Bleacher Report - Articles by Samuel Sica

Road to the Playoffs: Week 12 Preview

Samuel Sica — Tue, 24 Nov 2009 15:31:09 -0500

Week 12 will play a pivotal role in determining who the contenders are for the run to the playoffs. There are many important matchups between playoff-caliber teams that could make or break their seasons with a victory or a loss.

Teams that are currently leading their respective divisions include Dallas, Minnesota, New Orleans, Arizona, New England, Cincinnati, Indianapolis, and San Diego. Some of these teams do not have much to worry about, since they have big leads in their divisions. The Vikings and the Cardinals lead their divisions by three games, while the undefeated Colts have a four-game lead and the undefeated Saints have a five-game lead in their division.

Teams that cannot think about playoffs at the moment include the Bengals, Chargers, and Cowboys, who only have one-game leads in their respective divisions. The Patriots have a two-game lead over the Miami Dolphins, but New England has a tough game ahead of them this week when they travel to New Orleans to face the undefeated Saints on Monday night.

There are still many teams jockeying for position in the wild card race, as well. In the NFC, the Philadelphia Eagles and the Green Bay Packers occupy the two wild card spots with records of 6-4. The New York Giants are also sitting at 6-4, with teams like Atlanta, Carolina, San Francisco, and Chicago all on the outside looking in. The Bears and the 49ers are currently two games out of wild card spots but, with six weeks remaining, anything can happen.

In the AFC, the Pittsburgh Steelers and the Jacksonville Jaguars occupy the two wild card positions with records of 6-4. The Denver Broncos are also sitting at 6-4, but are on the outside looking in, along with the Dolphins, Ravens, and Texans, who all have records of 5-5. The New York Jets and Tennessee Titans are also still in the running for the wild card spots, but must continue winning in order to keep their hopes alive.

Aside from the undefeated Colts and Saints, the two hottest teams in the league at the moment are the Chargers and the Titans. San Diego just came off a huge win over the Broncos to regain the division lead in the AFC West after trailing Denver by three games a month ago. The Chargers now lead the Broncos by one game and currently have a five-game winning streak.

The Titans have also been impressive as of late, winning their last four games after losing their first six. Thanks to Chris Johnson and Vince Young, Tennessee is now back into the thick of things in the wild card race with their huge win over the Texans on Monday night.

Key Matchups for Week 12

New York Giants at Denver

This is an important game to both teams, as they are right in the middle of the playoff picture in the NFC and AFC. I am not sure who needs this win more, since both teams are tied for the wild card in their conferences and both sit just one game behind first place in their respective divisions.

The Giants proved that they are back to their winning ways with their victory in overtime last week over the Falcons. The Broncos, on the other hand, have lost four straight after starting the season off with six straight victories. Denver has problems on both sides of the ball, as their defense has not been playing like they were at the beginning of the season and their offense is also not up to par as it once was. The quarterback position is also a huge question for the Broncos, as Kyle Orton is not healthy and Chris Simms has not been the answer.

In my opinion, this game could be a blowout if the Broncos do not step up and start playing like a playoff-caliber team again.

Arizona at Tennessee

This is not so much a big game for the Cardinals as it is for the Titans, since Tennessee is in a must-win situation if they have any hopes of making the playoffs. Arizona is coming off a close game last week to the Rams and could be vulnerable if Kurt Warner is not at 100 percent after getting knocked out of last week’s game. This should be a great matchup between two high-powered offenses.

Carolina at New York Jets

This game will prove to play a huge role in making or breaking these two teams' seasons. The winner of this game will still have an opportunity to make a run at earning a wild card spot, with the loser being eliminated from playoff contention.

The Jets have been playing terrible as of late, winning just one out of their last seven games. Carolina, on the other hand, has been playing well, except for their loss last week to the Miami Dolphins, which really hurt them in the playoff picture. The Panthers have one of the best rushing attacks in the league with Williams and Stewart, and I look for them to stay true to their strengths and run the ball consistently against the Jets on the road.

New York must play tough defense and not turn the ball over in order to win this game. Mark Sanchez needs to settle down and make good decisions by not forcing passes. The Jets must also get back to basics on defense and stop Carolina’s running game if they have any chance of winning.

Indianapolis at Houston

After a disappointing loss to division rival Tennessee, Houston looks to make a run at the playoffs by upsetting the undefeated Colts. Houston almost pulled the upset a few weeks ago, but kicker Kris Brown missed a field goal that would have sent the game into overtime. Houston missed out on a great opportunity Monday night to position themselves ahead of many teams in the playoff race, as they now sit one game out behind Pittsburgh and Jacksonville for the wild cards.

Indianapolis has been very fortunate the last couple of weeks in beating opponents by slim margins in the late stages of games. The Colts escaped upsets by Houston, New England, and Baltimore, but the Texans look to end the Colts' winning ways and make a strong statement for themselves. This should be another close game and, if the Texans have any chance of winning, they must keep Peyton Manning off the field and try to pressure Manning into make mistakes. Not many teams have succeeded in forcing Manning to make mistakes and I do not believe he will make many on Sunday.

Jacksonville at San Francisco

This is another key matchup with playoff potential as the 49ers are in a must win situation with the Jaguars looking to keep pace in the AFC and hold on to the wild card. San Francisco must beat Jacksonville, or else their playoff hopes are over.

This could potentially be a trap game for the Jaguars that they cannot afford to lose if they want to hold on to their wild card spot. I believe that this will be a more defensive game and if San Francisco has any chance of pulling the upset, they must stop Maurice Jones-Drew. If the 49ers can accomplish this feat, then they will have a great chance of beating the Jaguars.

Pittsburgh at Baltimore

Here is a rivalry matchup between two teams that hate one another and this game will prove to be very important to both teams in the playoff picture. The Steelers currently hold one of the two wild card spots, with the Ravens sitting just one game behind. Both of these teams still have chances at winning their division, but Cincinnati holds any tiebreakers over them due to the fact that they swept both already this season.

Both teams are coming off tough losses, with the Ravens losing to the Colts in the final minutes and the Steelers losing to the Kansas City Chiefs in overtime. The Steelers are also facing some questions at the quarterback position, as Ben Roethlisberger was injured in overtime against the Chiefs and did not finish the game. Backup quarterback Charlie Batch was also injured in that game after relieving Roethlisberger and is out six weeks.

The Steelers just have not been playing like the Super Bowl Champions as of late and I believe it is due to the loss of Troy Polamalu. The defense is not the same without Polamalu; look for Joe Flacco to take advantage of that with some deep passes against the Pittsburgh secondary. The Ravens defense has been playing well as of late and they will need to continue playing tough if they are going to beat the Steelers Sunday night.

New England at New Orleans

This is the game of the week, in my opinion, as the undefeated Saints look to stay perfect against Tom Brady and the New England Patriots. This game is of importance to the Saints if they want to keep their perfect record intact and this is even more important for the Patriots, who lead Miami by two games in the AFC East.

If the Patriots were to lose and Miami were to win over Buffalo on Sunday, it would set up a huge confrontation the following week, when the Patriots head to Miami in a battle for the division lead. This should be a good game between two great quarterbacks in Brady and Brees. I expect a high-scoring game between two high-powered offenses with the last team with the ball most likely coming out victorious.

Week 8 Preview: Denver Broncos vs. Baltimore Ravens

Samuel Sica — Mon, 26 Oct 2009 14:30:05 -0400

With the midway point of the season vastly approaching in the NFL, we are starting to realize who the contenders are and who the pretenders are. There are still three teams that are undefeated going into week eight and three teams that have yet to win a game as well.

A definite contender would have to be the Denver Broncos, who currently sit as one of the three unbeaten teams thus far. The Broncos have won some very close games this season beating the Cincinnati Bengals, Dallas Cowboys, New England Patriots, and the San Diego Chargers last Monday night. The Broncos enter Week Eight with a record of 6-0 and lead the Chargers by three games in the AFC West.

Denver will try to keep up their winning ways in Week Eight when they travel to Baltimore to face the Ravens. Baltimore started off hot, winning their first three games, but since then they have cooled off losing their past three in heart breakers against New England, Cincinnati, and last week against the previously unbeaten Minnesota Vikings.

The Ravens were down big to the Vikings but managed to battle back taking the lead in the last few minutes. Minnesota drove down the field and kicked a field goal with just minutes remaining putting them in the lead by a score of 33-31.

The game wasn’t over, however, as Joe Flacco led the Ravens down the field putting them in field goal range to win the game in the last few seconds. Unfortunately for Baltimore, kicker Steve Hauschka missed the game winning field goal extending the Ravens losing streak to three.

Baltimore now sits at a mark of 3-3 coming off their bye week placing them third in the AFC North behind Pittsburgh and Cincinnati. The Ravens will try to erase the label of pretenders and prove that they are contenders this season.

The Ravens are led by second-year quarterback Joe Flacco, who is proving to people that last year's great season was not a fluke. Flacco has a completion percentage of 64.4 percent and has thrown for 1,674 yards so far this season with 11 touchdowns and five interceptions.

Baltimore’s rushing attack is led by Ray Rice who has rushed for 441 yards with three touchdowns and Willis McGahee who has rushed for 202 yards with five touchdowns.

The Ravens receiving corps is also led by Ray Rice who has 33 receptions for 325 yards with a touchdown. Derrick Mason and Todd Heap have also contributed, with Mason catching 26 passes for 381 yards with three touchdowns while Heap has 24 receptions for 262 yards with two touchdowns.

The Baltimore defense is not what it used to be, but key players are still there like Terrell Suggs, Ray Lewis, and Ed Reed. Lewis leads the defense in total tackles with 53 with the next closest being Suggs and Trevor Pryce each with 31 total tackles.

The sack leaders on the Ravens are Pryce and Jarret Johnson each with four, while Suggs is next in line with two sacks. In the interception department Dawan Landry and Ed Reed once again lead the team with two interceptions apiece with Reed returning one for a touchdown.

The Ravens have lost some key players on defense and are not the same powerhouse that they used to be.

On the other side of the ball, the Ravens have really never had an explosive offense before that could win them games. Baltimore has always relied on their defense to get the job done with their offense just managing the game.

It seems that has all changed as of this year as the offense of the Ravens is being relied on to score points and win games. The Ravens defense is not doing their job thus far and must step it up in order to beat the Broncos this week.

The Denver Broncos are the complete opposite of the Ravens this season so far as Denver has one of the best defenses in the league as well as a reliable offense led by quarterback Kyle Orton.

Orton was traded to the Broncos from the Chicago Bears for quarterback Jay Cutler at the beginning of the season. I would say that the Denver fans are pretty excited about their new quarterback being as the Broncos are undefeated and leading their division while the Bears are 3-3 sitting third in the NFC North.

Orton has thrown for 1,465 yards with a completion percentage of 63.9 percent so far this season with nine touchdowns and just one interception.

The Bronco running game is led by Knowshon Moreno who has rushed for 381 yards with a touchdown while Correll Buckhalter has also contributed rushing for 313 yards and a touchdown.

Denver’s receiving corps is led by Brandon Marshall who has caught 29 passes for 332 yards and four touchdowns. Jabar Gaffney and Tony Scheffler have also contributed as Gaffney has 18 receptions for 242 yards while Scheffler has 16 receptions for 217 yards and two touchdowns.

Eddie Royal is also proving to be a threat for Denver as he returned a kickoff and a punt return back for touchdowns last Monday night against the Chargers.

The Denver defense is one of the best, if not the best defense in the league so far this season. D.J. Williams leads the team with 46 total tackles, while Andra Davis and Brian Dawkins each have 38 total tackles. Elvis Dumervil leads the team in sacks with 10 while Darrell Reid is second on the team with three sacks.

Six players on the Denver defense have interceptions this season with Renaldo Hill, Andre Goodman, and Champ Bailey being some of them.

Denver has vastly improved their defense from last year and look to stay perfect against the Ravens this week.

In order for the Ravens to pull off the upset, they must be able to stop Denver’s offense and get some turnovers. Kyle Orton is one of the best quarterbacks in the league at not turning the ball over. Orton does not force the issue too many times during the game but if the Ravens can get consistent pressure on Orton throughout, Baltimore stands a much better chance in forcing Orton to make a mistake.

The Ravens must also be able to protect their quarterback Joe Flacco, as Denver has one of the best defenses in the league. Last Monday night, the Broncos defense sacked quarterback Philip Rivers five times, which was a career high for Rivers being sacked in a game. If the Ravens want to upset the Broncos they must be able to give Flacco enough time to find his receivers and move the ball down field.

Denver, on the other hand, must keep doing what they have been doing so far this season by playing good defense and keeping the turnovers to a minimum. As long as Denver keeps to their game plan they will beat the Ravens and remain undefeated.

My prediction for the game is that it will be a hard-fought matchup between two great teams, but the Ravens will knock off the Broncos in a very close game. I believe that Baltimore is in a must-win situation after losing three straight. They have to prove that they can compete with teams like Denver and win on a consistent basis.

New Orleans Saints-Miami Dolphins: Week 7 Preview

Samuel Sica — Mon, 19 Oct 2009 11:47:40 -0400

Week 7 is filled with many great match-ups between playoff-caliber teams including the game between the New Orleans Saints and the Miami Dolphins.

The Saints did not make the playoffs last season, but they seem to be well on their way to the postseason with an impressive win over the New York Giants Sunday to remain undefeated.

On the other hand, Miami did make it into the postseason last year by winning the AFC East Division with a record of 11-5.

This game will prove to be more important to the Dolphins than it is for the Saints, as Miami enters week 7 with a record of 2-3 coming out of their bye.

Miami currently sits third in the AFC East behind the division-leading New England Patriots who sit at a mark of 4-2 after demolishing the Tennessee Titans by a score of 59-0 on Sunday.

The Dolphins are coming off two straight wins over divisional opponents with victories over the Buffalo Bills 38-10 and the New York Jets last Monday Night 31-27.

Miami found itself down to the Jets with five minutes left in the fourth quarter. However, QB Chad Henne, marched the Dolphins down the field and Ronnie Brown punched in a touchdown with six seconds left.

The Dolphins are now led at the quarterback position by Chad Henne after their starting QB Chad Pennington suffered a season-ending shoulder injury during the game against the San Diego Chargers. Henne has started in two games and has exceeded expectations by winning both of them.

Henne has done everything that the Dolphins have asked him to do so far and more in leading Miami to two straight wins.

Henne has completed 44 out of 67 passes with a 65.7 completion percentage. He has also thrown for 448 yards with three touchdown passes and just one interception.

Miami’s key strength is in their running game, as they are led by Ronnie Brown and Ricky Williams. The Dolphins lead the league in rushing yards per game with the help of the many Wild Cat formations that they run causing confusion for many defenses.

Brown has 93 rushing attempts for 443 yards averaging 4.8 yards per carry. Also to his credit, Brown leads the team with six touchdowns. Williams has rushed for 316 yards off 61 attempts with an average of 5.2 yards per carry.

Williams has rushed for two touchdowns and has contributed to the offense with 11 receptions for 132 yards with a touchdown.

The receiving corps for Miami is led by Ted Ginn Jr., who has 16 receptions for 195 yards and a touchdown. Davone Bess and Greg Camarillo have also contributed with Bess catching 23 passes for 175 yards and Camarillo with 14 receptions for 119 yards.

The Dolphins defense is not what it used to be, but has been improving the past couple of weeks. Yeremiah Bell is leading the Dolphins defense with 34 total tackles while Gibril Wilson is not far behind with 30.

Jason Taylor is still proving to be a defensive force as he is leading the team with four sacks. The next closest to Taylor are Joey Porter, Randy Starks, and Cameron Wake all with two sacks this season.

Will Allen leads the team in interceptions with two and Vontae Davis can account for the only other interception on the team as he ran an interception back for a touchdown against the Bills in Week 4.

On the other hand, The Saints are off to a great start with an undefeated mark of 5-0 after handing the New York Giants their first loss of the season by a score of 48-27 with Drew Brees throwing for 369 yards with four touchdown passes.

New Orleans leads the league in points scored and yards per game and rank in the top-three in rushing yards and the top 10 in passing yards per game.

The Saints passing attack is led by Drew Brees, who has completed 110 out of 159 pass attempts for 1,400 yards. Brees has a completion percentage of 69.2 with 13 touchdown passes and just two interceptions.

New Orleans rushing game is a three-headed monster led by Pierre Thomas who has 48 rushing attempts for 284 yards and three touchdowns. Mike Bell and Reggie Bush have also contributed in the rushing game with Bell rushing for 263 yards on 60 attempts with two touchdowns and Bush with 42 attempts for 165 yards and 2 touchdowns.

The Saints receiving corps is led by Marques Colston, who has 25 receptions for 394 yards with four touchdowns.

Jeremy Shockey and Devery Henderson have also been good targets for Brees, with Shockey catching 22 passes for 199 yards with three touchdowns and Henderson with 15 receptions for 241 yards with a touchdown.

On the other side of the ball, the defense of the Saints is one of the best in the league. Roman Harper leads the team with 34 total tackles with Scott Shanle not too far behind with 32 total tackles.

Charles Grant leads the Saints with four sacks while Will Smith is second on the team with two sacks.

