More Bills on way?
Columnist Bob Matthews analyzes the chances other people associated with the Buffalo Bills have of reaching the Pro Football Hall of Fame. Bruce Smith: The prototype pass-rushing defensive end... . Second in career sacks (186 to Reggie White's 198) since the NFL began keeping the stat... . A No. 1 overall draft pick (1985) who lived up to his billing... . Holds NFL records for playoff sacks (14.5) and double-digit sack seasons (13)... . Two-time NFL Defensive Player of the Year... . Durability and longevity other pluses... . 11 Pro Bowls. CINCH FIRST-BALLOT SELECTION. Thurman Thomas: The best all-around running back in team history, and O.J. Simpson was the only better pure runner... . No. 9 on the NFL's all-time rushing list with 12,074 yards (the eight players ahead of him include six Hall of Famers and future Hall of Famers Barry Sanders and Emmitt Smith)... . Tied for 10th all-time in yards from scrimmage... . 46 100-yard rushing games with the Bills... . Eight straight 1,000-yard rushing seasons... . League MVP in 1991... . Deserved to be MVP of Super Bowl XXV even though the Bills lost. CINCH HALL-OF-FAMER, PROBABLY IN FIRST YEAR OF ELIGIBILITY. FULL STORY...

Bob Matthews
Poor Scott Norwood. Perhaps -- 20 years from now -- people will have cut him some slack and taken him off the hook for missing the 47-yard field-goal attempt that would have made the Buffalo Bills the winners of Super Bowl XXV. Apparently it took that long for the 1968 Baltimore Colts to fade from the collective memories of football fans. FULL STORY...

Bob Matthews
When the Patriots run the ball -- In two playoff games, New England had 55 running plays and 91 passing plays. The Patriots ideally will have more runs than passes today in order to control the clock and keep the ball out of the hands of the explosive St. Louis offense. Good game plan but easier said than done. The Patriots averaged a modest 3.8 yards per carry this season and the Rams ranked third in rush defense (86.6 yards per game). FULL STORY...

Bob Matthews
The New England Patriots are insulted about being 14-point underdogs to the St. Louis Rams for today's Super Bowl XXXVI. "Best Bets" understands why the Patriots feel slighted but also believes the Rams will win by more than two touchdowns. New England has had an impressive run with eight consecutive victories (including two in overtime) by a combined score of 188-107. But St. Louis also has won eight straight in more convincing fashion (combined score 281-144). FULL STORY...

Spencerport just too strong
Don Zimmerman's and Mike Terenzi's teammates at Spencerport had a hunch that they would walk on to the mat for the team's most important dual wrestling meet of the season. It was not guaranteed however. So when Zimmerman and Terenzi came back from injury and illness to wrestle Saturday night, it was one of the few times this winter that the Rangers could send out their strongest lineup. Spencerport showed that Canandaigua could not come close to topping it, as the Rangers romped to a 33-15 win in a matchup of state-ranked clubs. FULL STORY...

Kearney ends Way-Co reign as B champions
Once upon a time, kings danced. Saturday, it was their dancing that crowned the Kings as champions. Bishop Kearney got the step it needed in the dance portion of Saturday's Section V cheerleading championships, and it vaulted the Kings past three-time defending champion Wayland-Cohocton for the Class B title at Blue Cross Arena at the Community War Memorial. FULL STORY...

Eighth-grader helps Penfield defeat Athena
Penfield avenged a lopsided loss in January by handing Greece Athena its first league loss, 48-44, Saturday in a Monroe County girls basketball game. Eighth-grader Kayleigh Duda scored four points during an 8-0 run to give Penfield a 48-40 lead. Penfield's Ashley McMillen went out with a leg injury with seven minutes left in the game. After she went out, Katie Pauly hit a 3-pointer to boost Athena to a 38-37 lead. Carrie Voycheck responded with a 3-point play to give Penfield a 40-38 lead. Lyndsay Dalton hit two free throws to tie the game, 40-40, for Athena (7-1 league, 13-3 overall). FULL STORY...

Bishop Timon rallies past McQuaid
Tim Kennedy scored an unassisted goal with 3:21 remaining in the game as Bishop Timon-VI defeated McQuaid 6-5 in the championship game of the McQuaid Tournament Saturday at RIT. Kennedy was named tournament MVP. Timon led 4-3 after two periods, but McQuaid scored twice in the first 2:21 of the third to take a 5-4 lead. FULL STORY...

