Fox has a TV show, Kitchen Nightmares. … And we wonder why the rest of the world hates us. … Super Bowl in London? Don't do it, Roger.

I think with its victory over Kent State on Saturday, Ohio State won the MAC. … Nothing against the Buckeyes, but I am rooting for a Boston College-South Florida title game. … Maybe 15 people will watch.

Devon Hester is a special player. … Think Adrian Peterson would look good playing for the Browns? … Just like LT would have looked good for the Browns, too.

Indians-Rockies World Series. … Both teams are built in the image of John Hart. … Fans of the Texas Rangers want to know what is wrong in Arlington.

UA wants respect, wants excitement, wants more fans. … Well, don't lose to Temple.

The only team beside OSU ranked in the Top 25 is Michigan. That means one loss eliminates the Buckeyes from title game hopes.

Don't miss the announcement today, Arena Football is back in Cleveland. … Vinny Testaverde steps on the field Wednesday and leads a victory Sunday. … First player to be collecting Social Security and an NFL paycheck.

The Cavaliers are doing the right thing. They should not give into the demands of Anderson Varejao or Sasha Pavlovic. … The Indians bullpen is the reason they are where they are, and it will be what decides if they win the World Series or not. … Jamal Lewis being healthy is the difference between 8 wins and 5 or 6 wins for the Browns.

Will any team be undefeated in college football come November? … The Big Ten Network has been a dud. … By the way, that will be the only way to watch the OSU-Kent State game Saturday. … I don't think you will miss much.

Roger Clemens, Cooperstown is calling. It is time to trigger your five-year wait. … Dan O'Dowd of the Rockies and Josh Byrnes of the Diamondbacks; both GMs, also both former members of the Tribe front office. … No wonder the Pirates hired Neal Huntington as GM; the Tribe knows how to grow great front office folks.

Jimmie Johnson or Jeff Gordon? I am pulling for Gordon. … Mike Tirico is everywhere.

… The Browns offense finds its groove and destroys the Bengals defense.

The Bengals offense continues to expose the Browns defense.

It added up to a surprising win for the Browns. It also adds up to another season where high expectations will meet an early ending to a season for the Bengals. Everyone falls in love with offense but defense is the key. The Bengals remind me of the Chargers of the 80s. Lots of Hall of Fame offensive players but no rings to show for it.

… Clint Bowyer wins his first race of the season and is in fourth place in the Race for the Nextel Cup. Jeff Gordon and Jimmie Johnson are tied for first. This will be a battle of attrition.

… Maybe this time O.J. Simpson is guilty.

… Then again …

… Is it better for the Indians to have the Tigers in the playoffs or the Yankees or does it matter. If the Tigers make the playoffs then the Indians will play the Angels in the first round. Otherwise, they are going to Boston or hosting the Yankees. I like their chances better against the Angels.

… Ohio State looks in good shape to play a New Year's Day bowl but I am still not sure if they will win the Big Ten. Penn State and Wisconsin are interesting, and Michigan can't be counted out.

… So will Charlie Weis get the same treatment as Ty Willingham and get fired after what is going to be a horrible third season? Probably not. But it is a valid point.

… I have to like Kent State over Akron in the game at the Rubber Bowl on Saturday. The Zips just seem to lack a strong enough defense to slow down the Flashes. If KSU does win, they are setting up a season that could end in a bowl game.

… Brady who?

… Tiger Woods wins FedExCup. No surprise.

… My guess is that the Bill Belichick video scandal isn't over yet.

… Less than a month until Cavs open training camp.

It looks like Dale Earnhardt Jr. will be joining forces with Jeff Gordon at Hendrick Motorsports.

This is like Pepsi and Coke merging. Expect things to fizz over.

My first thought that this is not a good thing for Nextel Cup. Rivalries are good for sports, although the Yankees-Red Sox rivalry is choking most of the oxygen out of the rest of baseball.

The positive for Nextel Cup is that Junior actually might add some wins or even be a factor in the Chase to go with this high profile. Budweiser and Chevrolet also have to be happy.

Steve Latarte took over as Jeff Gordon's crew chief in somewhat of a surprise after Robbie Loomis left Hendrick Motorsports a couple of seasons ago.

How could Rick Hendrick put such an inexperienced crew member in charge of Gordon's car?

Well, Letarte is proving his worth this season.

Gordon, who is in the points lead for the Nextel Cup this season, benefited from a great call by Letarte on Sunday.

Letarte pitted Gordon's car out of sequence, and when the rain returned to the Long Pond, Pa., track, Gordon was able to remain out front to win his fourth race of the season.

Letarte's calls helped Gordon win the race in Phoenix earlier this season, too.

The two are bringing back memories of Gordon and Ray Evernham dominating at the end of the 90s.

And Letarte has quickly joined Chad Knaus as the top crew chiefs in Nextel Cup.

Took my boys on a family trip to Charlotte for the NASCAR All-Star race.

What a great time, go-kart tracks, good time with family and 180,000 gear heads.

The race was outstanding with the no-holds barred format. Kevin Harvick was victorious but Jimmie Johnson, Matt Kenseth and Jeff Gordon showed that they can dominate at Lowe's Motor Speedway. And that should make the Coca-Cola 600 this weekend worth the price of admission and your time on TV this Sunday.

Don't forget about the Indy 500, which will also be raced Sunday. Three women in the race for the first time.

Folks can talk about the NBA and NHL and Major League Baseball, but the attendance marks and TV ratings show that NASCAR is second only to the NFL in the U.S.

Jeff Gordon won the 76th race of his Cup career Saturday night, tying him with Dale Earnhardt Sr. for sixth place on the all-time victory list for NASCAR.

His tribute to Dale, holding a No. 3 flag out his window on his victory lap, was outstanding. In fact, Junior told Gordon that it was classy.

Maybe some folks will take it the wrong way, but for anyone who follows the sport, they know how much Gordon and Earnhardt respected each other.

As for this season, Gordon looks like he has his sights set on winning his fifth Cup, but as he pointed out last night, winning in the Chase format means the real race doesn't begin until September, when the actual Chase begins.

David Newton on ESPN.com has a nice column on Gordon's new place in history.

Welcome to my blog. As the Deputy Sports Editor for the Beacon Journal, I hope that this is a place where we all can discuss issues with the Beacon Journal and Ohio.com sports coverage and the teams and leagues we cover and care passionately about.

So to get started here is where I am coming from. I like nearly all sports (although I don't get some of the sports in the Olympics), but with my Pittsburgh upbringing, I lean toward pro and college football and hockey with a fondness toward baseball (I think that is what the Pirates play).

I think college sports in Ohio is more than Ohio State football. … I think that Jeff Gordon should have knocked Jimmie Johnson into the wall to win in Martinsville two weeks ago. … I think the Browns would be crazy to pass on Calvin Johnson and would be crazier to take Brady Quinn. … I expect them to take Quinn.
(more…)