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Buccaneers end skid, stun sloppy Steelers

By WTOP Staff

WILL GRAVES
AP Sports Writer

PITTSBURGH (AP) — Lovie Smith didn’t panic. A lifetime spent around football let the Tampa Bay Buccaneers’ coach know rebuilding projects don’t happen overnight.

So as bad as his team’s six-touchdown waxing by Atlanta on national television looked, he didn’t lose his cool. Instead, Smith challenged his winless team to stay positive and get better.

Done and done.

Mike Glennon hit Vincent Jackson for a 5-yard touchdown pass with 7 seconds remaining and Tampa Bay rallied past the sloppy and stunned Pittsburgh Steelers 27-24 on Sunday.

“Any new program starting out, you’d like to be playoff ready right away but that didn’t happen,” Smith said. “You’d just like to win a game right away, and that didn’t happen. It takes a little bit of time. But the guys have continued to work hard.”

Tampa Bay (1-3) blew an early 10-point lead but didn’t go away after the Steelers (2-2) roared back to take a pair of seven-point leads. The Buccaneers had two chances to take the lead in the fourth quarter. The first one ended with Glennon overthrowing Jackson in the end zone on fourth down with 1:53 left. The second ended with Jackson extending his 6-foot-5 frame in the left corner of the end zone to silence the Heinz Field crowd and send his teammates streaming onto the field in celebration.

“It would have been tough to sleep tonight if we didn’t get another chance or win this game because those are throws that I need to make if we’re going to win games,” Glennon said.

Glennon passed for 302 yards with two touchdowns and an interception. He hit Louis Murphy for a 41-yard gain on Tampa Bay’s final drive to put the Buccaneers in position to win it and give Smith his first win in his second head coaching stop.

I was out last year, so it’s been a long time since I’ve tasted winning a game,” Smith said. “For our football team, we needed this.”

The Steelers did not. Ben Roethlisberger passed for 314 yards and three scores but Pittsburgh couldn’t improve to 3-1 for the first time since 2010. A slew of penalties didn’t help. The Steelers came in second in the league in most penalties and padded that total, drawing 13 flags for 125 yards.

“We need to fix it,” coach Mike Tomlin said. “And if we don’t we’ll continue to lose close football games.”

Here’s some other things from Tampa Bay’s win:

THE REAL MCCOY: Tampa Bay Pro Bowl defensive tackle Gerald McCoy needed all of two snaps to make his presence felt in his return from a hand injury. He sacked Roethlisberger on the game’s second play. Defensive end Michael Johnson strip sacked Roethlisberger one play later and the Buccaneers recovered deep in Pittsburgh territory. The Buccaneers got to Roethlisberger five times in all.

WHISTLE HAPPY: The teams combined for 22 penalties in all, with another handful declined for one reason or another. Pittsburgh drew six 15-yard penalties, including after-the-whistle flags on wide receiver Antonio Brown for a touchdown celebration and defensive end Cam Heyward for arguing with officials.

“We’ve got to grow from this,” Heyward said. “Hopefully it will never happen again.”

MAGIC MIKE: The 6-foot-7 Glennon stood tall in the face of a revamped Pittsburgh defense that included linebacker James Harrison, who signed with the Steelers last week after a brief retirement. Glennon was sacked just once and appeared to get better as the game wore on. His 41-yard hookup with Murphy came on a play the Buccaneers installed only days earlier.

“You couldn’t draw up a script any better for Mike,” Smith said. “No timeouts, hurry-up, all the things you dream about he had a chance to do.”

MISSED OPPORTUNITIES: The Steelers rolled up 390 yards, a number that could have been significantly higher. Pittsburgh narrowly missed on several plays, most notably a flea-flicker from Roethlisberger to Brown that saw the ball glance off Brown’s fingertips with nothing between the Pro Bowler and the end zone but open grass.

BANGED UP BUCS: The win was costly for Tampa Bay. Rookie wide receiver Mike Evans caught his first career touchdown pass in the first quarter but left in the second half with a groin injury. Safety Dashon Goldson also left with an ankle injury and did not return.