Brighton's Arcuri wins all-around
Nicole Arcuri won the all-around competition, helping Brighton defeat Gates Chili 123.6-113.8 Saturday in Monroe County gymnastics. Arcuri finished with 31.55 points. She also won the floor exercise (8.55) and the vault (8.05). Jenna Griswold won the balance beam (7.65), and Amy Nordeen won the uneven bars (8.1) for the Barons (8-2). Gates Chili is 8-5. ALPINE SKIING FULL STORY...

No. 1 Gates Chili sweeps Rush-Henrietta
Senior middle-blocker Karen Simpson tallied seven kills and four blocks and senior setter Adrienne Billotti added 25 assists as No. 1 Gates Chili cruised to a 30-13, 30-22, 30-24 victory over No. 8 Rush-Henrietta in a Division I quarterfinal match Saturday. Emily Tatar recorded six consecutive aces in the second game for host Gates Chili. Junior Jill Simpson had three blocks and six kills for the host Spartans (16-2). Senior setter Heather Mummery had 9 digs, 3 aces, and 4 kills for the Royal Comets (5-14). FULL STORY...

Re-focused RIT rolls past Hobart
Near the end of hockey games that RIT has comfortably in hand, a rather comical sound effect blares over the loudspeakers at Ritter Arena. It's the sound of the revving engine of a bus, and it is augmented by the student body jingling its key chains, the signal to the opponent that it's time for the long ride home following a humbling defeat. Saturday night the arena disc jockey might as well have played the bus tape the moment the puck was dropped because Hobart never had a chance against the nation's No. 2-ranked NCAA Division III team. FULL STORY...

Fisher defeats Nazareth
Matt Morley made two free throws with 23 seconds left and they proved to be the winning points as St. John Fisher defeated rival and host Nazareth 65-63 Saturday in an Empire 8 Conference basketball game. After Morley made his two clutch shots, Jimmy Evans hit a layup for Nazareth with four seconds left. Fisher (5-4, 10-8) missed a free throw with three seconds remaining. Nazareth went on a 6-0 run to pull within 59-53 with 4:17 to play before Fisher went ahead 61-53. Nazareth scored five unanswered points to trail 61-58 with 2:19 left. FULL STORY...

Brockport wins without Clark
Lindsey Neuhaus scored 13 points as visiting Brockport defeated SUNY Utica/Rome 69-39 Saturday afternoon in a basketball game. The Golden Eagles (9-2 SUNYAC, 12-7). played without leading scorer Kristen Clark (Hilton), who was injured in the second half in Friday night's game at Oswego. Autumn Sereno scored 12 points and Kristen Ferington added 10 for Brockport. The Golden Eagles won their fourth straight game. FULL STORY...

Cipura finishes 2nd in two races
Roberts Wesleyan freshman Kim Cipura (Hilton) finished second in the women's 3,000-meter run (10 minutes, 43.48 seconds) and 5,000 (18:21.91) in the Colgate Class of '32 Invitational Indoor Track meet Saturday. Melissa Werner of Roberts finished fourth in the women's weight throw (40 feet, 19.5 inches). Jamie Hall of Roberts finished fourth in the men's mile (4:27.17) and ninth in the 800-meter run (1:59.80). Teammate Jeremy Smith finished fifth in the men's 5,000-meter run (15:59.79). FULL STORY...

Volunteers catch Olympic spirit
Ruth Hayes chauffeured Joan Smith to her first ski race, then to her first biathlon, and was with her when she went to her first Winter Olympics in Albertville, France. She figured it was the least she could do: "I was Joanie's fourth-grade teacher." She didn't teach her French, but she had a hand in Smith becoming America's top female biathlete in the early 1990s. FULL STORY...

SU's road woes continue in difficult loss at Rutgers
The Syracuse Orangmen continued to struggle when away from the Carrier Dome. Jerome Coleman scored 22 of his 27 points in the second half in posting his second straight career best and Rutgers used a late 11-0 run to beat No. 14 Syracuse 82-74 Saturday night. DeShaun Williams and Preston Shumpert, playing in protective glasses to shield an injured eye, each had 21 points for Syracuse, which has lost four of five games, all on the road. FULL STORY...