Darren Sharper leads the team with five interceptions; two of them being run back for touchdowns. The next closest to Sharper is Shanle with two interceptions.

This is an important game for both teams as Miami looks to keep pace with division leader New England while the Saints look to stay perfect and go 6-0.

By looking at the records alone this game would look to be a blow out but Miami is a much better team then their record portrays. Miami has a dynamic rushing attack with Wild Cat formations that will prove to test the defense of the Saints.

If Miami has any chance of upsetting the unbeaten Saints they must play tough defense and not turn the ball over. Miami’s defense has been improving but still allows many big plays which Drew Brees will definitely take advantage of.

I believe that it will be a very close game despite the high powered New Orleans offense but the Saints will end up victorious in the end off the arm of Brees.

The Saints are too tough for the Dolphins on both sides of the ball and will remain undefeated heading into Week 8.

Week One Preview: Kansas City Chiefs vs. Baltimore Ravens

Samuel Sica — Sun, 06 Sep 2009 18:18:13 -0400

Finally the eternity without football is over and we can all look forward to next week when the NFL season officially begins.

Two teams that I know are ready to kick of the season are the Kansas City Chiefs and the Baltimore Ravens.

For the Chiefs, a new year means a new beginning as they can begin to concentrate on the future and forget about last years horrific season. Kansas City finished the 2008 season with a record of 2-14, finishing last in the AFC West.

The Chiefs two wins did come against their division rivals in Denver and Oakland, so if Kansas City looks to improve this season they better play well against their division foes seeing as the Chargers look to be the front runners once again in the division.

On the other hand, the Ravens are on the opposite side of the spectrum as they had a great turn-around season last year. In 2007, Baltimore finished the season at a mark of 5-11 and last year they reversed their record from the previous season finishing with a record of 11-5.

Baltimore was led by rookie head coach John Harbaugh and a rookie quarterback in Joe Flacco. The two managed to set a new record for most wins ever by a rookie head coach and quarterback with 13 victories.

After finishing second in the AFC North to their hated rivals, the Pittsburgh Steelers, Baltimore earned a wild card spot and made it into the playoffs. The Ravens made easy work of Miami in round one and had some difficulty with Tennessee in the second round but managed to come away victorious.

Unfortunately for Baltimore, their incredible run on the shoulders of rookie Joe Flacco was cut short in the AFC Championship game as Pittsburgh beat them by a final score of 23-14.

After the disappointment of seeing Pittsburgh win yet another Super Bowl, the Ravens are out for redemption and look to battle with the Steelers once more for the division title and a shot at the Super Bowl.

The Ravens were led by Joe Flacco who threw for 2,971 yards with a completion rate of 60%. Flacco also threw 14 touchdowns but his weakness was in throwing interceptions as he threw 12, but time will improve that problem and Flacco, with a years experience under his belt, will know when to throw and when not to force the issue.

Baltimore’s rushing game was headed by Le’Ron McClain who carried the ball 232 times for 902 yards with 10 touchdowns. Willis McGahee also did his fair share carrying the ball 170 times for 671 yards with seven touchdowns.

The receiving core was led by veteran wide out Derrick Mason who caught 80 passes for 1,037 yards with five touchdowns. Mark Clayton and Todd Heap also helped out on the receiving side as Clayton caught 41 balls for 695 yards with 3 touchdowns while Heap caught 35 passes for 403 yards with 3 touchdowns as well.

The true heart and sole of the Baltimore Ravens is the defense as they once again ranked as one of the top defenses in the league.

Led by Ray Lewis who accumulated 117 total tackles and four sacks to his credit, the Ravens defense still proved to be their strong suit. Ed Reed led the team as well as the league in interceptions last season with nine, returning two of those back for touchdowns. The closes to Reed on the team were Ray Lewis, Chris McAlister, and Samari Rolle with three interceptions.

Baltimore’s key additions over the off season include quarterback John Beck from the Dolphins, tight end L.J. Smith from the Eagles, and first round draft pick Michael Oher, tackle from Ole Miss.

Key losses for Baltimore include two defenses stars from last season in Bart Scott and Jim Leonhard who both went to the Jets as well as veteran kick Matt Stover who has been around since the Ravens franchise was formed.

The Ravens are poised to make another deep run into the playoffs and we shall see whether or not if Joe Flacco can lead his team to the Super Bowl this season?

As for the Kansas City Chiefs, there is a lot of promise as the team has a new head coach in Todd Haley as well as a new quarterback in Matt Cassel. The Chiefs are trying to get back to their winning ways and this season should be an improvement from last years.

In acquiring Cassel from New England, the Chiefs have answered their weakness in the quarterback position but they have lost a key weapon in their offense with the loss of future Hall of Famer Tony Gonzalez.

Gonzalez was the leading receiver last season for the Chiefs with 96 receptions for 1,058 yards with 10 touchdowns. This will be a question all season long, how the Chiefs will deal with trying to fill the shoes of Tony Gonzalez at the tight end position.

Kansas City’s leading quarterback last season was Tyler Thigpen who completed 230 out of 420 passes for a 54.8 completion percentage. Thigpen threw for 2,608 yards with 18 touchdowns and 12 interceptions.

Matt Cassel completed 327 out of 516 attempts with a completion percentage of 63.4. Cassel threw for 3,693 yards with 21 touchdowns and 11 interceptions which is fairly similar to Thigpen’s numbers.

Kansas City was led by Larry Johnson at running back who rushed 193 times for 874 yards with five touchdowns. Thigpen also carried the ball 62 times for 386 yards with three touchdowns of his own.

The receiving core was led by Tony Gonzalez but Dwayne Bowe faired pretty well catching 86 passes for 1,022 yards with three touchdowns.

On the defensive side of the ball is where Kansas City struggled last year, led by Bernard Pollard who led the team with 98 total tackles while Tamba Hali led the team in sacks with three and Jarrad Page led the team in interceptions with four.

In addition to Matt Cassel, some other key players acquired are Mike Vrabel, Zach Thomas, and Bobby Engram. Some key losses include Tony Gonzalez, Donnie Edwards, and Patrick Surtain.

I believe that the Chiefs will improve from last season and win five or six games. This process will need some time to improve before the Chiefs are competing with San Diego for division titles but this season should be an essential starting point to that goal.

As for the game itself, I believe that the defense of Baltimore will prove to be too much for Kansas City and the Ravens will win by 13 points in their home opener.

Week One Preview: Miami Dolphins vs. Atlanta Falcons

Samuel Sica — Sat, 05 Sep 2009 18:11:49 -0400

The 2009 NFL season is finally upon us and there are many great games to kick off Week One of the season. One game that catches my attention would have to be the Miami Dolphins vs. the Atlanta Falcons.

Both teams exceeded expectations last season by finishing with records of 11 and 5 and making it into the playoffs. Atlanta had a great season last year making it to the playoffs but unfortunately lost to Arizona in the first round by a score of 30-24.

Atlanta did prove to be one of the great stories of last season but the team who surprised everyone had to be the Miami Dolphins. The Dolphins had a dismal season in 2007 ending with a record of 1-15 but last year Miami improved by 10 wins finishing with a mark of 11-5.

Miami also ended up winning its division by defeating the New York Jets in the final week of the season. Chad Pennington returned to New York in the last week of the season where he played his entire career before being traded to Miami after the 2007 season. Pennington proved to have the last laugh as he knocked the Jets out of the playoffs and in return secured another AFC East Championship for the Dolphins.

The Dolphins dream season would eventually come to an end in the playoffs as Miami fell short to the Baltimore Ravens by a score of 27-9.

Miami was led by veteran quarterback Chad Pennington who had a great first season with the Dolphins throwing for 3,653 yards with a 67.4 percent completion rate. Pennington also threw 19 touchdowns with only seven interceptions.

A key factor to Miami’s success was attributed to the Wild Cat formation led by the rushing attack of Ronnie Brown and Ricky Williams. Ronnie Brown led the team with 214 carries for 916 yards with 10 touchdowns. Ricky Williams also had a good season carrying the ball 160 times for 659 yards with four touchdowns.

Miami’s wide receivers were led by Ted Ginn Jr. who accumulated 790 yards on 56 receptions with two touchdown catches. The Dolphins also had two other receivers with over 50 catches in Greg Camarillo and Devone Bess. Camarillo caught 55 passes for 613 yards with two touchdowns while Bess caught 54 passes for 554 yards and a touchdown.

The defense of Miamiwas led by Joey Porter who accumulated 17.5 sacks, leading the team. Yeremiah Bell led the team in total tackles with 120 while Andre Goodman led the team with five interceptions. Will Allen and Renaldo Hill both had good seasons with three interceptions a piece.

Miami has most of its starters from last season with some key additions in Brian Hartline and Pat White. Hartline has proven during this preseason that he has what it takes to be an NFL receiver and Pat White could be another attribute to the Wild Cat formation.

The Dolphins also have one of their all-time greats returning in Jason Taylor who left Miami for a season to play for Washington.

On the other side of the ball we have the Atlanta Falcons who are looking for another great season behind their quarterback of the future Matt Ryan. Atlanta finished second in their division last season to Carolina and looks to better that with a division title this season.

Atlanta’s rookie sensation Matt Ryan threw for 3,440 yards with a completion percentage of 61.1. Ryan threw 16 touchdowns but needs to improve on his interceptions as he threw 11 last season.

I believe Ryan will be one of the top quarterbacks this season and throw for more touchdowns as he has a new weapon at his disposal on offense. The Falcons acquired tight end Tony Gonzalez from Kansas City who led the Chiefs last season with 96 receptions for 1,058 yards and 10 touchdowns.

The Falcons rushing attack was led by Michael Turner who had 376 rushes for 1,699 yards and 17 touchdowns. Jerious Norwood also contributed with 95 rushes for 489 yards with four touchdowns.

Atlanta’s top three receivers last season were Roddy White, Michael Jenkins, and Jerious Norwood. White caught 88 passes for 1,382 yards with seven touchdowns while Jenkins had 50 receptions for 777 yards and three touchdowns. Norwood, in addition to his rushing ability, caught 36 passes for 338 yards and two touchdowns.

The defense of Atlanta was led by veteran John Abraham who accumulated 16.5 sacks, leading the team. Keith Brooking led the team in total tackles with 102 while Erik Coleman led the team in interceptions with three, as well as having 95 total tackles of his own.

The Dolphins have already started the year off with a 4-0 preseason record while the Falcons preseason record was 2-2. Miami will look to start their season off with their fifth straight win while the Falcons will try to start the season on the right foot with a win in front of their home fans in the dome.

This should be a great game between two high powered offenses that can score at any moment. This could also prove to be a defensive game as well since both teams are equally balanced on both sides of the ball.

I believe that Miami will have a much harder time this season in winning games because their schedule is one of the hardest in the league. I predict that Miami will be up to the challenge because I feel that they are better than they were last season.

The Falcons should also have a better year this season since Matt Ryan has a year's experience in the NFL and should perform at an even higher level than last season. Plus the Falcons acquired a future Hall of Famer in Tony Gonzalez which gives Ryan even more options on offense.

My prediction for this game is that Miami will end up victorious in a low scoring defensive battle.

Memorial Day Weekend: The Most Anticipated Weekend of Racing

Samuel Sica — Tue, 19 May 2009 22:24:23 -0400

It’s that time of year again as "The Greatest Spectacle in Racing" and NASCAR’s 600-mile endurance race kicks off the summer on Memorial Day weekend. This is every race fans favorite day as families cook out and enjoy a full day of racing action.

The Indianapolis 500 and the Coca-Cola 600 are two of the biggest gems in auto racing. Every driver wants to win at Indy since it’s the biggest race of the year for the IRL and on the NASCAR side, drivers want to win at Charlotte because the Coca-Cola 600 ranks among the top four most important races of the year.

Sunday will begin with the start of the Indianapolis 500 and conclude with the finish of the Coca-Cola 600 later that evening. This year will mark the 100th year of racing at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway so the incentive to win the Indy 500 is even greater.

The starting grid for the Indy 500 was set last weekend and was filled with drama as time was running out for drivers which included the likes of John Andretti and former Indy 500 winner trying to bump their way into the field.

Bump Day was filled with drama as veteran driver John Andretti made his third and final qualifying attempt of the day with just under ten minutes remaining in the session. Andretti finally put together four solid laps well over 221 mph, which was more than enough needed to make it into the field.

After it was announced that Andretti had made it into the field the crowd went wild with cheers and applause. John Andretti is an Indianapolis native so he has plenty of support from the fans and he is the nephew of former Indy 500 winner Mario Andretti who won the race in 1969.

After Andretti bumped his way into the field it unfortunately left one driver out of the field in Ryan Hunter Reay who finished sixth in last years Indy 500.

Fortunately for Hunter Reay there was just over two minutes remaining in the qualifying session so he quickly made his way back onto the track in a final attempt to qualify his way back into the starting grid.

It all came down to the final lap on the front stretch as Hunter Reay bumped Alex Tagliani from the starting field by three one hundredths of a second.

The Starting Grid for the Indianapolis 500:

Row One: Helio Castroneves, Ryan Briscoe, Dario Franchitti

Row Two: Graham Rahal, Scott Dixon, Tony Kanaan

Row Three: Mario Moraes, Marco Andretti, Will Power

Row Four: Danica Patrick, Alex Lloyd, Raphael Matos

Row Five: Paul Tracy, Vitor Meira, Justin Wilson

Row Six: Hideki Mutoh, Ed Carpenter, Dan Wheldon

Row Seven: AJ Foyt IV, Scott Sharp, Sarah Fisher

Row Eight: Davey Hamilton, Robert Doornbos, Townsend Bell

Row Nine: Oriol Servia, Tomas Scheckter, Mike Conway

Row 10: John Andretti, EJ Viso, Bruno Junqueira

Row 11: Milka Duno, Nelson Philippe, Ryan Hunter Reay

The starting field consists of four former winners of the Indy 500 which include Dan Wheldon, Dario Franchitti, Scott Dixon, and Helio Castroneves who is the only two-time winner of the 500.

One of the victories by Castroneves was not without controversy though as Paul Tracy believed he passed Castroneves before a caution flag waved over the field after a late race crash with under five laps remaining.

This year will be the first time since that particular race that Paul Tracy has competed in an Indianapolis 500 so you can bet that Tracy will give it his all to win at Indy.

The field is also made up of some pretty famous names from the ranks of Foyt, Andretti, and Rahal. AJ Foyt IV will be representing his famous grandfather AJ Foyt who is a four-time winner of the Indy 500, which ranks among the most of all-time along with Rick Mears and Al Unser.

Marco Andretti will be representing his famous grandfather Mario who is a former winner at Indianapolis as well as his father Michael who has done everything at Indy but win the 500.

Finally we have Graham Rahal who is the son of Bobby Rahal who won the 500 in 1986. All of these young drivers have big shoes to fill before they can join the ranks of their fathers and grandfathers but this year could be the year for one of these famous families.

Another possible story could be surrounding the women who are competing in the race. The three women in this years Indy 500 are Danica Patrick, Sarah Fisher, and Milka Duno.

Sarah Fisher has been in many Indy 500’s with her best finish being an 18th place. Danica Patrick on the other hand has been a contender in all of her Indy 500 starts and hopes to make history this year by being the first women driver to win the Indy 500.

Danica finally broke through and won her first race last season at Japan, which essentially lifted a huge burden off her back. Who knows, maybe this year will finally be the year for Danica. After the performance put on by Rachael Alexandra last week at the Preakness, this could be the year that a woman outlasts the boys.

After this battle of titans finishes up, another battle will begin as the boys of the Sprint Cup Series suit up for a 600-mile endurance race that would tests the likes of any man. This race can be even harder when you have already run at the Indy 500 like three drivers have done in the past.

The first driver to accomplish this feat was John Andretti in 1994. Andretti pulled double duty and wound up finishing 10th at Indy and 36th at Charlotte after losing an engine. Tony Stewart and Robby Gordon have also accomplished this feat with Stewart having faired the best of the three by finishing in the top five in both races in 2001.

This is a thing of the past now since the starting times of the Indy 500 and the Coca-Cola 600 have changed allowing no time for the drivers to fly back to Charlotte in time for the start of the race.

Tony Stewart is already off to a great start for this weekends 600 miler as he won his first career race as an owner-driver last weekend in the Sprint All-Star Race. Six drivers have won the All-Star Race and went on to win the Coca-Cola 600 the following week.

These drivers included Kasey Kahne, Jimmie Johnson, Jeff Gordon, Dale Earnhardt, Davey Allison, and Darrell Waltrip.

There is also a select group of drivers who have been luck enough to win the Coca-Cola 600 back to back. These drivers included the likes of Buddy Baker, Darrell Waltrip, Neil Bonnett, Dale Earnhardt, Jeff Gordon, and Jimmie Johnson who is the only driver to win three straight.

My predictions for the races this weekend are for Tony Kanaan to win the Indy 500. I also believe that Danica Patrick could pull the upset but I believe that Kanaan will pull it off after being denied victory so many times. My dark horse for the race is Mario Moraes who has been fast in all the practice sessions leading up to this weekends race.

Lastly, my surprise for the Indy 500 is John Andretti who proved that he has what it takes to race at Indianapolis even though he is 46 years of age.

