The moment the checkered flag dropped at Martinsville, I began considering what a seventh title for Jimmie Johnson would mean to our sport.
Brenden Dillon Jersey .For most of my life, I felt Jeff Gordon would be the only human capable of matching the monumental feat of seven championships that only?Richard Petty and Dale Earnhardt?have accomplished -- and then along came Jimmie.We have been tempted by this happening for a couple of years, since Johnson won his sixth in 2013, but this is the closest its come to a reality.Jimmie Johnsons chances in my opinion? Pretty damned good!Heres why:Johnson is the winningest driver on 1.5-mile tracks. He is very good on all other disciplines, but the intermediate tracks seem to be where he shines brightest.He has a phenomenal ability to extract everything from a race car on 180-190 mph unrestricted racetracks.Crew chief Chad Knaus is the Bill Belichick of NASCAR. He thinks progressively, innovates, elevates his crew members to a level they might not have thought possible. But most importantly, imagine the advantage the Patriots would have if Belichick had nearly three weeks to prepare for one team, one game.So give that same advantage to the 48 in Miami.Actions speak louder than wordsJimmie Johnson has never been a trash-talking in-your-face personality or athlete.He gives thought-provoking sound bites, answers questions with intellect and intrigue. He doesnt say what hes going to do; he explains how he will go about doing it.Johnson is not only among the greatest drivers we have ever seen, but he is also among the most sincere we have ever heard.Theres no B.S. in his discussions. Its all authentic. Johnson empties the tank in expressing himself, the same way he empties the tank on the track.I recognized during my driving career that distraction is among the greatest enemies.So during my 10 years with ESPN, Ive coined, and often used, the expression distraction is poison.Ive never known an athlete who prepares harder, demonstrates more commitment or defies the risks of that expression more than Jimmie Johnson.Johnson and Knaus know better than most you are most vulnerable: when you are at the top.Among the greatest misconceptions in sports is that once you become the champ, the hard work is over.Well, its over if youre satisfied with just one!When you become king of the mountain, youve woken a sleeping giant -- or giants.The 48 Team wont take to Miami what helped them win Charlotte (both 1.5-mile tracks) a couple of weeks ago.They will enhance that strategy with what they have explored and learned since. They will apply and likely capitalize on those lessons.Im not suggesting we hand the trophy to Johnson today; its obviously far from a lock.We dont know who the three are who will do battle with the six-time champ in Florida.We dont what effect the next two races will have on the four teams destined to square off later this month.We do know there is one team that has hoisted the trophy a half-dozen times, a driver locked and loaded with the aim of becoming part of another record. We know his history, and history tells us he seldom fails.
Brandon Mashinter Jersey . Capitals head coach Adam Oates said Ovechkin was injured in the first period against the Vancouver Canucks on Monday and clarified it was not a head injury.
Kevin Labanc Jersey . Robredo, ranked No. 16, bounced back from an upset loss to Leonardo Mayer in the second round of the Royal Guard Open in Chile last week to down Carreno Busta in 1 hour, 25 minutes. On a day filled mostly with qualifying matches, fifth-seeded Marcel Granollers of Spain also entered the second with a 7-5, 3-6, 6-2 win over Aljaz Bedene of Slovenia, while Guido Pella of Argentina defeated Guillermo Garcia-Lopez of Spain 7-6 (6), 6-4 to advance.
