I meant to do this at the halfway point, but work got in the way. Better late than never I suppose. The NFL season is 10 weeks in and we are starting to get a clearer picture of the contenders and, in some cases, the pretenders. So with that being said, I'm going to hand out some awards.
Most Disappointing Team: Many people will say the Browns, but that's because we (including myself) were stupid enough to believe the Browns were going to quit being the Browns when in reality, they still had flaws and have played the league's toughest schedule. I'm giving this honor to the Chicago Bears. Their defense has still been really good, but their offense has been putrid and the result has been a current 4-5 record. I know they beat Detroit yesterday, but what about that game makes you think they got their problems fixed?
Most Surprising Team: The popular pick would be the 49ers, but I've been on high them, not 8-0 high, but still high. In my opinion, the most surprising team to me has been their Bay Area rival. Jon Gruden is not a great coach, but Mike Mayock has shown he can build a team and Josh Jacobs is a grown man. They've compiled a 5-4 record with the league's second-toughest schedule and have a legit shot of making the playoffs and perhaps winning the AFC West.
Most Disappointing Player: This honor does go to the Browns. I was high on Baker Mayfield to begin this season and I still think it would be silly to pull the plug on him or consider him a bust. But he's struggled this season with 9 touchdowns and 12 picks. It's not uncommon for QB's to come out of sophomore slumps. Cam Newton was not good his second year, Tom Brady, Ben Roethlisberger and Drew Brees also weren't putting up MVP numbers in year two. But, the hype around Mayfield coming into this season has not been lived up to.
Most Surprising Player: Aaron Jones was the 19th running back selected in a talented 2017 draft class that includes Leonard Fournette, Dalvin Cook, Christian McCaffery, Alvin Kamara, Kareem Hunt and James Conner. Jones has been the complementary back that I can't recall Aaron Rodgers has ever had. He's rumbled to the tune of 11 touchdowns and has a pair of 3+ rushing touchdown performances to his name. A Packer team with one of the league's best QB's and a homerun hitting runner is terrifying come postseason.
The Coach Most Likely to Be Fired Next: It's been completely downhill for Dan Quinn and the Falcons since they butchered a 28-3 lead in Super Bowl 51. I know they beat the Saints yesterday, but let's not pretend one game will save Quinn's job. The Falcons have a former MVP QB and one of the league's top receivers, 2-7 is not ideal.
The Best Game: This one is tough because I have not watched nearly the amount of football that I usually watch. It could come tonight when Seattle plays San Francisco. I really don't want to get caught up in the "it just happened" syndrome, so I will bypass saying Panthers/Packers or Chiefs/Titans even though they might be the top two. I'm going to say Packers/Chiefs from two weeks ago because everyone thought they were getting Patrick Mahomes vs. Aaron Rodgers, but instead got Aaron Rodgers vs. Matt Moore. Moore went toe-to-toe with Rodgers, but Green Bay grinded out the 31-24 victory in a game that felt like a heavyweight fight.
The Most Exciting Upcoming Game: Whether you like it or not, it's got to be Chiefs/Patriots on December 8th. The two teams played TWO instant classics last season. The Chiefs are 6-4 behind a laundry-list amount of injuries and finding new ways to lose. Meanwhile, the Patriots have rode the 3rd easiest schedule to a 8-1 record, but got exposed by Baltimore last week. Let's not get carried away though, this is New England's conference until it isn't and this game could be a statement or a changing of the guard. Not sure which, but it will likely be one.
MVP: I think there's three obvious candidates and would be four if Patrick Mahomes hadn't missed two games. I'm going with Russell Wilson over Lamar Jackson, DeShaun Watson and Christian McCaffery. I'll eat my crow and admit I've been wrong on Jackson, but Wilson has been lights out this season, too. Wilson only sits ninth in passing yards, but that's the most overrated QB statistic there is. What is not overrated from Wilson is his 22-to-1 touchdown-interception ratio. That's absurd. He also has the league's best QB rating. Wilson has also led the Seahawks to a record of 7-2 despite having the 27th most efficient defense.
