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FORSYTH COUNTY NEWS —Thursday, February 5,2004
Local Sports
Basketball
• North Forsyth at Dunwoody,
Friday, Feb. 6, 5:30 p.m.
• Forsyth Central at North Springs,
Friday, Feb. 6,7 p.m.
• South Forsyth vs. Chamblee,
Saturday, Feb. 7,4 p.m.
I
Wrestling
• State Duals Tournament at
Lakeside-Augusta, Friday, Feb. 6
at 4:30 p.m.; Saturday, Feb. 7,
10 a.m.
Fast-pitch team
needs 12-U players
The Georgia Storm 12-U A
level fast-pitch travel team is
looking for a few key players for
the upcoming 2004 season. If you
are serious and willing to work
hard and move to the next level,
call (770) 205-9437.
AAU hoops team
looking for players
The Atlanta Cagers will con
tinue team tryouts and selections
for boys and girls ages 10 to 13.
Go to www.cagerhoops.net to
obtain date and location details.
Girls hoops
tryouts slated
There will be tryouts for girls
15-and-under YBOA basketball on
Saturday, Feb. 7, at 4 p.m. Only
serious and dedicated players are
wanted. Call Calvin Byrd at (678)
283-7089 or Bruce Roydes at
(706) 265-8080.
Georgia Magic
hosts tryouts
The Georgia Magic will host
AAU girls basketball tryouts every
Sunday in February:
• 10-U at Lilburn Middle
School from 3-5 p.m.
• 11-U at Berkmar High School
from 1-3 p.m.
• 12-U at Lilburn Middle
School from 4:30-7 p.m.
• 13-U at Lilburn Middle
School from 1-3 p.m.
For more information, email
jim.Nichols® unisys.com.
Soccer club
hosts signups
Atlanta Soccer Academy,
Forsyth County’s new soccer club,
is hosting its spring 2004 registra
tion for U-6 and up. The recre
ational program includes central
training time with their profes
sional staff. As for the Academy’s
U-8 to U-l 1 programs, call for a
player's evaluation.
Walk-up registration will take
place at the Forsyth County Public
Library’s Sharon Forks Branch at
2820 Old Atlanta Rd. in Cumming
on Saturdays, Feb. 21 (10a.rn.-l
p.m.), and March 6 (10 a.m.-l
p.m.). For information, call (770)
557- 0430 or visit atlsoccer.com.
Travel teams
hosts tryouts
• The Georgia Buzz’s 12-U
and 13-U travel baseball teams
will soon be hosting tryouts for
the spring 2004 season at
Dwight Terry Park in Canton.
Call (770) 578-1996 for infor
mation.
• The 10-and-under Central
Titans select travel baseball team
has two openings on its roster.
Call (770) 235-9585 for a tryout
or visit www.eteamz.com/ cen
traltitans.
• A local 10-and-under “AA”
travel baseball team is looking
for committed players and par
ents. Call (678) 641-5898 or
(770) 540-6696.
• Team Thunder 13-and-under
travel baseball team is looking
for players for its upcoming try-
0 outs. Contact head coach Gene
Sams at (404) 391-8932.
Sports EXTRA
NASCAR
Upcoming season fuels speculation
By Gerald Hodges
For the Forsyth County News
Each year we look back at which
drivers were on top and those who
never made it far from the bottom.
And this year, we will look at who
might be in the top-10 come
November.
Matt Kenseth’s smooth, laid back,
steady racing style earned him the
2003 NASCAR Winston Cup
Championship. He earned just one
victory, which was the March race at
Las Vegas, but he wound up with 25
top-10 finishes, enough to earn him
his first title.
Jimmie Johnson, driver of the No.
48 Lowe’s Chevrolet also had a lot of
consistency. He put together three
wins and 20 top-l O’s on the way to
the runner-up finish. As a member of
Hendrick Motorsports, Johnson had
the best in equipment as well as
advice from teammate and four-time
champion Jeff Gordon.
Dale Earnhardt Jr. has become the
most popular driver on the NASCAR
circuit. Even though he wound up
third in the final points, his team
lacked something that all champi
onship teams must have.
He has practically dominated
Talladega, but a sluggish start, and
poor ending dropped him back to
third.
