NASCAR | Best 50 racers from the 50 states, Part 9; is that Coo Coo's boy checking in?

Editor's Note: This is the ninth of a 10-part series listing the best all-time NASCAR racer from each of the 50 United States.

Looking ahead a few days, some tough decisions have to be made in states like Virginia, Wisconsin and Washington.

But today's five-pack of states, book-ended by NASCAR deserts South Dakota and Vermont, offered relatively easy decisions on who carries the respective state flags.

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And, better yet, it gives us a chance to reunite with ol' Sterlin' — Sterling Marlin, who may have indeed been NASCAR's last proverbial good ol' boy.

Sterling, the pride of Central Tennessee, has never been a complicated man. He's always drawn most of his joy from one of three things: Clearing farm land with his tractor, setting his feet in the sand of some Caribbean beach, and driving fast hot-rods.

Everyone remembers the post-race celebration after the 1998 Daytona 500, when Dale Earnhardt finally won the Great American Race and was greeted by a long line of crew members, from opposing race teams, slapping his hand as he cruised slowly through the pit lane.

Four years prior to that, Sterling Marlin got the same rare greeting. Such was the popularity of the victory, and popularity of this second-generation racer, son of Coo Coo, at age 36, finally getting his first career Cup victory on the sport's biggest stage.

Afterward, Sterling was asked about his small Tennessee hometown, Columbia, and what the folks back home might be thinking about his momentous breakthrough, and what kind of welcoming committee may await him.

He chuckled, scratched his head, and said, "It'll probably be bigger than Mule Day."

Some time later, he was prodded to retell a story of the time he and Coo Coo accidentally set a cow on fire.

That's our boy.

South Dakota: Leo Ray (Rapid City)

Why Leo: He never finished outside the top 10 in his NASCAR career. Yes, he started just one race, a 200-lapper at Rapid City Speedway in 1953, and finished eighth. Fellow South Dakotan Bob Laswell finished 14th in the 15-car field. Herb Thomas won.

Others from South Dakota: Bob Laswell, Doug Wolfgang.

Fun fact: Doug Wolfgang wasn’t actually a NASCAR racer, but he was hell on wheels in sprint cars, finishing with 140 career wins in the World of Outlaws and was a five-time winner of the Knoxville Nationals.

Tennessee: Sterling Marlin (Columbia)

Why Sterling: His 10 career Cup wins includes back-to-back Daytona 500s (1994-95), which were the first two victories of his 33-year career. Had two third-place championship finishes.

Others from Tennessee: Bobby Hamilton, Bobby Hamilton Jr., Coo Coo Marlin, Trevor Bayne, Jeff Purvis.

Fun fact: Sterling’s dad, Coo Coo, spent a lot of time in the top 10 but never won a Cup race in 165 starts between 1966-80. He did win a 125-mile qualifier at Daytona in 1973. It was a combined 443 Cup Series starts without a win for the Marlins before Sterling won his first Daytona 500.

Texas: Terry Labonte (Corpus Christi)

Why Terry: While he never gathered wins in bunches (he finished with 22), he was rarely outside the lead pack. His two Cup championships came 12 years apart, in 1984 and ’96.

Others from Texas: Bobby Labonte, A.J. Foyt, David Starr, Billy Wade, Chris Buescher, James Buescher, H.B. Bailey, Walter Ballard, Brennan Poole, Eddie Bierschwale, Shorty Rollins, Bobby Hillin.

Fun fact: During A.J. Foyt’s long prime, the Indy-car legend never ran more than seven Cup races a year. His seven wins came between 1964-72 and include three Daytona victories — two Firecracker 400s and the 1972 Daytona 500. If we counted Super Tex's dominant career in USAC’s old stock-car series, his three titles and 41 victories would make him the Lone Star representative.

Utah: Michael Self (Park City)

Why Michael: After seven fruitless Xfinity Series races in 2014, Self moved to ARCA and found his calling — nine wins in 59 starts between 2017-20, with back-to-back runner-up finishes for the championship in ’19 and ’20.

Others from Utah: Eric Rhead, Madison Snow.

Fun fact: Michael Self is one just four racers to win a stock-car race on Daytona’s famed trioval as well as its road course. The others: Chase Elliott, Austin Cindric and Ben Rhodes.

Vermont: Kevin Lepage (Shelburne)

Why Kevin: From the late-’90s to the mid-teens, Lepage had a combined 551 starts in the Cup and Xfinity Series. His two career NASCAR wins came in Xfinity. Seven of his nine Cup Series top-10s came while driving for Jack Roush from 1998-2000.

Others from Vermont: Jamie Aube, Tim Viens.

Fun fact: Vermont’s most accomplished racer competed in short bursts. Trailblazing drag-racer Shirley “Cha Cha” Muldowney, of Burlington, won three NHRA Top Fuel championships while speeding her way into most of the non-NASCAR Halls of Fame.

Previously, Alabama through South Carolina

Alabama: Bobby Allison, Alaska: Keith McGee, Arizona: Alex Bowman, Arkansas: Mark Martin, California: Jimmie Johnson

Colorado: Wally Dallenbach Jr., Connecticut: Joey Logano, Delaware: CJ Faison, Florida: Fireball Roberts, Georgia: Bill Elliott

Hawaii: Will Rodgers; Idaho: Brian Scott; Illinois: Fred Lorenzen; Indiana: Tony Stewart; Iowa: Dick Hutcherson

Kansas: Clint Bowyer; Kentucky: Darrell Waltrip; Louisiana: Skip Manning; Maine: Ricky Craven; Maryland: Timmy Hill

Massachusetts: Ralph Moody; Michigan: Brad Keselowski; Minnesota: William Sawalich; Mississippi: Ricky Stenhouse; Missouri: Rusty Wallace.

Montana: Tony Raines; Nebraska: Bob Burdick; Nevada: Kyle Busch; New Hampshire: Dale Shaw; New Jersey: Martin Truex Jr.

New Mexico: Tanner Gray; New York: Geoff Bodine; North Carolina: Richard Petty; North Dakota: Donny Schatz; Ohio: Ryan Blaney

Oklahoma: Christopher Bell; Oregon: Herschel McGriff; Pennsylvania: Jimmy Spencer; Rhode Island: Rob Rizzo; South Carolina: David Pearson.

Up next, Virginia through Wyoming

In our final installment, two distinctly different personalities — Little Joe Weatherly and Mild Matt Kenseth — attempt to hold off a Who's Who of racing greats and represent their respective states, Virginia and Wisconsin.

— Reach Ken Willis at ken.willis@news-jrnl.com

This article originally appeared on The Daytona Beach News-Journal: NASCAR List, state by state: The last good ol' boy reps Tennessee