Author: David Shama

David Shama is a former sports editor and columnist with local publications. His writing and reporting experiences include covering the Minnesota Vikings, Minnesota Twins, Minnesota Timberwolves and Minnesota Gophers. Shama’s career experiences also include sports marketing. He is the former Marketing Director of the Minnesota North Stars of the NHL. He is also the former Marketing Director of the United States Tennis Association’s Northern Section. A native of Minneapolis, Shama has been part of the community his entire life. He is a graduate of the University of Minnesota where he majored in journalism. He also has a Master’s degree in education from the University of St. Thomas. He was a member of the Governor’s NBA’s Task Force to help create interest in bringing pro basketball to town in the 1980s.

U Treads Water in Football Ticket Sales

Posted on August 21, 2022 by David Shama

The University of Minnesota athletic department is flat-lining in the sale of season tickets for 2022 home football games and it appears average attendance could be less than last year’s figure of 46,140.

Through a public records request by Sports Headliners, the U disclosed ticket totals from 2022 and 2021. As of a week ago last Friday, 23,443 public season tickets had been sold, compared with a final total of 24,794 in 2021. The respective number of accounts for these tickets: 7,138 and 7,541.

The U reported 5,549 student season tickets sold so far for 2022. The final total last year was 7,396.

While totals for both public and student season tickets will increase in the immediate days ahead, the sales window is closing fast with the first home game of the year less than two weeks out. The U reported no increase in the price of season tickets from 2021 and said a common explanation for discontinuing tickets was a change “in life circumstances or life event.”

Single game tickets have been on sale since July. The U predicted home games with Purdue and Iowa “are expected to sell out or come very close thereto.”

Average attendance will likely be similar and perhaps less than a year ago when the Gophers had a more attractive home schedule facing Ohio State, Nebraska and Wisconsin. The Ohio State game was the lone sellout at 50,805 seat Huntington Bank Stadium. Interestingly, average home attendance of 46,140 last year was almost identical to the 46,190 average in 2019.

What to make of the ticket buying habits for Gophers football games? On the upbeat side, the Gophers are coming off a 9-4 year that included a second win in the last four seasons against border rival Wisconsin and bowl victory over West Virginia. In the last three seasons coach P.J. Fleck’s record is an impressive 23-10 and the Gophers are expected to be a dark horse in the race for a Big Ten West Division title. The U noted in its report to Sports Headliners the public and students are buying season tickets because of improvement in the team and “general optimism” about the future.

On the flip side, Minnesota hasn’t won a Big Ten title since 1967 and while the program has flirted with winning a championship in the recent past it hasn’t delivered. Nor have the Gophers established themselves as a consistent top 25 team that certainly would deliver more ticket buyers for home games.

The Gophers have plenty of company in their challenge to sell tickets. Programs in the Big Ten and throughout the country are struggling. A college football TV viewer sees sections and sections of empty seats at stadiums all over, from Syracuse to UCLA, from Miami to Northwestern. Wisconsin, a college football power for three decades, plays its home games in 80,000 seat Camp Randall where last season the average number of tickets scanned was 57,548, per a story last January from Madison.com.

Season tickets are a major commitment in money and time for fans. The Gophers offer a budget-conscious $249 ticket, with a high end tab of $1,550 to watch games from Club Cambria.

Games typically last more than three hours. Add on a 30 minute or more commute to and from the stadium, traffic and parking hassles, the cost of parking, tickets, food and beverages, and the sum is a big investment in time and money.

This is why a lot of fans opt to stay home and watch games on ultra-high-definition television. And why the Big Ten has just scored a reported $7 to $8 million media rights deal that starts in 2023 and runs through the 2029-2030 basketball season. The agreement with Fox Sports, CBS and NBC is expected to annually deliver between $80 and $100 million to each Big Ten school including Minnesota.

That payday makes up for a lot of unsold tickets at football games. TV revenue is vital to Minnesota’s financially self-supporting athletic department (U central administration has provided loans). Football is by far the largest revenue stream for the 21 sports at the U, with most of the programs operating at a deficit.