Defensive Player of The Year: At first, I was a bit skeptical of the Steelers surrendering a first round pick for Minkah Fitzpatrick when it looked they could be in the market for a QB next year. They still could be, but Fitzpatrick has been worth the trade and then some so far. Fitzpatrick has five interceptions, two forced fumbles and to touchdowns since coming to Pittsburgh. He's guided a Steelers defense that is making up for it's beat up and inefficient offense with one of the league's most efficient defenses. I also think Nick Bosa, TJ Watt and Chandler Jones should be considered in play for DPOY.
Coach of The Year: It's Kyle Shanahan hands down. The offensive guru has quietly taken the 49ers to 8-0. The 49ers are currently the most efficient team in the NFL and it's really not that close. Their offense has been Alex Smith-esque, but productive, while their defense has been salty. I think you also have to consider Mike Tomlin because he's been without two of his superstars. Ron Rivera has hardly missed a beat with Kyle Allen, Matt LaFleur already appears more competent than Mike McCarthy ever was and Jon Gruden has the Raiders above .500, but this honor is Shanahan's to lose.
Offensive Rookie of The Year: Josh Jacobs is a grown man. He has been exactly what the Raiders and Derek Carr needed. The rookie from Alabama has pounded the pumpkin to 811 yards and seven scores. He's done so behind the league's most expensive offensive line, but still, it's great numbers, especially for a rookie. Redskins WR Terry McLaurin has also been really good, but he's on a bad team.
Defensive Rookie of The Year: Remember when people were actually dumb enough to think Nick Bosa sitting out at Ohio State last season would impact his NFL career? Well, it didn't. The second overall pick has been a monster for the 8-0 49ers, tallying 7.5 sacks, a forced fumble. Devin Bush also has a case for DROY, but I'm giving it to the better Bosa.
Predicted AFC Playoff Teams: Patriots, Chiefs, Ravens, Texans, Bills, Steelers
I think the Patriots, Chiefs, Ravens and Texans are essential locks to make the playoffs. The battle for the last two spots goes between the Bills, Steelers, Titans, Chargers, Raiders, Colts and perhaps even the Browns, whose schedule gets easier. Pittsburgh is improving and has a generous schedule. I also trust the Bills to grind out wins in ugly fashion more than I trust Ryan Tannehill, Phillip Rivers, Jon Gruden, Brian Hoyer and Baker Mayfield.
Predicted NFC Playoff Teams: Packers, 49ers, Saints, Cowboys, Vikings, Seahawks.
The NFC is way more competitive. I think the Rams, Panthers and Eagles could be playoff teams, but they've struggled to stay consistent and that will keep them out the playoffs.
AFC Championship Game: Patriots over Chiefs
This might not be the popular pick, but hear me out. The Chiefs are 6-4, but have lost those four games by a combined 23 points and have been ravaged by injuries. I firmly believe the Chiefs at their peak, along with the Texans, Colts, Ravens and maybe the Steelers are better than New England. Now I know somebody is going to ignorantly say "But Trevor, the Ravens handled the Patriots a few weeks ago,". Which, they did, but we've seen this before. The Patriots are my pick to win the AFC until they don't.
NFC Championship Game: Packers over Saints
Now I've been bragging on the 49ers, but I think they're still a year away. Instead, we finally get the Aaron Rodgers vs. Drew Brees NFC Title Game we all deserve. Don't let the Saints loss to the Falcons force you to take a trip to Ignoranceville. Losses like that happen in the NFL. The Saints are fine. I yearn for this matchup and hope it happens. Give me the Packers to win fair and square and give the Saints fan nothing to complain about. Although, it would be funny if they lost the NFC Championship Game on a pass interference call against them. Maybe I am just a bad person.
Super Bowl 54: Packers over Patriots
The NFL's 100th season concludes with two of the greatest QB's to ever play the game. Aaron Rodgers has yet to capture his second ring, but this could be his best chance. I'll also take whatever the over would be on ridiculously soft roughing-the-passer calls in this game.
Monday, November 11, 2019
A ranking of which tracks should host the NASCAR Championship race.
Thanks to a massive, and for the most part, awesome overhaul of the 2020 NASCAR Cup Series schedule, the championship race will be at ISM Raceway in Phoenix rather than Homestead, which has hosted the championship race since 2002. I am all for NASCAR rotating where the championship race is held. Personally, I am in favor of NASCAR having tracks bid on hosting the championship race much like the NFL does with the Super Bowl. This would bring a newfound energy to some tracks and could produce some exciting racing, which is the goal, after-all.
