Here are high school sports highlights from Wednesday.
CLEVELAND, Ohio – Here are high school sports highlights from Wednesday. See below for information on how you team’s accomplishments can be recognized in these daily roundups.
BOYS GOLF
Orange 170, Beachwood 183: Orange completed an undefeated dual match season in the Chagrin Valley Conference Chagrin Division. Reese Thaler's 39 led the Lions, and Adam Marcus shot 41. Drew Schnee's 39 led Beachwood.
Independence 167, Orange 170: Drew Schnee led Independence with a 39 and Nick Brunsman shot 40 in the nonconference win. Reese Thaler led Orange with a 39.
Avon Lake 161, Berea-Midpark 201: Luke Martinsen and Michael Petrus led the way for Avon Lake, both shooting a 38. Grant Hull (45) and Ben Smith (49) led Berea-Midpark.
GIRLS GOLF
Hudson 171, Brecksville 177: Julia Goodson was medalist for the seventh straight time. Hudson completes it's Suburban League National Division schedule undefeated (7-0).
GIRLS SOCCER
Avon Lake 2, Amherst 0: The Shoregals (6-1-0, 4-0-0 SWC) scored two goals in the last two minutes of the game. Kelly Spitz scored with 1:38 left, Amber Achladis scored on a penalty kick 23 seconds later. Elise Duvall recorded her 14th career shutout.
BOYS SOCCER
Berea-Midpark 3, Olmsted Falls 1: The Titans remained undefeated (8-0, 5-0 SWC) on goals by Adam Wade, Jacob Rahe and Danny Sasak. The last two goals came off Danny Ruple free kicks. Kevin Lemin scored for the Bulldogs (5-2, 3-2). Titans goalkeeper Dominic Baglier made seven saves and remained unbeaten in net.
Lutheran West 1, Brookside 0: The Longhorns remained undefeated in the Patriot Athletic Conference thanks to a goal from Brian Koscianski.
How your team can be included in these roundups
These roundups are based on box scores and game notes entered in cleveland.com’s database by school or team representatives. If your team is not participating in the box score program please contact your athletic director or coach and encourage them to do so. They can obtain instructions and database login information from High School Sports Manager Kristen Davis at kdavis@cleveland.com.
The Cleveland Indians improved to 17-8 since Aug. 20 with a 5-1 victory over the Kansas City Royals on Wednesday night in Cleveland.
CLEVELAND, Ohio -- Shortstop Francisco Lindor went 3-for-4 with one homer and four RBI and right-hander Danny Salazar gave up one run in seven innings as the Cleveland Indians defeated the Kansas City Royals, 5-1, Wednesday night at Progressive Field. Tribe third baseman Mike Aviles was 1-for-2 with two walks, two runs and a scintillating defensive play.
Here is a capsule look at the game after a DVR review of the Fox SportsTime Ohio telecast:
Staying hot: The Indians (72-72), still in the hunt for the second AL wild card, are 17-8 since Aug. 20.
They are 2-1 in a four-game series against the soon-to-be AL Central champion Royals (85-60).
New team to target: The Tribe trails the Houston Astros by 4.0 games in the race for the second wild card. The Astros have lost the first three of a four-game series against the host Texas Rangers, who have vaulted from the second wild card to the leader of the AL West.
The Minnesota Twins and L.A. Angels are between the Astros and Indians.
You can call him ROY: Lindor was 3-for-3 with four RBI through four innings.
Batting right-handed against lefty Danny Duffy, he hit a solo homer to left in the first (1-0 fastball) and two-run single to right in the second (0-2 fastball). Batting left-handed against righty Jeremy Guthrie, he hit an RBI single up the middle in the fourth (2-2 fastball above belt). He struck out swinging against Guthrie in the sixth.
Lindor is batting .317 with 31 extra-base hits and an .835 OPS in 82 games this season.
Oh, by the way: Lindor denied Alex Rios a single up the middle with a diving pick of a sharp grounder in the fifth. Lindor threw from his right knee.
It means he is on fire: August Fagerstrom, a supremely talented baseball writer who helps cover the Indians for MLB.com and will be returning to FanGraphs, tweeted that Lindor's weighted runs created-plus (wRC+) since the All-Star break is 167. The post-break wRC+ of Yoenis Cespedes, who has been ridiculously good for the N.Y. Mets, is 169.
Locked in: Salazar (13-8, 3.48 ERA) allowed four hits, walked two and struck out six. He threw 65 of 102 pitches for strikes.
Kansas City's run came when Mike Moustakas sent a 3-2 fastball deep to right for a homer leading off the seventh. No shame there.
Salazar, as usual, leaned on a fastball/split-changeup combination. He and catcher Yan Gomes forced the Royals to be cognizant of the changeup when behind in the count, which opened the door for outs with the fastball in any count.
Salazar and Gomes were unpredictable with their sequences -- a must against the aggressive Royals.
Gomes showed that a good catcher can be hitless (0-for-4) and still have an enormous impact on the outcome because of his expert handling of the starting pitcher.
Quality work: The Indians took control of the game in the second inning, which they entered with a 1-0 lead.
In the top of the inning, Eric Hosmer led off with a walk. After Kendrys Morales and Moustakas struck out swinging, Salvador Perez grounded down the third-base line. Aviles dived to make the stop and threw from one knee in foul territory behind the bag, erasing Perez by a half-step.
In the bottom of the inning, Duffy retired first two. At that point, he had thrown 31 pitches for the game. The next four Tribe batters inflicted pain.
1. (R) Abraham Almonte -- single to left (3-2 fastball).
Skinny: Almonte grounded a pitch on the inside corner through hole at short.
2. (R) Mike Aviles -- walk (3-2 breaking pitch).
Skinny: Early in the plate appearance, Duffy was too concerned with Almonte at first. No. 9 batter Aviles spoiled a good 2-2 fastball and spit on a tantalizing full-count sweeper down and in.
3. (L) Jason Kipnis -- RBI single to center (1-2 cutter).
Skinny: Kipnis displayed tremendous plate coverage against a pitch off the outside corner at the knees. Aviles advanced to third. Recognizing that Duffy needed to put the ball farther down and away in a 1-2 count against a lefty, he still made a decent pitch. More credit to Kipnis than blame on Duffy.
4. (R) Francisco Lindor -- two-run single to right (0-2 fastball).
Skinny: Duffy opened with a fastball for a called strike. Lindor swung and missed at a breaking pitch down and in that skipped away from catcher Perez, enabling Kipnis to move to second. Perez wanted a fastball up, but it came over the plate at the thighs and Lindor punched it toward the hole at second. The ball went off diving Ben Zobrist's glove and trickled into the outfield. Duffy's attempt to change speeds and eye levels failed because he didn't throw the pitch high enough, and because Lindor was batting.
Michael Brantley popped out on Duffy's 30th pitch of the inning and 54th of the game.
Nothing doing: Duffy, who can be nasty when right, lasted 2 1/3 innings before giving way to Guthrie. Duffy allowed the four runs on six hits and two walks.
In his other start against Cleveland this season, May 6 at Progressive Field, Duffy allowed four runs on six hits in one-plus inning. The Indians won, 10-3.
