Fort Worth Star-Telegram from Fort Worth, Texas • 116

8D Friday August 4 2000 I wwwstar-telegramcom MOTORSPORTS COLLEGES Rudd outshines Waltrip corrals pole 1 1 I 1 tri' r- r-t--1-7 I 1 1 1 4 (1 I L) 0 1 1 1 rm -r) 1 I r' I i'''- 1 rE" 1 J'1 0 1 1A1 NI) 41It 11 WENDELL BAnNHOUSE IA 41 It ESAnNHOUSE i Clemson Tigers 10 Conference: Atlantic Coast Coach: Tommy Bowden (6-6 in one season 24-10 overall in three seasons) 1999: 6-6 5-3 in ACC tied for second Bowl: Lost to Mississippi State in Peach Bowl 17-7 Starters returning: 8 on offense 7 on defense 1999 statistical rankings DEFENSE Rushing 44 Passing 17 Scoring 33 Total 35 OFFENSE Rush 44 Pass 31 Scoring 41 Total 36 would be well enough to start tomorrow's race Labonte is NASCAR's "Iron Man" having' started a series record 655 consecutive races Bodine a NASCAR Busch Grand National regular lapped at 178770 mph in the No 5 Kellogg's Chevrolet Monte Carlo Knapp out at Menard Texan Greg Ray battled a pair of distractions while practicing for today's True Value International Race of Champions finale Ray of Plano has been battling flu-like symptoms this week And on Wednesday Ray learned that team managerengineer Thomas Knapp was no longer employed by Team Menard "The team engineer I've worked with since the end of 1992 has just been fired from my team" Ray said "I'm trying to sort out the situation and assess everything" Ray and Knapp won three races four poles and the 1999 Indy Racing League championship but did not score their first victory of 2000 until the Midas 500 Classic at Atlanta Motor Speedway on July 15 Ray who is in the second year of a five-year contract with team owner John Menard said his status with the team was "something I really don't want to talk about" Ray also said he did not know who will be his engineer for the final two races of the Indy Racing Northern Light Series "Good question" Ray said "Until the dust has settled and I know how I'm thinking I'm not going to give anybody any comments It's a no-win situation if I comment" mark after winning his first Daytona 500 in 1989 "I didn't even know if I could do the Ickey Shuffle again or not" said Waltrip who nevertheless will start opposite Rudd in the two-car front row "I kind of had forgotten how but it's a great day for us It's Indianapolis it's a big race it's a great race and it don't get no better than this" Rudd driver of the No 28 TexacoHavoline Ford Taurus was almost apologetic after earning his 26th career pole and first since Las Vegas Motor Speedway in March "Of all the guys to bump off Darrell Waltrip well maybe someone will bump us off and it will be a little easier to forget" Rudd said before his speed held up "It was a good run but we really didn't know what to expect We had a last-minute engine change so I was a little concerned about that It was a qualifying engine but it was a backup But when it comes to the motor department at Robert Yates Racing I have all the confidence in the world" Ironically Yates also supplies the engines for Waltrip driver of the No 66 Route 66Big Kilian Ford owned by Carl Haas "This is the place you want to perform" Waltrip said "I honestly believe that Indianapolis Motor Speedway is the Holy Land" Labonte streak in jeopardy The top 25 Cup spots were locked in yesterday with Todd Bodine earning that position while driving in relief of an ailing Terry Labonte A native Texan and two-time Cup champion Labonte reportedly visited his own doctors after becoming sick early yesterday John Hendrick the president of Hendrick Motorsports said he was not sure Labonte BY JOHN STURM Star-Telegram Start Writer INDIANA POLIS Ricky Rudd won the pole for the Brickyard 400 yesterday with a hot lap that ran him into the Indianapolis Motor Speedway record book and ruined what has been the biggest moment of Darrell Waltrip's farewell "Victory BRICKYARD Tour" 400 Twenty-four minutes NOTES after Waltrip brought the qualification-day crowd to its feet with a record-setting lap of 180923 mph Rudd sat 'em back down Making his first Brickyard start for car owner Robert Yates Rudd toured the 25-mile Speedway in 49705 secondsI81068 mph on a day when 14 drivers broke Jeff Gordon's year-old qualifying record of 179612 mph That group included Waltrip the three-time Cup champion who has failed to qualify for three races and who has been forced to use six provisionals in his final full season Yesterday however Waltrip turned left like the "01' DX" who has been fast enough to bag 59 poles in a career dating to 1972 Aware that this was Waltrip's final start at Indy the fans greeted the 53-year-old driver With a loud and long standing ovation as he rolled down pit road Waltrip responded with a clenched fist salute and swirl of emotion once he exited his car After receiving a big bug from younger brother Michael Waltrip ripped off one of his patented silky-smooth interviews and then darted to the pit wall for an impromptu version of "The Ickey Shuffle" Borrowed from the repertoire of former Cincinnati Bengals running back Ickey Woods Waltrip made the dance his trade 2000 schedule The Citadel Missouri Wake Forest at Virginia at Duke North Carolina State Maryland North Carolina Georgia Tech at Florida State South Carolina Sept 2 Sept 9 Sept 16 Sept 23 Sept 30 Oct 7 Oct 14 Oct 21 Oct 28 Nov 4 Nov 18 I Key players: Senior LB Keith Adams junior QB Woodrow Dantzler senior WR Rod Gardner junior RB Travis Zachery senior