QUICK LINKS: RECRUITING > 4 COLLEGE FOOTBALL > 6 NFL > 37 MLB > 44 NASCAR > 51 NHL > 54 COLLEGE BASKETBALL > 57 NBA > 57 Scoreboard Heatley to Sharks NASCAR Custance: Deal more Chase shockers College Football of a risk then a steal Top 25 Matt Kenseth and four-time winner Page 54 Kyle Busch failed to qualify for the Chase No. 1 Florida 56, Troy 6 for the NASCAR Sprint Cup. The field: No. 2 Texas 41, Wyoming 10 No. 3 USC 18, No. 8 Ohio State 15 1. Mark Martin 7. Kurt Busch 2. Tony Stewart 8. Brian Vickers No. 4 Alabama 40, Fla. International 14 3. Jimmie Johnson 9. Carl Edwards Houston 45, No. 5 Oklahoma State 35 4. Denny Hamlin 10. Ryan Newman SUNDAY No. 7 Penn State 28, Syracuse 7 Brian Vickers makes his 5. Kasey Kahne 11. Juan Montoya SEPTEMBER 13, 2009 first Chase appearance. 6. Jeff Gordon 12. Greg Biffle No. 9 BYU 54, Tulane 3 SEE A DIFFERENT GAME No. 10 California 59, E. Washington 7 VOLUME 2 ISSUE 53 More on Chase drivers, Page 51 Race results, Page 52 No. 11 LSU 23, Vanderbilt 9 No. 12 Boise St. 48, Miami (Ohio) 0 No. 13 Oklahoma 64, Idaho State 0 No. 14 Virginia Tech 52, Marshall 10 COLLEGE FOOTBALL NFL: WEEK 1 No. 16 TCU 30, Virginia 14 No. 17 Utah 24, San Jose State 14 Michigan 38, No. 18 Notre Dame 34 PLENTY OF PLOTLINES No. 19 North Carolina 12, Connecticut 10 Kid QBs grow up fast No. 21 Georgia 41, South Carolina 37 BY ALBERT BREER No. 22 Nebraska 38, Arkansas State 9 Michigan’s Forcier, [email protected] THE MAIN EVENT No. 23 Cincinnati 70, SE Missouri 3 Chicago at Green Bay No. 24 Kansas 34, UTEP 7 USC’s Barkley clutch Call it one last fling for the 8:20 tonight ET, NBC No. 25 Missouri 27, Bowling Green 20 fractured marriage of Eric Mangini in comeback wins and Brett Favre. Baseball BY MATT HAYES Mangini has been reborn as American League [email protected] Browns coach. Favre has new life as Baltimore 7, N.Y. Yankees 3 the Vikings’ quarterback. And Oakland 4, Minnesota 2 What in the name of Bo and today, two guys whose reputations Chicago White Sox 4, L.A. Angels 3, 10 innings Woody is going on here? Two true went cold during the Jets’ December Cleveland 13, Kansas City 6 freshmen—at quarterback—leading collapse will start the rehab process It doesn’t get much better than a the biggest, game-winning drives against one another as Cleveland rivalry game with a boffo storyline Toronto 8, Detroit 6 (Jay Cutler vs. Aaron Rodgers) to Boston 9, Tampa Bay 1, 6 innings of the weekend. hosts Minnesota. Welcome to the new age of college “I really enjoyed coaching him,” wrap up your first NFL Sunday. Seattle 8, Texas 3 football, where true freshmen no Mangini said. “It’s not as much fun Week 1 viewers’ guide, Page 37 longer redshirt. They play. They TERRY GILLIAM / AP KIRTHMON F. DOZIER / AP getting ready for him.” National League lead. They win on the biggest stage. USC’s Matt Barkley, left, and Michigan’s Tate Forcier (5) led their teams on late winning drives. Favre: “I think very highly of Eric Cincinnati 7, Chicago Cubs 5 Michigan quarterback Tate as a person and as a coach.” Atlanta 7, St. Louis 6 Forcier and USC quarterback Matt over No. 18 Notre Dame. The wild won’t be tested again until the first Not exactly the Hatfields and the Sequels. The Falcons and N.Y. Mets 10, Philadelphia 9 Barkley led their respective teams finishes overshadowed No. 5 week of November (at Penn State). McCoys. But it’s a headline matchup Dolphins had renaissance seasons in Houston 4, Pittsburgh 2 on last minute-drives and key Oklahoma State’s home loss to Michigan: A year after the worst for Week 1. More for the marquee: 2008, making the playoffs after Milwaukee 9, Arizona 2 victories Saturday night. Houston. record in school history, UM looks New York’s matinee idol. Mark hitting rock bottom in 2007. Enter- Florida 11, Washington 3 “He’s not an 18-year-old kid Where it goes from here: like a Big Ten heavyweight. Sanchez will take center stage in ing their season-opening matchup, L.A. Dodgers 9, San Francisco 1 anymore,” USC tailback Joe USC: Trojans still have big road Notre Dame: Irish will score on Houston, as a win-now Jets roster both, too, are aware that sustaining San Diego 3, Colorado 2, 10 innings McKnight told reporters. games for Barkley to navigate, any team in the nation, and now will try to win—now—with a rookie success is the new challenge. “To the While Barkley merely engineered including California (Oct. 3) and the season hangs on the Oct. 17 