After watching yesterday's race at Phoenix, it's completely understandable to be skeptical about how entertaining the 2020 championship race will be. A lot of the entertainment could fall on if NASCAR does anything to the current rule changes, such as perhaps taking off the spoiler or lowering the downforce on short tracks, but that's an argument for another day.
There are 23 tracks on the NASCAR Cup Series circuit and none of them are identical to each other. Sure, there are some similarities to each other, but each track is unique in its' own way. Remember my proposal for NASCAR to rotate the championship race yearly? Unfortunately, I don't think every track would put on a great show for the fans and that's what it's about. So, I thought it would be neat to rank the tracks 1 through 23 in terms of which tracks I would find the most intriguing as a championship race and which tracks I would find the least. For the sake of this, I am conducting this ranking under the 2019 aero package and am paying no attention to the potential weather problems that could arise in November. Let's begin.
#24 Sonoma: I enjoy road course racing as much as anybody, but this year, the top three finishers at Sonoma were separated by 30 seconds. The course is too technical and typically does not yield great racing.
#23 Indy: This is one of my least favorite races on the circuit. It has failed to garner much excitement in year's past and should have never been the regular season finale. I'm not sure how you make this race exciting.
#22 Pocono: I enjoy Pocono more than others, but aside from the thought of running Pocono in November in a potential snowstorm, nothing about Pocono screams exciting championship race.
#21 Michigan: The aero package was designed to make tracks like Michigan more exciting, the June race was a snoozer and the August race was OK thanks to fuel mileage playing a factor.
#20 Fontana: See Michigan, the restarts might be crazy, but that could be the only exciting part.
#19 Phoenix: This is what we have to look forward to next year.
#18 Dover: I didn't think the October race was as bad as many people, but the June race was not good. A softer tire could make this race intriguing.
#17 Las Vegas: This track has two races for some reason. It's a stereotypical cookie cutter track. Not great, but not terrible, so not championship worthy.
#16 Texas: Texas is not a good track. We saw this last week when Chase Elliott, Brad Keselowski and Denny Hamlin crashed. It's probably time to repave Texas, but seeing championship contenders battle a terrible track could be intriguing, too.
#15 Richmond: I love short track racing, but Richmond always has the possibility of a driver flat-out dominating.
#14 Martinsville: Brad Keselowski and Martin Truex. Jr combined to lead 910 of 1000 possible laps in two races this season. Part of this could be because of the giant spoilers and high downforce, but that's not changing and Martinsville might not be entertaining until it does.
#13 Watkins Glen: I like Watkins Glen more than most. It usually shapes up to be an entertaining race where strategies play a factor. Might not be a great title race, but would anything below it be either?
#12 Atlanta: The championship track until 2002, Atlanta has really been the only track this year where tires have played a factor. That could be exciting.
#11 New Hampshire: Completely throwing out the fact that it's New Hampshire in November, I like this track and it's kind of a short track, or at least sometimes races like one.
#10 Charlotte: If the All-Star Race is any indication, a championship race at Charlotte could dish out some exciting racing.
#9 Kentucky: The July race was extremely exciting. The 2019 package has benefited tracks like Kentucky.
#8 Chicago: See Kentucky, this track put on a great race. Although, it could have been because it was hot, rained and then cooled down.
#7 Homestead: For some reason, Homestead has been darn near perfect for a championship race. I would be fine if stayed there, but there's six other tracks I'd like to see more.
#6 Charlotte Roval: We've seen two races from the Roval and both have been exciting. It's served high drama as a cutoff race, so could it do the same as a championship race?
#5 Darlington: How about a throwback and championship weekend? That would be awesome.
#4 Talladega: Please save me the garbage take about how the big one could affect a championship. It already does, so your point is moot. It would be exciting to watch the championship contenders try to avoid the big ones.
#3 Kansas: This is undoubtedly the most exciting 1.5 mile track. It put on good shows in both 2019 races and the restarts were ridiculous. Not to mention, a championship in Kansas City would be awesome for once.
#2 Bristol: If you wouldn't be cool with seeing some hard racing and maybe a bump-and-run for the championship, then maybe you shouldn't watch NASCAR. Just the thought of tempers flaring in a championship race has me excited.
