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 Hires Quiet & Strong Coach in Claeys

Posted on November 11, 2015November 11, 2015 by David Shama

A news conference this morning to announce Tracy Claeys as the Gophers new head football coach isn’t surprising. Multiple sources indicated his interim tag was to be removed last week or this week, and that the 46-year-old Claeys met with University of Minnesota president Eric Kaler on Monday.

Claeys worked for former Gophers head coach Jerry Kill as an assistant for 21 seasons including five at Minnesota as defensive coordinator. During that time Claeys demonstrated his football intelligence and ability as a teacher. He comes across as analytical and authentic. He can figure out schemes and game plans, but he is also personable. He deserves much of the credit for turning the Minnesota defense into the pride of the team.

Former Gophers captain Jim Carter told Sports Headliners this morning he thinks the hire is the “right choice” and the news likely is well received by most ex-players from the U. “I’d be really surprised if it’s not,” Carter said. “There maybe a couple naysayers.”

Carter was close to Kill and the program during the last several years. He’s been impressed with the ability of Claeys as a teacher, not just a coach. He sees a studious teacher in Claeys who watches things on both the field and film room, then instructs.

“They coach them up that way rather than hollering and screaming,” Carter said. “He’s an introvert, quiet but strong. I like him. I admire the way he works.”

Claeys might turn out to be a better head coach than Kill—and that’s saying a lot.

Here is the point: Claeys has never been a head coach before. Beware of anyone who tells you he will be a disappointment, or guarantees he will be a success.

No one can predict with certainty Claeys will shine as Minnesota’s coach. There are indications, though, this is a good hire. Although Kill gave Claeys the team’s better athletes, he got results as defensive coordinator. The Gophers were often an embarrassment defensively before Kill and Claeys arrived. In the last couple years highly ranked opponents like TCU and Ohio State have come to know Minnesota’s defense was going to challenge them.

He took over as interim coach for Kill in 2013 and impressed leading the Gophers to wins. Since Kill resigned on October 28 the Gophers have played with effort in losses to Michigan and Ohio State.

Claeys admits his mistakes and a lot of coaches aren’t willing to do that. He took responsibility for Minnesota’s out of position defense in a 48-25 loss to Nebraska last month. He blamed himself for the poor clock management at the end of the Michigan game.

What Claeys knows going forward is he will have the support of a staff already in place. New head coaches often have to assemble a staff of assistants but Claeys takes over a group that generally won praise working for Kill. Claeys also has the advantage of dialing up Kill any time he needs support or advice. No doubt he will.

Because Kill rebuilt the Gophers program and left Claeys all his assistants he will be compared to his mentor. It’s a fair comparison. Claeys needs to put his own mark on the program and there are a couple of areas that deserve to be at the head of the line.

Recruiting has to continue to improve at Minnesota. The Gophers will never become an annual threat to win the Big Ten title and play in New Year’s Day bowl games without better personnel than what this program has known for decades.

Claeys has the momentum of a program that nationally has a much better reputation than five years ago when Kill arrived. He has to show he and his staff can keep the promising 2016 recruiting class in place and make the 2017 class even better.

Carter doesn’t know a lot about Claeys as a recruiter but is optimistic he can be effective. “To me a good recruiter is a person that is sincere and tells the kids the truth and shows them how they can improve their lives by going to his school,” Carter said. “I think Tracy is very capable of doing that.”

The other area that needs major work is the offense. In five years Kill never stabilized the quarterback position to the point where the Gophers had a top performer who was on the roster for awhile and had a quality backup or two. The offense has also been characterized by inconsistent offensive lines. Those lines quickly became the heart of Wisconsin’s offensive success in the 1990s and continue to this day. The Gophers so far haven’t found that same success.

Hiring Claeys was the easy choice for interim athletic director Beth Goetz and Kaler. Finding a replacement outside the staff would have required more homework and perhaps more risk than promoting Claeys whose character is already vetted. Waiting a few or several weeks likely would have resulted in losing high school recruits who made verbal commitments for 2016.

Sometimes the simple way is the better one. The University chose to go with Claeys who will be compared in the seasons ahead with other Big Ten coaches and Kill. I suspect Kill is not only smiling but hoping that his former D-coordinator turns out to be a better head coach than he was.