Hunting for Dre: Gomes ripped an 0-1 pitch foul that narrowly missed Fox SportsTime Ohio ace reporter Andre Knott in the third-base camera bay. It was approximately the 576th time this season that a foul had Dre in its sights.
Rookie shortstop Francisco Lindor drives in four runs in his first three at-bats and Danny Salazar goes seven innings to win his 13th game Wednesday night against the Royals.
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CLEVELAND, Ohio -- Rookie Francisco Lindor's game continues to unfold before the Indians' eyes. They are enjoying the view.
The Kansas City Royals? Well, maybe not so much.
Lindor had three hits and drove in four runs and Danny Salazar pitched seven good innings Wednesday night as the Indians beat Kansas City, 5-1, at Progressive Field and closed to within four games of Houston and the second wild card spot.
The switch-hitting Lindor, who joined the Tribe from Class AAA Columbus on June 14, is hitting .317 (102-for-322) with nine homers and 41 RBI in 82 games. He came into the game leading all AL rookies with a .311 batting average.
The Indians jumped left-hander Danny Duffy early for the second time this season. Lindor led the ambush. Hitting second, he gave the Tribe a 1-0 lead with a homer over the left field wall with just one out in the first. Lindor and the Tribe came back for more in the second.
Duffy (7-8, 4.35) opened the inning with two outs, but Abraham Almonte singled and Mike Aviles walked. Jason Kipnis, who entered the game hitting .190 since coming off the disabled list, singled through the middle to score Almonte and send Aviles to third.
Lindor, after Kipnis advanced on a wild pitch, singled off Ben Zobrist's glove at second base to score Aviles and Kipnis for a 4-0 lead.
In the fourth, Lindor singled to center to score Aviles to make it 5-1. Aviles drew a leadoff walk and took second on a sacrifice bunt by Kipnis. It was the second time this season Lindor has had four RBI in a game and Kansas City was the victim each time.
Defensively, Lindor made a diving stop against Alex Rios to start the fifth. He righted himself and threw Rios out.
Duffy did not make it out of the third inning. In two starts against the Tribe this year, he's allowed eight runs on 12 hits in just 3 1/3 innings.
Salazar (13-8, 3.48) improved to 2-1 against the Royals this year. He allowed one run on four hits with six strikeouts and two walks. After getting knocked around by the Tigers on Sept. 5 in a 6-0 loss, Salazar has allowed four runs in 13 1/3 innings over his last two starts.
The lone run he allowed Wednesday came on leadoff homer by Mike Moustakas in the seventh. Salazar retired the next three batters to end his night.
Bryan Shaw and Cody Allen followed Salazar with a scoreless inning each. Allen earned his 31st save in the ninth.
What it means
The Indians (72-72) climbed back to breakeven and gained a game in the wild card race. They have won 14 of their last 20 games and improved to 7-8 against the Royals this year.
The Royals (85-60) have lost 10 of their last 15 games. Their magic number to eliminate the Indians in the AL Central is six.
Good D
Aviles, starting a third, made the play of the game to end the second inning. He made a diving stop on the line on Salvador Perez's sharply hit grounder. Then he propped himself up on one knee and rainbowed a throw to first to get Perez by a step.
Twin 13s
Salazar (13-8) and Carrasco (13-10) lead the Indians with 13 wins each. Salazar had never won more than six games in a season for the Tribe before this year. In fact, at the start of this season, his big-league record was 8-11.
Carrasco had never won more than eight games in a big league season until this year. His big league record entering this season was 19-26.
Thanks for coming
The Indians and Royals drew 11,103 fans to Progressive Field on Wednesday night. In 68 home dates, the Indians have drawn 1,223,621 fans.
What happens next?
The Indians and Royals conclude this four-game series Thursday night when Corey Kluber (8-13, 3.57) faces Kansas City's Yordano Ventura (11-8, 4.42) at 7:10 p.m. SportsTime Ohio, WTAM and WMMS will carry the game.
This will be Kluber's first start since Aug. 29. Recovering from a strained right hamstring, he is 1-3 against the Royals and will be making his fifth start against them this year.
Ventura is 5-1 with a 2.51 ERA over his last seven starts. He's struck out 56 in 43 inning in that stretch. Ventura is 0-1 against the Tribe this year and 3-1 in his career.
Ohio State hosts Northern Illinois on Saturday at Ohio Stadium.
COLUMBUS, Ohio -- The No. 1 Ohio State football team hosts defending MAC champion Northern Illinois on Saturday in Ohio Stadium. Kickoff is set for 3:30 p.m.
Ohio State (2-0) is coming off wins against Virginia Tech and Hawaii. This will be the first time Ohio State has played the defending MAC champion since playing Bowling Green in 1992. The Buckeyes won that game 17-6 in Ohio Stadium.
Northern Illinois (2-0) has won three of the last four MAC championships, and won at least 11 games the last five years. The Huskies come into Ohio Stadium off of wins against UNLV and Murray State.
Ohio State and Northern Illinois last met in the 2006 season opener, when the No. 1 Buckeyes won 35-12 in Ohio Stadium. This Saturday will mark the second overall meeting between the two teams.
Cavaliers beat reporter Chris Haynes talks with Chris Fedor and Dan Labbe about the expectations for the season, Tristan Thompson's contract situation and more during Thursday's Sports Insider.
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Fred Hoiberg, left, has replaced Tom Thibodeau as Bulls' head coach. Ronda Churchill, Associated Press
CLEVELAND, Ohio -- The Cleveland Cavaliers will begin training camp in less than two weeks, and once again they are expected to be the favorite in the East.
The reigning East champs added Mo Williams, Sasha Kaun and Richard Jefferson to a team that stormed through the conference in the playoffs. Meanwhile, the Chicago Bulls and Atlanta Hawks, the two teams that appear to be the biggest threat in the East, had a relatively quiet summer.
Cavaliers beat reporter Chris Haynes joined Thursday's Sports Insider to talk about which team poses the biggest threat to the Cavs, whether a resolution will come soon with Tristan Thompson's contract and the changes in the NBA playoff format.
Elyria Catholic's Darin Guice, Notre Dame-Cathedral Latin's Tyler Sabath earn Players of the Week honors in football.
CLEVELAND, Ohio – Here are the cleveland.com Players of the Week for Sept. 17. Players of the Week win a free SAT or ACT class with College Review. Call 216-831-2557 or visit collegereview.org online.
Scroll to the bottom for information on how coaches can nominate an athlete for this honor.
Also see below for a poll asking which athlete had the most impressive week. Note that the poll is just for fun. It has no expiration and there is no “winner” declared.
Players of the Week are awarded every week in the regular season. Look for the feature Thursdays on cleveland.com and Fridays in The Plain Dealer.
What Darin did last week: Made a game-saving interception in a 26-18 win over Mogadore, which lost for the first time in the regular season since 2013. He also caught nine passes for 137 yards. Three of his catches came on third down and kept drives alive.
Three Questions with Darin
Q: You play on both sides of the ball. Do you prefer offense or defense?
A: “I really like playing offense. I feel like I’m better at it.”
Q: Do you have a special pregame routine?