#1 Daytona: The season starts at Daytona, so why not finish it there? It would be a perfect way to bookend the season and would put on an exciting race. Again, the big one could happen, but you can't argue that it wouldn't be exciting, because it would be.
After watching yesterday's race at Phoenix, it's completely understandable to be skeptical about how entertaining the 2020 championship race will be. A lot of the entertainment could fall on if NASCAR does anything to the current rule changes, such as perhaps taking off the spoiler or lowering the downforce on short tracks, but that's an argument for another day.
There are 23 tracks on the NASCAR Cup Series circuit and none of them are identical to each other. Sure, there are some similarities to each other, but each track is unique in its' own way. Remember my proposal for NASCAR to rotate the championship race yearly? Unfortunately, I don't think every track would put on a great show for the fans and that's what it's about. So, I thought it would be neat to rank the tracks 1 through 23 in terms of which tracks I would find the most intriguing as a championship race and which tracks I would find the least. For the sake of this, I am conducting this ranking under the 2019 aero package and am paying no attention to the potential weather problems that could arise in November. Let's begin.
#24 Sonoma: I enjoy road course racing as much as anybody, but this year, the top three finishers at Sonoma were separated by 30 seconds. The course is too technical and typically does not yield great racing.
#23 Indy: This is one of my least favorite races on the circuit. It has failed to garner much excitement in year's past and should have never been the regular season finale. I'm not sure how you make this race exciting.
#22 Pocono: I enjoy Pocono more than others, but aside from the thought of running Pocono in November in a potential snowstorm, nothing about Pocono screams exciting championship race.
#21 Michigan: The aero package was designed to make tracks like Michigan more exciting, the June race was a snoozer and the August race was OK thanks to fuel mileage playing a factor.
#20 Fontana: See Michigan, the restarts might be crazy, but that could be the only exciting part.
#19 Phoenix: This is what we have to look forward to next year.
#18 Dover: I didn't think the October race was as bad as many people, but the June race was not good. A softer tire could make this race intriguing.
#17 Las Vegas: This track has two races for some reason. It's a stereotypical cookie cutter track. Not great, but not terrible, so not championship worthy.
#16 Texas: Texas is not a good track. We saw this last week when Chase Elliott, Brad Keselowski and Denny Hamlin crashed. It's probably time to repave Texas, but seeing championship contenders battle a terrible track could be intriguing, too.
#15 Richmond: I love short track racing, but Richmond always has the possibility of a driver flat-out dominating.
#14 Martinsville: Brad Keselowski and Martin Truex. Jr combined to lead 910 of 1000 possible laps in two races this season. Part of this could be because of the giant spoilers and high downforce, but that's not changing and Martinsville might not be entertaining until it does.
#13 Watkins Glen: I like Watkins Glen more than most. It usually shapes up to be an entertaining race where strategies play a factor. Might not be a great title race, but would anything below it be either?
#12 Atlanta: The championship track until 2002, Atlanta has really been the only track this year where tires have played a factor. That could be exciting.
#11 New Hampshire: Completely throwing out the fact that it's New Hampshire in November, I like this track and it's kind of a short track, or at least sometimes races like one.
#10 Charlotte: If the All-Star Race is any indication, a championship race at Charlotte could dish out some exciting racing.
#9 Kentucky: The July race was extremely exciting. The 2019 package has benefited tracks like Kentucky.
#8 Chicago: See Kentucky, this track put on a great race. Although, it could have been because it was hot, rained and then cooled down.
#7 Homestead: For some reason, Homestead has been darn near perfect for a championship race. I would be fine if stayed there, but there's six other tracks I'd like to see more.
#6 Charlotte Roval: We've seen two races from the Roval and both have been exciting. It's served high drama as a cutoff race, so could it do the same as a championship race?
#5 Darlington: How about a throwback and championship weekend? That would be awesome.
#4 Talladega: Please save me the garbage take about how the big one could affect a championship. It already does, so your point is moot. It would be exciting to watch the championship contenders try to avoid the big ones.
#3 Kansas: This is undoubtedly the most exciting 1.5 mile track. It put on good shows in both 2019 races and the restarts were ridiculous. Not to mention, a championship in Kansas City would be awesome for once.
#2 Bristol: If you wouldn't be cool with seeing some hard racing and maybe a bump-and-run for the championship, then maybe you shouldn't watch NASCAR. Just the thought of tempers flaring in a championship race has me excited.
