding that.

"So this year, knowing we’ve had more craft beers at a premium, we’ve decided to expand our number of locations where you could get a $5 beer. Actually, the price lowered from $5.25 last year, and we've doubled the number of locations – over 20 – this year," Thomas says.

The Ohio State football team hosted a handful of prospects for its 42-7 win over San Diego State on Saturday, including freshman quarterback Danny Clark of Massillon (Ohio) Washington and senior wide receiver Noah Brown of Sparta (N.J.) Pope John XXIII.

COLUMBUS, Ohio – Danny Clark entered the game at quarterback in the second half of Massillon (Ohio) Washington’s season opening win over Perry on Aug. 30, the first time he ever walked onto the field as a high school football player.

Given Clark, a freshman, was about to take snaps for one of the more storied programs in Ohio high school football, he could have been overwhelmed by the moment. Instead, he threw a 59-yard touchdown pass on his first career attempt.

The following week, Clark got his first career start for the Tigers against Canton GlenOak. Backed by a strong performance by Clark – he threw three touchdowns, but also had two interceptions – the Tigers beat GlenOak to advanced to 2-0.

Two days later, Clark made the trip to watch Ohio State’s 42-7 win over San Diego State on Saturday for his first visit to Ohio Stadium as a recruit. There he was met with some harsh, yet inspiring advice from Buckeyes defensive line coach Mike Vrabel.

“Coach Vrabel talked to me about staying grounded and he said something that really stuck to me,” Clark told Cleveland.com in a phone interview Sunday. “He said, ‘If you don’t get better from the way you played last time, you’re not going to play anywhere.’ He was just telling me to keep getting better, progressing and keeping my nose to the grind.”

That was probably sound advice for a player like Clark, who has already emerged as an exciting prospect despite only having just more than a game of experience under his belt. Truth is, Clark’s recruitment started to gain steam when he performed well at Ohio State’s instructional camps during the summer.

A lifelong Ohio State fan, Clark hasn’t been bashful to share how he feels about Ohio State. In fact, Clark said he’d become a Buckeye the second Ohio State comes through with an offer.

But given Clark is a 2017 prospect, it could be a while before that happens. And in the time being, Arkansas, Michigan State, West Virginia, Tennessee and others are also recruiting the youthful quarterback.

“I am getting talked to a lot, and there’s a lot of attention,” Clark said. “I don’t have any official offers yet, but I know for sure that a lot of universities are interested. I know Ohio State is very interested for sure. I am very fortunate and very blessed to have this much attention from colleges and be where I am at right now.”

Clark said there’s an endless list of things he can improve on, but he said his most glaring weakness is his ability to read and understand defensive coverages. That would make sense considering he hasn’t seen very many live.

With Vrabel’s advice, Clark said he hopes to continue to get better. He classifies himself as a dual-threat quarterback, but he was confident in saying that he feels like he could conform to any college system when the time comes.

For now, Clark is just a freshman hoping to improve. It isn’t typical that a prospect this young is earning this much attention, but Clark is certainly enjoying the process, which most recently took him to Ohio State.

“I loved every second of the visit,” Clark said. “One of my favorite things about going was just talking to all the coaches, because I have a good relationship with a lot of them and I love seeing them when I go there. I had a great time, and it was great seeing the Buckeyes come out with a win.”

The latest with New Jersey wideout: The highest-profile recruit in attendance Saturday was four-star wide receiver Noah Brown of Sparta (N.J.) Pope John XXIII, whom Scout.com ranks as the No. 36 wide receiver in the 2014 recruiting class.

Though some anticipated an oral commitment could have been issued to Ohio State before the end of the weekend, Brown left Columbus an uncommitted prospect. That, however, doesn’t mean the Buckeyes won’t have a shot at landing the 6-1, 190-pounder.

Brown was spotted before the game chatting with Ohio State player personnel director Mark Pantoni, and that was before the Buckeyes rolled out the red carpet. Brown posted on his personal Twitter account that he ate dinner with coach Urban Meyer after the game.

Noah Brown update from Columbus visit RT @nb_dosuno: Having dinner w/ @OSUCoachMeyer . Having a great time in Columbus #GoBucks

— Ari Wasserman (@AriWasserman) September 9, 2013

The Buckeyes, who seem to be in a two-school race with Rutgers, could be in good position if Brown keeps his original announcement date of this Thursday.

Ohio State hosts 2015 guard: Also in attendance for Ohio State’s victory over San Diego State was Matt Jones of Hubbard, Ohio. Jones is a four-star prospect rated by Scout.com as the No. 6 offensive guard in the 2015 recruiting class.

A 6-4, 295-pound prospect, Jones has early offers from Kentucky, Toledo and West Virginia, but he’s garnering interest from Illinois, Indiana, Maryland, Michigan, Michigan State, Ohio State and others.

Columbus linebacker was also in attendance: With Ohio State’s 2014 recruiting class almost full, the coaching staff has started to focus more on the 2015 class. And one of the best junior linebackers in the country happens to be in the Buckeyes' backyard in Columbus Walnut Ridge prospect Anthony McKee.

A four-star prospect rated by Scout as the No. 11 outside linebacker in the 2015 class, McKee was also in attendance for Ohio State’s win over San Diego State. Though he doesn’t have an offer from the Buckeyes, one could be coming soon. The 6-1, 195-pound prospect does have offers from programs such as Arkansas, Illinois, Kentucky, Tennessee, West Virginia and others. 

The NFL came back in a big way on opening day, with long plays highlighting games from coast to coast.

The NFL came back in a big way on opening day, with long plays highlighting games from coast to coast.

No one was more dynamic Sunday than Anquan Boldin, who made that transcontinental trip this year, leaving Super Bowl winner Baltimore as a free agent to join NFC champion San Francisco. Boldin was unstoppable in his debut as a 49ers receiver, making 13 catches for 208 yards and scoring once in a 34-28 victory over Green Bay.

"He made plays he shouldn't have made," quarterback Colin Kaepernick said.

Boldin was joined in stardom by Kaepernick, who threw for a career-best 412 yards and three touchdowns, and tight end Vernon Davis with six receptions for 98 yards and two TDs in an intense, often antagonistic match.