Andretti can still get around Indy with the rest of those younger drivers and I believe he will have a fast car and stay out of trouble all day long. What is that famous quote, "In order to finish first, one must first finish."

My predictions for the Coca-Cola 600 are for Tony Stewart to win his first career points paying race as an owner-driver. For my dark horse I believe that Dale Earnhardt Jr. will finally put it all together and finish strong.

My surprise pick for the Coke 600 is Casey Mears who is a former winner of the 600-mile race and has pretty good equipment behind him at Richard Childress Racing.

Lastly, I just want to wish everyone a happy Memorial Day weekend and enjoy the cookouts and parties as well as spending time with family and friends.

Kurt Busch Wins In Dominating Fashion at Atlanta Motor Speedway

Samuel Sica — Sun, 08 Mar 2009 19:13:01 -0400

After a two week stretch out west, the Sprint Cup Series headed back to the east coast for the KOBALT Tools 500 at Atlanta Motor Speedway.

Mark Martin started from the pole, making him the second oldest pole sitter behind Harry Gant. This was also Martin's first pole since 2001.

The green flag waved over the field, but only for a brief period as the first yellow flag came out on lap 2 for Reed Sorenson pounding the wall in Turn One.

The race quickly restarted, and the lead changed hands shortly after as Kurt Busch passed Martin soon after the green flag waved.

Busch remained at the front of the field when the second yellow flag waved for a spin by Bobby Labonte on lap 12. The leaders took advantage of the early caution period, hitting pit road for fresh tires and fuel. Ryan Newman was first off pit road with the help of a two tire stop.

Newman’s two tires were no match for Kurt Busch's four fresh tires, as Busch took the lead shortly after the race restarted on lap 16. Busch remained at the head of the field until the first round of green flag pit stops began taking place around lap 60.

The race changed drastically during the green flag stops, as the third yellow flag of the race waved on lap 67 when a crew member on Marcos Ambrose’s car ran across pit road, toward the cars on the front stretch—retrieving a loose tire.

This caution period hurt a number of drivers, because a few of the leaders had not yet made their green flag stops. This trapped some drivers one or two laps behind the leader Busch.

Busch and the other six drivers—who had not yet made pit stops—hit pit road under the yellow flag, with Busch holding the lead after stops. Busch did not restart the race in the lead though, after having problems on pit road forced him to make another pit stop under the yellow.

The lead was handed over to Jimmie Johnson on the restart, Busch restarted sixth.

Johnson held the lead for a handful of laps until Carl Edwards passed him on lap 80 for the top spot.

Edwards continued as the leader, when another caution flag waved for Labonte’s second spin of the afternoon on lap 103. The leaders pitted again under the caution and Busch returned to the top of the lineup.

Busch continued to lead through a stretch of the race up until lap 203. During this stretch of the race, there were three separate cautions that halted the pace. The first was for fluid on the track on lap 157, the second for a blown motor on Ambrose’s machine on lap 184, and the third was for a crash involving Sam Hornish Jr. and Bill Elliott on lap 203.

Under each of these caution periods, the leaders came to pit road with Busch holding the lead after stops. That soon changed though, as Jeff Gordon beat Busch out of the pits on the previous caution period for the incident involving Hornish and Elliott.

Gordon continued to lead, when another caution flag waved for an incident involving Martin, who cut down a right rear tire on lap 215. The leaders hit pit again, with Gordon leading the way off pit road.

Gordon led a good chunk of the next green flag run, until Busch passed him for the lead once more on lap 250.

Shortly after Busch regained the lead, another caution flag waved for debris on lap 259. The leaders once again took advantage by coming down pit road for fresh tires and fuel, with Busch holding on to the lead after stops.

Shortly after the race restarted, the pace was soon slowed once more for a hard crash by both Greg Biffle and Scott Speed on lap 266.

The race soon resumed, and stayed under the green flag until the 11th—and final—caution flag of the race waved for a cut right front tire on Robby Gordon’s car.

This caution flag set up some dramatic pit stops, as drivers were low on fuel and had to stop for service to make sure they could make it to the finish. Tire wear also proved to be a key factor all race long so many drivers chose to take four tires and fuel.

However, two drivers chose to take just two tires and fuel, hoping that they could hold off the guys for the green-white-checkered restart and earn the victory.

Edwards won the race off pit road with the help of a two tire stop, and Martin Truex Jr. also only took two tires and restarted in fourth.

Edwards led the field down for the restart, but his lead was short lived, as Busch and Gordon flew by with their four fresh tires. Busch, Gordon, and Edwards had a great battle to the finish over the last two laps, but Busch proved to be the best on this day as he dominated all race long.

The top 15 finishers were: Busch, Gordon, Edwards, Kevin Harvick, Brian Vickers, Clint Bowyer, Kasey Kahne, Tony Stewart, Johnson, Truex Jr., Dale Earnhardt Jr., Matt Kenseth, Denny Hamlin, Jeff Burton, and Jamie McMurray.

Some notable finishes were: Kyle Busch in 18th, Newman in 22nd, Martin in 31st, Biffle in 34th, and Labonte in 40th position.

The top 12 in Sprint Cup points:

1. Jeff Gordon

2. Clint Bowyer

3. Kurt Busch

4. Carl Edwards

5. Matt Kenseth

6. Tony Stewart

7. Kyle Busch

8. Kevin Harvick

9. Kasey Kahne

10. Greg Biffle

11. Brian Vickers

12. David Reutimann

Kyle Busch Hits Jack Pot in Hometown of Vegas

Samuel Sica — Sun, 01 Mar 2009 20:50:52 -0500

The Sprint Cup Series headed to Las Vegas to test their luck this week and see if Matt Kenseth could make history by winning the first three races in a season.

The front two starting positions in the race were held by the home town boys of Kyle and Kurt Busch. This was only the third time in series history that brothers started from the top-two positions.

Unfortunately for Kyle, he had to drop to the back of the field at the start of the race after making an engine change. This moved everyone on the bottom row up, allowing Jimmie Johnson—who qualified third—to start from the pole position.

Johnson led the first lap of the Shelby 427, but the race soon came to a halt as the first caution flag waved on lap two for a spin by Brad Keselowski in Turn Two.

The race soon restarted, but quickly slowed once more for another yellow flag on lap seven, for a spin by Todd Bodine off Turn Two.

In addition to Bodine's issues, Matt Kenseth rolled snake eyes and had his engine blow, ending his day early.

Kenseth finished 43rd, doing so for only the second time in his career.

The race went green once more with Johnson leading the field.

Johnson continued to lead until the first set of green flag pit stops began around lap 50.

Johnson led the first 51 laps of the event, before hitting pit road for routine service.

During the round of green flag stops, Carl Edwards, Joey Logano, Kyle Busch, and Robby Gordon all took turns at the front of the field before making their pit stops.

Johnson regained the lead on lap 57, after pit stops cycled through and continued to lead until the third caution flag waved for debris on lap 60.

This set up another restart that was short lived, as another yellow waved for David Ragan’s blow engine on lap 72.

This allowed all the leaders to hit pit road. Kevin Harvick took fuel only and led the way off pit road.

Harvick led the field down for the restart, but his lead would be short lived as Greg Biffle passed him for the top spot on lap 85.

Biffle remained the leader as the fifth caution flag waved on lap 95 for a spin by David Stremme off Turn Two.

The leaders took advantage and hit pit road once more. Jeff Gordon came out first, but did not lead the field to the green flag, because Biffle and Mark Martin stayed out under the caution.

Biffle took the restart as the leader and continued to lead until the sixth caution flag waved on lap 123 for Martin blowing a motor.

This allowed all the leaders to hit pit road again, and Johnson came out in the lead with the help of a two tire stop.

After the race resumed, a couple of quick yellow flags slowed the pace once more.

The first yellow waved on lap 138 for a crash by Reed Sorenson on the backstretch, and the second yellow came out on lap 144 for a crash involving Aric Almirola and Kasey Kahne on the backstretch.

After the race restarted, Gordon mounted a charge and passed Johnson for the lead on lap 149.

Gordon continued to lead as the ninth caution flag waved over the field for a spin by Michael Waltrip on lap 164.

The leaders all hit pit road, and Jeff Burton came out in the lead after a two tire stop.

The race restarted, but was soon slowed again for a spin by Denny Hamlin on lap 171.

After this caution flag waved, the race restarted and stayed under the green flag until cars had to make green flag pit stops with about 70 laps remaining.

Some drivers were hit by bad luck as the caution flag waved just as green flag stops began. The yellow was brought out when Gordon blew a left front tire on his No. 24 Chevy.

The caution burned some drivers, but helped others who did not make their pit stop yet and got to do so under the yellow flag.

The leaders made their pit stops under the yellow, and Burton held the lead after pit stops.

Burton restarted as the leader, but soon lost the lead to Kyle Busch with 58 laps remaining.

The race stayed under the green flag for about 30 laps before another caution flag waved for debris with just 27 laps to go.

All the leaders hit pit road for the final time in the race, and Burton again came out first.

Burton would not be the leader, however, after teammate Clint Bowyer stayed out under the caution.

Bowyer led a handful of laps before eventually being passed by Busch for the lead with 17 laps remaining.

This proved to be the move of the race, as Busch cruised to his first victory at his home track.

The race did not stay caution free, however. During the final 17 laps, the yellow flag waved on two separate occasions.

The first yellow came out with 16 laps remaining for a crash involving Paul Menard on the front-stretch. The second yellow came out with just six laps remaining for a crash involving Johnson and Sam Hornish in Turn Two.

In addition to the two yellow flags in the last 20 laps, the final lap brought huge disappointment to Edwards, as he blew his engine taking the white flag.

Edwards was the third Roush Fenway car to suffer a blown engine, and finished 17th.

The top-10 finishers in the race were: Kyle Busch, Bowyer, Burton, David Reutimann, Bobby Labonte, Gordon, Biffle, Brian Vickers, Jamie McMurray, and Dale Earnhardt Jr.

Some notable finishes were: Kahne in 11th, Harvick in 12th, Logano in 13th, Hamlin in 22nd, Kurt Busch in 23rd, Johnson in 24th, Tony Stewart in 26th, Martin in 40th, Ragan in 42nd, and Kenseth in 43rd.

The top-12 in points are:

1. Jeff Gordon

2. Clint Bowyer

3. Matt Kenseth

4. Greg Biffle

5. DavidReutimann

6. Kyle Busch

7. Kurt Busch

8. Tony Stewart

9. Carl Edwards

10. Bobby Labonte

11. Kevin Harvick

12. Michael Waltrip

Greg Biffle: High Roller in the Wreck Fest of Las Vegas

Samuel Sica — Sat, 28 Feb 2009 20:54:30 -0500

The Nationwide Series headed to Viva Las Vegas for the third race of the 2009 season.

Scott Speed started his Nationwide Series career from the pole, making him the only ninth driver to do so. Speed would have a strong start, leading the first two laps of the event before Kevin Harvick passed him.

Harvick would lead until Lap 7 when Denny Hamlin spun exiting Turn Four. Hamlin would collected Brad Keselowski and Mike Bliss, but both drivers made repairs and continued on.

Over the next 20 laps, the caution flag waved three more times. Once again for the unlucky Brad Keselowski, who cut a tire and hit the wall in Turn Three, on Lap 16.

That caution was fallowed a multi-car incident on Lap 22 started by a loose Kyle Busch hoping to take the lead from Harvick. Busch ended up making hard contact with the Turn Four wall. Busch casualties would include Brendan Gaughan, David Ragan and third place Scott Speed.

The third caution flag, on Lap 27 was in response the rookie driver John Wes Townley's hard crash. The leaders all took advantage by hitting pit road for the first time. Greg Biffle taking only fuel made a notably fast pit stop. Mike Bliss stated out to gain the lead as he and nine other drivers had pitted under an earlier caution. Bliss would ultimately loss his lead to Harvick on Lap 48.

Harvick stayed at the head of the field for a handful of laps, but wouldn’t be able to hold off the hard charging Carl Edwards on Lap 56. Edwards remained the leader when the fifth yellow flag of the race waved over the field on Lap 66 for Scott Gaylord's blown tire coming out of Turn Two.

Harvick would use the restart to take the lead back from Edwards, but lose the lead to Edwards again, five laps later. However, on Lap 85 Bliss would go down a tire leading to yet another caution.

After the restart it become a yellow flag parade for a 14 lap stretch. The seventh yellow flag waved on Lap 91 for a crash involving yet another rookie Michael Annett as well as D.J. Kennington, and Robert Richardson.

Justin Allgaier would make his move on Edwards, quickly passing him, just before the eighth caution flag came out. Edwards cut a tire and spun out on the backstretch, sustaining no damage, but going a lap down.

The race barely began again when ninth yellow flag was waved for a big crash involving Jeff Burton, Kevin Harvick, Steve Wallace, David Green, Brandon Whitt, and Stanton Barrett.

Once the stretch of yellow fever passed, the race stayed under green flag conditions forcing the leaders to make green flag pit stops for the first time during the race. Biffle would lose his lead to a green flag stop on Lap 146. Giving the lead to Denny Hamlin, who like Biffle would have to surrender it to a green flag pit on Lap 154.

Unfortunately for Hamlin, he was penalized for speeding exiting pit road, forcing him to make a pass through penalty. However, during his pass through penalty, the overzealous Hamlin sped again, and had to make yet another pass through penalty. After Hamlin’s misfortunes, Brian Vickers would have similar problems when his crew missed a lug nut, forcing him to make a pass through penalty as well. The pitrow bad luck just keep coming as leader Gaughan, spun out entering pit road during his green flag stop.

Soon after this incident, another caution flag waved for a crash by leader Ragan, Lap 170. Biffle took full advantage of Ragan’s misfortunate going to the lead. Biffle would keep the lead through the next set of cautions. Biffle continued to lead during the next set of yellow flags, which included an accident which included Jason Keller on Lap 177, as well as Hamlin and Bliss on Lap 196.

The 12th and final caution of the race setup a dramatic green-white-checkered ending, on the restart, Edwards mounted one last charge heading down into Turn One. He got side by side with Biffle, but the high lane prevailed in the end, as Biffle held off Edwards for the victory.

The win was Biffle’s first victory in his last 77 starts in the Nationwide Series.

The top-10 finishers were: Biffle, Edwards, Vickers, Jason Leffler, Dale Earnhardt Jr., McDowell, Gaughan, Allgaier, Scott Lagasse, and Jeff Burton.

Some notable finishes included: Morgan Shepherd in 13th, Kenny Wallace in 14th, Joe Nemechek in 20th, Hamlin in 21st, Bliss in 22nd, Ragan in 26th, Brad Keselowski in 27th, Harvick in 29th, Busch in 39th, and Speed in 40th.

Matt Kenseth: California Dreaming after Back-to-Back Wins To Start 2009

Samuel Sica — Sun, 22 Feb 2009 22:53:00 -0500

Well race fans, after a great weekend to start the 2009 season at Daytona last week, the Sprint Cup Series headed west to California for the Auto Club 500.

Brian Vickers was scheduled to start on the front row with Jimmie Johnson, but after changing engines following practice, Vickers was forced to go to the tail end of the field.

The move allowed third-place starter Jamie McMurray the opportunity to start from the pole position when the green flag waved.

McMurray was given a gift, but he did not take advantage as Johnson took the lead shortly after the green flag flew. Johnson remained at the front of the field until lap 42, when rain brought out the second caution.

Kurt Busch beat Johnson to the line and took over the lead.

Busch restarted as the race leader, but was quickly passed by Johnson on lap 47. Johnson held the lead for a good chunk of the green flag run until his teammate, Jeff Gordon, took command on lap 78.

Gordon remained the leader just before the first set of green flag pit stops began around lap 85. When Gordon made his green flag stop, Greg Biffle and Carl Edwards both took advantage by staying out to lead a lap and gain five crucial bonus points.

After green flag stops cycled through, Gordon was back on point and continued to lead until the next set of green flag stops began to take place around lap 120.

During that round of pit stops, Biffle’s crew got the job done and got him out in front of Gordon to overtake the lead.

Shortly after the pit stops had cycled back through, the caution flag waved once again for rain on lap 141. The leaders hit pit road again, with Matt Kenseth getting out in first.

Kenseth led a short green flag run that was halted by another caution for rain on lap 169. The leaders came to pit road once more, with Kenseth’s crew helping its driver keep the lead.

The race stayed green for a while, with Kenseth remaining at the head of the field. Kenseth’s lead soon changed hands though, as Gordon was hungry to get the lead back on lap 195.

Gordon continued to lead until the fifth—and final—caution flag waved over the field for a hard crash involving Kevin Harvick on lap 207. Harvick pounded the Turn One wall after blowing an engine—ending NASCAR's longest streak of finishing a race running at 81 starts for Harvick.

This set up for the last round of pit stops, with Kenseth’s crew rising to the occasion once again to take back the lead from Gordon. This proved to be the move of the race, as Kenseth led the remaining laps under green to earn his second straight victory to start the 2009 season.

The win was Kenseth’s third at California, and he became the first driver since Gordon in 1997 to win the first two races to start a season.