Gophers & Vikings Notes

Gophers senior running back Rodrick Williams carried the ball five times for nine yards against Ohio State last Saturday. He also caught two passes for 44 yards. It was his first game appearance since Purdue on October 14. When Williams was in high school in Lewisville, Texas his college choices came down to the Gophers and Iowa. When a Hawkeyes recruiter was critical of the Gophers, it tipped his decision to attend Minnesota.

The Gophers, 4-5 overall and 1-4 in the Big Ten, play at Iowa, 9-0 and 5-0, on Saturday night. Despite both being in the Big Ten West Division, the teams so far have only one common opponent. Minnesota lost to Northwestern 27-0, while Iowa defeated the Wildcats 40-10.

With a win over the Gophers, Iowa can be 10-0 for the first time in school history, but head coach Kirk Ferentz was the target of criticism from Hawkeyes fans going into this season after his past four teams had records of 7-6, 8-5, 4-8 and 7-6.

On their two-deep offensive and defensive listings the Hawkeyes have 18 players from the state of Iowa. Seven of them are starters, with 11 others reserves among the 44 players on the two-deep roster. The Gophers don’t list two-deeps but of their 22 starters seven are Minnesota natives. It’s an interesting comparison since Iowa’s state population is about three million while Minnesota’s is over five million. Also, the Gophers are the only Division I school playing football in Minnesota while Iowa has to compete with Iowa State and Northern Iowa for high school players.

The Vikings haven’t played the Raiders since 2011 and the two franchises last met in Oakland in 2003. This Sunday in Oakland the Vikings will have to contend with second-year quarterback Derek Carr who ranks among NFL leaders in touchdown passes with 19 and QB rating at 104.3.

Vikings coach Mike Zimmer evaluated Carr prior to the 2014 NFL Draft, but Minnesota opted to use a first round pick on Teddy Bridgewater while the Raiders chose Carr in the second round. “I’ve watched three games on him (Carr) so far,” Zimmer said on Monday. “I think he’s playing very well—gets the ball out quick, seems like he has a good understanding of where the ball needs to go and how to get it out quickly. (Has a) strong arm, accurate. We did a lot of work on him when he came out.”

Adrian Peterson has rushed for 326 yards in his last three games. He leads the NFL in rushing with 758 yards. Zimmer said Peterson and the offensive line have made improvements lately.

“We’ve worked on some of the things with his footwork a little bit, but I think the offensive line is doing a better job of handling some of these run blitzes that we’ve been getting, and coming off and seeing things better,” Zimmer said. “Just something we’ve been working on. …”

The Vikings are the only team in the NFL to hold opponents to 23 points or fewer every game this season.

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Potential QB Battle in Oakland Intrigues

Posted on November 9, 2015November 9, 2015 by David Shama

If Teddy Bridgewater is recovered from a concussion and can play next Sunday in Oakland there will be an interesting matchup between two of the NFL’s promising young quarterbacks. Derek Carr, 24, was taken in the second round by the Raiders in 2014 while the Vikings selected Bridgewater, 22, in the first round of the same NFL Draft.

Teddy Bridgewater (Photo courtesy of Minnesota Vikings)

Vikings head coach Mike Zimmer said this afternoon at his press conference that Bridgewater has passed his first concussion clearance test but as the week progresses it will be determined whether his quarterback is recovered from the blow he took in yesterday’s win over the Rams. “I think he’ll be good to go (Sunday),” Zimmer said.

Six NFL.com writers gave their opinions last month about top quarterback prospects 25 and younger. In addition to Carr and Bridgewater (he turns 23 tomorrow), the list included Blake Bortles, 23, Marcus Mariota, 21, and Jameis Winston, 21. In the October 20 article Bucky Brooks, Nate Burleson, Maurice Jones-Drew, Steve Mariucci, Deion Sanders and Ike Taylor were asked to identify the quarterback they would choose to build a franchise around.

Four of the six chose Carr, with two others picking Bridgewater. “Derek Carr reminds me a little of Brett Favre,” Mariucci wrote. “He’s got a little grit to him and a certain toughness. He’s a natural-born leader and has all the intangibles. …”

“Teddy Bridgewater is my choice for a franchise quarterback,” Brooks wrote. “He’s the one with the most complete skill set, and he has the intelligence, confidence and leadership you look for in a young QB. From a physical standpoint, he can make all the throws at the short and intermediate range, but he can be a little spotty on deep throws. …”

Carr and Bridgewater had comparable seasons as rookies. Carr had more passing yards, 3,270, and touchdowns, 21, than any other first-year quarterback in 2014.

