Fantasy Football - Quarterback Rankings

Over the next week or two, the 3SN team will be bringing you top-notch fantasy football information which will hopefully lead you to a league championship! Our fantasy experts Greg, Alex, James, and Dan will guide you position by position so you can have a great draft day! With each position, our experts will give you their rankings, their sleeper pick, and a player you might want to avoid.

Today, we start with Quarterbacks, the highest point-getting position over the last couple years thanks to the likes of Manning, Brady, and Brees. Where will those three appear in the experts' rankings?

Greg's Picks:

1. Aaron Rodgers
2. Mike Vick
3. Phillip Rivers

@Beshman1

4. Drew Brees
5. Tom Brady
6. Peyton Manning
7. Matt Schaub
8. Eli Manning
9. Tony Romo
10. Matt Ryan
11. Joe Flacco
12. Sam Bradford
13. Ben Roethlisberger
14. Ryan Fitzpatrick
15. Matthew Stafford
15b. Kevin Kolb

Why Aaron Rodgers?  Aaron is a scoring machine. He is consistent with his receivers and makes great decisions in the pocket.

Sleeper:  Matt Schaub. I really believe Schaub will have a breakout year and put up some huge numbers. Houston has really solidified their offense and it is well balanced. Schaub is a brilliant passer and having the top receiver in the game with Andre Johnston only helps him. Expect 29 TDs out of him this year with a bunch of yards, provided that he stays healthy.

Biggest Risk: Tony Romo. Ever since he blew his team's chances two years ago, Romo has become a head case. He is terrific to have on your team when things are going well... However, Romo has a tendency to fold early if he gets behind in a game. Be careful with him. He will score you points, but it can be ugly sometimes.

 

Alex's Picks:

1. Aaron Rodgers
2. Mike Vick
3. Peyton Manning

@3SNDellav

4. Tom Brady
5. Drew Brees
6. Matt Schaub
7. Phillip Rivers
8. Matt Ryan
9. Tony Romo
10. Sam Bradford
11. Matt Cassel
12. Eli Manning
13. Josh Freeman
14. Joe Flacco
15. Kevin Kolb

Why Aaron Rodgers?  His fantasy football value has been firmly established since his first season as the starter in Green Bay. In that time Rodgers has thrown for over 3900 yards and 28 touchdowns each campaign. As an added bonus, he adds huge value to his already stellar fantasy numbers by rushing for an additional 300 yards and four scores on the ground. Still on 27 years old, Rodgers is entering his prime as a Super Bowl champion and the clear leader of one of the youngest teams in the NFL. He can be counted on to produce elite quarterback numbers and is certainly worthy of being a first round selection in any fantasy football draft this year.

Sleeper:  Josh Freeman. 3,400+ passing yards, 25 touchdowns, and only six interceptions. I only expect him to get better. He's got Mike Williams there, and don't forget about the great Kellen Winslow either.

Biggest Risk: Ben Roethlisberger. He's had two bad years following his two previous Super Bowl appearances. I don't expect anything to change this time around.

James's Picks:

1. Aaron Rodgers
2. Mike Vick
3. Peyton Manning

@3SNdot

4. Tom Brady
5. Drew Brees
6. Matt Schaub
7. Matt Ryan
8. Tony Romo
9. Ben Roethlisberger
10. Phillip Rivers
11. Sam Bradford
12. Matt Cassel
13. Kevin Kolb
14. Eli Manning 
15. Matthew Stafford

Why Aaron Rodgers?  28 TDs, nearly 4,000 yds last year. Expect more this year, he's entering his prime and doesn't have a roster full of injuries like he did in 2010.

Sleeper:  Matt Ryan. The stats speak for themselves: 3,700 yards and 28 TDs, and that's with many games where he'd barely throw in the second half. Turner's getting older, so more success in the passing game. Julio Jones will take defenders away from Roddy White, so more success in the passing game. If he's still around in the 5th or 6th round, take him with confidence and enjoy the rewards!

Biggest Risk: Phillip Rivers. The possibility of losing Jackson might hurt, but to me the reason Rivers is a risk is his consistency, or lack there of. One week he'll have 250 yards and 4 TDs, the next he'll have 150 yds and 2 INTs. Take the risk if you dare, there are more consistent picks out there.

Dan's Picks:

1. Tom Brady
2. Mike Vick

@DanQuarterly

3. Aaron Rodgers
4. Peyton Manning
5. Drew Brees
6. Phillip Rivers
7. Tony Romo
8. Eli Manning
9. Kevin Kolb
10. Josh Freeman
11. Sam Bradford
12. Matt Schaub
13. Jay Cutler
14. Matthew Stafford
15. Donovan McNabb



Why Tom Brady?  Tom Brady is my #1 for the fact that he is Tom Brady. He may not have won a Super Bowl in a few years, but don't blame him. It seems as if Brady gets better and better each season. Between the countless targets that the Patriots have pulled in over the years and Brady's Jordan-esque swagger and demeanor, I could see him throwing 40+ scores and single digit INTs - which would just edge him over Mike Vick and ARod in my rankings.
Sleepers: Sam Bradford/Matthew Stafford. I won't call Kevin Kolb a sleeper pick solely because I'm pretty sure any QB not named Derek Anderson or Max Hall could be a fantasy stud throwing up-top to Larry Fitzgerald. Instead I'll pinpoint two "sleeper picks" with one thing in common - both of them were selected first overall. Bradford and Stafford have way too much going for them to not be highly regarded. Bradford plays indoors on a fast track in a West Coast system with 5 athletic targets (excluding SJ). Stafford has arguably the strongest arm in the game, arguably the most indefensible target in Calvin "Megatron" Johnson and also plays indoors. Plus the Lions play in a division with teams that can score which means they too will need to put up some points.
Biggest Risk: Matt Ryan. I'm sure Julio Jones, Roddy White, Tony Gonzalez and every other Pro Bowl-bound weapon in Atlanta will make me a liar, but if I had to pick one quarterback who may underachieve (other than the ever-popular Jay Cutler pick) I'd say Matt Ryan. The main reason that I say this is because his uber-conservative style of play is bound to come back and bite him in the butt. I watched Ryan play quite a few times last year and I couldn't understand how is lolly pop deep outs and change-up comeback routes weren't eaten up by defensive backs all year. What I'm hearing of Julio Jones is scary, but if Atlanta relies on Matty Ice's arm too much instead of his smarts it could hurt a fantasy owner.


