P.J. FLECK – Page 73 – David Shama's Minnesota Sports Headliners

2 Positions May Top U Recruiting List

Posted on September 19, 2018September 19, 2018 by David Shama

P.J. Fleck has 24 verbal commits for his 2019 recruiting class, per 247Sports, and that could mean his work is all but done. Yet there still could be some big news before National Signing Day in December.

Speculation is the Golden Gophers head coach will hold back a scholarship offer or two to see what develops in the coming months. Recruiting authority Ryan Burns from Gopherillustrated.com will be watching. “Defensive back and offensive tackle look like the two positions that they really want to address with these…remaining spots,” Burns told Sports Headliners.

Defensive backs Omar Brown from Minneapolis North and Jalen Graham from Detroit interest the Gophers, Burns said. So, too, do offensive tackles Joacheim Price of Algonquin, Illinois and Hunter Poncius from Buffalo, Minn.

Burns said Price might be the most highly sought after among players Minnesota is evaluating for a possible final scholarship or two. Price has multiple Big Ten offers but unfortunately tore his ACL earlier this summer.

Burns reported that Gophers offensive line coach Brian Callahan scouted Poncius at his game last Friday night. The 6-foot-8, 255-pound Poncius has verbally committed to North Dakota State but National Signing Day isn’t until December 19.

Under NCAA rules, schools have a hard cap of 25 players that can be signed to scholarships in a single football recruiting class. In the fall of 2017 Fleck also had most of his recruiting class lined up but added two offensive linemen late. They were IMG Academy four-star recruits Curtis Dunlap Jr. and Daniel Faalele.

“It’s always interesting to see what P.J. Fleck does in November-December, when it’s time to really make sure those signatures (Letters of Intent) count,” Burns said. “…With P.J. Fleck and the way he’s able to make a great first impression on kids, I am not really counting anything out.”

If one or more players who have committed changes his verbal pledge, that will open up more scholarships for Fleck’s class of 2019 that currently is ranked No. 30 nationally in the 247Sports composite national rankings.

Right now Burns looks at the list of 24 verbal commits and believes four-star defensive lineman Jason Bargy from Momence, Illinois could be the “crown jewel” of the 2019 class. Burns said the 6-foot-4, 255-pound Bargy might not contribute immediately but the prep senior has the highest “ceiling” of any defensive lineman coming to Minnesota since the days of Ra’Shede Hageman who left the program after the 2013 season.

“You can’t teach that size, that athleticism, that speed (of Bargy), and Gopher fans have been searching for that elite pass rusher for quite some time,” Burns said. “Well, once Minnesota is able to get Jason Bargy in here, given a year or two…I think he has the impact to absolutely be an impact player.”

Overall, what has Burns upbeat about the Gophers 2019 class is that Minnesota is going after and winning recruiting battles against other Power Five conference programs. Examples are Texas prep players Jacob Clark and Nnamdi Adim-Madumere. Clark, a quarterback, was recruited “hard” by Iowa and TCU, Burns said. Wide receiver Adim-Madumere turned down Alabama and Texas A&M when he committed to Minnesota.

“…P.J. is winning some recruiting battles that the previous staff wouldn’t even entertain,” Burns said. “If they did entertain them, they wouldn’t win them.”

Worth Noting

Running back and Minnesota verbal commit Treyson Potts from Williamsport, Pennsylvania injured his ACL a year ago but is playing again and he excites Burns. A potential playmaker in multiple ways, Potts might be the successor to Rodney Smith returning kickoffs in 2019 or 2020. “He is extremely electric when he gets the ball in space,” Burns said.

Jornell Manns, a freshman wide receiver from the 2018 recruiting class, is being redshirted but he intrigues Burns who predicts a starting role next season. “That is my bold call. I think he starts over (current redshirt freshman) Demetrius Douglas.

“I think his skillset is very unique. He can be in the slot, (and) in high school he played running back. So you can have him potentially take some carries out of the backfield, but he is a very dynamic player when he gets the ball in space.”

In its bowl projections this week Collegefootballnews.com predicted the Gophers against USC in the December 31 San Francisco Bowl in Santa Clara.

Recent dining options for Vikings quarterback Kirk Cousins include Jensen’s in Eagan and Murray’s downtown.

Head-scratcher: why is CBS sending its top NFL broadcast team of Jim Nantz and Tony Romo to Minneapolis for Sunday’s likely mismatch between the 0-2 Bills and 1-0-1 Vikings?

Superstitious: Timberwolves coach Tom Thibodeau drove the same route to Target Center last season when his team was on a winning streak.