Bridgewater’s numbers were 2,919 yards and 14 TDs. Carr had a passer rating of 76.6 while Bridgewater’s number was 85.2.

Bridgewater was voted by fans as the Pepsi NFL Rookie of the Year. He started 12 games to Carr’s eight and had a slightly better passing completion percentage, 64.4 versus 58.1. The Vikings also had a 7-9 record while the Raiders were 3-12.

After week nine of this season Bridgewater is way behind Carr in stats including passer rating, 83.4 versus 104.3. Carr has 19 touchdown passes and only four interceptions while Bridgewater’s numbers are six and six. Carr has led an improving Raiders team that is playing .500 football at 4-4. The Vikings are a surprise team too with a 6-2 record.

No doubt Bridgewater’s priority for next Sunday is just to get on the filed. Then it’s helping the Vikings win another game but if he plays you can be sure fans and media will be comparing him with Carr.

Worth Noting

Adrian Peterson, who rushed for 125 yards yesterday in the Vikings win against the Rams, now leads the NFL in rushing with 758 yards.

It’s a sad legacy that former Vikings defensive players Wally Hilgenberg (2008 death), Orlando Thomas (2014) and Fred McNeill (several days ago) all died from ALS. Hilgenberg died at 66 years old, Thomas at 42 and McNeill was 63.

Although Gophers head coach Jerry Kill said he had seizures prior to the days before announcing his resignation last month, a Sports Headliners source wasn’t aware that any of the seizures were witnessed by his players. Another source said Kill and his wife Rebecca were in Florida last week.

Do a Google entry typing the name Tracy Claeys and among the first search words that come up is “wife.” Claeys, the Gophers interim head football coach who turns 47 on Christmas Day, is single.

A lot has been written about next year’s Gophers schedule with East Division powers Michigan and Ohio State going off the schedule, but what’s not noted much is the Big Ten will have each team playing nine conference games instead of eight and Minnesota will be on the road for five of them. East Division bottom feeders Maryland and Rutgers replace Michigan and Ohio State on Minnesota’s schedule.

The Gophers will play Illinois, Maryland, Nebraska, Penn State and Wisconsin on the road. Coming to Minneapolis will be Iowa, Northwestern, Purdue and Rutgers, plus home nonleague games with Colorado State, Indiana State and Oregon State.

St. Thomas (9-0, 7-0 MIAC) secured an automatic bid to the NCAA playoffs and share of the conference championship by crushing Carleton (1-8, 0-7 MIAC) 80-3 last Saturday. Coach Glenn Caruso told Sports Headliners he doesn’t talk about wins and losses with his players, but instead emphasizes best effort and execution. That’s chapter-and-verse coaching philosophy from the approach of legendary UCLA basketball coach John Wooden.

Caruso is a Wooden admirer and refers to him as the “greatest coach of the last century”—a master teacher who understood human nature and motivation. Among Caruso’s favorite resources is Wooden’s classic book They Call Me Coach. “I’ve read it seven or eight times,” he said.

Caruso dialogues almost daily with St. Thomas men’s basketball coach John Tauer who has a doctorate degree in social psychology. He refers to Tauer as “one of the smartest men I know.” The two coaches live within 10 houses of each other in St. Paul. “I draw a lot of vision from our conversations,” Caruso said.

Despite fan speculation, there appears no possibility the Twins will ask first baseman Joe Mauer to become a catcher again. The club needs catching help and there is a logjam of players who can play first base, third base and the outfield. Manager Paul Molitor, talking on KFAN Radio with “The Common Man” and Mark Rosen last Wednesday, said he is interested in having slugger Miguel Sano do less designated hitting next season and instead play a position in the field, perhaps in the outfield.

While some preseason listings have placed several Big Ten teams in their top 25 rankings, the November 9 Sports Illustrated college basketball issue included only three league teams—No. 5 Maryland, No. 14 Indiana and No. 15 Michigan State. The ACC had four schools in the top six with No. 1 North Carolina, No. 4 Duke and No. 6 Virginia.