3SN Consensus Picks: (Comprised of the combined rankings above)

1. Aaron Rodgers
2. Mike Vick
3. Tom Brady
4. Peyton Manning
5. Drew Brees

@3SNetwork

6. Phillip Rivers
7. Matt Schaub
8. Tony Romo
9. Matt Ryan
10. Eli Manning
11. Sam Bradford
12. Kevin Kolb
13. Ben Roethlisberger
14. Matt Cassel
      Josh Freeman
16. Joe Flacco
17. Matthew Stafford
18. Jay Cutler
19. Ryan Fitzpatrick 
20. Donovan McNabb

Fantasy Football Strategies

Greg, Alex, and James each give their individual strategies for the 2011 Fantasy Football season. Hopefully one of these strategies will work for you!

Upon Further Review, Jerry Meals Calls Him Safe

After the Jim Joyce fiasco last year, fans could only hope that instant replay would follow. It didn't.

With every occurrence of a manager spending five minutes arguing a call that was blatantly missed, fans could only hope that instant replay would follow. It hasn't.

Will Jerry Meals calling Julio Lugo safe to end a 19 inning marathon (the longest game by time in Pirates' history) finally bring instant replay to the MLB? We can only hope.

Check out our analysis in our latest podcast below! Our vote: with technology available, use it. And the Little League World Series has set the table for bringing replay to the Majors!

FOR THE RECORD: Too many mistakes are being made in the game right now. That being said, umpires are human, and the human element is something that makes the game beautiful. It's easy to critique a call using slow motion, dvr, and 1080p HD.  Joyce and Meals both admitted their faults. They want to get the calls right. I, too, had great hostility toward Joyce immediately after Galarraga's "28 up, 28 down" last summer. I know that I was wrong. I realized it as soon as I took two seconds to relax and see that it's just a game and that human error will ALWAYS be a part of ALL sports in one way or another. So to those who have sent death threats, harassment, or have posted Meals' address and phone number on message boards, please grow up. It's only a game. That's something we all seem to forget more often than not.

(Oh, and to those who publicly try to claim from their "Armchair Umpire" status that they can call a game better...wake up. And to those other Armchair Umpires who think that Lugo was safe from the replays they've seen....first, Meals said he should've been called out, and I think the HD cameras straight from MLB, ROOT, and TBS are better than your home TV. Take a moment to think before you say you're better and smarter than the professionals.)
 

Free Agency Frenzy

I'm not going to make this long but I am starting to think that the NFL should open up free agency right before camp every year.  There has been so much excitement the past few days since the lockout ended and this has been the craziest free agency period in NFL history.  Teams do not have as much time to negotiate with players as they have in the past so deals are being done quickly and splashes have headlined all of ESPN past few days. 

Lets recap a few headlines:

Eagles trade Kevin Kolb to the Cardinals: I think he is a good fit for that offense and a good QB for Fitz but part of me wonders if they gave up to much for a guy that does not have many career starts. Cromartie and a 2nd round pick for Kolb? hmmmm idk. Like i said good fit but maybe the cards gave up to much.

Donovan Mcnabb becomes a viking: Mcnabb on the vikings is a decent fit. I thought the vikings would have went all out to resign Sidney Rice since Mcnabb has great arm strength and can throw it deep and Rice can stretch the field.  A great passing attack could have been born. I'm not saying it would have been the same as Culpepper to Moss in the early 2000's but it could have been great.

T-Jax and Rice land in Seattle: Pete Carrol was obviously one of the best at getting talent at USC. It looks like he hasn't lost any of that since he entered the NFL. I don't really have much to say about this except that its obvious that Sidney Rice liked the idea of playing with his old QB and Pete Carrol obviously new that.

Jets Target Moss: The jets resigned Santonio Holmes and that was to be expected but it doesn't look like Braylon Edwards will be back. Edwards is going to be too expensive to keep and now its being speculated that Randy Moss will be joining Gang Green. Adam Schefter has reported that Moss and Rex Ryan have made contact and there is mutual interest between the two. Ryan and Jets owner Woody Johnson have been raving about Moss for a while and after the disastrous season Moss had in 2010, he will likely come cheap, even though there are a few rumors he may actually be asking for too much. Rex Ryan can handle a brash personality like Moss and he loves the idea of having a former player of Bill Belicheat to help them game plan against the patriots.



#85 is now a Patriot: I got a text message from a friend that said just that. Looking at my phone screen reading that gave me chills. I got more chills when i saw #85 catching passes from Tom Brady on the practice field this morning. Of course this is not going to be the same as it was in 2007 when Randy Moss graced a patriot jersey. That didn't give me chills that just struck fear in me. Ochocinco is 34 and Randy Moss was 30 when the pats acquired him. Moss at his best is just plain head and shoulders above Ochocinco, but a motivated Ochocinco at his best is one of the best receivers in the game.
 It was apparent that the Pats missed Randy's ability to stretch the field in the loss to the Jets in the playoffs. With that being said I expect #85 not to tweet as much and behave himself as he fits into the "patriot way".

As i am writing this i am noticing that Nnamdi Asomugha has signed a 5 year deal with the eagles.This is surprising since it was reported the two front runners for him were the cowboys and the Jets. I could only imagine the horror Asomugha and Revis could have unleashed in New York together. The eagles now have Samuel, Aomugha, and Rodgers-Cromartie in their secondary. Wow.   

GOOOOOOOOOAAAALLLLLLLLLLLLLL!!!!!!!!

USA Women's soccer/futbol has done it again! They got a big goal late in today's match off of Abby Wambach's head to lead them to victory over France. Combine this 3-1 victory with a shootout victory over Brazil in the quarterfinals on Sunday thanks to Hope Solo's great goalkeeping, and the United States are back in the World Cup Finals for the first time since 1999.

First, let me comment about women's soccer: I'm surprisingly enjoying it 10x more than men's. Many would argue that it's only because the US are actually good in women's soccer and not in men's...if so, then why did I end up watching many other matches, and my favorite match (besides USA/Brazil) was a group stage match between Norway and Equatorial Guinea?  Anonman is the best player at the 2011 World Cup Finals and nobody can convince me otherwise (sorry Abby).

Anonman (in red) was the only attacker for Equatorial Guinea, yet always had a good attempt on goal.


It was because of the fact that true goal-scoring opportunities appeared, unlike the men's game where every shot off of a foot ended up 20 yards over the crossbar. That may be part of FIFA's doing, but forgive me I like scoring and the average of 2.27 goals per game in the Men's 2010 World Cup (second lowest in history) is just unexciting. It was a miracle that the championship game didn't go to a shootout in my mind.