"We knew they were going to come in ready to play after what happened in the playoffs," Boldin said. "We had to come out and match their intensity."

The Packers lost to San Francisco to open the 2012 season and then again in the playoffs in January. They got big performances from Aaron Rodgers (21 for 37 for 333 yards and three scores), Randall Cobb (7 catches, 108 yards) and Jordy Nelson (7-130). It wasn't enough.

"We gave up too many big plays," linebacker Clay Matthews said. "Got to give credit to the quarterback for making the plays he needed to. I thought we did a good job of keeping him contained and not letting him extend plays similar to what he did in the playoff game. But he still made plays."

Reggie Bush, Drew Brees and two Rams — DE Robert Quinn and kicker Greg Zuerlein — all were superb in opening-day wins, as well.

Bush had 101 yards on four receptions and 90 yards rushing in his first game with the Lions, outgaining 2012 MVP Adrian Peterson in Detroit's 34-24 victory.

Brees passed for 357 yards and two TDs in a 23-17 win over archrival Atlanta as coach Sean Payton returned to the Saints following his one-year suspension in the bounty case.

Zuerlein went 4 for 4 on field goals and kicked a 48-yarder with 40 seconds left to send St. Louis to a 27-24 victory over Arizona. Quinn had three sacks and forced two fumbles.

Also, it was Dallas 36, the New York Giants 31; New England 23, Buffalo 21; Chicago 24, Cincinnati 21; Seattle 12, Carolina 7; the New York Jets 18, Tampa Bay 17; Tennessee 16, Pittsburgh 9; Indianapolis 21, Oakland 17; Kansas City 28, Jacksonville 2; and Miami 23, Cleveland 10.

On Monday night, Philadelphia is at Washington, followed by Houston at San Diego.

Denver routed Baltimore 49-27 in the kickoff game Thursday night.

Lions 34, Vikings 24

At Detroit, Bush did exactly what the Lions signed him for: to break open a game.

Bush turned a short pass into a 77-yard touchdown in the third quarter and finished with 191 yards of offense.

"We love his talent, but he's here because of the way he complements Calvin and the way Calvin complements him," Detroit coach Jim Schwartz said, referring to All-Pro receiver Calvin Johnson.

Joique Bell rushed for two TDs for Detroit.

Adrian Peterson ran for a 78-yard TD on his first carry and scored on a 4-yard run to give Minnesota a 14-6 lead in the second. He ended up with 93 yards rushing.

"Offensively, we really weren't sound with everything, pretty much the entire game," the 2012 MVP said.

Saints 23, Falcons 17

Sean Payton's coaching return after a one-year league suspension for the Saints' bounties was a tight affair, but a successful one for host New Orleans.

Drew Brees passed for 357 yards and two scores, and Roman Harper secured the win when he intercepted a tipped fourth-down pass in the end zone with under a minute left.

"It was just important to get the first win," Payton said. "You try to compartmentalize each week, each game, and we played a good team. ... We fought hard, especially late."

Brees connected with Marques Colston for a 25-yard touchdown pass during which the receiver also set a franchise mark for catches with 533. Brees also hit tight end Jimmy Graham for a 7-yard score in the third quarter.

Matt Ryan passed for 304 yards and scoring passes to Tony Gonzalez and Julio Jones. He also drove Atlanta to the Saints 3 in the final minute before falling just short.

Rams 27, Cardinals 24

At St. Louis, Zuerlein kicked his fourth field goal, a 48-yarder with 40 seconds left.

"Basically, I stay calm, swing like I know how and the rest takes care of itself," Zuerlein said. "There's no better feeling.

"I don't even know the distances when I go out there to be honest, I just go out there and try to do my job."

And Quinn was a force.

"It's a great way to start the season, of course," he said.

Jared Cook had two touchdown catches in his Rams debut. The tight end fumbled a potential third TD, a 55-yarder that would have opened the scoring, when rookie Tyrann Mathieu punched the ball free at the 8 and the play resulted in a touchback. But St. Louis rallied from an 11-point hole to win.

Larry Fitzgerald caught two touchdown passes from new quarterback Carson Palmer and Arizona's defense had a TD.

Cowboys 36, Giants 31

Brandon Carr returned an interception 49 yards for a clinching touchdown, and the Cowboys beat Eli Manning and the Giants for the first time at their fancy $1.2 billion stadium with six takeaways.

Manning threw three touchdown passes to Victor Cruz and had New York in position for a comeback victory despite the flurry of mistakes. Manning was picked off three times and running back David Wilson lost two fumbles, one of which was run back 27 yards for a TD by Barry Church.

Tony Romo shook off a hit to the ribs that knocked him out for the final Dallas play of the first half and threw a pair of touchdown passes to Jason Witten.

Patriots 23, Bills 21

Stephen Gostkowski's 35-yard field goal with 5 seconds left gave visiting New England its 10th straight opening win. The Patriots needed to rally, and Tom Brady turned in his 36th career victory in which the Patriots were tied or trailed in the fourth quarter. Brady finished 29 of 52 for 288 yards and two touchdowns.

Bill Belichick won his 206th career game to move one ahead of Marty Schottenheimer for sixth place on the coaching list. The Bills have won one of their past 20 meetings and are 3-24 against New England since Belichick took over as Patriots coach in 2000.

Bears 24, Bengals 21

At Chicago, Jay Cutler passed to Brandon Marshall for a 19-yard touchdown to make Marc Trestman's coaching debut with the Bears a success.

The Bengals led by 11 in the third quarter and were up 21-17 early in the fourth when Tim Jennings jarred the ball from Mohamed Sanu following a reception and made the recovery. That led to the winning score.

Seahawks 12, Panthers 7

Seattle's stellar defense was on display at Charlotte as Cam Newton was held to 125 yards passing and one touchdown. Meanwhile, Russell Wilson threw for 320 yards, including a 43-yard touchdown pass to Jermaine Kearse in the fourth quarter.

The Panthers held Marshawn Lynch to 43 yards rushing, but Wilson picked up the slack by completing 25 of 33 passes.

Jets 18, Buccaneers 17

Bucs linebacker Lavonte David handed this one to the Jets in the final seconds.