Ironically, coach Richard Pitino’s Gophers (2-0 in exhibition games) open their regular season at home on Friday night against UMKC, the program whose coaching staff included Andre McGee until he resigned late last month. McGee has been a focal point in allegations about a sex scandal involving the Louisville men’s basketball program where Pitino’s father Rick Pitino is head coach. The Kansas City, Missouri based school and team opens its schedule with a home exhibition game tonight against Hawaii Pacific.

The 3-2 Timberwolves, who play the Hawks in Atlanta tonight, are 3-0 in road games—the first time in 13 years the franchise has done that. The 2001-2002 team won its first four games of the season away from home. The Wolves didn’t win their third road game last season until January 13.

Wolves point guard Ricky Rubio is averaging 9.2 assists per game—second best in the NBA behind the Thunder’s Russell Westbrook at 10.9.

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Claeys Needs Wins & Style Points

Posted on November 6, 2015 by David Shama

Some call it moral victories. Let’s refer to it here as style points. Either way, hello, Tracy Claeys.

The Gophers interim head football boss is coaching for scoreboard wins in the team’s last four games of the season, but there’s more to it than that as he auditions for the permanent job. Minnesota is all but certain to lose some of those games but what matters along with the number of W’s will be how the team looks.

Will the Gophers play with emotion the rest of the season? Do they sustain effort if the score is one-sided? Will sloppy play characterize the performances of players? Is this going to be a team making excessive mistakes including turnovers and penalties? How about the effectiveness of the play calling? What about the in-game adjustments by the coaches?

It’s anyone’s guess whether Claeys can be a successful head coach. His debut game last Saturday against Michigan didn’t dazzle. While the Gophers played with effort and execution, and the game plan looked solid, clock management and play selection at game’s end were troubling and directly contributed to the 29-26 loss.

Claeys’ predecessor, Jerry Kill, was a zealous, leave no stone unturned leader who inspired players. Gophers defensive back Antonio Johnson said Claeys can get after his players with emotional outbursts but his personality isn’t as intense as Kill’s. Asked if Claeys will be fiery on occasion, Johnson said: “Yeah, he’ll lose it if something just goes completely wrong. But overall, though, he’s pretty laid back and calm.”

Different coaching personalities can produce desired results, but Claeys will have to prove himself in the emotions department and everything else if he gets the interim tag removed—from recruiting to game plans, from fundraising to disciplining players, from media relations to halftime adjustments. The highly regarded staff of assistant coaches Kill assembled and kept in place is still around to work for Claeys who was promoted from defensive coordinator when Kill resigned last week. That’s a huge plus for Claeys and the program.

The four games ahead won’t deliver the final judgment on Claeys but will provide a lot of insights. Minnesota plays at No. 1 ranked and undefeated Ohio State tomorrow. A week from Saturday the Gophers face another nationally ranked and unbeaten team in Iowa on the road. Then it’s home to finish the season against mediocre Illinois, and play a Wisconsin team that has only lost two games and seems to be gaining momentum. That’s no day at the beach for Claeys and the Gophers who have a 4-4 overall record and are 1-3 in Big Ten games.

This has been a disappointing season to date—characterized by a lot of injuries and also an inconsistent offense that sometimes looks unimaginative and often lacks playmakers. If the Gophers surprise most everyone by winning three of their final four games the results will put a huge smiley face on Gopher Nation. If the Gophers win two of the last four, and thereby qualify for a bowl game, the program’s more starry-eyed supporters might say, “Pretty good season considering all the setbacks this fall.”

What about if the team wins only one—or zero games—the rest of the way? That’s pretty much an “ugh”—although make one of those wins against Ohio State, Iowa or Bucky Badger, and Gophers loyalists won’t be quite so down in the dumps.

Long ago Gophers football had a high standard of excellence. There were expectations about Big Ten titles, even national championships.

Moral victories? Bull.

Style points? Really?

But reality is today’s Gophers program is still trying to prove winning half of its conference games year after year is doable. What Claeys and the staff might show us in the next few weeks and months (recruiting season) is this program could go beyond what Kill delivered including 5-3 and 4-4 conference records the last two seasons. It requires Forrest Gump-like optimism to see the Gophers winning three more times this fall and finishing at .500 in Big Ten games. But let’s be willing to drink enough feel good Kool-Aid to think the Gophers are going to find a way to win two more regular season games and then get Minnesota’s first bowl victory since 2004.