Also, and this may come out sounding very wrong, but here we go: The women are less girls than the men. There's no diving. There's no faking injuries, being taken off on a stretcher, then reappearing on the field 30 seconds later. There's no ignorant referees who allow great actors to buy free kicks by tripping himself.

 

 Oh no he got the ball away from me! I better fall down and make it look like I'm hurt!

This one is absolutely hilarious. A guy gets a free kick for punching himself in the face.....

So now let's get back to the current World Cup. Sweden and Japan are about to kick off their semi-final match, the winner to face the USA in the championship match. Japan knocked off host-nation Germany 2-1 and had a 4-0 win earlier in the tournament, but is inexperienced and playing with a lot of emotion.  Sweden defeated the US 2-1 in the group stage (two garbage goals on a penalty kick and a deflected free kick) and are playing better than Japan, but don't have the emotion that the Japanese have.

Here is the game tying goal for the US vs. Brazil in the 122nd minute...literally just 30 seconds or so from the match being over. Rapinoe (my favorite on this team) finds Wambach (who finally got out of her drought, knew it wouldn't last long!) who beats the keeper. She used her head well again today against France.


Either way, I like the red-white-and-blue in the finals. This team is ranked #1 in the world, yet was the last team to qualify for the 2011 World Cup in Germany. That doesn't matter, though. Hope Solo said it best following the France match: "We have the confidence because we know we're damn good." Come Sunday we might just see how "damn good" they are. USA! USA! USA!

LOCKOUT: No Bargaining Arising, No Fans Listening

NFL players are locked out. NBA players will share the same fate in about 10 hours. Two of the top sports leagues in North America will both be shut down.

 

Why?

Players and owners don’t trust each other. They want their “fair share.” Translation: They want more, they want everything. 

What should happen?

Players are employees. They have rights, that’s for sure. But like any other business, if an employee doesn’t like the employer’s rules and ideas then they won’t work for that employer. Then the employer must find a new worker, and there are plenty of other potential players out there. 

Owners are accountable, too. If they don’t treat their “employees” right then they won’t have any workers, and definitely not the best ones out there. 

Both groups need to just grow up basically.

What happens next?

NBA owners are willing to lose an entire season of play (which is stupid considering the NBA finally had a good season of ratings for the first time in close to 15 years) so the winter months are now under full control of the NHL. We might start see TNT broadcast hockey games on Christmas day to maintain their sporting event broadcasts.

The NFL season is in danger of being at least shortened, meaning the end of the MLB season will be without competition for once. With no professional football, other sports have a chance to get the spotlight for once. Might MLS finally make a name for itself? IndyCar racing is looking to do a race televised by ABC during the normal slot of Monday Night Football, so a good broadcast there could get open-wheeled racing the final push it needs to take its already improving ratings and move to national prominence. College football is all that’s left for pigskin fans, which means the BCS will be under more scrutiny than ever. Might some games move to Sunday? Some teams have Thursday or even Wednesday night games to get higher viewer ratings since there are no other college football games on those nights. Now with no professional competition, NCAA players might get an early wish to “play on Sundays.”

Finally, SportsCenter will become more like the World News discussing striking workers instead of sports highlights. 

OchoCinco will make highlight reels by wrestling alligators instead of catching a rare touchdown. 

The Manning Brothers will start starring in cop shows (http://www.todaysbigthing.com/2011/06/23) instead of throwing touchdowns. 

Terrelle Pryor will get recognition from his off the field antics instead of his skills on the field…oh wait, that’s already the case…

 

Whatever may happen, there’s one thing that is certain: sports fans will be in for some BIG CHANGES over the next six months and beyond. NBA and NFL ratings will very likely fall, and others will rise in their place and get their chance. NASCAR got its chance 15 years ago with the IRL/CART split, who will benefit from this work stoppage?

A rivalry renewed...sort of

Every college football fan in western PA is thrilled by the news of Pitt and Penn State playing against each other in 2016 and 2017. I'm one of those fans. The thing is though they only agreed to play each other for two years. Penn State AD Tim Curly was on the 93.7 the fan Tuesday morning and said he didn't want to make it annual thing because he wanted to play games all around the country so he can serve justice to Penn State alumni who cant travel to a game at beaver stadium.

 I guess that's a nice thought and all but something is telling me that Penn State has more alumni in PA than anywhere else in the country. Furthermore, he would admit that they just needed a "filler game" for two years because Miami backed out of the agreement to play them.What i don't understand is why Penn State wont play Pitt on annual basis. They don't have a natural rival and i know they try to make Michigan state their rival but we all know how that turned out.

 The Pitt and Penn State rivalry was a great one and instead of Curly talking about its history and significance to college football he just dismissed it as a filler game(s). Why doesn't Penn State want Pitt to be its natural rival?  Now i know Penn State is a better program than Pitt. I am not going to be one of those ignorant fans that dismiss that fact BUT Penn State is not head and shoulders over Pitt that they feel like they are justified with having a 2 to 1 home game series with them. Do they really feel like Pitt is THAT small of a program to only settle for 2 to 1?  I mean Penn States schedules usually have them for the first 5 games play teams like Coastal Carolina, Youngstown State, Akron and Toledo. I know every team has about two cup cakes in the beginning of their schedule but its just seems so apparent that PSU stacks up on these cupcakes team just so they can be eligible for a bowl game every year.

I know Penn State has had allot of wins since 2005 and they have in fact beaten some good teams but why not just do your program a favor and add a natural rival. Ill be the first to admit that Pitt needs Penn State but also i believe Penn State needs Pitt. I know PSU has 110,000 fans every home game and have the largest alumni in the country but as good as Penn States football program is, they simply are not Florida, Auburn, Alabama, etc. Do i think adding Pitt is going to make them a top program like one of those schools? Of course not, but what IM trying to say is that they are not in a position to be saying they should have a 2 to 1 home series like they want.  Even if Penn State was one of those top programs and did have that right, why would they consider a school like coastal Carolina or Kent state to fill one of their open slots with when they could have a better program like Pitt?  Perhaps they feel like can have success turning one of those schools into their rival and create a special rivalry trophy like they did with Michigan State.

So im hoping to get everyone's input on this scenario. I'm willing to bet my co-blogger James Dotson will be the first to comment on this post and have a page long rebuttal but that's the kind of stuff I'm looking for from everyone and that's the kind of stuff i like to read. So please everyone rip me a new one :)

Disclaimer: I am getting a Penn State degree and hope their teams do well so I in no way am a homer Pitt fan or anything like that.