#1 Daytona: The season starts at Daytona, so why not finish it there? It would be a perfect way to bookend the season and would put on an exciting race. Again, the big one could happen, but you can't argue that it wouldn't be exciting, because it would be.
Tuesday, November 5, 2019
My Professional Portfolio
Email: trevmaeder@gmail.com
I have had the opportunity to cover multiple events over the past few years on different platforms. My experience in the industry include working for KZLX Radio, the Northwest Missouri State University's student station from 2016-2019, where I served as sports director for a year. I have also been employed by KMA since 2016 and have covered a variety of high school sports. My experiences have required me to do multiple things such as game tweets, live play-by-play, post-game stories, game previews, coach interviews and player interviews. My portfolio consists of portions of my audio work, links to many of my game stories and a view of some of my work on social media.
Links to my written work
Audio Work
1. The fourth quarter of a wild basketball contest between Atlantic and Treynor2. A game preview with Glenwood Football Coach Cory Faust
3. The first two quarters of my call of a Class 3A Iowa high school football playoff contest between Glenwood and Norwalk
4. Jacob Blair and I covered this year's NASCAR race at Kansas Speedway as part of NASCAR's College Media Program. Here is a link to one of the podcasts we recorded, that includes interviews with many drivers
5. A highlight package from my 2018 call of the Northwest Missouri State/University of Nebraska-Kearney football contest
6. A highlight package from my call of the 2018 football contest between Northwest Missouri State and Missouri Southern.
7. This is one of my favorite interviews I've ever conducted, a state cross country preview with Doug Muehlig, the long time coach at Council Bluffs, Thomas Jefferson High School.
Social Media
I believe in having a strong presence in social media and promoting my employer's brand in the best way possible, so here is a look at some of my social media work from events I've covered.
Saturday, October 19, 2019
Craziness in Kansas: Brandon Jones survives craziness for his first career Xfinity win
(KANSAS CITY, KS) -- It took him 134 races, but Brandon Jones made sure that his first career Xfinity win came in a fashion that fans will remember for a long time. The 22-year old Atlanta native survived the craziness and snagged the victory in Saturday's frantic Hollywood Casino 300 at Kansas Speedway, becoming the races' third consecutive first time winner.
"I've been a winner in a lot of different series, but this is the biggest one I've ever had. This is huge," Jones said of his victory.
This race had everything.
A surprise first-time winner, championship contenders plagued by misfortune, an unfortunate wreck involving the leaders and a lapped car, and a pit-road fight.
Jones took the lead from Cole Custer with 10 laps remaining, then had to hold off the field on a restart with five laps remaining. Jones stayed poised despite having never been in that situation
"I had confidence that if he got in clean air, he was going to be really solid at the end," said Jones' crew chief, Jeff Meendering. "We had really good speed most of that race even when we were back in traffic," Meendering added.
Jones' car definitely showed speed, more-so on shorter runs. However, the majority of the race belonged to Jones' teammate, Christopher Bell and Cole Custer. Bell, the pole sitter dominated stage one, leading all 45 laps and picking up another playoff point. Custer took the lead from Bell in stage two and won the second stage.
A long run ensued during stage three, allowing Custer to show the speed that he's had on 1.5-mile tracks this season.
Then things got weird.
Michael Annett ended the long-run when he got into the wall with 50 to go. Briscoe took advantage of Custer's miscues on the restart and grabbed the lead. John Hunter Nemechek spun out with 37 to go, bringing out another caution. Annett stayed out and assumed the lead, but was quickly overtaken by Briscoe. Bell methodically reeled Briscoe in as the laps wound down.
While battling for the lead, Bell and Briscoe both attempted to clear the lapped car of Garrett Smithley. However, Smithley made contact with Briscoe and collected Bell as well. The accident effectively ended Bells' chances of winning, ended Smithley's day and caused severe damage to Briscoes' machine.
Smithley's accident comes weeks after a highly criticized incident in the Cup Series, where Smithley made contact with Kyle Busch at Las Vegas.
"We were on like 70 lap tires, just riding," Smithley said, "I hate it. It was a big mistake, but we'll move on from it. He (his spotter) said he said something, but I didn't get the memo," Smithley added.
"It's frustrating," Briscoe said, "We're literally racing for our lives trying to win a championship."