A: “I usually pray a lot. I pray to my grandpa (Alfred Guice), who just passed away. I also tape my wrists and then write his name on those, too.”
What Tyler did last week: Ran for 124 yards on 16 carries in a 35-21 win over University School. He also completed 8 of 16 passes for 102 yards with two touchdowns and no interceptions.
Three Questions with Tyler
Q: Who is your favorite pro athlete?
A: "LeBron James, because nobody on the planet can stop him."
Q: What is your favorite subject in school?
A: "Math, because I like working with numbers."
Q: Do you have any superstitions you follow in getting ready for a game?
A: "I tape both of my wrists and on my right wrist I will write a Bible verse."
What Lindsey did last week: Fired a career-low 72 to finish first at the NEOGGCA tournament at Erie Shores. She shot a 39 on the front nine and followed with a 33 on the back. Perry also won the team title.
What Luke did last week: Finished second in the Division I race at the Tiffin Cross Country Carnival. Wagner finished with a time of 15 minutes, 33 seconds to help St. Ignatius win the team title.
Three Questions with Luke
Q: What is your favorite time of day to do your training run?
A: "Personally, I like to run at night because it’s cool at night, it’s dark, it’s just kind of fun of to me. I’ve always liked running at night."
Q: What kind of shoes do you train and race in?
A: "I train in Nike Air Zoom Structure 18s and I run races in Nike Zoom Victory XC 3s."
Q: What are your team's goals and your personal goals?
A: "Our team goal is to win state as a team and make the Nike Nationals and my goals are to make Foot Locker Nationals as an individual and win state as an individual.”
What Sydney did last week: Finished fourth in Division I-A race with a time of 18:35. That effort set a new school record. She had tied the old school record (18:38) the week prior.
Three Questions with Sydney
Q: What kind of weather conditions do you like to run in?
A: “I guess I perform the best when it’s a little cooler outside and I also like to race in the rain.”
Q: Do you listen to music when you run?
A: “I don’t listen to music when I run because I can’t listen to it when I’m racing so I don’t train with something that I won’t be able to have when I’m in a race.”
Q: What is your favorite subject in school and why?
A: “Probably English because I like to write and be creative.”
What Hallie did last week: Registered 31 assists, seven kills an ace and nine digs in a sweep over West Geauga. Collected 25 assists, 10 kills, three aces and three digs in a sweep of Chagrin Falls.
Three Questions with Hallie
Q: Do you have a favorite pre-game meal?
A: "The day before a game we get together as a team for a spaghetti dinner. On the day of a game I'll eat whatever."
Q: Do you have any superstitions you follow on game day?
A: "I always have to go to school the same way on the same streets. Also, I have to wear the same hair ties."
Q: What is your favorite subject in school?
A: "Math. I don't know why. I'm just really good at it."
What Matt did last week: Scored his team's lone goal in a 1-1 tie with Madison, then scored two goals and collected two assists in a 4-2 win over Hawken. Also kicked two extra points for the football team in its loss to Hawken.
Three Questions with Matt
Q: Who is your favorite pro soccer player?
A: "Cristiano Ronaldo because he is not only a great soccer player, he is an outstanding person, as well. He makes large contributions to organizations that help children in need."
Q: What is your favorite pre game meal?
A: "A ham sandwich or a sub sandwich. I usually have pasta the night before the game as well."
Q: What is your favorite song?
A: " My favorite song at the moment is 'Bait a Hook' by Justin Moore. I usually listen to it while relaxing."
What Ally did last week: Scored a pair of hat tricks with three goals in win over Berea-Midpark and a three-goal game in a win over Olmsted Falls.
Three Questions with Ally
Q: Do you have any pre-game rituals you follow?
A: "I wear the same hair ties for every game, a special handshake with two of my teammates (Bailee Philplad, Veronica Sakola) and what I call my special stretch before kickoff."
Q: How would you describe your style of play?
A: "I like to pass more than score."
Q: Who is your favorite soccer player?
A: "Either Megan Rapinoe or Carli Lloyd of the U.S. women's national team."
How to nominate an athlete for Players of the Week
Players of the Week are chosen every week in the regular season. Coaches can nominate an athlete anytime between the end of all games in a week and Monday at noon. Go to cleveland.com/potw to access the nomination form. Fill in all the blanks, especially the part on what the athlete did that week. Again, the deadline is Monday at noon. Only coaches can nominate an athlete.
Michael Fitzpatrick is a freelance writer from Lorain.
Join beat writer Zack Meisel for a live chat and updates as the Indians and Royals play the finale of their four-game set Thursday night at Progressive Field.
CLEVELAND, Ohio -- Join beat writer Zack Meisel for a live chat and updates as the Indians and Royals play the finale of their four-game set Thursday night at Progressive Field.
Free agent forward Nick Minnerath has reached a one-year deal with the Cleveland Cavaliers.
CLEVELAND, Ohio - Free agent forward Nick Minnerath has reached a one-year deal with the Cleveland Cavaliers, league sources informed Northeast Ohio Media Group.
According to sources, who requested anonymity, the contract is non-guaranteed.
Minnerath, 27, went undrafted out of Detroit Mercy in 2013. During his senior season he averaged 14.6 points and 5.9 rebounds per game and was named to the All-Horizon League first team.
The 6-9 wing played in France last season.
He will join Quinn Cook, Jared Cunningham and D.J. Stephens as roster hopefuls. Jerrelle Benimon was originally expected to be in camp, but recently decided to play in China.
An NBA team can bring up to 20 players to camp. Cleveland will have 14 guaranteed contracts on its roster.
Defensive coordinator defends Pro Bowl cornerback following difficult first week.
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BEREA, Ohio -- Joe Haden came under fire from fans and media following his performance on Sunday. Jets wide receiver Brandon Marshall beat Haden multiple times, including a touchdown catch in the third quarter. Don't count Jim O'Neil, Browns defensive coordinator, among those questioning the Pro Bowl cornerback.
"Joe's the most competitive guy on our team," O'Neil said on Thursday. "There are a couple plays I'm sure he wishes that he could have back. I'm confident in Joe. I wouldn't want any other corner in this league than Joe Haden."
The Browns secondary opened the season with expectations to not only be one of the team's best units, but perhaps one of the league's top secondaries. Safety Donte Whitner said back in May that he believes the Browns have a top three secondary in the league. Fellow safety Tashaun Gipson tweeted in response to a story on cleveland.com about Whitner's comments, "easily!!! For sure top 2!"
-- Tashaun J. Gipson SR (@Gipson_duos24) May 27, 2015
The secondary on Sunday, however, was part of the problem.
"(The secondary), to me, was one of the more disappointing aspects of the game, especially when we talked about words into actions," head coach Mike Pettine said on Monday. "If you want to be mentioned among the best, then we have to play that way, and clearly, we did not."
"Defensively, we want to be the best defense in the league," cornerback Tramon Williams said on Monday. "We didn't start that way. We just have to keep working. At the end of the day, we just have to keep working."
"They just have to do their jobs," O'Neil said. "Just do your job. They're all talented enough to play well. They have to communicate. Do their job. If they do that, we'll be dominant back there."