Rock 'em Sock 'em....Athletes

I’d like to address an issue I believe has long been overlooked in the world of sports: Fighting.  And no, I don’t mean boxing, MMA, Taekwondo, or even the fake WWF wrestling or whatever abbreviation they choose to use any more.  I’m talking about fighting in the major sports where fighting has no place whatsoever.

Let’s start with America’s pastime: Baseball. Luckily we haven’t seen many issues this year, but a batter charging the mound and leading to a bench clearing brawl just leaves me shaking my head. What are you accomplishing? You threw at me, so I’m going to come throw haymakers your way? And think about it, the batter might get one swing in before being engulfed by four other players, so all the batter accomplishes is a lengthy suspension for him, the pitcher, and half the bench players who run onto the field. Yet the fans love seeing it. (If you type "baseball" into a youtube search, the site completes it to "baseball fights")

Actually, while on the subject of baseball, let me interject another type of baseball “fighting” that’s gone on long enough: coaches and players arguing calls. It’s one thing if you argue a call that can be appealed and changed, but something as pointless as arguing balls and strikes just makes me laugh. You’re going to get thrown out, period. How does that help the team? Coaches are getting thrown out on a weekly basis it seems…hardly an effective way to manage your team if you ask me.

Let’s move on to hockey. Olympic hockey is the best there is because there are no pointless scrums and fights. The NHL is full of fights, as players and fans say that a good fight will help motivate their team and wake up their fans. 

Let’s start with the assertion that a fight will motivate their team. Let’s look at a specific fight that affected the outcome of a game (supposedly). In game 6 of the 2009 Eastern Conference quarterfinals, the Flyers appear to be in control after going up 3-0 over the Penguins with 15:54 left in the 2^nd period. At 15:39, Daniel Carcillo and Maxime Talbot engage in a fight, which Carcillo clearly wins. The fight results in an even more excited Philly home crowd and Talbot telling them “shhhh!” At 15:25, the Pens score their first of five unanswered goals to win the game and the series.  If a fight will motivate my team, why would I ever “agree” to a fight when I’m up 3-0? And if the Pens are motivated by a fight that their teammate wasn’t even close to winning, why aren’t there ten fights during every hockey game? 

The answer is that the fight isn’t the motivating factor. In my mind it’s all about the fan reaction. Fans for some reason like seeing grown men on skates grab each other and try to throw punches. Carcillo wanted to pump the crowd up, Talbot to shut them up. They could have done the same with their play, and thus why a fight is pointless.

Pens vs. Isles this year featured one of the most penalty minutes in recent memory. It started from an earlier game when there was a collision in front of the Islanders’ net, which of course resulted in something resembling a rugby scrum combined with a boxing match. Then all of a sudden the two goalies begin skating toward each other and fight (Isles’ goalie Rick DiPietro smiling, making this fan think that a hockey player thinks it’s just “fun” to get into a fight…what’s that teaching us?). One punch and DiPietro is down, and he’d be out for the next six weeks. Was it worth it for him? How about Brent Johnson and the Pens? 

The next game between these two teams not only had fights at every whistle, but also had an Islander Micheal Haley, whose only job is to “enforce” (aka fight), get into a scrap with a Pens player, then after being separated from him by the referees he decides to go and fight the Pens goalie. That’s beyond wrong. That guy should never be allowed to play in a game, ever. Suspensions? Trevor Gillies (who threw an elbow high on Eric Tangradi and then started punching him while he was down) was given a nine game suspension. He also should never see the ice again (he’s not a hockey player…two goals in 39 games last year? He’s an “enforcer” only too! NOT A HOCKEY PLAYER!).  Haley (two goals and an assist in 27 games…another non-hockey player) was not suspended! A player got into a fight, was summoned to the penalty box, but instead of going he decides to go attack somebody else? That’s worse than a blatant blind-side hit to the head in my mind. 

I love reading the box score for these two players. Gillies had 1:40 of ice time, but 34 minutes of penalties. Haley had 5:31 ice time and 39 penalty minutes.  Wow.

The biggest suspension? Ten games, given to the Penguins’ Eric Godard for coming off the bench to intervene in the fight between Haley and Johnson. The NHL disciplinarian said "There can be no circumstance that allows for a player to leave his bench for the purpose of coming to the aid of a teammate." Yet you allow players to get into full melees to defend their goalie when he gets knocked over by an opponent PUSHED INTO THE GOALIE BY THE OTHER TEAM! Contradictory. I commend Godard for protecting his goalie, like he and all other hockey players are taught. 

What does it say that this game was considered the most exciting game of the year? More people wanted to watch this game (due to the almost certain fighting that would result after the goalie fight nine days prior) than the Stanley Cup Finals (until now, where I’ll guarantee ratings skyrocket after the blindside hit and 3^rd period brawls in game 3).  The score of these games? 9-3 and 8-1, respectively. Send a message by your play and your play alone. You won the game, and won big. There’s no need to cause brawl after brawl when your play has done that enough.

NBA. At least the full out punches being thrown from the “Bad Boy” days of 20 years ago is gone. But the tussles that result for pointless reasons are head-scratchers. I got fouled, so I’m going to go push some people around. I’m seven feet tall nobody’s going to stop me! And what’s the penalty for these on-court altercations? A technical foul. Big whoop. If I’m a player and that’s the penalty for giving somebody a bump after the play because they fouled me during play, my response would be, “Oh well I need six more before I miss a game!”

People like seeing these grown men cry and act like babies? Apparently, as the above youtube video showing the 2010-11 season’s “fights” has over 400 likes vs. 6 (now 7 that I’ve seen it) dislikes. And the NBA says they don’t condone this stuff? Letting them bump chests and trash talk and get into these altercations with the penalty being pretty much 1/7 of a suspension will do nothing to stop it from happening. Wake up.

Finally, NASCAR. I hear every week of a new fight with drivers (and now apparently owners, too). Racers spin each other out because they don't get penalized for it and won't crash themselves in the process. Then the following week when they are the ones getting spun into the wall they think they have the right to go attack somebody. Reporters discuss the fights and rivalries more than the racing itself. Again, if the fans and analysts want to worry about who's hitting who, then go watch boxing. (Seriously, how is boxing at an all-time low for ratings? every other sport has fights, fans want to see the athletes throwing punches without being restrained, so why not watch the sport that allows it?)  There's much better racing out there, but apparently fans like seeing racers throwing punches into the cockpit of another vehicle. Why? Beats the hell out of me.

