"We regret the situation and inconvenience that it may have caused. We will conduct a full review of this matter," NFL states.

Associated PressWell, most of the fans -- like these Steelers supporters -- got to keep their Super Bowl seats.

ARLINGTON, Texas –- Cowboys Stadium wasn't ready for the Super Bowl.

About 1,250 fans were displaced because their seats were deemed unsafe — 400 who were sent home, and 850 who were given somewhere else to sit.

"The safety of fans attending the Super Bowl was paramount in making the decision and the NFL, Dallas Cowboys and City of Arlington officials are in agreement with the resolution," the NFL said in a statement. "We regret the situation and inconvenience that it may have caused. We will conduct a full review of this matter."

The NFL said the people relocated were put in "similar or better seats."

Those turned away will be given a refund of triple the face value — however, $2,700 for $900 tickets may not be enough for folks who paid much more to scalpers, not to mention travel and hotel costs.

Seating woes are the latest frustration for the first Super Bowl at Jerry Jones' $1.2 billion showplace.

A rare, severe winter storm moved into the area Tuesday, ripping holes in tents on the property and hampering travel and celebrations across the region. On Friday, six people at the stadium were injured by melting snow falling from the roof.

Organizers were hoping flawless game-day logistics would wipe out some of the complaints, but this seating problem could be an issue in the area's plans to bid for the 50th Super Bowl in 2016.

The affected areas were four entryways and two portions of the upper deck on the west end. All were above empty spaces, so the stability of those structures apparently was the issue.

In the upper deck, there were off-limits seats in the same rows as seats that were deemed safe. Yellow police tape was used as a dividing line, with uniformed personnel also keeping folks away.

About 15,000 temporary seats were added to the stadium in a bid to set the record for the largest crowd in Super Bowl history. Jones was aiming for more than 105,000, including stadium workers and media, and fans who bought standing room tickets for plazas outside the stadium.

The temporary seats filled open platforms that are usually standing-room only "party pass" areas for Cowboys games. The entryways were on the third level, while the upper deck is on the fifth level.

Ohio State rolled to 24-0 with its first win at Minnesota since 2007, with the competition growing a little more tired of the Buckeyes being on top.

View full sizeMarlin Levison / Minneapolis Star TribuneJared Sullinger overpowered Minnesota's Ralph Sampson III for this second-half layup in the Buckeyes' easy win over the Golden Gophers on Sunday.

MINNEAPOLIS, Minn. -- As the Ohio State Buckeyes stepped down off the raised court at Williams Arena, all but one of the players for the first time experiencing what it was like to win at Minnesota, freshman Jared Sullinger stopped and talked to a Golden Gophers fan holding a sign.

On the poster board, a black and white headshot of Sullinger had been given earrings and lipstick in neon pink and green, with "Party in the USA," and hand-drawn flowers decorating the top of the sign. Before his 18 points and 13 rebounds had helped lead the No. 1 Buckeyes to an 82-69 win on Sunday afternoon over No. 18 Minnesota (16-7, 5-6 Big Ten), Sullinger's karaoke version of the song had helped make him an Internet sensation two weeks ago.

This, obviously, was not flattery, and neither were various things that the Minnesota student section chanted at Sullinger. Still, Sullinger wanted the sign, wanted a souvenir to take back to Columbus along with the Buckeyes' 24-0 record.

"I thought my mom would love it, to have it to hang up," Sullinger said. "It's all fun and games. They'll be rooting for their Gophers and Ohio State fans will be rooting for their Buckeyes, and we've just got to keep playing basketball."

Tough arenas and vocal student sections aren't hard to find in the Big Ten, and Minnesota can be as difficult as anywhere, with the Buckeyes losing here the last three seasons. Only fifth-year senior David Lighty had won at Williams, as a freshman on the national title game team that went 15-1 in the Big Ten in 2006-07.

"I especially take pride in this one because I haven't won here yet," said senior center Dallas Lauderdale, who scored 10 points in 17 minutes against Minnesota's big front line.

But Sunday was a little different, another sign of what's ahead for Ohio State in its last three road games at Wisconsin, Purdue and Penn State. The Golden Gophers' fans, and maybe their players, seemed a little edgier, a little more intent on taking down the conference giant that, at 11-0, now has a 31/2-game lead on second-place Purdue and Wisconsin.

With Sullinger as a national player of the year candidate, a physical style at both ends, tight defense and a coach in Thad Matta who isn't afraid to stomp his foot, roll his eyes and work the refs, the Buckeyes aren't only playing the Big Ten's basketball, they may also be the Big Ten's bad guys.

"You've got to accept it and you've got to love it. I love being the villain," Sullinger said. "It's fun coming out and people have pictures of you and you're getting booed and everyone is yelling at you at the free-throw line. It's one of the things I love most about basketball, especially college basketball, is being the villain."

The Buckeyes can give it as well as they get it, and Sullinger has an understanding of the physical nuances of the game beyond his years.

Minnesota's Colton Iverson, at 6-10 and 258 pounds, has as much chance as any Big Ten player to handle the 6-9, 270-pound Sullinger. But he picked up four fouls in 14 minutes, including one on an off-the-ball elbow that sent Sullinger to the floor. Though Sullinger may not have been knocked there, exactly.

"I said Colton, you're pretty strong to knock Jared Sullinger down like that," Minnesota coach Tubby Smith said, with more than a hint of sarcasm.

"Actually, it felt like he hit me in my chin, and he caught me a little bit in my chin but he also caught me in the chest," Sullinger said. "So it was a little bit of both."

It was after that play that the students questioned Sullinger's toughness with a chant, and as the Buckeyes headed to the bench during a timeout, senior Jon Diebler raised his arm and with his had motioned for the crowd to bring it on.

"We knew this was going to be a crazy environment," Lauderdale said, "and we embraced that. It gave us energy."

Lauderdale was particularly effective near the rim after Sullinger was double-teamed early in the second half, dunking three times in the first four minutes as the Buckeyes extended an eight-point lead at the break to double figures. They never led by fewer than 10 in the final 16 minutes.

Lauderdale admitted he may have thrown those dunks down just a little harder.

"The crowd was pretty ruthless," he said, "so they were quiet after a dunk, after a three, after anything. They were pretty quiet through the whole game because we felt we had control through the whole game."

Abbotsford native David van der Gulik, who missed the previous five games because of injury, scored the Monsters' first goal.

CLEVELAND, Ohio -- The Monsters made sure Sunday afternoon not to get caught looking ahead -- to the Super Bowl.

Knowing the Steelers and Packers would kick off within an hour of the conclusion of their game against Abbotsford, the Monsters and their roster full of football fans took care of obligations on the ice before attending or hosting parties.

Among those who helped Lake Erie beat the Heat, 3-2, was an Abbotsford native. David van der Gulik, who missed the previous five games because of injury, scored the contest's first goal.

The Monsters, third place in the Western Conference North Division at 25-22-3-5, gained ground on the two clubs in front. They pulled within four points of first-place Manitoba, which lost to Hershey, and within three of second-place Hamilton, which was idle.

Manitoba and Hamilton, though, each has six games in hand on the Monsters.

Abbotsford (23-22-2-5) remains fifth in the North. It played the eighth of a 10-game trip.

Lake Erie finished a weekend of three games in three days at 1-1-0-1. Taking into account his club's injury situation, coach David Quinn was not going to complain, especially given that Abbotsford is a division opponent. Lake Erie lost to the West Division's San Antonio Rampage in regulation on Friday and in a shootout on Saturday.

"To get three out of six points says a lot about our mental toughness," Quinn said.

Quinn said after Saturday's game that he did not anticipate van der Gulik would be available by Sunday. van der Gulik not only returned, he played well. He beat his man off the wall and jammed the puck between the pads of goalie Leland Irving at 17:23 of the first period.

Van der Gulik and Irving played for the Heat last season.

If the Monsters were relatively healthy, van der Gulik (lower body) likely would not have suited up.

"With the injuries to our team, we made the decision to go," van der Gulik said. "Obviously, it felt good playing against my old team and getting a goal."

As public-address announcer Ryan Pritt recounted the goal, Lake Erie winger Matt Ford scored from in tight. Ford has two goals in three games after being shut out the previous 15.

