mxpxbv82: Heading to lunch and getting my questions in early...what do you think about Ryan Malone being bumped to the third line? As much as I am not a Malone fan, and am a Christensen fan, it was still nice having that bigger body next to Sid. Of course, it will also be nice to have someone who can capitalize on Sid's setups too.

Jerry Micco: It looks like, and I get this from Dave Molinari's story today, that Malone will return to the Crosby line for tonight's game against Chicago. I think I like Malone on the big line because he can do some things with his size. I agree with you that Christensen is a better finisher, but I think putting Malone there has a better feel to me. That being said, I'm sure Michel Therrien will bump Malone back down if he thinks he's not playing well. I like that about Therrien.

mxpxbv82: Realistically, no team with Alain Nasredine, Rob Scuderi or Joe Melichar should be contending at all. Will Shero pull the trigger and bring in another D at the deadline?

Jerry Micco: Maybe, but what will he have to give up? Christensen? Malone? And what do those guys bring in return? Probably not a top-flight D, but they'd get you something. I'm not sure what Shero can deal to get a good D. Those guys are hard to find and they cost. If his goal is to keep the young group together, he may have to survive with what he has on the blue line and see what he can do in the offseason.

Ralph: Why does Rene Portland still have a job at Penn State?

Jerry Micco: I'm not sure, Ralph. I really can't answer that question because it mystifies me, too. And it's not like there aren't likely candidates out there that would be great for that job (read: Suzie McConnell Serio), so PSU would not have a tough time filling the post. I'm stunned with all that's surrounded Portland that the University just doesn't cut its ties. Again, rather mystifying to me.

MPM: I thought Bob Smizik had a very good column today. However, aren't the fans part of the problem with recruiting news and rankings? While I think that the media at times pushes stories that people are ambivalent about, recruiting seems to be something that people want to know about.

Jerry Micco: I think the rabid fan base of college sports cares about recruiting. And they care about it a lot. So, we try to cover stories concerning local kids and local schools, but we don't do every twist and turn. In my mind, folks who want to know who visited, who raised an eyebrow when so-and-so school was mentioned to him, who didn't like what coach, are rabid fans who are just way too into it. And Bob's right. The vast majority of these recruiting services get their info from coaches who are recruiting these kids or from high school coaches who are touting kids. They aren't seeing a lot of film and they certainly aren't seeing these guys in person. It's a way to make a lot of money running these sites, can't fault them for that, but I think they all have to be taken with a healthy dose of skepticism.

Ralph: Has Tiger given any reason for skipping the Nissan at Riviera this week? I'm wonder if he's just skipping a very tough course (read: narrow fairways) where's he hasn't had much success in order to keep his streak of 7 straight wins in tact. I would think Wood might feel a sense of loyalty to the Nissan since they gave him his first tourney exemption when he was a 14 yr old unknown.

Jerry Micco: No reason given thus far for the skipping, though I'd have thought he'd play Pebble last week and didn't, even though he's not played there in some time. I'm sure Phil didn't miss him when he took home the AT&T paycheck. I don't think Tiger runs from any golf course because he's won on some of the best and toughest courses in the world. I really think he's in it for the Majors and that's pretty much where his mind is.

Baxter: Does Pitt get past the Sweet 16 this year?

Jerry Micco: Depends. If they can avoid a team with really quick, big guards, yes. If not, it'll be a struggle. I don't think the Louisville game is a good barometer because it was Pitt's worst game of the year. Every team is going to have that game at some point. I think Pitt has an excellent chance to get to the Sweet 16, but going on one more round? I'd say 50-50.

nervouspensfan: Jerry, I'm asking you to look in your crystal ball (I know you have one) and PLEASE tell me you have some positive information about the arena situation! Seriously, will this drag out until the June when the Mellon Arena lease expires?