Tyler Reddick capped off his entertaining day with second place, but a cut on his forehead due to a post-race altercation with Custer due to an on-track disagreement. The altercation also consisted of multiple crew members.
"I'm not mad. I'm just disappointed in his crew members not letting us handle it ourselves. It's just between me and him and that's the way it should have been," Reddick said.
Custer's topsy-turvy day concluded with an 11th place finish despite leading a race-high 85 laps.
Briscoe and Annett rebounded to finish third and fourth respectively, Justin Allgaier, the only playoff driver who did not have troubles, finished fifth. Jeremy Clements, Justin Haley, Nemechek, Ryan Seig and Ross Chastain rounded out the top ten.
Playoff driver Noah Gragson finished 13th. Bell led 69 laps, but finished the day in 14th following his accident with Smithley.
Austin Cindric, who came in fourth in points, found himself in an early race incident with Harrison Burton that caused significant damage. Cindric also battled tire problems throughout the day and finished 25th.
The Round of 8 will resume in two weeks at Texas Motor Speedway. Bell comes into the race as the points leader, 49 points above the cutline. Custer is second, 38 above the cut. Reddick still has a 37-point buffer and Allgaier holds a two-point margin over Briscoe for the final transfer spot. Annett, Gragson and Cindric are currently on the outside-looking-in by 12, 17 and 30 points respectively.
Results: 1. Brandon Jones, 2. Tyler Reddick, 3. Chase Briscoe, 4. Michael Annett, 5. Justin Allgaier, 6. Jeremy Clements, 7. Justin Haley, 8. John Hunter Nemechek, 9. Ryan Seig, 10. Ross Chastain, 11. Cole Custer, 12. Chrsitopher Bell, 13. Noah Gragson, 14. Ray Black II, 15. Alex Labbe, 16. Dillon Bassett, 17. Gray Gaulding, 18. Brandon Brown, 19. BJ McLeod, 20. Matt Mills, 21. Josh Williams, 22. Kyle Weatherman, 23. David Starr, 24. CJ McLaughlin, 25. Austin Cindric, 26. Chad Finchum, 27. Stephen Leicht, 28. Tyler Matthews, 29. Josh Bilicki, 30. Vinnie Miller, 31. Bobby Earnhardt, 32. Joey Gase, 33. Garrett Smithley, 34. Harrison Burton, 35. Bayley Curry, 36. Landon Cassill, 37. JJ Yeley, 38. Ryan Truex.
Kansas Lottery 300: Playing the playoff lottery
(Photo Courtesy of Wikipedia)
It's fitting that this race is named the Kansas Lottery 300. The lottery benefits those who gamble. Gamble too much and it will hurt you. Gamble just right and the payoff could be huge. Will that happen in Saturday's Xfinity race, which will serve as the first of three races in the Round of 8? Time will tell. Win today and you're racing championship while also having two weeks to prepare your car for the grand finale at Homestead. Struggle today and you're playing catchup. I cannot overstate how important today's race is and perhaps most importantly, the start of today's race.Lap 1 of last year's race was crazy and saw championship contenders Cole Custer, Justin Allgaier, Christopher Bell and Austin Cindric get caught up in an accident that ruined their days while John Hunter Nemechek went onto claim his first Xfinity Series victory. So what will the first lap look like?
"I think early in the race you want to try to make sure you can make it to the end," Custer said.
Last year, both Custer and Bell were put behind the eight-ball after Kansas and had to peel off respective wins at Texas and Phoenix. This year, two-thirds of the Xfinity Series "Big Three" come into today with near-full race worth cushions, but as they learned last year, that can change in a hurry.
"We have a really good buffer," said Custer, who comes in with a 36-point buffer, "At the same time, anything can happen."
So how aggressive will these playoff drivers be? That could depend on the situation. Custer sits +36, so he might not be overly aggressive and he might not need to thanks his recent speed on 1.5 mile tracks.
But how aggressive will Tyler Reddick be? The defending Xfinity champion comes in to Saturday with a 30 point cushion, but anybody who has watched Reddick knows that being conservative is not his forte.
"Instead of being 130 percent aggressive, I think I'll just be 100 percent aggressive," Reddick said.
