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 Legend Predicts Big Ten Football Title

Posted on October 21, 2015October 21, 2015 by David Shama

Bobby Bell predicts the football Gophers will win a Big Ten championship in the next couple of years. “I believe in what they’re doing,” Bell told Sports Headliners.

Bell was a two-time All-American tackle for Minnesota in 1961-1962. He won the 1962 Outland Trophy as the nation’s most outstanding lineman. Gophers football historians place him at or near the top of any list of the program’s greatest players.

Although he lives in the Kansas City area, Bell was in town last weekend for the Gophers game on Saturday, and to watch the Chiefs, his former NFL team, take on the Vikings. He was asked if Minnesota can win the Big Ten in the next five years?

“Oh, yeah,” Bell answered. “I would say in another year or two. …”

Bell not only believes in head coach Jerry Kill but also bases his optimism about the program’s future on the support for athletics by University of Minnesota president Eric Kaler. Another reason Bell is upbeat about the Gophers is the commitment to build new football facilities that will help with recruiting.

When Bell watches Minnesota he sees a roster that is only a few key players away from being “trouble” for the rest of the Big Ten. More talent and the coaching of Kill and staff will deliver a title, he believes.

Bell was a great athlete who also played basketball for the Gophers. In college he was 6-4 and about 225 pounds, and he could play multiple positions. He competed during an era when freshmen weren’t eligible for varsity competition and during his first fall at Minnesota he played quarterback on the frosh team.

Coach Murray Warmath switched the Shelby, North Carolina native to tackle because highly recruited Sandy Stephens was a year ahead of Bell in eligibility and was establishing himself at quarterback. If Stephens, who was a 1961 All-American, hadn’t been at Minnesota, could Bell have been an All-American quarterback?

“Yeah, I think so,” Bell answered. “I played every position. I told them, wherever you need me, I’ll play. If you can coach (the position), I can play it, so they switched me from quarterback to offensive tackle, defensive end, center. I could have played them all. I did the same things in the pros, too. Played anywhere.”

Bell was the important player during the last dominant era of Minnesota football. From 1960-1962 the Gophers won Big Ten and national championships. They played in two Rose Bowls, winning the 1962 game 21-3 against UCLA. In a three year stretch the team’s record was 22 wins, 6 losses and 1 tie. Minnesota only lost four conference games from 1960-1962.

The 1962 team lost the Big Ten title in the last game of the season when an official made a controversial call on Bell for roughing the Wisconsin passer. The penalty helped set up the winning fourth quarter touchdown for the Badgers in the 14-9 game played in Madison. Bell, his teammates and Warmath never got over that game they felt was taken away from them.

Later that fall Bell met John F. Kennedy who had seen the game. It didn’t take the president long to tell Bell he thought the Gophers got “a raw deal.”

All these years later that’s small consolation for a Big Ten title lost. No doubt Bell looks forward to his prediction about Kill’s first conference title coming true.

Worth Noting

The Gophers basketball team will have a free scrimmage open to the public on Sunday at Williams Arena. The scrimmage begins at 4 p.m. with doors opening at 3:30 p.m. After the scrimmage players and coaches will sign autographs in the concourse. Minnesota’s opening game, an exhibition against Minnesota Crookston, is on November 1 at Williams Arena.

Wolves rookie Karl-Anthony Towns and 21-year veteran Kevin Garnett are on one of the regional covers of Sports Illustrated’s NBA preview. The magazine has printed four covers and the issue with Towns and Garnett is for sale on newsstands starting today.

The Timberwolves played the Bucks last night in Madison and will see the same team in a final preseason game Friday evening in Minneapolis. The Bucks roster includes former Robbinsdale Cooper star Rashad Vaughn who has been among the rookie scoring leaders in the NBA, frequently totaling double figures.

The coaching staff includes ex-Cretin-Derham Hall and St. Thomas player Sean Sweeney. He has worked his way up in the coaching profession, having started with assistant positions at Anoka-Ramsey Community College and the Academy of Art University in San Francisco.

“It’s really kind of a cool story,” said Steve Fritz, who coached Sweeney at St. Thomas from 2001-2006. “He was our point guard. You could tell he was a student of the game.”

Sweeney was director of basketball operations at the University of Evansville and video coordinator at Northern Iowa before joining the NBA’s Nets in December of 2011 as the team’s assistant video coordinator. He was named a Bucks assistant to head coach Jason Kidd in 2014 and is known for his defensive knowledge. “He certainly lives the game,” said Fritz.

Fritz, 66, is in his 25th year as the St. Thomas athletic director. He retired as men’s basketball coach in 2011.

Dan O’Brien, Gophers senior associate athletic director, said his teenage son Casey had a successful surgery for cancer recently. In November the plan is for chemotherapy and then to be cancer free.

