One thing that always struck me about McMurray last year was that he hit the pot of gold with sponsorship. His Cup ride then (and still is) sponsored by Crown Royal; at the time, he wasn’t driving a Roush car in the Busch series and his sponsor then was Top Flite golf balls. I told him I figured he had a lot of friends, given his ties to those two companies.

I don’t have the exact quote handy, but basically he said it was a pretty cool deal. He had plenty of golf balls then, but wasn’t looking forward to this year, when the supply would inevitably dwindle. But no matter what, those are some killer sponsorship deals.

Recalling that interview got me thinking: If I was a driver, what sponsor would I most want to have? I guess you could argue that any sponsor would do, so long as they paid the bills and helped give you a competitive race team. Sure, that’s the diplomatic way, but I’m talking about how beneficial the free products would be. Less diplomatic, but more fun.

So let’s take a look at the top 20 in points and grade them on the coolness and usefulness of their sponsorship packages (standings courtesy of Yahoo, sponsors courtesy of Jayski):

1. Jeff Gordon. Sponsors: DuPont Automotive Finishes (primary); Pepsi, Quaker State, SDRC, AC Delco, Rain-X, Haas, GMAC, Delphi, Lowe’s, Nicorette, Georgia Pacific (associate). Gordon will never have to worry about his personal car; the finish will always be nice, bad weather won’t bother him, parts and oil changes are no problem, and he’s always got something in the cup holder. I know for some people keeping their car looking great is a hobby, but it’s more like a chore for me. Grade: C-.

2. Jeff Burton. Sponsors: Cinguar (primary); SKF, Prilosec, Shell, Lenox Industrial Tools (associate). Well, free cell phones aren’t really a bad thing and it’s always hard to turn down free gas. But this isn’t my cup of tea. Grade: D.

3. Matt Kenseth. Sponsors: DeWalt Tools (primary); R&L Carriers, Carhartt, USG, Lexan, Arby’s (associate). If Kenseth and wife Katie want to move into a fixer-upper, they’d be all set — all the tools and work clothes they’d need, and someone else to handle the furniture. Not too bad. Grade: B.

4. Jimmie Johnson. Sponsors: Lowe’s (primary); Quaker State (associate). Well, a little bare, but any time you’ve got a store as your sponsor, that’s not a bad thing. I’m sure Johnson has tools he can’t even pronounce. Grade: C+.

5. Denny Hamlin. Sponsor: FedEx (primary). I’m sure Denny’s a lot more charitable around Christmastime for those far-off relatives. Plus there’s free Redskins tickets, though I’m sure his teammates get those too. Grade: C.

6. Clint Bowyer. Sponsors: Jack Daniel’s (primary); SKF, DirecTV, Sylvania, Shell (associate). The clubhouse leader: Electronics and a little something to enjoy while you’re employing those electronics. Oh, and free gas too. Grade: A.

7. Kyle Busch. Sponsors: Kellogg’s, Carquest (primaries); Quaker State, GMAC (associate). For me personally, this would be the primo sponsorship. I’ve eaten more (OK, a lot more) than my fair share of cereal throughout my lifetime. But I recognize that it doesn’t hold the same appeal for him that it does for me. Grade: B+.

8. Carl Edwards. Sponsors: Office Depot (primary). This isn’t as bad as it may seem on the surface. There’s a lot of random cool things at Office Depot and Staples and places like that; things you may or may not ever use around the house (hole punchers, paper shredders, ink cartridges, etc.) but are nice to have. Grade: B.

9. Tony Stewart. Sponsors: Home Depot (primary); Coca-Cola, Old Spice, Doosan Infracore, Wix (associate). In the same boat as Johnson, though Stewart can always smell nice, too. He trumps Johnson with access to heavy construction equipment, however (Doosan is the former Daewoo). Grade: B-.

10. Jamie McMurray. Sponsors: Crown Royal (primary); Irwin Tools, Dish Network, Sharp Aquos, 3M Vikuiti (associate). A challenger to Bowyer with products in the same categories. It’s hard to pass up free gas though, especially with the summer driving season coming up quickly, so Bowyer retains his lead. Grade: A-.

