That was it. Yeah, that’s the ticket. It was the thin air. It was jet lag. We had trouble breathing. There are mountains of excuses that could be used to justify the less than stellar performance of the Steelers third, second, fourth, or possibly first string quarterback Dennis Dixon and possibly the odd man out, Charlie Batch.

Let’s deal with first things first. Denver beat Pittsburgh, 34-17. The sirens are wailing and mouths are flailing. Here are a few of the things that are burning up the wire. “Dennis Dixon is not ready. He is nothing more than a third-string quarterback, whose legs are far more equipped than his arm or his brain.” Some of these folks seem to be as Aretha Franklin would so aptly point out card carrying members of “the chain of fools.” Why do I have to keep beating my prognosticator, “Kemosabe” drum?

The winner of eight out of 19 varsity boys and girls championships in the City League last year will graduate its 95th and final class next spring. This has come with the 2008 decision to permanently close the now Schenley High School facility at 129 Denniston Ave. in the city’s East End.

“It’s been a difficult situation,” Schenley’s principal Sophia Facaros said.

SCHENLEY HEAD FOOTBALL COACH JASON BELL

(AP)—There’s always been a place in college football for the undersized back, but it seems as if there are more great little guys than ever before. Here are six (in no particular order) who will star in 2010. And since small is subjective, we’ll make the cutoff 5-10 and 200 pounds.

Dion Lewis, 5-8, 197, Pittsburgh. As coach Dave Wannstedt puts it, Lewis does not run like a small back. Unlike some others on this list, he doesn’t play in a spread which allows him to operate in space. He runs between the tackles and went for 1,799 yards and 17 TDs as a freshman last season.

PITT ALL-AMERICAN—Running back Dion Lewis scoots away from a defender during practice. Lewis will need to do the bulk of the work for the Pitt offense in the opener against Utah.

The Pittsburgh Pirates held their annual African American Heritage Weekend with a variety of events on Aug. 20 and Aug.21 as they hosted the New York Mets at PNC Park. The event captures the essence of the Pirates community efforts and highlights the contributions of African-Americans in Pittsburgh.

On Friday the Pirates recognized six “Community Champions” during a special pregame ceremony.

PITCH FOR EDUCATION—Chaz R. Kellem, manager of Diversity Initiatives for the Pittsburgh Pirates, presents twins A’isha J. Jackson, left, and I’Asha J. Jackson, right, with the 2010 Josh Gibson Foundation and Pittsburgh Pirates Scholarship at the Heritage Weekend game.

Chuck Sanders from Urban Lending Solutions, Bridget N. Driver from FedEx Ground, Baron B.B. Flenory from Pressley Ridge, Jim Bendel from Adelphoi Village, Tony Joseph from Pittsburgh International Children’s Theater, and Joseph Lagana from Homeless Children’s Education Fund were all nominated by their fellow citizens for having positively contri­buted to the betterment of the diverse community in our region.