Todd Richards, the former Wild head coach now leading the Blue Jackets, has the only winless team in the NHL. The 0-7 Blue Jackets have given up a league high 34 goals, and play the Wild tomorrow night at Xcel Energy Center. Richards, a Crystal, Minnesota native, coached the Wild from 2009-2011.

The Wild have 12 players on the 23-man roster who are 25 or younger. That nucleus will be a key to sustaining playoff success on an annual basis. The youngest player is 21-year-old defenseman Matt Dumba, while the oldest is 37-year-old goalie Niklas Backstrom, who the Wild no doubt would like to swap in the right trade.

It’s a disappointing end to the season for Eagan High School alum Zach Zenner who made the Lions roster as an undrafted rookie free agent. Zenner suffered cracked ribs and a collapsed lung in the first half of Sunday’s Lions win over the Bears. He had been playing on special teams and as a reserve running back, gaining 60 yards on 17 carries.

The 3-2 Vikings, who play the 1-5 Lions in Detroit on Sunday, won the first game between the two teams, 26-16. The Vikings are 70-36-2 all-time against the Lions, including 31-22-1 in Detroit.

Any transplanted Minnesota sports fans now living in the Phoenix area have to be looking forward to an odd scheduling stretch in December. The Vikings play the Cardinals in suburban Glendale on December 10, the Wild have a game in Glendale against the Coyotes December 11, and then the Timberwolves are hosted by the Suns December 13 in Phoenix.

Twins fans can take encouragement from the Royals who are in the playoffs and trying to make the World Series for a second consecutive season. From 2003 through 2012 the Royals lost 90-plus games eight times, according to Wikipedia. Three of those seasons they lost over 100 games. The Royals rebuilt their roster and farm system through the draft—like the Twins are doing after 90-plus loss seasons from 2011-2014. This year the Twins improved to 83-79.

Although an official announcement granting Minnesota a Major League Soccer franchise is expected soon, it’s not known yet what the first year of operation will be. Minnesota and one other market are expected to be awarded a franchise.

Among the interesting facts about the MLS is the upper range of team payrolls is about $19 million. The most successful teams in the standings right now have payrolls of about $4 million.

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Flip’s Setback Surprised Wolves Owner

Posted on October 19, 2015October 19, 2015 by David Shama

Highlights from an interview with Timberwolves and Lynx owner Glen Taylor regarding various subjects:

Taylor said the setback in Flip Saunders’ health last month surprised him, and he acknowledged the return of his coach and basketball president is completely unknown. Reports in August were the 60-year-old Saunders had Hodgkin’s lymphoma but that it was treatable and curable. However, now sources are saying he has been hospitalized because of a serious—perhaps life-threatening—infection.

“We’re just patiently waiting and hoping that he recovers,” said Taylor, who wouldn’t confirm Saunders is hospitalized. “…You think he is coming along and all of a sudden he’s just had a setback and now we just have to wait.”

Earlier this month Taylor gathered Wolves players, coaches and others with the organization at his Mankato home for the annual lasagna feed. He spoke about the group being family and how Saunders had brought so many players and staff to the organization. “I just talked about the importance of him and how we missed him,” Taylor said. “How we’re going to pray for him, and how we’re all going to do well.”

Kevin Garnett is one of the players brought to the Wolves by Saunders who acquired the 39-year-old former superstar in a trade last February with the Nets. Garnett, who originally had been drafted by the Wolves as a teenager, has expressed interest in team ownership some day but Taylor said no deal is in place and can’t be because of NBA policy.

“No, it’s not something I can talk to Kevin about,” Taylor said. “He’s a player and I am an owner, and that would be a conflict of interest. I’ve never talked to Kevin about that issue. All I know about it is that I think that he has stated a couple different times that he would be interested in that when the opportunity comes. We have to just wait until that opportunity is there and it won’t be while he is playing.”

While the Wolves haven’t qualified for the playoffs since 2004, Taylor’s WNBA Lynx have won three league titles in five years with the latest earned last week. “It still just feels wonderful,” he said about winning another championship.

Although Taylor didn’t have the figures in front of him, his “sense” is the franchise may turn about a $1 million profit because of its successful season. That’s likely the best year financially ever for the Lynx and stands in contrast to most WNBA clubs that lose money.

Minnesota native Lindsay Whalen, a key contributor to the Lynx championships, was frustrated with injuries this past season and is 33 years old. Taylor hasn’t spoken to the point guard about how long she will continue playing. He is a Whalen admirer and thinks she could eventually have other responsibilities in the organization. “It’s not something we’ve discussed (though),” Taylor said.

Taylor is committed to partnering with Dr. Bill McGuire and others in an ownership group to bring an MLS franchise to Minnesota. Taylor, who operates his Wolves and Lynx at city-owned Target Center, thought Minneapolis elected officials would show more interest in having a soccer stadium built in the Farmers market area, a project and site that could create jobs and offer other benefits to the city economy.

