Who will be victorious when the checkered flag waves at Darlington on Sunday? Kevin Harvick and the Kevin Harvick’s Happy Hour crew locked in their predictions ahead of this weekend’s all-important race. First, Harvick believes William Byron and the No. 24 team will get back on track, ending their regular season the same way it began at the Daytona 500, in Victory Lane. “I’m going to back up a little bit, and I think, you know, as we look back at the beginning of the season and some of the cars that had we thought were dominant, when you look at the Hendrick cars, you look at the No. 5, you look at the No. 24, I’m going to go with William Byron,” Harvick predicted. “I think he’s been battling through some things since, you know, his injury or his wreck, and I think that those guys are starting to get their feet back on the ground. “I like the way that they ran at Michigan. So, I’m going to say Willie B gets it back on track.” While Kaitlyn Vincie believes Byron is a solid pick, she went with a wheelman who hasn’t been to Victory Lane yet in 2024, believing Martin Truex Jr. gets the win at Darlington. “I would agree with that. Well, my pick is the guy we talked about earlier, Martin Truex Jr. He’s been good at Darlington over the years, winning there twice in the past,” Vincie said. “I just really want to see him win before he hangs it up, like I need to see that guy go to Victory Lane again. So I’m going to pick him.” As for Mamba Smith, he recognizes Bubba Wallace is in a must-win situation at Darlington, being 21 points below the cut-line, and he thinks the No. 23 team will shock the world and get to Victory Lane, clinching their spot in the Top 16 at the final possible moment. “Okay, you guys know how my picks have gone all year. I’ve ruined it for everybody. I told William — I was with William last night, and I explained to him that the reason he wrecked at Kansas in qualifying was my fault, because I picked him to win. I’m picking Bubba Wallace and the No. 23,” Smith delineated. “This is a walk-off — this is like a walk-off home run moment. Go to Darlington, one of the toughest tracks that we go to all year, all the elements, you’ve got to do it. “I think he’s in the right mindset. I think he’s locked in. I think they’re gonna be fast. It’s gonna be a moment where everyone’s like, ‘Okay, he might not win the championship this year, but like, it’s coming.’” Evidently, Harvick doesn’t believe it’s that far fetched, and that Wallace is in the right mindset to get the job done: “That would be a great moment,” he responded. “I just hope he sticks with where he’s at, you know, mentally right now, because if he does, people are gonna love that guy.” As you can see, the Kevin Harvick’s Happy Hour crew is riding with William Byron, Martin Truex Jr. and Bubba Wallace to win at Darlington. Time will tell if either of them can get to Victory Lane, and capture the checkered flag in one of NASCAR’s most prestigious events.
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WNBA
LeBron James calls out Caitlin Clark haters amid star’s career performance vs. Sky
The Caitlin Clark critics may never change their tune, but the Indiana Fever rookie makes it tough for doubters to say much as her first season in the WNBA rolls on. Clark’s latest masterpiece came on Friday night against fellow rookie Angel Reese and the Chicago Sky. The 22-year-old guard had the best scoring night of her young career, tallying 31 points with five three-pointers, 12 assists and four rebounds to lead Indiana to a 100-81 road victory. Her stellar performance brought plenty of praise across social media from fellow athletes and various stars, including arguably the greatest to ever play the game, LeBron James. The Los Angeles Lakers star took to X to call out Clark’s haters with a simple four-word message. This comment from James, who’s dealt with plenty of head-scratching criticism throughout his NBA career, is the highest praise any basketball player can receive. Clark has led the Fever to a 16-16 mark, a vast improvement for a team that went 13-27 last season. She’s gone from being a front-runner for the WNBA Rookie of the Year Award to becoming a name deserving of serious consideration for MVP honors. Through 32 games, Clark is averaging 18.4 points, 8.3 assists and 5.7 rebounds per game. While she may not win the league MVP Award this season, Clark has put the WNBA on notice that she’s on the fast track to becoming a top candidate year in and year out going forward.
