Author: David Shama

Wide receiver Bernard Berrian, who joined the Vikings in the off-season as a free agent from Chicago, has become a big play producer including last Sunday against Arizona when he returned a punt 82 yards for a touchdown and also had a 41-       yard touchdown reception.  The Bears had the opportunity to put the franchise tag on Berrian and keep him.  Instead the Bears are being second guessed including by chicagotribune.com writer David Haugh who wrote the following earlier this week:

“Of all the regrets that eventually could define this Bears season, the biggest one popped up Sunday on your TV screen. Don’t adjust your set if it happens again. Bernard Berrian is right where the Vikings programmed him to be, dominating the NFC playoff picture with big plays.  The guy the Bears didn’t do enough to keep around last winter won’t go away now, and it will be his image more than any other that haunts the Bears this off-season if they miss the playoffs. …”

Savvy rookie quarterback Matt Ryan of the Falcons, here to play the Vikings on Sunday at the Metrodome, TiVo-ed press conferences of Tom Brady and Peyton Manning while at Boston College to better himself for media relations, according to a story in the December 15 issue of Sports Illustrated.

The Vikings and Arizona, with four players each, have the most starters on the first team NFC offensive and defensive Pro Bowl teams.  Chicago, competing for first place in the NFC North with the Vikings, had just one player (linebacker Lance Briggs) who made either the first or second teams.  Not only do the players enjoy a trip to Hawaii in February, those on the winning team receive $45,000 each while losers pocket $22,500, according to the NFL Players Association website.

Vikings executive Steve LaCroix reported by e-mail that playoff ticket invoices for season ticket holders are due today and general public sales (via Ticketmaster) will start immediately “upon qualifying for the playoffs.”

An MIAC officiating crew will work the Amos Alonzo Stagg Bowl, the Division III national championship gme, tomorrow at Salem, Virginia.  Mount Union will play Wisconsin-Whitewater.  Officiating will be Twin Citians Pat Whalen, Tom Tucker, Dan Pelletier, Dave Wittman, Scott Mitchell, Bill Nelson and Bill Merritt.

St. Thomas junior center Josh Ostrue and Carleton senior safety Drew Ziller have been named to the American Football Coaches’ Association (AFCA) Division III All-America team. Only 25 players nationwide were named to the team. The pair was also named to the D3football.com All-West Region first team last week.  D3football.com’s All-American team will be announced tomorrow.

Breck wide receiver Bryce McNeal is the only Minnesota prep selected for the January 3 U.S. Army All-American Bowl in San Antonio.  The game will be telecast on NBC.

Adrian Peterson, who leads the NFL in rushing with 1,581 yards, is also ahead of the league’s players in another category, most fumbles.  The second-year soon to be All-Pro has six on the season, one more than eight other running backs and quarterbacks who have five.

Peterson fumbled twice against the Lions a week ago Sunday and had two other near fumbles.  He avoided his third fumble in two weeks last Sunday against the Cardinals when officials ruled Peterson was on the ground before losing the ball.

Vikings fullback Naufahu Tahi was asked by Sports Headliners last week if Peterson receives leniency because of his extraordinary ability and performance.  No, Tahi answered, and he said Peterson knows that regardless of his “status” he has to secure the football.

Tahi said the coaching staff doesn’t have a set policy on discipline for fumbling. “There’s no set rule if you fumble (that) you gotta come out of the game but … you want to be able to take care of it and have the coaches trust that you can take care of the ball. …”

Peterson fumbled four times last year as a rookie in 238 rushing attempts.  This season, with two games to play, he has two more but he also has 320 rushing attempts.

Apparently the fumbles are an annoyance to his father, Nelson, who communicates with Vikings coach Brad Childress and tells him he will talk to his famous son about correcting the problem, according to Joe Buck of Fox Sports.  Buck spoke about that during the telecast of Sunday’s Vikings-Arizona game.

The fumble subject has been minimized by the Vikings four game winning streak and closing in on the NFC North Division championship.  Also, by Peterson‘s three consecutive 100-plus yard games including 165 on Sunday against the Cardinals.

The Vikings will finish the regular season having played their last seven games either in warm weather sites or covered stadiums.  Place-kicker Ryan Longwell, who played nine seasons with Green Bay before coming here, was asked about how “neutral conditions” help execute a game plan.

“It’s tough to play December cold games when there’s field conditions, and weather conditions, and wind conditions,” he said. “…I’ve seen it so many times in Lambeau (Field) when you game plan all week for a certain thing and you show up on game day and it doesn’t allow you to do what you practiced.  So you scrap it, you figure out a way to get through the game.  So having neutral conditions, you can kind of expect what you game plan for you can actually do.”

No league does parity better than the NFL and although seven teams have only won four or fewer games, the playoff contenders are many and it’s anyone’s guess which two teams will make the Super Bowl.  The Vikings are 9-5 and in first place in the NFC North but with two weeks left in the season could even miss the playoffs depending on how they and other teams perform.  Eleven teams in the NFC have seven losses or fewer.  And all of this means at least several NFL head coaching jobs could open up after the season.

Mike Sherels, who was a senior on Tim Brewster’s first Minnesota team in 2007, has a prediction as to when the Gophers will be special.  It will be the 2011 season when Brewster’s first full recruiting class (last February) become seniors.

Sherels is an assistant football coach at Prior Lake High School.

What’s in a name?  Apparently a lot if you’re former Gopher football player Greg White now in the NFL with the Tampa Bay Bucs.  On Monday a judge approved his new name, Stylez G. White, according to www.miamiherald.com and other news sources.  He chose the name because he liked a particular character in the Michael J. Fox movie “Teen Wolf.”

Former Gophers national championship coach Murray Warmath will be 96 on December 26.

Jerry Burns, former Vikings coach, will be 82 on January 24 and works out at a local health club every other day.