In addition to Purdue and Iowa, Minnesota has home games this year with New Mexico State, Western Illinois, Colorado, Rutgers and Northwestern. Only Iowa is nationally ranked and overall this is far from a glitzy lineup of opponents.

The New Mexico State game is the home opener on Thursday, September 1 and it features the return of former Gophers coach Jerry Kill now starting his first season leading the Aggies. The U projects attendance for the game will be 41,741. Whatever the total, it will include free tickets given to first-year U students.

Tickets start at $30 for the opener with the Aggies, while prices begin at $25 for the September 10 game versus FCS Western Illinois. The athletic department is continuing its past policy of peaks and valleys single game ticket pricing, depending on the marquee value of opponents. Purdue tickets range from $65 to $250, Iowa from $90 to $355.

The Gophers opened their home campus stadium in 2009. The honeymoon effect of the new facility resulted in a sold out stadium for every game that year, and almost for the next when the average was 49,413 in 2010.

Stadium capacity was temporarily increased with more bleacher seating in 2014 and 2015 when the Vikings played on campus. In 2015 the Gophers (under Kill) had a new stadium record single game crowd of 54,147 and season average of 52,355.

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U Game Minimal Payday for Aggies, Kill

Posted on August 9, 2022August 9, 2022 by David Shama

It won’t be a big payday for the New Mexico State football program when the Aggies play in Minneapolis September 1 against the Golden Gophers. Through a Sports Headliners discovery request to the University of Minnesota, it was learned the Aggies, under new head coach Jerry Kill, will receive a guarantee of $250,000 for the game at Huntington Bank Stadium.

Two other Minnesota 2022 nonconference opponents, Western Illinois and Colorado, will each receive guarantees of $450,000 to play in Minneapolis. Unlike the Aggies and Colorado who are FBS programs, Western Illinois is at the lower Football Championship Subdivision level.

New Mexico State will play two other Power Five programs in addition to the Gophers in 2022. The Aggies have a guarantee of $1.4 million to play at Wisconsin and $1.6 million for their game at Missouri, according to a story last January by the Las Cruces Sun News.

It’s believed the modest guarantee for New Mexico State in Minneapolis is because of an agreement made between the two schools years ago. That agreement was for the Aggies to play in Minneapolis in 2018 and 2020. Minnesota defeated the Aggies 48-10 in 2018 but the 2020 game wasn’t played and moved to this year.

Kill, the popular former Gophers coach, inherited the schedule against the three Power Five teams. It wouldn’t be surprising if after he was named Aggies coach last November he explored a possible buyout to cancel the game and replace it with a much less formidable opponent than the Big Ten Gophers.

The Aggies have been among the most hapless programs in college football for decades and finished 2-10 last season including losses to Hawaii, Nevada and UTEP. The underwhelming fan support for the football program is a key factor in why the athletic department is operating about $4 million in debt, per a story from the Las Cruces Sun News in July.

With a deficit like that the athletic department probably isn’t positioned to have cancelled the game at Minnesota if it wanted to. Football is the potential golden goose for the Aggies and the program needs an on-field and financial renaissance led by Kill who is generating increased fan interest in Las Cruces.

Kill, who rebuilt the Gophers program from 2011-2016, is being paid $550,000 in base salary. His guaranteed compensation at Minnesota seven years ago was over $2 million.

Kill is known as something of a “miracle man” for a couple of reasons. His health battles with epilepsy and cancer would long ago have derailed most mortals. As a football coach he’s known as “Mr. Fixit” for the programs he has revived. In dusty Las Cruces, and at 60 years old, he faces a very challenging “clean up” job.

Ironically, in Kill’s first home game as Minnesota coach in 2011 his heavily favored team lost to the Aggies in Minneapolis, 28-21. In the closing minutes of the game he suffered a seizure and collapsed on the sideline.