With the host Jets trailing 17-15 and time running out, rookie quarterback Geno Smith scrambled for 10 yards — and was shoved while he was out of bounds by David.

The 15-yard penalty gave the Jets the ball at the Buccaneers 30 and set up Folk's winning field goal on the next play.

"I wouldn't have hit him if I didn't think he'd stay in bounds," David said. "They said he was out of bounds, so they called the play. To me, he was in bounds. I was definitely surprised about it."

Titans 16, Steelers 9

At Pittsburgh, the Titans began the game inauspiciously, then dominated, sacking Ben Roethlisberger five times.

On the first play, kick returner Darius Reynaud took a knee in the end zone on the opening kickoff after touching the ball in the field of play. Two points for Pittsburgh.

According to the NFL, it was the first safety on an opening kickoff since 1988, when the New York Giants got one at Dallas.

But Chris Johnson ran for 70 clock-chewing yards, Jackie Battle bulled his way to a 3-yard touchdown in the second quarter, and Rob Bironas kicked three field goals. Tennessee's new-look defense did the rest as the Steelers managed just 195 total yards and lost Pro Bowl center Maurkice Pouncey to a right knee injury.

Colts 21, Raiders 17

At Indianapolis, Andrew Luck's legs were decisive. The QB ran 19 yards for the winning touchdown. He also was 18 of 23 for 178 yards with two touchdown passes.

Oakland started Terrelle Pryor at quarterback and he made some plays in going 19 of 29 for 217 yards and one TD. He also broke the Raiders' rushing record for a quarterback with 13 carries for 112 yards, but threw two interceptions in the red zone, the second coming with 25 seconds left.

Chiefs 28, Jaguars 2

At Jacksonville, Andy Reid won his first game as Chiefs coach.

Alex Smith threw two early touchdown passes, Jamaal Charles ran for 77 yards and a touchdown before leaving the game with a quadriceps injury, and Jacksonville advanced past its 36-yard line once.

"You want to win every game you possibly can in the National Football League, that's what you strive for. You work so stinking hard for every week, then you cherish it," said Reid, who spent the previous 14 years mostly winning in Philadelphia.

Dolphins 23, Browns 10

At Cleveland, Ryan Tannehill passed for 272 yards and a touchdown, and the Browns fell to 1-14 in Week 1 since 1999. Tannehill, who was given more offensive weapons for his second NFL season, threw a 34-yard TD pass to Brian Hartline in the third quarter and drove the Dolphins to a clinching TD in the fourth.

Cameron Wake had 2½ sacks as the Dolphins sacked Brandon Weeden six times. Weeden threw three interceptions and the Browns never got anything going in coach Rob Chudzinski's debut.

Rookie Caleb Sturgis kicked three field goals for the Dolphins.

The Buckeyes are now No. 3 and No. 4 in the two polls, with the next game at Cal at 7 p.m. Saturday. All the coverage from Saturday and Sunday is wrapped up here.

COLUMBUS, Oho - Cal might not be able to throw the ball against Ohio State at all on Saturday. The quarterback's arm might be too tired. Freshman QB Jared Goff has thrown for 935 yards in the first two games of the season. That's 141 more yards than any other quarterback in major college football.

He's 72 of 115 with three touchdowns and four interceptions.

He passes even more often than Gus Johnson gets excited.

The fan favorite will have the call of the Ohio State-Cal game on FOX at 7 p.m. EDT on Saturday. Johnson's play-by-play call will be joined by analyst Charles Davis.

Today, Urban Meyer will meet with the media at 11:45, with assistants Ed Warinner and Everett Withers and several players to follow. Cleveland.com will have updates during the news conference right here and then more news and video this afternoon after interviews are over.

We'll also have a look at Michigan's game in the Weekly Wolverine Watch, a Heisman Watch and some other new stories this morning before we get to Meyer.

Here's a look back at what we had for you this weekend.

The Sunday morning Buckeye Breakfast tied up our double digit number of stories from Ohio State's 42-7 win over San Diego State on Saturday in one tidy package. There are some good quotes from Bradley Roby, Dontre Wilson, Kenny Guiton and others in there.

Ohio State moved down one spot in both polls, and the Buckeyes are now No. 3 in the coaches poll and No. 4 in the AP. And here's my AP ballot.

Ari, Zack and I each offered five observations from Ohio State's win, while former OSU lineman Andrew Moses gave us a game breakdown that will continue as part of our Sunday coverage.

Freshman quarterback prospect Danny Clark of Massillon likes the Buckeyes a lot. Ari Wasserman gave the news and then this morning broke down what it means.

Browns tailgaters would love to see the team go all the way. But that's not likely. So the fans who drive their campers and drag their coolers and grills will do what they do year after year: Settle for a good party.

Sunday marked the beginning of another season of tailgating at Cleveland Municipal parking lot. 

Michigan lost all four of the biggest games on its schedule last season, but after the Wolverines knocked off Notre Dame on Saturday 41-30 in Michigan Stadium it became clear that Ohio State has company in the Big Ten.

Talk Browns with Mary Kay Cabot and Glenn Moore at 2 p.m.

Talk Browns with Mary Kay Cabot at 2 p.m. 

Get your Browns questions ready and join Mary Kay Cabot today at 2 p.m. as she talks Browns football.

Mary Kay will talk with cleveland.com's Glenn Moore about the Browns' loss to the Dolphins on Sunday and will look ahead to their matchup against the Ravens.

You can jump in the chat room and ask your questions as well as interact with other users and respond to Mary Kay's remarks, or you can just listen. The chat will also be made available shortly after its completion in MP3 format.

CLEVELAND, Ohio - Week 2 of the high school football season brought some outcomes many may not have seen coming, including some involving the cleveland.com Top 25.  What surprised you most from Week 2? Vote in a poll asking that question at the bottom of this post. And we invite you to comment on which teams you think deserve to...

CLEVELAND, Ohio - Week 2 of the high school football season brought some outcomes many may not have seen coming, including some involving the cleveland.com Top 25. 

What surprised you most from Week 2? Vote in a poll asking that question at the bottom of this post. And we invite you to comment on which teams you think deserve to move up or down in the poll.