Irving, who entered as the leader among AHL goalies with 20 victories, skated to the bench and was replaced by Jean-Philippe Lamoureux. Irving returned for the beginning of the second period.

Midway through the second, Abbotsford broke through, Cam Cunning getting the better of goalie John Grahame. Monsters defenseman Kevin Montgomery answered four minutes later with a rocket from inside the blue line in a four-on-four situation.

The Monsters also won a fight in the period. Enforcer Patrick Bordeleau made quick work of the Heat's Matt Pelech.

The second intermission arrived early because of ice and board problems. Both teams eventually came out of the locker room to play the final 2:21 of the second, then the third. Abbotsford pulled within 3-2 at 19:41 of the second.

"We did a good job of staying within our structure and doing the simple things over and over," Quinn said.

Guest shuffle: Anderson Varejao (foot surgery) will not be part of "Cavs Night" on Feb. 12, when the Monsters host Grand Rapids. He will be replaced by teammates Manny Harris and Christian Eyenga, who will join Boobie Gibson for a pregame autograph session. Television play-by-play voice Fred McLeod and analyst Austin Carr also are set to appear.

Robinson became the only player to win most valuable player honors in both the National League (1961) and American League (1966).

View full sizeMarvin Fong, PD fileFormer Cleveland Indians Manager Frank Robinson throws out the ceremonial first pitch before a game against the Boston Red Sox at what was then Jacobs Field in July 2007.

CLEVELAND, Ohio -- As part of Black History Month, we remember Frank Robinson, the first black manager of a major-league baseball team when the Cleveland Indians named him to that position in 1975.

Robinson, now 75 and a Major League Baseball senior vice president, played from 1956 to 1976. His peak years were with the Cincinnati Reds and the Baltimore Orioles. He became the only player to win most valuable player honors in both the National League (1961) and American League (1966).

The Angels traded him to the Indians on Sept. 12, 1974.

In his 1975 debut as a rare player-manager, Robinson hit a pinch-hit home run, enabling the Indians to win the season opener.

After a 79-80 record in 1975, the Tribe improved to 81-78 the next year, good for fourth place in the American League East. Cleveland started slow in 1977, going 26-31 -- and costing Robinson his job.

He was voted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1982.

In 1989, he was named American League manager of the year for leading the Baltimore Orioles to an 87-75 record. The previous year, the Orioles were 54-101.

Associated Press fileFrank Robinson and Brooks Robinson of the Baltimore Orioles pose for photographers at Los Angeles in October 1966 after leading their Baltimore Orioles to a 5-2 win in the opening game of the World Series. They stroked successive home runs in the first inning to provide three runs.

Quarterback Aaron Rodgers goes 5 for 6 for 53 yards and a TD on Green Bay's 80-yard scoring drive and safety Nick Collins returns an INT for another score 14 seconds later.

View full sizeMarcio Jose Sanchez / Associated PressJordy Nelson gathers in the first score of Super Bowl XLV as Aaron Rodgers' perfect throw beats Pittsburgh cornerback William Gay in the first quarter Sunday.

ARLINGTON, Texas -- Observations, opinions and some facts on the first quarter ...

• Green Bay won the coin toss and deferred, and then forced a punt in three plays. The strategy almost backfired, however, when Tramon Williams fumbled Pittsburgh's punt. They retained possession after the pileup was uncovered.

• Wonder what happens with those Super Bowl prop bets on the coin toss winner?

• First scoring opportunity was squandered by Green Bay. Receiver Jordy Nelson beat cornerback Bryant McFadden and Aaron Rodgers laid it in perfectly, but it went through Nelson's arms at the Pittsburgh 15. Whoops.

• Steelers had to punt again when Ben Roethlisberger's pass on third-and-1 for tight end Heath Miller was high. He had Miller mismatched against cornerback Williams.

• Packers throwing early and spreading Pittsburgh's defense with multi-receiver formations. They keep pushing the ball upfield.

• Packers score first on 29-yard TD toss from Rodgers to Nelson on third-and-1. Rodgers laid in a perfect pass over cornerback William Gay. This time Nelson clenched the ball.

• More bad news for Steelers' defense: cornerback McFadden is questionable with a hip injury.

• Illegal block in back penalty on Pittsburgh erases 36 yards in field position for the Steelers. They take over at their 7 after a 45-yard return by Antonio Brown is brought back.

• Roethlisberger goes deep for Mike Wallace and safety Nick Collins intercepts the underthrown ball. Collins returns it 36 yards for a TD, lunging into the end zone for the score. Wow. Defensive end Howard Green mauled guard Chris Kemoeatu to force Ben to throw earlier than he wanted. Two scores in 14 seconds.

It's amazing how much of a difference the OSU senior makes when he's attacking the basket consistently and effectively Watch video

MINNEAPOLIS, Minn. -- Four things I think about Ohio State basketball after Sunday's victory over the Golden Gophers.

1. David Lighty seemed to have an extra spring in his step while scoring a game-high 19 points Sunday, and it's amazing how much of a difference he makes when he's attacking the basket consistently and effectively. He was 7-of-13 from the field, but 6-of-8 from inside the 3-point arc.

On defense, against Minnesota's big lineup that sometimes included 6-11 Ralph Sampson III, 6-11 Colton Iverson and 6-8 Trevor Mbakwe, Lighty had to work overtime, sometimes getting so low on the big men while leaning on them it looked like he was sitting on their ankles. But on the other end, he made Minnesota pay for the mismatches, using his quickness to attack the rim.

"He did have great energy, which Dave always does," OSU coach Thad Matta said. "He found the seams well."

Lighty's 19 points tied his high in Big Ten play this year, reached against Minnesota in their first meeting. He scored over 20 three times in nonconference play.

2. For as much as Jared Sullinger touches the ball and is forced to either battle through or pass out of double teams, here's something that's overlooked -- he doesn't turn it over much.

The Minnesota big men highlighted that Sunday, with Mbakwe, Sampson and Iverson combining to turn it over 12 times, several on offensive fouls, in 72 minutes. Sullinger and Dallas Lauderdale turned it over twice in 52 minutes, and on the season Sullinger has just 35 turnovers in 24 games.

"When the post men are going to turn it over 12 times, and that's where our strength is, I don't know what to do," Minnesota coach Tubby Smith said.

3. Ohio State's foul shooting isn't a reason to panic yet, but let's see where it is in early March. Sunday, the Buckeyes were 10 of 20 from the line, and since making 24-of-27 at Illinois on Jan. 22, they are shooting 58.6 percent in their last four games.

Sullinger, who has taken more than one-third of the Buckeyes' foul shots this season, was 2 for 8, missing his first five, the first four hitting the front of the rim. He's making 47 percent in his last four games (16 of 34).

"It's a mindset thing. I'm shooting them short," Sullinger said. "They're on line. I've got to put a little more oomph in them. I think I've got to bend my knees a little more. ... I'm thinking too much. I just need to clear my head and shoot free throws."

Sullinger's shooting form looks fine. But something needs to change. There's no doubt he's going to shoot some big free throws over the next two months.

4. Ohio State had 22 offensive rebounds, the most in a Big Ten game in Thad Matta's seven seasons at Ohio State. Sullinger had eight and Deshaun Thomas had five. A lot of Thomas' rebounds were off his own misses, and he didn't have a great day, shooting 2-of-11 while scoring five points in 11 minutes. But as a shooter, at 6-6 and 230 pounds, he's different than William Buford or Jon Diebler or former Buckeye Daequan Cook in the fact that he can defend inside.

He battled Mbakwe for several minutes, and he offers the Buckeyes a different look when Dallas Lauderdale and Sullinger aren't in there together. There's a lot of potential there, but the continuing challenge for the rest of this season is to harness it.

Cornerback Bryant McFadden and receiver Emmanuel Sanders are out for Steelers. The Packers are down cornerbacks Charles Woodson and Sam Shields.

View full sizeCharlie Riedel / Associated PressPittsburgh's Troy Polamalu is too late to prevent a touchdown reception by Green Bay's Greg Jennings in the second quarter Sunday. The score gave the Packers a 21-3 lead before the Steelers scored a late TD before halftime.

ARLINGTON, Texas -- Observations, opinions and some facts on second quarter ...