Jerry Micco: Wait a second, I need to get some Windex for the crystal because when I need to use it, it's often very cloudy indeed. There, OK, well I've not heard much coming from either side of the negotiations. Folks tell me that's a good thing because they are hammering out the details. And look at what the Pens haven't done: visited another city courting them and not given KC an answer yet. That was supposed to happen two weeks ago and it hasn't. If the Pens really thought they were getting the short end of the bargaining stick, they'd have done something about it. My gut (and the crystal ball) say they'll stay, but it may be a while before that's announced. Or it could be tomorrow, one never knows.

dt: Will Pitt ever get any McDonald's All-Americans to come here?

Jerry Micco: You wonder how they don't get those guys to come here. It's a great facility. Very good coach. Terrific conference. The city's not New York, but it isn't Milwaukee, either. I don't understand that. I think that Pitt looks for guys who will stay with the program and grow into it. All-Americans want to play a year or so and leave. It'll take a seed change at Pitt to get those guys because you have to assume they aren't going to be there very long. But they deliver so much in such a short time that you have to take a chance sometimes. I think the day is coming when Dixon gets one of those guys, but a ride to the Elite 8, or dare I say the Final 4, would go a long way toward making that happen.

Baxter: Pitt's home football schedule this upcoming year is embarrassing. Is anyone going to bother to show up?

Jerry Micco: Can't you get a season ticket for something like $10 if you buy one at full price? They're practically papering the town with tickets. It's always been a bit of a tough draw for some reason, but look back one year. Louisville, WVU, Rutgers, Michigan St. and Virginia were all on the home schedule. Now, they're all on the road. The problem for Pitt is there's no cutting up of the big 3 in the Big East -- WVU, Louisville and Rutgers -- so you get some home and some road in a given season. Just the luck of the schedule. But you're right, that home slate is pretty weak.

Jean_Girard: Were you surprised by the Marty Schottenheimer firing? Why not do it 3 weeks ago and line yourself up for a better replacement than what is left to choose from now.

Jerry Micco: Because I'm sure they tried to work things out between Schottenheimer and Smith one final time and Dean Spanos came to the conclusion it just wasn't going to happen. Sometimes stuff like this happens and it often happens at inopportune times. But there are still some good coaches out there. Ron Rivera, Mike Singletary, Norv Turner, Rex Ryan, Pete Carroll and Kirk Ferentz to name a few. I think from that list you can get a very good head coach, but that coach will definitely be a head coach only. Smith will run the football operation. He won the power battle, much like Cowher did here a few years ago.

MPM: Is there any concern about Marc-Andre Fleury workload so far this year? He's on pace to be in goal for about 66 games. I'd hate to seem him burned out as the playoffs near.

Jerry Micco: I think Thibault will get his shots in the next month or so. I think Fleury is best served playing about 60 games. With the 17 games scheduled for March, I'm sure Therrien will be inserting Thibault into some games just to give the kid a rest. This is why you have veteran backups. So they can go in and play once every 4 or 5 games and contribute.

Jean_Girard: How about the job Everhart is doing on the Bluff?

Jerry Micco: How about that job Everhart's doing. He's got them playing his style and he's adapted to what he has, which is the sign of an excellent coach. The team, even if they don't win another game, has probably exceeded expectations. But they'll win a few more, which in my mind makes Everhart the A-10 coach of the year by a wide margin.

dt: Who would you like to see win a job? Bautista or Castillo?

Jerry Micco: For some reason, and it's probably a warped one, I'd love to see Castillo win that job and play the way he's capable. To me, he's a 20-25 homer, 80-90 RBI guy who has a good glove. He needs to get his head straight and lose about 15 pounds or so. He's too good to give up on. Bautista is intriguing too, but he can play multiple places and is still served well with 200 at-bats a year because he's got some pop.

nervouspensfan: Do you think Eddie DeChellis can stop the avalanche of losing at Penn State someday, or is he just going to end up joining Bruce Parkhill and Jerry Dunn on the "Tried Their Best, but Burned Out" list?