Look for the new cleveland.com Top 25 today at 3 p.m. Here's a look at how the ranked teams fared in their Week 2 matchups. 

(Previous week's ranking in parentheses)

1. Mentor, 1-1 (1) 

Lost to No. 4 St. Ignatius, 26-6.

This week: Will play Euclid on Friday.

2. St. Edward, 2-0 (2)

Defeated Buchtel, 63-8. 

This week: Will play Woodson (Washington D.C.) on Saturday. 

3. St. Vincent-St. Mary, 2-0 (5)

Defeated Walsh Jesuit, 35-20.

This week: Will play Woodridge on Friday.

4. St. Ignatius, 1-1 (3)

Defeated No. 1 Mentor, 26-6.

This week: Will play Strong Vincent (Pa.) on Saturday. 

5. Glenville, 1-1 (4)

Defeated No. 13 Solon, 15-14. 

This week: Will play No. 11 Cleveland Heights on Friday.

6. Avon, 2-0 (14)

Defeated East Tech, 56-6. 

This week: Will play Twinsburg on Thursday. 

7. Chagrin Falls, 1-1 (7)

Lost to Notre Dame-Cathedral Latin, 16-6.

This week: Will play Wooster on Friday.

8. Aurora, 2-0 (8)

Defeated Ravenna, 41-14. 

This week: Will play Revere on Thursday. 

9. Midview, 2-0 (9)

Defeated Amherst, 35-16. 

This week: Will play No. 21 Elyria on Friday.

10. Hudson, 2-0 (10)

Defeated Uniontown, 20-7.

This week: Will play Brecksville-Broadview Heights on Friday.

11. Cleveland Heights, 2-0 (11)

Defeated Strongsville, 25-10.

This week: Will play No. 5 Glenville on Friday. 

12. Shaker Heights, 2-0 (12)

Defeated John F. Kennedy, 55-0.

This week: Will play Cleveland Central Catholic on Saturday.

13. Solon, 1-1 (13)

Lost to No. 5 Glenville, 15-14. 

This week: Will play Willoughby South on Thursday. 

14. Avon Lake, 1-1 (6)

Defeated Lorain, 56-7. 

This week: Will play North Canton Hoover on Friday.

15. Kirtland, 2-0 (16)

Defeated Grand Valley, 61-14.

This week: Will play Edgewood on Friday.

16. Kent Roosevelt, 1-1 (17)

Lost to Stow, 35-14.

This week: Will play Cuyahoga Falls on Friday.

17. Highland, 2-0 (18)

Defeated Olmsted Falls, 29-6.

This week: Will play No. 18 North Royalton on Friday.

18. North Royalton, 1-1 (19)

Lost to Brecksville-Broadview Heights, 28-0. 

This week: Will play No. 17 Highland on Friday.

19. Nordonia, 2-0 (--)

Defeated Twinsburg, 42-7.

This week: Will play Parma on Friday.

20. Columbia, 2-0 (20)

Defeated South Central, 51-7.

This week: Will play Northwestern on Friday.

21. Elyria, 2-0 (22)

Defeated Elyria Catholic, 48-33. 

This week: Will play No. 9 Midview on Friday.

22. Brush, 2-0 (23)

Defeated Lakeside, 49-0. 

This week: Will play Kenston on Thursday.

23. Mogadore, 2-0 (24)

Defeated Smithville, 49-14.

This week: Will play Coventry on Friday.

24. North Ridgeville, 2-0 (--)

Defeated Parma, 58-22. 

This week: Will play North Olmsted on Friday.

25. Westlake, 1-1 (15)

Defeated Bay, 20-14. 

This week: Will play Youngstown East on Friday.

Struggles by offensive line set the stage for a tough opening outing for Brandon Weeden and Co. He threw three interceptions and was sacked six times.

CLEVELAND -- Browns quarterback Brandon Weeden and the rest of the Browns offense received a sobering Wake-up call in their opening day 23-10 loss to the Dolphins.

Weeden was picked off three times and sacked six, including 2.5 by Dolphins' end Cameron Wake, who terrorized Weeden all game.

"It's not the way we drew it up,'' said Weeden.

The best that can be said about Weeden in his second career opener is that his quarterback rating was way higher this time than his minor league baseball e.r.a of 5.02.

This year, it was 48.4 -- a vast improvement over the 5.1 he dropped on the Eagles as a rookie last year.

And this year, he threw only three interceptions instead of four.

But the results were exactly the same: another loss in another opener after leading 7-6 at halftime. It dropped the Browns to 1-14 in openers since their return, including 1-13 at home. It was also their ninth straight opening-day defeat and the first for new head coach Rob Chudzinski.

"Things didn't go great today,'' said Weeden. "Unfortunately it happens. It sucks. We didn’t play well enough, we missed too many opportunities. But I'm confident in our team. I'm confident in this group of guys we have and I'm excited moving forward. It's a long year and this one's over. We can't do anything about it.''

Weeden began the game with three first-half interceptions -- two by revenge-minded former Browns cornerback Dimitri Patterson -- and ended it by absorbing five of his six sacks in the second half. In between, he converted an appalling 1-of-14 third downs.

Overall, he completed only 49% of his passes (26-of-53) for 289 yards. He threw one touchdown pass against the three interceptions for the sub-par 48.4 rating.

The game was an episode of Hard Knocks for Weeden, who was hit a whopping 16 times, including six by sackmaster Wake, who lined up over Mitchell Schwartz and manhandled him and others. Wake is on pace to surpass his 15 sacks from a year ago.

"His resume speaks for itself,'' said Schwartz. "I just have to do a better job against him. For myself, it was a bad game.''

Weeden, who could barely take a step in the second half without getting drilled, doesn't recall ever getting hit that much before.

"I don't think so,'' he said.

Meanwhile, Weeden's fellow class of 2012 quarterback Ryan Tannehill overcame heavy pressure by the Browns defense -- including three first-half sacks -- to outscore the Browns 17-3 in the second half. He threw for 174 of his 272 yards after the break and stuck the dagger in with an 85-yard TD drive in the fourth quarter that ended on a 1-yard run by Daniel Thomas. He victimized cornerback Chris Owens on four of his six passes on the drives, including those for 24, 16 and 14 yards. He got hot with Canton native Brian Hartline, who caught 9 passes for 114 yards and a 34-yard TD.