Taylor said he sent a letter to Mayor Betsy Hodges awhile back about a Minneapolis soccer stadium. “I didn’t even get a reply, so I assume that’s telling me something—that they don’t see it as a possibility or they aren’t encouraging it,” said Taylor, who is now supportive of the proposed Midway stadium location in St. Paul.

Taylor owns 17,000 acres of farm land in Minnesota and Iowa. Raised on a farm in Minnesota as a youngster, he still likes to be close to the land and planned to spend part of last weekend riding in a combine on one of his farms.

Worth Noting

The Lynx were honored by the Vikings at their game with the Chiefs yesterday at TCF Bank Stadium. Maya Moore sounded the Gjallarhorn prior to the game. Against three different opponents in the playoffs, Moore averaged 23.4 points, 7.3 rebounds and 2.6 assists. She has experienced a remarkable first five years as a pro. She has been WNBA Rookie of the Year, league MVP and a force on three WNBA championship teams.

Augsburg alum Roger Griffith is executive vice president and chief operating officer of the Lynx. He has been a part of the Timberwolves/Lynx organization since 1994.

Former Gophers Big Ten championship basketball coach Jim Dutcher will speak at the next CORES luncheon on November 12 at the Knights of Columbus Hall in Bloomington, 1114 American Blvd. CORES is an acronym for coaches, officials, reporters, educators and sports fans. More information about CORES is available by contacting Jim Dotseth, dotsethj@comcast.net.

While the Gophers men’s hockey team is off to a 0-3 start, the No. 1 ranked women’s team is 6-0.

The office of former Gophers athletic director Norwood Teague is being used as a conference room in the Bierman Field Athletic Building. Interim athletic director Beth Goetz’s office is nearby.

The late Steve Wilkinson, the Gustavus legend and winningest head coach in collegiate men’s tennis history, was honored by the USPTA when the organization named one of its top awards the “Steve Wilkinson Collegiate Coach of the Year Award.”

Congratulations to prep football coaches Jeff Gronner from Cromwell and Dan Essler of New London-Spicer for achieving 100 career wins this month. Gronner’s record is 100-34 in 12 seasons. Essler’s record is 101-64 in 16 years.

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Childress Didn’t Deserve Vikings Exit

Posted on October 16, 2015October 16, 2015 by David Shama

Brad Childress never should have been fired as the Vikings coach in November of 2010. His supporters may be thinking about his fate this week as the Vikings prepare to face the Chiefs on Sunday at TCF Bank Stadium.

Childress now works for the Chiefs and long time friend Andy Reid, the Kansas City head coach. This will be Childress’ 17th season in the NFL but only the four-plus he spent with the Vikings were as a head coach. It will be five years next month that he was let go, despite his success in rebuilding the franchise.

Childress was fired after 10 games of the 2010 season. His regular season record as Vikings coach was 39-35. During the 2008 and 2009 seasons the Vikings won an NFC-best 22 games. The club won consecutive division titles those seasons, for the first time since 1977-78. The 2009 team reached the NFC championship game for the first time in nearly a decade and was among the elite teams in the NFL.

Brad Childress (Photo courtesy of Minnesota Vikings)

The Vikings were 3-7 in 2010 when Childress was let go, but he had proven his coaching ability. Some disgruntled players may well have contributed to his dismissal, but political situations in locker rooms have a way of disappearing over time. What also may have impacted Childress’ job security was his unpopularity with fans, but he was a solid coach who was successful when surrounded by talented players such as in 2009.

I knew Childress and enjoyed his company one day when we visited legendary Gophers coach Murray Warmath at Friendship Village of Bloomington. Childress knew of Warmath but the two had never met. He spent a lot of time that day visiting with the old coach who had also worked for the Vikings. While we were visiting Warmath, Childress quipped, “Where do I sign up for 95?” Warmath died in 2011 at age 98.

Childress didn’t have to take time from his busy schedule to meet Warmath, but it wasn’t surprising. While in the role of Vikings head coach he was involved with community activities. He is a good guy, good football coach and someone who didn’t deserve such an abrupt ending to his time as the Vikings boss.

Worth Noting

Between now and a home game on November 22 with the 5-0 Packers, the Vikings play five teams with a combined record of 7-19. The 2-2 Vikings have an opportunity to build their record with home games against the 1-5 Chiefs and 2-3 Rams, and away matchups with the 0-5 Lions, and the 2-3 Bears and Raiders.

Odds indicate the one-win Chiefs are due for another “W” soon. Does that add extra concern for Vikings head coach Mike Zimmer? “No, not really,” he answered. “We’ve only won two games—so no, not at all. Our focus is on us and what we do, and how we need to win…and how we need to get better, how we need to perform in the crucial situations of the game. Really, that’s all I’m concerned about.”