Homecoming: The Minnesota United (versus Portland) will play at TCF Bank Stadium Saturday night in its first home game since August 4.

The United’s last regular season game at the Gophers’ football stadium will be October 22 and ticket sales are expected to go over 40,000 this week. TCF Bank Stadium has a capacity of more than 50,000 and the United is trying to set a new single match attendance record for Minnesota professional soccer.

A record announced attendance of 49,572 was established over 40 years ago at Met Stadium for a Kicks game. The Loons move into their new 20,000 capacity Allianz Field next year. See the promotion #50KToMidway.

No team in professional sports may eat better quality and tastier meals at its practice facility than the Minnesota Wild, now starting a second season being served by KZ Pro Visioning, the company founded by Minnesota culinary authorities Andrew Zimmern and Gavin Kaysen.

“We know that what you put in your body…is the most vital preventive there is. It’s also the most positive restorative there is,” Zimmern told Sports Headliners.

Zimmern suggested other professional sports organizations in America are more casual in both science and art when feeding athletes. KZ’s goal for the Wild is to hit all the right targets including glycerol, protein and calorie needs.

The food has to be right not only nutritionally, but satisfying. “…We look to food to fill us up many different ways, not just calorie counts,” Zimmern said.

With their knowledge and holistic approach, Zimmern and Kaysen intend to pitch their culinary expertise with KZ Pro Visioning to other American sports organizations within a year or so.

Both Zimmern and Kaysen are James Beard award winners. The connection with the Wild came when a player (Zimmern wouldn’t reveal his name) dined at one of Kaysen’s Minnesota restaurants and suggested how great it would be to have his teammates eat this well.

Zimmern, who lives in Edina, is famous nationally as a TV travel and food host on the Travel Channel. He grew up in New York City and participated in sports. “But then I got into 10th grade and I discovered girls and beer,” he said with a smile. “Otherwise, I would be in the pros right now; sort of like the Gordie Howe playing through five centuries with different teams.”

What would Zimmern eat everyday if he was limited to the same breakfast, lunch and dinner? With no hesitation he answered bagels and smoked fish for breakfast, mussels for lunch and his grandmother’s roast chicken for dinner.

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Twins to Explore Free Agent Market

Posted on September 12, 2018September 12, 2018 by David Shama

Enjoy a Wednesday notes column on baseball, basketball, football, sports wagering and tennis.

Twins president Dave St. Peter said the club will look at the free agent market this offseason, but that won’t be the main path for improving a team that had Central Division title ambitions last spring but is 12 games under .500 with the schedule ending September 30.

St. Peter said in an interview with Sports Headliners this summer that the roster core in the future will be comprised of players with the club now and in the farm system. He expressed confidence in the personnel already under the franchise’s contractual control.

Although the results and impact weren’t significant from the club’s free agent shopping last winter, St. Peter termed the efforts “aggressive.” He also debunked speculation that for whatever reasons free agents aren’t interested in coming to the state and playing for the Twins.

“I don’t think there is anything that detracts free agents from wanting to come to Minnesota,” St. Peter said. “I think that’s a fallacy. I don’t think it’s accurate. We haven’t played significantly in that space (pursuing free agents) so there really isn’t a lot of track record.

“I can assure you this past offseason we spent a lot of time talking to some very prominent free agents and they were all very willing to come to Minnesota. Normally, it comes down to dollars. That’s ultimately the driver.”

A remarkable half century association with St. Thomas ends next spring when Tommies athletics director Steve Fritz retires. Fritz will end an affiliation of 52 consecutive years with the school that began with being a student-athlete in basketball. He has known various roles at St. Thomas including coaching the men’s basketball team to the 2011 Division III national championship.

St. Paul Saints owner Mike Veeck has his team in the finals of the American Association playoffs against the Kansas City T-Bones. This could be the Saints’ first league playoff championship since 2004. The Kansas City, Kansas based T-Bones were originally the Duluth-Superior Dukes.

Veeck told Sports Headliners yesterday morning he was evacuating his home in Charleston, South Carolina and was headed to Florida because of hurricane Florence.

Before Joe Mauer came to the plate last night with the bases loaded, the Target Field public address system played the theme song from the Rocky movie, “Gonna Fly Now.” Mauer responded with a 416-foot home run to center field and later came out of the dugout for a curtain call. After the sixth inning blast, the Twins went on to defeat the Yankees 10-5, ending an eight game losing streak to New York.

The Vikings’ Mike Zimmer after being asked if he ever feels like he has the wind at his back while coaching in the NFL. “No, I always got the wind in my face. …”

When Mark Coyle was the athletic director at Syracuse he was interested in P.J. Fleck. Coyle was looking for a new head football coach in the fall of 2015 and Fleck was among recommended potential candidates. Fleck was coaching at Western Michigan and Coyle told Sports Headliners that people he trusted suggested contacting the young head coach who was gaining national attention.

