The Tampa Tribune from Tampa, Florida • 21

Monday. November 13, 2 000 76 DAYS ftvrw TOGO DTP' Send commens am! aps thfojjs e-mai to: sportstamp3trlb.CGm fUCK" DUKT VMS, Saw fcaar to Sports, (B1 3) Sporsbx. (613) 25948 WED HFL SOAY 77z Dolphins uhip San Diego and Trent Dilfer is a hero for tiie Ravens. NFl COVERAGE, PAGES 45-6 IVlLi 1 factoid. Page 2 The Tampa Tribune Labonte earns title of champion jy i A.

Earnhardt' bid for eighth title ends Backpage si-- HOMESTEAD Tony Stewart repeats as Penruoil 400 champion and teammate Bobby Labonte finishes fourth to clinch the Winston Cup championship. By HJL BRAN HAM of The Tampa Tribune A Winston Cup champion was crowned on an afternoon when a future champion may have been on display. The fact the two are teammates added to the decidedly special stock-car spectacle on Sunday. Steady and strong Bobby Labonte did what he had to, plus a little more, to clinch his first series title, finishing fourth in the Pennzoil 400 at Homestead-Miami Speedway. Dominating Tony Stewart Labonte's teammate at Joe Gibbs Racing did all he could, leading 166 of 267 laps en route to winning the race for the second consecutive year.

Stewart, and actually falling back to third in points behind Jeff Burton with one race remaining. Stewart, his Pontiac seemingly stronger as the race wore on, beat runner-up Jeremy May-field's Ford by 4.561 seconds and averaged 127.477 mph.He then shared a victory lap around the lV4-mile oval with Labonte. "We knew after Happy Hour Saturday's final practice session we had a car that was real strong," said Stewart, who started 13th and took the lead for the first time on Lap 53. "I knew we had a real good shot at winning if I didn't make any mistakes." Mark Martin, his shot hampered by late-race jostling with Ricky Rudd, finished third in a Ford. Next came Labonte's Pontiac, 7.565 seconds behind Stewart.

See NASCAR, Page 8 "I don't think anybody could be happier," said Gibbs, former Super Bawl-winning coach with the Washington Redskins. "This is a tough league, too." Stewart, winning his series-high sixth race of the season, took the checkered, and shared a victory lap with Labonte. Stewart then deferred to the front-straight celebration and trophy presentation involving Labonte, younger brother of two-time series tiUist Terry Labonte and a man who finally closed the door on seven-time champion Dale Earnhardt To clinch, Labonte needed only finish fifth or sixth, if he led the race at some point, which he did no matter what Earnhardt did. Earnhardt didn't do much, finishing 20th, three laps off the impressive pace established by AP photo Bobby Labonte, left, and team owner Joe Gibbs celebrate after Labonte wins the Winston Cup championship. Perfect 10 eludes Woods Palmer to start vs.

FSU SOTOGRANDE, Spain The 17th hole at Valderrama does in Tiger Woods again and Canada's Mike Weir walks off with the American Express Championship. By DOUG FERGUSON of The Associated Press One of the greatest years in golf ended with a bang, just not the kind Tiger Woods had planned. As Mike Weir of Canada rapped in his final putt Sunday to win the American Express Championship, Woods twice slammed his foot into his golf travel bag while changing to leave Valderrama Golf Club. Just like last year, the diabolical 17th hole took the best shot Woods had to offer and deposited the ball into a pond. Only this time, Woods never got a second chance to win in a playoff.

And his spectacular season ended without a perfect 10 I 1 l' I--" the first $10 million man in golf, the first player in 50 years to win at least 10 times on the PGA Tour. "I played well for most of the day," Woods said. But not good enough to catch Weir, who played better than anyone on the weekend and came away with a Tiger Woods had a pretty good year despite Sunday's loss. SCOn ISKOWITZTrfbune photo GAINESVILLE Like his counterpart on FSU's sideline, Steve Spurrier will go with his old guy at quarterback Saturday at Doak Campbell Stadium. By JOEY KNIGHT of The Tampa Tribune Even as the presidential election process flutters aimlessly on the wings of a butterfly ballot things appear much more cut-and-dried on the state level.

Jesse Palmer will be the Florida Gators' representative in Tallahassee. Recount if you wish, but the result won't change. The senior pulled it out by one vote Steve Spurrier's. Sensing hell be better off with a veteran quarterback to cope with all the elements accompanying Saturday's high-stakes contest at FSU, Spurrier announced Sunday he'll start Palmer against the Seminoles in a game that still may earn the winner an Orange Bowl berth. "Right now, Jesse, in all likeli- hood, is going to be our quarterback for this game," Spurrier said the day after Palmer came off the bench to rally UF from an 18-point deficit to a 41-21 triumph against South Carolina.

"He's a senior and with all that" going on, checking off and crowd noise and things of that nature I think his ankle is pretty much 100 percent now, and that he's ready to go." Palmer, tied with Doug Flutie and Cher for most career comebacks, relieved struggling redshirt freshman Rex Grossman to start the second quarter and led Florida to scores on five of its next seven possessions. Prior to Saturday, ankle injuries first at Mississippi State, then against Georgia had relegated him to a backup role for the umpteenth time in his career. Now he has a chance to do something no Gators quarterback since Kerwin Bell has accomplished win at Doak Campbell Stadium. "I'm a very optimistic person," said Palmer, who also had lost his starting job to Doug Johnson in 1998 when he fractured his clavicle against LSU. "And it's just a matter of waiting your time and being patient Unfortunately, I've had some bad luck with some injuries, but at the same time, I kept trying to fight back." Such a healthy attitude, Spurrier admits, is one of the reasons he was so quick to insert Palmer after Grossman "sort of got lost out there" on Saturday.