More highlights from O'Neil on Thursday
Bring on the belt: A wrestling championship belt made an appearance in the locker room. O'Neil explained:
"We're still doing the dog collar and the guys are still getting tags for 'Play like a Brown' [plays]," O'Neil said. "The belt, the championship belt is given to whoever led that week. Whoever had the most tags gets the belt. They get to walk around with it, wear it, whatever the heck they want to do with it. Then, it's a reward that they can keep above their locker, whoever the season champ is at the end of the year."
This week, Desmond Bryant and Craig Robertson shared the belt.
Take it away: Gipson's first interception of the season on Sunday ended up back with the Jets after he was stripped coming down with the ball.
"Me, personally, I don't even count that as a turnover," O'Neil said. "We've been busting Gip on it all week, but he knows he's got to put the ball away. He's got to put the ball away and finish it."
Trevor Bauer won't be conducting any long toss across the outfield grass before his next appearance.
CLEVELAND, Ohio -- Trevor Bauer won't be conducting any long toss across the outfield grass before his next appearance.
The Indians moved the right-hander to the bullpen as Corey Kluber returned to the rotation following three weeks on the shelf with a strained right hamstring.
"We do envision [Bauer] probably making starts this year," said manager Terry Francona. "We don't know exactly when, so rather than him sit in limbo, we'll send him out to the bullpen, because I think it'll be good for him. And, when he does [start], we'll give him a heads up so he can have a normal couple of days beforehand."
Francona said Bauer replied to the news by saying: "I hope this isn't forever."
"And I said, 'Neither do we,'" Francona said. "It's just, we have 20 games or whatever and we need to [win as many as possible]. And he understood that."
Bauer (11-12, 4.71 ERA) has lasted fewer than four innings in four of his last seven starts. During that stretch, he has posted a 7.63 ERA. In his most recent outing, on Sunday against Detroit, he exited after three frames, having surrendered six runs on seven hits. After the contest, he said: "The nights where I don't pitch well, I can't even keep it close enough to let the team compete and have chance. That's the worst part of it, the bad nights, we don't even have a chance."
Francona surmised that fastball command has been at the root of Bauer's struggles. Pitching coach Mickey Callaway has preached the importance of keeping the ball down in the zone and then elevating the batter's eye level by design. It seems to be a work in progress.
"That's ongoing," Francona said. "The hope is that this can be a collaborative effort, and we've told him that: 'For that to be, you have to buy into it.' And I think that's ongoing. We knew that. Not everybody's the same and we certainly respect that. You just try to do the best you can."
Bauer has made 121 starts during his professional career. He has never pitched out of the bullpen. He'll have to adjust his pregame routine. He typically plays long toss shortly before his starts. He won't be able to do that without the benefit of knowing when, precisely, he will pitch.
"It might not be so bad for him," Francona said. "We're not going to bring him in and hustle him to get ready. But, I don't think it's necessarily a bad thing, either. He'll sit out there and [bullpen coach] Jason Bere's out there and has a pretty interesting view and a way of talking to guys. Maybe it'll be a little bit fresh for him."
Cody Anderson is slated to pitch in Friday's series opener against Chicago. Carlos Carrasco and Josh Tomlin will follow. After Monday's day off, Danny Salazar and Kluber will pitch the club's first two games in Minnesota.
Web gem: Tyler Holt made an over-the-shoulder sliding catch in deep center field on Wednesday evening to secure a postseason victory for Triple-A Columbus. Holt's grab came with the bases loaded and two outs in the ninth inning, with the Clippers clinging to a one-run lead.
Francona watched the highlight.
"It was funny," he said. "His reaction was better than the catch."
The Clippers hold a 2-0 series lead against Indianapolis in the five-game set for the Governor's Cup.
Quick hits: Francisco Lindor notched his 100th career hit on Wednesday in his 82nd career game. The rookie shortstop is the sixth-fastest player to reach 100 hits. Roy Weatherly accomplished the feat in 67 games in 1936. Dale Mitchell, Joe Vosmik and Joe Sewell all turned the trick in 80 contests. Hal Trosky did so in 81 games.
Browns wide receiver says he's a big body who can go across the middle and make big plays.
BEREA, Ohio -- The last time Dwayne Bowe caught a touchdown pass was Jan. 4, 2014. Bowe didn't catch a ball in the end zone at all during the 2014 season. He'd like to get back there, if his faulty hamstring will let him.
"I'm a big red zone threat," Bowe said after practice on Thursday. "Even big-play downs. (Offensive coordinator John DeFilippo) knows it. Our team knows it and my duty's to get out there and prove it and that's what I intend to do."
Bowe was sidelined against the Jets on Sunday with a hamstring injury that has bothered him since training camp. Offensive coordinator John DeFilippo said on Thursday that the offense misses Bowe's presence on the field.
"We don't have another body type like that outside," DeFilippo said. "We just don't have that. Our other players out there have different skillsets than Dwayne has. I think whenever you have that physical skillset from being a tall, big person like Dwayne is, a DB has to take notice of that, that he is going to get bodied up."
"I'm a big body," Bowe said. "I can go across the middle and make the big plays at the back of the end zone and that's something we need and that's something I can do."
Until Bowe can get back on the field, though, there's no way he can prove it. He stressed for the second week in a row that it's important to not push too hard to get back.
"Just gotta be a pro and be smart about it," Bowe said. "Know how to work yourself in and not let no pressure get put against you going out there, speeding yourself up to reinjure it. We have the best staff over here and I feel pretty good about this week."
"I still wouldn't say Dwayne is 100 percent yet," DeFilippo said. "There is no doubt he is getting better. He is on the upward curve."
More highlights from DeFilippo
Feed the Duke: One of the newest offensive toys, Duke Johnson, was the center of attention on the first play of the Jets game.
"We tried to get the first play of the game -- the ball was designed to go to Duke," DeFilippo said. "He ran a swing pass and Antonio Cromartie got width. We thought they were going to come out in man coverage. They came out in zone coverage and Cromartie got width with him. We were going to throw him a swing pass on the first play of the game just to get him going. ... I saw Duke not make any mental mistakes, which I think for a first game for a rookie on that stage shows that it is not too big for him."
Seeing the unseen: DeFilippo knows that Titans coaches Dick LeBeau and Ray Horton will have some surprises dialed up for his group this week:
"We will see something that we haven't seen before," DeFilippo said. "There is no doubt about it. I have nothing but the utmost respect for both those guys."
Injuries: Bowe was limited in practice on Thursday. Also limited were defensive lineman Desmond Bryant (shoulder), cornerback Justin Gilbert (hip flexor) and quarterback Johnny Manziel (right elbow). Linebacker Karlos Dansby (foot) and quarterback Josh McCown (concussion) did not practice. Offensive linemen Joel Bitonio (knee) and linebacker Nate Orchard (back) returned to full practice.
Cleveland Browns beat writers Mary Kay Cabot and Tom Reed report on what happened in Berea Thursday as the Browns prepare for the Titans. Also, videos on the Browns quarterbacks and secondary.
