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.

Schedule Gives Vikings Shot at 8-8

Posted on October 31, 2014October 31, 2014 by David Shama

The Vikings, with a 3-5 record, are halfway through their 16-game schedule. Bob Lurtsema predicted last summer new coach Mike Zimmer and a reorganized staff would improve last year’s 5-10-1 record to 8-8.

Despite the absence of key offensive starters including quarterback Matt Cassel, running back Adrian Peterson and tight end Kyle Rudolph, the Vikings have done enough to maintain Lurtsema’s confidence about an 8-8 finish. “I am still sticking with 8-8,” said the former Viking who attends practices and remains close to the team.

The Vikings play the Redskins, 3-5, at TCF Bank Stadium on Sunday—the first of eight remaining games. The Vikings have two games on the upcoming schedule with the Bears, 3-5, and also will play the Packers, 5-3, Panthers, 3-4-1, Jets, 1-7, Lions, 6-2, and Dolphins, 4-3. Those seven teams have a combined record of 25 wins, 29 losses and one tie.

Those aren’t intimidating numbers, and the Vikings’ opportunity to finish with a record around .500 percent is enhanced by another factor. Five of the remaining eight games will be in Minneapolis.

An 8-8 record is unlikely to earn entry into the playoffs. In 2013 the worst regular season record for an NFL playoff team was the Packers at 8-7-1. The Chargers, 9-7, also qualified. When the Vikings made the playoffs in 2012 as a wildcard entry their record was 10-6.

Lurtsema is conceding the NFC North title and automatic entry into the playoffs to the Packers. “I think too much of (quarterback) Aaron Rodgers. I just think that the Green Bay Packers are almost a machine.”

But that prediction doesn’t lessen Lurtsema’s enthusiasm for Zimmer and the Vikings. Minnesota won last Sunday, defeating the now 1-6 Bucs, and the Vikings have held their three most recent opponents to 15.6 points per game. A loss in the closing seconds to the Bills a week ago Sunday is a game that got away.

“We should be .500 now at the turn,” Lurtsema said. “We should be 4-4. Coach Zimmer has done everything I expected from (him), plus 20 percent. That man has got those players playing hard.”

Peterson is a former NFL MVP. Rudolph won the 2013 Pro Bowl MVP award. But because the NFL is a quarterback driven league, it’s the season ending injury to Cassel—a journeyman QB—that makes Lurtsema talk about what might have been. “If Cassel was in there I think we would have at least one more win. We’d have no trouble going 8-8.”

Worth Noting

Lurtsema likes Cassel’s successor, rookie Teddy Bridgewater. He praises the rookie’s poise and “velocity” on his passes but described a need for improvement. “He’s got to be able to read the field faster. That’s the part—some quarterbacks—never, ever, ever pick up on. They cannot quicken their reads.”

Lurtsema raved about the team’s other 2014 No. 1 draft choice—linebacker Anthony Barr who caused a fumble in overtime last Sunday and scooped up the ball to run for the winning touchdown against the Bucs.

“Anthony Barr is the real deal. He could be Rookie of the Year.” Lurtsema said. “He’s got such great closing speed. The sky’s the limit for that guy. He’s smart, he’s respectful.

“He’s got everything you want. His long arms, his agility, his 40-yard speed, his 10-yard speed, whatever you want to talk about. That kid can play.”

Lurtsema played on the defensive line for not only the Vikings but the Giants and Seahawks, too. Ironically, all three organizations are hosting alumni gatherings this weekend and Lurtsema will travel to New York for the Giants’ homecoming.

A Vikings spokesman e-mailed earlier this week that except for the possibility of visiting teams returning tickets, the home games against the Redskins on Sunday and Packers, November 23, are sold out.

Former Bears coach Mike Ditka likes to say today is a gift because yesterday is history and tomorrow is a mystery. Ditka was talking about his philosophy on ESPN Radio’s “Mike & Mike Show” on Monday. “I didn’t make it up but I say it a lot,” said Mike Golic who co-costs the show with Mike Greenberg.

Bob Bossons, a Gophers assistant coach and top recruiter from 1958-1966, died earlier this month after a long struggle with Alzheimer’s. Bossons was a key contributor to the Gophers 1960 national championship and Rose Bowl teams of 1961 and 1962.

The guess here is Gophers wide receiver Drew Wolitarsky will be out indefinitely after suffering a high ankle sprain against Illinois last Saturday. The Gophers have a bye on the schedule tomorrow but don’t count on him playing against Iowa November 8 at TCF Bank Stadium.

The Timberwolves announced attendance of 18,296 for last night’s regular season home opener. The attendance came close but didn’t sell out (19,500 capacity) and a franchise spokesman told Sports Headliners earlier this week tickets are available for all home games including the much anticipated appearance by LeBron James, Kevin Love and the other Cavs on January 31.

