About The times. (Gainesville, Ga.) 1972-current | View Entire Issue (Nov. 10, 2018)
2B Saturday, November 10, 2018 The Times, Gainesville, Georgia | gainesvilletimes.com SPORTS GOLF Kuchar goes up by 2 in Mexico Associated Press NASCAR QUALIFYING Harvick takes pole for championship Kevin Harvick has won the pole for Sunday’s final qualifying race for the championship. The strong run came as his team is snared in a cheating controversy. Harvick’s winning car from last week was found to have an illegal spoiler and the punishment cost him his automatic berth into the final four. Needing a trou ble-free run at ISM Race way outside Phoenix to get back into the finale, Harvick stepped up with a strong qualifying effort to put him in the top starting spot. Harvick is a nine-time winner at Phoenix, most recently in March. He also won at Phoenix in 2014 when a victory was the only thing that would qualify him for the Homestead-Miami Speedway finale, where he captured his only Cup championship. Race lineup Friday’s qualifying; race Sunday At ISM Raceway Avondale, Ariz. (Car number in parentheses) 1. (4) Kevin Harvick, Ford, 139.340 mph. 2. (9) Chase Elliott, Chevrolet, 139.152. 3. (17) Ricky Stenhouse Jr., Ford, 139.007. 4. (12) Ryan Blaney, Ford, 138.867. 5. (88) Alex Bowman, Chevrolet, 138.739. 6. (18) Kyle Busch, Toyota, 138.707. 7. (20) Erik Jones, Toyota, 138.344. 8. (42) Kyle Larson, Chevrolet, 138.259. 9. (22) Joey Logano, Ford, 138.254. 10. (11) Denny Hamlin, Toyota, 138.249. 11. (21) Paul Menard, Ford, 137.889. 12. (2) Brad Keselowski, Ford, 137.667. 13. (78) Martin Truex Jr., Toyota, 138.339. 14. (41) Kurt Busch, Ford, 138.180. 15. (3) Austin Dillon, Chevrolet, 138.069. 16. (14) Clint Bowyer, Ford, 137.878. 17. (6) Matt Kenseth, Ford, 137.767. 18. (10) Aric Almirola, Ford, 137.720. 19. (24) William Byron, Chevrolet, 137.604. 20. (48) Jimmie Johnson, Chevrolet, 137.541. 21. (1) Jamie McMurray, Chevrolet, 137.531. 22. (31) Ryan Newman, Chevrolet, 137.342. 23. (34) Michael McDowell, Ford, 136.815. 24. (47) AJ Allmendinger, Chevrolet, 136.529. 25. (37) Chris Buescher, Chevrolet, 136.664. 26. (19) Daniel Suarez, Toyota, 136.529. 27. (32) Matt DiBenedetto, Ford, 135.916. 28. (13) Ty Dillon, Chevrolet, 135.767. 29. (95) Regan Smith, Chevrolet, 135.649. 30. (43) Bubba Wallace, Chevrolet, 135.542. 31. (38) David Ragan, Ford, 135.267. 32. (00) Landon Cassill, Chevrolet, 134.158. 33. (15) Ross Chastain, Chevrolet, 133.482. 34. (72) Cole Whitt, Chevrolet, 133.328. 35. (23) JJ Yeley, Toyota, 133.284. 36. (97) Tanner Berryhill, Toyota, 132.202. 37. (66) Timmy Hill, Toyota, 131.114. 38. (7) DJ Kennington, Chevrolet, 130.124. 39. (51) Cody Ware, Chevrolet, 0.000. Associated Press Matt Kuchar knew he was in trouble when his tee shot sailed so far to the right that he hit a provi sional in case the ball was out-of-bounds. He found the ball, and somehow never lost the lead. Kuchar escaped his only big mess Friday with a 35-foot bogey putt on the 12th hole, and he rode eight birdies to a 7-under 64 that gave him a two- shot lead over PGA Tour rookie Cam eron Champ going into the weekend at the Mayakoba Golf Classic. Champ, going after his second victory in three weeks, played in the morn ing and shot 62 with a bogey on his final hole. Kuchar was at 14-under 128 as he tries to end more than four years without a PGA Tour victory. “Yesterday was kind of a bogey-free day and just easy, and everything Par scores Friday’s scores