While Reddick, Bell and Custer come into Kansas with the mindset of just not letting anything bad happen, five other drivers will be scratching and clawing for every single position. Austin Cindric, Justin Allgaier, Chase Briscoe, Michael Annett and Noah Gragson will begin this round with just 12 points separating them. If the "Big Three" do what they've done all year, that leaves room for just one of the aforementioned six.
So which one of those five drivers could be the one to watch to at Kansas?
Keep an eye on Chase Briscoe, who begins the Round of 8 four points below the cutline. The Stewart-Haas driver claimed a victory earlier this season at Iowa, a track, like Kansas, grip and tire wear usually plays a large factor. Briscoe, a dirt racer at heart, is keen to drive the cushion and attempt to make the topside work and Kansas tends to reward those who make the top side work.
"It's one of the places that moves around a lot, which is kind of my style. It's always a good racetrack because you have options and you can throw slidejobs here," Briscoe said.
Don't discount some of the non-championship contenders either such as Nemechek, Harrison Burton or Ross Chastain. Nemechek won last year's race and Chastain won the truck race at Kansas in May, so both know how to win in the Sunflower State.
Who will learn how to win here today?
The green flag for the Kansas Lottery will drop shortly after 2 p.m on NBC.
Xfinity Round of 8 Playoff Standings
1. 20 Christopher Bell 3062 (+48)
2. 00 Cole Custer 3050 (+36)
3. 2 Tyler Reddick 3044 (+30)
4. 22 Austin Cindric 3017 (+3)
5. 7 Justin Allgaier (-3)
6. 98 Chase Briscoe (-4)
7. 1 Michael Annett (-8)
8. 9 Noah Gragson (-12)
Friday, October 18, 2019
Worst to First: Eckes overcome woes, claims ARCA title
(KANSAS CITY, KS) -- When Christian Eckes finally emerged from the confetti showered upon him, he emerged an ARCA champion. Eckes, the youngest series champion at just 18 years, 11 months and 8 days overcame a veterans' heap of adversity to claimehe 2019 ARCA Menards Series title with a second half surge in Friday night's ARCA Kansas 150 to win the race and edge teammate Michael Self by 25 points.
Missing a race earlier due to an illness? No problem for Eckes. Moving to the back of the field because of a post-qualifying engine change? That didn't phase him either.
"It's been a dream year," Eckes said, "We've been through some highs and some lows, but today has definitely been a high.
While Eckes wasted little time cracking the top ten, Self dominated the first portion of the race, collecting five bonus points. A Drew Dollar caution on lap 40 erased Self's lead, but a stellar pit stop put Self in front of Eckes' on the restart. Self once again checked out, only to have his lead erased, again, when Tim Richmond spun on lap 52.
Eckes' learned from his mistake on the previous restart and took the lead from Self with under 40 to go and never looked back en route to the title.
"I tried something different there at the first restart and it did not work at all. The second restart, I got through the gears really good, took the lead and never looked back," Eckes said.
Self settled for second, Ty Majeski finished third. Brett Holmes and Travis Braden also notched top five finishes. Tanner Gray, Drew Dollar, Hailie Deegan, Joe Graf. Jr and Gus Dean rounded out the top ten.
Self finishes his 2019 season just shy of his ultimate goal, but did compile four wins, 14 top fives and 15 top tens. Self hinted during his Friday afternoon media availability that his 2020 plans were up in the air.
"I have a ton of respect for him and I really he races next year. He's a great driver," Eckes said of Self.
Eckes' finishes his championship campaign with four wins, 13 top-fives and 17 top tens. He also finished the season on a stretch of seven consecutive top-two finishes. Eckes' looks to be on the shorthand of candidates to replace Harrison Burton in Kyle Busch Motorsports' #18 Gander Outdoor Truck Series entry.
"I've got a couple things in the works, but nothing solidified yet. Hopefully this kind of helps that out a little bit, but you never know," Eckes said.