Sports Illustrated’s NBA preview issue of last week predicted the Wolves, who are 1-1 this season, will finish 14th out of 15 teams in the Western Conference. An anonymous scout expressed concern in the magazine about point guard Ricky Rubio, now starting his fourth NBA season with the Wolves. “The great players add to their games in the off-season. I haven’t seen any change in Ricky Rubio over the last three years. His poor shooting has kept him from becoming a Tony Parker-like scorer. He’s a phenomenal passer, but it will take those young guys (Rubio’s new teammates) some time to grow accustomed to his creativity.”

An anonymous scout, perhaps the same one, spoke bluntly in the preview issue about former Wolves executive and coach Kevin McHale, now the Rockets head coach who has his team off to a 2-0 start. “They are the easiest team to scout because they have the smallest playbook and are lackadaisically coached. It’s as close to pickup basketball as there is in the NBA.”

The Wolves play the Bulls at Target Center tomorrow night and Sports Illustrated predicts Chicago will play the Spurs for the NBA championship next spring with San Antonio winning the title.

WCHA commissioner Bill Robertson is excited about KTWN-FM agreeing to be the exclusive radio promotional partner for the 2015 Final Five at Xcel Energy Center March 20-21. KTWN is the Twin Cities radio home for Minnesota Twins games.

Former Gophers athletic director Joel Maturi, sportscaster Joe Schmit, author of the book Silent Impact, and Frank White, founder of Respect Sports, will make presentations next Wednesday on leadership at the Minneapolis campus of St. Thomas. The “Leading with Character: What’s Your Direction?” conference will be from 10 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. More details at Synergyexchange.org.

The Gophers wrestling team hasn’t started its schedule but is No. 1 nationally in the InterMat College Dual Meet Rankings. Eight other Big Ten teams are in the rankings: No. 2 Ohio State, No. 3 Iowa, No. 5 Penn State, No. 7 Nebraska, No. 9 Michigan, No. 11 Illinois, No. 14 Wisconsin and No. 16 Northwestern.

Comments Welcome

GM Sees Wolves in .500 Range Again

Posted on October 29, 2014October 29, 2014 by David Shama

Milt Newton, a native of the U.S. Virgin Islands and former executive with the NBA’s Wizards, was named the Timberwolves general manager about 13 months ago. Fans and media are still becoming acquainted with Newton who is in the shadow of Flip Saunders, the franchise’s minority owner, president of basketball operations and head coach. The revamped Timberwolves open the regular season tonight at Memphis, and earlier this week Sports Headliners asked Newton to fill in the blanks on various basketball and personal topics to better understand who he is.

I will be surprised if the Wolves’ record this season is not: “Close or better than it was last year (40-42).”

When Sports Illustrated’s NBA preview issue predicted the Wolves will finish 14th out of 15 Western Conference teams: “I thought first of all, who is qualified on that staff to make that decision? Two, they don’t know the hearts of the players on our team—or the knowledge in our coaching staff—so you can’t necessarily make a judgment until you know the guys in the locker room.”

You can bet your last dollar the Timberwolves will: “Be exciting to watch.”

My first impression of 2014 NBA No. 1 draft choice Andrew Wiggins—acquired by the Wolves in the Kevin Love deal—was: “Ultra athletic, smooth and incredible potential to be a star.”

The two teams I see in the NBA Finals next spring: “I am gonna have to go with the San Antonio Spurs and with the Cleveland Cavs because of LeBron (James). The winner (NBA champions) is the San Antonio Spurs.”

Where do you rank former Timberwolves power forward Kevin Love with the best at his position in the NBA? “I would say top 10 (in history). I would put him in the top three to top five (among power forwards today).”

The thing that is challenging about the Ricky Rubio contract negotiations: “Parties involved.”

What’s weird about Flip is: “He’s fidgety. When he’s standing, he’s moving his leg or when he’s sitting he’s tapping his legs, or he’s moving his hand.”

The best thing about my job: “Working with great staff (and) being around great players—still being involved with the game and seeing the best athletes in the world compete on a nightly basis.”

I spend most of my time as GM: “Communicating with our players and with our staff. In the communications you’re (sometimes) putting out fires or potential fires. …”

If I were Milt Newton’s boss I would praise him for: “His accountability and his responsibility to his job.”

What surprises me about Minneapolis is: “How it can get so cold in the winter time, and also the ‘Minnesota nice’ (reputation) that I’ve heard is actually true.”

The dream vacation for me: “My wife and I probably in Tahiti. Been married for 20 years (to Shalaun).”

My worst habit is probably: “My impatience when my kids don’t so something I ask them to do the first time.”

The best meal on the planet: “My mom’s chili, and the butter knife steak from Murray’s is a close second.”

If I could invite five people to dinner who are alive today, or from history, they would be: “No. 1 Jesus Christ. I would like to talk to Muhammad Ali…Arthur Ashe…Bruce Lee, I am a big martial arts fan…(and) Mother Teresa.”