At El Camaleon GC at the Mayakoba Resort Playa del Carmen, Mexico Purse: $7.2 million Yardage: 6,987; Par: 71 Second Round Matt Kuchar 64-64—128 -14 Cameron Champ 68-62—130 -12 Danny Lee 65-66—131 -11 Whee Kim 68-63—131 -11 Dominic Bozzelli 64-67—131 -11 Patton Kizzire 65-66—131 -11 Brian Gay 68-63—131 -11 Anirban Lahiri 65-66—131 -11 Richy Werenski 65-66—131 -11 Jonas Blixt 69-63—132 -10 Kyoung-Hoon Lee 66-66—132 -10 Adam Hadwin 65-67—132 -10 Kramer Hickok 64-68—132 -10 Pat Perez 66-67—133 -9 James Hahn 66-67—133 -9 Kelly Kraft 69-64—133 -9 Bud Cauley 65-68—133 -9 Abraham Ancer 65-68—133 -9 Emiliano Grillo 65-68—133 -9 Josh Teater 67-67—134 -8 J.J. Spaun 69-65—134 -8 else today was about the same,” he said. “I just had that one challenging hole. ” The challenge was figur ing out what to do once he found it. The ball was under a cluster of trees and bushes with rocks scattered everywhere. Even taking a one-shot penalty for an unplayable lie was not an easy option. If his drop settled between rocks, he would have to play that or take another penalty. Finally, he found a spot and the drop landed in enough soft soil for him to pitch out of trouble, through the fair way and into the rough. He got his fourth shot onto the green and made the long putt to escape with bogey. “That was great,” Kuchar said. “I knew I had a par 5 following it, and I figured I was prob ably going to make double there and birdie on the next.” Associated Press Ryan Armour 67-67—134 -8 Jhonattan Vegas 68-66—134 -8 Tony Finau 69-65—134 -8 Steve Marino 70-64—134 -8 Jose de Rodriguez 70-64—134 -8 Rickie Fowler 66-68—134 -8 Jim Furyk 69-65—134 -8 Brian Harman 66-68—134 -8 J.T. Poston 65-69—134 -8 Harold Varner III 65-69—134 -8 Armando Favela 67-67—134 -8 Stephan Jaeger 65-69—134 -8 Brice Garnett 68-67—135 -7 Scott Piercy 67-68—135 -7 Shintaro Ban 68-67—135 -7 Scott Brown 67-68—135 -7 Jason Dufner 69-66—135 -7 Chez Reavie 67-68—135 -7 Kevin Chappell 65-70—135 -7 Russell Henley 66-69—135 -7 Sung Kang 65-70—135 -7 Denny McCarthy 72-64—136 -6 Scott Langley 69-67—136 -6 Cameron Davis 68-68—136 -6 Oscar Fraustro 66-70—136 -6 Sebastian Munoz 69-67—136 -6 Aaron Wise 71-65—136 -6 C.T. Pan 67-69—136 -6 Adam Schenk 66-70—136 -6 Associated Press Kuchar Football/NFL AMERICAN CONFERENCE East W L T Pet PF PA New England 7 2 0 .778 270 202 Miami 5 4 0 .556 187 225 N.Y. Jets 3 6 0 .333 198 213 Buffalo 2 7 0 .222 96 241 South W L T Pet PF PA Houston 6 3 0 .667 216 184 Tennessee 4 4 0 .500 134 141 Jacksonville 3 5 0 .375 134 170 Indianapolis 3 5 0 .375 231 213 North W L T Pet PF PA Pittsburgh 6 2 1 .722 279 209 Cincinnati 5 3 0 .625 221 237 Baltimore 4 5 0 .444 213 160 Cleveland 2 6 1 .278 190 247 West W L T Pet PF PA Kansas City 8 1 0 .889 327 226 L.A. Chargers 6 2 0 .750 220 180 Denver 3 6 0 .333 205 213 Oakland 1 7 0 .125 141 252 NATIONAL CONFERENCE East W L T Pet PF PA Washington 5 3 0 .625 160 172 Philadelphia 4 4 0 .500 178 156 Dallas 3 5 0 .375 154 151 N.Y. Giants 1 7 0 .125 150 205 South W L T Pet PF PA New Orleans 7 1 0 .875 279 218 Carolina 6 3 0 .667 241 232 Atlanta 4 4 0 .500 228 226 Tampa Bay 3 5 0 .375 229 275 North W L T Pet PF PA Chicago 5 3 0 .625 235 153 Minnesota 5 3 1 .611 221 204 Green Bay 3 4 1 .438 192 204 Detroit 3 5 0 .375 180 210 West W L T Pet PF PA L.A. Rams 8 1 0 .889 299 200 Seattle 4 4 0 .500 188 156 Arizona 2 6 0 .250 110 199 San Francisco 2 7 0 .222 207 239 Thursday’s Games Pittsburgh 52, Carolina 21 Sunday’s Games Arizona