A sports blog by and for Midwest Sports Fans
After 5 days of serious discussions about what has happened off the field in State College, Pennsylvania, it was nice to have two full days of actual games to take our minds off of more serious matters.
This week, I explain how a 1- or 2-loss team from a non-AQ league could realistically clinch a BCS bowl bid, why Oregon is more deserving than Alabama of a rematch with LSU, and why Major League Soccer needs to shift its schedule or risk losing casual fans.
But first things first.
It was another intriguing weekend in sports, especially here in The Midwest where baseball is currently king and a changing of the guard is underway in the Big Ten. Here are 8 things we learned this weekend.
I don’t understand planking*, but professional athletes can’t get enough of it. So I decided to compile this visual treasury of sports stars lying face down, with their arms at their sides, in unusual places.
Note: While I was gathering images, I discovered that Sports Illustrated had beaten me to this idea. Although one gallery of athletes planking is already one too many, it’s good to have options.
Enjoy.
Like Soldier Field is to NFL odds players, Indianapolis Motor Speedway is hallowed ground for anyone who is an avid motorsports fan. The Sprint Cup series heads to the Brickyard for the All-State 400 on Sunday, and an Indiana native will snatch the green flag from a trio of drivers with more accolades than you can imagine.
All-State 400 Odds – Sunday, July 26, 2:00 PM ET
Jimmie Johnson will lead the field out as the favorite at +500, and the three-time defending series champion has won twice at Indy in 2006, and last year’s tire debacle. However, the No.48 driver is a risky bet at the Brickyard, as he has three DNFs in seven races here. Some places are just unlucky, but he’s won here either. You never know what you’ll get from Johnson at Indy.
Tony Stewart has won two championships, but he said he would trade his 2002 title for a win at the Brickyard before he finally won there in 2005, when he also won his second Cup championship. He won again at his home track in 2007, and not many know this place as well as the No.14 driver, who has also raced here in the Indy 500. Stewart’s 9.1 average in 10 Indy races is third among active drivers, so expect him to be the choice of many who make sports picks, with his odds of +600.
Another good bet would be Jeff Gordon, who has won here a record four times in 15 tries, and he also leads in laps led and average finish. The No.24 driver is rated at +750, and he’s due for a win as he’s racked up three runner-up results in the last five races.
However, if you’re a betting management player looking for a big return, take Ryan Newman at +2000. The “Rocket Man†is also an Indiana native like Stewart, his teammate/boss, and he has the best average start (4.9) of any driver. He’s driving better equipment than he ever has and is coming off a sixth-place result at Chicagoland to break out of a slump, and what better place for Newman to get his first win since last year’s Daytona 500? Look for Ryan Newman’s All-State 400 odds to pay off.
William Tecumseh Sherman might have met his match in Jimmie Johnson.
While Sherman, the former Civil War general, buckled the South with the “March to the Sea” in 1864 by leaving the Confederates in his wake, Johnson is laying waste to the competition in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series as he draws a bead on a record-tying third straight series title this week in South Florida.
Sherman’s March to the Sea stopped in Savannah after tearing through Atlanta. And even though Johnson was a runner-up two weeks ago at Atlanta, he and his Hendrick Motorsports team aren’t stopping until the checkered flag falls at Homestead, Fla., located outside of Miami and South Beach.
Johnson holds a sizable 141-point advantage over Carl Edwards heading into Sunday’s season finale thanks to his seventh win of the campaign – third in the Chase for the Championship – at Phoenix last week. The 33-year-old Johnson needs only a 36th place finish to secure the championship.
Doing so would place Johnson in the record books alongside Cale Yarborough, who won three straight titles from 1976-78. Ironically, Johnson lists Yarborough as his idol while growing up. When Yarborough was driving a Hardees-sponsored car, Johnson couldn’t wait to visit the fast-food restaurant as a youth because he thought Yarborough and the car would be there.
Johnson was disappointed when he learned that the series great and his machine didn’t actually reside at the burger joint. Undaunted, Jimmie Johnson has gone on to fashion a career that might rival some of the best NASCAR has seen before all is said and done.
Johnson notched career win No. 40 in career start No. 254 at Phoenix, giving him a winning percentage of 15.8% that is best among active drivers. He is already ranked 13th in all-time victories and a third series title would make him the eighth driver ever to cop at least three, joining the likes of Richard Petty, Dale Earnhardt, Jeff Gordon, David Pearson, Darrell Waltrip, Lee Petty and Yarborough.
The El Cajon, Calif. native is approaching legend status as we speak.
But only Johnson and Yarborough could lay claim to the honor of taking three straight. Johnson’s titles have come in a different format, one in which the points are virtually “reset” for the season’s final 10 races. You could say that Johnson’s feat is more remarkable in that regard, while some can see it as easy for a team to “sandbag” during the first 26 races.
One thing is for sure. Jimmie Johnson, crew chief Chad Knaus and the rest of the No. 48 have shown that they can rise to the challenge down the stretch. No one has put up better numbers during the Chase for the Cup, which came into play in 2004.
