STEELERS-PANTHERS
Roethlisberger, Steelers top Panthers 37-19
CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) β Ben Roethlisberger threw two 7-yard touchdown passes to Antonio Brown, Le’Veon Bell ran for 147 yards and the Pittsburgh Steelers beat the Carolina Panthers 37-19 on Sunday night.
The Steelers had gone eight quarters without a touchdown before Roethlisberger’s two scoring strikes in the third. They were set up by Cam Newton’s fumble and Bell’s 81-yard run.
Roethlisberger finished 22 of 30 for 196 yards, and Brown had 90 yards receiving on 10 catches to help the Steelers (2-1) snap Carolina’s eight-game home winning streak.
LaGarrette Blount ran for 118 yards and the Steelers outrushed the Panthers 264-42.
The Panthers were looking for their first 3-0 start since 2003 β the year they went to the Super Bowl.
The Steelers lost defensive starters Ike Taylor, Ryan Shazier and Jarvis Jones to injuries.
NASCAR-NEW HAMPSHIRE
Logano wins at New Hampshire in 2nd Chase race
LOUDON, N.H. (AP) β Joey Logano pulled away on the restart to win a green-white-checkered finish Sunday at New Hampshire Motor Speedway and advance to the second round of the Chase for the Sprint Cup Championship.
Logano and Team Penske teammate Brad Keselowski have both advanced to the next round. Four drivers will be eliminated drivers after every third race, and a win guarantees a driver an automatic berth into the next round. The first cutoff race is next week at Dover International Speedway.
Logano raced to his fourth victory of the season, leading 73 laps and surviving a NASCAR season-high 15 cautions that wrecked results for several Chase drivers.
Keselowski led 78 laps, hit the wall, and still was in the hunt for a win. He failed in his bid to win a third straight Cup race, though he salvaged a seventh-place finish.
Team Penske has won four of the last five races dating to Bristol.
BLUE-JACKETS-HURRICANES
Blue Jackets beat Hurricanes in exhibition opener
RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) β Cam Atkinson scored twice and Anton Forsberg made 29 saves to help a Columbus Blue Jackets split squad beat the Carolina Hurricanes 4-3 on Sunday in the exhibition opener for both teams.
Nick Foligno and Mike Hoeffel added goals for Columbus. Chris Terry, Riley Nash and Andrej Sekera scored for Carolina. The Hurricanes have lost six straight exhibition openers.
Carolina held center Eric Staal out of the lineup. Staal, who had offseason surgery to repair a core muscle injury, participated in the first days of preseason camp.
CLEMSON-QUARTERBACK
Clemson coach says freshman quarterback will start
CLEMSON, S.C. (AP) β Clemson coach Dabo Swinney says five-star freshman quarterback Deshaun Watson will get the start in the next game against North Carolina.
Swinney said Sunday that Watson’s play in a 23-17 overtime loss to No. 1 Florida State earned him the right to start Saturday.
Senior Cole Stoudt had started the first three games for the Tigers (1-2, 0-1 Atlantic Coast Conference), but Watson came in early against the Seminoles and threw for 266 yards on 19 of 28 passing.
Watson was considered the top dual-threat quarterback prospect in the country last fall. He accounted for a Georgia state record 17,134 yards of offense and 218 touchdowns at Gainesville High School.
The Tigers face the Tar Heels (2-1, 0-0) at Memorial Stadium.