The top 10 finishers were Kenseth, Gordon, Kyle Busch, Biffle, Kurt Busch, Denny Hamlin, Carl Edwards, Tony Stewart, Johnson, and Vickers.

Some notable finishers were Kasey Kahne in 12th, Michael Waltrip in 15th, Jamie McMurray in 16th, Clint Bowyer in 19th, Bobby Labonte in 20th, Joey Logano in 26th, Kevin Harvick in 38th, Dale Earnhardt Jr. in 39th, and Mark Martin in 40th position.

2009 Top-12 Driver Standings (after California)

1. Matt Kenseth
2. Jeff Gordon
3. Tony Stewart
4. Kurt Busch
5. Greg Biffle
6. Clint Bowyer
7. Michael Waltrip
8. David Ragan
9. Carl Edwards
10. Juan Pablo Montoya
11. Elliott Sadler
12. David Reutimann

Matt Kenseth Does Rain Dance in Rain-Shortened Daytona 500

Samuel Sica — Sun, 15 Feb 2009 21:26:34 -0500

Well race fans, it is February once more, which means that another race season is amongst us, as teams prepare for the annual running of the Daytona 500.

The 2009 season has brought many changes to the Sprint Cup Series with the new rules prohibiting teams from testing in the off-season. Every year teams prepare for the biggest race of the season at Daytona by testing in January. Due to the economic situation that our country is facing, NASCAR decided that it was best to ban testing for teams so they could save money.

Speedweeks are even more valuable then ever for teams to get vital information about how the track changes and how cars handle in the high speed drafts.

Speedweeks started off with a thrilling finish in the Bud Shootout as Kevin Harvick edged out Jamie McMurray on a last lap pass to earn the victory.

On the following day, cars took to the track to see who would start from the top two positions in the 500.

Martin Truex Jr. and Mark Martin would prove to have the fastest two cars in qualifying to earn the right to start from the front row in the 51stannual Daytona 500.

Later in the week, drivers had one last shot to qualify for the 500 in the duel races as four lucky drivers would race their way into the field.

Jeff Gordon and Kyle Busch proved to be too much for the competition by winning both of the two duel races.

The drivers who raced their way into the Daytona 500 field were Jeremy Mayfield, A. J. Allmendinger, Regan Smith, and Scott Riggs.

The field is finally set and it is time to pull those belts tight and let the engines roar for the start of the 2009 season at Daytona.

Martin Truex Jr. started from the pole position with Mark Martin, driving for Rick Hendrick, alongside in second. Martin is part of a dream team at Hendrick Motorsports that now includes Martin, Jeff Gordon, Jimmie Johnson, and Dale Earnhardt Jr.

As the green flag flew, Truex led the field down to lead the first lap but the lead soon changed hands as Martin led lap two and Kyle Busch took over the top spot to lead lap three.

It did not take long for the first caution flag of the race to come out, as Aric Almirola spun going into turn three on lap 7. Under the caution about half of the field came down pit road to change tires.

They were not allowed to take fuel under the caution since a competition yellow would wave over the field on lap 25 due to rain washing all the rubber off the track after the Nationwide Series race on Saturday.

Busch took the restart as the leader and led the race until the competition caution came out after lap 25. The leaders all took advantage by hitting pit road for fresh tires and fuel. Busch would hold onto the lead under the stops and led the field down for the restart on lap 31.

Busch would lead the race until lap 53 before being passed by Dale Earnhardt Jr. The lead would be short lived for Jr. as Tony Stewart passed him one lap later. Soon after. Stewart took the lead the third caution flag of the race waved over the field for Travis Kvapil cutting down a right front tire. The leaders hit pit road again with Stewart’s crew holding serve on the stops.

Shortly after the race restarted the lead would change hands once more as Jeff Gordon would take over the lead for the first time on lap 70. Gordon would continue to lead the race when another caution flag flew for a crash involving the 18-year-old rookie Joey Logano on lap 81. The leaders would come down pit road under the yellow with Busch regaining the lead once more.

Busch would lead the race for the entire green flag stretch before the next caution flag came out for David Stremme exploding a right rear tire entering pit road.

Before the caution flag came out, a number of drivers went a lap down due to making early green flag pit stops.

Those drivers included Jimmie Johnson, Brian Vickers, Juan Pablo Montoya, Scott Speed, Sam Hornish, and Jeff Gordon. Luckily for Gordon, he was the first car one lap down and received the free pass, allowing him to get back on the lead lap.

Under the caution flag, the leaders took advantage by heading down pit road with Busch having the best stop once more and holding the lead.

Also under the round of pit stops, Earnhardt Jr. made his pit stop with his right front tire out of his pit box and was penalized one lap. This would set up for one wild restart with many cars a lap down due to making green flag stops.

Elliott Sadler and Reed Sorenson led the field down for the restart since they had made their green flag pit stop just before the caution flag waved over the field, which allowed them to service their cars and beat the leaders out of the pits before getting lapped.

Shortly after the race resumed, it was quickly halted once more for what we like to call “The Big One” on lap 124. It all began when Brian Vickers blocked Earnhardt Jr. from making a pass on him down the backstretch.

Vickers sent Jr. down below the yellow line and when Jr. steered back up the track he got into Vickers left rear and sent him spinning in front of the entire field.

Involved in the accident were favorites to win the 500 including Kyle Busch, who led 88 laps before getting taken out in the accident, Denny Hamlin, and Jamie McMurray.

Also involved in the incident was Robby Gordon, Kurt Busch, Jimmie Johnson, Scott Speed, and Carl Edwards.

After an extensive clean up, the race was soon restarted with Sadler still at the head of the field. Sadler would continue to lead as the seventh caution flag flew for a crash involving Jeff Burton and Paul Menard on lap 137.

The next restart would prove to be the most crucial time in the race since there was word that rain was closing in on the Daytona area and since the race had passed the halfway point, it is an official race if it started to rain.

Just after the race restarted, Matt Kenseth finally made his move to the front by swinging out to pass Sadler for the lead in turn one.

This would prove to be the move of the race as the caution flag flew shortly after Kenseth made the pass for the lead on lap 145.

The caution flag was for another Almirola spin but this would allow Kenseth to earn his first Daytona 500 victory of his career.

The rain started to come down under the caution which put the race under a red flag situation to see if the rain would stop and they could dry the track. Soon after the red flag was displayed, the race was officially called and Matt Kenseth was declared the winner.

Kenseth only led a total of one green flag lap and with his rain shortened victory, Kenseth is among Michael Waltrip, Richard Petty, and Fred Lorenzen as the only four drivers to win a rain shortened Daytona 500.

The top 20 finishers were:

Matt Kenseth
Kevin Harvick
A. J. Allmendinger
Clint Bowyer
Elliott Sadler
David Ragan
Michael Waltrip
Tony Stewart
Reed Sorenson
Kurt Busch
Martin Truex Jr.
David Reutimann
Jeff Gordon
Juan Pablo Montoya
Casey Mears
Mark Martin
Marcos Ambrose
Carl Edwards
John Andretti
Greg Biffle

Drama Filled Finish in Opening Race at Daytona For Nationwide Series

Samuel Sica — Sat, 14 Feb 2009 16:59:05 -0500

The Nationwide Series kicked things of with a bang on Valentine’s Day at Daytona with plenty of action throughout the event.

Kevin Harvick had the best seat in the house as the green flag flew by starting from the pole position in the Camping World 300 with Matt Kenseth starting along side in second.

Harvick managed to lead the first lap of the race but was soon passed by Kenseth on lap two for the lead. Kenseth would manage to have a little more success than Harvick did leading the field as he led the race until lap 17 before Clint Bowyer managed to muscle passed.

Bowyer would take a turn at the front of the field for a few laps before relinquishing the lead over to Tony Stewart on lap 22. Stewart would remain the leader as the first caution flag of the race flew for debris on the backstretch on lap 27.

Under the caution flag the leaders took advantage by hitting pit road for some much needed tires and fuel. Harvick’s crew did their job by getting him out in front of Stewart and regaining the lead.

Harvick would lead the field to the restart but would soon be passed by Stewart shortly after the green flag flew. Stewart and Greg Biffle would swap the lead between laps 35 and 37 until Stewart managed to push by Biffle and regain the lead. Stewart would hold the lead for a while until Kyle Busch fought his way to the front for the first time in the race on lap 49.

Busch’s lead would be short lived though as Bowyer captured the lead once more on lap 53. Bowyer would remain at the front of the field when the second caution flag flew for a spin by Brian Keselowski off turn 4 on lap 56.

This would allow all the lead lap cars to hit pit road again under caution for service with Busch having the best stop and gaining the lead back for the restart.

Busch would stay at the head of the field for quite a few laps before finally relinquishing the lead over to Brad Keselowski on lap 68. Shortly after Keselowski took over the top spot, another caution flag waved for a three car incident on the backstretch involving Steve Wallace, Jason Leffler, Scott Lagasse, and Justin Allgaier.

Leffler turned Wallace going into turn three sending him up into the wall collecting Lagasse and Allgaier who were innocent victims. As a result of Leffler’s behavior on the track, NASCAR officials ruled that Leffler was to aggressive and penalized him five laps for rough driving.

During this caution period the leaders would once again hit pit road for service with Jason Keller getting out first. Keller would lead the field down for the restart but was soon passed by Bowyer again on lap 79.

The caution flag came out once more on lap 81 for a blown right front tire on Kenny Hendrick’s machine which bunched the field up for a fantastic 35 lap sprint to the finish.

Shortly after the raced restarted, another caution flag came out for a spin involving Mike Bliss and Michael Waltrip on lap 87. Most of the leaders decided to stay out under the caution but a few takers including Stewart, Keller, and Carl Edwards hit pit road for some fresh rubber.

Bowyer would lead the field on the restart but was soon passed by Brian Vickers on lap 96 for his first time leading during the race. Vickers would hold the lead until the late laps when Edwards mounted a charge and passed him with just 15 laps remaining.

Edwards continued to hang on to the lead when the sixth and final caution flag flew for debris from Brad Keselowski’s blown right front tire with 11 laps to go. Under the caution almost every lead lap car came down pit road for fresh tires except for Edwards, Stewart, Bowyer, Keller, and David Reutimann.

This set up for some thrilling action in the last 8 laps as Stewart pushed his way past Edwards on the backstretch for the lead with just 7 laps remaining. Everyone was jockeying for positions in the final few laps with Stewart some how managing to defend his lead.

Stewart remained the leader on last lap with Busch running right up behind him going into turn three. Busch managed to get up right on Stewart’s rear end giving him a little bump to try and force him up the track but this move was to no avail as Stewart managed to collect his car and drive his way to victory.

This victory marks Stewart’s fourth win at Daytona in February and his first for owner Rick Hendrick. The race included 19 lead changes with 11 different drivers taking a turn at the front of the field.

The top ten finishers were Stewart, Edwards, Bowyer, Busch, Biffle, Vickers, Dale Earnhardt Jr., David Ragan, Keller, and Kenseth. Some notable finishers were Harvick in 11th, Reutimann in 12th, Joe Nemechek in 13th, Kenny Wallace in 16th, Mike Wallace in 19th, Joey Logano in 20th, Brad Keselowski in 22nd, Waltrip in 24th, and Bliss in 28th position.

The Nationwide Series is off to a thunderous start and we can only hope that the Sprint Cup Series starts off the same way in the Daytona 500.

Gentleman Start Your Engines: The 2009 Sprint Cup Season Has Officially Begun

Samuel Sica — Sun, 08 Feb 2009 18:20:06 -0500

It was a wonderful thing to finally hear the roar of the engines Friday night as the Sprint Cup cars took to the track on the high banks of Daytona for Bud Shootout practice. This was the first time that any of the drivers got to practice at Daytona since NASCAR did away with preseason testing this off-season to try and save teams money due to the economic crisis.

The 2009 season started off with a bang in the Bud Shootout, which was a race for drivers and owners of the top six in each car manufacturer’s standings. The race included a record setting field of 28 drivers and also set a record for most cautions and most leaders in the annual preseason race.

The race all came down to a green-white-checkered situation where Jamie McMurray was eventually overaken by Kevin Harvick on a last-lap pass going into turn three.

Harvick had just taken the lead away from McMurray before a big crash involving Denny Hamlin, Casey Mears, Kyle Busch, Brian Vickers, and three-time Cup champion Jimmie Johnson.

This accident froze the field, which meant Harvick earned the victory since he was leading at the time the caution came out.

The top-five finishers were: Harvick, McMurray, Tony Stewart, Jeff Gordon, and A.J. Allmendinger.

If the Bud Shootout is a preview for what is to come later on this week in Speedweeks, then we are in for a heck of a show for Thursday's Duel races and the Daytona 500.

Saturday night’s Bud Shootout was just a race for bragging rights and extra cash, but Sunday is much more important to the drivers and teams as they try to qualify for the top two positions in the Daytona 500.

Many cars proved to be fast in qualifying trim, but two drivers just had a little more speed than everyone else Sunday afternoon. Mark Martin ran an early lap of 47.919 seconds (187.817 mph), which put him atop of the chart for most of the session.

Martin was challenged on numerous occasions, but no one could break through and top his number.

Eventually though, Martin Truex Jr. put down a fantastic lap of 47.872 seconds (188 mph), putting him as the provisional pole sitter.

Truex stayed at the top of the charts after one of the favorites for the pole, Bill Elliott, could not quite muster enough to take the position away. Elliott, who had the best time in both practice sessions Saturday, qualified in the fifth position, earning himself a spot in the Daytona 500 field.

Elliott, driving for the Wood Brothers team, was not in the top 35 in owner’s points and had to either have one of the top three qualifying times Sunday or race his way into the field in one of the two Duel races that sets the Daytona 500 field.

The three drivers that were outside of the top 35 in owner points that qualified for the Daytona 500 were Elliott, Travis Kvapil and Tony Stewart.

Stewart, qualifying for the race on time, meant that a spot was available for a past champion if they were not already qualified. This allowed Terry Labonte, the 1996 Cup champion, an automatic spot into the Daytona 500 field.

After Sunday’s qualifying session, we now know who will be starting on the front row and who will have to race their way into the field in Thursday's Duel races.

Truex will start on the pole for the second time in his career and Martin will start along side for the first time in the Daytona 500.

We also know that four more drivers were added to the 35 drivers who were already locked into the field due to being in the top 35 in owner points from last season. That only leaves two more questions before the field is set for the Daytona 500.

Who will fill the last four available positions in the field and where will everyone else start for the race?

My predictions for who will race their way into the Daytona 500 in the Duel races are: Regan Smith, A.J. Allmendinger, Joe Nemecheck, and Mike Wallace. These are just four of the 17 drivers that are competing for the four remaining positions in the field.

If my predictions are correct, then Brad Keselowski, Kirk Shelmerdine, Scott Riggs, Geoff Bodine, Derrike Cope, Carl Long, Kelly Bires, Jeremy Mayfield, Tony Raines, Mike Garvey, Norm Benning, Mike Skinner, and Boris Said would all end up missing the show.

My prediction for the Daytona 500 is for Dale Earnhardt Jr. to once again visit Victory Lane for the second time in the 500 and start his season off on the right foot.

Super Bowl XLIII Preview: Arizona Cardinals vs. Pittsburgh Steelers

Samuel Sica — Mon, 19 Jan 2009 11:59:03 -0500

We’ve finally figured out which two teams will be playing in Super Bowl XLIII in Tampa Bay.

For one team, it is no surprise that they have once again achieved greatness, but for the other, it is amazing that they are playing in the big game after a horrific loss to New England over a month ago.

The Pittsburgh Steelers have once again proved to be a powerhouse in the NFL by making it to their seventh Super Bowl in team history. Pittsburgh has achieved great success this season by having one of the toughest schedules in the league, yet the team still won the AFC North division as well as the AFC Championship.

The Arizona Cardinals on the other hand, have exceeded expectations as they are making their first Super Bowl appearance in franchise history. Before the Cardinals ended the season with a 9-7 record, Arizona had only one other winning season.

Arizona has proven that they are not the same old Cardinals that you can beat up over and over again. In two weeks, they will have the opportunity to show the whole nation what they are made of.

Both teams have been on different tracks throughout the season but they each seem to been on the same wavelengths as of now.

The Pittsburgh Steelers have dominated opponents so far with the help of their bruising, No. 1 ranked defense. In the AFC Championship game against the Baltimore Ravens, both defenses kept the game close until the final minutes. The score was 16-14 in favor of Pittsburgh with just under five minutes remaining in the game.

The Ravens had just received the ball after a Pittsburgh three-and-out situation where they were forced to punt. After Pittsburgh’s defense held the Ravens to a third-and-long situation, the Steelers planned to use their top-ranked defense to attack Ravens quarterback Joe Flacco.

The pressure proved to be too much for Flacco, who made a rookie mistake by forcing a pass that was intercepted by Troy Polamalu. Polamalu returned the interception for a touchdown to seal the deal for the Steelers.

Flacco has nothing to be ashamed of after losing to the Steelers because without him, the Ravens would not have made it to the AFC Championship game in the first place. Flacco exceeded expectations this season and will improve over time to be a great quarterback in the near future.