"We tipped our hats,'' said safety Tashaun Gipson, who set up the Browns' lone TD with a pick and 29-yard return. "We had him bottled up so long and contained throughout the first half and mainly the third quarter. That (85-yard drive) drive kind of shifted the momentum from our defense to their offense. After that, they made good plays. They were playing pitch and catch out there.”

Things looked promising for Weeden at the outset, when he moved the Browns into Miami territory on the opening drive with a mix of some hard Trent Richardson running and a few short passes. But he was almost intercepted by Patterson, and then Nolan Carroll picked him off at the 1-yard line. Dannell Ellerbe pressured him on the third-down play and Weeden threw into double-coverage for Travis Benjamin to kill the buzz at FirstEnergy Stadium.

"We had a great first few plays,'' said Weeden. "We were rolling pretty good. Travis [Benjamin] on a deep ball, I’m going to take a shot. I thought I threw a good ball. I never saw the complete play, again I got hit. It was one-on-one, I like him running past anyone, he’s got that speed. (It's) just taking a shot, being aggressive. That’s what we are going to do and, unfortunately, they came down with it.”

The defense, electric in the first half, bailed Weeden out with a three-and-out, but the ineptitude continued. Benjamin dropped a third-down pass on the second drive and it was almost intercepted. By the time Weeden's first five possessions expired, he had been picked off three times and had gone three-and-out twice.

"Everybody's jacked up, trying to do a lot the first game out of the box, and you want to make something happen and you try to do too much sometimes,'' he said. "The mental errors are the ones we'll look back and reflect on more.

On Weeden's third drive, he fired a high, fastball to Greg Little, who bobbled and dropped it. Patterson dove, collected it and fell to the ground. It was first ruled incomplete, but the Dolphins challenged and won. Thanks to the stout Browns' defense, it was the only one of the Weeden's three picks that the Dolphins converted into points, and then only three.

"I thought was a good throw that went off of Greg's hands,'' said Chudzinski.

Weeden's third interception -- again by Patterson -- went off Jordan Cameron's hands on a pass thrown behind him. But Cameron pinned it on himself.

"I’ve got to make the play,'' said Cameron, who finished with a team-high nine catches for 108 yards. "It hit my hands. I've got to catch it.''

Amazingly, Weeden pulled it together enough to throw a 7-yard touchdown pass to a wide-open Cameron in the back right of the end that put the Browns up 7-6 with 28 seconds left in the first half. The score was set up by Gipson's pick, on a pass tipped by D'Qwell Jackson.

"That was all on Brandon,'' said Cameron. "He threw it to a spot where no one else could get it.''

Weeden overcame two offensive penalties and a batted pass on the drive. He also got some help from a Patterson facemask and another defensive penalty.

"We had three turnovers and we're still up 7-6 at halftime,'' said Weeden. "That just shows you what kind of team you are. We can be in games, we've just got to keep fighting. We can't hurt ourselves.''

But who knew it would be the Browns' offensive highlight of the day? They converted only 1-of-9 third downs in the second half and mustered only a Billy Cundiff field goal in the third quarter that pulled them to within 13-10. Joe Haden dropped an interception on a deep ball on the first play of the second half saying "(stuff) happens'' and T.J. Ward -- who suffered a shoulder injury during the game and left briefly -- dropped one at the goal-line later in the third.

The Dolphins dialed up the pressure in the second half and the Browns had no answer for it. Weeden was strip-sacked once, but Joe Thomas fell on the loose ball. Schwartz struggled all game with Wake, and Oniel Cousins, a converted tackle subbing at right guard, committed four penalties, including a holding call that wiped out a Gary Barnidge touchdown in the fourth quarter.

"(Cousins)is the best we have and he’s going to get the job done for us,'' said Chudzinski. "I'm confident.''

Benjamin dropped a deep ball in Miami territory in the fourth quarter, and neither he nor Greg Little made anyone forget Josh Gordon, who's suspended the first two games for failing a drug test. Little caught only four of the 10 passes thrown his way for 26 yards and watched two glance off his hands. He was nowhere to be found in the locker room by the time reporters got in.

"The more weapons the better, let's not kid ourselves,'' Weeden said of not having Gordon. "He's a big-play threat, big-body guy. He has a lot of tools, but that's the hand we're dealt. I've got a lot of confidence in those guys. Even though Josh isn't there, we've got to keep moving.''

Richardson cooled off quickly after his blazing start, finishing with only 47 yards on 13 carries -- after gaining 26 yards on the first drive alone including runs of 9, 5 and 10 yards. He rushed only five times for 14 yards in the second half, and didn't carry the ball at all in the fourth quarter.

"Coach has a game plan, so whatever he calls I’m down with it,'' said Richardson. "We're all behind him. We got behind so we were chasing points the whole game.''

After the game, the refrain was the same one that Browns fans have heard for years: keep working hard, things will get better. But the Browns travel to Baltimore and Minnesota next.

"I'm still extremely excited,'' said Weeden. "I know the other 52 guys in that locker room are going to come in tomorrow and watch the tape, and be extremely hungry. There's no one guy obviously that's going to be satisfied. This is not the way we wanted to start. But this is a long football season. And we've got a good football team. We're going to scratch, claw, fight, do whatever we can to put ourselves in position to win games.''

Justin Masterson remains optimistic that he'll pitch against before the end of the season despite a strained left oblique muscle.

Justin Masterson leaves a Sept. 2 start against Baltimore with a strained left oblique muscle in the second inning. He has not pitched since.(Chuck Crow/The Plain Dealer)  

CLEVELAND, Ohio -- Justin Masterson still thinks there's a chance he'll be able to pitch again before this season runs out of games.

Masterson left his Sept. 2 start against the Orioles without registering an out in the second inning with a strained left oblique muscle. An oblique injury usually requires four to six weeks to heal, which does not bode well for the Tribe's No.1 starter returning in time to help his team in its push to make the postseason.

But Masterson remains positive.

"Positive thinking definitely helps the process," he said before Monday's game against Kansas City. "Just the fact of I how I felt when the injury took place. Some other people had much different feelings. Much more pain. That's why I feel, 'Hey, we could have this.'"