• More bad news for Steelers: right tackle Flozell Adams is out with a shoulder injury. Announcement says return is questionable, but he's back already.

• Ben Roethlisberger indefatigable in taking Steelers downfield. But safety Nick Collins makes a sure tackle of Mike Wallace at the Packers 15 after a short pass. Field goal by Shawn Suisham and 14-3 Packers lead.

• Good tackle to the ground by linebacker James Farrior after a catch by Donald Driver denies the Packers a first down and forces a punt.

• Another Pittsburgh injury: receiver Emmanuel Sanders, foot. He's questionable.

• Green Bay receiver Donald Driver limps off the field. He missed two days of practice with a quadriceps injury. He's getting X-rays on an ankle, says announcement.

• Roethlisberger still showing a hint of a limp, but he's not shy about scrambling.

• Roethlisberger is intercepted again when he tries to jam the ball into Wallace on a crossing route. Safety Jarrett Bush outwrestles Wallace for the ball around midfield.

• Packers now going for first-half kill. Rookie back James Starks' 12-yard run takes it to Steelers' 21. They just keep pushing the ball on the Steelers.

• Then, boom, Aaron Rodgers' laser to Greg Jennings at the goal line. Ball beats Ryan Clark diving for the breakup. Touchdown. 21-3.

• Here come the big arms, people. Roethlisberger fires a 37-yard strike to Antwaan Randle El to the Packers' 40.

• Packers cornerback Charles Woodson hurt his shoulder breaking up a pass for Wallace. He landed hard on it while outstretched for the breakup. Woodson leaves the field. Cornerback Sam Shields is already out.

• Wow, another big throw by Big Ben, to Hines Ward, sliding for the ball at the Packers' 26. First down with 1:37 left.

• Huge TD for Steelers when Ben takes a few steps out of the pocket and Ward gets behind safety Charle Peprah. Ward snatches the ball falling in the end zone. Big, big score for the Steelers.

• Packers safety Nick Collins leaves for the locker room for an IV.

Almost 60 years ago Midway High's Dick Bogenrife set the high school basketball world abuzz when he scored 120 points, a single-game Ohio record that still stands.

View full sizePhoto courtesy Dick Bogenrife"It was a good feeling, but at the same time I wasn't overjoyed about it," said Midway High School basketball player Dick Bogenrife, who scored 120 points in a single game on Feb. 6, 1953. "It followed me around the world pretty much."

CLEVELAND, Ohio -- News of what the boy at tiny Midway High had done pierced the frozen February air like the shot from a .22.

Someone scored 120 points? In a 32-minute basketball game?

Had to be a mistake.

Only it wasn't. On Feb. 6, 1953, Dick Bogenrife set the record for the most points scored by a high school boys basketball player in Ohio, a mark that hasn't been broken.

For whatever reason -- the coach wanted to make a name for himself, basketball scoring records were in vogue at the time, the teams were mismatched to begin with -- Bogenrife had the game of his life.

"At that time it was just kind of a shocker. I guess I really can't describe it," Bogenrife, now 74, said recently by phone from his home in Kansas City, Kan., where he settled after a military career. "It was a good feeling, but at the same time I wasn't overjoyed about it. It followed me around the world pretty much."

For one Friday night, the center of the basketball world was Midway, Ohio, a town of about 250 people nestled 40 minutes southwest of Columbus off Interstate 71.

The old Midway High, which graduated five boys and eight girls in Bogenrife's class, is now Midway Elementary School. The only acknowledgement of the record there are copies of two newspaper articles in the trophy case.

The gym, one of the nicest in Madison County at the time, still holds a few hundred people. But the wood floor that once squealed with the stops and starts of white Converse high-tops is long gone and so are the bleachers, which were removed for lockers.

In its simplicity, it remains a monument to a midwinter's night when Ohio sports history was made.

Midway's top player was Bogenrife, a 16-year-old junior and the younger of two sons raised on a farm of crops and livestock eight miles north of town. At 6-2, he was the tallest boy on the team and played center -- all arms and legs in the standard red and white jersey and short shorts. Through two-thirds of the season, he was scoring 26 points per game.

"He was a dead-eye shooter," said former teammate Ray Justice, a retired teacher in nearby London. "In practice, he wouldn't miss many shots."

The Midway Tigers were 14-5 entering their game that February night against visiting Canaan. As tiny as Midway was, Canaan (pronounced KAY-nan), a mere crossroads on the way to Plain City, was even smaller, with a graduating class of nine that year.

"We weren't very good," said Delmar Noland, a 5-7 Canaan forward now retired near London. "We won some games, but not very many."

The team was even weaker that night because several Panthers were out with the flu. The game had all the ingredients for a blowout, sprinkled with all this talk about scoring records.

View full size"It's one of those sports things that come and go," says Dick Bogenrife, now 74 and living in Kansas. "Probably one of the lesser important things in life."

Just two nights earlier, Clarington High senior Mel "Fatty" Frye put up 80 points, which some news outlets incorrectly reported as an Ohio high school record. (The previous mark was actually 89 points by Glen Whipple of Archbold in 1922.)

A month before Frye's big game, scoring machine Bevo Francis, of Rio Grande College in southeastern Ohio, set the college basketball world on its ear with a 116-point outburst.

So when Bogenrife tore into Canaan for 21 points in the first quarter, Midway coach Don Strasburg laid down an order.

"He just told the team to pass the ball to me all the time and they did," said Bogenrife. "He was pushing for recognition, too."

Bogenrife added 27 in the second quarter, 34 in the third and 38 in the fourth -- all before there was such a thing as a 3-point arc.

"The Canaan boys never tried to slow the game up," said Midway point guard Alvin "Buddy" Dorn, a retired electrical lineman in nearby Washington Court House, "and it just went on and on and on."

Bogenrife didn't sit out for a second and rarely missed a shot, scoring 48 of his team's 58 first-half points and 72 of 79 in the last two quarters. By the second half, he rarely strayed from the offensive end of the floor, taking pass after pass and quickly firing up shots.

"He was shooting from everyplace," recalled Don Rinker, of Springfield, Ohio, one of the two referees that night. "They weren't just layups."

Bogenrife hit 52 of 64 field goals and 16 of 20 foul shots. Amazingly, guard Roger Radcliff also managed double figures, with 10 points.

"I had planned for some time to turn Bogenrife loose," Strasburg told the old Columbus Citizen after the game, "and then when I saw what Frye had done at Clarington, I decided to have our boys feed the ball to Dick in the Canaan game."

Midway won, 137-46.

The feat stood as a national high school record for seven years before being broken twice in a 13-month span, first by Danny Heater's 135-point game in West Virginia in 1960 and again by Johnny Morris in Virginia, who scored 127 points in 1961.

When the game ended, there was no real celebration. No game ball awarded. No Gatorade shower -- it hadn't been created yet.

Bogenrife remembers being whisked away to the principal's office for a phone interview with a reporter from the Columbus Dispatch. The next day's Dispatch reported Bogenrife outdid even Rio Grande's Francis, "using his pet set shot from the vicinity of the foul circle."

"I feel pretty good, but I'm tired and numb all over," Bogenrife told the reporter before praising his teammates for making it happen.

The newspaper also quoted Strasburg as saying Canaan had as many as four defenders on Bogenrife at the beginning, "but in the second half, they even cheered as he continued to hit from every spot on the court."

Never happened, Canaan's Noland said recently by phone. "That must be some kind of a joke or something," he said. In fact, he said, Canaan coach Dave Spitzer was so angry he tried to put his fist through a wall at halftime.

"Everybody was upset about it," said Noland, who scored seven points that night. "[Strasburg] could have put in his reserves and still beat us."

Even Midway's side wasn't all that tickled.

"People were excited, I guess, because we were making a lot of points," said Linda Anthony, a senior cheerleader for Midway at the time. "But it didn't go over real good. To me, it wasn't real fair. All Dick did was stand down there. He very seldom went to the other end of the floor."

View full sizePhoto courtesy Dick Bogenrife"People were excited, I guess, because we were making a lot of points," said former Midway cheerleader Linda Anthony. "But it didn't go over real good. To me, it wasn't real fair. All Dick did was stand down there. He very seldom went to the other end of the floor."

In pursuing a record, Strasburg had allowed his team to run up the score. It took exactly 24 hours for the coach and his players to experience the other end of a one-sided beating.