QB. Mounting pressure? Nope, new best of my knowledge, we left off the drive (McKnight did the work) Notre Dame (Oct. 17). game against USC. coach Rex Ryan says. “He’s the with a loss,” Miami coach Tony in an 18-15 win over No. 8 Ohio Buckeyes proved they same guy. And that’s a good thing. Sparano said. “From my end, I Follow Sporting News Today at Ohio State: twitter.com/sninsider State, Forcier did it all in a 38-34 can play against nation’s elite, and College football extra, Pages 6-36 He’s going to do just fine.” would rather not relive that.” SPORTING NEWS TODAY www.sportingnews.com See a Different Game SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 13, 2009 2 GUIDE OFF THE FIELD Tune In Today AUTO RACING MAJOR LEAGUE A quick look at the best sports on TV 6 a.m. BASEBALL Twitter causing trouble — all times Eastern SPEED—GP2 2:10 p.m. Championship WGN— Series, at Monza, Cincinnati at for Chargers’ Cromartie NFL Italy (same-day Chicago Cubs tape) 4 p.m. San Diego Chargers cornerback Bears at Packers 7:30 a.m. TBS—L.A. Antonio Cromartie, who was fined $2,500 SPEED— Dodgers at San last month for complaining—on his 8:15 p.m., NBC Formula One, Francisco Chicago’s addition of Jay Cutler gives the Bears Italian Grand 8 p.m. Twitter page—about training camp the franchise-type quarterback they’ve sought Prix, at Monza, ESPN—N.Y. Mets food, is causing trouble with his since Benjamin Franklin flew his kite in inclement Italy at Philadelphia thumbs again. weather. Meanwhile, Green Bay’s Aaron Rodgers Cromartie posted a picture on his CYCLING NFL appears primed to continue filling Brett Favre’s Twitter account Tuesday showing a shoes quite well. Where the two QBs differ is that 1 a.m. 1 p.m. the Packers have great weapons in the passing VERSUS—Tour CBS—Regional notebook with some diagrams and the game, while the Bears have unproven Devin Hester of Missouri, coverage caption, “Man I’m in here going hard and a potentially emerging star in TE Greg Olsen. final stage, at FOX—Regional wit film studying. It’s been an hr and But Chicago sports the better defense, making this Kansas City, Mo. coverage, I’m going abt another 30 min.” a game. (delayed tape) doubleheader Coach Norv Turner had told the team — Roger Kuznia 4:15 p.m. GOLF FOX—Regional that players weren’t allowed to tweet 8:30 a.m. coverage, while they were inside the building. He BASEBALL TGC—European doubleheader told reporters Friday that the team had PGA Tour, game dealt with the situation, though Cro- Dodgers at Giants 8:15 p.m. Mercedes-Benz martie said there was no fine. 4 p.m., TBS Championship, NBC—Chicago final round, at Green Bay Cromartie’s Twitter page has since PAUL SAKUMA / AP As if righthander Brad Penny needed any more at Cologne, been locked. After his latest tweet, Antonio Cromartie locked motivation as his Giants fight for a postseason Germany SOCCER his Twitter page. berth. In the series finale against the first-place 1 p.m. 10:55 a.m. The cost of Olympic bidding Dodgers this afternoon, Penny will have revenge TGC—LPGA, ESPN2—Spanish on his mind. After a bitter offseason divorce— The price tag to bid for an Olympic Copenhagen, Denmark. NW Arkansas Primera Division, — Tripp Mickle, SportsBusiness Journal when Penny left the Dodgers as a free agent, third Championship, Sporting Gijon Games continues to escalate. base coach Larry Bowa called him lazy and out of final round, at vs. Almeria, at Chicago has spent $48.2 million on shape—he will get a chance to silence the Dodgers’ Rogers, Ark. Gijon, Spain its bid to host the 2016 Olympics—37 Quick hits bats this afternoon. Penny is 1-0 with a 1.20 ERA 2 p.m. percent more than the $35 million that CBS’ Jim Nantz, in Houston to call the since joining San Francisco. TENNIS NBC—PGA The New York Times reported New York Texans game today, will stay an extra day — Chris Bahr Tour, BMW 1 p.m. Championship, ESPN2—U.S. spent in 2005 on its bid for the 2012 in his adopted hometown to receive on GOLF final round, at Open, at New Games. Monday the President and Mrs. George Lemont, Ill. York The cost of Chicago’s bid between H.W. Bush Community Impact Award, BMW Championship 4 p.m. 4 p.m. July 2006 and June 30, 2009, was dis- SportsBusiness Daily reported. Proceeds TGC—USGA, CBS—U.S. Open, closed last week in a Stewardship from the event benefit the Greater Hous- 2 p.m., NBC Walker Cup, final at New York round, at Merion, Report released by bid organizers.