After a 24th-place finish at the
season-ending race in Homestead,
Earnhardt said, he was still proud of
the team and would win the champi
onship in 2004.
During a news conference in
October at Martinsville, Earnhardt
said to be on his team you had to be
his friend, buddy, and like to party
with him.
Here is a young man that has
everything going for him; looks,
money, name, and talent, but he has
some more growing up to do before
he takes home the championship. He
must shed some of his childish ego
and be more responsible to other
members of his team.
Handling everything during a
race was great for his dad, but racing
has changed. When Dale Sr. raced,
more emphasis was placed on-the
driver. Now it is team work and pit
strategy.
The day of drivers operating by
the seat of their pants, and calling all
the shots are gone. It’s the day of
computers, engineers, fuel strategy,
and quick pit times.
Earnhardt had a great organiza
tion in 2003, and to finish third
means someone fizzled.
The No. 8 team will be a con
tender in 2004, but not champions.
Jeff Gordon had three wins, but
he had to work hard to get fourth. He
said he was happy with fourth, which
proves one of two things; either the
competition has increased tremen
dously, or Gordon’s team has fallen
off its past pace.
Freezing weather? Must be spring (sports) time
Check your calendars. Daytime
temperatures in the 30s, freezing rain
and sleet, gusty winds. Yep. Must be
time to start practicing for spring
sports...
It was one of the most exciting
Super Sundays in history. The play
ing field was full of talent, diverse
personalities kept our attention and
controversy ruled the day. And that
was just during halftime...
I don’t know about you, but I'm
tired of today’s Blue Chip athletes
bypassing college altogether or mak
ing the announcement of the school
they have chosen resemble a three
ring circus. Remember when kids
realized how valuable an education
can be and seemed thankful for the
opportunity?...
Phil Mickelson has the prettiest
swing in the game, but will never be
considered a great golfer until he
masters the ability to focus for 18
holes on the final day of a tourna
ment.
You just knew after Lefty
bogeyed No. 14 Sunday he was
going to fall apart and he did. The
guy might never win a Major if he
can’t find an inner peace when things
start going badly...
Braves pitching coach Leo
Mazzone opened his famed presea-
I >•
■Mi Ml
fll
Photo/File
Matt Kenseth’s smooth, laid back, steady racing style earned him the 2003 NASCAR Winston Cup
Championship.
Kevin Harvick is a young driver
that is hard to figure out. After step
ping into Dale Earnhardt’s ride with
Richard Childress in 2001, he won at
Atlanta and gained everybody’s
respect.
In 2002, he show his temper, even
wrecking another driver in a truck
race, but this past season, things got
a little better. During the first half of
the season he only had middle of the
field finishes, plus a run-in with
teammate Robby Gordon after the
Sears Point race.
He was up to second in the
points, but I think he was lucky to
come in fifth.
Ryan Newman was the hot driver
in my mind. He started off the season
with a bad wreck at Daytona which
put him 43rd.
He bounced back with a win at
Texas, and then had a 26th at
Talladega after cutting a tire.
With 11 poles and eight wins,
how can you not say he will be a
contender in 2004?
Tony Stewart didn’t win his first
race in 2003 until the Pocono 500 in
June. We think he went into the sea
son trying not to repeat the previous
year’s emotional problems and atti
tudes, and this left him flat.
Stewart is a champion and a first
rate driver, but car owner, Joe Gibbs
has accepted a job as a full time
coach in the NFL. With Gibbs not
Danny
Daniels
son camp this week at Turner Field.
Wonder if the current staff will be
required to wear name tags...
Congratulations to Georgia
women’s basketball Andy Landers
for winning his 600th game Sunday.
As successful as Landers has been at
UGA, do you realize he’s still 239
total victories behind Tennessee’s Pat
Summitt?...
San Francisco free agent wide
receiver Terrell Owens is telling
friends he would like to play for the
Falcons next season.
Every-big play pass catcher in the
NFL knows what being on the
receiving end of Michael Vick’s aeri
als could mean to his career.
Unfortunately, to afford Owens and
the already-signed Peerless Price, the
Falcons would probably have to
dump Vick’s salary...
