Author: David Shama

Iowa and the Gophers close their regular season schedules at Williams Arena on Sunday.  The Hawkeyes are 10-20 overall, 4-13 in the Big Ten.  This is coach Todd Lickliter’s third season as Iowa head coach and he’s yet to have a .500 season overall or in the conference.  That contrasts with former coach Steve Alford who was 63-35 in his last three seasons at Iowa, 27-21 in the Big Ten.  Alford, who was at Iowa for seven seasons, is 27-3 this season coaching New Mexico.

The Gophers will be trying to put on a better face to end their schedule after losing 83-55 to Michigan on Wednesday.  Minnesota is 17-12 overall and 8-9 in the conference.  On Sunday the program will say goodbye to seniors Lawrence Westbrook, Damian Johnson and Devron Bostock.  Neither Iowa nor Minnesota will be invited to the NCAA tournament unless the Hawkeyes or Gophers win the upcoming Big Ten tournament.

Joe Coleman, the Hopkins High School junior forward, has impressed this season with his athleticism.  He’s the brother of former Gopher forward Dan Coleman.

Condolences to former Gophers basketball coach Bill Fitch whose mother, Lucy Fitch, 99, passed away earlier this week.

Harvey Mackay, the former Gopher golfer and New York Times best selling author, did nine hours of book signing in Phoenix last Saturday to promote his latest publication, Use Your Head to Get Your Foot in the Door: Job Search Secrets No One Else Will Tell You.

Edina native Whitney Taney won her second career Big Ten Athlete of the Week award this week when she was honored for her singles and doubles play in helping Michigan defeat two ranked opponents, Baylor and TCU. https://www.bigten.org/sports/w-tennis/spec-rel/030210aab.html

The Gopher track program, whose 34 athletes produced a third consecutive indoor Big Ten title last Sunday, will have its first outdoor meet March 19-20 in Tempe, Arizona.  The Gophers had six individual champions last weekend.  The entire Big Ten Men’s Indoor Track and Field Championships will be shown on the Big Ten Network starting at 9 p.m. on March 9.

The MIAC office is looking for qualified intern applicants for a position that will begin in mid-August and continue through December. The intern will be assigned to several duties including sports information, awards, championships, sportsmanship, scheduling and grants.  See the MIAC website for application details.  https://www.miac-online.org/

Here’s a local media coach’s advice to Brett Favre before he joins Jay Leno as a guest tomorrow evening on “The Tonight Show:”  “Go get’ em.  Don’t change a thing.”

Robb Leer, owner of Minneapolis-based Leer Communication & Consultants and a familiar face before that as a reporter on KSTP television, chuckled more than once as he discussed Favre with Sports Headliners earlier this week.  Leer coaches clients on how to most effectively communicate in media interviews but he believes Favre is such a natural he needs no direction.

It was suggested to Leer that Favre will be as comfortable on national TV Thursday night as he would be talking to a neighbor in the backwoods of his native Mississippi.  “If he doesn’t come out wearing jeans and a t-shirt and a ball cap, I will be surprised,” Leer said.  “He’s not going to change a thing.”

Right now Favre is probably about as prepared as he will get.  “In Favre’s case, I think the less prepped the better,” Leer said.  “He’s a media consultant’s nightmare.  He doesn’t need any (help).”

Favre is kind of any ordinary guy, and certainly not a phony.  Not an entertainment or sports celebrity who is controlled, programmed and scripted by advisors including media tutors.

“I think Favre is the exception rather than the rule in that he is not working with media consultants, media coaches,” Leer said.  “He is who he is.  He’s rare in that his brand is just his human nature.  There are a lot of consultants that would perhaps like to take credit for the way he conducts himself but I think he just is who he is.”

Leer said the news media is intrigued by and often critical of Favre’s past indecisiveness about continuing his career as an NFL quarterback, something which  has helped fuel the Favre image and brand.  “That’s his marketability and I think we saw that with the national spot (commercial) of Sears with his indecision in the electronics section trying to decide about (buying) a flat screen television,” Leer said.

The Vikings quarterback knows who he is and how he wants to act.  “…I don’t think Favre listens to anybody,” Leer said.  “I don’t think his indecision, his evasiveness, I don’t think any of that’s calculated.  That’s who he is.”

While Favre’s personality is natural, that doesn’t mean he’s a novice when it comes to marketing himself and creating business opportunities including endorsements.   He recognizes the national platform of this week’s “Tonight Show” that celebrates the return of Leno as host for the five-night-a-week program.

“This is smart (appearing on the show).  He (Favre) hasn’t been heard from since the (NFC) title game,” Leer said.  “This is a fun way just to get out there.  There’s no downside.  This is not fourth and goal.  This is just air it out and have some fun.”

The invitation is no charity gesture by NBC, inviting the losing quarterback from the NFC championship game to come on national television.  Favre’s name is a huge draw for viewers as documented by the TV ratings in the NFC title game against New Orleans that drew an average audience of 57.9 million viewers, making it the most watched NFL conference championship game in almost 30 years.  Excluding Super Bowls, the game was the most watched TV program since the 1998 series finale of “Seinfeld.”

The numbers and NBC’s desire to boost ratings on “The Tonight Show” doesn’t surprise Leer.  “NBC is desperate in the sense that late night TV needs to work, and you need to call in the biggest names that can help you drive numbers,” Leer said.

Leer also said that not only does the “Tonight Show” put Favre on national television, it also places him next to Leno, someone he can be comfortable with.  Favre won’t be in front of a probing reporter, or a young journalist trying to make a name for himself.  “He knows Jay Leno isn’t going to ask him anything that is going to be detrimental to his career,” Leer said.  “He’s there under the fun pretenses.”

Leno will almost certainly bring up the issue of whether the 40-year-old Favre will play next season, but he’s likely to package the subject in a script, not a serious question. “This (TV appearance) continues the intrigue and the exposure of who Brett Favre is,” Leer said. “I fully expect there will be a scripted bit between Leno and Favre about are you going to play? Are you done?  It’s Leno’s humor and who Favre is.”