Coyle said the two had a brief conversation because Fleck let it be known that coaching in the Big Ten was his dream and he didn’t want to pursue the Syracuse opening that ultimately was filled by Dino Babers. Coyle described the talk as a “really good conversation” and appreciated Fleck’s honesty and career ambitions.

The Broncos’ record was 8-5 in 2015 and then 13-1 the next season. That near undefeated 2016 season certainly got Coyle’s attention and on January 6, 2017 the then 36-year-old Fleck was named Minnesota’s head coach.

If there was a negative about the Gophers’ quality win against Fresno State last Saturday night, it was the home attendance at TCF Bank Stadium. The announced attendance of 38,280 was the lowest for a nonconference game in stadium history. It was also the second smallest crowd since the stadium opened in 2009.

Minnesota had an announced crowd of 41,291 for its first game of the season. That was on a Thursday night instead of a Saturday evening like the Fresno State game. The weekend night figured to pull more customers and so, too, did the opponent because Fresno is much better than New Mexico State who the Gophers opened against on August 30.

The Gophers, 2-0 going into Saturday’s home game against Miami of Ohio, have a number of intriguing freshmen and sophomores. Because Blaise Andries plays in the interior offensive line, he is more difficult to observe than many of the other young players but the redshirt freshman guard from Marshall, Minnesoa has caught Fleck’s attention. The coach refers to the 6-5, 315 pound Andries as someone who is “going to be a really great player.”

Part of Andries’ skillset is his intelligence. Fleck said, “He’s going to be an actuary, right. Remember, I didn’t even know what an actuary even was, and he wants to be that.”

Fleck believes Andries could eventually be moved to tackle. That switch would partially be determined by where he is needed as Minnesota also has promising young offensive linemen like true freshmen Curtis Dunlap Jr. and Daniel Faalale.

Former Gophers football player Kim Royston was named athletics director at Southwest High School in Minneapolis earlier this summer. The city school system might be close to naming a replacement for ex-Gopher basketballer Trent Tucker who resigned last winter as AD for all the public high schools in Minneapolis.

Former Gopher football captain Jim Carter is grateful for all the get well wishes this week after being hospitalized and receiving two angiogram procedures. He suffered a heart attack last Saturday with one of his arteries being 90 percent blocked. Now recovering, he texted yesterday that the response from people “has been humbling and somewhat overwhelming!”

Vikings safety Harrison Smith was named NFC Defensive Player of the Week today. In Minnesota’s opening win against the 49ers Sunday he had eight tackles, one interception and one fumble recovery. Smith could become a finalist for NFL Defensive Player of the Year.

Gopher basketball coach Richard Pitino said on WCCO Radio’s “Sports Huddle” show Sunday he is still waiting word from the NCAA whether Pittsburgh transfer and guard Marcus Carr will be eligible this fall. Carr averaged 10 points and four assists as a freshman last season at Pittsburgh.

Playing tennis added an average of 9.7 years to a person’s life, according to a Danish study reported last week by the Dailymail.com.

Shelley Buck, tribal council president for the Prairie Island Indian Community that owns Treasure Island Resort & Casino, said on a recent segment of TV’s “Behind the Game” that legalized sports betting won’t be as profitable for operators as other forms of gambling already in place. She also said casinos like Treasure Island have the experience and infrastructure to handle sports betting if and when it is approved in Minnesota.

A pro football source predicted to Sports Headliners that the approval of legalized sports betting in Minnesota is only a couple of years off.

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Ex-Captain Opens Up on U Football

Posted on September 7, 2018September 7, 2018 by David Shama

P.J. Fleck has more than a boatload of critics and doubters but the captain of the last Golden Gophers Big Ten championship football team believes Minnesotans should get behind the second-year coach, including filling up TCF Bank Stadium on game days.

Tom Sakal, captain of the 1967 Gophers, is retired now from a career as an insurance executive. Anyone who knew Sakal back in the 1960s isn’t surprised he climbed the corporate ladder. The former All-Big Ten defensive back from Aliquippa, Pennsylvania has long been a leader, and a person with the courage to say and do difficult things including military service in the jungles of Vietnam.

Between 1960 and 1968 the Gophers won one national championship, two Big Ten titles and split two Rose Bowls. During their best stretch, from 1960-1962, Minnesota’s record was 22-6-1. Sakal’s 1967 team tied for the Big Ten title and had an overall record of 8-2. That 1967 bunch, he will tell you, could play with any team in the country.

