Nobody asked me, but ...

The public perception of Bill Cowher being a dedicated family guy is a correct one. Which means, if his wife and remaining daughter at home are taking up residence in North Carolina, Cowher won't be far behind. This will be Cowher's last season as coach of the Steelers.

Ben Roethlisberger sustained serious injuries in his motorcycle accident. He's healed. He's healthy. Enough already.

The harsh criticisms of Pirates general manager Dave Littlefield for the trades he made last week are way off the mark. Considering what he had to offer -- players who were going to be free agents at the end of the season -- Littlefield did well.

Former Tour de France winner Floyd Landis is guilty until proven innocent.

Anything less than seven wins for the Pitt football team will be immensely disappointing.

It was right and proper for Oklahoma coach Bob Stoops to dismiss quarterback Rhett Bomar from the team after it was discovered Bomar was paid for a job at which he wasn't working. But there's plenty of blame for Stoops in this mess. Since when do college coaches not know what their players -- particularly their starting quarterbacks -- are doing at all times?

You have to be concerned about the Pirates the rest of the way. I mean, how are they going to cope without the clubhouse presence of Sean Casey? And that's not a slap a Casey, a first-class guy. It's a slap at the people who think clubhouse presence is a major factor in a team's success.

Before Jason Bay's consecutive-game streak gets to be too large, manager Jim Tracy should sit him down. Bay, just like any player, can use an occasional day off. If Tracy waits too long, the streak will become too big and he won't be able to sit Bay down even if he wants to.

Don't believe the ballyhoo about the improved reputation of the Big East. Of the six major conferences in Division I-A football, it's still the worst, by far. Of the 52 teams that received votes in the USA Today preseason rankings, three were from the Big East. West Virginia was seventh, Louisville 13th and Rutgers tied for 45th.

It would seem that Clear Channel, with its younger audience, would be a better choice for the Pirates than KDKA, which has carried the games for more than 50 years, as the team's radio rights holder. But sound judgment is not something often found in decisions made by the Pirates, either in business or baseball.

The notion that Cowher is using his possible retirement as leverage to get a fatter contract doesn't make sense. No one should know better than Cowher how the Rooney family operates. It will pay Cowher what it feels he's worth, which will be a very handsome figure, and not a penny more. Posturing doesn't work with the Rooneys.

Barry Bonds is batting .199 with the bases empty and .396 with runners in scoring position.

Despite some amazing crowds last weekend, the Pirates are not doing so well in attendance. Fans are taking a look at the product and deciding to spend their money elsewhere. The Pirates are 15th in the National League in attendance, ahead of only the Florida Marlins, and, despite an increase in season-ticket sales of about 2,500, they are only 174 tickets per game ahead of last year's pace.

If John Madden's 103-32-7 record is Hall of Fame worthy, why did he have to wait until 2006 for induction when he retired in 1978? If Madden had retired to a life of selling insurance instead of broadcasting, he wouldn't have been considered for the Hall.

The Pirates are batting .391 when they swing at the first pitch.

Dept. of Player Evaluation: Little more than a year ago, the Pirates' brain trust realized it couldn't continue to carry three catchers. So it kept Humberto Cota (batting .198 with no homers in 86 at-bats as of yesterday) and Ryan Doumit (.214 and two homers in 56 at-bats) and dealt David Ross for infielder J.J. Furmaniak. Ross is the Cincinnati Reds' starting catcher. He is batting .291 with 13 home runs in 141 at-bats. He had a slugging percentage of .645, which was about 100 point higher than any Pirate. Furmaniak was batting .211 at Indianapolis. One more thing, of the three catchers, Ross is the best defensively.