This postseason, Pittsburgh has beaten the San Diego Chargers and their high-scoring offense by a score of 35-24 and the Ravens with their lock down defense by a score of 23-14. The Steelers are led this postseason by quarterback Ben Roethlisberger, who has thrown for 436 yards with two touchdowns and zero interceptions.

Roethlisberger is also completing more than half of his passes at a rate of 55.9 percent.

The Pittsburgh running game has been amazing thanks to running back Willie Parker this postseason. Parker has accumulated 51 rushes for 193 yards and two touchdowns. Parker was the heart and soul of the Pittsburgh offense in their victory over the Chargers after rushing for 146 yards with two touchdowns.

On the receiving end of the ball, the Steelers have been led by wide receiver Hines Ward who has had seven receptions for 125 yards thus far. Other favorite targets of Roethlisberger include wide receiver Santonio Holmes, who has four receptions for 95 yards with a touchdown and tight end Heath Miller, who has six receptions for 99 yards and a touchdown.

Never the less, we all know where the real heart and soul of the Pittsburgh Steelers lies—their defense. James Farrior leads the team in total tackles during the post season with 18 while LaMarr Woodley leads the team in sacks with four.

Pittsburgh’s defense has piled up a total of seven sacks with four interceptions so far during the playoffs and I’m sure they will add to those totals in the Super Bowl.

As for the Arizona Cardinals, few expected them to have the success they have achieved by getting to the big game. With the help of a veteran quarterback and all-pro wide receivers, the Cardinals are definitely a force to be reckoned with for the championship title.

Head coach Ken Whisenhunt has done a superb job in turning around Arizona’s franchise as he is taking the team to its first ever Super Bowl appearance in only his second season as head coach. The Cardinals also have quarterback Kurt Warner to thank for his veteran leadership and experience throughout the regular season and postseason.

During the regular season, Warner threw for 4,583 yards with 30 touchdowns and just 14 interceptions. Warner also had one of the best completion percentages in the league at 67.1 percent. The Cardinals also had three great receivers with over 1,000 receiving yards this season in Larry Fitzgerald, Anquan Boldin, and Steve Breaston.

Fitzgerald led the team with 96 receptions for 1,431 yards and 12 touchdowns while Boldin accumulated 89 receptions for 1,038 yards with 11 touchdowns. Breaston has had 77 receptions for 1,006 yards and three touchdowns.

These players have proved that this season was not a fluke by putting up record numbers throughout the playoffs. Warner has started where he left off during the regular season by passing for 770 yards with eight touchdowns and just two interceptions.

Warner also has a completion percentage just slightly below his season average, at 66.3 percent.

Not to be outdone, Fitzgerald has 23 receptions to his credit for a record setting 419 yards in the playoffs with five touchdowns. Boldin has also put up respectable numbers after only playing in two postseason games so far with six receptions for 106 yards and a touchdown.

The dark horse for Arizona’s offense is running back Tim Hightower. Hightower has played a key role in the Cardinals air attack with two receptions for touchdowns, one being an eight-yard scamper that put the Cardinals up a touchdown over Philadelphia, which earned them a spot in the Super Bowl.

The rushing attack has also proved key during the post season for the Cardinals with running back Edgerrin James rushing for 203 yards and Hightower rushing for 132 yards. In all three of Arizona’s playoff victories, their leading rusher for the game has had at least 70 yards rushing.

Arizona is also playing much better on the defensive side of the ball shutting down the oppositions rushing attack.

The Cardinals defense has played very well throughout the playoffs compiling eight total interceptions and seven total sacks. Karlos Dansby leads the team in total tackles with 23 while Adrian Wilson, Bertrand Berry, and Antonio Smith all have two sacks to their credit.

Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie and Ralph Brown lead the team in interceptions with half of the team’s total interceptions.

Arizona has played brilliantly so far this post season and look to keep it going through the Super Bowl. To get to the big game, the Cardinals have beaten Atlanta in a 30-24 upset, Carolina in a 33-13 romping, and Philadelphia in a close game, 32-25.

It seems to me that the key to an Arizona victory over Pittsburgh in the Super Bowl will be if they can score at least 30 points. So far this postseason, Arizona has scored over 30 points in each game and held the opposing offenses in check.

Super Bowl XLIII between Arizona and Pittsburgh is sure to be one for the ages as a high-powered offense takes on a shutdown defense.

The key to the game for Arizona will be if they can consistently move the ball down the field and get some kind of points in return, whether it is a field goal or a touchdown. Arizona must also do what they have done best with stopping the oppositions rushing attack and some how create turnovers.

If Arizona can accomplish this, they will beat the Steelers and win their first ever Super Bowl.

Pittsburgh, on the other hand, will have to stop the Cardinals on offense and put pressure on Warner. When Warner can sit in the pocket, he is most dangerous. When he has to scramble to avoid pressure, he is at his most vulnerable. Pittsburgh must also hold on to the ball and not turn the ball over.

Arizona has feasted on teams when they turn the ball over during the playoffs so Pittsburgh must keep their turnovers to a minimum.

My prediction for the Super Bowl is that Arizona will come out victorious over Pittsburgh and show the Steelers that their offense is no match for the No. 1 ranked defense in the league. Arizona has earned the right to compete in the biggest game in sports history and Pittsburgh will indeed be in for the fight of their lives.

AFC Championship Preview: Baltimore Ravens vs. Pittsburgh Steelers

Samuel Sica — Mon, 12 Jan 2009 18:43:59 -0500

After two weeks of playoff match ups in the books, four teams have proven to be relentless in their pursuit towards a Super Bowl Title. The Arizona Cardinals, Philadelphia Eagles, Baltimore Ravens, and Pittsburgh Steelers all have the talent and abilities necessary to win this weekends NFC/AFC Championship games and advance to the Super Bowl. The question that will soon be answered this weekend is who will end up victorious and represent their respected conferences in the Super Bowl.

The NFC Championship game between the Philadelphia Eagles and the Arizona Cardinals has all the makings of a great offensive shootout while the AFC Championship game between the Baltimore Ravens and the Pittsburgh Steelers proves to be another classic battle between two great defenses.

The game that I am going to take an in-depth preview of though is between the Ravens and the Steelers. This game is set up to be a wild one since this will be the third time that these teams will have faced each other this season.

Way back in week four of the season, the Ravens traveled out to Pittsburgh for a Monday night showdown to see who was the supreme powerhouse in the AFC North. As advertised, the game proved to be a physical battle that came down to the wire and needed to be settled in over time. The Steelers ended up victorious that night with the help of a Jeff Reed 46-yard field goal.

The game was tight throughout and seemed to be going Baltimore’s way most of the night until a key moment that swung the momentum in Pittsburgh favor. Baltimore’s rookie quarterback Joe Flacco was having a great night throwing for 192 yards and a touchdown but Flacco was stripped of the ball towards the end of the third quarter by the defensive player of the year James Harrison.

This would prove to be the play of the game as the fumble was recovered by Pittsburgh’s LaMarr Woodley and returned for a touchdown.

During week 15, the Ravens were out for vengeance as the Steelers came to town for another grudge match between two bitter rivals. This game was set up to be a defensive struggle between the leagues two best defenses. Pittsburgh had the number one defense at the time with Baltimore either second or third in every major defensive category.

The game lived up to its expectations as the Ravens held a 9-6 lead late into the fourth quarter but Pittsburgh would get the ball back with one last chance to drive down the field and either tie or win the game in regulation. Pittsburgh started the drive at their own eight yard line and with the help of a 12 play drive, drove down the field and scored a touchdown with under a minute remaining in the game.

The drive was not without controversy though as the referees reviewed the touchdown for quite some time in order to make the right decision. This game had big playoff aspirations as well due to the fact that both teams, with a victory, could end up winning the AFC North and earning a first round bye in the playoffs instead of earning a fifth or sixth seed in the playoffs as a wild card.

The touchdown pass from Roethlisberger to Holmes ended a 12-play drive with Roethlisberger completing seven out of his 11 passes and sealing another division championship for the Steelers.

In my opinion, I believe that Baltimore was cheated out of a victory over Pittsburgh with the help of the referees giving Pittsburgh the touchdown that put the Steelers ahead. The ruling on the field was that the receiver did not have the ball break the plane of the end zone, which essentially placed the ball just shy of the goal line.

I did not see enough inconclusive evidence that would force me to believe that the ball broke the plane of the end zone giving the Steelers a touchdown and the lead. This would have put the ball just shy of the goal line leaving Pittsburgh with a tough decision to make on fourth down and goal with the game on the line.

This weekend is something that Baltimore has looked forward to for the past month. The Ravens are out for redemption after losing two close games they feel should have been victories in their favor. This game is set up to be another defensive showdown with the most physical team ending up victorious in my book.

This might very well be the most physical game between any two teams in NFL history. It is no secret that these two teams do not like each other very much so be prepared for a battle down to the very last second.

It is very difficult for a team to win three straight games over an opponent so I expect the Ravens to come out ready to fight and upset the Steelers at home on Sunday night. The Ravens will emphasize on weaknesses that the Chargers proved evident and beat the Steelers at their own game.

AFC Divisional Playoff Preview: San Diego Chargers vs. Pittsburgh Steelers

Samuel Sica — Mon, 05 Jan 2009 12:56:48 -0500

In last weekend’s Wild Card games, Arizona, San Diego, Baltimore, and Philadelphia all advanced proving to the nation that they have what it takes to be successful in this league.

This weekend’s slate of games are sure to be exciting but the most intriguing match up, in my opinion, is between the San Diego Chargers and the Pittsburgh Steelers.

Pittsburgh enters the playoffs as the second seed after finishing with a 12-4 record and Champions of the AFC North. San Diego on the other hand, faced a must win game two weeks ago against the Denver Broncos in order to get into the playoffs as the NFC West Champions. The Chargers had no problems defeating the Broncos and winning the division over Denver due to the fact that San Diego had a better conference record.

The Chargers entered the playoffs as the fourth seed after winning their respective division at a five hundred record of 8-8. This would set up another memorable match up between the fifth seed Indianapolis Colts and the fourth seed San Diego Chargers.

The Chargers would once again prove to be too much for the Colts as the Chargers won in overtime off a Darren Sproles 22-yard touchdown run making the final score 23-17. Sproles proved to be the difference maker after rushing for 105 yards and two touchdowns.

San Diego is one of the hottest teams playing as of now winning five straight games including their playoff victory. The Chargers will definitely be ready to go against the Steelers this weekend with the key match up being the Charger offense against the Steeler defense. The Chargers offense this season has scored an average of 27.4 points per game which ranks second in the league and eleventh in total yardage per game at 349.

On the other side of the ball, the Steelers defense ranks as the best in the league. Pittsburgh ranks first in points allowed per game at 13.9, yards per game at 237.2, and passing yards per game at 156.9. They also rank second in the league in rushing yards allowed per game at 80.2. If San Diego is going to win, they must be able to move the ball effectively through the air and keep their turnovers to a minimum.

The Chargers can not afford to turn the ball over since they are playing in the cold weather of Pittsburgh and points might be hard to come by.

The Pittsburgh Steelers are led by quarterback Ben Roethlisberger who has thrown for 3,301 yards at a completion percentage of 59.9 with 17 touchdowns thrown and 15 interceptions. Roethlisberger should be ready to go in this weekend’s game after suffering a concussion two weeks ago in their season finale against the Cleveland Browns. For some unknown reason, Roethlisberger was still playing quarterback halfway through the game.

There was no reason for him to still be playing due to the fact that Pittsburgh had already locked up the AFC North and they were guaranteed the second seed in the playoffs. The Steelers had nothing to gain and they risked injuring their star player for no reason at all. Luckily for the Steelers, the injury was not serious and Roethlisberger should be the starting quarterback come game time.

The Steelers running attack is led by Willie Parker who has 210 rushes on the season for 791 yards and five touchdowns. The Steelers also use Mewelde Moore in the running game, which has proven to be just as effective. Moore has accumulated 140 rushes on the season for 588 yards and five touchdowns.

On the receiving end of the ball, the Steelers are led by no other than Hines Ward who led the team in receptions with 81 for 1,043 yards and seven touchdowns. Santonio Holmes is next in line with 55 receptions for 821 yards and five touchdowns. Heath Miller, the tight end, has also played a key role in the Pittsburgh offense catching 48 passes for 514 yards and three touchdowns during the season.

But the real strength of the Pittsburgh Steelers lies in their defense and one of their big play makers in Troy Polamalu. The Steeler defense has a total of 20 interceptions and 51 sacks on the season. Troy Polamalu leads the team in interceptions with 7 while James Farrior leads the team in total tackles with 133.

James Harrison and LaMarr Woodley have combined for 28 total sacks, which is more than half of the team total for sacks. The Steelers defense has proven to be the dominate force in the NFL this season and if they play up to their potential they should have no problem against the San Diego Chargers.

The Chargers on the other hand, have proved that they belong in the playoffs after winning their final four regular season games and the AFC West division championship. The Chargers also proved to all the critics that they belong in the playoffs despite their mediocre record by beating the Indianapolis Colts in overtime last weekend.

San Diego is led by quarterback Philip Rivers who has thrown for 4,009 yards at a 65.3% completion percentage with 34 touchdowns and just 11 interceptions. Rivers will need to be on his game and not force passes against the Steelers defense if the Chargers have any chance of winning.

LaDainian Tomlinson leads the Chargers running attack with 292 rushes for 1,110 yards and 11 touchdowns. The Chargers will also use Darren Sproles from time to time to give LT a breather during the game. Sproles has a total of 61 rushes for 330 yards and one touchdown for the season. Sproles also helped led the Chargers on to victory after running for 105 yards with two touchdowns in their Wild Card win over the Colts.

The Chargers are very balanced on the receiving side of the ball with three receivers having over 50 receptions during the season. Antonio Gates leads the team in receptions with 60 for 704 yards and 8 touchdowns while Vincent Jackson is a close second with 59 receptions for 1,098 yards and 7 touchdowns. Tomlinson also has over 50 receptions with 52 for 426 yards and one touchdown. Chris Chambers, Malcom Floyd, and Darren Sproles have also combined for 89 receptions and 14 touchdowns.

On the defensive side of the ball, the Chargers are not very strong but have been playing just as well as anyone in the league as of late. Eric Weddle leads the team in tackles with 127 while Shaun Phillips and Jyles Tucker have combined for 14 of San Diego’s 28 total sacks. Stephen Cooper leads the team in interceptions with four while Antonio Cromartie and Antoine Cason each have two interceptions and a touchdown.

If this game is anything like the game during week 11 between these two teams then we are in store for a real treat. In week 11, these two teams faced each other in a very low scoring game. The Steelers came out victorious by a score of 11-10 with the help of three field goals by kicker Jeff Reed. Late in the game, the Steelers moved the ball down the field, which set up a 32-yard field goal for Reed who put Pittsburgh ahead with just 15 seconds remaining.

Pittsburgh may have the advantage on paper, but I believe that the San Diego "Super" Chargers have what it takes to get the victory in Pittsburgh. The Chargers are hot right now and I’m calling another San Diego victory this weekend. The Charger offense will prove to be too strong for the Pittsburgh defense and the Charger will be well on their way to the Super Bowl.

Dolphins-Ravens: AFC Wild-Card Preview

Samuel Sica — Wed, 31 Dec 2008 14:35:13 -0500

The playoffs are finally amongst us as we enter the New Year, with eight teams battling to advance into the next round. The most interesting game, in my opinion, will be the Baltimore Ravens against the Miami Dolphins.

Both teams ended up with records at 11-5, going 4-2 in division play. Both teams are also coming off poor performances last season, finishing last in their respected divisions.

This season turned out to be great for both the Ravens and Dolphins in more ways than one. Last season, the Dolphins had the worst record in the NFL, going 1-15 with their lone win coming against the Ravens. Miami made some key offseason moves that have proved to be the difference as they have gone from worst to first in only a year’s time.

The Dolphins are the AFC East Champions and have earned the third seed in the playoffs. The Dolphins' last playoff game was against no other than the Ravens in 2001. The Dolphins ended up losing that playoff game at home by a score of 20-3.

The Ravens, on the other hand, have also made great strives since last season. Baltimore earned the sixth and final playoff spot after finishing second in the AFC North only behind the Pittsburgh Steelers.

The Ravens, much like the Dolphins, have turned many heads this season with their many accomplishments. Baltimore took a chance on a rookie quarterback by the name of Joe Flacco out of Delaware to lead them this season along with their first year head coach in John Harbaugh.

Flacco has exceeded expectations this season by throwing for 2,971 yards with 14 touchdown passes and 12 interceptions. Flacco has definitely proven that he has what it takes to be a great NFL quarterback in the near future.

Baltimore also has a very dynamic rushing attack with Le’Ron McClain and Willis McGahee. McClain has rushed for 902 yards with 10 touchdowns while McGahee has rushed for 671 yards with seven touchdowns. The Ravens are led in receiving by Derrick Mason who has 80 receptions for 1,037 yards and five touchdowns along with Mark Clayton who has 41 receptions for 695 yards with three touchdowns.

The key to Baltimore’s success though lies in their defense. The Ravens' defense once again ranks in the top two or three in all categories making them tough all a round. Baltimore’s defense is led by Ed Reed who leads the team in interceptions with nine and Terrell Suggs who leads the team in sacks with eight.