Minnesota’s title drought of more than 50 years has bugged the hell out of Sakal for a long time. More often than not, Minnesota hasn’t even been good enough to play better than .500 football during a Big Ten season. Since 1990, for example, the Gophers have just five years when they won more conference games than they lost. The Gophers have played in one New Year’s Day bowl game during their drought.

A year ago Sakal was in town for a 50-year reunion of his 1967 championship team. He was invited to breakfast with Fleck, who has been met with criticism and indifference by a lot of Gophers fans and media. Sakal told Fleck about his frustrations with U football for half a century. Sakal talked about how tired he was of losing games over the years, sometimes by large and embarrassing margins.

“I said this has been ridiculous over the years. It’s a disgrace,” Sakal told Sports Headliners in a telephone interview this week.

Sakal said he “pulled no punches” during the breakfast conversation with Fleck. “I said you need to recruit some big-time players. You need to get these facilities built up and continue to increase (them) on this campus.”

Fleck has two recruiting classes in as Gophers head coach after being named to his position in January of 2017. He and his staff had only a couple of weeks to work on the first recruiting class but since then things have become more interesting. The Gophers, in comparison with other major college programs, have drawn higher national rankings from recruiting experts than has historically been true at Minnesota. Another distinction from the past is Minnesota is bringing in more players that other major programs wanted, sometimes even convincing a recruit to say no to a blue-chip team like Georgia.

Sakal knows the importance of gifted talent from his own experiences in college football. He was part of a much publicized 1964 recruiting class at Minnesota that brought players in from football strongholds like Pennsylvania and as seniors they formed much of the 1967 title team’s core.

Now Sakal observes what Fleck is doing in recruiting and expresses some caution but also optimism. “Everything looks good on paper,” he said.

Sakal thinks about Fleck’s personality and sees a coach who can resonate with the teenagers he is trying to recruit. “The guy runs about 10,000 RPMs a second. He just has a different personality, a different approach to things. Enthusiastic. Boy, I haven’t seen anybody like him in a long time. Those are the things that I kind of like about the guy.”

Fleck is the first to acknowledge that not everyone likes him. His Row the Boat mantra and outspoken promotion about a new culture for the program has been too rah-rah for many in Gopher Nation. More to the point for many fans is that Minnesota won just two Big Ten games in Fleck’s first season after a 5-4 conference record in 2016. The overall record slipped from 9-4 to 5-7.

Fleck’s critics include friends Sakal made at the U while playing for the Gophers. Many were admirers of the Jerry Kill-Tracy Claeys era at Minnesota but are far from on board with Fleck. Those friends say Fleck hasn’t given credit to the foundation and good things from that Kill-Claeys era including the remarkable turn around in academics among players. Kill, known for his straight talk and folksy demeanor, was particularly popular with almost all Gophers fans and he had the program on the rise until health issues drove him out of coaching.

Sakal has watched the negative reaction of his longtime friends to Fleck and he is critical of them. “It started from day one. What the hell is wrong with you guys? He (hadn’t) even stepped on campus yet. You gotta give a guy a chance.”

Sakal receives second-guessing for being open-minded that Fleck can become successful at Minnesota. “I always get blasted. There’s only one thing I know about—winning and losing. All the other side rhetoric shows that go on, I could give a crap about. They were making a big deal out of this Row the Boat, Ski-U-Mah (stuff). …All I want is to look at the (news)paper and see Minnesota 9-1, 10-0, playing in a big bowl game, going for the national championship. I could care less about this stuff.”

Sakal isn’t guaranteeing the Gophers will become a consistent winner under Fleck but he argues everyone should give the 37-year-old coach time and support before making judgments. “I personally think it will take four to five years (to establish the program),” Sakal said. “And I think it needs a thousand percent support by all Minnesotans. There is no reason, no reason whatsoever, that we can’t have a full stadium regardless of what our record is. They need to support the Gophers. …I think we can be a power again.”

The Gophers have 113 players on their roster and 60 of them—or 53.1 percent—are true freshmen or redshirt freshmen. Those are the highest numbers in the country among major college football programs.

Those figures indicate a Gophers breakthrough isn’t coming this year. Sakal agrees with others, including local and national media, that Minnesota’s win total will be around five games. But a conversation with Sakal includes hints he believes the program is going in the right direction.

Some day, Sakal said, the U may have to make Fleck among the best paid coaches in the land. “I think the Gophers are going to find out they’re going to pay for his success in the end. He’s not going to come cheap, that’s for sure.”

If so, Sakal will consider the cost a long overdue debt that was finally paid off.

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