The Kansas City Star from Kansas City, Missouri • B1

Sports Daily CLASSIFIED B7 In Print. Online. Anytime. NOTRE DAME MOVES ITS SPORTS, EXCEPT FOOTBALL, TO ACC. B2 JIM CALHOUN REPORTEDLY WILL RETIRE.

B2 JOIN THE CONVERSATION. TWEET GET SCORES SENT TO YOUR PHONE AT KANSASCITY.COM/TEXTALERTS GET READY TO REFEREE RUMBLE! With the wait for labor peace between the NFL and its referees association approaching the two-minute warning to interminable, proposing we settle the score by tossing Ed Hochuli and replacement refJim Core into a hypothetical octagon to see who can out-officiate whom. They go in alone, as anointed each the captain of athree-person crew. fudged a bit and allowed back two guys who return to the field even when the impasse between the league and the union ends, but hoping for afair fight. Will experience trump exuberance? Will the stand-ins stand tall? Will the booth call for a review? no way to know until they get it on so do this.

THE NFL Blowing the whistle on latest lockout THE KANSAS CITY STAR The storyline leading to Missouri joining the SEC kept having the same message: How would the Tigers hold up? How could they hold up in a conference that has won the past six BCS championships? It was easy to pile on and raise eyebrows, and a popular warning was that Mizzou fans lift their expectations because, well, the Tigers be able to keep up with the speed. fun to imagine running with the big dogs, at least until the panting starts. The first game of the SEC experiment came and went Saturday: Came with high hopes and, for the most part, went poorly. Georgia won, 41-20, but if nothing else, Miz- zou proved that the speed portion of the preseason conversation was nonsense. too early to know how the Tigers will perform in their first season, but one thing should be indisputable after even one game: Mizzou has plenty of team speed.

What it lacks is size and depth, and if anything holds the Tigers back in their seven remaining conference contests, be those things. What will give them a chance to win games, even against the big boys, is the speed that coach Gary Pinkel has brought to his spread- option offense for years. said all along: All got to do is watch film and you can see: They move extremely well. not a fat guy on the Georgia coach Mark Richt said Wednesday. not just a triumphant coach being gracious.

There was truth in words, and the thing that kept Mizzou in it against Georgia last weekend was a well-run offense and a blazing defense, both of which can overcome their deficiencies by being faster than most teams. Not all, but most. fret, Mizzou fans: Kentucky and Vanderbilt are on the schedule next month.) So even after a three-touchdown loss, there should be hope in Columbia as the team gets a slight breather against Arizona State before resuming SEC play at South Carolina on Sept. 22. What Pinkel, offensive coordinator David Yost and defensive coordinator Dave Steckel have to do now is to further refine their game plans to take advantage of that speed.

More blitzes on MIZZOU HAS THE SPEED TO KEEP UP KENT BABB COMMENTARY not just turning left at Kansas Speedway anymore. The ribbon was cut Wednesday for the newest addition to Kansas Speedway, a 2.37-mile road course where four drivers tested the track that will be the site of theNASCAR Grand-Am Rolex and Continental Tire sports car series, starting in August 2013. Among those participating in the ceremony was Lesa Kennedy, vice president of NASCAR and International Speedway and one of the driving forces in bringing big-time racing to Kansas Speedway in 2001. uncle, NASCAR vice- chairman Jim France, just orchestrated amerger between Grand-Am and the American Le Mans Series that will take effect in 2014. is a big day a special day for said Kennedy.

you add new events, it gives the customer a lot more activities to enjoy, and a lot of new momentum with the merger of Grand-Am and ALMS. You have the whole sports car world coming together, and they have one common vision, so it can be nothing but The honor of driving on the new course belonged to Peter Carlino, chairman and chief executive officer of Penn National Gaming, co-owner of the adjacent Hollywood Casino with Kansas Speedway. another dimension in Kansas adds road course to roundy-round Speedway will have NASCAR Grand-Am Rolex and Continental Tire sports car series on menu next summer. By RANDY COVITZ The Kansas City Star JILL TOYOSHIBA THE KANSAS CITY STAR Kansas Speedway uses a six-turn design to take cars down the front stretch and through the infield before they rejoin the tri-oval at turn two. Go to KansasCity.com for a photo gallery and video of the course.

Luke Hochevar got his first victory in eight starts Wednesday because, well, the Royals simply going to let it end any other way. The Royals put a 10-5 thumping on the Minnesota Twins by batting around in a five-run fifth inning and again in a four- run eighth inning. That was enough to get Hochevar over the hump for the first time since July 31. It as easy as that sounds. Hochevar, 8-13, gave up one run in the first and two more in the third, which put the Royals in a 3-0 hole.

After the Royals rallied to a6-3 lead with a five-run fifth, he gave up two runs in the bottom of the inning after retiring the first two batters. So, no, he sharp. But the Royals kept coming offensively in a 14-hit attack that included at least one from every starter. Salvy Perez hit a THE ASSOCIATED PRESS The Ryan Doumit turned his evening in left field into an adventure by committing three errors. Royals thump Twins Kansas City bats around twice in 10-5 win; shaky Hochevar gets victory.

By BOB DUTTON The Kansas City Star ROYALS 10 TWINS 5 TODAY: KC at Minnesota, 7:10 p.m. FSKC; KCSP (610 AM) Live chat with Mellinger The Sam Mellinger will cover it all from Chiefs to Royals to colleges during a web chat at noon today. Send him your questions at KansasCity.com/sports. Getting back into the swing An embarrassed Tamba Hali apologizes and is happy to be back in familiar territory after serving a one-game suspension as he prepares for the game Sunday. MORE COLLEGES Missouri looks to get back on track against Arizona State.

North passing game will test K-State on Saturday. KU seeks second win of season against talented TCU team. Arkansas aims to stun seemingly insurmountable Tide. B6 WWW.KANSASCITY.COMTHURSDAY,SEPTEMBER13,2012 THE KANSAS CITY STAR..