Guy Fieri to Drive Pace Car at Indianapolis 500

At times, the Indianapolis Motor Speedway has been treated like a drive-in (you can still park in the infield) and a dive (see: Snake Pit), so perhaps it is appropriate that the host of "Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives," Guy Fieri, will drive the 2013 Chevrolet Corvette ZR1 pace car for the 96th running of the Indianapolis 500 on May 27.

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by Bill Potter • May 15, 2012 10:24 AM EDT

NFP: Colts Building Around Andrew Luck, Passing Game

From Greg Gabriel at National Football Post:

There has been much written about Andrew Luck. I feel he is the best quarterback prospect I have seen since Peyton Manning. He has many of the same intangibles that Manning possesses such as work ethic and passion for the game. It won’t be long before the league sees how good this player can be. Second pick Coby Fleener is another in the line of "new breed" tight ends. They are not really tight ends because they seldom line up as inline blockers. They are usually flexed out or in motion. Fleener is perfect for this role with his speed and athleticism and of course he has already played with Luck. Dwayne Allen is different than Fleener in that he is a more traditional tight end. He got a bum rap from some draftniks who said he wasn’t a strong blocker. Wrong! All they had to do was go back and look at 2010 tape when Clemson ran a different offense and they could see what kind of blocker Allen really is. T.Y. Hilton is a very fast slot receiver who doubles as a more than adequate return specialist. Going to a 3-4 defense, the Colts had to find a traditional nose tackle. They found their guy in Josh Chapman from Alabama. He should do a good job anchoring the middle. Vick Ballard doesn’t have any special trait but he is a tough and consistent inside runner. He won’t be the bell cow type but should be excellent in a rotation.

In case you don't know Gabriel's background, he's a former scout for the Buffalo Bills and New York Giants, and was (at one time) Director of College Scouting for the Chicago Bears.

The Colts drafted eight players on offense with ten picks in 2012, including two quarterbacks, two wide receivers, and the two tight ends mentioned above. That's a not-so-subtle hint that they plan to build their "new era" around Andrew Luck, Coby Fleener, Dwayne Allen, and the passing game.

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by Brad Wells • May 14, 2012 10:51 AM EDT

Chevrolet Appeal of Honda's Turbocharger Denied

As the engine competition in the IZOD IndyCar Series escalates, Honda picked up a key ruling in its quest to improve engine performance, as Chevrolet's appeal of INDYCAR's decision to allow a revamped turbocharger for Honda.

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by Bill Potter • May 11, 2012 2:43 PM EDT

Big Ten Continues It Basketball Attendance Dominance

The Big Ten is known for its rabid fans, especially since the once mocked Big ten network is now the gold standard for how to market collegiate athletic programs. It is no surprise then that the conference once again led the nation in attendance for men's basketball. According to an official release earlier today, the Big Ten has led the nation for 36 years running:

The Big Ten led the nation in men's basketball attendance for the 36th consecutive season according to figures recently released by the NCAA. The Big Ten led all conferences with an average attendance of 12,868, which is more than 1,300 higher than the next-closest conference.

During the 2011-12 regular season, the Big Ten welcomed 2,856,785 fans over 222 games, which marks the conference's all-time total attendance record and is the 20th straight year the conference eclipsed the two-million mark.

Six conference schools ranked in the top 25 in average attendance, while no other conference had more than four top-25 programs. Wisconsin led the Big Ten and ranked fifth nationally with an average of 17,181 fans per game. Ohio State (16,511) and Indiana (16,462) ranked eighth and ninth, respectively, followed by No. 14 Illinois (14,986), No. 15 Michigan State (14,797) and No. 21 Purdue (13,324). The Buckeyes and Hoosiers also posted two of the largest increases from the previous season.

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by Travis Miller • May 11, 2012 2:22 PM EDT