11/14/2008 - Homestead, FL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - David Reutimann recorded his first career pole in the Sprint Cup Series by taking the top starting spot in Friday's qualifying for the Ford 400 at the Homestead-Miami Speedway. Reutimann, the driver of the No.44 Toyota for Michael Waltrip Racing and a native of Zephyrhills, FL, rounded the 1.5-mile oval in 31.462 seconds (171.636 m.p.h.).
Reutimann's first pole came in his 63rd start. He becomes the fourth first- time pole winner in the series this year, joining Travis Kvapil (Talladega), Paul Menard (Daytona) and Patrick Carpentier (New Hampshire).
"I think we sat on the outside pole at Bristol and came close a couple of other times," Reutimann said. "It feels really good to see the 44 up there, and it shows all of the guys at the shop and on the team that they've been working hard all year long and doing a great job."
Scott Speed, in just his fifth Sprint Cup start, secured the outside pole with a time of 31.494 seconds. Speed and Red Bull Racing teammate Brian Vickers switched rides for this weekend, with Speed moving over to the No.83 Toyota, and Vickers taking the wheel of the No.84 car. Vickers will start 20th.
Roush Fenway Racing teammates Matt Kenseth (31.500) and Carl Edwards (31.502) will start on the second row.
Edwards, currently 141 points behind Jimmie Johnson, will start the season- finale 26 positions ahead of the championship leader.
"That was a good lap for us," Edwards said. "We're not the strongest qualifier, so a lap like that was impressive."
If Johnson finishes 36th or better at Homestead, regardless of Edwards' performance, he will join Cale Yarborough as the only drivers to win three consecutive Cup championships. Yarborough captured his titles from 1976-78.
"The lap was okay, and I felt good about the lap," Johnson said. "Unfortunately, coming to the green flag, I lost a bunch of time and I didn't take the green flag with the speed I needed into those long straightaways. I think I lost most of my time there."
Johnson will start 30th.
Kevin Harvick and David Ragan will make up row three.
Jamie McMurray, Kyle Busch, Reed Sorenson, and Martin Truex, Jr. will start seven through 10th, respectively.
Other notable drivers and their starting positions include: Tony Stewart (13th), Dale Earnhardt, Jr. (22nd), Ryan Newman (29th), and Jeff Gordon (37th).
Ken Schrader, Max Papis and Sam Hornish, Jr. did not qualify.
Homestead will mark the end of Stewart's 10-year run with Joe Gibbs Racing as the two-time Cup champion leaves the No.20 Toyota to drive for his own team - Stewart Haas Racing - in 2009.
Newman, the 2008 Daytona 500 winner, will make his final start in the No.12 Dodge as he departs Penske Racing at the end of the season to join Stewart's new team.
Homestead is also one last chance for several drivers to end their season with at least one victory. Most notably is Gordon, who has won a race in 14 consecutive years. However, Gordon has not scored a victory since October 2007 at Charlotte. He has yet to win a Cup race at Homestead, but did take the checkered flag for a Nationwide event there in 2000.
Kenseth and Harvick are also winless this year. Kenseth has won at least one race in the previous six seasons, while Harvick has recorded a victory in the last three years.
The green flag is scheduled to drop Sunday around 3:45 p.m. (et).
<< Isles D Pock suspended
Toronto, ON (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The National Hockey League has suspended New
York Islanders defenseman Thomas Pock for five games, without pay, for an
incident that occurred in Thursday's 3-1 victory over the Ottawa Senators.
Pock wa
<< Bears' Orton probable, could start Sunday
Lake Forest, IL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Chicago Bears quarterback Kyle Orton is
listed as probable for Sunday's game against Green Bay, as he continues to
recover from an ankle injury.
Orton, who missed last Sunday's game against Tenn
<< NAC rolls over Heracles to move into first
Breda, Netherlands (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Ellery Cairo, Edwin De Graaf and Patrick
Zwaanswijk scored as NAC defeated Heracles 3-0 on Friday at Rat Verlegh Stadion
to move into first place in the Dutch Eredivisie.
NAC entered this week's matches
<< Hannover settles for draw against Bochum
Hannover, Germany (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Jan Schlaudraff scored his fifth goal but
Hannover handed Bochum a 1-1 draw on an own goal on Friday at AWD-Arena.