Fans, if you want to watch fights, go watch boxing or MMA or something where fighting isn’t PART of the sport but the sport itself. If you want to watch hockey, baseball, racing, or basketball, then watch their respective professional (or preferably collegiate) leagues and DO NOT SUPPORT that which is not part of the game. There’s nothing in the rule book for these sports regarding fighting being legal, so why do we support it? I can’t wait until these playoffs are over so I don’t have to hear about who bit who and who fouled somebody too hard.

Finally Back

After a drought of no blog posts from myself (due to final exams, getting a new job, moving, etc) I have decided to make to blog about several different topics.

I am not a Lebron James fan. That being said i am rooting for him harder than ever this NBA finals. I'm not going to lose sleep if he does not get a ring but i really would love to see "the decision" pay off.  Despite what people thought in july and all through last summer, Lebron has not had it easy. All the criticism, hate, and trials he has been through since he made the decision would definitely make his championship ring, one of the most special in sports history. Its not like the heat had a breeze getting to the playoffs this season. Some people even doubted they would get in when they were 9-8. A combination of off-season trials and regular season trials would make his championship win one of the most unique in sports history. I'm sure people are going to call me crazy for saying that but think about it. In my opinion, the great athletes are the ones who walk through fire to get their ring. Whether or not they bring the fire upon themselves.

I really miss football. I know that even if the NFL was not in lockout mode there would not be any games played but no football activity at all (such as trades, free agency, etc) are really annoying me. I also am not liking the fact that there may not be any fantasy football next season. Yes i know life goes on but its still sucks

I will be blogging more later on probably within the next few days. Our youtube channel is doing real well and our podcasts get plenty of views. Our march madness podcasts had 30,000 views and our mock draft had a lot of viewers also. We also are being looked at for a possible spot on 96.7 for sundays from 10am-12pm. So we are on the way up. Also the addition of Ryan Mooney is helping out a lot.

Have a happy memorial day weekend everyone.

#1 Moment in Indy 500 History

The top moment in my Indy 500 history is last year's race!!

Last year's race begins  with all the questions about Tony Kanaan, a fast car all week but had crashed during qualifications and so thus would start in 33rd. His speed and skill is evident right away as he passes seven cars on the first half of a lap! Fast forward now to lap 161 and a caution. Most drivers pit, but Mike Conway, Justin Wilson, Helio Castroneves, and Graham Rahal stay out and occupy the top four spots. None have enough fuel to finish the race under green and have to pit, giving Dario Franchitti the lead. However, all of the leaders who pitted are going to be close on fuel, too!  Fan favorite Tony Kanaan is in second and closing on Franchitti, but needs a splash of fuel with five laps to go, so his "worst-to-first" attempt comes up short. Now the questions begin as to whether Franchitti can make it. Dan Wheldon is now in second place and has save enough fuel that he can go full speed and full rich around the track for the closing laps. Franchitti isn't so lucky, as he turns in laps of 208, 202, and sub-200 mph on his last three green laps. When the white flag flies, Franchitti lets three lapped cars pass him because he's going so slowly, and Wheldon is closing the gap only 3.6 seconds behind and running at full speed. But as Wheldon enters turn 1, a devistating crash in turn 3 ends the race and Franchitti can coast around the track for the last lap and take the checkered flag! He led 155 of the 200 laps.

The accident in turn 3 is one that I personally will never forget. Ryan Hunter-Reay runs out of fuel entering turn 3 and Mike Conway suddenly is right on his rear wing. Conway goes to the inside and the two cars touch wheels. Conway gets up into the air and slams hard into the catch fence with Hunter-Reay's car right under him.  The car does it's job as it breaks apart and leaves carbon fiber all over the track.  Even with all of the dispersed energy, Conway suffers a broken leg and is done for the season.

This race is my vote for the top moment in the last 37 years due to all of the stories. Kanaan worst-to-first, Helio on pole going for his 4th win, Franchitti's dominance throughout the race, the fuel strategies at the end, and one of the most devastating crashes ever at the speedway are just some of the big stories that surrounded the 2010 running of the Indianapolis 500.

ENJOY RACE DAY! LADIES AND GENTLEMEN, START YOUR ENGINES!!

Carb Day

Just got back from our first trip to Indianapolis for "Carb Day." Lots to see!!!

Indy practice was fast! Dixon had multiple laps over 225 mph at race speed...amazing! My pick of Oriol Servia is 28th quick...uh oh!

The Indy Lights race was disappointing, lots of cautions. The track temperature was just too low for cars to maintain speed in the corners and stay gripped to the track, especially when they tried going two or three wide through the turns. At least four spins in turn 1.

Pit stop competition is too crowded...let the fans see it!!!

CAN'T WAIT FOR SUNDAY!!!!

2011 Indianapolis 500 Preview

Only a few days remain before the 2011 Indianapolis 500 Mile Race! James and Ryan discuss some of the top stories heading into the 100th Anniversary of the "Greatest Spectacle in Racing" and give their predictions on who we might see drinking the milk on Memorial Day weekend!

Hunter-Reay Replaces Junqueira

After being bumped as the gun sounded on Sunday, Ryan Hunter-Reay has found his way back into the 100th Anniversary of the Indianapolis 500. A.J. Foyt has agreed to "help out" a team in need in Andretti Autosport by putting Hunter-Reay in the seat of Foyt's second car, the #41 qualified by Bruno Junqueira.

Race rules are that the CAR is qualified, not the driver. Changes like this are strung throughout the history of the Indianapolis 500, but just haven't happened very often, and certainly not due to sponsors (as it would appear this change is) instead of injury. In 1941, Mauri Rose was absolutely dominant in the 500. But a spark plug problem would end his day on lap 60. Car owner Lou Moore ordered his other driver, Fred Davis, who was running 14th at the time, to pit on lap 72. Davis climbed out of the car, and Rose jumped in and drove the car to victory lane! So driver changes for non-injury have happened much later in race week than this!

Here's my take on the whole situation:   It's about the team, about everything. not the car, not the driver, not the engineer, but the ENTIRE TEAM. Bruno has always been unbelievable at going fast during qualifications, but not as much during the race. As a team owner if I see a good racer available in RHR and I have a car in the race with a fast qualifier but not a fast driver during the race like Bruno, throwing sponsors aside, I put RHR in the car without any question! The higher the finish, the better money you get. That money can go to the entire team (engineers, pit crew, both drivers). Hunter-Reay raced with Foyt before, so Foyt knows what he's getting. Gutsy move by Foyt. If Hunter-Reay gets them to victory lane then this will be like Mauri Rose. Many may not like it, but if it breeds success then tough to argue against it!

My only question: what will Andretti do to get Mike Conway, currently fourth in the championship standings and not in the 500, into the race? I wondered if John Andretti would give up his seat for Conway, but that appears unlikely. Something to keep your eye on as we approach Carb Day.