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BEREA, Ohio -- Cleveland Browns beat writers Mary Kay Cabot and Tom Reed report on what happened in Berea on Thursday as the team continues preparations to play the Tennessee Titans in the home opener.
Topics include:
* Josh McCown is optimistic that he will be cleared from his concussion Friday, clearing the way for him to practice.
* Head coach Mike Pettine said that if McCown is cleared and practices, that he would most likely start Sunday over Johnny Manziel.
* Wide receiver Dwayne Bowe's hamstring continues to heal and could see his first action Sunday.
* The defense is confident it will rebound from their performance against the Jets, both against the run and the pass.
* Rookie Danny Shelton also hopes to improve over last week, even thought the coaches were happy with his play in his first game.
Browns offensive coordinator John DeFilippo is still confident Johnny Manziel will be a successful NFL starter and rebukes harsh criticism.
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BEREA, Ohio -- Browns offensive coordinator John DeFilippo is still convinced that Johnny Manziel can be successful NFL pro, and defended him against critics such as ESPN's Merrill Hoge, who blasted him again after the 31-10 loss to the Jets.
Asked if Manziel can be a quality starter, DeFilippo unequivocally answered yes.
"He has a tremendous amount of physical traits,'' said DeFilippo. "Johnny losing these last three weeks of practice, he didn't drop off from a level of accuracy, footwork and those things that a lot of young quarterbacks do. Johnny has tremendous physical attributes -- tremendous physical attributes. We just have to keep grooming him and keep teaching him situational football and when to take chances and when not to."
DeFilippo was visibly miffed when asked about Hoge, a longtime vocal Manziel critic, saying on the air that the Browns should give up on the second-year pro.
"He doesn't play in structure, doesn't understand concepts," Hoge said. "Cut bait, get another guy in there and go in another direction."
Responded DeFilippo: "There is no bigger fan of our players than me, especially on offense. Since the day I have gotten here, they have done nothing but buy in, do everything that I have asked them to do so yeah, when people criticize our guys, yeah it does make me a little bit upset. I had not heard Merrill (Hoge) say that. I had not. That is the first time I had heard it sitting up on this stage. We are a family here."
DeFilippo declined to compare Manziel to Titans quarterback Marcus Mariota, who threw four touchdown passes and earned a perfect rating in his NFL debut, a 42-14 victory over the Bucs. The two former Heisman Trophy winners might oppose each other Sunday if Josh McCown isn't cleared by Friday from his concussion to practice. However, McCown is optimistic he'll be good to go, a source told Northeast Ohio Media Group.
"One thing I never do is compare players because each person's situation is different,'' said DeFilippo. "I can tell you this -- the turnovers part of it, we have to cut out. There is no doubt about it. I will be the first person to admit that, but if you didn't notice a change in Johnny Manziel from last year to this year then, I don't know (what you saw).
"I saw him going through his progressions. Did he take off and run when a lane was there? Yeah. Did we get down and was he trying to do too much at times? Probably. That just comes with the maturation of understanding situational football. You can't get two scores back on one drive. I think the more he plays and the more he learns those things, the better he will get."
DeFilippo was pleased that he didn't have to scale back the offense for Manziel last week. He looked poised in the first half when he put 10 points on the board, including a 54-yard TD pass to Travis Benjamin.
"We did not change the game plan one bit when Johnny went into the game,'' said DeFilippo. "To me, that is a credit to him because of a combination of things, his elbow and being the No. 2 quarterback, he hadn't gotten a lot of reps in the past three weeks.
"It is a credit to him the way he went in there and threw the football.'' In the second half, however, Manziel threw an interception on his first drive and was strip-sacked twice in the fourth quarter. The Jets scored 14 points off of his three giveaways to put the game away.
"Obviously, the turnovers were disappointing,'' said DeFilippo. "Whenever you put the team in harm's way like we did three times, that is not a good thing, obviously. We can't do that. We can't put the team in harm's way like we did. But he threw some good balls in there.''
Left tackle Joe Thomas, who's preparing for either quarterback, believes Manziel can be successful in the Browns' ball-control offense.
"I don't see why he can't,'' said Thomas. "He has done a much better job this year making decisions in the pocket. We may not have to wait for [17] plays because he is a guy that makes big, explosive plays with his feet and scrambling and throwing the ball down the field. It could be the best of both worlds. You could have a nice ball control offense and still hit some big, explosive plays with him back there."
By Friday, the Browns should know if Manziel will get a chance to redeem himself.
DIVISION III 1. Mansfield Christian School 7-0-0 94 2. Cincinnati Country Day School 4-0-1 90 3. Summit Country Day School (Cincinnati) 3-2-0 82 4. Worthington Christian School 1-3-1 67 5. Beachwood 4-0-2 59 6. South Range (Canfield) 5-0-0 40 7. Ottawa Hills 5-1-0 38 8. Greeneview (Jamestown) 5-0-0 27 9. Columbus Academy (Gahanna) 2-3-1 22 10. Roger Bacon (Cincinnati) 5-0-0 14
Jake Kuchta's three TDs power Elyria Catholic past Valley Forge.
PARMA, Ohio -- Elyria Catholic quarterback Jake Kuchta threw three touchdown passes to receiver Darin Guice, and running back Daryl Davis rushed for 111 yards and two scores Thursday as the Panthers topped host Valley Forge 47-14.
The game marked the first Great Lakes Conference matchup for the two schools. Elyria Catholic improved its record to 3-1 overall (1-0 in GLC) and Valley Forge slipped to 0-4 (0-1, GLC).
Davis opened the scoring in the first quarter with a 2-yard touchdown run, but the Patriots evened the score at 7-7 on a 74-yard TD from senior quarterback Tim Captain.
Kuchta connected with guice on scoring plays of 65 and 75 yards in the second quarter. Sam Best added a 1-yard TD run in the fourth quarter.
Elyria Catholic will host Parma on Sept. 25 while Valley Forge travels to Vermilion that same night.
CLEVELAND, Ohio -- Omar Infante went 3-for-4 with seven RBI as the Kansas City Royals defeated the Cleveland Indians, 8-4, Thursday night at Progressive Field. Tribe righty Corey Kluber returned from a hamstring injury and allowed three runs (two earned) in four innings. The Royals (86-60) won despite committing four errors. The teams split the four-game series. The Indians...
CLEVELAND, Ohio -- Omar Infante went 3-for-4 with seven RBI as the Kansas City Royals defeated the Cleveland Indians, 8-4, Thursday night at Progressive Field. Tribe righty Corey Kluber returned from a hamstring injury and allowed three runs (two earned) in four innings.
The Royals (86-60) won despite committing four errors.
The teams split the four-game series. The Indians (72-73) were denied a sixth straight home series victory.
Here is a capsule look at the game after a DVR review of the Fox SportsTime Ohio telecast:
Failure to launch: The Tribe slipped to 1-4 in games after being at .500 this season (not including 0-0).
ABOI: Anybody But Omar Infante.
It is one thing to lose to the Royals; it is another to lose to reserve second baseman Infante. The Royals feature plenty of good hitters; Infante is not one of them.
Infante entered Thursday night with a .217 average, one homer and 37 RBI this season. He exited with a .221 average, two homers and 44 RBI.