The Dolphins' defense is no slouch either, led by Joey Porter, who leads the team in sacks with 18, out of Miami’s 40 total sacks. They are also led by Andre’ Goodman, who leads the team with five interceptions out of Miami’s 18 total interceptions.

Miami’s real strength though is in their ability to run the ball effectively. When Miami is running the ball well, it sets up for Chad Pennington and the passing game.

Pennington is one of the feel-good stories of the year after he was released from the New York Jets shortly before the season started. Miami, who has been lost over the years at the quarterback position, took a chance on Pennington, who has the skills and experience to get the job done but lacks the arm strength to throw the deep ball with effectiveness.

Pennington has overcome a lot this season after being dumped by the Jets for Brett Favre. But it was Pennington who had the last laugh in New York as he came back to town to defeat his old team in the last week of the season to put Miami back in the playoffs as the AFC East Champions.

Pennington has had an outstanding season throwing for 3,653 yards with 19 touchdown passes and just seven interceptions. He also has a completion percentage of 67.4 making him on of the most accurate passers in the league.

Miami is also led by their running attack made up of Ronnie Brown and Ricky Williams. Brown has rushed for 916 yards with 10 touchdowns while Williams has rushed for 659 yards with four touchdowns to his credit.

The Dolphins' receiving corps is also very well balanced, with Ted Ginn Jr., Greg Camarillo, Davone Bess, and Anthony Fasano. Ginn leads the team in receptions with 56 as well as yardage with 790. Just behind Ginn were Camarillo who had 55 receptions for 613 yards along with Bess who had 54 receptions for 554 yards.

Leading the team in receiving touchdowns is Anthony Fasano, who has seven to his credit, along with 34 receptions for 454 yards. As you can see, Miami spreads the ball evenly throughout which makes them a threat on every play.

I believe that Miami will come out ready to play on their home field in front of their home crowd and take it to Baltimore. My prediction is that Miami will win the game by a score of 24-16.

Do not forget that these two teams already played each other during the regular season, with Baltimore victorious over Miami by a score of 27-13.

The Ravens managed to hold the Dolphins rushing attack to just 71 total yards in that game which essentially dismantled Miami’s whole game plan. The key play in the game was off a defensive score as Terrell Suggs picked off Pennington and ran it back for a touchdown.

Miami and Baltimore are two completely different teams than they were back in Week Seven, so I expect both teams to play their hearts out and leave everything on the field. My gut feeling though is that Miami will prevail on the back of Pennington and their rushing attack.

No.21 Ohio State Buckeyes Win Nail Biter Against Butler Bulldogs

Samuel Sica — Sat, 13 Dec 2008 07:21:18 -0500

After beating two ranked teams in Miami, FL, and Notre Dame last week, the Ohio State Buckeyes were faced with another formidable opponent in the Butler Bulldogs. Butler is 8-0 coming into the game against the Buckeyes with Ohio State at 5-0. This game was set up to be a good old fashion shootout between two undefeated teams.

Ohio State leads the all time series with 30 wins to Butlers' nine. These two teams met last season with the Bulldogs coming from a half time deficit to beat the Buckeyes by 19 points.

Butler, so far this season, averages nine three=pointers, 11.5 turnovers, and allows 55.2 points a game. Ohio State, on the other hand, averages 12.2 turnovers, force 16 turnovers, and only allows 50 points a game.

The game started out very sloppy with both teams turning the ball over six times in the first eight minutes. Altogether, Butler had 12 turnovers while Ohio State had 11 during the first half. At the end of the first half the score was 29-23 in favor of the Buckeyes.

Ohio States top scorers in the first half were David Lighty with seven points, B.J. Mullens with six points, and Evan Turner and Jeremie Simmons with five points a piece. Gordon Hayward and Matt Howard combined for 20 of the Bulldogs 23 first half points. Hayward had 14 points alone with 12 of those coming off three-point shots.

Butler shot a dismal 35 percent from the field in the first half while Ohio State managed to shoot 50 percent from the field.

As the second half began, the Buckeyes managed to open up a 13-point lead over the Bulldogs after leading at the half by only six. Butler would hang in there though keeping the game to around a seven to nine point deficit.

Butler managed to hang in the game for two reasons: Ohio State shooting poorly from the foul line and of the great play by Gordon Hayward. Ohio State ended up making just 16 of 28 free throw attempt in the game while Butler managed to shoot 13 of 15 from the foul line. Gordon Hayward also played a major role leading all scorers in the game with 25 points. Hayward scored 21 of his 25 points from three-point range. Butler ended the game 8-21 from three-point land while Ohio State was just 4-14 in three point attempts.

The game began to tighten when Hayward made his seventh three point shot to tie the game at 51 with just 3:38 remaining. The game remained tied after both teams missed easy opportunities to take the lead. Eventually, Evan Turner drove down the lane and scored to put the Buckeyes up by two with just minutes remaining.

Both teams struggled down the stretch but with just seconds left, Dallas Lauderdale, of Ohio State, was fouled and sent to the line. Lauderdale made one of his two shots putting the Buckeyes up by three with under a minute remaining. Butler moved the ball quickly down court but missed a three point shot, which handed the ball right back over to Ohio State.

The Buckeyes had the ball with about 38 seconds left in the game but unfortunately for them, Evan Turner missed a shot that would have put the Buckeyes up by five with under ten seconds remaining. Butler now had possession with just 9.7 seconds left on the clock. The Bulldogs needed a three pointer to send the game into overtime so naturally, they put the ball into the hands of their star Gordon Hayward. The opportunity was there but Hayward missed the three as time expired.

The Final score was 54-51 in favor of Ohio State. This puts the Buckeyes at a mark of 6-0 while the Bulldogs fall from the undefeated at 8-1.

My players of the game for Ohio State were Evan Turner who scored 14 points with five rebounds and Dallas Lauderdale who had eight points, seven rebounds, and four blocks as well as Gordon Hayward for Butler who had 25 points, leading all scorers.

Bobby Labonte Parting Ways with Petty Enterprises

Samuel Sica — Thu, 11 Dec 2008 06:30:52 -0500

Well, it looks as though Bobby Labonte, driver of the No. 43 Petty Enterprises Dodge, has been released due to the fact that the team does not have appropriate sponsorship for next season.

General Mills, which has been a longtime sponsor for Petty Enterprises, will be moving over to the Richard Childress stables for the 2009 season. General Mills will be the sponsor of the No. 33 Chevy, driven by Clint Bowyer.

There are many rumors saying that Petty Enterprises could merge with Gillett Evernham Racing as a fourth team to Kasey Kahne, Elliott Sadler, and Reed Sorenson. If this agreement is not met between the two teams it has been stated that Petty Enterprises would remain in the sport but run only a single car operation for the 2009 season. There has been nothing said about who will replace Labonte in the famous No. 43, but there are plenty of drivers who are still looking for rides in 2009.

As for Bobby Labonte, he is now the hottest free agent on the market. Labonte is a seasoned veteran who can help a number of teams to be successful. There has been a rumor about Labonte maybe going over to Earnhardt-Ganassi Racing for 2009 to fill the vacant seat in the No. 41 car.

All I know is that Bobby Labonte will end up with some team for the 2009 season because he has what it takes to get the job done.

Labonte’s Career Stats

Sprint Cup Series

Series Champion in 2000 over second place Dale Earnhardt

Starts: 546

Wins: 21

Top-5 Finishes: 113

Top-10 Finishes: 197

Average Finish: 17.3

Nationwide Series

Series Champion in 1991

Starts: 202

Wins: 10

Top-5 Finishes: 51

Top-10 Finishes: 100

Average Finish: 14.4

Craftsman Truck Series

Starts: 10

Wins: 1

Top-5 Finishes: 5

Top-10 Finishes: 5

Average Finish: 14.8

Is There Anything Separating Jimmie Johnson from His Third Straight Title?

Samuel Sica — Tue, 14 Oct 2008 08:33:09 -0400

After the first five races in the Chase for the Championship, Jimmie Johnson once again finds himself at the top of the point standings.

The point standings after last weeks race at Lowe’s Motor Speedway are as following:

1. Jimmie Johnson
2. Jeff Burton -69
3. Greg Biffle –86
4. Carl Edwards –168
5. Clint Bowyer –185
6. Kevin Harvick –207
7. Tony Stewart –228
8. Jeff Gordon –245
9. Kyle Busch –326
10. Dale Earnhardt Jr. –354
11. Matt Kenseth –360
12. Denny Hamlin –380

Now, the way I see it is that only Johnson, Burton, Biffle, Edwards, and Bowyer still have a chance at the Championship. I really believe that it will come down to Burton and Biffle having a real shot at the title. I think that Edwards and Bowyer are too far back to make any real headway because they would need the top three to have a bad race and I don’t see that happening.

The Chase rolls into Martinsville this week where traditionally Jimmie Johnson has faired very well. In the last 11 races at Martinsville, either Jeff Gordon or Jimmie Johnson has combined to win eight of those.

Jeff Gordon happens to have the most career wins of any active drivers at Martinsville with 7. But Johnson has the best average finish of any driver at Martinsville with an average finish of 6.0. Gordon is second on that list with an average finish of 7.0.

I do believe that Jeff Gordon will be strong in the last five races in the Chase, but he is just too far behind to make up any ground on Johnson. Now if Johnson would have a problem or get involved in an accident, then Gordon and a lot of other would be right back in the thick of things.

I just don’t see that happening to Johnson this week though, considering he has four wins, 9 top five finishes, and 12 top ten finishes at Martinsville.

Jeff Burton and Greg Biffle, on the other hand, have somewhat struggled in the past at Martinsville. Burton has faired much better than Biffle by scoring one victory, 10 top fives, and 14 top 10 finishes at Martinsville. Biffle has just one top ten finish at the track with an average finish of 23.6.

Clearly Jimmie Johnson has the advantage this week, but you never know, misfortune could strike at any moment at Martinsville. I do believe that Johnson will be pretty hard to contend with for the Championship, but I think that Jeff Burton is a determined veteran who is up to the job.

Burton has the experience and know-how to finish well at all the remaining tracks left in the Chase and I believe that Jeff Burton is going to win his first career Championship overthrowing Johnson’s reign as champion.

Jeff Burton Makes His Presence Known in Title Chase with Victory at Charlotte

Samuel Sica — Sat, 11 Oct 2008 17:26:27 -0400

The Sprint Cup Series headed home to Charlotte this weekend for the fifth out of ten races in the Chase for the Championship. After last weekend's race at Talladega, many of the Chase drivers were left with slim hopes of winning the Championship after two big accidents eliminated more than half of the Chase contenders.

Jimmie Johnson somehow managed to escape Talladega with a solid top ten finish and a sizable points lead over second place Carl Edwards. Would Johnson be able to increase his point lead at Charlotte or would Johnson have problems leaving the door wide open for drivers to make a charge?

Johnson ended up starting from the pole position due to qualifying being rained out for the eighth time this year. This set the field by point standings, which put all the Chase drivers at the head of the grid.

All together, the Chase drivers had solid performances except for a select few. Early in the race, Jeff Gordon bounced off the wall twice within the first three laps of the race. This caused Gordon to come down pit road under green flag conditions to repair the damage.

Gordon would get repairs done and ended up getting his lap back on lap 54 when A.J. Allmendinger crashed to bring out the caution flag. Gordon would later lead in the race and went on to finish solidly in the top ten.

Another Chase contender was not so lucky. Carl Edwards had to pit under the green flag after running in the second position in the early laps for a vibration. Edwards' problems did not end there unfortunately.

After the third caution flag of the race came out for a crash involving Mike Skinner and Ken Schrader on lap 64, Edwards could not get his car started for the restart. He had to get a push back to pit road by a safety vehicle so his pit crew could fix the problem. Edwards would go 16 laps down while the problem was being fixed which essentially ruined his night. Edwards wounded up finishing a disappointing 33rd.

Shortly after Edwards had problems, another chase driver had bad luck. Dale Earnhardt Jr. was running in the sixth position when his right front tire blew sending him into the turn two wall on lap 103. This would put Earnhardt behind the wall to make repairs, which set him 44 laps behind the leader. As a result, Earnhardt would finish back in the 36th position.

About 100 laps later, another Chase driver made misfortune strike. Matt Kenseth was running towards the back of the field when a crash happened in front of him. Kenseth moved to bottom of the track to avoid the spinning car of Tony Raines, but as he did, Travis Kvapil hit Kenseth in the right rear sending him hard into the wall. Kenseth would end up finishing way back in the 41st position.

The race began to get interesting when the 10th and final caution flag of the race came out for a crash by Juan Pablo Montoya with just 38 laps remaining. The leaders all had to come down pit lane because no one could make it to the end of the race on fuel. Jeff Burton came out of the pits with the lead after making a gas only stop.

This would prove to be the move of the race since Burton held off a charge by Johnson on the restart as well as a late race charge by Kasey Kahne in the final laps. The victory was Burton’s second of the season and it could not have come at a better time. With the victory, Burton now sits second in the point standings just 69 points behind leader Jimmie Johnson.

The top ten finishers in the race were Burton, Kahne, Kurt Busch, Kyle Busch, Jamie McMurray, Johnson, Greg Biffle, Gordon, Mark Martin, and David Ragan. Some notable finishes include Tony Stewart in 11th, Clint Bowyer in 12th, Kevin Harvick in 13th, and Denny Hamlin in 16th position.

The point standings are as following:

Jimmie Johnson
Jeff Burton –69
Greg Biffle –86
Carl Edwards –168
Clint Bowyer –185
Kevin Harvick –207
Tony Stewart –228
Jeff Gordon –245
Kyle Busch –326
Dale Earnhardt Jr. –354
Matt Kenseth –360
Denny Hamlin –380

Next week the Chase heads into Martinsville for the sixth race in the Chase for the Championship.

Tony Stewart Wins in Controversial Finish at Talladega

Samuel Sica — Sun, 05 Oct 2008 12:51:15 -0400

The Sprint Cup Series headed to the biggest wild card race in the Chase for the Championship at Talladega Superspeedway.

Every Chase contender knew that if they could just survive at Talladega and make it through the "Big One," they could have a shot at winning the Championship.

Travis Kvapil had the best view for the start of the race by earning his first career pole in his 100thcareer Sprint Cup start. Many drivers would take turns at the front of the field including Kvapil, Brian Vickers, Aric Almirola, David Ragan, Dale Earnhardt Jr., and Mike Wallace.

The first caution flag of the race came out when Mike Wallace happened to be leading for debris on lap 34. All the leaders would come down pit road for the first time in the race with Jeff Gordon coming out in the lead.

Gordon would be one of the drivers to lead during the next green flag run before the second caution flag of the race came out on lap 46. The different leaders included Gordon, Jeff Burton, Matt Kenseth, Vickers, Elliott Sadler, and Casey Mears. The leaders would all come to pit lane with Sadler coming out first.

The next stretch of the race had Sadler, Kyle Busch, and Kurt Busch all take turns at the head of the field. Kurt Busch was leading the race though when the first Chase contender had problems.

Jeff Gordon was involved in a crash with David Reutimann and Jon Wood on lap 53. Gordon tried to avoid Reutimann, who had blown a tire and turned hard to the right into Wood. Gordon would make repairs and finish a disappointing 38th.

The next period of the race had Jamie McMurray, Vickers, Denny Hamlin, Kasey Kahne, Reed Sorenson, and Earnhardt Jr., all leading the race before the dreaded "Big One" finally occurred.

It began at the head of the field when Vickers, who was running in the fourth position, blew a right front tire, causing a nine-car accident. The drivers involved were Martin Truex Jr., Vickers, David Gilliland, Tony Raines, Kahne, McMurray, Terry Labonte, Mike Skinner, and Almirola. Most of these cars would make repairs but finish many laps behind the leaders.

The leaders would pit under the caution period with Jr. coming out first with a two-tire stop. Earnhardt, Hamlin, Jimmie Johnson, and Tony Stewart would all lead laps before the caution flag would wave again for a blown tire on Mike Wallace’s car on lap 81. The leader would pit again with Kyle Busch coming out in the lead.

The race would stay green for about a 20-lap period before the caution flag waved again on lap 99 for a crash involving another Chase contender.

Denny Hamlin was leading the race when he blew a right front tire and pounded the turn two wall. Hamlin would be taken to the hospital for precautionary measures, but he would be ok. Hamlin would finish way back in the 39th position.

The leaders would come to pit lane again with Scott Riggs coming out in the lead.

The race would stay green for a while until the caution flag came out on lap 138 for smoke billowing from Jeff Gordon’s repaired car. The leader would hit pit road with Kyle Busch coming out first.

This would set up for another wild finish at Talladega. Everybody was jockeying around with fewer than 15 laps to go to get into position to win the race when the "Big One" struck again involving 11 cars.

The drivers involved included Kenseth, Earnhardt Jr., Carl Edwards, Greg Biffle, Michael Waltrip, Kvapil, Dave Blaney, Juan Pablo Montoya, Kevin Harvick, Sorenson, and Kyle Busch.

Six Chase contenders were involved in the accident and it all started when Edwards got into the back of his teammate, Greg Biffle, entering turn three.

Biffle was running in the second position at the time, so he ended up blocking the entire track, collecting a number of good cars.

