The Des Moines Register from Des Moines, Iowa • Page 13

1 Sljcflcsflloincs Agister I Friday, January 21, 2011 I state edition Iowa State men's basketball loses 16th straight trip to Oklahoma State page3b Breaking news on your cell phone Text "DMRNEWS" to 44636 (4INFO) to sign up for breaking news text alerts. DM-900O2W0I5 WEEKEND TV 2B NFL 2B COLLEGE BASKETBALL 3B TENNIS 3B ROUNDUP 4B DesMoinesRegister.comsports NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Drivers are OK with proposed points system NFC Championship Game: History in the Making Sunday: Green Bay at Chicago, 2 p.m. (Fox) Rivalry's bitter roots took a strong hold ByJENNA FRYER Associated Press Daytona Beach, Fla. Jimmie Johnson understands that talk of a new points system is often viewed as NASCAR's attempt to end his five-year championship reign. It makes no difference to him, though, if NASCAR throws out its 36-year-old points system for the Chase for the Sprint Cup.

He said he'll be ready to race and win. "I feel confident that my team will be able to win championships under any set of circumstances," he said. The Associated Press reported this week that NASCAR is considering dumping the points system used since Johnson 1975 in favor of a method that awards points directly on the finishing position in the 43-car field. "In concept it's still very similar to what we have now," Johnson said. Drivers seem interested in the 43-to-l system because it's simpler.

"If I am running 12th or something, I don't even know how many points that is worth and I have been doing this long enough that I should know," Carl Edwards said. Kurt Busch, winner of the inaugural 2004 Chase, said he'd like to explore the math. "When you sit there and change around points 100 different ways, we still end up with the same champion nine times out of 10 it seems like," he said. GREEN BAY PRESS-GAZETTE ARCHIVES Golf Ryder Cup Love takes role of Captain America for 12 Ryder Gup Harlan saw decades of Bears-Packers conflict I Inside: Ex-Hawkeye writes about rivalry I Facts about Bob Harlan BIRTHPLACE: Des Moines EDUCATION: St. Augustin's Elementary School, Dowling Catholic, Marquette University.

Associated Press Medinah, III. Davis Love III had to share his big day with Chicago's beloved Bears. If he leads the Americans to the Ryder Cup in the fall of 2012, he'll have the whole town to himself. An emotional and enthusiastic Love was PACKERS HISTORY: Hired in 1971 in public Former Iowa Hawkeye Matt Bowen played for the Green Bay Packers and writes about the team's rivalry with the Chicago Bears. Also on Page2B: POLLS: Who will win the game? Are Viking fans rooting for Green relations after employment with the St.

Louis Cardinals baseball club, Harlan eventually became the first non-Green Bay native to introduced Thursday as the next U.S. captain of the Ryder Cup, then spent the next few hours being feted across Chicago. He was made an honorary member at Medinah Country Club, where the 2012 become president and CEO of the Packers. Harlan, 74, is credited with rebuilding the legendary Bay or Chicago? OBAMA: Does the president predict a win or a loss for his hometown Bears? ByTOMWITOSKY twitoskydmreg.com Bob Harlan, former president and CEO of the Green Bay Packers, has watched the longest and most bitter rivalry in the NFL for 37 years. The Des Moines native and West Des Moines Dowling Catholic graduate knows how it began, how it has grown into football legend and what it means to fans on both sides.

"It became a rivalry right from the beginning because Curly Lambeau and George Halas hated each other," Harlan said. "They never shook hands before a game or after in all the years they played against each other. "Since then, it's pretty simple: The people in Wisconsin can't stand the Bears and people in Chicago can't stand the Packers." That rivalry will be renewed for the third time this season and first time in the playoffs since 1941 on Sunday franchise from nearly 20 years Harlan matches will be played, got a i ove of struggles into the Super Bowl XXXI champion on Jan. 26, 1997, with quarterback Brett Favre. DID YOU KNOW? When he was in high school, Harlan answered telephones in the sports department of The Des Moines Register along with Michael Gartner, who became editor of the Register and, later, president of NBC News.

DID YOU KNOW, PART II? One of Harlan's sons, Kevin, is an NFL play-by-play announcer and another son, Bryan, a former Bears public relations director, is now a sports agent. as the Packers and Bears play for the NFC Championship. As fans recount memories about the amount of animosity and energy generated by the rivalry, they should also remember that Halas did something that probably assured Sunday's game, Harlan said. HARLAN, PAGE 2B miniature Stanley Cup replica, and hobnobbed with Chicago sports royalty from Scottie Pippen to Ernie Banks. "The whole world is going to be watching what we do here in Chicago," Love said.

"We're going to be at least a point ahead because we're going to have the Chicago fans, the Chicago energy." Love played on six Ryder Cup teams. His first three matches, with Tom Kite as his partner, were against recently appointed European team captain Jose Maria Olaza-bal and Seve Ballesteros. He won the first but never beat Olazabal again. Vote for top Big Four hoops coach Sean Keeler's "Greatest Big Four Men's Basketball Coaches Tournament" has reached the round of eight. The matchups are as follows: Iowa's Bucky O'Connor vs.

Iowa State's Tim Floyd; Iowa State's Johnny Orr vs. Tom Davis (IowaDrake); Northern Iowa's Ben Jacobson vs. Drake'sIowa State's Maury John; and fin jvi in What's new in Sports at DesMoinesRegister.com DesMoinesRegister.com has a fresh look and new features. We've heard your calls for easier navigation and a cleaner, more elegant look to get you to the news and information you need quickly. Here are some of the changes you'll notice: Easy links to HawkCentral.com and its top stories.

Photo gallery of National Football League players who played at Iowa high schools and colleges. Twitter feed, live on the site, including anything tagged cyclones and ffhawkeyes. The option to log in with your personal Facebook account. Ask questions, give feedback at DesMoinesRegister.comfaq. Keeler the most surprising matchup of the quarterfinals 11th-seededGregMcDermott 0 (UNIISU) vs.

14th-seeded Norm Stewart (UNI). Cast your vote at http:tinyurl.comkeelercoaches Johnny Orr, ex-Iowa State 4 Tom Davis, ex-Iowa and Drake.