http://www.sharksauthority.com/authentic-paul-martin-sharks-jersey/ . There was no hesitation from the 40th-ranked Pospisil, from Vernon, B.C., who admitted that he cut back on his training sessions over the last few days to conserve energy as the long ATP season finishes next week at the Paris Masters. Soon, well find out exactly what the road to Columbus, Ohio, looks like. The NCAA volleyball selection show will air at 9 p.m. ET Sunday on ESPNU, and some teams already have their automatic bids in hand. But there is still a lot to be decided in this last week of the regular season.Pac-12 dramaIt seems a bit hard to believe, but UCLA -- the only Pac-12 volleyball team to win a national championship in the past 10 seasons -- has not won a conference title since 1999. That could change this week, but it wont be easy.No. 7 Washington and No. 8 UCLA are atop the Pac-12 at 14-4, with No. 12 Stanford at 13-5. They are the only teams that still have a chance to claim the league title or a share of it.The schedule has worked out quite well in regard to intrigue: UCLA faces Washington in Seattle on Wednesday (10 p.m. ET, Pac-12 Network).The winner of that match moves into the drivers seat, but then both have to face in-state rivals Saturday in their regular-season finales. Washington will be at No. 25 Washington State, while UCLA will host USC. Meanwhile, Stanford finishes at home against No. 19 Oregon and Cal.The Pac-12 officially began conference play for womens volleyball in 1986. Stanford has won 14 league titles outright and shared two others. UCLA is next with six outright, but all of those came between 1986 and 1993. The Bruins shared the title in 1999 with Stanford. Washington has won three outright and shared last year with USC.Huskers look to close out strongReigning NCAA champion Nebraska is in the No. 1 spot in the AVCA poll for the sixth straight week, and the Huskers are in position to claim their second Big Ten title.Nebraska joined the conference in 2011 and won the Big Ten that year. Since then, the title has gone to Penn State (2012 and 13), Wisconsin (2014) and Minnesota (2015).The Huskers are 26-1 overall and 17-1 in the Big Ten, their only defeat coming at home to Ohio State on Oct. 1. Since that loss, the Huskers have won 14 matches in a row, losing just five sets in that stretch.The Huskers dont yet have the conference title wrapped up, though. No. 3 Wisconsin is 16-2 and No. 2 Minnesota 15-3. Nebraska plays at Minnesota on Wednesday and finishes at home Saturday against No. 18 Michigan. Wisconsin plays at Minnesota on Saturday.Jayhawks making historyThe Kansas volleyball program has been around 41 years. The Jayhawks had never won a conference title in either the old Big Eight or the current Big 12. But that changed Saturday, despite the fact that star Kelsie Payne was sidelined with an ankle injury.No. 4 Kansas beat Iowa State 3-2 and the Jayhawks celebrated clinching at least a share of the Big 12 title. The Jayhawks can win it outright Saturday when they finish the regular season at Baylor. Thats no gimme, though. The Bears are 9-5 and in third place in the Big 12.The Cyclones, now 8-6 and in fourth place, wwere coming off an upset against Texas the week before.
Barclay Goodrow Jersey. That outcome greatly helped Kansas since it was the Longhorns second Big 12 loss. But Iowa State wasnt able to overcome Kansas; the Jayhawks prevailed 15-9 in the final set.No. 5 Texas, which has won or shared nine Big 12 titles, took over domination of the conference when Nebraska moved to the Big Ten in 2011. Texas had won every Big 12 title since, five in a row, until now.The Longhorns still can get a share of the championship this year, though, if they beat visiting West Virginia on Saturday and Kansas falls at Baylor. Kansas and Texas split their meetings this season, with each winning at home.Mutual respectMissouri and Florida had a five-set duel Sunday, which was exactly what you might have expected from two teams battling for the SEC title. The Tigers won the final set 15-10, after which Florida coach Mary Wise -- disappointed as she was that her Gators lost -- sought out Missouri senior Carly Kan to give her a hug and congratulations.Kan had season highs with 25 kills and 21 digs for the Tigers, who defeated the Gators in Columbia, Missouri, for the third year in a row.So heres how the SEC race sets up in the final week: No. 23 Kentucky is 15-2 and has just one conference game left: Wednesday at Tennessee on ESPNU (9 p.m. ET). No. 9 Florida and No. 22 Missouri are both 14-2, while Texas A&M (which won the SEC title last year) is 13-3.Missouri (at Georgia, vs. Tennessee), Florida (vs. Auburn, at Arkansas) and Texas A&M (vs. LSU, at Auburn) have two matches left. So its still possible that the SEC could finish in a four-way tie for first.Tournament timeWhile the Power Five conferences and a few others dont have their own volleyball tournaments, several leagues do. Heres some of the more notable conference tourney news. Winners receive an automatic berth into the NCAA tournament.Conference USA: No. 20 Western Kentucky became the first volleyball team to win three consecutive Conference USA tournament titles, defeating Rice 3-2 Sunday behind Rachel Andersons career-high 31 kills. Western Kentucky has won 21 matches in a row.Atlantic 10: No. 24 Dayton extended its winning streak to 19 by beating Saint Louis 3-2 in the Atlantic 10 final Sunday. Its the seventh time in the past eight years that the Flyers have won the conference title.Missouri Valley: Missouri State, on a 16-match winning streak, will be the top seed in this weeks six-team Missouri Valley tournament, hosted by Northern Iowa Thursday through Saturday.Big East: The four-team tournament runs Friday to Saturday in Indianapolis. No. 21 Creighton is the top seed; the Bluejays advanced to the NCAA regional semifinals last year. They are on an 18-match winning streak.
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