Tony Stewart was leading the race at the time of the accident and missed it completely. Stewart would remain the leader of the race when the ninth, and final, caution flag of the race came out for another blown tire on Jamie McMurray’s machine with just three laps remaining.

This would set up for a green/white/checkered finish with Stewart trying to get his first career victory at Talladega.

Stewart led most of the final two laps when, all of a sudden, Regan Smith went below the yellow line in the tri-oval, passing Stewart for the victory.

Passing below the yellow line is not allowed at Talladega or Daytona, so NASCAR took the victory away from Smith and gave the win to Stewart.

Smith believed that Stewart forced him below the yellow line, which would make Smith’s pass for the lead legal. But NASCAR officials saw it differently and declared Tony Stewart the winner.

The top ten finishers were Stewart, Paul Menard, Ragan, Burton, Clint Bowyer, Bobby Labonte, Riggs, Robby Gordon, Johnson, and Sadler.

Some notable finishes included Joe Nemechek in 11th, Kenny Wallace in 12th, Kyle Busch in 15th, Ken Schrader in 16th, Terry Labonte in 17th, and Regan Smith was dropped back to the 18th position after being penalized for passing under the yellow line.

The top twelve in the point standings are:

1. Jimmie Johnson
2. Carl Edwards
3. Greg Biffle
4. Jeff Burton
5. Clint Bowyer
6. Kevin Harvick
7. Tony Stewart
8. Jeff Gordon
9. Matt Kenseth
10. Dale Earnhardt Jr.
11. Kyle Busch
12. Denny Hamlin

Talladega is now in the history books and we can all look forward to a great race at Charlotte under the lights next weekend.

Jimmie Johnson Holds off Late Charge by Carl Edwards to Win at Kansas

Samuel Sica — Sun, 28 Sep 2008 12:04:44 -0400

The Chase for the Championship continued this weekend at Kansas, for the third of 10 races in the Chase. With Greg Biffle winning the first two Chase races, he had the momentum on his side rolling into Kansas, where he also won last season on fuel strategy.

Jimmie Johnson started from the pole position with Mark Martin along side in second. These two have started first and second three times so far this season, with Johnson having the pole each time.

As the green flag waved to start the race, a black flag also waved for Chase contender Clint Bowyer, who passed a car before the start/finish line. The rule is that you can not pass a car at the start of the race before the start/finish line, so Bowyer had to come down pit road for a pass-through penalty.

This put Bowyer way behind the rest of the field and in a huge hole early. However, Bowyer would manage to stay on the lead lap and have a strong showing throughout the afternoon.

Johnson ended up leading the first 16 laps of the race before fellow Chaser Matt Kenseth passed him for the lead.

Kenseth would hold the lead for a good number of laps before Martin Truex Jr. passed him on lap 42 to become the new leader. Truex would continue to lead as the first round of green flag pit stops began around lap 50.

During the green flag stops, Michael Waltrip and Kyle Busch managed to lead a lap and earn five bonus points before making their pit stops. After the stops had cycled through, Kenseth had taken over the lead from Truex.

Kenseth would remain out front when the first caution flag of the race came out for Ryan Newman hitting the wall on lap 75. Before the caution came out, Kyle Busch had been complaining about his car being low on power.

Busch had thought that he was losing his engine when all along there had been something lodged in the engine causing the car to lose speed.

Busch would have problems all day long and have another bad race finishing one lap down behind the leader in 28^th position. I believe that we can now officially count Busch out for the championship after having three bad races in a row.

During the caution, the leaders all came down pit road with Kenseth holding onto the lead. Unfortunately for Kenseth, he had a missing lug nut on one of his tires and had to come back down pit road to replace it. This would hand the lead over to Casey Mears for the first time in the race.

Mears stayed at the front of the field as the leader when the second caution came out for a spin by Kyle Petty on lap 94. Since it had been a good 20 laps since the last time the leaders had hit pit road, they took advantage by heading to the pits for some fresh tires and fuel.

Martin ended up coming out first with the help of a two-tire stop, but Mears had decided to stay out under the caution and continued to lead.

After the restart waved, Mears would hold the lead for about ten laps before Johnson passed him on lap 107. Shortly after Johnson regained the lead, the caution flag waved again after Joey Logano, who was making his second career Sprint Cup start, hit the wall. The leaders would hit pit road with Truex coming out first with a two-tire stop.

Truex would remain at the head of the field as two caution flags waved within a few laps of each other. The first caution period was for a spin by Chase contender, Matt Kenseth on lap 123.

Kenseth suffered no damaged after the spin and continued on. The second caution waved for a spin by another Chase contender Tony Stewart on lap 130. Stewart would not be as lucky as Kenseth, going six laps down making repairs to the cars front valence.

After the restart, Johnson made quick work of Truex, taking the lead on lap 137. Johnson would hold the lead until green flag pit stops began around lap 175. During the green flag stops, Carl Edwards, Brian Vickers, David Reutimann, and Patrick Carpentier all took turns leading before making their pit stops.

After the pit stops had cycled through, Johnson was back out front. His lead would be short lived though as Edwards passed Johnson for the top spot on lap 190.

Edwards would remain at the front of the field when another caution waved for Travis Kvapil hitting the wall on lap 217. The leaders would hit pit road once more with Johnson edging Edwards out for the lead.

Shortly after the race resumed, the seventh and final caution flag of the race came out for a spin by Michael Waltrip and Sam Hornish. This would set up for a duel between Chase contenders Johnson and Edwards to decide who would be the points leader heading into Talladega next week.

Johnson would hold about a second lead over Edwards until the last few laps of the race. Edwards began to chip into Johnson’s lead piece by piece until he was right up on Johnson’s rear bumper.

Johnson managed to hold Edwards off until the last lap, when Edwards drove his car hard into turns three and four, passing Johnson for a mere moment until he hit the wall, allowing Jimmie to squeak right by and take the victory.

In the post-race interview, Edwards said that he knew he was going to hit the wall but he thought he could get back on the accelerator and hold off Johnson for the win.

Unfortunately for Edwards, it did not work out that way and Johnson, with the victory, becomes the new point leader.

The top ten finishers were Johnson, Edwards, Biffle, Jeff Gordon, Kenseth, Kevin Harvick, Jeff Burton, David Ragan, A.J. Allmendinger, and Elliott Sadler.

Some notable finishes include Denny Hamlin in 11th, Clint Bowyer in 12th, Dale Earnhardt Jr. in 13th, Casey Mears in 14th, Brian Vickers in 15th, Kyle Busch in 28th, and Tony Stewart in 40th position.

The top 12 in points shake out like this:

Jimmie Johnson
Carl Edwards
Greg Biffle
Jeff Burton
Kevin Harvick
Jeff Gordon
Clint Bowyer
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Matt Kenseth
Denny Hamlin
Tony Stewart
Kyle Busch

Kansas is now in the rear view mirror, with Talladega upcoming next week.

Greg Biffle Wins Second Straight Chase Race in Epic Battle at Dover

Samuel Sica — Sun, 21 Sep 2008 12:36:51 -0400

With the first race in the Chase for the Sprint Cup behind us, we move ahead to "The Monster Mile" in Dover, where anything can happen in the blink of an eye.

Jeff Gordon got his championship hopes back on track by starting from the pole position at Dover. Mark Martin also had an impressive run by qualifying in the second position, just one-tenth of a second behind Gordon for the pole.

After the green flag waved to start the race, the caution quickly followed when Kurt Busch hit the wall hard in turn one on lap 2. Busch was turned around after David Gilliland moved up the track into him after getting loose.

Another caution flag waved about 10 laps later for an incident involving Patrick Carpentier and Carl Edwards. Carpentier spun out after getting loose off turn two, collecting Edwards, who had no place to go. Edwards would only suffer minor damage and went on to have a pretty good afternoon.

The race would stay green for awhile with Gordon as the leader. Gordon would soon be challenged for the lead by Jamie McMurray, who eventually made the pass on lap 31 for the lead.

McMurray would end up leading the race up to lap 65, when the caution flag came out for Joe Nemechek cutting a right front tire in turn three. The leaders would make their first pit stops of the day under the caution with Matt Kenseth coming off pit road as the leader.

Kenseth would lead the race through a long green flag run that was eventually put to a halt when Dale Earnhardt Jr. spun out after having a tire go down on lap 143.

The leaders were just about to make green flag pit stops before the caution came out so they all came down pit road with Kenseth holding the lead after pit stops.

Before the caution came out for Earnhardt’s spin, Kyle Busch reported to his crew that he was losing his engine. Sure enough, about 30 laps later, smoke began billowing out from under the car, sending Busch behind the wall. Busch would not be able to get back on track, causing him to finish back in the 43rd position.

After the eighth caution flag waved over the field for a spin by Sam Hornish on lap 186, the race went green for about a 100-lap period. During this time, Jimmie Johnson led a good portion before making a pit stop, which handed the lead over to Carl Edwards on lap 240. Johnson was on a different pit schedule than Edwards. Johnson had to pit 30 laps earlier for fuel because he stayed out under a caution to gain track position.

Edwards gave up the lead on lap 267 to make a pit stop, handing the lead over to Kevin Harvick and Clint Bowyer, who each led a lap before making their pit stops.

Before pit stops began, bad luck struck another contender for the championship. Denny Hamlin went behind the wall after losing the rear-end in his car. Hamlin’s crew would make repairs, getting Denny back out on track to make laps and finish in the best possible position that he could. Hamlin would go on to finish in the 38th position, severely crippling his championship aspirations.

Johnson would take over the top spot after the round of pit stops cycled through. The long green flag run would come to an end, though, as debris brought out the caution for the ninth time in the race. The leaders would pit again, with Johnson holding the lead after pit stops.

Johnson took the restart as the leader, but the lead would soon change hands as Greg Biffle passed Johnson on lap 301 to lead his first laps of the day. Biffle would lead about 20 laps before Edwards mounted a charge to regain the lead on lap 323.

Edwards continued to lead the race when the tenth and final caution flag of the race waved for Juan Pablo Montoya cutting down a tire and pounding the wall on lap 350. The leaders would come down pit road for the last time with Edwards holding the lead thanks to a two-tire stop.

This would set up a battle for the ages with Edwards trying to hold the lead ahead of teammates Biffle and Kenseth, who each had four fresh tires.

Edwards gave it his all to hold off Kenseth and Biffle, but his tires proved to be the downfall. Kenseth finally made the pass for the lead with 23 laps remaining. Kenseth’s focus was now on Biffle, who had been breathing down his neck since the restart. Kenseth and Biffle would battle for a number of laps, which allowed Edwards to reel them back in and battle for the lead once more. Biffle, after laps of trying, finally got his nose to the outside of Kenseth off turn two, forcing Kenseth to give him room.

After making slight contact, Biffle finally moved around Kenseth for the lead with under 10 laps remaining. Biffle would then set sail on his teammates en route to his second straight victory. Biffle has started the Chase out the best way anyone possibly can. He has earned his first two victories of the season in the best time possible, during the Chase.

The top ten finishers were Biffle, Kenseth, Edwards, Martin, Johnson, Harvick, Gordon, Bowyer, Burton, and Michael Waltrip. Some notable finishes include Tony Stewart in 11th, Bobby Labonte in 14th, and Earnhardt Jr. in 24th position.

The point standings after the second Chase Race at Dover are as follows:

Carl Edwards
Jimmie Johnson
Greg Biffle
Jeff Burton
Kevin Harvick
Clint Bowyer
Tony Stewart
Jeff Gordon
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Matt Kenseth
Denny Hamlin
Kyle Busch

With Dover now in the history books, we can all look ahead to Kansas, where the Chase for the Championship could take another unsuspected turn.

Greg Biffle Wins First Race of the Chase; Kyle Busch Finishes 34th

Samuel Sica — Sun, 14 Sep 2008 12:15:00 -0400

After 26 races, the time has finally arrived to begin the Chase for the Championship. New Hampshire marks the first out of 10 races in the Chase, where any driver in the top 12 in the point standings after the first 26 races has the opportunity to win the Championship.

The starting field for the first race in the Chase was set by owner points due to qualifying being rained out. Qualifying has been rained out on seven separate occasions so far this season due to bad weather.

This race also marked the first start for 18-year-old Joey Logano, who started from the 40thposition. Logano would stay out of trouble all day and finish the race in the 32ndposition.

Logano ran a smart race and just tried to earn the other drivers' respect, since he will be racing full-time next year in the Sprint Cup Series for Joe Gibbs Racing.

With qualifying rained out, Kyle Busch once again started from the pole position with Carl Edwards alongside in second. All 12 drivers in the Chase started from the first twelve positions, which made for some exciting early racing.

Kyle Busch led the first handful of laps before Carl Edwards passed him for the lead on lap 4. Edwards would lead the race to lap 36 when NASCAR brought out a competition caution to allow the teams to check their tire wear.

All the leaders would come down pit road with Edwards holding the lead with the help of a two-tire stop.

Edwards would lead a number of laps after the restart until Jimmie Johnson mounted a charge and passed Edwards on lap 65 for the lead.

Johnson would continue to lead when bad luck struck one of the chase contenders. Kyle Busch, the point leader, spun out coming off turn two causing an accident involving Jamie McMurray and David Ragan on lap 83.

Busch would continue after the incident but the lengthy repairs on pit road caused him to go 8 laps down.

Under the caution flag, the leaders came down pit road with Johnson holding the lead. During the pit stops, Tony Stewart hit the car of Johnny Sauter while exiting his pit causing a right front fender rub.

Stewart had to come back to pit road for a second time to fix the damage. Stewart initially came out of the pits in the second position behind Johnson but ended up restarting at the tail end of the field.

Shortly after the race restarted, Dale Earnhardt Jr. drove his way past Johnson to take the lead. Earnhardt would lead the race to the halfway point when green flag pit stops began to occur.

After the pit stops cycled through, Greg Biffle was now at the head of the field with Earnhardt back in second. Earnhardt would eventually catch Biffle and pass him on lap 166, but Biffle would retake the lead from Jr. on lap 175.

Biffle was still leading as the race had gone over 100 straight laps of green flag racing. However, the caution flag soon waved again on lap 214 for debris on the track. This would allow all the leaders to come down pit road with Johnson retaking the lead out of the pits.

The race pace soon slowed for back-to-back cautions for Joe Nemecheck’s crash and for a multi-car accident involving chase driver Matt Kenseth. The accident would cause Kenseth to finish way back in the 40th position.

Kenseth’s bid for a second championship has taken a huge hit because he cannot have another bad race to finish the season if he wants to compete for the Sprint Cup.

Johnson continued to lead the race and looked to be well on his way to a third straight victory when a caution flag waved for a spin by Patrick Carpentier with 17 laps remaining. Johnson took the restart as the leader but was soon passed by Biffle with just 12 laps to go.

Biffle had been saving his race car, sitting back in second just waiting to make his move on Johnson. Biffle would lead the final 12 laps of the race en route to his first win of the season. Biffle begins the Chase by moving from ninth in the points standing to third after his victory.

The top ten finishers were Biffle, Johnson, Edwards, Jeff Burton, Earnhardt Jr., Kurt Busch, Martin Truex Jr., Stewart, Denny Hamlin, and Kevin Harvick.

Some notable finishes included Kasey Kahne in 11th, Clint Bowyer in 12th, Bobby Labonte in 13th, Jeff Gordon in 14th, David Reutimann in 15th, and Kyle Busch in 34th position.

The point standings after the race look like this:

1. Carl Edwards
2. Jimmie Johnson
3. Greg Biffle
4. Dale Earnhardt Jr.
5. Jeff Burton
6. Denny Hamlin
7. Tony Stewart
8. Kyle Busch
9. Clint Bowyer
10. Kevin Harvick
11. Jeff Gordon
12. Matt Kenseth

New Hampshire is now in the history books, and we can all look forward to next week when the Sprint Cup series head to Dover, Del., for the second race of the Chase for the Championship.

Jimmie Johnson Wins; Clint Bowyer Makes Chase; Kahne and Ragan Are Odd Men Out

Samuel Sica — Sun, 07 Sep 2008 11:59:32 -0400

The Sprint Cup Series headed to Richmond for the 26^th and last race before the Chase for the Championship.

The race was scheduled for Saturday night, but Hurricane Hanna moved the race to Sunday instead. The field was set by owner points, which meant that Clint Bowyer, David Ragan, and Kasey Kahne, would be starting 12^th, 13^th, and 14^th at the start of the race.

Before the race began, Bowyer was ahead of Ragan by 17 points and Kahne by 48 points. Bowyer was in the last transfer spot, before the race started, to see who would have a shot to race for the championship.

Since qualifying was rained out due to the hurricane, Kyle Busch started on the pole with Carl Edwards alongside in second spot. Busch would lead the first 28 laps of the race until Kevin Harvick mounted a charge to take the lead.

Harvick would be the leader of the race when NASCAR waved a competition caution for teams to come down pit road and make any necessary adjustments due to the lack of track time that the teams had because of the hurricane.

All the leaders would take advantage and come down pit road for tires and fuel. Jeff Gordon would win the race out of the pits with the help of a two-tire change.