Yeah, win a couple more games and in the losses don’t embarrass Gopher Nation—the tag Tim Brewster put on the fan base. During the Brewster era he had games where he lost 55-0 to Iowa and 48-12 to Wisconsin. Seven games into the 2010 season he was fired. Two weeks later his successor, interim head coach Jeff Horton, lost 52-10 to Ohio State.

Get the idea about style points?

Worth Noting

Ohio State running back Ezekiel Elliott is a Heisman Trophy candidate and he does more than make explosive runs. He is a willing blocker. “No question, and I don’t think he gets credit for the way he blocks,” Claeys said. “I think he’s the best blocking tailback that there is. …”

The Vikings have won six consecutive home games and play the Rams on Sunday at TCF Bank Stadium. Minnesota has also won two consecutive road games for the first time since 2012.

Vikings place kicker Blair Walsh knows Todd Gurley, the Rams rookie running back who is averaging 6.1 yards per carry and has gained 575 yards. Both Walsh and Gurley are from the University of Georgia, although the two didn’t play together in Athens. Gurley left the Bulldogs after his junior season while drawing comparisons to legendary Georgia and NFL running back Herschel Walker. Walsh is among Gurley’s admirers and quipped with this: “He was only there three years. We would have loved for him to stay four. …”

Since week four of the NFL season, Vikings rookie wide receiver Stefon Diggs has 10 catches of 20-plus yards.

St. Thomas (8-0, 6-0 MIAC) can cinch an automatic bid to the NCAA playoffs and share of the conference championship with a win tomorrow afternoon at home again Carleton (1-7, 0-6 MIAC). Coach Glenn Caruso’s Tommies are having one of their more impressive seasons in memory, winning each game by at least 21 points. A victory means a fourth MIAC title in six years.

Caruso told Sports Headliners this is the healthiest team late in the season that he’s had at St. Thomas. “It’s not even close to any other year,” said Caruso who has led the Tommies since the 2008 season.

Caruso gives much of the credit for his players’ health to strength coach Tommy Becker who even teaches the Tommies yoga for flexibility. Becker, a former linebacker at Wayzata High School, started his college career with the Gophers before playing for Caruso.

The 10 finalists for the 2015 Mr. Football Award are Isaac Collins, Maple Grove; Carter Coughlin, Eden Prairie; Logan Hatfield, Bemidji; Amani Hooker, Park Center; Tyler Johnson, Minneapolis North; Kamal Martin, Burnsville; David McCuskey, Orono; Bishop McDonald, North St. Paul; Dillon Radunz, Becker; J.D. Spielman, Eden Prairie. The award is sponsored by the Minnesota Football Coaches Association and the Vikings. The 2015 winner will be announced at the Mr. Football Banquet on Sunday, November 22 at the Doubletree by Hilton Minneapolis Park Place Hotel.

Lightning right wing J.T. Brown, the Burnsville native and son of former Vikings running back Ted Brown, has two goals and one assist in 13 games this season. He and his Tampa Bay teammates play the Wild at Xcel Energy Center tomorrow night.

Former Gophers basketball coach Jim Dutcher, a close friend of the late Flip Saunders, will speak at the next CORES luncheon on Thursday, November 12 at the Knights of Columbus Hall in Bloomington, 1114 American Blvd. Reservations should be made by next Monday. More information about CORES is available by contacting Jim Dotseth, dotsethj@comcast.net. CORES is an acronym for coaches, officials, reporters, educators and sports fans.

Gophers basketball coach Richard Pitino after being asked to name three coaches he admires: “My father (Rick Pitino), he’s somebody that has been so good, for so long. Billy Donovan is another mentor of mine who built Florida into a powerhouse. I kind of look at the model he did there as something we’re trying to do here. I was always amazed by Joe Torre’s ability to handle so many distractions in New York as a manager of the Yankees, and handle it with such great class. That’s something that I think every coach aspires to. …”

The Gophers play Southwest Minnesota State at Williams Arena tonight. That will be Minnesota’s second and final exhibition game of the year.

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