The Vikings are chasing perhaps the NFL’s best team, the Packers, who lead the NFC North with their unbeaten record. The Bears have surprised by winning a couple of games already while the winless Lions are a disappointment. What are Zimmer’s thoughts about the division race so far?

“Well, I think it’s a great division, but I’m so focused on us, to be honest with you. I know what the records are. I know who is leading the division, but we’ve got 12 more games to go, so there’s a lot of things that can happen. …Really, all I care about ever is us and how we play…let’s add them up at the end of the year and see what happens.”

Mike Wallace (Photo courtesy of Minnesota Vikings)

Vikings wide receiver Mike Wallace, who missed a couple of practices recently, said his left knee was sore “but I feel good now.” Wallace said he hasn’t had previous problems with the knee.

Vikings superstar running back Adrian Peterson feels “rejuvenated” after the team had last weekend off because of its bye in the schedule. Peterson said he feels pressure to perform after missing most of last season.

Unless the Chiefs return a portion of their visiting team tickets allotment, Sunday’s game at TCF Bank Stadium is already sold out.

A Vikings spokesman told Sports Headliners the number of workers on the U.S. Bank Stadium project is now at 1,400—a peak number since construction began and the number will decline soon and not reach that total again. The project is 75 percent complete and the facility will be completely enclosed by the end of November. The stadium opens next summer.

Prayers and best wishes to former Gophers All-Big Ten linebacker Bill Light who has pancreatic and liver cancer. Bill’s many friends were informed via e-mail this week of his health issues. He was named all-conference in both 1970 and 1971.

The University of Minnesota “M” Club Hall of Fame honored 14 inductees last night at a ceremony inside TCF Bank Stadium. Congratulations to: Luke Becker (wrestling); Ronda Curtin (women’s hockey); Chris Darkins (football and track); Roland DePaul (men’s hockey); Olga (Splichalova) Espinosa (women’s swimming); Brent Gates (baseball); Clifton Gustafson (wrestling); Jack Manders (football); Dick Meredith (men’s hockey); Jennie (Moe) Coughlin (women’s tennis); Dave Odegard (track and field); Joey Ray (men’s gymnastics); Bill “Buzz” Schneider (men’s hockey); Byrl Thompson (track and field).

Shannon Brooks, the Gophers freshman running back who has established himself as the team’s most explosive player, reports not having a serious football injury since ninth grade. Brooks, who believes it’s a “blessing” to have the opportunity to make big plays as a true freshman, said the most carries he had in a high school game was 25. How many could he handle here? “As much as they give me,” he said.

Could Brooks rush the ball 40 times or more in a single game? “I could do that,” he said. “If they feed me the ball, I am gonna run it.”

Gophers fans may talk about missing the speed of departed tight end Maxx Williams but quarterback Mitch Leidner believes present tight ends Nick Hart and Brandon Lingen are comparable. Leidner said “they might have been a little bit faster than” Williams who left the Gophers last winter for the NFL Draft.

The Gophers play Nebraska tomorrow, a school that didn’t join the Big Ten until 2011, but Minnesota and the Cornhuskers had a long nonconference rivalry in football that began in 1900. A few years ago there was quiet talk in the Minnesota Athletic Department about creating a rivalry trophy but nothing is planned. Winners of the last two games with the Cornhuskers, Minnesota leads the all-time series 31-22-2.

The Wild finished ahead of other Minnesota pro sports franchises in the recent 2015 ESPN The Magazine Ultimate Sports Standings. The standings rank 122 franchises from major league baseball, the NBA, NFL and NHL. The NBA’s Spurs ranked No. 1 in voting by fans to evaluate the franchises. The Wild ranked No. 37, ninth best among NHL teams, and ahead of the No. 47 Twins, No. 86 Vikings and No. 97 Timberwolves.

There is no word on when Gophers executive associate athletics director Mike Ellis may return to work from his leave of absence.

Fox Sports North will televise both the Lynx parade and championship celebration today starting at 11:30 a.m. The Lynx, who defeated the Fever for the WNBA title Wednesday night, will host a parade beginning at the corner of 12th Street and Hennepin Avenue before turning down 7th Street toward Target Center. Starting at 12:15 p.m. a celebration will be held at Target Center that includes a video commemorating the championship season and Lynx players will speak to the crowd. Both events are free and open to the public. Target Center opens at 11:30 a.m.

Former Timberwolves player and executive Fred Hoiberg, now head coach of the Bulls, turned 43 years old yesterday.

The Capital Club, featuring local sports figures as speakers, hosts Gophers interim athletics director Beth Goetz on November 3 at Town & Country Club in St. Paul. For more information about membership, contact Patrick Klinger, Patrick@thebrandenhancementgroup.com.

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