THE BIG SPORTS WEEKEND

Saturday, August 12, FOOTBALL: New Orleans at Tennessee

This game marks the pro debuts of Saints RB Reggie Bush and Titans QB Vince Young. Bush won the 2005 Heisman beating out 2nd place Vince Young. Young won the 2005 National Championship by beating Reggie Bush's USC. Bush was drafted #2 overall. Young went #3. It seems the fate of these two stars may remain intertwined. It's too bad the Saints and Titans don't play more often. Maybe they can have a rematch in the 2010 Super Bowl or something. I'm not as high on Young as most pro scouts. He has to convince me that he can also win games as a pocket passer. However, I am very high on Bush and expect him to emerge as a Marshall Faulk type offensive force. My pick: New Orleans. I actually think the Saints will have a decent year led by new QB Drew Brees and Coach Sean Payton.

Sunday, August 13, NASCAR: AMD at the Glen

This weekend NASCAR's Nextel Cup Series races its 2nd anf final road course of the 2006 season. I'm not a typical Nascar fan in that I actually prefer that form of racing that involves both left AND right turns. Road courses are always fun because you must slowly move through the field. It's not like Daytona or Talladega where you can go from 30th to 1st place in a few laps. Instead, you must work for track position by careful breaking, keeping a steady line on the track, and looking for opportunities to pass. I remember my favorite driver Mark Martin dominating this race in the mid-to-late 1990s. I'd love to see him win one more for the road. My pick: Robbie Gordon. The former CART competitor is one of Nascar's road racing specialists. It would be great to see an owner-operator celebrate a win on Victory Lane once again.

There are many things that I miss with NASCAR no longer sponsored by Winston cigarettes. Topping that list is the annual awarding of "Miss Winston" and also the presence of the "Winston Girls" around the track. Here's my all-time favorite, 2002 Miss Winston Cielo Garcia.