at Kansas City, 1 p.m. Buffalo at N.Y. Jets, 1 p.m. Detroit at Chicago, 1 p.m. Jacksonville at Indianapolis, 1 p.m. Washington at Tampa Bay, 1 p.m. New Orleans at Cincinnati, 1 p.m. New England at Tennessee, 1 p.m. Atlanta at Cleveland, 1 p.m. L.A. Chargers at Oakland, 4:05 p.m. Miami at Green Bay, 4:25 p.m. Seattle at L.A. Rams, 4:25 p.m. Dallas at Philadelphia, 8:20 p.m. Open: Minnesota, Denver, Baltimore, Houston Monday’s Games N.Y. Giants at San Francisco, 8:15 p.m. Football/college Today’s games EAST Lafayette (3-6) at Army (7-2), Noon Sacred Heart (6-3) at Duquesne (6-3), Noon Fordham (1 -8) at Holy Cross (3-6), Noon Kennesaw St. (8-1) at Monmouth (NJ) (7-2), Noon Wisconsin (6-3) at Penn St. (6-3), Noon CCSU (5-4) at St. Francis (Pa.) (4-5), Noon SMU (4-5) at UConn (1-8), Noon BYU (4-5) at UMass (4-6), Noon TCU (4-5) at West Virginia (7-1), Noon Columbia (4-4) at Brown (1-7), 12:30 p.m. Bucknell (1-8) at Georgetown (4-5), 12:30 p.m. Colgate (8-0) at Lehigh (2-7), 12:30 p.m. Princeton (8-0) at Yale (5-3), 12:30 p.m. Wagner (2-7) at Bryant (5-4), 1 p.m. Albany (NY) (2-7) at New Hampshire (3-6), 1 p.m. Harvard (4-4) at Penn (6-2), 1 p.m. Delaware (7-2) at Stony Brook (6-3), 1 p.m. William & Mary (3-5) at Villanova (4-5), 1 p.m. Dartmouth (7-1) at Cornell (3-5), 1:30 p.m. Virginia Tech (4-4) at Pittsburgh (5-4), 3:30 p.m. Michigan (8-1) at Rutgers (1-8), 3:30 p.m. Clemson (9-0) at Boston College (7-2), 8 p.m. SOUTH Towson (6-3) at Elon (6-2), Noon South Carolina (5-3) at Florida (6-3), Noon Tulsa (2-7) at Memphis (5-4), Noon SE Missouri (7-2) at Murray St. (4-5), Noon Campbell (5-4) at Presbyterian (2-6), Noon Navy (2-7) at UCF (8-0), Noon North Carolina (1-7) at Duke (6-3), 12:20 p.m. Mercer (4-5) at Chattanooga (6-3), 1 p.m. Robert Morris (1-7) at E. Kentucky (5-4), 1 p.m. Troy (7-2) at Georgia Southern (7-2), 1 p.m. Delaware St. (2-7) at Morgan St. (2-7), 1 p.m. Howard (4-4) at Norfolk St. (3-5), 1 p.m. NC A&T (7-2) at Savannah St. (2-6), 1 p.m. Furman (4-4) at VMI (1-8), 1:30 p.m. Grambling St. (5-4) at Alabama A&M (5-4), 2 p.m. Rhode Island (5-4) at James Madison (6-3), 2 p.m. Hampton (5-3) at MVSU (1-7), 2 p.m. Samford (5-4) at The Citadel (3-5), 2 p.m. Charlotte (4-5) at Marshall (5-3), 2:30 p.m. Jackson St. (4-4) at Alabama St. (3-5), 3 p.m. Gardner-Webb (3-6) at Charleston Southern (3-5), 3 p.m. Maine (6-3) at Richmond (3-6), 3 p.m. Jacksonville St. (7-2) at Tennessee St. (3-4), 3 p.m. Tennessee Tech (1-8) at UT Martin (1-8), 3 p.m. Liberty (4-4) at Virginia (6-3), 3 p.m. Mississippi St. (6-3) at Alabama (9-0), 3:30 p.m. North Texas (7-2) at Old Dominion (2-7), 3:30 p.m. Kentucky (7-2) at Tennessee (4-5), 3:30 p.m. Wofford (6-3) at W. Carolina (3-6), 3:30 p.m. NC Central (4-4) at Bethune-Cookman (5-5), 4 p.m. SC State (3-5) at Florida A&M (6-3), 4 p.m. Stephen F. Austin (2-6) at Nicholls (6-3), 4 p.m. East Carolina (2-6) at Tulane (4-5), 4 p.m. Arkansas St. (5-4) at Coastal Carolina (5-4), 5 p.m. W. Kentucky (1-8) at FAU (4-5), 5 p.m. Georgia St. (2-7) at Louisiana-Lafayette (4-6), 5 p.m. Louisiana-Monroe (5-4) at South Alabama (2-7), 5 p.m. Ark.