Infante hit a three-run homer off Kluber in the second; a two-out; a two-out, two-run double off Jeff Manship in the fifth; and a two-out, two-run single off Gavin Floyd in the seventh.
Infante's hits made the respective scores 3-0, 6-2 and 8-3.
In his other plate appearances, Infante had a sacrifice bunt off Kluber in the fourth and lined to center off Shawn Armstrong in the ninth.
It's a pleasure to meet me: Few pitchers, if any, strut around the mound with the arrogance and sense of entitlement that Royals right-hander Yordano Ventura exhibits. Based on his opinion of himself, he probably thinks he should have shut out the Indians and struck out 14.
In reality, Ventura gave up three runs (two earned) on eight hits in five innings. He walked two, hit one and struck out four. He threw 95 pitches.
As the numbers indicate, the Indians kept surrounding Ventura but did nowhere near enough damage.
Not so fast: With two outs and none on in the Tribe second, Ventura attempted to quick-pitch Jose Ramirez with an 0-0 fastball. Ramirez ripped it to right for a single.
Head-scratcher No. 1: The Indians put runners on first and second with one out in the third inning for Abraham Almonte. The previous batter, Lonnie Chisenhall, had walked in four pitches.
Almonte swung at a first-pitch curve and grounded to the pitcher.
With runners on second and third and two outs, Yan Gomes flied to center.
Head-scratcher No. 2: The Indians put runners on first and second with two outs in the fourth for their best hitter, Michael Brantley.
Ventura fell behind, 3-0. Brantley, normally patient in any situation, swung at a pitcher's pitch -- fastball above the belt on the outer third -- and popped to third.
Head-scratcher No. 3: The Indians loaded the bases with one out in the fifth for Ramirez. The previous batter, Gomes, was hit by a pitch.
Ramirez, who had been 2-for-2, wanted to pull a first-pitch fastball on the outer half and grounded to Infante. The Royals managed a fielder's choice at second; a run scored to pull the Tribe within 6-3.
After Giovanny Urshela walked, Jason Kipnis chopped a 1-0 fastball on the outer half to first.
Strange sight: Brantley went 0-for-4 and is hitless in three straight games (0-for-11) for the first time this season.
Welcome back: Kluber pitched for the first time since Aug. 29. He gave up five hits, walked none and struck out five.
Granting that Kluber threw just 61 pitchers Thursday, the Tribe slipped to 10-19 in games started by the defending AL Cy Young Award winner.
Here is a pitch-by-pitch breakdown of Kluber's start:
FIRST INNING
(L) Ben Zobrist -- 92 fastball outside; 93 fastball, pop to left.
(L) Mike Moustakas -- 93 fastball, double to right.
Skinny: Catcher Yan Gomes set up on outside corner; the pitch was on inner half and down. At that point, Moustakas was 17-for-36 career against Kluber.
(L) Kendrys Morales -- 87 cutter swinging strike (down and in); 93 fastball foul; 89 cutter, called strikeout.
Skinny: Outside corner at knees.
(L) Eric Hosmer -- 88 cutter deep inside; 93 fastball, grounder to short.
Skinny: Fantastic play by Francisco Lindor, who dived toward the hole to field sharply hit ball. Even though Moustakas is not fleet afoot, Lindor almost certainly prevented an RBI single. Hosmer slipped to 1-for-11 in series and 2-for-22 on trip (Baltimore, Cleveland).
Skinny: Giovanny Urshela was too casual with routine play, leading to high throw.
(R) Alex Rios -- 90 fastball, single to left. Perez to second.
Skinny: Gomes was set up on outside corner; the pitch leaked over the middle. Rios chopped it past diving Urshela.
(R) Omar Infante (entered batting .217 for season) -- 88 cutter outside (Infante showed bunt); 92 fastball, three-run homer to left.
Skinny: Gomes was set up on outside corner; the pitch ran off inside corner. Infante has hit two homers this season, both against the Indians.
(R) Alcides Escobar -- 91 fastball up and in; 87 cutter low and away; 92 fastball, single to left.
Skinny: Gomes was set up on outer half; the pitch leaked to inside corner. Escobar shot it past diving Urshela on cut of grass. Escobar snapped 0-for-12.
Here are high school fall sports highlights for Thursday, Sept. 17, 2015.
CLEVELAND, Ohio – Here are high school sports highlights from Thursday, Sept. 17, 2015. See below for information on how you team’s accomplishments can be recognized in these daily roundups.
FIELD HOCKEY
Hudson 2, Hathaway Brown 0: Carissa Arsham and Eden Janesch each scored goals for the Explorers while Ellie Bashian, Hannah Yard and Eliza Green were credited with assists.
Western Reserve Academy 10, Orange 0: Cristen Barnett and Maddi Little scored two goals apiece for WRA.
BOYS GOLF
Independence 166, Trinity 169: Tyler Wilson's 34 led the Blue Devils while Joe LeSueur carded a 36 for the Trojans.
Kirtland 159, West Geauga 162, Cardinal 189: Michael Knezevic's 38 led the Hornets while Brian Beres shot a 39. West Geauga's Zach Kirchner led all scorers with a 35, while Danny Knippenberg led the Huskies with a 43.
Lutheran West 191, Firelands 203: Sam Everson's 46 led the Longhorns.
Riverside 157, Willoughby South 174
University School 149, Shaker Heights 167: David Samar and Will Taber each shot 35 to lead the Preppers. Ryan Wheeler's 35 led the Raiders.
GIRLS GOLF
Geneva 220, Orange 227: Sophie Bruno carded a 47 to lead the Lions, but the Eagles got a 48 from Alexa Hutchinson for the win.
Notre Dame-Cathedral Latin 167, Chardon 178: Reva Morris carded a 35 to lead the Lions while Avery Ovens added a 39. Bri Kuty and Laine Hursh led the Hilltoppers with matching scores of 43.
BOYS SOCCER
Hearts for Jesus 7, St. Martin de Porres 2: Todee Yonley and Joseph Robinson scored goals for St. Martin.
Hudson 3, Western Reserve Academy 1: Drew Saxer's two goals and one assist paced the Explorers. Ryan Jackson added a goal in the first half and Alex Vuksta was credited with an assist for Hudson.
Kirtland 4, Open Door 2: Sanjay Sundararajan had two goals and Stjepan Mijic-Barisic added a goal and an assist for the Hornets.
Lincoln West 3, Euclid 2: Raymond Salukombo scored all three goals for the Longhorns, including a second-half tally that proved to be the difference maker. Simeon Toe and Mohamed Doumbia scored for the Panthers.
GIRLS SOCCER
Aurora 1, Highland 0
Chagrin Falls 5, Geneva 2: Brooke Weston scored twice for the Tigers while Brianna Baker added two assists and a goal. Maria Sill scored two goals for the Eagles.
Hathaway Brown 3, St. Vincent-St. Mary 0: The Blazers improved their record to 7-2 on goals by Kaley O'Donnell, Elizabeth Stack, and Caitlin Esteves. Goalkeeper Clair O'Brien collected her fifth shutout of the season.