Masterson (14-10, 3.52) leads the Indians in victories, innings pitched, shutouts and strikeouts. He has the lowest batting average against at .224 of any member of the rotation with 20 or more starts.

"Worst case, maybe we don't make it," said Masterson. "But I think with the way we're progressing we're in a good spot to help the team even though they're doing a great job right now."

Since the All-Star break, the Royals have the lowest team ERA in the AL at 3.03. The Indians are second at 3.28.

"Even when it happened, I mentioned that Corey Kluber was coming off the DL," said Masterson. "He came back and did a great job. Even before I had this injury, we were pitching well. I'm more than excited and I just want to continue to be the part of it and push us along even more.

"Unfortunately, I can't at this moment, but that's the goal to motivate the guys and say, 'I'm still working hard' and they're still working hard."

Kluber, who will face the White Sox on Thursday, came off the disabled list Saturday to earn a 9-4 victory over the Mets. He had been on the disabled list since Aug. 8 with a sprained right middle finger.

Masterson said he anticipates playing catch later this week when the Indians open a four-game series against Chicago at U.S. Cellular Field on Thursday.

"I think that would be a good spot to start throwing and see where we go from there," said Masterson.

Manager Terry Francona is cautiously optimistic.

"I need to be a little careful when I say that because I don't want to push somebody to do something they're not supposed to," said Francona, "so I don't say that very often. I watch him walking around the clubhouse. I talk to the trainers. It wouldn't shock me, but I don't want to create unrealistic expectations for him.

"But if it's at all possible, he'll do it."

Larry Doby remembered: Hall of Famer Larry Doby, the first black man to play in the American League, will be inducted into the Ohio Civil Rights Hall of Fame on Oct. 3 at the Ohio Statehouse Atrium in Columbus.

Doby, who died in 2003, made his debut with the Indians on July 5, 1947. He played for the Indians from 1947 to 1955 and went to seven All-Star games.

"The Cleveland Indians organization is very proud of Larry Doby’s legacy,” said

Bob DiBiasio, Indians senior vice president of public affairs, said "Mr. Doby, a symbol of equality and freedom of opportunity, stood with grace, dignity and a competitive spirit that resonated throughout Ohio and across America."

New father: Michael Brantley says his wife, Melissa, and newborn daughter, Mariah, are doing well.

Brantley left the Indians on Friday to return home to Florida where his wife gave birth Saturday. Brantley rejoined the Indians on Monday and started in left field Monday night.

September blues: Regulars Asdrubal Cabrera .048 (1-for-21), Carlos Santana .143 (3-for-21), Drew Stubbs .143 (3-for-21) and Michael Bourn .148 (4-for-27) have started the last month of the regular season cold as ice.

Finally: After getting the 2,000th hit of his career Sunday, reporters asked Jason Giambi about every big hit in his career, including his first. In that light, Francona was asked about his first hit. "It was off John "The Count" Montefusco, a pinch-hit single up the middle in Atlanta," said Francona. "I'll never forget it." Asked what kind of pitch it was, Francona said, "Fastball. I didn't hit any curveball ... ever."

One of the "Hottest Guys of the NCAA Tournament" had his engagement revealed on Twitter on Sunday night.

COLUMBUS, Ohio - Once named one of the "Hottest Guys of the NCAA Tournament" by Cosmopolitan magazine, Ohio State senior point guard Aaron Craft is now off the market, Cleveland.com has learned.

After losing out on repeating as Big Ten Defensive Player of the Year in 2013, Craft bounced back by getting engaged.

Cleveland.com learned it with the rest of the world by reading tweets from Craft's sister, Cait, and his roommates on Sunday night.

Yes, Aaron is now engaged. You can all quit asking me now, haha. 💍💎

— Cait Craft✌ (@CaitCraft) September 9, 2013

Secondary sourcing was required because Craft doesn't have a Twitter account himself, which is really inconvenient when the world is trying to find out if one of the best, and reportedly "dreamiest," defenders in college basketball is planning to get married. That's practically the whole reason Twitter was invented, Aaron.

Fellow Ohio State point guard Shannon Scott recently joined Twitter, so if he has major personal news to announce, it will be easier to get. Thanks, Shannon.

Cleveland.com did confirm the engagement with a team basketball spokesperson Monday and asked if Craft wanted to comment on the major personal announcement that everyone wants to know about. Craft declined, and likely thinks cleveland.com is lame for even asking.

Thankfully, Craft's roommates have filled in the reporting gaps.

Huge congratulations to the future Mr. and Mrs. Craft! pic.twitter.com/7MkmzvYE4s

— Craft's Roomies (@CRAFTroomies) September 9, 2013

Aaron at the bus stop on his last first day of school #backtoschool #SeniorYear pic.twitter.com/emBtKCjeqh

— Craft's Roomies (@CRAFTroomies) August 21, 2013

Not that this will surprise anyone, but Aaron is also a world renowned grill master. pic.twitter.com/2FkRFUcL9o

— Craft's Roomies (@CRAFTroomies) September 2, 2013

We would like to extend a warm Twitter welcome to @OSUCoachMeyer #GoBucks pic.twitter.com/KVxwHFyRR5

— Craft's Roomies (@CRAFTroomies) August 28, 2013

So for all the latest news in Aaron Craft's life, keep checking in with ... his roommates.

Sorry ladies, but that does leave 3 single roommates.

— Craft's Roomies (@CRAFTroomies) September 9, 2013

The Indians have put a winning team on the field, but they've been a bust at the gate. Just how that affects the team's off-season spending will be interesting see.

The Indians made a big splash in the free-agent pool last winter with the signing of such players as Nick Swisher. Just how much will they be able to spend this winter after taking a beating in attendance? Thomas Ondrey, The Plain Dealer

CLEVELAND, Ohio -- Seen and heard at Progressive Field.

Clubhouse confidential: The Indians spent big money in the free agent market last winter. They signed Nick Swisher ($56 million), Michael Bourn ($48 million), Brett Myers ($7 million) and Mark Reynolds ($6 million).