-Pine Bluff (1-8) at Southern U. (5-3), 5 p.m. Auburn (6-3) at Georgia (8-1), 7 p.m. Miami (5-4) at Georgia Tech (5-4), 7 p.m. Rice (1-9) at Louisiana Tech (6-3), 7 p.m. North Greenville (4-5) at North Alabama (6-3), 7 p.m. McNeese St. (6-3) at Northwestern St. (3-6), 7 p.m. Southern Miss. (4-4) at UAB (8-1), 7:30 p.m. MIDWEST Stetson (7-1) at Butler (3-6), Noon Akron (4-4) at E. Michigan (5-5), Noon Maryland (5-4) at Indiana (4-5), Noon Kansas (3-6) at Kansas St. (3-6), Noon Ohio St. (8-1) at Michigan St. (6-3), Noon Vanderbilt (4-5) at Missouri (5-4), Noon Illinois (4-5) at Nebraska (2-7), Noon N. Iowa (5-4) at Youngstown St. (3-6), Noon Morehead St. (3-6) at Dayton (4-5), 1 p.m. Illinois St. (5-4) at Indiana St. (6-3), 1 p.m. Marist (5-4) at Drake (5-3), 2 p.m. Austin Peay (4-5) at E. Illinois (2-7), 2 p.m. S. Dakota St. (5-3) at S. Illinois (2-7), 2 p.m. W. Illinois (5-4) at South Dakota (3-6), 2 p.m. Jacksonville (2-6) at Valparaiso (1-8), 2 p.m. Bowling Green (1-8) at Cent. Michigan (1-9), 3 p.m. N. Dakota St. (9-0) at Missouri St. (3-5), 3 p.m. Portland St. (4-5) at North Dakota (4-5), 3 p.m. Northwestern (5-4) at Iowa (6-3), 3:30 p.m. Baylor (5-4) at Iowa St. (5-3), 3:30 p.m. Purdue (5-4) at Minnesota (4-5), 3:30 p.m. South Florida (7-2) at Cincinnati (8-1), 7 p.m. Florida St. (4-5) at Notre Dame (9-0), 7:30 p.m. SOUTHWEST Mississippi (5-4) at Texas A&M (5-4), Noon Middle Tennessee (6-3) at UTEP (1-8), 3 p.m. Oklahoma St. (5-4) at Oklahoma (8-1), 3:30 p.m. Abilene Christian (5-4) at Sam Houston St. (5-4), 3:30 p.m. Incarnate Word (5-4) at Cent. Arkansas (5-4), 4 p.m. Houston Baptist (1-8) at Lamar (5-4), 4 p.m. Appalachian St. (6-2) at Texas St. (3-6), 4 p.m. Temple (5-4) at Houston (7-2), 7 p.m. FIU (6-3) at UTSA (3-6), 7 p.m. LSU (7-2) at Arkansas (2-7), 7:30 p.m. Texas (6-3) at Texas Tech (5-4), 7:30 p.m. FAR WEST UCLA (2-7) at Arizona St. (5-4), 2 p.m. N. Colorado (2-8) at Montana St. (5-4), 3 p.m. New Mexico (3-6) at Air Force (3-6), 3:30 p.m. Washington St. (8-1) at Colorado (5-4), 3:30 p.m. TODAY ON TV FOOTBALL ■ Mississippi at Texas A&M, noon, CBS ■ Wisconsin at Penn State, noon, ABC ■ Ohio State at Michigan State, noon, Fox ■ South Carolina at Florida, noon, ESPN ■ Navy at UCF, noon, ESPN2 ■ Tulsa at Memphis, noon, ESPNU ■ TCU at West Virginia, noon, Fox Sportsl ■ Mississippi State at Alabama, 3:30 p.m., CBS ■ Oklahoma State at Oklahoma, 3:30 p.m., ABC ■ Northwestern at Iowa, 3:30 p.m., Fox ■ Washington State at Colorado, 3:30 p.m., ESPN ■ Purdue at Minnesota, 3:30 p.m., ESPN2 ■ Virginia Tech at Pittsburgh, 3:30 p.m., ESPNU ■ Baylor at Iowa State, 3:30 p.m., Fox Sportsl ■ Georgia vs. Auburn, 7 p.m., ESPN ■ Georgia Tech vs. Miami, 7 p.m., ESPN2 ■ South Florida at Cincinnati, 7 p.m., ESPNU ■ Florida State vs. Notre Dame, 7:30 p.m., NBC ■ Texas at Texas Tech, 7:30 p.m., Fox ■ Clemson at Boston College, 8 p.m., ABC ■ California at Southern Cal, 10:30 p.m., ESPN ■ UNLV at San Diego State, 10:30 p.m., ESPN2 ■ Colorado State at Nevada, 10:30 p.m., ESPNU RACING ■ Xfinity Series, Phoenix qualifying, 12:30 p.m., NBC Sports ■ Monster Energy Series, final practice, 2 p.m., NBCSports ■ Xfinity Series race, 3:30 p.m., NBC GOLF ■ Mayakoba Classic, third round, 1 p.m., Golf channel ■ Champions Tour, Charles Schwab Classic, 4 p.m. Golf channel NFL Midseason superlatives RON SCHWANE I The Associated Press Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes rushes during the first half of the Cleveland Browns on Nov. 4 in Cleveland. Mahomes early leader to be the league MVP BY BARRY WILNER Associated Press By the time every NFL team has played eight games, there are some heav ily established favorites for The Associated Press NFL awards that are handed out on Super Bowl eve. Not this year. MVP? Lots of candidates — and not just quarterbacks. Coach