Hawken 2, Orange 0
TENNIS
Harvey 3, Eastlake North 2: Erica Winters of Harvey defeated Claire Hunt of Eastlake North 6-1, 6-4 at No. 1 singles.
Hathaway Brown 5, Hawken 0
Medina 5, Brunswick 0: Allie Pearson and Sam Ott grabbed a 6-1, 6-1 win at No. 1 doubles for the Bees.
Orange 5, Chagrin Falls 0
Solon 4, Kenston 1: Sarah Zhou of Solon knocked off Cameron Steinmetz of Kenston at No. 2 singles 7-5, 6-3.
Strongsville 5, Highland 0: Paige Meyers scored a 6-1, 6-1 victory at No. 1 singles for the Mustangs.
West Geauga 5, Brush 0
Willoughby South 5, Andrews Osborne 0: Angie Adams of Willoughby South topped Daisy Ai of Andrews Osborne 6-0, 6-2 at No. 1 singles.
VOLLEYBALL
Brunswick 3, Solon 0: Ally Badowski had 14 kills while Molly Grzybowski added 18 assists to lead the Blue Devils.
Chagrin Falls 3, West Geauga 0
Eastlake North 3, Brush 0
Holy Name 3, Bay 1: Kailee Cunningham and Maddy Adams had 12 kills apiece and Carly Stepic added 20 assists for the Green Wave as Holy Name improved to 5-0 in the Great Lakes Conference.
Independence 3, Geneva 0: Maura Collins posted 12 kills while Hallie Zumack dished out 19 assists for the Blue Devils.
Lake Catholic 3, Archbishop Hoban 0
Maple Heights 3, Lorain 0
Medina 3, Euclid 0: Dayna Shirer had 17 digs and Mariam Kande added 14 assists for Euclid in the loss.
Notre Dame-Cathedral Latin 3, Beaumont 2: Reigning Division II state champion NDCL survived a five-set marathon, taking the decisive final set 15-12 against the North Coast League rival Blue Streaks.
Olmsted Falls 3, North Olmsted 0: Lexi Lombardo had 18 kills and Katie Edgington added 11 while Kacie Burton collected 40 assists for the Bulldogs. Elise Jarachovic led the Eagles with 5 kills.
Parma 3, Valley Forge 0: Taylor Moga collected 12 kills in a losing effort for the Patriots.
Revere 3, Highland 1: Viktoria Farian and Erinn Kahoe had 14 kills apiece for the Minutemen.
Riverside 3, Willoughby South 0: Jenn Durra's 18 kills and Elizabeth Selleny's 32 assists led the Beavers.
St. Martin de Porres 3, New Day Academy 0
Walsh Jesuit 3, Padua 2
How your team can be included in these roundups
These roundups are based on box scores and game notes entered in cleveland.com’s database by school or team representatives. If your team is not participating in the box score program please contact your athletic director or coach and encourage them to do so. They can obtain instructions and database login information from High School Sports Manager Kristen Davis at kdavis@cleveland.com.
Cleveland stranded multiple runners in four of the first five innings and left at least one aboard in each of the first six frames. In all, the Tribe stranded 12 runners.
CLEVELAND, Ohio -- Maybe one day, the Indians will climb above the .500 mark. Until then, it remains Groundhog Day in Cleveland.
The Indians again dropped below the .500 mark with an 8-4 loss to Kansas City on Thursday. The Tribe has not boasted a winning record since April 9, when the club sported a 2-1 mark. Terry Francona's bunch has reached .500 three times this week, only to lose its ensuing game.
Omar Infante hadn't played in eight days prior to Thursday's series finale in Cleveland. Then, he tallied a career-high seven RBI, as he slugged a three-run homer in the second, socked a two-run double in the fifth and slapped a two-run single in the seventh.
Kansas City's second baseman entered the game with one home run and 37 RBI for the season. He also entered with a .230 on-base percentage, but he reached three times in four official at-bats.
A lengthy hiatus wasn't so kind to Corey Kluber, who made his first start since Aug. 29. The right-hander, shelved for nearly three weeks because of a strained right hamstring, exited after four innings, having yielded three runs (two earned) on five hits. He was pulled after only 61 pitches.
Infante whacked a 92-mph sinker on a 1-0 pitch to provide the game's first runs. The Tribe answered with a pair in the bottom of the second, as Jason Kipnis delivered a two-out, two-run single.
The second run scored when Ben Zobrist's throw from left field sailed wide of catcher Salvador Perez. Royals hurler Yordano Ventura failed to back up the play at home plate, so Giovanny Urshela raced home behind Jose Ramirez.
For most of the evening, however, the Indians struggled to shuffle base runners toward home plate. Cleveland stranded multiple runners in four of the first five innings and left at least one aboard in each of the first six frames. In all, the Tribe stranded 12 runners.
Southpaw Kyle Crockett relieved Kluber to begin the fifth. He struck out Zobrist, but walked Mike Moustakas, allowed a single to Kendrys Morales and a double to Eric Hosmer. All three Royals eventually scored.
The Indians answered with a run in the bottom of the fifth, when Jose Ramirez -- whose helmet flew off during his dash toward first -- legged out a fielder's choice. A double play would have ended the inning and kept the Tribe off the scoreboard. Urshela walked to load the bases with two outs, but Kipnis grounded out to first to remove any drama.
Cleveland loaded the bases with no outs in the ninth against lefty Franklin Morales. Kansas City turned to closer Greg Holland, who induced a sacrifice fly off the bat of Abraham Almonte. Yan Gomes bounced into a double play to end the game.
What it means
The Indians (72-73) have lost three of five, but have won 14 of their last 21. The club has 17 games remaining, including a potential make-up date against the Detroit Tigers.
The Astros also lost on Thursday, so the Indians remain four games back in the race for the second Wild Card spot.
Making up for lost time
Infante eclipsed his previous career high of six RBI in a game. He had six RBI over the last six weeks prior to his outburst on Thursday. During that stretch, he batted .141 with a .164 on-base percentage.
Green light
Michael Brantley popped out to third base on a 3-0 pitch to end the fourth inning. Brantley had put the ball in play on a 3-0 count on only one occasion this season. The previous time, he doubled. On Thursday, he stranded a pair of runners.
Web gems
Francisco Lindor made a pair of dazzling defensive plays. In the first, he made a snare of a Hosmer ground ball as he dove to his right toward the outfield grass. In the fifth, he made a sliding catch of a line drive off the bat of Perez.
They came, they saw
An announced crowd of 13,125 watched the affair at Progressive Field.
What's next
The Indians will host the White Sox for a three-game set over the weekend. Cody Anderson (4-3, 3.68 ERA) will toe the rubber for the Tribe in Friday's series opener. Chicago will send ace southpaw Chris Sale (12-9, 3.55 ERA) to the mound.
Johnny Manziel feels much better prepared for his start Sunday against the Titans than he did for his last start at home, a 30-0 rout by the Bengals in the 2014 home finale.
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BEREA, Ohio -- By all accounts, Johnny Manziel is much better prepared for Sunday's home opener against the Titans than he was for last year's home finale against the Bengals.