Buffalo Sabres prospect goaltender Ryerson Leenders traded in blockbuster deal for…
College Football
Four college football teams on upset alert in Week 1
After the Week 0 appetizer, college football delivers the Week 1 main course on Saturday. The schedule, which features mostly non-conference games, could produce several upsets. Here are teams favored by seven points or more that could lose their openers. (All lines from DraftKings as of Friday afternoon.) Penn State at West Virginia (+7.5) In their home opener last season, Penn State beat West Virginia convincingly 38-15. In Week 1 this season, the Nittany Lions play in Morgantown, where they will face a hostile, alum Pat McAfee-fueled crowd. The Mountaineers have lost their past three openers, but with star running back Jahiem White (7.7 per carry last season) healthy, WVU has a good chance to pull an upset. New Penn State offensive coordinator Andy Kotelnicki must fix QB Drew Allar (59.9% completion percentage in 2023), who struggled in losses last season to Michigan and Ohio State. Expect the Nittany Lions to struggle on offense early, giving West Virginia an opening. Virginia Tech at Vanderbilt (+13.5) In the preseason, media picked Virginia Tech to finish sixth in the 17-team ACC. Meanwhile, Vanderbilt, the punching bag of the SEC, quietly had a solid offseason, luring the 39th-best recruiting class, per On3.com. The Commodores will probably have a new QB in New Mexico State transfer Diego Pavia, a dual-threat weapon who threw for 2,963 yards and rushed for 923 more last season. He is expected to be the starter, per The Tennessean. “When you look at the young man (Pavia) and the quarterbacks they have on their roster, I have a tremendous amount of respect for them,” Virginia Tech defensive coordinator Chris Marve said, per On3.com. Vanderbilt played Georgia fairly close last season before falling at home to the powerhouse Bulldogs 37-20. Tech isn’t in Georgia’s league. Expect the Commodores to at the very least cover the spread. Hawaii (+14) at UCLA Hawaii, which opened its season with a 35-14 win over Delaware State, takes on a UCLA team with a new, first-time head coach in DeShaun Foster and many new players. Foster expects to have jitters. “I’m sure I’ll have them Friday night, the night before, or it might even happen as I’m running out before kickoff,” he told Ben Bolch of the Los Angeles Times. If he does, what about his team? A defense that returns only two starters looks like the Achilles’ heel for the Bruins, who finished 8-5 last season under Chip Kelly, now Ohio State offensive coordinator. UCLA drew more than 10,000 fans for its spring game, perhaps an indication of stronger interest from its fan base. But the Rose Bowl probably won’t be over half-full for a game against an unheralded opponent. This has upset written all over it. Wyoming (+7) at Arizona State In its first game in the Big 12, Arizona State welcomes Wyoming to Tempe, where the Wildcats finished 2-6 last season. In 2023, the 3-9 Sun Devils failed to score more than 23 points in five of their last six games. In going 9-4 in 2023, the Cowboys played fairly well against Big 12 foes Texas (a 31-10 loss) and Texas Tech (35-33 win). The key to an upset could be Wyoming’s running game, which should be better behind a much improved offensive line.
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NFL
Five options for Steelers No. 2 WR post-Brandon Aiyuk extension
The Steelers went into the offseason with an all-or-nothing mindset of acquiring 49ers wide receiver Brandon Aiyuk. After months of speculation, he signed a four-year, $120 million contract extension with San Francisco on Thursday. That has left Pittsburgh with a very underwhelming receiving corps and a clear void at a No. 2 wide receiver. Here are five options the team could turn to be its No. 2 option this season. Wide receiver Van Jefferson Jefferson is currently slotted as the Steelers’ current No. 2 wide receiver opposite George Pickens, which means he’ll get the first crack at the job. He is coming off arguably the worst season of his NFL career, in which he registered just 20 catches for 209 yards and zero touchdowns with the Los Angeles Rams (five games) and Atlanta Falcons (12 games). However, Jefferson recently adopted the work regime of former seven-time Pro Bowl wide receiver Antonio Brown: Catching 300 balls after practice every day. “I just started. The equipment staff put me onto AB’s workout when he was here,” Jefferson said. “AB was a great, so why not try to follow his regime?” Only time will tell if it pays off for Jefferson, but it’s now or never for the 28-year-old. Tight end Pat Freiermuth Pittsburgh’s No. 2 leading receiver by the end of the season could very well not be a wide receiver. Freiermuth, a second-round pick in 2021, is coming off a career-low 32 catches for 308 yards and two touchdowns in 2023, but that was in just 12 games as he battled a nagging hamstring injury. He is now fully healthy and should play a significant role in new offensive coordinator Arthur Smith’s offense, which has been described as tight-end friendly all offseason. “I think it’s been great,” Freiermuth said. “The schemes that we’re being asked to do have been great. I think it fits a lot of us, and we’re all just excited to go out and execute.” Wide receiver John Metchie III, Houston Texans Just because the Steelers have announced their initial 53-man roster doesn’t mean they still can’t trade for a wide receiver. On Monday, NFL insider Jordan Schultz reported that “multiple teams” have reached out to the Texans to see if Metchie III would be available in a trade due to their roster’s plethora of receivers. It would be surprising if Pittsburgh were not one of those teams, and now that Aiyuk is off the table, it could look to revisit with Houston. The start to the 24-year-old’s NFL career has been unideal, missing his entire rookie year after being diagnosed with acute promyelocytic leukemia and then registering just 16 catches for 158 yards in his return last season. However, Metchie III flashed his second-round upside throughout the preseason, reeling in 10 catches for 100 yards and a touchdown. There is still much to learn about Metchie III, but it’s not difficult to argue that he would be the Steelers’ second-best option. Wide receiver Roman Wilson Pittsburgh is arguably the best team at drafting wide receivers, which is why it could sooner rather than later turn to Wilson, its third-round pick (No. 84) in the 2024 NFL Draft. Wilson has been sidelined for much of the preseason since suffering an ankle injury during the first week of training camp, but he is nearing his return and has taken advantage of his mental reps while injured. “A lot actually,” Wilson said. “Really dissecting the game, dissecting a lot of routes. A lot of different receivers around the league, focusing on a lot of guys that I want to emulate. Learning from the other receivers here.” When Wilson returns, if he proves up to speed on the offense, he’ll only have to translate it to the field. Wide receiver Michael Thomas, free agent There isn’t much left on the open market, but Thomas is by far the most intriguing. The 2019 NFL Offensive Player of the Year was once one of the best wide receivers in the league, but injuries have plagued the backend of his career. The 31-year-old has played in just 20 games the past four seasons, reeling in 95 catches for 1,057 yards and four touchdowns during the span. The New Orleans Saints released Thomas in March, and he is searching for his next opportunity. With most of their other options dried up, the Steelers could be exactly that.