This is Indy. This is May. Do what it takes to win. Ladies and gentlemen, start your engines.

Top 10 Moments in Indy 500 History

We're down to the top 10 moments in our Month of May countdown! Who will be number one?
(Be sure to check below to see the rest of the month's moments! Keep this page bookmarked as we'll update our top 10 list as the final days leading up to the 100th Anniversary of the Greatest Spectacle in Racing wind down!)

#2: One of my favorite Indy 500's to date was the 2006 race.  With four laps to go, the race goes back to green with Michael Andretti (on old tires) in the lead, his 19-year-old son Marco (on fresh tires and fuel) in second, and (after a desperate pass as the green flag waves) Sam Hornish, Jr. in third. With three to go, Marco shows dad how it's done as he passes Michael on the outside going into turn one! Marco begins to pull away, and Michael now is put into a "blocking" role for his son. Hornish quickly pulls around Michael and closes the gap on Marco. With two to go, Hornish gets a huge tow on the back stretch and looks to the inside of Marco, who slams the door shut! Hornish has to get off of the throttle and loses all momentum. The race appears to be over, no way can Hornish make up the ground lost in just one lap. The announcers agree and already are congratulating young Marco. However, as the two racers go through turns 3 and 4 (right in front of our seats! LOVE IT!) Hornish is right on Marco's rear wing. He uses the draft and slingshots around him as the cars go down the frontstretch!  From our seats we can see Hornish dive to the inside to make the pass, can see them cross the finish line, but can't tell who crossed first! It doesn't matter, we're screaming and cheering all the way! About five seconds later, Hornish's picture appears on the jumbotrons. He successfully made the pass (the first time in history that a driver made a pass on the final lap to win the race!) and got to drink the milk after winning the second closest race in Indy 500 history!

This video is very close to where our seats are, so you can see how it looked from my vantage point.

#3: Michael Andretti leads 160 laps in the 1992 race, but with 12 laps to go and leading by nearly 30 seconds, his fuel pump fails and his car coasts to a stop on the short chute between turns 3 and 4. Going green with seven laps left, the rest of the race would feature an unbelievable battle between Al Unser, Jr. and Scott Goodyear for the lead.  Goodyear trailed by less than a second for pretty much the entire seven laps, battling nose-to-tail all around the 2.5 mile oval. On the final lap, Goodyear pulls to the inside out of the final turn. Unser held him off, though, by 0.043 seconds, the closest finish in the history of the Indianapolis 500. (I read actually that the gap was even less than this, as Goodyear's tracker was further back in the car than it should have been, and the gap was closer to 0.02 seconds!)

#4: After 113 laps, rain brings out the rain flag with Andretti-Green drivers Tony Kanaan, Marco Andretti, and Danica Patrick running 1-2-3, and the fourth teammate Dario Franchitti back in 14th. But the rain would stop and track dry, so the race is not declared over yet. As soon as the race resumes (after three hours of delay), teams report more weather approaching the speedway.  On lap 151 under caution and with skies quickly darkening, many leaders come into the pits. However, Franchitti stays out.  The drivers know that rain is coming, which will end the race for good, so the rest of the race would feature some of the most daring moves seen at Indianapolis as drivers want every position they can get before the race ends. Cautions on lap 156 and 163 chews up lots of the possible race time, however, including a nasty crash that sends Andretti flipping across the backstretch. Before the track could be cleared after Andretti's accident, the skies open. Franchitti slowly makes his way around the speedway through the terrential downpour to take the checkered flag, his wife Ashley Judd dancing in the rain in celebration of her husband's first Indy 500 victory!

#5: Quite possibly the greatest story of success, pressure, failure, drama, excitement, and history happened to one driver in the 2005 Indianapolis 500: rookie Danica Patrick. All in all, this was one of the greatest days for the Greatest Spectacle in Racing and open-wheel racing as a whole!

Success: On lap 56, Danica Patrick becomes the first woman to ever lead a lap at the Brickyard.
Pressure: During the next caution, Danica stalls in the pits. It appears at this point the rookie pressure has gotten to the rookie. She has plenty of time with her fast car to make it back to the front.
Failure: The field is about to go back to green on lap 155 when a car checks up in front of Danica, who goes high on the track to avoid contact. She spins, causing a chain reaction that collects four or five other racers as well. She appears to be done for the day. Somehow, though, she ends up facing the warmup lane and drives to the pits. The only damage to her car is a broken front wing, which her team changes while keeping her on the lead lap.
Drama: She pitted again on lap 159 to fill up on fuel and attempt to make the finish without any more stops. All of the leaders need to pit once more, which they do on lap 170 under caution. Danica stays out and takes the lead. From this point onward, the 300,000 in attendance would be on their feet. She would lead until lap 186 when Dan Wheldon passed her exactly when a caution came out. Lady Luck appears to NOT be on her side...
Excitement: On the restart, Danica uses the draft and gets around Wheldon before even crossing the start/finish line!  Never in my years of attending the 500 have I seen a moment where every individual in attendance is cheering on the same racer.
History:  Wheldon passes Danica three laps later, and she then attempts to save fuel and so is passed by her teammate Vitor Meira and Bryan Herta. But her 4th place finish is the highest for a woman in the history of the Indianapolis 500. Wheldon's victory is sometimes overlooked by Danica's performance, as Wheldon poked fun at it by wearing a t-shirt stating "Actually won the Indy 500." More importantly, her success and the fans' love for her brings IndyCar back into the limelight and has led to the ratings of the series going through the roof!

#6: The 1989 Indianapolis 500 featured a two-man battle for the last ten laps. Al Unser, Jr. took the lead over Emerson Fittipaldi with five laps to go, but Emo stayed close. On lap 199, Little Al ran in to traffic coming out of turn 2, giving Fittipaldi the chance he needed. They went 3 wide on the backstretch, and the leaders went side-by-side entering turn 3. As Little Al would say, "two guys went into turn 3 and only one was gonna come out."  Fittipaldi's car slid up just enough for the two cars to make contact, which sent Little Al hard into the wall. Emo stayed on course, and he took the checkered flag the next time by under caution. Unser, Jr. climbed out of the car unharmed, and as Fittipaldi came around turn 3 again to take the checkered flag, Little Al pulled a classy move representative of the Brickyard. With everybody (including Al himself) expecting him to throw something at Emo's car or at the very least give Emo an inappropriate gesture, Little Al clapped his hands and gave a two thumbs up to his fellow racer who gave him "the best slide job anybody ever gave me."

