Author: David Shama

Vikings coach Brad Childress returns to his high school in Aurora, Illinois to give the commencement address this weekend.  His theme will be the “journey” of life.

Labor negotiations are going on with Star Tribune newsroom employees.  Don’t be surprised if salaries remain among the best in the country for daily newspaper reporters but the number of employees is cut.

It was 20 years ago that the Minnesota North Stars, with the first pick in the NHL Entry Draft, chose Mike Modano.  He turns 38 next month and had an outstanding playoff with the Dallas Stars who lost in the Western Conference finals to Detroit.  Modano scored five goals and had seven assists in 18 games.  He owns a long list of North Stars/Stars records.

Former Twins pitcher Frank Viola will be the manager of the Leesburg Lightning in the Florida Collegiate Summer League, according to my friend Dave Wright, senior editor at August Publications in Minneapolis.  This is a wooden bat league similar to the popular Northwoods League that includes teams from Minnesota.

The 2008 U.S. Women’s Open coming to Interlachen June 23-29 will be the 35^th USGA championship to take place in Minnesota.  California and Minnesota are the only two states to have hosted the 13 different USGA championships including the men’s and women’s U.S. Opens.

Ticket information is available at www.2008uswomensopen.com.  Kids 17 and under are admitted free with a ticketed adult.  An adult may bring up to nine children free of charge.

ESPN2 will have a preview show about the Open from 5 to 6 p.m. on June 25.   ESPN will provide coverage June 26 and 27, and NBC on June 28 and 29.

Former Gophers Lewis Garrison and Mark Smith are co-directors of football operations for a skills development camp that will be working with youth and high school age players. The camp begins June 16 and Garrison wrote in an e-mail that “to our knowledge this will be the first of its kind in this area.”  More information is available at www.bcsacademy.com/skills-development-camp.cfm.

For a fourth consecutive year, Winona State has won the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference (NSIC) All-Sports Award with 94 points, 15.5 points ahead of second-place Wayne State College.  Minnesota Duluth and Winona State are the only two schools to win the NSIC All-Sports Award in its nine year history.  Winona State won four titles during 2007-08, football, men’s basketball, men’s golf and women’s soccer. Coach Mike Leaf’s men’s basketball team participated in a third consecutive NCAA Division II national championship game, winning the 2006 and 2008 national championships.

For the 32nd consecutive season, Big Ten Conference men’s basketball programs led the nation in attendance, according to numbers released by the NCAA. The Big Ten ranked first among all conferences with an average of 12,978 fans per game/session, 838 more than the SEC at 12,140. The NCAA’s final attendance numbers and rankings include both regular season and conference tournament attendance.

The Gophers averaged 12,987 fans per game during the regular season, the highest per game average since 1999-2000 (13,767).  Minnesota, in Tubby Smith’s first year as coach, averaged over 2,000 more fans per game last season than in 2006-07.

The Big Ten had five schools among the country’s top 25 in average attendance, with two programs among the top 10.  No other conference placed more than four teams among the top 25.  Wisconsin led the Big Ten, ranking seventh nationally with an average of 17,190 fans per game.  Indiana finished No. 9 with a 16,876 average followed by No. 11 Illinois (16,618), No. 12 Ohio State (16,587) and No. 17 Michigan State (14,759).

Last night’s NBA lottery left the Timberwolves with the No. 3 pick in the June 26 NBA draft and on the outside looking in regarding the consensus first two choices, guard Derrick Rose and forward Michael Beasley.  Better lottery luck no doubt would have left Wolves coach Randy Wittman feeling better.

Back in April, Wittman heard the news along with others inside and outside the organization that Kevin McHale thinks the Wolves are capable of winning up to 20 more games next season.  The statement by the Wolves vice president surprised the local basketball world and put Wittman in even a hotter box than this past season when the team finished 22-60, the third worst record in the NBA. That brought Wittman’s career NBA coaching record to 96-192.  His record in Cleveland was 62-102 in two seasons.  He is 34-90 in about one and one-half seasons with the Wolves.

Wittman hasn’t been surrounded by extraordinary talent in his head coaching assignments.  He won’t be next season either.  The Wolves are young and trying to develop a winning nucleus, competing in the Western Conference against several teams that are much further advanced in both abilities and experience.

With declining interest in the team and an absence from the playoffs since 2004, the Wolves management and ownership need a team that looks like it’s improving.  If next year’s model doesn’t fit the profile, it’s a duh to wonder if Wittman won’t get the blame and a pink slip.

Up to a 20 game improvement?  In franchise history the biggest improvement was the 1996-97 season when the Wolves won 14 games more than the year before.  That team had soon to be super star Kevin Garnett, in his second NBA season, plus a sensational rookie point guard in Stephon Marbury, and a versatile veteran forward in Tom Gugliotta who could score, rebound and pass.

The last time the Wolves lost at least 60 games in a season was 1994-95 (21-61 record).  In the 1995 draft the Wolves had the No. 5 pick and chose Garnett. The next season the team went 26-56, winning five more games even after adding Garnett.

Over the years, of course, the Wolves have often drafted poorly.  No matter who they come up with picking at No. 2 this year, the odds are long that there will be a 20 game improvement in wins next season.

Let’s make it a 10 game upgrade and cross our fingers.  I think Wittman will breathe easier.

When the Gopher football team begins practice in August no new player will draw more attention than quarterback MarQueis Gray from Ben Davis High School in Indianapolis.  Gray might have the hottest high school reputation of any Gopher quarterback recruit in 50 years, dating back to 1958 when Sandy Stephens arrived here from Uniontown, Pennsylvania after turning down schools like Ohio State to play for Minnesota.

Gray was selected last January for the prestigious U.S. Army All-American Bowl in San Antonio.  He completed three of seven passes for 56 yards and a touchdown.              He also rushed for 41 yards and a touchdown.  He was ranked by rivals.com as the No. 3 “dual threat” quarterback in the country and the No. 1 recruit in Indiana.

Gopher coach Tim Brewster told Sports Headliners that Gray is adept at throwing and running.  “He’s a true quarterback who is very athletic,” Brewster said.

Neither Brewster, Gray or anyone else, can know how soon he will be playing on game days for the Gophers. Quarterback Adam Weber was a third-team freshman All-America and freshman All-Big Ten selection by The Sporting News last season. He started all 12 games, passed for 2,895 yards and 24 touchdowns, setting school records for pass completions, attempts, yards and touchdown passes.

Gray’s most immediate opportunity could be to take over as the No. 2 quarterback. Brewster said spring practice ended without any of Weber’s backups claiming the job.

Gray’s challenge is learning the Gophers’ complex spread offense and Brewster said “we won’t put him out there until he’s ready.”  Although Brewster said Gray ran a spread offense in high school, the difference between there and the Gopher system is “day and night.”  He also said Weber, who was a redshirt freshman last season, not a true freshman, could be the first to explain in detail what an “unbelievable amount of information” is involved with the Gopher offense and what a challenge it is for an inexperienced quarterback.

A red shirt season is a possibility for Gray.  Yet the Gophers were fortunate last season that despite a lot of pounding from opposing players, Weber didn’t miss any games.  Gray could be the alternative if Weber is hurt.

“We want to bring the young guy in and let him compete, and gauge where he’s at, particularly as a thinker,” Brewster said. “Once he assimilates, you are truly going to see a magnificent athlete.”

Besides his athleticism, there’s something else that excites the coach.  Gray told Brewster his priority is to become a “good teammate.”