Jerry Micco: DeChellis is a good man and a good coach, but I don't know if anyone can stop the losing tide at Penn State. They have one good season and then revert back to 3 or 4 poor ones. I'm not sure if it's the coaching or the fact that it has little history of being a top-notch program, but recruiting has always been tough there.

Baxter: Any news on a new arena?

Jerry Micco: Nope, none yet. Hopefully we'll hear soon, but I wouldn't panic. At least not yet.

Baxter: I believe that Fleury is the Pens MVP this season. Do you agree?

Jerry Micco: Hmm, I might agree with you on that, Baxter. He's flown under the radar a bit because of the young scorers, but he's been the glue this entire season. I think his improvement has been a key to the team's improvement. They are much more stingy, though they haven't been lately, allowing goals. Their D is much tighter, much of that is courtesy of Fleury's play.

dt: Do you think the Steelers might go after Lavar Arrington for the right price?

Jerry Micco: I think Arrington has underachieved his entire pro career. I don't know Mike Tomlin well at all, but I'm thinking underachievers are not the types of guys he wants.

Baxter: Assuming the Big 4 in the Pirates rotation stay healthy all year and make most of their turns, who leads the team in victories?

Jerry Micco: I think it's Duke if he stays healthy, though Snell may have the best stuff of the four. And for some reason, I really like Maholm. He's often compared, loosely mind you, to Tom Glavine, but I like the way he pitches. If he can learn to be more fine with his control and move the ball around a bit more, he can win 15 games this season. I really like what I see there.

dt: What are your thoughts on Jon Amechi coming out of the closet?

Jerry Micco: Combination of courage and the fact that he wants to sell some books. He wasn't a superstar by any stretch, so the book on its merits doesn't garner much interest until Amaechi says publicly he's gay. Then it's covered heavily by all media. That said, I hope the day comes soon when people don't have to hide this type of thing. I know it's probably not going to happen, but you'd like to think people are tolerant enough to accept folks as they are and judge them on how they treat others and how they do their job on the court, field, etc.

MPM: How strange is it to hear the word "Duke" next to the phrase "on the bubble"?

Jerry Micco: Very strange, but it happens to everyone, even the greats. Remember not that long ago, Carolina didn't make the tournament for a couple of years. How about UConn and Syracuse this season? And for a good while a few years back, UCLA was not very good. But Duke has always recruited well year over year, but sometimes I think coaches and programs try to get too perfect with "their type of player." Sometimes, you need to break the system a bit to get the guy who is truly great. I think Duke is a bit enamored with itself, reputation and system. Maybe that's coming back to bite them a bit.

roninbuc: Other then Castillo v. Bautista, what other battles are you looking forward to being answered during Spring Training?

Jerry Micco: I want to see if Xavier Nady can produce some power numbers in a corner outfield position. I don't think there are many "battles" besides Castillo-Bautista. I'm very curious to see how Duffy does at the plate and if he, you know, stays with the team if he gets off to a slow start. That was really strange last season. And the pitching is still key. I want to see how the Big 4 do. I guess the other battle is at No. 5 starter between Chacon and Armas. I just want one of them to win 9 or 10 games and keep an ERA around 4.1 or 4.2. Enough to keep them in games.

nervouspensfan: Do you think Jocelyn Thibault will be back next year (and possibly beyond) as Fleury's backup? I know every professional athlete loves to think of themselves as being able to be "the guy," but at what point does somebody like Thibault say to himself, "Hey, it'd be great to start, but this backup gig isn't so terrible."

Jerry Micco: I'm not sure what the Pens have down at W-B, but if Thibault looks around and doesn't see a starting job, this isn't a bad gig at all. And if he wants to stay, the Pens should look very hard at him. He only needs to play about 20-24 games a year, tops, so he does get some playing time. But if he's of the mindset that he might win a Cup here in two or three years, maybe he stays for the ride.

roninbuc: Jim Tracy talks a lot about buying into his staff's way of playing baseball, do you see the 2007 making big strides of improvement in year 2?