The next night, Tecumseh High, led by future NBA All-Star and Cavs General Manager Wayne Embry, whipped Midway, 107-55, a Tecumseh school record for points at the time and still a school record for the 50 field goals Embry and his teammates sunk that night.

Embry, who had a game-high 25 points, was a 6-7, 235-pound junior center, assigned to cover the kid who had scored 120 points the night before. Midway was much smaller than Tecumseh, physically and by enrollment, but Embry had read about the record in the morning paper and understood the challenge.

"Our coach," he said, "used it as motivation in his pre-game speech."

Bogenrife still managed to score 20 points.

Almost 60 years later, Midway High is now consolidated into Madison Plains High School, between Midway and London on Ohio 38. Canaan High is now a middle school that feeds Jonathan Alder.

Bogenrife, who averaged 36 points per game the next year as a senior to earn All-Ohio honors, accepted a basketball scholarship to Dayton, where he played sparingly from 1955-58. After college, he spent 20 years in the Army, retiring as a lieutenant colonel before entering the real estate business for 30 years. Bogenrife, who trained as an officer in Kansas, liked the area and stayed. He retired for good about four years ago.

He and Mary Rose, his wife of four years, spend free time crisscrossing the country on his white Harley Road King. He said he's the happiest he's ever been.

Other than calls from the media every four or five years to relive the moment, the record-setting night may provide interesting trivia, but to him it's trivial.

"It's one of those sports things that come and go," he said. "Probably one of the lesser important things in life."

After visiting Dallas on Monday night, the 8-43 Cavaliers begin an 8-game homestand against three teams with a combined record of 51-100.

Associated PressCavaliers forward Jamario Moon (left), injured guard Mo Williams (center) and guard Manny Harris (right) watch the final seconds of the Cavs' 111-105 loss to Portland on Saturday night.

CLEVELAND, Ohio -- The Cleveland Cavaliers play the Mavericks in Dallas on Monday night, and there might not be anyone who expects the Cavs to snap their record 24-game losing streak then.

The  Cavaliers have, though, become more competitive in recent games, and on Wednesday night, they begin an eight-game home stand with a contest against the Detroit Pistons at Quicken Loans Arena.

Cleveland is 8-43; Detroit, 19-32. Friday night, the Cavs host the Los Angeles Clippers, who are 19-31, and next Sunday night, the Washington Wizards visit Cleveland. Washington is 13-37, and has lost ALL 25 of its road games.

Of course, any bad or mediocre team believes it can be a winner for at least one night when meeting the Cavaliers. But the Cavs have to embrace any matchup that gives them a flicker of hope to gain that elusive W.

History shows that teams recover, eventually, from humiliating seasons. Sam Amico writes for CBSSports.com about what the Cavs need to go right (with a quote from guard Daniel Gibson):

Now, there is no room for miscalculation. If the Cavs hope to fix this, they will need to be smart and lucky. They will need to draft a Kevin Durant when everyone else is telling them to take a Greg Oden.

They will need to follow the blueprints of other small-market successes such as Utah, Oklahoma City, and especially San Antonio -- and find the type of people who don’t mind playing in places with little night life and less glory. And they just might need to try to build a team in the truest sense, then make it work in a superstar's league.

As for today, they just need to try to end this wicked streak, mostly for the sanity of no one but themselves.

"With any team, I think losing is contagious," Gibson said. "A lot of times, it turns into more [losses]. You just have to continue to work at it, and we have been. I think that’s the part that is most troublesome. We are putting in the work and not reaping the benefits."

Plain Dealer and cleveland.com Cavaliers coverage includes Terry Pluto's column on the team's fans; his "Terry Pluto's Talkin;' " Mary Schmitt Boyer's "Hey, Mary!;" her NBA Insider; Jodie Valade's game story on the Cavs' 111-105 loss to the Portland Trail Blazers on Saturday night.

Fastbreaks

Despite his season-ending ankle injury, teams are interested in trading for center-forward Anderson Varejao, writes Yannis Koutroupis for hoopsworld.com.

It's time for the Cavaliers to make a bunch of trades, by Matt Moore for CBSSports.com.

Nobody's to blame for the Cavs' losing streak, writes Mark Bechtel for Sports Illustrated's SI.com.

The 10 worst teams in NBA history, in the opinion of Sam Amico for FOXSportsOhio.com.

NBA and Cavaliers notes, by Bob Finnan for the News-Herald and Lorain Morning Journal.

Cavaliers-Trail Blazers game stories by Rick Noland for the Medina County Gazette and Elyria Chronicle-Telegram; by Bob Finnan for the News-Herald and Lorain Morning Journal; by Jason Lloyd for the Akron Beacon Journal.

Basketball is a family bond for Cavaliers assistant coach Paul Pressey and his two sons, Matt and Phil, who play at Missouri.

View full sizeChris Lee / St. Louis Post-DispatchPhil Pressey (1) brings the ball up the court alongside brother Matt Pressey (3) in Missouri's 89-73 victory Saturday against Colorado in Columbia, Missouri. The brothers are sons of Cavaliers assistant Paul Pressey. "I give them one thing they work on every summer," Paul Pressey said. "You give them too many things, they forget about the most important things."

DALLAS, Texas -- When Paul Pressey's sons were deciding where to attend college, Mike Anderson had an automatic advantage.

He was "Uncle Mike" to both Matt and Phil Pressey. Always has been. They've called the Missouri coach by the familiar name all their lives, and he's been a permanent fixture in the Pressey household since the days when he and Paul played together and were roommates at the University of Tulsa.

When Anderson officially began the recruiting process, the two Pressey boys changed their salutation to "Coach Mike," but the familiarity remained. Ultimately, that comfort level is what led both boys to decide to attend Missouri this season, as Matt transferred from junior college and Phil graduated from Dallas Episcopal High School.

Paul Pressey, the Cavaliers' assistant coach, is happy to keep basketball in the family.

Watching Missouri basketball games are an escape these days from the Cavaliers woes, as Cleveland has lost an NBA single-season record 24 straight heading into Monday's game against the Mavericks. Both his sons play for the 18-5 Tigers, and both are faring well in their first season. Matt, a 6-2 junior, is averaging 7.1 points in 18.5 minutes per game. Phil, a 5-10 freshman, is averaging 6.3 points and 3.9 assists in 21.6 minutes.

Pressey isn't able to attend Mizzou games in person, a fact his sons have learned to accept after years of their father's assistant jobs in Boston, New Orleans and Cleveland. But the same calm, understated way he guides NBA players is the way he dispenses advice to his sons each off-season, and the way he consults with them on the phone during the season whenever they seek his guidance.

View full sizeD'Arcy Egan / The Plain DealerPaul Pressey (who enjoys fishing in Lake Erie) is a trusted member of Byron Scott's staff. "He's real good with young players," said Scott. "Working them out and getting them ready."

The two boys have picked up their father's ease with the game, so proficient in their basketball knowledge that Pressey only has to tell them something once for them to begin to correct it.

"He's a straight-shooter," Matt said in a recent phone interview. "He'll be real with you. At the same time, he's understanding because he was a player, as well. He's a guy who can help you get things done, but at the same time he can understand what you're going through as a player."

Pressey's understanding comes from a career spent proving his abilities. He was a junior college transfer who excelled at Tulsa, and was selected 20th in the 1982 NBA draft. He originated the "point forward" position with Milwaukee as a 6-5 small forward who initiated the offense for coach Don Nelson, and he was a steady defender who earned All-Defense Team honors three times.

His sons are a combination of his best skills -- Matt has his defensive tilt, while Phil's ball-handling as a point guard has made him mirror many of his father's moves on the court.

"He talks about me being fancy with the basketball, like going behind the back and using spin moves," Phil said from Missouri. "But it's kind of funny because I do the same moves I've seen him do in old videos. It just happened."

The Presseys have a family bond and basketball excellence that runs deep. Paul's wife, Liz, also played basketball at Tulsa and attends most Missouri games. Paul has to settle for TV feeds, long-distance phone conversations with his boys, and off-season training sessions where he is the head coach for his sons.

"I don't give them too much, I give them one thing they work on every summer," Pressey said. "You give them too many things, they forget about the most important things."