Schlaudraff, who left Bayern Munich to join Hannover this season, has done well
in a sta
Cowboys RB Jones out for Sunday >>
Irving, TX (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Dallas Cowboys will get quarterback Tony
Romo back for Sunday night's divisional clash with the Washington Redskins,
but running back Felix Jones is still out with a hamstring injury.
Jones has not
NCAA announces women's Final Four sites from 2012-2016 >>
Indianapolis, IN (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The NCAA announced Friday the women's
basketball Final Four sites for the years 2012 through 2016, a list that
includes Denver and Nashville.
Denver will host the women's Final Four in 2012,
Bush a no-go against Chiefs >>
Metairie, LA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - New Orleans Saints running back Reggie Bush
will not dress for Sunday's game against the Kansas City Chiefs.
Bush, three-plus weeks removed from arthroscopic knee surgery, took limited
reps in practice
Stanford leads Ochoa's tournament by two >>
Guadalajara, Mexico (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Angela Stanford continued her recent
hot streak with a six-under 66 on Friday that gave her the second-round lead
at the Lorena Ochoa Invitational.
Stanford, on the heels of four consecutive top-fi
Many fans thought it was the best side in the nation by the end of last season. This year, the polls have built on Georgia's momentum and granted it the No. 1 preseason ranking, followed by Ohio State and USC. (The Associated Press has the Buckeyes at No. 2; USA Today took the Trojans.)
"To have people believing we have one of the best teams in the nation going into this thing, it's exciting for us," Bulldogs coach Mark Richt told the AP. "I don't think anything is guaranteed, but we certainly have put ourselves in position where at least the college football world thinks we're pretty good."
Georgia Bulldogs - 9.5 wins
There's no question they're good, but the Bulldogs have one of the toughest 12-game schedules in the nation, mostly because they play in the powerhouse Southeastern Conference. Away games at No. 15 Arizona State, No. 7 LSU and No. 10 Auburn loom large, with contests between the hedges versus No. 24 Alabama and No. 18 Tennessee as well as the World's Largest Cocktail Party in Jacksonville versus No.5 Florida.
Ohio State Buckeyes - 10 wins
Like the Bulldogs, the Buckeyes also have a number of tough road contests in 2008. After two scrimmages dressed up as real games versus Youngstown State and Ohio, it's off to face USC. Other tough away games include No.13 Wisconsin in October and No. 20 Illinois in November. Granted, it should be pretty easy sledding at the Horseshoe. In fact, the only ranked team that travels to Columbus is No. 22 Penn State, in October.
USC Trojans - 10.5 wins
A similarly light schedule awaits the Trojans of Southern California, which is why the oddsmakers' total is one win more and the over is currently commanding -150 odds. Pete Carroll's troops only play three ranked teams in 2008, and all of those games are at home. After what should be an easy trip to Virginia to start things off on Aug. 30, the Trojans get two weeks to prepare for Ohio State in Los Angeles. Their two other ranked opponents, No. 21 Oregon and No. 15 Arizona State, visit in consecutive weeks to start the month of October. After that, the competition eases up. Of course, this is the same highly-touted school that lost to Stanford in 2007 and Oregon State in 2006. And don't discount the fact that USC plays its biggest rivals, Notre Dame and UCLA, back-to-back to close out the regular season. On paper, the Trojans are far superior, but motivation will be high for the Irish and Bruins, especially if their historic foes are in national-title contention.
Odds to Win the Heisman Trophy
Tim Tebow, Florida - 7/2
He won it last year, so it's no surprise he's the favorite to do it again, making him just the second player to go back-to-back. Ohio State's Archie Griffin turned the trick in 1974 and 1975, and Tebow's coach, Urban Meyer, is pretty sure his star quarterback can match the Buckeyes legend.
"There has never been anyone quite like him," Meyer told the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. "I am very lucky to be his coach."
Chris Wells, Ohio State - 5/1
The man they call "Beanie" was a star recruit out of high school, so it's not like nobody knew who the star tailback was before he rushed for 576 yards as a freshman in 2006 and 1,609 as a sophomore. But perhaps his finest moment came last year versus Michigan when he rumbled for 222 yards and two touchdowns in the Buckeyes' 14-3 victory over the hated Wolverines.
Knowshon Moreno, Georgia - 8/1
If the Bulldogs are to live up to expectations, they'll need a huge effort from their sophomore running back. This might be the last year of college ball for Moreno, who rushed for 1,334 yards and for 14 touchdowns as a freshman, while adding 253 receiving yards on 20 receptions, so expect big things for the man from Belford, N.J.
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