Robert Carswell Reasons to smile: The air-itout offense has revived fan excitement Bowden's offense has modernized the Tigers who were picked to finish near the bottom of the ACC last season That success led to a solid recruiting class The schedule is favorable for another winning season but Clemson hasn't climbed to Florida State's level Reasons to frown: Dantzler thought to be better suited to the option was a pleasant surprise as a fill-in in 1999 He started five games but needs to prove he can run the offense consistently for a full season And to balance the attack Clemson needs a more consistent ground game The entire offensive line returns but that unit was inconsistent last season The Tigers also need a more reliable kicking game A glorious season if: Dantzler dazzles the offensive line finds its stride and the Tigers take care of business at home Datebook: The Tigers open with three consecutive home games (The Citadel Missouri and Wake Forest) With seven home games road games at Virginia (Sept 23) North Carolina (Oct 21) and Florida State (Nov 4) will make or break Clemson's season This and that: Clemson set a single-season school record for passing with 2713 yards Wide receiver Rod Gardner set a school John Sturbin (817) 390-7408 sturbstar-telegrancom CART race at Texas Motor Speedway moved to April 29 record with 73 receptions for 1009 yards Travis Zacherys 16 rushing touchdowns tied him with Virginia's Thomas Jones for the ACC lead in 1999 Even though the offense was modernized the Tigers had four games where they scored only one touchdown Clemson's six losses were by a total of 43 points Four of the losses were by four points or fewer Of the Tigers' 21 losses the last three seasons 15 have been by seven or fewer points Clemson led the ACC with 46 quarterback sacks Bowden recently signed a contract extension through the 2004 season Last season Clemson played three teams that finished the regular season unbeaten Florida State Virginia Tech and Marshall conflict with the network's schedule on our original date "The option was to stay where we were at and stay on ESPN or move to April 29 and have three hours of ABC Since this was what we believe will be the preeminent CART race of 2001 ABC offers a much larger audience to us" The 2001 CART schedule has not been released With the addition of the CART race Texas Motor Speedway will be the only track to host every major racing series in 2001 TMS 2001 schedule Every major AmericarTauto racing series is scheduled to run at TMS next year: March 29-30: World of Outlaws Southern Bleacher Classic March 31: NASCAR Busch Grand National Texas 300 April 1: NASCAR Winston Cup DirecTV 500 April 28: Hay-A-Tampa Wolf Brand Chili 100 April 29: CART Texas BOOK June 8: NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series Pronto Auto Parts 400 June 9: Indy Racing Northern Light Series Casino Magic 500 Sept 28: NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series O'Reilly 300 Sept 27 29: World of Outlaws Texas Showdown Sept 30: Indy Racing Northern Light Series Mal 500 TBD: American Le MansTrans Am Grand Prix of Texas From Staff and Wire Reports FORT 11VORTII The inaugural CART tace at Texas Motor Speedway next year will be run one week earlier than originally scheduled The Texas 600K CART has been moved to April 29 instead of May 6 a change made to accommodate Championship Auto Racing Team's overall schedule and to guarantee that it would be broadcast live on ABC "We made the date change to help accommodate CART's needs" TMS general man hger Eddie Gossage said "There was also a 1 1 1 1 BRICK l- 1 i 1- ON f'''' 3' g'' 11: 1-'1 1 7 1 RAW 1 I A J' i ''''i s4 4: A 114 t4 I -4144-- 3 -116-' I 1 1 4' 4- 17- A0 411fr 4 ''Y From Page 1D I i i 1 I lap at Pocono with no negative about it It does not restrict your 'side vision or your mobility It made me feel more secure in the sar I felt like I had another piece cif safety device that really was going to work" HANS is the acronym for and neck support" Developed in the mid-1990s it features car on July 7 at NHIS not far from where Petty suffered his fatal injuries in Turn 3 Sticking throttles have been suspected in both incidents although NASCAR has not been able to prove that Responding to those tragedies NASCAR officials announced Tuesday that beginning with tomorrow's race Cup cars must be equipped with a stop on the primary and secondary throttle shafts and an onoff switch on the steering wheel to cut power to the ignition Bodine believes the HANS Device is the next logical safety step "I feel it would have increased the chances of them Petty and Irwin surviving those crashes That's why I'm using the device" said Bodine whose oldet brother Geoffrey survived a fiery parts a yoke that fits around the driver's neck and over his shoulders and straps that attach to the back of the helmet It is designed to keep a driver's head and neck from violently snapping forward and backward during an impact Indy Racing League regular Eddie Cheever Jr who said he plans to test the HANS later this month said his understanding of the device is that it spreads Gforce loading under rapid deceleration Therefore the shock of an impact is not concentrated on three or four vertebrae in the neck Petty 19 was killed when he crashed while practicing his NASCAR Busch Grand National car at New Hampshire International Speedway on May 12 He suffered massive head injuries Irwin 30 was killed when he crashed while practicing his Cup Clemson University The nation's Division I-A leader in tackles and tackles for losses Keith Adams hopes to lead an improved Clemson defense Senior linebacker aims to lead on off the field Great Relationships Begin With The line Personals 4 ft 304 ti 'iP-- 4 '1TisicHgApERgolgE-EpiffERfi Placing ads Is FREE tor both men and 1 for FREE 1 Record responses 1 to ads Conned he with I other canes for 1-00-1 I Conbersolions Ikt) Absolutely FREE to' lernals Wien! 