For Matt, this year it's his mid-range jumper. Driving too hard to the basket earned too many offensive fouls. For Phil, it's keeping his turnovers low so that his assist-to-turnover ratio is respectable.

He's able to advise his kids with the same kind of affable approach that he uses as an assistant coach, one that the 52-year-old hopes might land him a head position someday.

"His biggest asset is his communication as far as keeping the guys loose and talking to them -- not only about basketball but about life in general," said Cavaliers coach Byron Scott, who has worked with Pressey for four seasons. "He's real good with young players, especially, working them out and getting them ready."

Especially when those young players are his own sons. After all, Pressey is happy to keep basketball in the family.

A key defensive stop by the Packers keeps the Steelers behind, setting up a thunderous fourth quarter.

View full sizeDave Martin / Associated PressRashard Mendenhall's touchdown run early in the third quarter lifted the Steelers to within four points of the Packers.

ARLINGTON, Texas -- Observations, opinions and some facts on third quarter ...

• Steelers receiver Emmanuel Sanders will not return with a foot injury. Packers cornerback Charles Woodson will not return with a collarbone injury.

• Packers receiver James Jones dropped a bullet from Aaron Rodgers. He had beaten cornerback William Gay and would have gone for a 70-yard touchdown. Perfect throw. Bad drop.

• Steelers catch a break when Packers special teamer Tom Crabtree is called for a facemask on punt returner Antonio Brown. Replays showed that Crabtree had the player by his jersey, not his mask. Steelers get the ball at 50.

• Rashard Mendenhall beats Clay Matthews III to the right edge and runs for 17. Mendenhall gets shaken up when he crashes into a cameraman on the sideline. He leaves the field.

• With Mendenhall still out, Isaac Redman makes a big cut to the outside on a third-and-1 run for 16 yards to the 8. Then Mendenhall comes back and finishes off the run-only drive, poking through the middle for the TD. Steelers' drive: 5 runs, 50 yards. 21-17, Packers.

• Steelers fans have invaded the game. Towel-waving is ungluing the Packers. They go three-and-out after another Jordy Nelson drop and a James Harrison sack of Aaron Rodgers. After the punt, Steelers take over at their 40.

• Steelers moving again. Ben's pump fake opens Hines Ward for 15-yard gain to the Packers 29. But drive ends on pressure on second and third downs, including first sack of Roethlisberger by linebacker Frank Zombo.

• With 4:29 in the quarter, Steelers try a 52-yard field goal Shaun Suisham's kick is not even close, wide left. Great field position at 43 for the Packers.

• Paid attendance is announced as 91,060 -- far short of Super Bowl record.

• Packers squander the field position and decide to punt. They knock back the Steelers to their 13 and force a punt in three plays.

• Extra-curriculars after the Pittsburgh punt bring unnecessary roughness call on Green Bay's Tramon Williams. It moves the Packers back to their 13. Dumb.

The Buckeyes are winning 100 percent of their Big Ten road games, everyone else 20 percent.

View full sizeCliff Jette / Iowa City GazetteBryce Cartwright and Iowa handed Derrick Nix and Michigan State another dose of the hard life on the road in the Big Ten last week. Ohio State's singular ability to triumph away from home explains their dominance this season.

MINNEAPOLIS, Minn. -- An effective way to measure any great team is its road wins, which is why those wins are so important to the NCAA Tournament selection committee. By that definition, there may be only one great team in the Big Ten.

With its victory over Minnesota on Sunday, No. 1 Ohio State moved to 6-0 in conference road games. The other 10 teams are 11-43 on the road. So the Buckeyes are winning 100 percent of their road games, everyone else 20 percent. Every team except Indiana has at least one league road win, but only Purdue and Michigan have two.

Thought of by many as the best conference in the country coming into the year, the road records indicate what has happened this season, and why it's hard to evaluate how tough the Big Ten really is -- the bottom is up, but the top is down.

Teams like Penn State, Indiana and, to some extent, Iowa might be more competitive than people expected. With the Hoosiers beating Illinois and Minnesota and nearly Michigan State in the last two weeks, it's easier to buy into the idea that there are no easy games in the league.

But considering that Michigan State was No. 2 and Illinois No. 13 in the preseason and they are now a combined 10-11 in the league and both unranked, it's tough to consider the Big Ten a beast. After Minnesota lost twice this week, at Indiana and to Ohio State, the Golden Gophers are likely to fall out of the top 25, probably leaving only the No. 1 Buckeyes (24-0, 11-0), Purdue (18-5, 7-3) and Wisconsin (17-5, 7-3) ranked, with the Boilermakers and Badgers somewhere in the teens, when the new polls come out Monday.

At this rate, only those top three teams look like NCAA Tournament locks. Minnesota, Illinois, Penn State and Michigan State -- though only with a turnaround after losing two games this week by a combined 46 points -- still have cases to make. It should create a very interesting Big Ten Tournament.

But first, those teams have one surefire way to impress the committee -- road wins.

It should be noted that two of the three road games that the Buckeyes have remaining are against those two second-place teams, at Wisconsin on Saturday and at Purdue on Feb. 20. The road win Saturday is the one the Buckeyes really want, with Madison the only place that Thad Matta has yet to win in his seven seasons.

The Buckeyes have lost eight straight at the Kohl Center, including a 72-69 loss Jan. 9, 2007, that was the only conference defeat for the 15-1 Buckeyes that season.

"That would be a real big one," fifth-year senior David Lighty said.

If the Big Ten trend continues on Saturday, the Buckeyes won't win at Wisconsin. If they play as they did Sunday, or rally the way they rallied at Illinois on Jan. 22, or gut it out they way they did at Northwestern on Jan. 29, they'll stay perfect.

Aaron Rodgers, Clay Matthews III spur Packers' fourth Super Bowl title and 13th NFL championship.

View full sizeKathy Willens / Associated PressWith the game clock at 0:00, Packers Clay Matthews (52) and Cullen Jenkins begin the celebration as Green Bay defeats Pittsburgh, 31-25, in Super Bowl XLV.

ARLINGTON, Texas -- Observations, opinions and some facts on fourth quarter ...

• Continuing a big game, Clay Matthews III pops the ball loose on a big hit on Rashard Mendenhall. Linebacker Desomnd Bishop picks up the ball and runs to the Packers 45. Matthews also has batted down two Ben Roethlisberger passes.

• The fumble is Pittsburgh's third turnover.

• James Jones picks a pass off his shoetops for first down at the Steelers 40. Almost a trap.

• After a drop, his third, Jordy Nelson makes 38 yards on a catch-and-run to the Steelers 2.

• Aaron Rodgers looks left, throws right and connects from eight yards for a TD to Greg Jennings.

• Packers have scored 21 points off the three Steelers turnovers.

• Roethlisberger won't let his team quit. He moves Steelers 66 yards in seven plays, going 6 of 7 and getting the TD on a 25-yard pass to Mike Wallace. The Steelers close it to 28-25 on a two-point conversion scored by Antwaan Randle El after an option pitch by Roethlisberger.

• Wow, what a throw from Rodgers on third-and-10 from the Green Bay 25. Greg Jennings beat Ike Taylor over the middle and Rodgers' pinned the ball to his hands for a 31-yard gain to the Steelers' 44.

• Rodgers to the back shoulder of James Jones for 21 yards to the Steelers' 8.

• Rodgers' lob for Nelson in the right corner is incomplete. Packers kick 23-yard field for 31-25 lead with 2:07 left.

• Roughness penalty on the kickoff pushes Roethlisberger back to his 13 with 1:59 left. Against a 3-man rush, he finds Heath Miller for 14.

• Ward in the flat for five yards, clock ticking. Hawk forces a throwaway with 1:02 remaining. On third down, Roethlisberger and Mike Wallace miss connections. Here's the game ... Roethlisberger's throw is slightly behind Wallace and falls incomplete. With just one time out left, the game is over.

CSU's 20-4 record is clouded by not having much by which to measure the Vikings.

View full sizeJohn Kuntz / The Plain DealerJeremy Montgomery and the Vikings had some of their luster (and the ball) stripped away in Saturday's home loss to Butler. While a Horizon League title carries an NCAA Tournament invitation, coach Gary Waters hopes to convince the selection committee that his team is worthy of an at-large bid, just in case.

