Author: David Shama

Twins president Dave St. Peter told Sports Headliners via e-mail the Twins have sold about 2,000 new season tickets for 2007, already exceeding the number of new season tickets sold for the 2006 season.  He predicts the Twins will sell over 10,000 season tickets, perhaps an increase of 2,500 over 2006.  He expects a season ticket renewal rate of over 90% .  St. Peter attributes increased interest to the team’s on-field performance and new ball park scheduled to open in 2010.  (Season tickets are tickets purchased for the entire season, or partial season ticket packages combined together to count for season tickets). 

TwinsFest will be January 26-28 at the Metrodome and “50 current, former and future players” will attend to meet the public, according to the Twins Web site. Although subject to change, Joe Mauer and Justin Morneau are among the players scheduled. TwinsFest will be the first opportunity for fans to purchase single game tickets. Tickets to the event can be purchased via the Twins web site. TwinsFest generates revenues for the Twins Community Fund. 

A New York Times article predicts that former Twin Doug Mientkiewicz, recently signed to a one year contract with the Yankees, will play first base, allowing slugger Jason Giambi to become a designated hitter.  Mientkiewicz, who played for the Red Sox, Mets and Royals since leaving the Twins, won a Gold Glove in 2001 with Minnesota.  The Yankees are excited about what he can bring defensively to the team. 

Coach Mo Forte, a former Gopher player and assistant coach whose Arkansas at Pine Bluff team competed against Tarvaris Jackson when Jackson was in college, thinks the Vikings future quarterback is “going to be good.”  He described Jackson as a “tremendous athlete” who will benefit from more game experience, film work and coaching.

Sporting News speculates that if Southern California football coach Pete Carroll, a former Viking assistant coach, leaves for the NFL his replacement could be Jacksonville head coach Jack Del Rio, the former Southern Cal and Viking player.

The University of Minnesota’s wish list of candidates for the football job probably has Tony Dungy’s name at the top.  For years people close to the athletic department have whispered Dungy’s name and suggested the former Gopher quarterback would be the ideal person to lead the football program. 

As coach of the Indianapolis Colts he has an annual playoff contender.  Before coming to Indy, he built a great defense in Tampa Bay as head coach and later the Bucs won the Super Bowl under coach Jon Gruden.  Prior to Tampa Bay, his reputation as Vikings’ defensive coordinator made him arguably the best assistant coach in franchise history. 

At 51, Dungy has 11 years of head coaching experience in the NFL.  He is known as a quiet leader whose charisma can take over a room.  Raised in a family of educators, Dungy is admired for both his personal and professional values.  His coaching resume, outlook on life and ties to Minnesota make him the easiest of candidates to wish for in the Gopher coaching search. 

Dungy has made his affection for the University known. He came back here last year to help with the legislative push for the new on-campus stadium.  He will be the featured speaker at the University of Minnesota Alumni Association’s annual celebration event on Tuesday, May 8 at Mariucci Arena. 

Reality, however, seems to be that Dungy doesn’t consider himself a college coach after all these years in the NFL.  He said as much earlier this week and in typical Dungy graciousness added he was flattered to be mentioned, according to the Star Tribune. 

Did he absolutely mean what he said?  His brother Linden, who lives in the metro area, and two of his friends from this area said they don’t believe Dungy is interested in the Gophers. 

Linden said he hasn’t spoken to his brother since the Gopher job opened up earlier this week but he would be “surprised” if Tony expressed interest. “From my opinion they (any contacts) would not be initiated by my brother,” he said.  “When I look at him at (age) 51 and being in the NFL for 26 years.  …I don’t see him going in that direction (college coaching).” 

Linden added that Tony has a contract with the Colts, “always has honored his contracts,” and likes his routine and what he is doing in Indianapolis.  Linden said, too, that when Dungy was a Viking assistant coach the possibility of coaching the Gophers came up and his brother wasn’t interested at that time.  

John Williams, a Gopher on the 1967 Big Ten championship team, played for the Los Angeles Rams when Dungy was a Pittsburgh Steeler defensive back.  “I think it’s wishful thinking (Dungy as Gopher coach),” Williams said.  “Minnesota is his alma mater but would he want to leave one of the better NFL jobs, take a step down and not know what he is getting into?”

Charles Sims is a former Gopher basketball player who developed a friendship with Dungy while the two were in school here in the mid-1970s.  He doubts Dungy would have interest but mentioned that an extraordinary compensation package (Alabama lured Nick Saban with a reported guaranteed $32 million package) might get his friend’s attention.   

“I don’t think so,” Sims said. “Why would he be (interested)?  He has it made with the Colts.  How much is the University willing to pay?  If Saban type money, maybe.” 

Dungy is originally from Jackson, Michigan and with his background and name recognition Sims thinks his close friend would be outstanding at Minnesota. “I do think Tony would be a great coach,” Sims said. “He could get (recruit) kids in Michigan and Ohio.” 

Williams said coaching makes a difference, referencing a school like Boise State that doesn’t have the high school all-Americans that populate the rosters of big name college programs but yet found success against Oklahoma in the Fiesta Bowl.  “You don’t have to get the rivals.com all-Americans,” Williams said.  “That’s where the coaching comes in.”

For the third consecutive season the Minnesota Vikings’ local regular season TV ratings slightly declined.  The 2004 season rating was 34, with 31.6 in 2005 and 29.7 this year.  A rating point is a percentage of households watching a particular program.  

The Vikings, who finished the season last Sunday losing to the St. Louis Rams, missed the playoffs for a second consecutive season.  The rating of 23.7 for the Ram game was the lowest of the season.  The highest rating for a single game was 34.3 against Seattle. 

For the first time in memory, the Vikings purchased newspaper advertising before and during the 2006 season to sell tickets.  While still holding an enormous lead in popularity among other pro teams in town, the push to sell tickets and the TV ratings indicate the Vikings’ popularity is less than it was.  However, a team spokesman said the franchise now has sold out 94 consecutive pre-season and regular season games. 

The 2004 season was the last one that quarterback Daunte Culpepper and Randy Moss played together.  Moss was traded to Oakland after the 2004 season and Culpepper left for Miami in a trade before the 2006 season.  The 2004 Vikings not only had star gate attractions in Moss and Culpepper but the team advanced to the playoffs. 

Moss is not happy in Oakland and perhaps with a different coach than Brad Childress and owner than Zygi Wilf there would be a chance the controversial Moss could return here to a team badly in need of wide receivers and box office attractions.  Childress and Wilf have placed such a premium on discipline that it’s unthinkable to imagine a Moss return.