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Call Now! 817-533-0004 ON i kw I 4 1 0v i Over 5000 ca Call No 817-53 Super Hi-Gio Finish Full Clear Coat 3 yr Warranty Super Hi-lo Finish Full Clear Coat 3 yr Warranty Hi-Gio Finish Integrated Clear Coot 1 yr Warranty 99900 spewing crash in a NASCAR Craftsman Truck race at the Daytona International Speedway in February "We spend a lot of time money and effort on making these race cars go faster" said Bodine driver of the No 11 Ralphs Supermarkets Ford Taurus "We should spend the same amount of time and money and effort on making them safer" The HANS Device has become the hot-ticket item in Open-wheel racing this summer Michael Andretti and Christian Fittipaldi teammates at Newman-Haas Racing in the Championship Auto Racing Teams series wore the device during the Michigan 500 at the Michigan Speedway last month Formula One drivers will be required to wear the device beginning in 2001 and CART officials are considering making the HANS mandatory Dale Jarrett the reigning Winston Cup champion and Brickyard 400 winner said he also is preparing to test a version of the device "I'm in the process of getting a new helmet done and I want to at least try it and see what adjustments we need to make" said Jarrett driver of the No 88 Quality Care ServiceFord Credit Taurus "The problem that I have maybe as a taller driver is I sit all the way back against the rollcage as it is And I know to make that device work you have to bend the headrest part of the seat back some more With that I'm going to be right against the rollbar and I don't know that we have room But I'm looking for anything that can make it safer" Gary Nelson Winston Cup Series director said NASCAR is keenly interested in Bodine's continued feedback "I us comments were positive after the Pocono race" Nelson said in Gasoline Alley "But we still want to look at it and discuss it with the whole garage before we make those kind of decisions We're looking at it There's a lot of things that guys can do to enhance safety The HANS Device is one of them" i I 1 1 I Ifif 4 Flare Ultra 7000 Acrylic ease Coat Clear Coat Polyurethane "Euro-Wet look" 5 yr Warranty $299oo $599oo 5 yr Warranty PAINT JOBS TO FIT YOUR BUDGET INSURANCE COMPANY APPROVED FREE ESTIMATES NORTH HILLS MALL CLEBURNE 444 czo In NE LOOP 820 101 NAME STREET ea 40 00 H1 kromm rMeill bow membefs Credit Union gertriwg CAR PAINTERS: 74 47 I Z-4' COLLISION CENTERS AIti N041001 MtUF 01 Ni thIPIOMP ahr 4or4ilookmuLgo 711 5951977 558-7756 Defensive coordinator Reggie Herring calls Adams 'Termite" because of how he chews his way through blockers and ball carriers And after averaging nearly 17 tackles a game in his first season as a starter some of his teammates have started calling him 'Terminator" "Keith plays with heart and determination" Clemson coach Tommy Bowden said "If a motor runs from one to 10 he plays at a 10 Heck when he walks up and down the sidelines he's at seven Our defensive linemen play at maybe seven maybe eight sometimes four Keith has shown them how to play at 10 That's what he brings to the team other than his statistics" Adams was not highly recruited out of Westlake High School in Atlanta Schools weren't sure that he had the size to play major-college football "If you judge a person by his height yOu'reperazy" Adams said "You can't judge a person by his height or size You judge him by his heart and that can't be measured I never worTy about my height It's all about being a playmaker" litio Interest Rio Payments eith Adams speaks his mind in the same way he goes after opposing ball carriers and quarterbacks And the Clemson linebacker 7 doesn't care if his religious beliefs and message causes some people to roll their eyes Adams a 5-foot-11 220- pound junior was the Atlantic Coast Conference's Defensive Player of the Year He finished with 186 tackles including 35 for losses were tops in Division I-A Despite playing an inside position he had 16 sacks Adams considers himself a role model Suffice to say that Adams is probably not Charles Barkley's favorite college football player "I try to make a point that God is working through me and he's really blessing me" Adams said "I know my position here in fife Ile could have made me anything Ile could have made me not even be able to walk But I think God is using me through football to help other people out "Everybody has flaws If people are waiting for me to fall fine I really feel that I'll never do anything to put my name to shame If people) are looking at me that close then the only thing I can say is they'll get something positive out of it because I'm only a positive person" That attitude tends to have a negative effect on opposing defenses AiTiT 2001! :0 ty I Best selection of finest quality pool tables and accessories at the lowest prices in the Metroplex! 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