
Sunday's Straight Talk Wireless 400 at the Homestead-Miami Speedway has already brought the action.
Homestead-Miami is a track where drivers have every possible groove available to them, but as the broadcast pointed out, that's not always a good thing.
Justin Haley found that out the hard way on lap one of Sunday's race, as contact with Ricky Stenhouse Jr. sent Haley's No. 7 Chevrolet spinning in turn three.
Haley spins and everybody misses him! pic.twitter.com/94nscnWYBG
— NASCAR (@NASCAR) October 27, 2024
Miraculously, Haley avoided making contact with any other cars, keeping his Camaro - as well as the rest of the field - clean for the moment.
Stenhouse Jr. and Haley's qualifying efforts of fifth and tenth meant the incident took place in front of the majority of the field, with Haley narrowly avoiding contact with playoff driver Chase Elliott, who had to slow to a crawl on the apron of the racetrack in order to avoid hitting Haley.
The rest of the field - including the rest of the playoff drivers - scattered behind the spinning Haley, with John Hunter Nemechek and Harrison Burton stacking up in the middle of the pack, incurring slight damage to both vehicles.
Haley now has a long way to go in order to get back to the front, but he has plenty of time to do so.
More must-reads:
The two-time Cup Series champion Kyle Busch has been struggling to make ends meet on the race track for the past few seasons. He finished 20th in the 2024 driver standings and 21st in the 2025 driver standings. Also, he is currently riding a winless streak of over 80 races. To save him from this sticky mud arrives a championship-winning crew chief from the O’Reilly Series in 2026. Following Randall Burnett’s departure from the No. 8 Richard Childress Racing team, it was announced that Jim Pohlman would take his place. Pohlman was a crew chief at JR Motorsports in 2025 and, notably, also won the 2024 Xfinity Series championship with the team’s Justin Allgaier. Ever since the announcement of his signing was made, he has been expressing strong excitement to work with Busch. In an interview with RACER, he kept that spirit going and underlined that they’re both a lot alike in many ways. He said, “We’re probably a lot alike. I haven’t seen his analytical chart as to how his personality is, but having done the crew chief role and reading people, I’d say we’re probably identical. There might be some spats, I’m not going to lie. He’s passionate. I’m passionate.” The end goal is that both of them want to win races, and they’re both very clear with each other about that. The chemistry between the driver and the crew chief is the soul of any NASCAR team. Pohlman found the perfect partner in Allgaier and literally created history with him. To let that go and move to Busch’s camp is a big gamble. But it is one that can be extremely rewarding. What pushed Pohlman to take the job at RCR Personally, accepting the offer to become a crew chief for a certified Hall of Famer had been a no-brainer for Pohlman. But leaving Allgaier was the tough part. When he brought his dilemma to the driver’s attention, he was told that he would be an idiot not to take the job. Allgaier told NASCAR.com, “It’s a double-edged sword for me. I am sad to see him go because he has meant the world to me – and still will. His dream has been to be a full-time Cup Series crew chief, to have a shot at going for a championship.” He further added that he couldn’t ask Pohlman to sacrifice his dream and continue doing things for him. The unmatchable chemistry that these two have is a dream for several other driver-crew chief combinations throughout the sport. Hopefully, Busch will obtain a similar relationship with Pohlman.
NFL legend Jason Kelce has made his opinion of Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones very clear. To be more specific, the Philadelphia Eagles icon shared his brutally honest view on how Jones’ big move before the NFL trade deadline transformed the Cowboys into a much more formidable team. Kelce had a lot to say about Jones and the Cowboys on a recent episode of his “New Heights” podcast alongside his brother, Kansas City Chiefs star Travis Kelce. Jason Kelce praised Jones for bringing in Quinnen Williams in a blockbuster trade deal, but the legendary center is adamant that he will not be apologizing for his take on the Cowboys and their 83-year-old owner. For what it's worth, Jones had an outrageous claim himself recently. “New Heights” released a new episode on Wednesday, and as usual, the brothers discussed developments in the NFL. One of the topics they covered was that the Cowboys have gone undefeated since the trade deadline, when Jones pulled the trigger on a blockbuster deal with the New York Jets for All-Pro defensive lineman Quinnen Williams. However, when asked if he believes he owes Jones an apology, Kelce was confused. “Do we owe Jerry an apology? Who owes Jerry an apology? What do I have to apologize for?” Kelce asked. “They [expletive] sucked! What are we talking about? Their defense was horrendous. “So good job! What do we owe an apology for? Hey, your car doesn't work. Oh, I went and got it fixed. Oh, we owe you an apology for saying your car [expletive] broke down and didn't work on the side of the road? I don't owe [expletive] an apology.” The Cowboys have gone 3-0 since Williams’ arrival, including Sunday’s massive comeback victory against Jason's former team, the Eagles, and their Thanksgiving win over Travis' Chiefs. While Kelce has refused to apologize to Jones, he admitted that the Cowboys owner deserves praise for his decision to bring in an elite-caliber player in Williams. “We owe Jerry Jones a clap of approval,” Kelce said. “I'll say this, and I'll stand on this, and I think the guys will back me. When Jerry said we were gonna make a trade, I think everybody's expecting an edge player to replace Micah [Parsons]. When they said it was Quinnen, immediately, I thought this is better for that defense. “Because for years, they have lacked the raw, man strength, big power in the heart of that defense. They have lacked that type of presence, and Quinnen brings that. I just think for moving forward, this is a great piece to build around. I think it's a great move by Jerry. “I don't think I owe him a [expletive] apology, but I'll say great [expletive] job.”