CLEVELAND, Ohio -- The national college basketball world still does not have a clear picture of the Cleveland State Vikings.

CSU's overall record is clouded by not having much by which to measure the Vikings. The logical measuring stick would be Butler, but the Bulldogs are having (for them) a down season. So how to measure the Horizon League?

The Vikings' strength is avoiding the big upset loss, either in non-conference play or in league action. Butler, Valparaiso and others around the nation with "on the bubble" attached to their name can't say that.

As CNNSI.com succinctly wrote about CSU's resume: Good wins, none. Bad losses, none.

At the same time, CSU's chances to impress on national TV have not gone well. Also, just about every team on Cleveland State's slate outside of West Virginia is waddling in mediocrity. WVU aside, only one non-conference opponent (Kent State) has won 15 games.

With a combined 1-3 mark against Valpo and Butler, the Vikings' final litmus "bubble" test looks to be its Feb. 20 BracketBuster game at Old Dominion (18-6).

"The reason I feel bad for our team is, we've played some good basketball for a long time here," coach Gary Waters said in his first public plea for NCAA Tournament at-large consideration. "We would like to be considered as an at-large team. People on that [selection] committee only get certain times to watch you. Their [best] time to see you is on national TV. We've played [three times] on there and stunk.

"Now, in their mind, they have a question mark with us; got to be a major question mark. Butler has played six times on national TV and they have played well. If they can get to the finals of the Horizon League [tournament], they still got a chance to get an at-large bid."

As for CSU? BracketBuster "becomes a vital game now," Waters said. "We've got to be prepared for that BracketBuster game."

Independent contractors: There is no such thing as a Big East, Big Ten or Horizon League official. Basketball referees hire themselves out, per game, to the highest bidders -- which naturally are the big six conferences. Those leagues select the best officials and leave the rest for the lesser conferences.

Pay can range from as high as $2,500 per game plus expenses (travel and per diem) to around $1,400 and limited expenses -- often depending on overall experience in leagues like the Horizon. This came up after the CSU-Butler game as many fans questioned the officials' calls, even as Butler was whistled for more fouls (20-16) and CSU shot considerably more free throws (25 to the Bulldogs' 9).

Roll Tide: The Alabama Crimson Tide have been rolling under the radar, but that blip on the screen can't be denied. Alabama went into Knoxville to play the up-and-down Volunteers and pulled out a 65-60 triumph in overtime. So add one to the SEC list of teams expected to make the NCAA Tournament.

The Tide (15-7, 7-1) is atop the SEC West. They have 10 wins in their last 11 games with a road trip to No. 23 Vanderbilt up next on Thursday. Win that, and all those bracket masters who don't even have Alabama on the bubble will have to now find room on their 68-team board.

Where's Kentucky? Things aren't going very smoothly for John Calipari and his Wildcats. Yes, they are ranked 10th, but following Saturday's 70-68 loss to unranked Florida, the Cats now stand 16-6 overall, just .500 (4-4, tied for fourth in the SEC East) in a league they traditionally dominate.

Any Volunteers: Speaking of those Vols, head coach Bruce Pearl will be back on the bench for the Kentucky game as his eight-game SEC suspension for violating NCAA rules and misleading NCAA investigators ended on Saturday. This was strictly a conference penalty, as any penalties the NCAA gives are yet to be determined.

Pearl improperly hosted a recruit (Aaron Craft, now at Ohio State) at his home in 2008, and his staff has made excessive phone calls to recruits in violation of NCAA rules.

Four seeds: Ohio State, Kansas, Pitt, Texas

Even as the Big Ten withers a bit, the Buckeyes keep rolling and show no signs of taking a night off. There continues to be little separation between the top three teams. If Texas stumbles, Duke still sits there to climb back on the top line.

The Jayhawks with their size and depth, and physical Pitt would give OSU some problems on the court, but that won’t happen until deep in the NCAA Tournament ... if at all. The Longhorns may be a national mystery of sorts, but the thing to watch when tournament brackets come out is how many Big East teams they have to go through.

There will be at least 11 Big East teams, and not all will be on the top lines. Could a Cincinnati (18-5, 5-5) or West Virginia (15-7, 6-4) be in OSU’s tournament future?

A minute-by-minute analysis of everything that was important -- and many things that weren't -- from the Super Bowl.

View full sizeKhampha Bouaphanh / Fort Worth Star-TelegramIt only seems impossible to sack the Steelers' mighty Gulliver, but the Packers' Frank Zombo was able to take down Ben Roethlisberger in the third quarter Sunday.

Norman Chad

Special to The Plain Dealer

When the Packers are atop the NFL, it seems like a safer world.

America can sleep tight tonight. And since Sunday's 31-25 victory might be the last NFL game for a long, long time ... well, if the Packers are Super Bowl champions in perpetuity, what's wrong with that?

As usual, I took it all in and took copious notes:

2:01 p.m. ET: Steelers stayed at a "secret hotel" Saturday night. Security cam shows Ike Taylor leads with his helmet even when using the ice machine.

2:35: If I had a choice between celebrity chef Guy Fieri and a microwave burrito, I'd be dining 90 seconds from now.

3:37: Jerry Jones, Jimmy Johnson, Troy Aikman, Michael Irvin and Daryl Johnston sit down for a chitchat. To fit all five egos onto the set, the state of Texas had to annex Oklahoma.

3:43: Michael Strahan looks about as comfortable on that red carpet as Keith Olbermann does in a red state.

4:12: Strahan's "interviews" are tearing up the red carpet so badly, next time they'll switch to a Pergo floor.

4:47: Bill O'Reilly talks to Barack Obama; I'm just thankful the President wasn't on the red carpet.

4:52: Harrison Ford with an earring? What's next, the Dalai Lama with a Bluetooth?

5:02: Three hours into the pregame, there hasn't been a single clever commercial. It's like watching "Jimmy Kimmel Live" on a continuous loop.

6:24: This is my first Super Bowl in HD -- love seeing the texture of Brett Keisel's eye black.

6:45: My favorite line of the evening, from the Audi spot: "Hit 'em with the Kenny G."

6:48: Ben Roethlisberger is wearing a steel plate in his right shoe; I think it was removed from his head.

6:57: Watching the game at Cowboys Stadium, Alex Rodriguez is fed popcorn by Cameron Diaz. I guess that relationship is good for at least another week.

6:58: Any time I see blitzing defenders trying to sack Roethlisberger, it reminds me of the Lilliputians trying to tie down Gulliver.

7:07: I'm feeling more ruffled than unruffled, because the Packers have scored 14 points in 24 seconds and I won't crack open the Barolo until my Steelers are ahead.

7:15: Roethlisberger appears to hurt left knee – that Barolo might as well be on a ship to Sardinia.

7:15:30: On the next play, Roethlisberger scrambles for 18 yards with a bad left knee.

7:16: Fox's Troy Aikman says, "You've got to maintain gap integrity." Every morning I wake up, that's the first thought I have.

7:21: Actually, as it turns out, I'm not watching in HD -- my wife simply had Windexed the Sony screen for the first time in three years.

7:36: To further distance myself from Chad Ochocinco, nee Chad Johnson, I am legally changing my name to Art Rooney III.

7:37: By the way, I think the Redskins' Daniel Snyder is an awful team owner. So sue me.

7:45: Packers go ahead, 21-3. To punish myself, I eat Melba toast with club soda.

7:59: As second quarter ends, I offer to renew vows on the spot with Toni, aka. She Is The One (And Then Some), but halftime is about 10 minutes too short to accommodate the reception she wants.

8:14: Incidentally, each 30-second ad runs up to $3 million -- that's a higher cost per half-minute than dating a Kardashian.

8:20: If everyone in America is watching this game, how come I look out the window and the 405 has its usual Sunday evening traffic jam?

8:42: Rashard Mendenhall's eight-yard touchdown run pulls the Steelers to within 21-17. I start thinking about the Barolo.

8:46: You can GoDaddy.com. I will GoToSleep.now.

8:59: Steelers' Shawn Suisham misses a 52-yard field goal attempt, wide left by about 52 yards.

9:01: Eminem still scares the bejeebers out of me so, sorry, Chrysler, I'll pass.

10:02: The plucky Steelers keep coming back, but the gritty Packers are too good.

