Author: David Shama

Ryan Longwell played nine seasons with Brett Favre in Green Bay and the two became friends.  That friendship continued after Longwell joined the Vikings in 2006.  The Vikings kicker was asked to compare the Favre personality he saw in the locker room with the Packers versus what he’s observing now at Winter Park.

“It’s exactly the same,” Longwell said.  “Not one ounce of difference except he’s got more gray hair.  But personality wise, the same guy.

“He’s just a fun guy. He’s always making jokes. Making fun of guys just like everyone does in the locker room.  He just has a better way of doing it.  When he gets comfortable, like he was in Green Bay, everybody is fair game.

“And he was like that two weeks into being…here, so you knew he was comfortable and you knew he was getting along with the guys.  We have a good locker room of guys here and he complements that.”

An unknown prankster placed a rocking chair in front of Favre’s locker at Winter Park last week.  Earlier this week it was still in place.

Favre’s age (he turns 40 in October) is an easy target for joking around.  He’s the only player on the team roster born in the 1960s.  But how do you NOT respect a guy who holds most of the NFL’s major passing records, quarterbacked the team impressively last Sunday in a regular season opening win against Cleveland and sometimes behaves like a man half his age, making jokes, piling on a teammate with congratulations after a touchdown and dressing in jeans and t-shirts.

On Sunday in Detroit, Favre will break the NFL record for consecutive starts.  He’s tied right now with former Viking Jim Marshall at 270 each.

If Favre plays a season or two longer here, perhaps his teammates need to bring in a pillow for that rocker.  Maybe a footstool, too.

In search of a Metrodome miracle, the Twins open a three-game weekend series with division-leading Detroit tonight. The Twins, who trail the Tigers by four games with the season ending on October 4, are 7-4 against Detroit in 2009.  The Twins are 11-4 in their last 15 games with the Tigers in the dome (dating back to last year).

Joe Nathan now has 41 saves this season, moving him within three of tying his career-high of 44 in 2004.

Joe Mauer, who is likely to win a third American League batting title, now has 87 RBI, two more than his career high of 85.

The Vikings face a Lions team on Sunday that lost 45-27 to New Orleans in its season opener and the franchise has lost 18 consecutive games.  Vikings defensive tackle Jimmy Kennedy was asked by Sports Headliners about the mental challenge of playing Detroit.  “Everyone knows they’re not a bad team,” he said.  “And it’s the NFL, you can lose any week.  And they always play us tough.  We have to go out there and bring our ‘A’ game still.

“It’s not really about Detroit.  It’s about us.  As far as their situation, what do they have to lose?  You play great ball when you have nothing to lose.”

Acclaimed pro football writer Peter King predicts the Lions will beat the Vikings, 23-21, https://www.fannation.com/peter_king_challenge/peter_king.

If the Vikings don’t allow a Detroit running back to total 100 yards, it will be the 25^th consecutive game Minnesota has accomplished that.

The Vikings’ Adrian Peterson became the first running back in NFL history ever to rush for 180 yards or more and score three touchdowns on opening weekend when he earned those numbers at Cleveland last Sunday.

Worry warts can fuss over Peterson being on this week’s cover of Sports Illustrated.  Don’t think there’s an S.I. jinx?  Maybe not, but just last week the Oklahoma State football program made the cover and on Saturday the Cowboys were upset by Houston.

California connections:  Former Viking Steve Jordan’s son Cameron Jordan is a junior and starting defensive end who made Pac-10 conference honorable mention last season for the Golden Bears.  Will Kapp, son of former Viking Joe Kapp, is a second string sophomore fullback.  Famed University of Minnesota surgeon Dr. John Najarian played football for California in the 1940s.

Gopher coach Tim Brewster said it hasn’t been decided whether freshman linebacker Sam Maresh, who had heart surgery last year, will be redshirted.

Former Patrick Henry football coach Don Swanson, for decades a strong leader and advocate for prep football in the state, passed away from cancer earlier this week.  A memorial service followed by lunch will be held beginning at noon on Monday at Mount Olivet Lutheran Church at 5025 Knox Ave South.