It will be interesting to see what the Dolan family spends this winter after taking a beating at the gate. The Indians ranked 14th in attendance in the AL at 1.4 million headed into Monday night's game.

Last winter ownership was buoyed by the sale of SportsTime Ohio to Fox Sports along with an influx of national TV money coming in 2014. Yes, the Tribe will receive its annual revenue sharing check, but a better showing at the gate would have given the front office more room to deal.

Big chance: Rookie Jose Ramirez, 20, made his first start in the big leagues Monday night, manning the hot corner for the Tribe.

"I've been wanting to play this kid," said manager Terry Francona. "Lonnie Chisenhall and Mike Aviles don't have numbers against Ervin Santana (Kansas City's starter). I just thought it would be a good day to get him in there ... and just by watching the way he's carried himself when he's played, I think he'll find a way to help us win a game."

Stat of the day: The Indians' post All-Star break ERA of 3.28 is their lowest since they had a 2.82 ERA in 1972.

Four-star wide receiver Noah Brown of Sparta (N.J.) Pope Jone XXIII became oral commitment No. 18 in Ohio State's 2014 recruiting class Monday evening.

COLUMBUS, Ohio – Ohio State’s coaching staff rolled out the red carpet for Sparta (N.J.) Pope John XXIII wide receiver Noah Brown during his visit to Columbus this past weekend hoping to earn a commitment before he left town.

The Buckeyes were unsuccessful in achieving that goal, but Brown didn’t make Ohio State wait that much longer.

A four-star prospect rated by Scout.com the No. 36 wide receiver in the 2014 recruiting class, Brown confirmed to Cleveland.com that he issued an oral commitment to Ohio State’s staff on Monday evening.

Brown – who was seen chatting with Buckeyes player personnel director Mark Pantoni on the sidelines before Saturday’s game – posted on his public Twitter account that he shared dinner with OSU coach Urban Meyer later in the evening.

Two days later, the 6-1, 190-pound receiver became oral commitment No. 18 in Ohio State’s 2014 recruiting class.

Brown also became the fifth wide receiver to join the class, along with Curtis Samuel of Brooklyn (N.Y.) Erasmus Hall, Malik Hooker of New Castle, Pa., Terry McLaurin of Indianapolis Cathedral and Lonnie Johnson of Gary (Ind.) West Side. 

Trent Richardson rushed only five times in the third quarter and not at all in the fourth, but Rob Chudzinski said falling behind in the game dictated the playcalling.

BEREA, Ohio -- Coach Rob Chudzinski defended the Browns' decision to run Trent Richardson only five times in the second half of Sunday's 23-10 loss to the Dolphins

He netted only 14 yards and averaged 2.8 yards per carry after the break.

It was a dramatic departure from the opening drive, when Richardson gashed the Dolphins for 26 yards on four carries and a 6.5-yard average, including gains of 9 and 5 on the first two plays of the game.

"Through the course of the game, Trent’s a critical part of our offense,'' said Chudzinski. "We want to give him the ball as much as we can. I thought in the first half we had a pretty good mix going there, even into the third quarter. We had a lot of two-minute situations yesterday, one at the end of the half and obviously in the fourth quarter. The key is we have to convert on third down and we’ll get plenty more opportunities to get the ball to Trent as well."

All five of Richardson's second-half runs came in the third quarter, when the Browns were either ahead or trailing by no more than six points. He rushed for eight yards on the opening play of the first half, but was then knocked back for 3 yards, held for no gain and rushed for 2. On his final carry of the third quarter, he ran off left guard for 7, and that was it for the night.

He was put in cold storage for the fourth quarter, and had no chance of coming out after the Dolphins extended their lead to 20-10 and 23-10.

"You can always second-guess everything when you don’t win,'' said Chudzinski. "We had some things we liked. Some of them came up, some didn’t quite as well. And they tightened up a little bit against the run when we got into the third quarter.''

The Browns also limited Richardson's chances on third down.

"We want to make sure that he stays fresh as well and that's part of the plan,'' said Chudzinski.

Richardson finished with 13 carries for 47 yards and a 3.6-yard average, which matched his average for 2012. His long gain was 10 on the opening drive. According to profootballfocus.com, he averaged 5.8 yards running to the left, and only 1.3 on the right, where Oniel Cousins is subbing at right guard and Mitchell Schwartz struggled with Cameron Wake. Richardson also surrendered four pressures in his 20 pass-blocking snaps, according to the site.

Cousins determined: Cousins, a converted backup tackle pressed into service at right guard, needs to rebound from his poor outing against the Dolphins.

Chudzinski said he'll stick with Cousins because he's the best they have right now.

“It’s great they believe in me,'' said Cousins. "I believe in myself. I watched the tape and I know what I need to improve on. I’m going to continue to grind whether it’s going out there and taking 100 reps by myself or working after practice because that’s the most important thing, just to get better.”

A third-round pick of the Ravens in 2008, Cousins has less than a week to prepare for his old Ravens teammates, including pass-rushers Terrell Suggs and Elvis Dumervil, and tackle Haloti Ngata.

"They’re great players,'' said Cousins. "Those guys have been doing great things in the league for a long time. But we’re not rattled. We’re just going to go out there and do what we’ve got to do. Coach always says keep it tight, work together, communicate. I like to look at it as guys just wearing numbers.”

He said it's not a revenge game despite the Ravens waiving him in 2011.

"I am a Brown now. I used to be a Raven,'' he said. "I’m not playing to prove nothing to them. I’m playing to have my team win and that’s the most important thing.”

He said he expects Mitchell Schwartz to rebound from his bad game against Miami's Cameron Wake, who had 2.5 sacks and six quarterback hits.

"We’re all in this together,'' he said. "There's things I could have done better. There’s things Mitchell could’ve done better, and we’re just going to get better. I’m going to learn from my mistakes, and you’re going to see a better game from me on Sunday and I’m just going to roll with it.”

Cousins, who will most likely head back to the bench when Shawn Lauvao (ankle) returns, didn't use his lack of experience as an excuse. He's started only one other game there.

"It's a great opportunity,'' he said. "I’m a physical guy. At the guard position, you’ve got to be physical, and I like it. I’m getting more comfortable and comfortable every day and I love it. So it’s no excuse. At the end of the day, you just want to be on the field, participate, be a part of a great victory and show the team that you can be out there and help them win games.”