Gordon would take the restart as the leader but Harvick would soon pass Gordon for the lead on lap 44. Harvick would continue to lead a good chunk of the race before Denny Hamlin passed him for the lead on lap 77.

Hamlin’s lead would be short lived though as Dale Earnhardt Jr. passed Denny on lap 80 for the top spot. Earnhardt was leading the field under a long green flag run when the second caution flag of the race came out for Johnny Sauter cutting down a right front tire on lap 97.

The leaders would come down pit road once again with Earnhardt leading them out.

Earnhardt would continue to lead the race through three caution periods between a 20 lap span. The third out of the three cautions proved to be the most significant as David Ragan got loose and spun into the wall along with Matt Kenseth.

Ragan and Kenseth would make repairs and continue because both drivers were fighting for a chance to race in the Chase for the Sprint Cup Championship.

Earnhardt was still the leader through all this mess until Kevin Harvick passed him on lap 134 for the lead. Harvick was now leading the field when the sixth caution flag waved for a spin by Juan Pablo Montoya and Elliott Sadler on lap 165. This would allow all the leaders to come down pit road again with Earnhardt winning the battle off.

Shortly after the race restarted, the lead changed hands on three separate occasions. Harvick took the lead from Earnhardt on lap 173, Earnhardt took the lead from Harvick on lap 186, and Kyle Busch took the lead away from Earnhardt on lap 187.

A handful of laps later, after the halfway point of the race, the caution flag waved once again for a spin by Martin Truex Jr. and Sam Hornish. The leaders would hit pit road for another time, with Busch coming out as the leader.

As the race restarted, Earnhardt was all over the back of Kyle Busch for the lead. What happened a few laps later was a turning point in the race. Earnhardt got into turn one too hard, locking up his brakes, when Kyle Busch moved down the track into Earnhardt causing him to spin into the outside wall.

Now a lot of people may say that it was payback for Busch, who spun Jr. out earlier this season at Richmond in the late laps costing Earnhardt a victory. This was not intentional because Jr. tried to slow down and move down away from Busch.

This was evident when the smoke came pouring out when Jr. hit the brakes. Busch moved down the track slightly and got into Earnhardt, which sent him spinning into the wall. Busch would continue on after making repairs and still go on to have a strong run.

Earnhardt was still at the head of the field when Tony Stewart mounted a charge to pass Jr. for the lead on lap 236. A caution flag would wave, shortly after Stewart took the lead, for a spin by Kyle Busch at the back of the field.

This would be another turning point in the race as half the cars on the lead lap would come to pit road while 14 others stayed on the track.

David Reutimann and 13 others stayed on the track because they had pitted under the previous caution. Reutimann restarted as the leader pulling away from second place Mark Martin by over four seconds before the caution flag came out for Brian Vickers cutting down a right front tire on lap 297.

All the leaders would come to pit road this time with Reutimann holding serve as the leader after pit stops.

Reutimann continued to lead the race into the late laps until Stewart finally regained the lead with just 52 laps remaining.

Stewart’s lead would be short lived as a caution waved with about 40 laps to go for a spin involving Ryan Newman and Ken Schrader. The leaders would hit pit road once more with Truex leading everyone out to assume the lead on the restart.

Truex would lead for a short period of time before Jimmie Johnson took the top spot with 34 laps remaining. Just after Johnson made the pass on Truex for the lead, the 14^th and final caution flag of the race waved for an accident by Paul Menard and Patrick Carpentier.

This would set up for a great shoot out between two former champions in Johnson and Stewart in the remaining laps.

Johnson and Stewart would battle side by side, with Stewart finally passing Johnson with fewer than 10 laps to go. But Johnson, being the veteran that he is, stayed along side Stewart and passed him on the high side of the track to capture his fourth victory of the season.

The other battle at the end of the race was to see who made it into the 12^th and final spot into the Race for the Championship. Clint Bowyer would prevail over Kahne and Ragan, who both faltered towards the end.

The top ten finishers were Johnson, Stewart, Hamlin, Earnhardt, Martin, Burton, Harvick, Gordon, Reutimann, and Kurt Busch. Some notable finishes include Bowyer in 12^th, Edwards in 13^th, Greg Biffle in 14^th, Kyle Busch in 15^th, Kahne in 19^th, Ragan in 32^nd, and Matt Kenseth in 39^th position.

The Chase for the Sprint Cup has reached its cutoff point, with the top 12 drivers in the point standings competing for the Championship.

Now, the point standings headed into the first race in the Chase for the Sprint Cup at New Hampshire look like this:

Kyle Busch
Carl Edwards
Jimmie Johnson
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Clint Bowyer
Denny Hamlin
Jeff Burton
Tony Stewart
Greg Biffle
Jeff Gordon
Kevin Harvick
Matt Kenseth

The Chase begins next week. Who will come out of New Hampshire victorious? My prediction is that Clint Bowyer will once again win for the second straight year at New Hampshire, giving him a significant boost in the points.

My pick to win the Sprint Cup this year is Dale Earnhardt Jr. It is time for Jr. to show what he’s made of and prove he has what it takes to be a Champion in this series.

Johnson Dominates Another Boring Race At Fontana?

Samuel Sica — Sun, 31 Aug 2008 17:40:17 -0400

The question that I have after watching the race Sunday night is why does the Sprint Cup Series race in Fontana, California, twice a year?

Jimmie Johnson ended up dominating the race in route to his third victory of the season.

The top ten finishers in the race were as follows: Jimmie Johnson, Greg Biffle, Denny Hamlin, Kevin Harvick, Matt Kenseth, Carl Edwards, Kyle Busch, Kasey Kahne, David Reutimann, and Clint Bowyer.

Some notable finishers were Dale Earnhardt Jr. in 11th, Brian Vickers in 12th, David Ragan in 13th, Jeff Gordon in 15th, Ryan Newman in 16th, Jeff Burton in 17th, and Tony Stewart in 22nd position.

The top twelve in the point standings are Busch, Edwards, Johnson, Earnhardt, Burton, Biffle, Harvick, Stewart, Kenseth, Gordon, Hamlin, and Bowyer. David Ragan and Kasey Kahne are still outside the top twelve in 13th and 14th position with just one week remaining before the Chase for the Sprint Cup begins.

They will have one last shot at Richmond next week to see if they qualify to compete for the championship.

Now, I really want to address my opinion on only racing at Fontana once a year.

The races that they have out in California are too boring with very little excitement.

Johnson basically led the whole race from start to finish.

I believe that NASCAR should reevaluate the sport and go back to the south where racing began. I think that Darlington deserves a second race because NASCAR took Darlington's second race away so that Fontana could have a second race.

NASCAR should know that they are losing money and their fans as well.

Television ratings have been down recently and people do not want to drive to the tracks anymore due to the increase in fuel prices.

The fans want racing back at places like Darlington and Rockingham.

Those tracks provide exciting racing as well as good finishes. If NASCAR would stop treating it's sport like a business and start thinking about the drivers and the fans again, they would take away races like Fontana that are boring and go back to Rockingham.

Please NASCAR fans, help me to spread the word and get NASCAR to go back to Rockingham or Darlington and stop wasting our time by racing out on the west coast at Fontana.

Yankees-Red Sox: The Rivalry Lives One Last Time in Yankee Stadium

Samuel Sica — Thu, 28 Aug 2008 03:28:55 -0400

The New York Yankees and the Boston Red Sox have had some classic battles at Yankee Stadium over the years. Sad to say, but it will be the last time that the two rivals will face each other in "the House that Ruth built."

In the past two nights, the Yankees have been beaten by Boston, which now puts them seven games out of the wild card and 10.5 games behind Tampa Bay for the division lead. The Rays have the best record in the American League, at a mark of 80 wins and 51 losses. The Angels are hot on their heals though, just a half-game behind.

This spells bad news for the Yankees, who have managed to make it to the playoffs for the last 13 seasons. This is not good news for Joe Girardi, either. Girardi took over managerial duties this season after the Yankees let Joe Torre go.

The Yankees, under Torre, managed to make the playoffs every year and wound up winning four World Titles in the process. Girardi will definitely be feeling the heat in New York if the Yanks don’t make it to the playoffs.

In last night’s game, the Yankees were trailing Boston 4-2 in the top of the eighth inning. But that is when it all began to fall apart for the Yankees.

Boston ended up scoring seven runs in the eighth, which included a grand slam off the bat of Dustin Pedroia. It was Pedroia’s first grand slam of his short career, and he did it at Yankee Stadium. I’m sure he will remember that moment for the rest of his life.

So, after Boston took an 11-2 lead into the bottom of the eighth, the Yankees' hopes of making a playoff run took an enormous hit. The Yankees managed to score one more run before the conclusion of the game to make it a final of 11-3, in Boston’s favor.

After this horrible defeat at the hands of Boston, the Yankees now have a record of 70 wins and 62 losses. I feel that the Yankees may still have a little life left in them to make a run at the playoffs, but if they lose again to Boston today, that may be it for the Bronx Bombers.

If the Yankees do end up winning today’s game against Boston, they will only be six games out of the wild card. Plus, the Yankees still have three games remaining against Boston in the regular season and six games against the division-leading Tampa Bay Rays.

So, if the Yankees can somehow manage to win tonight’s game, there is still hope that the Yanks can turn their year around and salvage their season. Unfortunately for the Yankees, if they do not make the playoffs, this season will be nothing short of a failure.

Edwards vs. Busch: Who had the last laugh at Bristol?

Samuel Sica — Sat, 23 Aug 2008 17:51:53 -0400

The Sprint Cup Series headed to Bristol, Tennessee, to compete in the Sharpie 500. With just three races left in the chase, Bristol is definitely the wild card because anything can happen at Thunder Valley.

Carl Edwards started from the pole position with David Reutimann starting along side in second. Edwards would hold the lead for the first 47 laps of the race before Jeff Gordon took a turn at the front of the field. Gordon would only lead one lap before Edwards regained the lead.

Edwards would soon lose the lead to Kyle Busch on lap 55 after having problems passing the lap car of Juan Pablo Montoya.

Busch continued to lead as the first caution flag of the race came out on lap 97 for a crash involving Martin Truex Jr. and A.J. Allmendinger. Truex ended up blowing a right front tire, which sent him right into the side of Allmendinger.

The leaders would all come down pit road for service with Busch holding the lead. Before the first caution flag waved, some drivers including Jimmie Johnson, Dale Earnhardt Jr., and Sterling Marlin, all had problems.

Johnson and Marlin were involved in an incident on lap 26 when Marlin turned Johnson into the outside wall. Earnhardt Jr. had some bad luck after being blacked flagged for passing before the start of the race.

This put Earnhardt a lap behind the field right off the bat ultimately ruining his night.

Busch would restart the race as the leader and continued to lead before the second caution waved for a crash involving Jeff Burton, Joe Nemechek, and Sterling Marlin, around lap 200. All the leaders would come to pit road again with Busch holding serve after the stops.

Shortly after the race was restarted, the caution flag waved again on lap 216 for a multi-car crash involving Casey Mears, Michael Waltrip, Clint Bowyer, Kasey Kahne, Robby Gordon, Sam Hornish, Reed Sorenson, Bill Elliott, and David Reutimann.

The incident was caused when Mears moved up the track in front of Waltrip. Mears was told by his spotter that he was clear high and so he moved up the track. Mears was very apologetic in his interview and said that the accident should have never happened.

After the race restarted, many cautions came out for debris on the track and after every pit stop under caution, Kyle Busch would come out as the leader. The race became very interesting after the last caution flag waved on lap 462 for debris. All the leaders came down pit road with Busch, once again, winning the race off pit lane.

After the race restarted, Busch had a lot of pressure from behind by Edwards. On lap 469, Edwards tapped Busch, which sent him up the track allowing Edwards to make the pass for the lead. This would prove to be the winning move, as Edwards would lead all the remaining laps in rout to his sixth victory of the season.

After the race had ended, Busch showed his displeasure with Edwards by hitting him in the driver’s side a few times. Edwards did not take any of it and turned Busch around after the incident.

After the race Edwards said that he had to move Busch out of the way in order to win the race because he was not as good as Busch was. Edwards also said that he would race Busch the way that Busch races him.

I agree with Edwards on this one because you are supposed to expect those types of things at Bristol toward the end of the race. Plus, Busch did get back to Edwards and hit him in the back but could not take advantage in regaining the lead. Busch has moved guys out of the way in the past so what comes around goes around.

The top ten drivers were Edwards, Busch, Denny Hamlin, Kevin Harvick, Jeff Gordon, Ryan Newman, Bowyer, Tony Stewart, Matt Kenseth, and David Ragan. Some notable finishes included Greg Biffle in 11^th, Jamie McMurray in 12^th, Kurt Busch in 15^th, Earnhardt Jr. in 18^th, Johnson in 33^rd, Kahne in 40^th, and Burton in 42^nd position.

The top twelve in points are Busch, Edwards, Earnhardt, Johnson, Burton, Stewart, Biffle, Harvick, Gordon, Kenseth, Hamlin, and Bowyer. David Ragan sits just 12 points behind Bowyer for 12^th position and Kahne is 56 points behind in 14^th position.

Bristol is now in the history books and we can all look forward to a great weekend of racing action in California.

Carl Edwards Stretches It on Fuel to Win at Pocono

Samuel Sica — Sun, 03 Aug 2008 13:30:32 -0400

The Sprint Cup Series headed to Pocono this weekend for the Pennsylvania 500. Jimmie Johnson started from the pole position with Mark Martin alongside in the second position. This is the second straight week that Johnson and Martin have started from the front row.

Johnson may have started from the pole position, but Martin wasted no time as he took the lead away from Johnson on the start.

The fireworks started early too, with two cautions inside the first 10 laps of the race. One caution was for an incident on lap one involving Kevin Harvick and Joe Nemechek, and the other was for a spin by Kurt Busch on lap eight.

Martin continued to lead the race when NASCAR brought out a competition caution on lap 21. The caution was due to practice being rained out Saturday. Teams got a chance to check their tire wear and make any other adjustments needed.

The leaders would all come to pit road to take advantage of this caution, with Johnson edging out everyone else off pit road with a two-tire stop.

Johnson led for a while until Martin passed him on lap 36 to regain the top spot. Martin was the leader as a green flag pit stop began around lap 52. He came into the pits for service on lap 54, which allowed Carl Edwards to stay out and lead a lap before making his pit stop.

After the pit stops cycled through, Martin was back on top. He continued to lead when the fourth caution flag of the day came out for debris on lap 66. The leaders would all come down pit road, with Johnson regaining the lead.

Johnson would once again lead a good portion of the race before being passed by Edwards on lap 111. Edwards led the race as the second round of green flag stops began around lap 116.

He would pit on lap 118, which handed the lead to Matt Kenseth who led a lap before making his pit stop. After pit stops cycled through on lap 121, Edwards was once again at the head of the field.

Shortly after pit stops were completed, the caution flag waved on lap 127 for rain. It was a light rain though, and many drivers felt that the race would keep going and so many took advantage by coming down pit road for tires and fuel.

Some drivers felt that the race would end due to rain and so they stayed out under the caution to gain track position.

The race would eventually resume and the drivers who stayed out under the caution weren’t feeling too good about their strategy. Kasey Kahne restarted as the leader of the race with 18 other drivers in the same position as he was behind him. Dale Earnhardt, Jr. was the first driver off pit road and he restarted in the 20th position.

Kahne would remain the leader of the race until green flag pit stops began around lap 154. Kahne made his stop along with Denny Hamlin and Martin on lap 155. This allowed Greg Biffle, Kurt Busch, Matt Kenseth, Edwards, Johnson, David Ragan, and Jamie McMurray a chance to lead the race before pit stops cycled through with Kahne retaking the lead.

The race would continue to stay green which brought about another round of green flag stops for some drivers. Kahne would pit on lap 185 for two-tires and fuel, handing the lead over to Martin.

The lead would soon be handed over to Edwards though, as Martin made a stop on lap 187 for two-tire and fuel.

Edwards stayed out because he believed he could stretch it on fuel and make it to the end without stopping. Unfortunately, some drivers ran out of gas and had to come down pit road for a splash and go. Some, including points leader Kyle Busch, ran out of gas and this prevented them from earning a good finish.

Edwards, on the other hand, did not have to stop and he went on to victory for the fourth time this season. Other drivers including Earnhardt Jr., Johnson, and Jeff Gordon, all coasted across the finish line before running completely out of gas.

Once again, Pocono proved to be a fuel mileage race with many twists and turns throughout. Edwards’ team made the right calls all day long and he really earned this victory.

The top 10 finishers were Edwards, Tony Stewart, Johnson, Harvick, Ragan, Clint Bowyer, Kahne, Martin, McMurray, and Gordon.

Some notable finishes were Kenseth in 11th, Earnhardt in 12th, Biffle in 13th, Jeff Burton in 21st, Hamlin in 23rd, and Kyle Busch in 35th position.

The top 12 in points are now Kyle Busch, Earnhardt, Edwards, Johnson, Burton, Gordon, Kahne, Biffle, Stewart, Hamlin, Harvick, and Bowyer. Kenseth is currently the odd man out, sitting in the 13th position.

Pocono is now in the history books and we can all look forward to a great weekend of racing action on the road-course at Watkins Glen.