Results: 1. Christian Eckes, 2. Michael Self. 3. Ty Majeski, 4. Bret Holmes, 5. Travis Braden, 6. Tanner Gray, 7. Drew Dollar, 8. Hailie Deegan, 9. Joe Graf. Jr, 10. Gus Dean, 11. Sheldon Creed, 12. Harrison Burton, 13. Carson Ware, 14. Scott Melton, 15. Ed Pompa, 16. Riley Herbst, 17. Tim Richmond, 18. Eric Caudell, 19. Tommy Vigh. Jr. 20. Brad Smith, 21. Dick Doheny, 22 Wayne Peterson
Previewing the ARCA Championship Race at Kansas
The final race of the ARCA Menards' Series as we know it will happen tonight. No, the series is not folding, but the combination/consolidation of the ARCA and K&N Series' will change the layout of the ARCA Series. The series will focus more on tracks such as Bristol, Phoenix and Mid-Ohio. But let's not worry about what will happen in 2020. 2019 has to finish first and things are lining up for it to be an epic finish.
The 2019 ARCA season has been interesting one to say the least. Only five drivers have competed in all 19 races leading into Kansas and those five drivers have combined for just four wins. Granted, Christian Eckes, who has three wins, would have also been in that group had he not missed the race at Salem with an illness. The 2019 ARCA campaign also featured a youth movement of sorts. Seven ARCA races have been won this season by drivers under the age of 18. 17-year rising star Chandler Smith claimed five of those and the other two came from a then 16-year old Ty Gibbs, grandson of Joe. Harrison Burton, Todd Gilliland and Ty Majeski also found spurts of success during their sporadic ARCA attempts. But, for the most the part, the 2019 season has belonged to two full-time drivers; Eckes and Michael Self.
THE CHAMPIONSHIP DUEL
(Photo Courtesy of arcaracing.com)
Eckes, the points leader made up for lost time after missing Salem and peeled off three wins and five second-place finishes. Perhaps the most impressive part of Eckes' season is recent his recent spurt of six consecutive top-two finishes. Eckes trailed Self in points the entire year, but overtook the points lead with a runner-up finish two weeks ago at Lucas Oil, taking a 15-point lead over Self heading into the championship race at Kansas. Eckes, 18, is a Toyota Racing Development (TRD) driver who has six starts in the Kyle Busch Motorsports' #51 truck with moderate success should be on a short list of drivers to move into the open KBM truck left by Harrison Burton's move to the Xfinity Series.
(Photo Courtesy of arcaracing.com)
While Eckes is the up-and-coming 18 year old hot-shoe, His teammate, Self, has had a substantial amount of success during his career but has not received quite the push or hype that Eckes, Smith or many other drivers have. During his career, Self has made seven Xfinity starts, 71 K&N starts and 39 ARCA starts. In his 109 combined ARCA and K&N starts, Self has 15 wins, 53 top fives and 72 top tens. Self has four wins, 13 top fives and 14 top tens in 2019. While Eckes has showed his worth on the short tracks, Self has been super consistent on the circuit's larger tracks, with a win at Michigan, a fourth-place finish at Chicago and fifth-place finishes at Charlotte and Talladega. Oh, and one of Self's first career ARCA win came at Kansas in 2017.
CHAMPIONSHIP SCENARIOS
ARCA's point system is unique. A driver who wins a race receives 235 points, second place receives 220, third receives 215, fourth receives 210 and continues in five point increments. Five bonus points also awarded to the polesitter and any driver that leads a lap. The driver who leads the most laps also receives five more points. Do the math and that leaves the potential for 250 points at stake for either Eckes or Self. With a 15 point margin, Self could at worst, tie Eckes for the points lead and Self holds the tiebreaker via wins. If neither driver is to win or receive bonus points, Eckes must finish within two positions of Self to become the 2019 championship. I think it's safe to say that this points battle is going to be crazy.
POTENTIAL SPOILERS
There are a handful of non-championship contenders that I could see contending for the win. Ty Majeski has been near flawless in his five ARCA starts with three wins, a second and a fourth. All those victories have come on the bigger tracks and Kansas qualifies as one of ARCA's bigger tracks. Harrison Burton has also shown promise on the 1.5 mile circuits throughout his truck series campaign and is likely using this race to prepare himself for tomorrow's Xfinity Race. Gus Dean has been quietly competitive in his two most recent starts, including a third place finish at Charlotte. Defending ARCA champion, Sheldon Creed won this race a year ago, so expect him to be a factor. The wildcard tonight is Hailee Deegan. The 18-year prospect will be making her sixth career ARCA start and is likely using Kansas to comfort herself with larger tracks. Deegan has the potential to steal the show tonight. She also has the potential for her first race at Kansas to be a disaster. I guess we will find out.
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