"I definitely feel I'm in a lot better place now,'' Manziel said shortly after being named the starter for the game instead of Josh McCown, who was ruled out with his concussion. "I guess if I thought I was prepared then, I think I'm even more prepared now, obviously with the experience and those two starts and then through the offseason and last week and just where I'm at today, so I definitely feel a lot better."
Manziel will make his third career start against the Titans and fellow Heisman Trophy winner Marcus Mariota, who's coming off a stunning 42-14 rout of the Bucs, in which he threw four touchdown passes and earned a perfect 158.3 rating.
"Two guys who had careers like we did in college, both Heisman Trophy winners, I think it's cool,'' said Manziel. "It makes obviously a little bit of excitement but I think the bigger thing is, you know, I think you look at this game as far as last year, I'm sure they come in here with a little bit of a chip on their shoulder as well as going up 28-3 and then us storming back like that to win the game (29-28) that we did, so I think just looking at the team matchup, I think it's a good one."
It also marks Manziel's first start in front of the home crowd since he was walloped 30-0 by the Bengals on Dec. 14th in his first career start, a game that wrecked their chances of winning the AFC North and all but eliminated them from wildcard contention.
"I don't have too much recollection of that week, during or after,'' said coach Mike Pettine. "Right now, I feel very comfortable just because of the volume of reps that he's gotten, the quality of the reps, where he is with the material, how he is in the meeting room. We knew he was going to be the guy and coming out of playing three quarters against the Jets, looking back on it now, that experience helps him."
Pettine declined to say exactly when he knew McCown would be ruled out. As of Thursday, he said he'd likely start McCown if he was cleared to practice on Friday, and a source told Northeast Ohio Media Group that McCown had no symptoms all week and was confident he'd be given the green light.
"I won't go into any details,'' Pettine said. "I know when you have a setback that it resets the clock. I don't have anything much beyond that."
He acknowledged that he's disappointed that McCown, his uncontested starter all summer, won't be able to play.
"Anytime you have a player that can't play, you're always going to be disappointed, but Johnny's had a good week,'' said Pettine. "It's not like Josh practiced and we find out late he can't go. When a guy goes into the protocol, you have to make the assumption that he's not going to be back and then react to the news when he is. We're prepared."
McCown's concussion foiled the Browns plans to let him run the show while Manziel continued to develop.
"That was the plan, but in the NFL nothing ever goes according to plan,'' said Pettine. "That's why we're confident just in how Johnny's handled his business since he's come back. He's been a guy that has prepared like he's the starter and it's for these exact situations. He showed some level of preparedness last week, did a good job stepping in. The turnovers can't happen but there were some things to build on coming out of that game."
Manziel said his elbow has felt good all week coming off three quarters of work in Sunday's 31-10 loss to the Jets. Like last week, Manziel was limited Wednesday and Thursday and participated fully on Friday. Also like last week, he's listed as probable.
"Good, no problems,'' Manziel said.
Pettine said Manziel, who had some expected soreness on Monday, got enough work this week despite the elbow issue.
"He did because we limited some of the volume during the individual periods so there was no limit on the throws that he needed to make in the 7-on-7 or 11-on-11 situation,'' he said. "It has not been an issue this week. We're comfortable that he's where he needs to be."
Browns safety Donte Whitner stressed that the five turnovers from last week -- including three by Manziel -- can't be repeated.
"Whatever he does, we just can't turn that football over,'' said Whitner. "Hopefully, he comes out, he plays lights out, no turnovers and we win the football game. We don't feel like we played that all that bad on the defensive side of the ball. Score might look differently than the game actually looks. It didn't start to get out of hand until the second half, until we started to turn it over, a mishap here on defense, a mishap here. We'll be alright."
Titans coach Ken Whisenhunt prepared all week for both Manziel and McCown.
"Manziel's ability to extend the play and then also make accurate throws when he's on the move -- he's shown that he has talent that way, so those are always a concern defensively,'' Whisenhunt told reporters Friday. "Staying with the receivers if a play extends is always something that's difficult, and trying to make sure that we're good with our (containment) and understand those are the kinds of things that hurt you."
Manziel has said on several occasions this week that he wants to redeem himself from his earlier performances -- his two starts and two relief appearances. Last week, Manziel started off hot, throwing a 54-yard touchdown pass to Travis Benjamin before turning it over three times in the second half. All told, Manziel has gone 0-2 with one touchdown pass, three interceptions and two lost fumbles. He's also completed only 52.5 percent of his passes and earned a sub-par 55.5 rating.
"I haven't gone out and showed what I am capable of," Manziel said on a conference call with Titans writers this week. "I haven't gone out and performed very well the past two or three times that I have been on the field. I have kind of brought it upon myself and now it is kind of on me to dig myself out of that hole."
Manziel didn't get any argument on that from ESPN's Merril Hoge, who ripped him again on Monday morning's SportsCenter, saying that he hasn't gotten any better than last season.
"Cincinnati, Pittsburgh and Baltimore, they love the plan that Cleveland's under,'' said Hoge, who called Manziel a bust last season. "Keep going down that plan. Because all you do is set your organization back one more year by babysitting this guy as your starting quarterback so keep doing that for the other team. But if you want to move on, cut bait, get another guy in there and go in another direction -- immediately. Cut bait. Move on."
Browns wide receiver Travis Benjamin noted on Thursday that McCown has a much better grasp of the offense than Manziel, who's still learning. In addition to assimilating another new offense, he sat out most of the two weeks leading up to the opener with his elbow tendinitis.
"There is a slight difference because Josh is the mastermind behind the offense,'' said Benjamin. "He can change the plays and change the protection, whereas Johnny, we go in as a receiver group and we know we might see this or that coverage and make sure we correct Johnny. But Johnny's got it down pat.''
Joe Haden observed that Manziel is a much different signal caller than the one who got rocked by the Bengals.
"A lot more confidence, because he looks a lot more comfortable,'' he said. "He's making checks, he's making calls, he's making plays, he's checking the protection. That's all you can really ask for. As long as he knows where to go with the ball, knows what the checks are, then he's going to be solid."
Quarterback Austin Davis, who will serve as Manziel's backup, was impressed with Manziel's week.
"He has a great understanding of the offense and what we're trying to get done,'' said Davis. "You see the physical abilities. They're obvious. So I think the more he plays, the more he gets comfortable, the better he's going to get. It's tough as a young quarterback to just come out of the gate firing. So I think the more he gets reps, the more he sees game speed, he's just going to improve."
Manziel will undoubtedly be blitzed a lot by the Dick Lebeau- and Ray Horton-led defense.
"Sure, yeah, obviously those guys with their scheme over the years have presented a lot of problems for a lot of people,'' said Manziel. "The good thing for us is we played against the Steelers - this coaching staff - the past couple years. They're prepared to handle it and have us prepared. I think we'll be on top of it and ready to go when Sunday comes along."
Pettine feels better starting Manziel knowing he played so much against the Jets.
"The game reps, to me, are the most valuable ones that he got,'' said Pettine. "Coming out and playing three quarters against New York and then getting a full week and then a lot of the overlap of the Jets practice I already talked about, we were able to carry over a lot of stuff from the end of training camp and from last week so it's all material that's he's very comfortable with."