In the biggest game of his college football career so far, Texas quarterback Arch Manning grew into the superstar he was touted to be with the nation watching. No. 16 Texas (9-3) earned a huge rivalry win over No. 3 Texas A M (11-1) in Austin on Friday in large part thanks to the second-half play of Manning. Manning was only 8-of-21 for 51 yards in the first half, and the Longhorns trailed the Aggies 10-3 at the break. Texas had an opportunity to kick a field goal and cut the A M lead to four at the break, but an intentional grounding penalty incurred by Manning took that opportunity away. Arch Manning lights up the scoreboard in second half But with the help of a Texas defense that rattled TAMU QB Marcel Reed in the second half, Manning and the 'Horns scored 24 second-half points in a winning effort. Texas' first drive of the second half netted three points, but a strike from Manning to Ryan Wingo on the next UT possession gave the Longhorns the lead and gave Manning some confidence. After another defensive stop, Manning led a six-play, 83-yard TD drive to put the Longhorns up by 10. After Texas A M responded, Manning did as well, running away from the Aggie defense on a 35-yard scoring sprint that ultimately served as the deciding blow. In the end, it was Reed — the more experienced and consistent of the two quarterbacks — that made the back-breaking mistake, throwing an interception deep in Texas territory on a drive that looked poised to end with points. The victory was a team effort for Texas, which will await Saturday's slate of games and beg for several playoff contenders to lose to have a shot at the 12-team playoff field. But it was Manning who would be the face of it. Manning went 14-of-29 for 179 yards and a touchdown through the air and added 53 yards and a score on the ground. The win serves as the biggest moment of Manning's young UT career. Going into Saturday, Manning's sophomore season was marred by inconsistent play. A career day against Arkansas was contrasted by middling performances against Ohio State and Georgia. Standout efforts in wins over Mississippi State, Vanderbilt and Oklahoma were overshadowed by no-shows against UTEP, Kentucky and Florida. But Manning rose to his greatest challenge on Saturday, delivering a win in a rivalry game that nobody in the state of Texas — whether they wear burnt orange or maroon — will soon forget.
Life comes at you fast in the NFL, and the Philadelphia Eagles are finding that out right now. Now they are in a position where what looked to be a runaway lead in the NFC East is rapidly shrinking, and it could be in danger of completely slipping away after an ugly 24-15 loss to the Chicago Bears on Friday. Especially after the Dallas Cowboys won again on Thursday, continuing to narrow the gap in the division. Could the Eagles actually lose the division? The odds are still in the Eagles' favor, but given the way both teams are playing right now, nothing should be considered a given. Dallas has rapidly become one of the hottest teams in the NFL with three consecutive wins, and boasts one of the league's best offenses. The Cowboys' much-maligned defense has also been given a massive boost thanks to the trade-deadline addition of defensive lineman Quinnen Williams from the New York Jets. Dallas really started to get some belief for itself when it rallied to beat the Eagles in a massive NFC East game a week ago. It continued on Thanksgiving with another big win over the Kansas City Chiefs. With Philadelphia's loss on Friday, the gap in the division is now down to just a game-and-a-half with five weeks to go in the season. Hardly insurmountable. Are the Eagles still in the driver's seat? Sure. Would they trade positions with the Cowboys right now? No way. But that doesn't mean anybody in Philadelphia has to be feeling good about any of this given the way the Eagles are playing. Especially when it comes to the team's offense. The Eagles offense has been a struggle for much of the season, and it is getting progressively worse with each game. The passing game has been non-existent. They entered play on Friday with the 23rd-ranked passing offense in the league, and it looked worse than that against the Bears. Quarterback Jalen Hurts has struggled with consistency, the team's best wide receiver — A.J. Brown — seems perpetually miserable with his role and usage, and the play-calling has become shockingly conservative and bland. The running game that carried the Eagles to the Super Bowl a year ago has struggled to build any sort of a rhythm, and Saquon Barkley has been a shell of what he was last season. Even worse, they have almost completely eliminated any designed runs for Hurts, something that was a major X-factor for the offense in recent years. If all of that is not concerning enough, a new issue emerged on Friday — the defense that has helped keep the Eagles afloat this season and lift up the inconsistent offense was completely dominated by the Bears' running game. They were pushed around, bullied and could not get off the field on important third downs. It just looks like a team that has no confidence and nothing going for it. Conversely, the Cowboys all of a sudden look like a team that can do nothing wrong and they are suddenly breathing right down the Eagles' necks. Philadelphia still has games against the Los Angeles Chargers, Las Vegas Raiders, Buffalo Bills and Washington Commanders (twice) remaining. The Cowboys still have the Detroit Lions, Minnesota Vikings, Chargers, Commanders and New York Giants. The schedules are pretty similar. But the division might not come down to the opponents. It might come down to what the Eagles and Cowboys can do on their own. The Cowboys should be very confident right now, and the Eagles should not be.
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