AFP Podcasts

#12 UVA set for Charlottesville Regional

Virginia has been able to work around its dearth of pitching with a historic offense. But will the ‘Hoos translate what they’ve been able to do in the 2024 regular season to the NCAA Tournament?

AFP editor Chris Graham talks us through the four-team Charlottesville Regional field – which includes Mississippi State, St. John’s and Penn – and guesses along with coach Brian O’Connor as to how the coach will use what he has with his pitching staff to get through the weekend.

Stories referenced in this podcast

• Preview: Virginia, the #12 national seed, hosts Penn, Mississippi State and St. John’s
• How will UVA coach Brian O’Connor set up his starting rotation for the regional?

Stewart-Haas Racing is getting out of the NASCAR business

Stewart-Haas Racing is getting out of the NASCAR business at the end of the year, putting its four charters out on the market, and adding to the questions about the sustained viability of the NASCAR race team business.

Rod Mullins joins the podcast to help us break down the Stewart-Haas story, and we review the rainy Sunday that ruined the attempt at history from Kyle Larson, who was trying to complete the Indy 500-Coca Cola 600 double.

Logano wins, but all the talk was about the fight

Joey Logano won a snoozer of a NASCAR Cup Series All-Star Race Sunday night at North Wilkesboro, in which he led 199 of the 200 laps, but while the race itself was nothing to write home about, well …

There was the dustup between Ricky Stenhouse Jr. and Kyle Busch after their Lap 1 swapping-of-paint that gave us something to talk about.

Rod Mullins joins the show to break it all down, and to share his insight into the attempt by Kyle Larson at the Indy 500-Coca Cola 600 double this coming weekend.

NASCAR set to begin March Madness-style tournament in 2025

NASCAR has announced plans for an in-season tournament modeled on the NCAA's March Madness to begin in 2025.

Will it work to build even more interest among NASCAR fans?

Rod Mullins joins the show to break down the bracket madness, and discuss Brad Keselowski's win in Darlington on Sunday.

How does the UVA Basketball roster look now?

The UVA Basketball roster looks to be set for the coming 2024-2025 season with four additions from the transfer portal.

How are things looking, then, for next season?

Pretty good, is the answer from AFP editor Chris Graham, who is not prone to just being nice for the sake of being nice.

Story referenced in this podcast:

• UVA gets its guys from the transfer portal: How does the roster look for 2024-2025?

UVA Basketball grabs four from the transfer portal

Virginia coach Tony Bennett has been busy, adding four players from the transfer portal, including former Duke player and 2023 five-star TJ Power.

AFP editor Chris Graham breaks down the pickups.

Stories referenced in this podcast:

• Virginia lands Duke five-star TJ Power: How does Power fit with the ‘Hoos?
• Bennett lands another big man, San Diego State’s Elijah Saunders, off the portal
• Would you believe, more UVA Basketball transfer portal news? Welcome, Carter Lang
• Bennett lands first 2024 transfer portal recruit: Florida State combo guard Jalen Warley

Will we get a full NASCAR Cup Series season?

We just had the closest finish to a NASCAR Cup Series race in history - literally an inch separating Kyle Larson and Chris Buescher in Kansas on Sunday.

But there's tension behind the scenes in NASCAR-land, with the private owners of the racing series and the owners of the race teams who want to share more in the TV money at odds over how they can move forward.

Rod Mullins and Chris Graham break down the business issues, and the exciting finish to Sunday's race.

Denny Hamlin makes good on his called shot

Denny Hamlin called his shot last week on his podcast, telling listeners that he was going to take the checkered flag at Dover.

Then, Hamlin, the Virginia native, went out and did it.

AFP’s resident NASCAR Cup Series writer, Rod Mullins, joins the show to break down Hamlin’s win, Kyle Larson’s second-place finish, the big wreck 72 laps from the finish that took out, among others, Bubba Wallace, and the rest of what on last weekend in Delaware.

A pair of wild finishes at Talladega

Tyler Reddick emerged at the head of the pack in a wild finish in Sunday’s NASCAR Cup Series race at Talladega.

Reddick, who drives for 23XI Racing, celebrated the win with team co-owner Michael Jordan – yes, that Michael Jordan.

Reddick crossed the finish as literally all heck broke loose behind him.

AFP’s resident NASCAR writer, Rod Mullins, takes us through how it all went down on Sunday, and recaps Saturday’s exciting Xfinity Series race, which was won by 19-year-old rookie Jesse Love.

Ken Mitchell is the kind of Democrat who can win in our part of Virginia

Ken Mitchell, the Democrat challenging Trump Republican Ben Cline for the Sixth District seat in Congress, isn’t going to get a writeup in Blue Virginia.

Ben Tribbett isn’t going to tweet about his campaign.

Richmond and Northern Virginia Democrats are going to ignore him, like the ignore everybody else with a D beside their name west of the Route 29 corridor.

Which is a shame.

Because Ken Mitchell is the kind of Democrat who actually has a Tom Perriello ‘08 longshot chance of winning in November.