___

AP NFL website: www.pro32.ap.org and http://twitter.com/AP_NFL

Copyright 2014 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

Don’t Settle for Student Loans to Pay for Online Education

By WTOP Staff
Online college programs are becoming a more popular choice for prospective students, with one study finding that more than 6 million students enrolled in at least one online course in fall 2015. The popularity of these courses can be attributed in part to their flexibility with working adults' schedules, students' ability to progress more quickly through online programs and, oftentimes, cheaper tuition. [See 10 low-cost online bachelor's programs for out-of-state students.]Online degrees can be beneficial to many college students, but some studies have shown online learners complete their programs at lower rates than students at traditional brick-and-mortar campuses. Individuals with student loans but no degree comprise two-thirds of defaulted borrowers. Though these numbers are not encouraging, just like for traditional programs, there are ways to reduce how much you'll need to borrow for an online program to ensure you won't become one of these statistics. Don't just settle on borrowing student loans to cover the whole cost of your program and living expenses. Instead, start thinking about how to cut costs and cover your balance in different ways, such as the following. -- Grants and scholarships: Even though you are taking an online course, you can still apply and receive grants and scholarships. But your first step should be to complete the Free Application for Federal Student Aid, commonly referred to as the FAFSA, which will allow you to receive a Pell Grant if your expected family contribution is low enough. The EFC criteria and award amounts are adjusted annually, but the 2017-2018 academic year awards range from $606 to $5,920, which could significantly lower the amount you borrow annually. Your next step is to apply for scholarships. You can start by checking online scholarship search engines, such as the Salt Scholarship Search, College Board's BigFuture and Peterson's. But don't forget to take advantage of local organizations and your school's financial aid office. Both may offer scholarships that you can't find with a national scholarship search. [Review these 10 sites to kick off your scholarship search.]For instance, organizations like the Elks Club, Knights of Columbus or the Rotary Club typically offer scholarships annually to local students. Just because you're going to school online doesn't mean you're ineligible. Visit your local library for scholarship listings, and ask around town. You might be surprised how many local organizations offer scholarships. While these scholarships typically aren't large, every little bit counts. Each dollar you receive in a scholarship is a dollar you don't have to borrow and pay interest on. -- Work-study: Another option for online students may be work-study awards. Not all students enrolled in online programs are eligible, but students at some schools -- including, for example, SUNY Empire State College and Liberty University -- are. Work-study awards are not given upfront like scholarships and grants. In most cases, they are an offer to earn up to the awarded amount if you secure an eligible work-study job. While there is a misconception that all work-study jobs must be on campus, students can work for off-campus, nonprofit or public employers as long as the work is in the public's interest. You may be able to work for a for-profit employer if the job is relevant to your course of study. No matter who the outside employer is, it will need to have an established agreement with your college for you to receive work-study funds. Remember, to be eligible for federal financial aid, you must be enrolled and pursuing a degree or certificate. If you're not working toward a credential, Pell Grants and work-study won't be option, but you may still be able to take advantage of private scholarships -- just be sure to read the eligibility criteria carefully. [Explore what to know about financial aid in online programs.]-- Pay as you go: One of the great benefits to enrolling online is the flexible schedule, which can allow you to complete your college coursework around your responsibilities. But prospective students often overlook using their part- or full-time job earnings as an option for paying for college. Almost 80 percent of college students in 2015 worked at least part time while attending classes, according to the National Center for Education Statistics. By budgeting and thinking strategically about your college costs, you can likely reduce your dependence on student loans by paying a portion out of pocket. Many -- but not all -- online programs are less expensive than traditional programs and often have shorter payment periods. Six, eight or 10 weeks are common course durations. Because of the frequency of payments in an online setting, you may be well-placed to pay as you go and possibly avoid borrowing altogether. Attending college online and avoiding student loans may be challenging, but if you are willing to put in the effort, you can limit the amount you need to borrow. More from U.S. News Q&A: Understanding Student Loan Discharge Eligibility Student Loan Refinancing Isn't Right for All Borrowers
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