Jimmie Johnson has amassed 14 wins in 49 Chase starts, good for a ridiculous winning percentage of 28.6%. In addition to his two titles, Johnson also has finished second twice (2004 and ’05).
Barring a total collapse, the curtain will close on yet another season with Jimmie Johnson holding the hardware and collecting the big check and the rest of the drivers raising the white flag.
And thankfully for the competition, NASCAR doesn’t race in Key West.
For the third week in a row, rain has canceled NASCAR Sprint Cup qualifying, meaning that Jimmie Johnson will once again start from the pole position.
I am now offering a reward of $1,000.00 for the first person to get a picture of Jimmie Johnson in full Native American get-up doing the rain dance. Go Nuts.
Here is the top ten for the Pep Boys Auto 500 that is scheduled for 1:00pm Sunday on ABC.
Row 1
Jimmie Johnson
Greg Biffle
Row 2
Jeff Burton
Carl Edwards
Row 3
Clint Bowyer
Kervin Harvick
Row 4
Jeff Gordon
Tony Stewart
Row 5
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Matt Kenseth
And now, in other continents:
NASCAR nation rolls into Atlanta this weekend as the Chase for the Sprint Cup really heats up. Jimmie Johnson leads by 149 points with just four races to go. However, in the modern era at least, no driver has ever eclipsed that wide of a margin to become the champion.
If Jimmie Johnson plays it nice and tight and focuses on top tens for the duration of the 2008 season, he will be the second back-to-back-to-back champion in NASCAR history. Qualifying is Friday evening and the race is Sunday at 1pm on ABC.
Here are the standings going into the weekend:
What in the world is that smell? Is that musty beer burning in the infield fire pit? Could it be the mixture of Sunoco gasoline and rubber that comes from any NASCAR race? It could be…and probably is all of the above. But the most pungent odor I can smell is that of a dynasty. Not that long ago, I cried out about the injustices of racing dynasties, but have given that some thought. After reflecting on that issue for some time now, I am kind of, almost, pretty sure convinced that I like dynasties. Here’s why:
A dynasty takes a normal man, say the driver of the number 48 Lowe’s machine, and at first turns him into a Champion. Then the next year, the pressure is really on. Can this guy do it all over again? Is there anything left in the tank, or will the pinnacle of his chosen sport be enough of a reward to make him rethink doing it all over again? Yet, the #48 with Jimmie Johnson behind the wheel did in fact have enough left. In 2007, he won the Cup just like he did the year before.
And now, for the third year in a row, Jimmie Johnson stands on the verge of cementing his greatness at the top of his sport. Cale Yarborough won the Cup in 1976, 77, and 78. To date, Cale is the only driver to ever have three consecutive Cup championships. That small part of NASCAR history may get a bit more crowded this year.
RAIN
PLUS
EQUALS
Therefore….
For the second time in as many weeks, the NASCAR Sprint Cup cars will line up from points this weekend at Martinsville. The oval track, which is just over a half mile in length, has one of the tightest pit lanes on the circuit. Jimmie Johnson, current leader in the NASCAR standings, will get the first pit stall for the TUMS QuikPak 500.
JEFF BURTON WINS AT LOWE’S, MOVES INTO SECOND PLACE:
What a weekend it was for Carl Edwards. On Thursday between practice sessions he got ahold of Kevin Harvick for comments regarding the week ago crash at Talladega and a comment referring to Carl as a “pansy”. As seen in the AP photo, the “pansy” title seems quite fitting. It’s probably good thing Kevin doesn’t have longer hair, as it appears Mr. Edwards would have pulled it.
Going into the weekend, Carl Edwards sat in 2nd place in the Chase. At the end of the weekend, he was in 4th place in the NASCAR season standings. First place Jimmie Johnson continues to lead the Chase standings but a big move was made by Jeff Burton going from 4th to 2nd over the weekend with the win at Lowe’s Motor Speedway Saturday night. Burton sits now just 69 points behind Johnson, who was won the past 2 Cup championships. Burton, whose rookie year was 15 years ago, sits right where he needs to be to challenge for the Championship. In my opinion the only thing that will keep him from claiming the Cup will be the driver currently in P1.
The NASCAR nation sets its sights on Lowe’s Motor Speedway this Saturday night as the Chase for the Cup rages on. With just six races left in the 2008 schedule it is still wide open. With 4 drivers separated by 100 points, and all 12 drivers in the chase separated by less than 400 points, it truly is anybody’s cup. A NASCAR Sprint Cup win is worth 185 points, add on the 5 points for leading a lap and another 5 points for leading the most laps and conceivably the race winner will walk away with 195 points for the win.
Certainly, the bottom of those guys in the Chase standings need some help from the drivers who are ahead of them. If 12th placed Denny Hamlin wins at Lowe’s and 1st placed Jimmie Johnson comes in 2nd, the difference would be too big to be made up in six races. So, the Chase is wide open, but from 6th placed on down, they would need some help from the top 5 to get it done.
Here is the TOP 5 in the chase heading into Saturday nights race at Lowe’s.