10:06: Ah, the Barolo probably wasn't ready to drink for another year or two.

The Packers became the first team to win as a playoff sixth seed since the Steelers in 2005.

ARLINGTON, Texas -- For the Pittsburgh Steelers, seven can wait.

They were denied their record seventh Super Bowl title when the Green Bay Packers rode Aaron Rodgers' rocket arm and three defensive turnovers to a 31-25 victory in Super Bowl XLV on Sunday.

In returning the Vince Lombardi Trophy to Green Bay, where the former Packers coach who bears its name carved his legend, the Packers overcame the toughest playoff route possible. They won three road games in the NFC playoffs and became the first team to win as a playoff sixth seed since the Steelers in 2005.

The Packers faced one more obstacle in this game, too. They held off the Steelers after losing star cornerback Charles Woodson with a broken collarbone in the second quarter. That resilience was typical for a team that ended the regular season with 15 players on injured reserve.

"It was the great resolve of our football team," said Green Bay coach Mike McCarthy, who beat his hometown team for his first Super Bowl championship. "We had some adversity, lost some guys to injury and we had some rough plays there. In the third quarter, we had penalties, but our guys just kept fighting."

The Steelers trailed by 21-3 in the first half as two Ben Roethlisberger interceptions were turned into Green Bay touchdowns. But the tough Pittsburgh quarterback would not quit. No team had ever made up an 18-point halftime deficit and won the Super Bowl. But he had the ball at the two-minute warning, needing to go 87 yards for the touchdown that could win the game.

Roethlisberger gained one first down, but finished with three successive incompletions. The last set off a celebration on the Green Bay sideline as the Packers secured their fourth Super Bowl win and 13th NFL championship.

Roethlisberger, who began the year on an NFL suspension because of a sexual assault allegation in March, was denied his third Super Bowl triumph. The Green Bay defense coordinated by Dom Capers and led by linebacker Clay Matthews III (two batted passes, one forced fumble) held Roethlisberger to a 77.4 passer rating and limited rusher Rashard Mendenhall to 63 yards and a touchdown.

"I feel like I let a lot of people down," said Roethlisberger, who had to throw 40 times, completing 25, because of the deficit his early miscues dug. "If I had played a little bit better, I feel like we would have had a better chance to win."

View full sizeDavid J. Phillip / Associated Press"We had some adversity, lost some guys to injury and we had some rough plays there," Packers head coach Mike McCarthy said after hoisting the Lombardi Trophy. "In the third quarter, we had penalties, but our guys just kept fighting."

Instead, the night belonged to Rodgers, the quarterback who waited three years for Green Bay icon Brett Favre to play out his career with the Packers. Rodgers didn't just step out of Favre's shadow, he made Packer Nation forget about him with a superlative performance that earned Rodgers the Pete Rozelle MVP Trophy. Favre was not the MVP of his only Super Bowl win earned with Green Bay after the 1996 season. That went to kick returner Desmond Howard.

Rodgers completed 24 of 39 passes for 304 yards and three touchdowns. He finished with a passer rating of 111.5. He did it despite losing starting receiver Donald Driver to an ankle injury in the first half and without a running game. The Packers handed the ball off only 11 times -- all to rookie James Starks.

"[Rodgers] made plays," said Steelers coach Mike Tomlin, who suffered his first loss in two Super Bowl appearances in three years. "We didn't get turnovers. He didn't fold under the pressure. He showed his mettle and continued to throw the ball. I tip my hat to him for that."

Rodgers was outstanding from beginning to end.

He gave the Packers a 7-0 lead on a 29-yard pass to Greg Jennings. The first-quarter lead extended to 14-0 when safety Nick Collins returned a Roethlisberger interception 36 yards. Another Rodgers' touchdown to Jennings, on a laser throw in the middle at the goal line, increased the margin to 21-3.

But Rodgers was at his finest in the fourth quarter, after Roethlisberger and Mendenhall brought the Steelers back to within 21-17.

As the Steelers were moving again, Matthews forced a Mendenhall fumble and gave Rodgers the ball. Throwing on every down, except one on which he was sacked, Rodgers moved the Packers 55 yards for another score. He threw his third touchdown of the game and second to Jennings from eight yards out.

Roethlisberger's 25-yard TD pass to Mike Wallace, and a two-point conversion run by Antwaan Randle El, brought the Steelers back again, down by 28-25 with 7:34 to go.

The Packers had to possess the ball on their next series. On third-and-10 from their 25, Rodgers fired the ball to Jennings for a 31-yard gain to the Steelers' 44. Three plays later, Rodgers laid the ball to the back shoulder of James Jones for a 21-yard gain to the Steelers' 8.

"That ball down the middle of the field to Jennings late in the contest -- that's big time," said Tomlin.

"It is a dream come true," Rodgers said of winning his first Super Bowl in his fifth season in Green Bay. "It's what I dreamt about as a little kid watching Joe Montana and Steve Young."

Roethlisberger looked like he was going to improve on his 10-2 postseason record, the second best of all time. The team was gaining momentum as the Steelers' faithful in the Cowboys Stadium crowd of 91,060 grew loud and waved their Terrible Towels.

But Matthews, the son of the former Browns linebacker, spurred a defensive turnback in the third quarter.

"We just kept our poise," said Collins. "We played for 60 minutes tonight."

The Steelers moved to the Packers' 25. On first down, Matthews batted a pass down at the line of scrimmage. On third down, Matthews sealed the middle of the field as Roethlisberger looked to run, leading to a sack by linebacker Frank Zombo. Shaun Swisham's field goal attempt from 52 yards was wide left.

Then Matthews' force of the Mendenhall fumble in the fourth quarter stopped the Steelers at the Packers' 33. He was joined on the hit by former Ohio State defensive lineman Ryan Pickett.

"I was able to get around my guy and make a solid hit right on the football," Matthews said. "I wasn't sure that it had come out until I looked up and saw [linebacker] Desmond [Bishop] with the ball."

The win earned Matthews a Super Bowl ring in his second NFL season with Green Bay -- something his father and uncle, Bruce Matthews, could not do in 38 combined seasons before him.

"It gets the proverbial monkey off the back of the Matthews' family," he said.

To do it against the Steelers earned Matthews a small place in the heart of Browns fans.

Once the former Regina High girls basketball coach completes the requirements of the diversion program, charges against him -- which are now inactive --will be dropped.

Phil Long, Special to The Plain DealerRegina High School head basketball coach Pat Diulus, shown here as he watched his team during their game against Cincinnati Mt. Notre Dame at the Classic in the Country in Kidron, in January 2005.

"Whatever happened to . . .?" is a weekly series updating some of the most newsworthy and interesting local stories covered in The Plain Dealer. Have a suggestion on a story we should update? Send it to John C. Kuehner.

Today, we answer these questions:

Whatever Happened to . . .

. . . . . . former Regina High School basketball coach Pat Diulus?

. . . allowing guns in the Cuyahoga Valley National Park?

Whatever happened to former Regina High School basketball coach Pat Diulus?

Diulus, who has won more state championships than any other girls basketball coach in the state, entered into the Cuyahoga County Pre-Trial Diversion Program on Jan. 27 as a first-time felony offender for a nonviolent offense.

Last July, the 55-year-old Broadview Heights resident was charged with conducting illegal bingo games, which were held as a fundraiser for the Hilltoppers' Girls Athletic Association at the Brookridge Party Center in Brooklyn. [Corrected 2/7, from "Brook Park" with thanks to alert reader.]

But investigators found Diulus lacked the third of three licenses he needed to legally conduct those games. Ryan Miday, a spokesman for the Cuyahoga County Prosecutor's Office, said the association advertised and held bingo sessions Thursdays and Fridays but lacked the necessary license from the Ohio Attorney General's Office.

Diulus waived his right to a speedy trial last year with hopes of entering the diversion program, Miday said. Once he completes it, charges against him -- which are now inactive --will be dropped.

Diulus guided Regina - a private school in South Euclid that closed its doors last year in June -- to six state titles since 2000 and won three others in the 1990's coaching at Trinity High School in Garfield Heights. Diulus is not coaching this winter.

He was unavailable for comment last week. His attorney, David Grant, said Diulus is itching to coach a high school team again.