MIAC football teams start conference play tomorrow (Saturday) and all teams except Gustavus have at least one win in non-league games this season.

Former Star Tribune hockey writer Chris Snow is Director of Hockey Operations for the Wild.

Bloomington native and former Wild forward Mark Parrish is at the Canucks training camp.

Former North St. Paul High and St. Cloud State player Bret Hedican retired Tuesday after 17 seasons as an NHL defenseman.  Hedican was with Carolina in 2006 when the team won the Stanley Cup.

Wild forwards Mikko Koivu and Martin Havlat were scheduled yesterday to deliver tickets to selected season ticket holders at their homes.

Thank you to our new advertisers, TCF Bank (see bottom of page) and Washburn-McReavy (see top).

The Twins will introduce the members of their all-time Metrodome team at the stadium’s last major league baseball game on Sunday, October 4.  But what if this group could take to the field against an all-time Met Stadium Twins team?

The Twins, who had relocated from Washington D.C. following the 1960 season, played at Met Stadium from 1961 through the 1981 season, then moved to the dome.  Included among the players in that 20 year span is a wrecking crew of three hitters who could give a pitcher from any era heart palpitations.

Sports Headliners consulted with Twins historian Dave Mona who reported on the franchise as a baseball writer for the Minneapolis Tribune in the late 1960s.  He has followed the club closely over the years as co-host of the WCCO Radio Sports Huddle program on Sunday mornings.

With Mona’s input on players and my decision on batting order, here’s how the lineup looks: Cesar Tovar (center field); Rod Carew (second base); Tony Oliva (right field); Harmon Killebrew (first base); Bob Allison (left field); Jimmie Hall or Larry Hisle (designated hitter); Zoilo Versalles (shortstop); Earl Battey (catcher); Rich Rollins (third base).

Carew was a seven-time American League batting champ and had a .328 lifetime average.  Oliva won three batting titles, had a career average of .304 and in his best power year hit 32 home runs.  Killebrew slugged 573 home runs, a total that ranks as 10th best in baseball history.

The all-Metrodome team has four starters and we’ll go with the same number–sort of.  Bert Blyleven is on both teams.  “Circle Me Bert” won 80 games for the Twins from 1970-74, including his only career 20 game win season (1973).  The other starters are Jim Kaat, Jim Perry and Camilo Pascual.

Two relievers?  Right-hander Al Worthingon and left-hander Ron Perranoski provide balance and were top closers in the franchise’s early years.

Managing this group is battling Billy Martin.  In his one year (1969) as Twins manager the team won a division title.  In 1965 Martin was the team’s third base coach and his tutoring of Versalles and Carew contributed to an American League pennant and World Series appearance.

The all-Metrodome team features manager Tom Kelly, catcher Joe Mauer, outfielders Kirby Puckett and Torii Hunter, first basemen Kent Hrbek and Justin Morneau, DH Paul Molitor and pitchers Johan Santana, Frank Viola and Joe Nathan.  More at https://minnesota.twins.mlb.com/news/press_releases/press_release.jsp?ymd=20090728&content_id=6110794&vkey=pr_min&fext=.jsp&c_id=min

Who would win a game between the all-Met Stadium team and the all-Metrodome club? “Good question.  Never thought about that,” Mona said initially.

Mona asked where the game will be played.  Outdoors at the Met where the Twins lost the 1965 World Series to the Dodgers, or indoors at the dome where the big top was a factor in the franchise winning two game sevens in the 1987 and 1991 World Series?

We gave into our PR backgrounds and came up with a diplomatic decision.  We decided on a seven game series where the winner would be the team with four games in its ballpark.

A final note: the all-Metrodome team is superior in the field.  That group is clearly better defensively at first base, third base and in the outfield, and probably at a couple other positions, too.

But never sell a Billy Martin motivated team short, particularly one with a “Killer.”   (There goes the diplomacy again).