TEXANS-PANTHERS
Newton leads Panthers over Texans 24-17
CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) β Cam Newton threw two touchdown passes and somersaulted into the end zone for another score to lead the Carolina Panthers to a 24-17 victory over the Houston Texans on Sunday.
Newton was 18 of 37 for 195 yards and ran for 77 yards on nine carries.
The fifth-year quarterback provided the highlight of the day when he raced up the middle on a draw play and tumbled over defensive back Rahim Moore β nearly sticking the landing β for a 3-yard TD that put Carolina ahead 17-10 late in the third quarter.
Newton also threw TD passes of 25 yards to Ted Ginn Jr. and 36 yards to Philly Brown for Carolina (2-0).
Ryan Mallett, starting in place of Brian Hoyer, threw for 244 yards and a touchdown and ran for a 6-yard TD for the Texans (0-2). Hoyer was benched after committing two turnovers in a Week 1 loss to Kansas City.
S CAROLINA-KNOTT
Center Alan Knott out several weeks for Gamecocks
COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP) β South Carolina center Alan Knott is expected to miss several weeks after spraining his ankle during a loss to No. 7 Georgia.
Coach Steve Spurrier said Sunday that because of the high left ankle sprain freshman Zack Bailey will start when South Carolina (1-2) plays Central Florida (0-3) on Saturday.
Knott is a third-year sophomore who started eight games last season. He started the first three games this year before getting hurt. Knott’s loss means the quarterback-center combo that South Carolina had entering the year are sidelined for extended periods.
Quarterback Connor Mitch separated his shoulder Sept. 12 against Kentucky. He’s also dealt with an internal infection brought on by a hip bruise. Spurrier said Mitch is still weeks from returning.
NHRA
Brown wins first Top Fuel final between black racers
CONCORD, N.C. (AP) β Antron Brown won the first Top Fuel final between black racers in NHRA history Sunday, beating J.R. Todd in the playoff-opening Carolina Nationals.
Brown raced to his fifth victory of the season, 36th overall in Top Fuel, and took over the points lead in his bid for a second season championship.
Brown left the starting line first at zMAX Dragway and sped to 3.832-second run at 311.56 mph. Todd trailed with a 4.063 at 286.32.
In Pro Stock, Erica Enders raced to her third consecutive victory, seventh of the season and 19th overall to pass Shirley Muldowney on NHRA’s career victory list. Enders also tied Angelle Sampey’s record for victories by a female racer in a season.
Enders beat Vicent Noble with a 6.581 at 210.97 in a Chevy Camaro.
Del Worsham won in Funny Car, and Andrew Hines topped the Pro Stock Motorcycle field in the first of six playoff races in the Countdown to the Championship.
Worsham raced to his first victory of the season and 27th overall, topping Tommy Johnson Jr. with a 4.086 at 307.16 in a Toyota Camry. Hines beat Matt Smith with a 6.880 at 195.11 on a Harley-Davidson for his 40th career victory.
NASCAR-CHICAGO
Hamlin rallies to earn victory in opening round of playoffs
JOLIET, Ill. (AP) β Denny Hamlin gave Joe Gibbs Racing a victory in the opening round of NASCAR’s playoffs by rallying from a disastrous start at Chicagoland Speedway.
Hamlin spun on the second lap Sunday and immediately fell a lap off the pace. He and his JGR team didn’t panic, then used a gutsy call not to pit during the final caution to give Hamlin a shot at the victory.
He jumped from third to first on the restart with five laps remaining, and has now earned an automatic spot in the second round of the Chase for the Sprint Cup championship.
In far worse position is reigning Sprint Cup champion Kevin Harvick, who hit the wall during the race and finished 42nd. He’s now ranked last in the 16-driver field.
NASCAR-HARVICK CRASH
Harvick crashes in opening race of NASCAR’s playoffs
JOLIET, Ill. (AP) β NASCAR champion Kevin Harvick has crashed in the opening race of the Chase for the Sprint Cup championship.
The defense of his title hit a snag on a restart with 132 laps remaining Sunday at Chicagoland Speedway. Jimmie Johnson made contact with Harvick on the restart and it created a tire rub on Harvick’s Chevrolet.
Harvick drove for two laps with the sheet metal rubbing against his left rear tire, and he wiggled the car in an apparent attempt to correct the issue.
Instead, after he thought the problem was fixed, the left rear tire blew and Harvick’s car shot into the wall.
He limped the damaged Stewart-Haas Racing car to the garage, where he climbed from the cockpit as the No. 4 team began extensive repairs.
WEBCOM TOUR FINALS
Chez Reavie wins Web.com Tour Finals event
DAVIDSON, N.C. (AP) β Chez Reavie won the Web.com Tour Finals’ Small Business Connection Championship by a stroke Sunday to regain his PGA Tour card.
Reavie, the 2008 Canadian Open winner, made a 6-foot birdie putt on the par-5 18th for a 6-under 66 and 15-under 273 total at River Run. The 33-year-old former Arizona State player earned $180,000 to push his series total to $203,000 and lock up a PGA Tour card. He tied for 10th last week in Indiana in the finals opener after finishing 166th in the PGA Tour’s FedEx Cup standings.
Jamie Lovemark, Steve Marino and Emiliano Grillo tied for second. Lovemark closed with a 67, Marino shot 68, and Grillo 72. They each earned $74,667.
The tournament was the second in the four-event series that features the top 75 players from the Web.com Tour money list, Nos. 126-200 in the PGA Tour’s FedEx Cup standings and non-members such as Grillo who earned enough money to have placed in the top 200 had they been eligible to receive points.
The top 25 players on Web.com regular-season money list β Lovemark was 12th, and Marino 19th β earned PGA Tour cards. They are competing against each other for tour priority, with regular-season earnings counting. The other players are fighting for another 25 cards based on series earnings. Lovemark jumped to No. 5 on the combined money list, and Marino moved to No. 8.