Worth Noting

Dylan Wright, the athletic 6-3 wide receiver who led the Gophers last season in average yards per catch at 20.28, has three seasons of eligibility remaining and could become a special player. Gophers coach P.J. Fleck offered an assessment Saturday noting that while Wright is athletic and explosive there are varied aspects to being a wide receiver including route running, break points and blocking. While praising Wright for his progress, Fleck also said, “I think that he’s still got a long way to go.”

Collectively the Gophers lost 181 game starts with the departure of offensive linemen from last season. This year’s crew has 35 but Fleck said the line is “longer (and) we’re probably a little bit more athletic than we’ve ever been.”

Fleck has a message for the unit: “Since January they’ve been hearing about what they can’t be, what they won’t be, what we’re missing. You know (things like) what the questions are, what the weakest links are—and I told them don’t let other people put labels on who and what you are—and they’ve answered the bell that way. We’ve got a long way to go because those 181 starts, that experience is critical—and experience on Saturdays is different than practice on a Tuesday.”

Top running backs Mo Ibrahim and Trey Potts, both of whom missed much of last season with serious injuries, were running well in practice Saturday. Fleck said the leadership of the two is “through the roof.”

Fleck won’t decide on some of his starters until days out from the New Mexico State opener. He also said that in listing names of individuals the word “or” will indicate the depth, equality and competition at positions.

The Gophers have two more practices open to the public: 7:45 p.m. Thursday at Huntington Bank Stadium and 4:15 p.m. August 15 at the Athletes Village.

NFL players vote the top 100 players each year and the 2022 list will be revealed on Sundays this month starting August 14 on NFL Network. The Vikings on last year’s list were Dalvin Cook, No. 20; Justin Jefferson, No. 53; Eric Kendricks, No. 70; and Adam Thielen, No. 80.

Tom Lehman, 63, had right knee replacement surgery a few weeks ago but when recovered he plans to resume playing on the PGA senior tour. Jim Lehman, 64, described his brother as “young at heart” and looking forward to continuing the pro golf career that began in 1982 after being an All-American for the Gophers.

Jim’s Minnetonka-based Medalist Management company represents pro golfers including Tom who in 1978 walked-on with the Gophers, initially having no scholarship offer. It’s easy not to get noticed in the golf world growing up in Alexandria, Minnesota but Tom, who has over $13 million in career earnings, is the only male Minnesotan ever to win one of golf’s biggest tournaments.

In 1996, three weeks after finishing second in the U.S. Open, he won the British Open. He was the leading money winner and Player of the Year in 1996.

“Think about that,” Jim said. “A kid from Alexandria, who was never even recruited to play college golf. Not even the University of Minnesota recruited him and he goes on to be the No. 1 player in the world. I don’t know about you, but I think that’s pretty incredible.”

Tonight’s Twins-Dodgers game from L.A. could be a fun pitching matchup with Minnesota’s Joe Ryan, 8-4 with a 3.67 ERA, against Julio Urias, 11-6, 2.57 ERA.
The Dodgers swept a two-game April series in Minneapolis by scores of 7-2 and 7-0.

The Twins, struggling to hold first place in the AL Central, haven’t finished a month over .500 since May when they were 18-12. Minnesota was two games below .500 in both June and July, and 4-3 so far in August.

The Dodgers are No. 1 in MLB.com’s latest power rankings, with the Twins No. 11.

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LPGA Legends Classic Bargain for Fans

Posted on August 7, 2022 by David Shama

The Land O’Lakes Legends Classic presented by The Meadows at Mystic Lake is an opportunity to see some of the greatest women golfers this coming Saturday and Sunday while going easy on the inflation-weary family budget.

Tickets cost $25 each per day or $40 for a two-day pass, plus free parking adjacent to the golf course. Anyone 17 and under accompanied by a ticketed adult is admitted free. Active and retired military with ID also receive free admission.

“I love the fact fans can get right up next to the players,” Jim Lehman said. “We don’t have ropes and stakes. …They can get autographs at the end of the round. We don’t have the same limitations on fans that you might see at the 3M (Open) or other major tournaments.”