Jerry Micco: I think they'll improve from 67-95, but how much? I think they can win between 75-80 games this season. If they go 80-82, that's very strong improvement. If they get to .500, they should be ecstatic. Anything over that, get the EKG machine for everyone.

Jean_Girard: Any concern over Alan Fanaca's comments about how he would rather have one of the in-house candidates as the Steeler head coach? I felt like Tomlin handled that well and hopefully it is a non-issue.

Jerry Micco: No concern at all. Faneca is a great player and a team leader. Of course he wanted his position coach to get that job or someone he knew because everyone's uncomfortable with change. But he'll work with whoever is there because in my mind, he's the consummate pro. And he might be the best guard in the NFL, so Mike Tomlin knows that you can put up with that comment as long as Faneca does what he's capable of doing. Which he's always done.

Jean_Girard: Is Wannstedt on a hot seat this season? I mean, 2 years and not even a bowl game, now they have 5 tough road games in 2007.

Jerry Micco: He's not on any hot seat because at best this year, he's probably 7-5. They have some growing to do and key folks (Palko, Revis, Blades) to replace. If they are 7-5 this season, it'll be a good job by all. Now in 2008, they had better be contending for the Big East title. The year to watch Wannstedt and how the Pitt administration is viewing him is during the 2008 season.

roninbuc: Early guess on Pirates Opening Day starter, Snell or Duke?

Jerry Micco: Probably Snell, only because a right hander in that awful ballpark in Houston has a chance of negating the short left field porch.

nervouspensfan: I'm very impressed with the strides Robert Morris has made with their hockey program in such a short time. Do you think there's a possibility they'll "upgrade" to a stronger Divison I conference anytime in the near future?

Jerry Micco: They've done a nice job this season, but you're right, the league they are in isn't strong at all. I think they'd like to dominate in this league a bit more before they move up, but certainly they are headed in the right direction. It's good to see them do well. We'll probably be looking a bit more closely at them next season.

Baxter: Is Torres the closer at the end of the season?

Jerry Micco: Yes. I think Torres is built to close and will do a good job. I don't know if he'll run off 27 saves in a row like Gonzo, but he'll close out enough games to make him a very good closer.

roninbuc: Does Pitt win at Georgetown and/or Marquette (or both) to hold onto the Big East Regular Season Title?

Jerry Micco: I think they split those games. Win at Georgetown but lose at Marquette. I just think Marquette gives them a tougher matchup than Georgetown. But even if they don't win the regular season title, they would still be my pick for the Big East tournament. I still think they are the best team in the conference. And the tournament is where you prove that.

roninbuc: The DirectTV deal that MLB is supposed to announce soon that takes away the Extra Innings package if you can't get DirectTV, just another shortsighted money grab by baseball?

Jerry Micco: News flash roninbuc: Sports leagues always grab cash first and think of fans second. And this is a cash grab.

dt: Would you move Christensen up to the 1st line and move Malone to the 3rd? It seems like Malone plays better when he's the main guy.

Jerry Micco: I answered earlier that I liked Malone back on the top line and it looks like Therrien is going to do that tonight. I love the way Christensen plays, but a big guy like Malone can help Crosby by using his body. And if could finish better, he'd get 25 or 30 goals. But that's a big "if."

nervouspensfan: I keep hearing about plans to start demolition on the new arena site. Is that scheduled to proceed in the near future, or are they waiting for the Penguins to sign on the dotted line first?

Jerry Micco: Nope, that's going to start soon. I believe an arena is coming whether the Pens are here or not. There are other ways to build it and you can charge rent for other events. Someone like the Arena League would probably like to get into this market. But let's just hope that when the dust settles, the primary tenant is the current hockey team. They are just great to watch.

Jerry Micco: Well folks, time to head back to the job of getting out tomorrow's section. For those of you locally who have to battle snow and ice to get home, take your time and be safe. See you next week at noon!