of the Year? Nearly every division has a contender. Comeback Player? Some likely Hall of Famers are in the mix there. So the AP polled a few of the 50 voters for the awards, including genuine Hall of Famer James Lofton. The theme was clear: There isn’t much clarity as we head into the final eight weeks of the schedule. MVP This honor has gone to a quarterback the past five seasons and 10 of 11. Two running backs, Adrian Peterson in 2012 and LaDai- nian Tomlinson in 2006, broke through the QB domination in the past dozen years. Lofton and some others select Chiefs quarterback Pat rick Mahomes. “So good you just can’t take your eyes off of him,” the CBS analyst says. “Maybe this opinion changes next week, given the stellar competition that includes (Todd) Gurley and (Drew) Brees,” adds USA Today’s Jarrett Bell. “Maybe not, as the kid keeps showing up. A first-year starter as quarterback? Hey, Mahomes is like the new Kurt Warner.” Paul Domowitch of the Philadelphia Daily News opts for Brees. Charean Wil liams of Pro Foot ball Talk prefers Gurley. Don’t forget about Tom Brady, Adam Thielen or Philip Rivers, and perhaps even a defensive force such as J.J. Watt. COACH Another wide-open field headed by, according to Jenny Vrentas of Monday Morning Quarterback, Kan sas City’s Andy Reid. “I selected Andy Reid .. for his ability to seam lessly transition from Alex Smith to Mahomes,” Vren tas explains. “He’s been so invested in Mahomes’ devel opment that he sits with him on the bench in between offensive series, going over what they see and how they’ll attack the opponent next. Reid has demonstrated an ability to keep his offense fresh and tailored to his players, updating his West Coast system with spread concepts pulled from the college ranks.” Bob Glauber of Newsday points to last year’s winner, Sean McVay of the Rams. “He’s one of the brightest minds in the game, and at 32, is proving not only to be a brilliant play caller, but an exceptional leader as well,” Glauber says. Not far behind in our little poll: the Saints’ Sean Payton, the Texans’ Bill O’Brien, the Bears’ Matt Nagy, and the Chargers’ Anthony Lynn, whose team “plays a road game every week,” Lofton notes. COMEBACK PLAYER Rarely has there been such an impressive group vying for an award no one really wants to win consid ering the implications of a comeback. From Watt to Peterson to Aaron Rodgers, from Andrew Luck to Carson Wentz to Deshaun Watson, from Odell Beck ham Jr. to Richard Sherman — WOW! “It’s either Andrew Luck or Watt,” says Wil liams, “but Watt has returned to being one of the best at his position. He is playing at an All-Pro and Pro Bowl level. Luck is not one of the top-five quarterbacks in the NFL and maybe not in the top 10.” Eric Adelson of Yahoo Sports goes for the Colts quarterback. “Can’t imagine the frustration he’s faced,” Adelson says. “A pro’s pro.” Vrentas picks Watt. “The surgery Watt had last Octo ber to put his leg back together after a tibial plateau fracture was so complicated that the sur geons couldn’t even be cer tain that it would work, and that his leg would be able to bear the full weight of his body while running full speed,” she explains. “Watt, who has nine sacks in nine games, was undeterred. He wasn’t back to full strength in the season opener but has steadily gotten better each week, a scary thought for opponents.” OFFENSIVE PLAYER Another free-for-all, with Gurley, Mahomes, Thielen, Brees, Michael Thomas