No. 6 to No. 15, is still without All-American senior star Nikki

CHASKA, Minn. -- Dustin Johnson made an exception to his rule of never watching golf on television, only because it was the Ryder Cup.That was the only thing I missed, Johnson said.The best player this week at Hazeltine, he was nowhere to be found two years ago at Gleneagles.Amid a published report that Johnson twice tested positive for drugs, he took a six-month break from golf to seek help for what he described as personal challenges. That caused him to miss the PGA Championship, the entire FedEx Cup playoffs and the Ryder Cup.That now seems like a long time ago.Johnson is No. 2 in the world, with a chance to reach the top by the end of the year. He is the U.S. Open champion, and perhaps the most feared player in golf because of his combination of power off the tee and precision with his wedges.He has gone from a low point in his career to being a dominant player that his power and talent suggested he should be.Ive had a lot of (stuff) happen to me, Johnson said in an interview last summer. But I come out better on the other side.Now he takes his place as the leader of an American team desperate to win the Ryder Cup.Phil Mickelson has the most experience, playing in his 11th consecutive Ryder Cup and qualifying for every one of those teams. Davis Love III is the U.S. captain for the second time, popular with the players. Tiger Woods surely will bring a presence to the team room and on the golf course as an assistant captain.Johnson, however, is the thoroughbred.That puts him in the best position to set the tone for these matches for his U.S. team. Because its not about speeches in the team room. Its not about pumping fists or any other public displays of excitement. Its about points.The best way to be a leader is to win your match, Johnny Miller said over the weekend.Thats one area where the Americans have been lacking during their most recent losing streak to Europe. The top qualifiers for the U.S. team in the last three Ryder Cups have combined to win a total of one match.Bubba Watson went 0-3 at Gleneagles. Woods was 0-3-1 at Medinah in 2012, not contributing a point until he halved with Francesco Molinari in singles. Mickelson was the top qualifier in 2010. He went 1/3 at Celtic Manor, not winning a match until he beat Peter Hanson in singles.Johnsons last meaningful round of golf going into Friday was forgettable.He was tied for the 54-hole lead with Kevin Chappell at the Tour Championship when he missed a couple of tee shots on the front nine that led to bogey, fell a few shots behind and never could get caught up. The end was a three-putt from 4 feet above the hole for double bogey, and he closed with a 73.No matter. He still is a lock to win PGA Tour player of the year. Johnsons three victories were a major (U.S. Open), World Golf Championship (Bridgestone Invitational) and FedEx Cup playoff event (BMW Championship). He had 14 finishes in the top 10, a rate of 67 percent. He won the PGA Tour money title at just over $9.3 million. He won the Vardon Trophy for lowest adjusted scoring average.He didnt have many bad weeks.How will he respond as the top player for the American team? Johnson is not one to let anything clutter his thinking, assuming there are many thoughts going through his head at all. He sees the shot and hits it. He makes the game simple.What he brings to the table is his game, Mickelson said. He just needs to keep playing the way hes playing. Shoot low numbers and hes going to get us a lot of points.It didnt work out that way at Gleneagles when Johnson made his Ryder Cup debut with Mickelson at his side. They lost two matches, both ending on the 16th green. Johnson went 3-0 at Medinah, playing twice with Matt Kuchar. He also formed a strong pairing with Jordan Spieth at the Presidents Cup last year in South Korea, a combination of the best driver and the best putter.He thinks simply, which helps in his golf game, Spieth said. He just has a lot of confidence in what hes doing. Bad stuff doesnt seem to bother him. You couldnt even get under his skin. D.J. will laugh it off.Johnson has never been this confident. He has never looked this relaxed.Then again, the Ryder Cup has a strange way of bringing out the worst in the Americans. Wholesale Rockies Jerseys . Coach Tom Thibodeau says the former MVP will probably start travelling with the team in the next few weeks. 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STARKVILLE, Miss. -- Nick Fitzgerald tied a Mississippi State record with seven total touchdowns and led the Bulldogs to a 56-41 win over Samford on Saturday.The win snapped Mississippi States three-game losing streak and the Bulldogs (3-5) had 669 yards of total offense.Fitzgerald was 20 of 35 for 417 yards, five touchdowns and two interceptions. He also rushed for 117 yards and two more touchdowns. Fitzgerald became just the third quarterback in SEC history to pass for at least 400 yards and rush for at least 100 yards in a game. He joined the company of former Ole Miss standout Archie Manning and former Texas A&M quarterback Johnny Manziel.It is great to get a win and I know our guys were fired up downstairs to get a win, said Mississippi State head coach Dan Mullen. I dont know another team in the country more appreciative of getting a win, especially with the way we have lost three games. So I am really happy for our guys. We got a lot of things to improve on but a lot of guys made great plays out there today.Donald Gray caught three of Fitzgeralds touchdown passes and totaled a career-high 207 yards receiving. Fred Ross had nine catches for 107 yards and one touchdown for Mississippi State.Devlin Hodges set career highs with 42 completions, 69 attempts and 468 yards passing for Samford (6-2). He had four TD passes and three interceptions.I am disappointed with certain things on defense, added Mullen. We had way too many missed tackles on the back end. We knew they had a high-tempo offense but I am really happy to see some younger guys starting to make big plaays on defense.ddddddddddddThat really picks up the spirit of the team.Mississippi State led 28-20 at halftime and managed to put the game away late in the third quarter. Senior linebacker DeAndre Ward returned his first career interception 35 yards for a touchdown, giving Mississippi State a 49-26 advantage with 2:48 left in the third quarter.Samford ran 104 total plays and also rushed for 159 yards. Krondis Larry led the ground game with nine carries for 101 yards while Hodges added 45 yards rushing.We ran out of gas a couple of times, said Samford head coach Chris Hatcher. We overcame a big third-quarter deficit and gave ourselves a chance to win in the end. So if there are moral victories we had one today.Karel Hamilton had 14 catches for 213 yards and two touchdowns. Kelvin McKnight added 13 catches for 115 yards and one touchdown for Samford.THE TAKEAWAYSamford: The visiting Bulldogs got another huge game from Hodges. The sophomore went over 400 yards for the third time in four games and increased his season passing totals to 2913 yards and 28 TDs.Mississippi State: The defense was down four starters and continued its downward spiral this season, surrendering a season-high 627 yards against Division 1-AA Samford.UP NEXTSamford: The Bulldogs return to Southern Conference play next Saturday and travel to conference leader The Citadel.Mississippi State: The Bulldogs wrap up a brief two-game home stand and host Texas A&M next Saturday. ' ' '