#7: Team Penske returns to the Brickyard for the first time since the CART split, and they dominate like the old days. Fighting through two rain delays, Helio Castroneves wins his first Indianapolis 500 (the second straight victory by a rookie) and teammate Gil de Ferran finishes 2nd for Roger Penske's first 1-2 finish ever at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. "Spiderman" Castroneves would celebrate in fashion by climbing the fence at the start finish line!

#8: CART teams return to the Brickyard for the 2000 Indy 500 as Target Chip Ganassi Racing brings Jimmy Vasser and Juan Montoya to the race. Montoya dominates the race, starting in 2nd, leading 167 of 200 laps and winning the 84th running of the Greatest Spectacle in Racing. Pole sitter Greg Ray finishes last astonishingly, and sets a precedent as Scott Sharp would accomplish the same "first to worst" feat the following year.

 #9: One of the worst crashes in Indy 500 history came in 1995 as Stan Fox collected Eddie Cheever in the first corner on lap 1. The accident tore the front off of Fox's car and leaving his legs exposed at over 200 mph. The broadcast team actually told the camera men to keep their cameras off of Fox's car, because "he's probably dead."  He survived the crash, but his racing days are over. Jacques Villenueve during the race, unaware that he was in fact the leader, passed the pace car under yellow. He was therefore penalized two laps. Amazingly, he would make his way up through the field and win in what his team would later call "the only winner of the Indianapolis 505!"

#10: The famous "Spin and Win" in 1985 is one of the great stories of the Indianapolis Motor Speedway that everybody remembers. On lap 120, while battling for the lead against Mario Andretti, Danny Sullivan makes a move to the inside in turn one. Coming out of the turn, the car wiggles, and Sullivan spins a full 360 degrees. Dissolved in a cloud of smoke, the wall is likely the future for both him and Andretti. However, Andretti avoids the spinning Sullivan, and Sullivan rights himself facing turn 2 and is able to continue the race! And oh did he ever, as he would come back from that spin and win the Greatest Spectacle in Racing!

NFL Draft Analysis

It's time to analyze the 2011 NFL Draft! What do you think? What teams did well, what teams left you shaking your head? We've made our picks, what are yours?

It's the Month of May!

That means the Indianapolis 500 is just around the corner! Every day this month I'll be posting one of the top race moments in the last 35 years when my family has attended the Greatest Spectacle in Racing. I will keep updating this post, so keep it bookmarked! What year will come out on top?

#11: 2009 was a difficult year for Helio Castroneves. In October of 2008, Castroneves was charged with conspiracy and six counts of tax evasion. He missed numerous races during the impending trial and his racing career was certainly in jeopardy. On April 17, 2009, a jury acquitted Castroneves on all six counts of tax evasion. This kick-started an absolutely perfect month of may for the Brazilian:

• On May 7th he's back running laps (2nd fastest lap of the day) at the Brickyard;
• On May 9th, Pole Day, Castroneves qualifies for his third pole position with a four-lap average of 224.864 (0.781 mph faster than 2nd place Ryan Briscoe);
• On May 22nd, Carb Day, Castroneves and his team absolutely dominate the Pit-Stop Challenge, defeating Marco Andretti in the finals with a 7.96 second pit stop;
• On May 24th, Race Day, the perfect month is completed as Castroneves leads 66 laps on the way to his third trip to the infield fence at the Brickyard!

#12: Al Unser, Jr. gets his second victory at the Brickyard in 1994. In 2nd place with 15 laps to go and battling his teammate Emerson Fittipaldi (who needs to make a splash and go) about to lap him, Little Al gets some Indy luck. Emo gets loose in turn 4 and hits the wall. Fittipaldi doesn't get his third victory, and instead Unser, Jr. gets his second.

#13: A "green-white-checkered" finish in 1986 turned the Indianapolis 500 into the "Indianapolis 5" in 1986. On the restart, leader Kevin Cogan doesn't get a good jump, and Bobby Rahal takes full advantage, making the pass well before the entrance to turn 1. Rahal pulls away in the fastest Indy 500 to date and wins by 1.441 seconds.

#14: One of the greatest "feel-good" moments of the Indy 500 was in 1996. Buddy Lazier, months after fracturing his back in an accident, makes an absolutely amazing pass on the outside of turn 3 with 9 laps to go. After a crash, the field will go back to green with the white flag waving as well. Lazier holds off Davy Jones by 0.695 seconds, the third closest finish in history at that time. As Lazier and Jones cross the finish line, a huge crash occurs in turn 4 as Roberto Guerrero spins and collects Alessandro Zampedri and Eliseo Salizar on his way to the wall. Zampedri's car airborne is saved by the catch fence, and he sustains heavy injuries to his legs. Lazier drinks the milk, barely able to climb out of his car after 500 miles of back pain.

T
The field goes back to green with one lap left at 3:50! Enjoy the finish and the crash replays!

#15: One of the most controversial endings in Indy 500 history came in 2002. First, a unique situation where twice in the race (first Tony Kanaan, then Tomas Scheckter) crash while in the lead! The controversial ending was a battle between defending champion Helio Castroneves (who gambled on fuel after Schecketer's crash on lap 173) and Paul Tracy. Castroneves slows down dramatically on the last couple of laps, and Tracy is right on his tail with two laps left. In turn 3, Castroneves slows down even more, appearing out of fuel, and Tracy makes the pass on the outside. As he does, the yellow flag comes out for a crash in turn 2.  Race officials rule that the pass came AFTER the caution had come out. Helio coasts his way around to the checkered flag, and then stops his car on the start/finish line to climb the fence after his victory lap. He's asked to drive his car to Victory Lane, but says he can't because there's no fuel in it! His race strategist Tim Cindric says later that their gauges read 0.4 gallons remaining, which is good for "under green, maybe a half a lap" according to Cindric. Would Helio have made it? Did the pass happen in time? Who knows. What is certain, however, is that to this day, Paul Tracy considers himself the true winner of the 2002 Indianapolis 500 Mile Race.

#16: Mr. 2nd Place Tom Sneva finally finds victory lane in 1983! With the laps winding down, Al Unser leads, and his son Al Unser, Jr. is five laps back but essentially "blocking" for his father so Sneva can't attack the leader. With 10 laps left, "Big Al" runs into more lapped traffic, allowing Sneva to get around "Little Al" on the frontstretch and then half of a lap later to get around "Big Al" on the backstretch. Sneva would pull away and go on to victory at the Brickyard, finally giving a much deserved appearance in Victory Lane for a man who always seemed to come up one position short.