and James Conner getting consideration. “Before it’s done, he could wind up as MVP,” Bell says of Gurley, his choice in this category. “Ditto for Brees. Running backs don’t get the same love as quarterbacks in the pass-centric envi ronment of the NFL. But if Gurley breaks LaDainian Tomlinson’s single-season TD record and the Rams keep winning big, people will have to take notice. Then again, Brees has a few records and has never been MVP.” Domowitch, a Brees supporter for MVP, puts Mahomes here. So does Williams. DEFENSIVE PLAYER This category could be a two-horse race between a pair of thoroughbreds pre viously honored with the award: Aaron Donald and Watt. “Now that’s a man who don’t need no stinking train ing camp,” Bell says of Donald. Eric Adelson of Yahoo Sports prefers Donald, as well. “A game wrecker on every down,” Adelson says. Adds Glauber: “Donald is a disruptive force in the middle and already has 10 sacks. The only problem for him — and the Rams — is that teams will often go to great lengths to shut him down. Thus, the constant double teams he has to fight through.” Lofton likes what Khalil Mack has done in Chicago: “Mack turned the Bears from pretenders to contend ers.” But this train could be a runaway for Donald and Mack. OFFENSIVE ROOKIE No contest. “He’s the only good thing going for an awful Giants team,” Glauber says of Giants RB Saquon Barkley. “Until the Giants figure out their quarterback situa tion, he’ll be wasted in this offense.” But not lost in the awards prognostications. “On pace for more than 2,000 total yards — on a bad team,” Adelson notes. DEFENSIVE ROOKIE Chargers safety Derwin James has gotten lots of love, but there’s no runaway leader. “Darius Leonard and Denzel Ward make this an interesting race for the award down the stretch,” Williams says. Glauber leans to Leonard: “Halfway through the sea son, he not only led all NFL rookies with 88 tackles, he led all NFL players in that category. Beckham Brady TV ratings up on most platforms After years of declines, NFL television ratings are showing modest gains. Three of the league’s tele vision partners have shown increases after the first nine week of the season while one remains flat. That is welcome news after ratings decreased 9.7 percent last season and 8 percent in 2016. “I’m glad the league has turned the corner. The top teams are very exciting and there are plenty of high-scor ing games,” said Neil Pilson, the former president of CBS Sports who now runs his own sports television consulting company. Pilson said a major rat ings driver has been the emergence of young quar terbacks like the Rams’ Jared Goff, Chiefs’ Patrick Mahomes and Bears’ Mitch ell Trubisky. That has cre ated a buzz not only with their teams but throughout the league. Another factor is that player protests against social and racial injustice during the national anthem have not been a major story line this season. Pilson noted that “a few of those folks who said they were going to stop watching I don’t know how many did.” NBC’s “Sunday Night Football” package has shown the biggest improve ment with an eight percent increase from last season. It is averaging 19.7 million viewers, compared to 18.3 million last season. This past Sunday’s game between the Green Bay Packers and New England Patriots averaged a league- high 23.7 million, and was the largest prime-time audi ence on any network since ABC aired the Academy Awards in March. Associated Press