The best NBA team I ever saw: “Probably the Lakers with James Worthy, Magic (Johnson), Kareem (Abdul-Jabbar), Michael Cooper (and) Byron Scott because they were ‘Showtime’ (and) they won. They made it look exciting. They made it look classy but you could see behind the play that they were definitely a team that cared about each other.”

The best NBA player I ever saw: “I am gonna have to go with my idol, Dr. J. He (Julius Erving) had a flair for the game. To me I thought he was one of the better ambassadors of the game. He cared about the game (and) how he carried himself on the floor—exciting, graceful. He was the one that brought the NBA to a level in the public’s eye where it was exciting to watch.”

Comments Welcome

Here’s a Gopher Tale You May Not Believe

Posted on October 23, 2014October 23, 2014 by David Shama

Steve Nestor admits if he tried to sabotage the University of Illinois Homecoming Parade this week he likely would be thrown in jail. But back in 1967 when he and a buddy crashed the parade, law enforcement gave the Minnesotans the green light.

Nestor was a student athletic trainer for the Gophers football team. His buddy, Steve Vegoe, was a gate guard at the team’s practice field. Neither student was part of the team’s official travel party so Nestor suggested the two of them drive down to Champaign, Illinois for the Saturday, October 14 game.

The boys left Minneapolis early on the morning of October 13 and were excited to see what the Gophers could do against the Illini in the team’s first Big Ten Conference game of the season. Hopes were high for the Gophers who had a 2-1 record in nonconference games with the only loss a 7-0 defeat at Nebraska against a Cornhuskers team that was a national power.

Nestor and Vegoe arrived in Champaign early on that Friday afternoon. It didn’t take long for Nestor to hit on an idea that added a lot of excitement to the weekend. He and Vegoe headed over to the student union and it was there that Nestor picked up a copy of the school newspaper. He saw the Homecoming Parade route published in the newspaper. “The light bulb went on,” said Nestor who now owns a radio station in Glenwood, Minnesota.

Nestor knew more than a little about marching bands and parades. He also liked a little mischief, so he imagined positioning his 1965 bright red Oldsmobile F-85 in the Illini Homecoming Parade. “I knew from marching in the high school band that the band always took longer to turn the (street) corners and there usually ended up being an opening between whoever was in front of the band and them,” he said.

Nestor and Vegoe went to a drugstore to buy the materials needed to make two signs that proclaimed: “Golden Gophers Rose Bowl Bound.” They taped the signs on the car’s front doors and were ready to join the parade.

“I got in an alley that was right after this corner so when the third unit of the parade went by me I pulled out onto the main drag,” Nestor said. “We were right behind that third unit, with the band coming behind us.”

So there the boys were—driving and waving in the Illini’s Homecoming Parade—going down the street in this car with Minnesota license plates and signage bragging about the Gophers’ intent to play in the 1968 Rose Bowl. “I don’t think we had gone even half a block and a guy pulled up on a motorcycle,” Nestor said. “It was a university policeman.”

The officer gestured for Nestor to roll down his window. The cop told the party crashers that if they continued on the parade route the F-85 wouldn’t be welcomed along fraternity row where students would likely tip the car over. Then came a surprise offer from the policeman.

“You got enough balls to be in this parade, I am gonna ride with you the whole way,” the officer said.

“Each of us (Nestor and Vegoe) had all we could do to keep from laughing,” Nestor remembered. “I said, ‘Well, thanks a lot.’ ”

The “Minnesota unit” continued on the parade route and at one point the car was about to approach school dignitaries including the University of Illinois president. “They’re all waving wildly at the queen and this and that,” Nestor said. “Then all of a sudden it was silence. They all stared at us. Right out of a movie—they’re looking at Gophers Rose Bowl bound!”

Nestor and Vegoe, like the other units in the parade, finished the route. Not only did they have a day to remember but so did the police officer. “Guys, that was beautiful,” he told Nestor and Vegoe.

And how did the Illinois-Minnesota game go the next day? Well, that had a happy ending, too, as the Gophers won 10-7 on their way to a final record of 8-2.

The Rose Bowl plan? Well, close but no roses for the Gophers who finished in a three-way tie for the Big Ten championship with Indiana and Purdue. The Hoosiers received the Rose Bowl nod because the Gophers and Boilermakers had more recently been to Pasadena for the big game.

This Saturday the Gophers will again be in Champaign to play the Illini. Like the 1967 team, the 2014 Gophers have just one loss. And, yes, it will be Homecoming on Saturday in Champaign.

Could there be a repeat of the parade escapade?

Nah, Nestor and Vegoe—he is a magazine writer living in Pennsylvania—won’t be travelling to Champaign this year. Illinois Homecoming officials can rest easy.

Comments Welcome