When asked about the chances of Palmer and Grossman rotating against FSU, Spurrier indicated it is not likely. "It's always good to have an experienced quarterback if he's your best player and your best passer and all that" said Spurrier, 04-1 in Tallahassee as UFs coach. "I just think Jesse has more awareness, and now his ankle seems to be 100 percent." Gators coach Steve Spurrier said senior Jesse Palmer's experience earned the starting nod against FSU. Gators final hurdle for FSU title shot FLfljiDjUrSI) I Who: No. 4 Florida (9-1) vs.

No. 3 Florida State (10-1) When: 8 p.m. I Where: Doak Campbell Stadium, Tallahassee I TV: WFTS, Channel 28 The Polls Associated Press Rec. Pta Pvs 1. Oklahoma (70) 90 1,774 1 2.

Miami B-l 1.690 2 3. Bonds St. (1) 10-1 1,629 3 4. Florida 9-1 1,551 5. Oregon 10-1 1,490 6 6.

Washington 9-1 1,429 7 7. Virginia Tech 91 1,328 8 8. Oregon St. 91 1,263 10 9. Kansas St.

92 1,124 16 10. Nebraska 8-2 1,101 4 USA Today ESPN 1. Oklahoma (57) 90 1,473 1 2. Miami (2) 8-1 1,407 2 3. Florida Stata 10-1 1.357 3 4.

Florida 91 1,297 4 5. Washington 91 1,196 6 8. Oregon 91 1,169 7 7. Virginia Tech 91 1,115 8 B. Oregon State 91 1.025 10 9.

Kansas State 92 966 11 10. Nebraska 84 887 5 Complete polls Page 7 two-stroke victory in the World Golf Championships event Having watched another horror show unfold before him on the par-5 17th, Weir found dry land and made a deft par save from behind the green. That allowed him to coast in for a 3-under 69 and a two-stroke victory against Lee Westwood. "If a huge win, a world championship," Weir said. "With the quality of the field, that's what makes it so special.

Any time Tiger plays in the tournament you win, it makes you feel great because he's far and away the best player in the game right now." Weir finished at ll-under 277 and earned $1 million. Woods will have to settle for a year that even one crazy hole at Valderrama can't spoil nine victories, more than $9 million in earnings, three consecutive majors, the career Grand Slam and the lowest raw scoring average in PGA Tour history. And there was one other winner. With the $500,000 for finishing second, Westwood moved ahead of good friend Darren Clarke on the European tour money list and claimed the Order of Merit ending the amazing seven-year reign of Colin Montgomerie. Woods was emotional, too.

He needed a birdie on the 17th, a green he can reach in two with an 8-iron, but put his drive into the All the fretting was beginning to leave them numb to the task at hand, as evidenced by the way Wake Forest stayed within two touchdowns of FSU entering the fourth quarter. That's the same Wake Forest team that had won only one game this season, narrowly escaping against winless Duke. In Florida, there is the ultimate shot at redemption. "If we beat Florida, everything will take care of itself," quarterback Chris Weinke said. On top of that, there is the usual emotion involved in the final home game of the season.

The Class of 2000 isn't interested in giving up the nation's longest home-field unbeaten streak (51 games) and longest home winning streak (34). Especially not to the Gators, who haven't won in Tallahassee since 1986. "We got 28 seniors who are gonna play their last ball game at Doak Campbell," senior linebacker Brian Allen said. "I don't think it will be a problem as far as being emotional goes." One senior who won't be TALLAHASSEE Florida State players are thankful for a chance to think about something besides the usual BCS. By DOUG CARLSON of The Tampa Tribune Throw the computer records out the window.

When fourth-ranked Florida visits Tallahassee on Saturday night, there will still be plenty at stake as far as the BCS is concerned. But for about three or four hours, Florida State players said there's only one margin of victory they'll be interested in and it won't have anything to do with computer rankings. The Seminoles played like their hearts had been replaced by computers during a 35-6 victory at Wake Forest Saturday, but said that won't be a problem against their most despised rival. With the Gators in town, the blood, some of it bad, will be flowing again and the 'Noles can finally stop worrying about complicated formulas that will determine their New Year's destiny. "In this series you really don't need all that because it means so much to both schools in regard to the hostile feelings of the alumni and boosters," FSU coach Bobby Bowden said.

"It means so much to them. But then on top of that it means a lot to the pollsters and to who's gonna play for the national championship." Third-ranked FSU has been obsessing over its reflection in the BCS mirror ever since the standings were released in late October. The Seminoles just couldn't seem to hide the blemish inflicted on them at Miami. playing is tailback Jeff Chaney, who injured his knee against the Demon Deacons and will undergo an MRI today. Other than that the Seminoles say they are ready for a game that will get their full attention.

Said Bowden: "If we don't beat Florida, we're out of it See TIGER, Page 8.