Lehman is co-owner of the Legends Classic with former Golden Gophers women’s coach Michelle Redman. It was about three years ago Redman came to Lehman with the idea of making the Minneapolis area a tour stop for The Legends of the LPGA. The tour dates back to 2000 and provides competitive opportunities for LPGA Tour professionals and eligible amateurs age 45 and over.

Lehman, who has been running his local sports talent management company for 30 years, liked the idea of putting the Legends on the August golf map in Minnesota and giving the public an opportunity to see some of the biggest names in women’s golf. “Minnesota people love golf,” Lehman told Sports Headliners. “They love golf competitions, and we’re hoping that we can continue to grow the Legends event at Mystic Lake.”

The first Legends tournament in Minnesota was last year. “I’m really excited about the field this year,” said Redman, a two-time LPGA Tour winner with four wins on the Legends of the LPGA. “I think it will be even more competitive than last year. I have been working on my game pretty hard to get ready, but I’m also just really looking forward to seeing everyone out here. It will be a great celebration of women’s golf.”

LPGA and World Golf Hall of Famer Juli Inkster is back to defend her championship, and there are newcomers of note. “I thought last year’s field was really good,” Lehman said. “This year is even better.”

Newcomers include Amy Alcott, a World Golf and LPGA Hall of Fame member with 29 LPGA Tour wins and five major championship titles, and World Golf Hall of Famer and 16-time LPGA Tour champion Jan Stephenson. Others making their debuts are Liselotte Neumann (13 LPGA wins), Danielle Ammaccapane (7 LPGA wins), Brandie Burton (5 LPGA wins), Maria Hjorth (5 LPGA wins) and Lorie Kane (4 LPGA wins.)

Returning to Mystic Lake with Inkster are Hall of Famers Nancy Lopez and Hollis Stacy along with LPGA Tour past champions Rosie Jones (13 LPGA wins), Christa Johnson (9 LPGA wins), Tammie Green (7 LPGA wins), Michelle McGann (7 LPGA wins), and Pat Hurst (6 LPGA wins).

Lehman remembered a story from last year illustrating the depth of accomplishment by the women in the field. He was enjoying the company of Stacy and inquired what year she won the U.S. Women’s Open. Her response: “Jim, I won it three times.”

Forty LPGA legends compete in the tournament, along with four senior amateur women who appeared in last year’s event and have been invited to return: Leigh Klasse of Cumberland, Wisconsin, and Minnesotans Adele Peterson of Eden Prairie, Claudia Pilot of Brainerd, and Brenda Williams of Hopkins.

Official tournament rounds of 18 holes each will be played Saturday and Sunday with tee times starting at 9 a.m. both days. Inkster won $24,750 at last year’s tournament with a purse of $165,000. This year’s purse is $250,000.

Lehman said the pandemic was a setback for the Legends tour with events cancelled. There were about twice the number of tour stops as there are now. The result has been high interest from players to compete at Mystic. “We had a lot of women on a wait list trying to get in,” Lehman said.

The Meadows is an acclaimed golf course and it will challenge the players next weekend including with its water hazards. “They have to hit it pretty straight,” Lehman said. “That’s probably the challenging part about the golf course. Keeping the ball in play and hopefully making a couple of putts for birdies.”

The 18 holes will be set up to play under 6,000 yards. “We don’t kill them with distance but they have to hit it straight, and the greens will be fast,” Lehman said. “It will be pretty similar to last year.”

Land O’Lakes as the title sponsor and the Shakopee Mdewakanton Sioux Community as the presenting sponsor are vital to the tournament’s existence. “It’s definitely profitable,” Lehman said about the tournament that made money last year and will again.

The support from the sponsors and others including the fans make Lehman optimistic about the event’s future. “We definitely want to keep this event going. … We’re going to make every effort to make that happen.”

Golf ties run deep in the Lehman family originally from Alexandria, Minnesota. Jim, a former Minnesota amateur champion, represents golfers with his Minnetonka-based Medalist Management company including brother Tom who won the 1996 British Open. Another brother, Mike, is a former Gopher golf captain.

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