"It's in his blood," Grant said. "He definitely wants to continue coaching."

Grant said Diulus was caught in a technicality and never intentionally broke the law.

"Pat is happy with the final outcome given all he has gone through and the difficult times he's endured because of the allegations," Grant said. "His failure last year was to have that type three license. But the diversion program was made for circumstances like this."

The diversion program, created in 1993, requires first-time offenders like Diulus to complete four stages, said Dan Peterca, Pre-Trial Services Manager for Cuyahoga County,

One is to make restitution payments, if necessary, and the second is to pay court costs, usually ranging between $200 and $300, and supervision fees which are currently $150. The third is to complete 50 hours of community service under active supervision by Peterca's staff.

Diulus does not have to pay any restitution. He owes between $200-$300 in court and $150 in supervision fees and must do 50 hours of community service, Peterca said.

Once those requirements are met, a follow-up check will be made by the diversion program supervisor to ensure no other felonies have been committed. Diulus will be placed under supervision for a minimum of six months and a maximum of one year,

"If a candidate successfully completes the program, we'll recommend that charges be dismissed and his record expunged," Peterca said. "We've found that 68 to 72 percent of people in the Diversion Program successfully complete the program."

-- Pat Galbincea

Marvin Fong, The Plain DealerThe Cuyahoga Valley National Park has reported just one incident of an unregistered firearm being found in the park since restrictions were eased nearly a year ago. This photo was taken at Kendall Hills.

Whatever happened to allowing guns in the Cuyahoga Valley National Park?

The guns are still there.

A year ago the National Park Service eased restrictions on firearms in the federal park system.

The rule change said as long as people comply with state laws, they can have the firearms in the 392 properties across the country operated by the National Park Service.

Hunting and using firearms in national parks, however, remain forbidden.

Through last year, the Cuyahoga Valley National Park reported only one incident since the rule changed. In that case, rangers issued a warning to a park visitor who had been stopped for other violations and was found to have a gun under his coat but no Ohio concealed-weapon permit.

Mary Pat Doorley, spokeswoman for the park, did not specify when the incident occurred, but said in December that it was the only one she knew happened with the Cuyahoga Valley National Park.

Rangers said that earlier last year that in the three years leading up to the rule change, there were 12 documented cases of illegal firearm possession in the CVNP -- four of them were suicides.

Under the old rule, firearms could be transported through the parks, but had to be unloaded and stored in such a way as to prevent ready use.

-- James Ewinger

Christina Aguilera says she flubbed a line as she belted out the national anthem at the start of the Super Bowl on Sunday night after getting lost in the moment and losing her place. Watch video and tell us what you think.

AP PhotoChristina Aguilera sings the national anthem before Super Bowl XLV.

What was the most memorable aspect of Green Bay's 31-25 win over Pittsburgh in Super Bowl XLV?

View full sizeVernon Bryant,
Dallas Morning NewsClay Matthews III, son of the former Browns great, broke up a Ben Roethlisberger pass and nearly came up with an interception on the rebound. Was THIS the most memorable aspect of Super Bowl XLV for you?

In slightly less than half a century, the Super Bowl has emerged to become more than a game. Whole companies are built on the ads. Careers become defined by plays made ... or not made.

Words related to the Super Bowl become part of the lexicon, and take on a new life of their own. You need proof? OK:

Wardrobe malfunction.

Who played in the game when Justin Timberlake "accidentally" bared Janet Jackson's breast? Yeah, we can't remember, either. Thank heavens for Google and Wikipedia, who remind us that New England beat Carolina, 32-29, in Super Bowl XXXVIII.

Now we've got Christina Aguilera, who apparently can't remember the words to the national anthem. But at least she remained dressed -- fairly conservatively for her -- for the bit. Just be grateful that it wasn't Lady Gaga. Who knows WHAT she'd have worn.

But was Aguilera's error the most memorable part of the game? Browns fans, who for one night, might shelve "Hang On, Sloopy" in favor of "On Wisconsin," might disagree after the Green Bay Packers edged the Browns arch-enemy, the Pittsburgh Steelers, 31-25, in Super Bowl XLV.

What do you think?

WFNY explains how, despite the streak, not all has been lost in this current Cavaliers season

Photo by Mike Ehrmann/Getty ImagesFew saw this Cavs season coming, but better days exist ahead

The Cavaliers are a team that does not play basketball very well. They have a three game lead on the NBA’s worst record, and look positioned tonight in Dallas to ink their collective names in the history books with their 25th consecutive loss. This much we know. Without the obligatory reminders that will be cycling through the national sports media machines in the coming days, we in Cleveland are also aware that this is indeed a record.

However, there’s more to be learned here from this exercise in repetitive losing if we take a step away from the losses, streaks, and futility, and examine our ever changing expectations as Cavs fans.

Below are five things I’ve learned so far through the examination of mine:

1. Gene Hackman will never coach in the NBA.

For some reason I thought Byron Scott was going to come in here this season and lead these Cavaliers on a Hickory type march to the post season just like Norman Dale did back in the day. I also thought this type of on-court response to the Decision made this summer would send some type of message about how tough and resilient Cleveland is, as symbolized by the character and will of it’s over achieving professional basketball franchise.

So yeah, I watched Hoosiers a few too many times. I now fully understand that NBA games are simply won by the teams with the better players. Until the Cavs get some of those, I don’t expect them to win. In the words of Rick Pitino, Jimmy Chitwood isn’t walking through that door. Neither is Ollie.

2. Replacing the league’s most talented player with Jamario Moon as your opening day starter is not the best recipe for success.

This should have maybe been more obvious at the onset. If I wasn’t rocking my Goosey t-shirt with the number three on the back this summer I might have picked up on this then. However I didn’t, and as a result I placed unreal expectations and hopes on the shoulders of a guy who used to play for the Harlem Globetrotters. Meaning I thought he could be a serviceable starter. He isn’t though, and proved to be the worst starter in the NBA before he eventually stopped starting.

He was replaced by Jawad Williams and then Joey Graham, who were also the worst starters in the NBA during games they started. That position has now turned into a season long training camp for Christian Eyenga, and while I’m encouraged, my expectations of what the Cavaliers SF can be are a bit more grounded at this point.

3. It was kind of pointless to be mad at people who predicted futility for the Cavs this season.

We probably owe Kelly Dwyer an apology. In Yahoo!’s NBA preview magazine, to the ire of Cavs fans everywhere including myself who expected a quality showing by the home town squad, he predicted our Cavaliers would win 12-games this season. We thought that he obviously hated Cleveland and leaped at the opportunity to pile on us and our team by kicking us as hard as he could while we were down. 

We didn’t think for a minute that he simply thought the Cavaliers would win around a dozen or so games this year. He was the only person to predict they’d be this bad, and he was right. He may have even given them too much credit actually, anyone think they’ll win four more?

4. Getting to rock bottom in the NBA as quickly as possible is the best way to go after all.

I thought coming into this season that winning as many games as possible in hopes for an 8th seed in the playoffs would serve as a building block of sorts to help this franchise move forward. In hindsight that would have only delayed the inevitable, which is this painfully numbing season we’re experiencing right now. It had to happen sometime, and no time like the present I suppose.

Whether the streak ends at twenty-seven with the home date against the winless on the road Washington Wizards on February 13th or it balloons into the 40-plus range, rock bottom has certainly arrived in either case. You can’t get any worse than the worst team in the NBA and the Cavaliers are that already. It can only begin to get better now, and which is good I guess.

5. There are far fewer bandwagon Cavs fans than I thought there were.

Dan Gilbert makes people renew their season tickets before LeBron makes his decision to leave last year, people invest hundreds and thousands of dollars into the team as a result on the chance he re-ups, he doesn’t, and the Cavaliers are 8-43 heading towards the All Star break. I’d have expected some sentiment amongst season ticket holders of a feeling of being swindled to some degree, or in the very least an empty arena despite the ticket sales.

Neither has obviously happened though, and the response has been the exact opposite. The atmosphere in the arena has felt like a playoff crowd more than a few times this season, and that’s sort of amazing to me all things considering. The seats may not be entirely filled every night, but it’s far closer to capacity than I’d ever expected. Hopefully those fans filling the arena will be treated to a win sooner than later, they deserve as much.