Weather can cause cancellations
in almost every sport in the winter
except soccer. Ride by your local
field any day this week and, no mat
ter the conditions, soccer practice
being around to hold the reins on his
prima donna, I don’t see another
championship from the No. 20 team
this season.
Kurt Buasch was another arrogant
driver that thought he had NASCAR
by the tail after the 2002 season. He
won four races, but inconsistencies
and run-ins with other drivers
dragged him down. He ended the
season 11th, a drop of eight spots
from 2002.
Sterling Marlin was the leader in
points for most of 2002 until he was
sidelined with a neck injury. He
failed to win or even score a top-five
finish and wound up 18th in the final
points.
Dale Jarrett’s No. 88 team was
probably one of the major disap
pointments of the year. The 1999
champion made three major crew
chief changes, but even that failed to
help and he finish the season in .26th
spot.
Mark Martin, who finished just
38 points behind Tony Stewart in the
chase for the 2002 championship had
no poles or wins last season. His
17th place points finish was dismal
to say the least.
Rusty Wallace hasn’t won a race
since April 2001, and the best thing
that can be said about him is he has
started his own Busch team.
Petty Enterprises has some of the
biggest sponsors in the business, but
continues. And many of those kids
are running around in shorts and a t
shirt...
Many areas colleges are already
into their 2004 baseball season.
North Georgia, way up in the moun
tains, has played seven games and
not a one of them have been with the
thermometer about 45 degrees. Can
you say “pass the Icy Hot?”...
. With Vince Dooley now associat
ed with Arena Football’s Georgia
Force, Sunday’s season-opener is
really gaining attention.
Many former UGA football greats
will be honored before game time
(Do they have kickoffs in the AFL?)
at the Gwinnett Center. I must con
fess I’m starting to get the urge to
see what its like.
On the other hand, I’ve been say
ing that about skydiving for years.
I’ll share the experience(s) if I d 0...
Peachtree Ridge High School in
Gwinnett County is immaculate. It’s
amazing what S3O million in taxpay
er money can do. I wish they could
have put some of the cash aside and
paid a couple of cops to direct traffic
following Saturday’s competitive
cheerleading Regionals.
It took as long to get out of the
parking lot as it did for the judges to
reach a decision on the winners —1
one of the poorest records of any
team. Kyle Petty finished 37th, with
no top-l O’s. John Andretti was
replaced with Christian Fittipaldi,
who was replaced by Jeff Green.
For all teams, this is the time of
year when they have a clean slate.
They can start over and make 2004
better.
For some teams like Jimmie
Johnson, Ryan Newman, Dale
Earnhardt Jr, and Bobby Labonte,
they need to do only a little more
tweaking or experience some racing
luck.
Many drivers like Dale Jarrett,
Ricky Rudd, Elliott Sadler, Jeff
Burton and others did not perform at
the level expected in 2003. So for
them to return to the level of
respectability, they must show signs
of progress.
There are a growing number of
young guns in NASCAR that have
good equipment and first rate teams
to back them up.
Drivers like Jamie McMurray,
Kasey Kahne, Casey Mears, and
Tony Raines will make their pres
ence felt.
All drivers believe that when they
go out on Sunday they can win. And
all of them will work hard to do so.
The year is ahead of them.
Let’s get ready to race and for the
many surprises in store for us in
2004.
hour, 45 minutes.
Please explain to me why judges
score each squad at the end of the
routine and still have to retire to a
private room to debate the perform
ance.
If they aren’t going to make up
their minds until the doors are
closed, why go to the trouble of giv
ing each team a numerical score?
Winder-Barrow was penalized five
points because a judge found a
bobby pin on the mat. How could
anyone prove who the pin belonged
to and how much of a “safety haz
ard” could an object that size pro
duce? Where’s Johnny Cochran
when you need him? If no one was
hampered, the score can’t be tam
pered (with)!...
As I write this column on
Monday, I’m really excited about
tonight’s television lineup. No sports,
but who cares? NBC offers a chance
for middle-aged guys like me to live
vicariously through Fear Factor
(death-defying stunts), Las Vegas
(high stakes gambling) and Average
Joe (nerd gets the girl).
That’s “must-see TV” in my book
Danny Daniels, sports editor at
the Barrow County News, con
tributes his regional wrapup once a
week.