11. Mark Martin. Sponsors: U.S. Army (primary); Wiley X, Centrex Financial, Coca-Cola (associate). How do you grade this? It’s a lot easier to evaluate what product I’d rather use, but this is a lot harder to quantify. But in the spirit of thanks to all those who serve our country, I’m sure Martin and Regan Smith are truly honored to be able to represent them, which may be the best benefit of all. Grade: A.

12. David Stremme. Sponsors: Coors Light (primary); Tums, Energizer, Discount Tires, Fugi-Film, Snap On, STP, Kleenex, Cheerios, Gillette, Microsoft, Dell, EMC, Syntel, Avaya (associate). You could almost live off of Stremme’s sponsors; lots of good stuff. I’m not a Coors Light guy, but I appreciate the sentiment. Grade: B+.

13. Juan Pablo Montoya. Sponsors: Texaco/Havoline (primary); Big Red, Microsoft, Dell, EMC, Syntel, Avaya (associate). The computing equipment is still cool, but not as cool as Stremme’s assortment. Grade: C.

14. Kevin Harvick. Sponsors: Shell/Pennzoil (primary); Hershey Foods, GM Goodwrench, Realtree, Snap On, Bass Pro Shops, Coca-Cola, SKF, Emerson, RoadLoans, Rheem (associate). Excellent variety, almost enough to sustain a person (though, admittedly, the diet wouldn’t be very healthy). The variety is great, certainly. Grade: B.

15. Kurt Busch. Sponsors: Miller Lite (primary); Mobil 1, Bosch, Kodak, Jasper, Lennox, Mazak, NewPage, PPG, Snap-On, Bombardier Aerospace, Sirius Satellite Radio (associate). Another great variety — beer, gas, electronics — but one thing to consider: Bombardier makes Learjets. Ladies and gentlemen, your new leader. Grade: A.

16. Elliott Sadler. Sponsors: Dodge Dealers (primary); UAW, Stihl, Valvoline, Siemens, Stanley Tools (associate). Another good variety for the DIY set; and even a nice truck to haul everything in. Grade: C+.

17. Greg Biffle. Sponsors: Ameriquest (primary); 3M, Dish Network, Subway (associate). Excellent variety for only four sponsors, but — on a serious note — Ameriquest’s stability is a concern. Grade: C.

18. Dale Earnhardt Jr. Sponsors: Budweiser (primary); Outlaw, Snap On, Ritz’s, Menards, Wrangler (associate). Very low-key and laid back: something to drink, something to snack on, something to wear. Very cool. Grade: B+.

19. Martin Truex Jr. Sponsors: Bass Pro Shops (primary). Hey, if you’re an outdoorsman, this is it for you. Whenever my wife and I drive back to Pennsylvania, we pass by a BPS in Harrisburg and a Cabela’s megastore near Hamburg. We’ll have to check them out one of these days. Grade: B.

20. Ryan Newman. Sponsors: Alltel (primary); Sony, Bosch, Mazak, PPG, Snap-On, Goodyear, Bombardier Aerospace, Freightliner, Gillette (associate). Could Newman pass his teammate? I guess it comes down to whether you want beer or an 18-wheeler. That’s a tough choice. Grade: A.

So there you have it. Teammates Newman and Busch neck and neck at the finish line (Newman wins, I say) with Martin a close third, McMurray fourth and Newman fifth.

• I HOPE THIS BROUGHT A CHUCKLE for you guys. It’s been a pretty tough week around here and for a lot of us, I’m sure. Hopefully everyone at Tech can start to get back to some bit of normalcy today and over the weekend; it’s not going to be easy, though.

The whole thing had me pretty down the whole week, if only because I didn’t realize how many connections to Blacksburg I had. I felt for the victims’ families, the shooter’s family, all of the kids there and my alumni friends, whose idyllic memory of campus is shattered. I grieve for them.

I proudly wore a maroon shirt today and a Tech football hat I bought on my first trip to Blacksburg a few years ago.

Stay strong, Hokies.