Injury update: T.J. Ward missed a series with a shoulder injury, and his status won't be known until Wednesday. Ward dressed slowly because of right shoulder pain, but said he was fine. … Cornerback Buster Skrine battled through a shoulder injury suffered in a fall during Thursday's practice. … Ahtyba Rubin (calf) sat out Sunday. He has been wearing a boot, and could miss more time.

Tough outing: Cornerback Chris Owens had a rough day against the Dolphins. Ryan Tannehill targeted him 10 times, and he gave up nine passes for 89 yards, including 46 yards after the catch.

Mingo update: Chudzinski said more will be known about Barkevious Mingo (bruised lung) on Wednesday. "I like the progress and what’s been happening with him and as soon as the doctors clear him we’ll get him out there.''

Ubaldo Jimenez struck out 10 batters for the third time in his last four starts as the Indians hung on to beat Kansas City, 4-3.

CLEVELAND, Ohio -- Only 9,794 saw it, but what a game it was Monday night at Progressive Field.

Not only did Ubaldo Jimenez strike out 10 batters for the third time in his last four starts, but manager Terry Francona channeled Nostradamus, predicting that rookie infielder Jose Ramirez would help the Indians win a game in his first big-league start.

Ramirez singled and scored and Jimenez won his second straight stretch-drive start as the Indians edged the Royals, one of their pursuers in the AL Central and wild-card race, 4-3 at nearly-empty Progressive Field.

The victory moved the Indians to within 1 1/2 games of idle Tampa Bay for the second wild-card spot. The Indians are tied with Baltimore in their pursuit of the Rays.

In the AL Central, the Indians pulled to within 4 1/2 games of the Tigers, who lost to Chicago. It's the closest they've been to first place since they were four games out on Aug. 5.

The Tribe's offense consisted of Ramirez scoring from first on Drew Stubbs' grounder, assisted by first baseman Eric Hosmer's throwing error, and homers by Asdrubal Cabrera, Yan Gomes and Carlos Santana. First base umpire Dana DeMuth originally called Santana's 18th homer, a drive down the right-field line to start the seventh, foul. After Francona requested a review, the umpires overturned the original call and signaled home run.

Replays showed that Santana's drive hit the back of the foul pole. The homer stretched the Tribe's lead to 4-1.

"Going down the first baseline I knew it hit the pole," said Santana. "I was surprised when the umpire called it foul."

• Royals-Indians boxscore | Scoreboard | Standings

The score did not stay 4-1 long as Cody Allen replaced Jimenez to start the eighth. He gave up a ringing double to Alcides Escobar off the 19-foot wall in center field and a two-run homer to Alex Gordon to make it 4-3. It was the 100th homer of Gordon's career.

Allen, making his 67th appearance -- an AL high for rookies -- struck out Emilio Bonifacio before Francona removed him. Lefty Marc Rzepczynski retired Hosmer on a grounder and Joe Smith ended the inning by getting Billy Butler to bounce back to the mound.

Chris Perez came on for the ninth and he brought his usual drama. Butler singled and Salvador Perez walked to start the inning. David Lough advanced the runners with a sacrifice bunt, but Perez struck out Carlos Pena before walking George Kottaras to load the bases.

Perez finally ended it by getting Gordon to fly out to center field for his 23rd save.

"We just try to show up and be one run better than the other team," said Francona. "Tonight I felt we were 1/10 of a run better. I had a stomach ache in the ninth inning. That's about as nail-biting as you can get."

Perez lost Sunday's game to the Mets when he gave up a game-winning double in the ninth inning, but Francona does not think there has been a drop in Perez's stuff.

"To get out of that inning, you have to have tremendous stuff," said Francona. "They kept throw left-handed hitters up there, good hitters, and he got them out. To get Gordon out in that situation, I don't think you can do that with a drop off in stuff."

The Indians, who have won six of their last 11, are 9-5 against the Royals this season. Kansas City lost for just the third time in the last nine games.

Jimenez (11-9, 3.62) allowed an unearned run in seven innings. Along with his 10 strikeouts, he didn't walk a batter and allowed seven hits in 99 pitches.

In his last four starts, Jimenez has a 1.73 ERA, allowing five runs in 26 innings with 34 strikeouts, five walks and five earned runs.

"I'm getting ahead, I'm staying ahead and I'm getting people out," said Jimenez. "Right now it's fun the way we're playing together. Every day you come to the stadium, you know it's a big game."

Ervin Santana (8-9, 3.5) allowed four runs, three earned, in seven innings in the loss. Santana owns a no-hitter against the Indians, but overall he's 3-9 against them.

Cabrera gave the Indians a 1-0 lead with a two-out homer in the second. It was his 11th of the season.

Ramirez started the third with a single to left for his first big-league hit, a line-drive to left. He drew several throws from Santana as he danced off first base. When Stubbs sent his grounder to third, Ramirez hit second and kept going as Mike Moustakas threw Stubbs out at first. Hosmer's throw back to third was wild and Ramirez came home for a 2-0 lead.

"I've done that a few times," said Ramirez, through interpreter Luis Ortiz, the Indians lower-level minor league hitting coordinator. "As soon as the third baseman threw the ball, I was going."

Gomes, who threw out Lorenzo Cain and Jarrod Dyson on attempted steals of second, made it 3-0 with a one-out homer in the fifth. It was his 10th of the year.

Ramirez was not perfect. His throwing error allowed Gordon to reach second with one out in the sixth. Gordon scored on Hosmer single to make it 3-1.

In the eighth, Ramirez beat out an infield single, but was picked off first.

"He was all over the ballpark tonight," said Francona. "He played with pure passion and joy. He helped us. That second run was huge and he scored on a grounder to third. It gave everybody a spark."

Asked what he was going to do with the ball representing his first hit, Ramirez said he was going to give it to his mother in the Dominican Republic. Asked to spell his mother's name, Ortiz grabbed Ramirez's right arm and showed reporters a woman's name tattooed on it.

The name was Xiomara, Ramirez's mother.

Yeah, it was that kind of night.

Post-game video: Ubaldo Jimenez talks about his start