#17: Scott Goodyear's issues at the finish of an Indy 500 continue in the 1997 race. After being delayed until Tuesday due to rain, the 81st Indianapolis 500 has Goodyear in the lead with teammate Arie Luyendyk in second as they took the green flag with six laps to go. Both drivers need to save fuel to make the finish, but Goodyear saves too much as Luyendyk makes the pass in turn 3. A caution for debris follows, and the green flag comes back out with three laps to go. Luyendyk holds off Goodyear for that lap, but a few cars back Tony Stewart hits the turn 4 wall and brings out the yellow. Luyendyk looks to coast around for the win. But, unexpectedly, as the field slowly crosses the start/finish line again, the white flag flies AND THE GREEN FLIES TOO! All of the racers hesitate, but Luyendyk hesitates the least. Coming out of turn 2, Luyendyk calls on the radio "There's yellow [lights flashing] out there...what the **** are they doing!?" which showed that even the on track officials weren't sure what was happening. More controversy for Goodyear, who was warming his tires up when the green flag flied. He would finish in second place behind his teammate Luyendyk, who won his second Indy 500.

#18: It was a tornado of activity both on and off the track at the 2004 Indy 500. Literally. After nearly four hours of delays both before and during the race due to rain, even more weather is imminent. Around lap 150, cars jockey for position on the track knowing there's only a few more laps left to run. Soon drivers need to pit, and strategy begins. Do we take just fuel to stay up front? Do we stay out and hope for rain? Do we make our car as good as it can be? Adrian Fernandez stays out as long as he can, until lap 171. Light rain had begun to fall on the track, but not significant enough to stop the race, so he has to pit for a splash of fuel. After the huge flurry of pit stops, Buddy Rice retakes the lead. On lap 173 the yellow flag flies, and Rice wins the rain-shortened "500."

The chaos that followed for spectators is one that can only be appreciated by those who were at the speedway that day. As the rain begins to strengthen and the race is declared official, we get a call from a family friend who is a track spotter at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. "Get out of the stands. Tornado Warning."  The only information the speedway passed on was a radar picture (which showed red all over the Indianapolis and Speedway areas) on the jumbotrons as Rice took the checkered flag. Taking our friend's advice, we then began to make our way back (rather quickly) to our car with 300,000+ other spectators, many of which I'm sure had no idea of the severity of the weather around the speedway. It would later be confirmed that an F2 tornado touched down within six miles of the track. The insane activity on the track and the chaos of the weather after the race made the 2004 races one of the most memorable for me especially. 

This image just shows the mixture of emotions and the importance of the Indy 500. "Congratulations to the Indy 500 champ...oh by the way, tornadoes are in the area so you should probably take shelter!"

#19: The Unser Brothers, Al and Bobby, dominate the 1979 Indianapolis 500, leading 89 and 85 laps respectively. Al's car is dominant over the first half of the race, but the transmission failed and on lap 102 Al is out of the race. Bobby takes over the lead and stays there until he mysteriously slows in turn 4. He ends up finishing a lap back. The one who benefits? Rick Mears, who wins his first of four Indy 500s.

#20: The 2003 Indy 500 had many interesting moments. First, rookie Dan Wheldon has one of the most spectacular and memorable crashes in Indy 500 history as he loses control in turn 3, hits the wall, flips, and stops on his head. (I love how within 60 seconds of hitting the wall, the safety crew has flipped his car back right-side-up. You have to appreciate the amazing safety crew at the Brickyard!)  The end of the race, though featuring no passes, is history-making as Gil de Ferran holds off teammate Helio Castroneves (to give Roger Penske his second 1-2 finish in three years) and fellow countryman Tony Kanaan (by one second) in the closest 1-2-3 finish in the history of the Indianapolis 500.

(Start at 6:20 to see Dan Wheldon's spectacular crash. Amazing sight to witness, especially in person. I sit in turn 4 and Wheldon's car came to rest literally right in front of us. I still cannot believe how quickly the safety crew righted his car. Another great moment for the Brickyard!)

#21: One of the most heartbreaking finishes at Indianapolis happened in 1999. Robby Gordon is leading the race and is told by his crew that he has plenty of fuel to make it to the finish. Gordon sounds very unsure going around the speedway as the laps tick away. With three laps left he radios to his team that they're going to run out of fuel, to which his team responds again that they're fine on fuel. Gordon runs out of fuel coming out of turn 4 with the white flag flying, and Kenny Brack makes the pass to take the lead. With all of the confusion, Brack doesn't know if he's still racing! He thought the checkered flag had waved! He makes it around one more time and gets the REAL checkered flag and gives A.J. Foyt his first victory as an owner!

#22: Rick Mears makes our list again, this time for his performance in the 1991 race. A back and forth battle over the last 20 laps between Mears and Michael Andretti features an outside pass in turn one for both drivers. But in the end, Mears begins to pull away and wins his 4th Indianapolis 500. Andretti dominates the day, but never bet against Mears, and the Andretti streak of bad luck at the Brickyard continues. Mears joins Al Unser and A.J. Foyt as the only racers to drink the milk four times!

#23: Bobby Unser's 1981 Indy 500 Victory isn't official until October 9th. The day after the race, USAC race officials announce that Unser passed cars when exiting the pits and declared 2nd place Mario Andretti the winner. After a lengthy legal process, the penalty was rescinded and Unser could finally be considered the official "500" champion.

#24: The 1984 race started out exciting as former winners Mario Andretti, Rick Mears, and Tom Sneva battle for the lead and dominate the race. But when Andretti and Sneva both have to retire with less than 50 laps left, Mears can run relatively relaxed to the finish, winning by over two laps ahead of the rest of the field, in one of the dominating performances in Indy history. Mears led 117 laps on his way to Victory Lane.

#25: Al Unser nearly misses first lap incident in the 1987 race, but he races like a former champion should. He patiently moves up the field as the laps trickle away and finds himself in 2nd place. With 24 laps to go, Unser is lapped by Roberto Guerrero, who needs to pit.  After putting Unser a lap down, Guerrero ends up stalling in the pits and surrenders the lead to Unser! Unser even puts Guererro a lap down! Guererro is much faster, but cannot get back to the lead. "Big Al" hangs on to win his fourth Indy 500!

 

#26: Tony Stewart is the big favorite in the 1998 Indy 500, but one lap after taking the lead, his engine blows. Stewart would blow onto NASCAR soon after. Eddie Cheever spins in the first corner at the start of the race, but doesn't hit anything. He falls to the back of the pack and fights back to make it to Victory Lane!