Gophers Football – Page 235 – David Shama's Minnesota Sports Headliners

Ex-Bridgewater Teammate Top Prospect

Posted on January 13, 2015January 13, 2015 by David Shama

It’s possible that with the No. 11 pick in the first round of this year’s NFL Draft the Vikings will choose a former teammate of quarterback Teddy Bridgewater. DeVante Parker was a much targeted wide receiver when the two played their junior seasons at Louisville in 2013.

Parker, 6-3 and 210, is one of the best wide receiver prospects for the 2015 draft. Although Parker doesn’t have elite speed, he has quickness and has shown ability to get open and make yards after a catch. In 2013 he gained 785 yards on 55 catches while scoring 12 touchdowns.

After his junior year he considered coming out for the draft but remained at Louisville. A broken bone in his foot last season limited him to seven games but he had team best and impressive stats—855 receiving yards, averaging 19.9 yards per reception and 122.1 yards a game.

The Vikings have multiple needs including offensive line, linebacker and in the secondary, but it might be difficult to pass on Parker, a player Bridgewater knows well. Bridgewater established himself as the team’s No. 1 quarterback during the 2014 season but the passing game has plenty of room for improvement.

The Vikings were 29th in the 32-team NFL last season in touchdown passes. They had 17 touchdown throws and 18 interceptions, making them one of three teams in the league with more interceptions than touchdowns. Minnesota’s average pass gain of 6.9 yards ranked No. 25 and only four teams had fewer pass plays of 40 yards or more than the Vikings with seven.

Former Viking Bob Lurtsema, who remains close to the team, said “absolutely” he believes the front office should select a wide receiver with the No. 11 pick who can stretch the field. “You gotta get the corners off, get the corners to back up and respect you,” he told Sports Headliners. “Teddy Bridgewater is the real deal.”

Lurtsema learned to admire Bridgewater during the season including the poise of the 22-year-old and how teammates warmed to him. “He’s a great kid,” Lurtsema said.

Bridgewater was named to the All-Rookie Team by the Pro Football Writers Association, according to an announcement today. The Vikings had a 6-6 record in his 12 starts. He completed 259 of 402 attempts (64.4 percent) for the third-highest completion percentage among rookie quarterbacks in NFL history.

Bridgewater’s 85.2 passer rating ranks as the seventh-highest passer rating among rookies in league history and best for a rookie in Vikings history. He led all rookie quarterbacks with 224.5 passing yards per game. He threw for 14 touchdowns and had 12 interceptions.

Worth Noting

Lurtsema has a lot of praise for another Vikings newcomer last season. He compares head coach Mike Zimmer’s no baloney style with legendary Bud Grant. “Zimmer is out of sight,” Lurtsema said. “Players love playing for him. … He tells it like it is. He’s got a little Budism. He’ll tell you the truth.”

Later this month the Pro Football Hall of Fame Selection Committee will consider former Vikings center Mick Tingelhoff among 18 finalists for induction into the Canton, Ohio shrine. Tingelhoff played in 240 consecutive games over 17 seasons with the Vikings. He participated in six Pro Bowls.

Former Vikings running back Clinton Jones, who played collegiately at Michigan State, is part of the 2015 College Football Hall of Fame group announced by the National Football Foundation.

Giovan Jenkins, who played at Washburn and later became an assistant coach, is resigning as head football coach for the Minneapolis high school. In March he will become a volunteer assistant for the Gophers.

“I am very excited for the opportunity of a lifetime,” Jenkins told Sports Headliners. “It was a tough decision.”

During his 14 seasons as an assistant or head coach, the Millers compiled a 109-34 record. They won 13 city championships, appeared in six section playoff finals and one state tournament. Jenkins had many outstanding players on his team including Jeff Jones, a Rivals.com four-star recruit in 2014, who hopes to be the starting running back at Minnesota this fall.

Jenkins will continue his position as ninth grade dean of students at Washburn. Moving up into a college football role is something he’s thought about for years. “Leaving home is never easy,” Jenkins said. “I bleed orange and blue.”

With the Gophers Jenkins’ assignments are expected to include on-campus recruiting and analyzing game films. “It will be an opportunity to learn college football at the highest level from some of the best people in the business,” he said.

No announcement has been made about Jenkins’ successor at Washburn.

Aaron Hicks, 25, has played parts of two seasons in the major leagues for the Twins but hasn’t established himself as the team’s regular center fielder. In 150 total games with 467 at bats the athletic center fielder’s batting average is .201. Twins president Dave St. Peter recently told Sports Headliners it can take time for the “game to slow down” for some players and noted Torii Hunter, who became an All-Star, went “back and forth” between the majors and minors before establishing himself as one of the Twins’ best players ever.

St. Peter said there is no update on whether former manager Ron Gardenhire will accept an offer to stay with the organization. Gardenhire’s role hasn’t been defined. St. Peter said after 13 seasons leading the Twins, Gardenhire has earned the opportunity to set his own schedule regarding future plans.

Glen Taylor, the longtime Timberwolves owner, is the new owner of the Star Tribune and the Mankato-based billionaire meets monthly to be advised about the newspaper. Taylor said his daughter, Jean Taylor, represents him and typically meets weekly regarding newspaper details.

Gophers football coach Jerry Kill said on WCCO Radio’s “Sports Huddle” program Sunday that he expects four newcomers to participate in spring practice which begins March 2. Kill said he wasn’t sure if NCAA policy allowed him to identify them on the air. One player is known to be Iowa Western Community College transfer Charlie Rodgers, a defensive back. As a junior college player, he was allowed to sign his National Letter of Intent last month.

Kill also said among players who have been injured and unable to play, defensive lineman Scott Ekpe is the only one not expected to participate in spring practice. Ekpe, a junior, made his first career start in Minnesota’s opening game in 2014 but suffered a season-ending knee injury.

The Gophers will be looking to find a replacement for record-setting senior running back David Cobb. Kill mentioned multiple candidates but the most surprising name was Josh Parks from Chisago Lakes. Parks is a redshirt freshman and preferred walk-on who joined the program last year. His senior year in high school he averaged 9.5 yards per carry and was named third team all-state.

National Football Signing Day for high school players is February 4. Kill said the Gophers 2015 recruiting class may total about 23 players.

Zac Epping, who started 47 consecutive games on the offensive line for the Gophers and this fall was named first team All-Big Ten by the media, has retained Minneapolis-based attorney James Selmer of Selmer Sports Management as his agent. Epping is preparing for the NFL Draft with the help of Gophers strength and conditioning coach Eric Klein, and offensive coordinator and line coach Matt Limegrover.

It won’t be surprising if the College Football Playoff National Championship is played in Minneapolis within the next several years. Last night’s first ever game was hosted by AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas. The 2016 game has been awarded to the University of Phoenix Stadium in Glendale, Arizona. Raymond James Stadium in Tampa will host the 2017 game. Arlington and Glendale have retractable roof stadiums while Raymond James is open air.

The College Football Playoff is run by FBS schools including the Big Ten. With schools represented from all over the country there is likely to be sentiment for staging the championship game in varied locations including the north. The new domed Vikings stadium is scheduled to open in 2016 and its only competition to host the national title game within Big Ten country comes from Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis and Ford Field in Detroit. With the Minneapolis stadium expected to be state-of-the-art and among the newest NFL covered football facilities in the country, odds seem high the city will one day host the game. Stadium promoters can already boast of booking the 2018 Super Bowl and 2019 Final Four.

The Minnesota Sports Facilities Authority, the Vikings and SMG announced recently that Patrick Talty has been hired as SMG’s general manager for the new Minneapolis stadium. SMG is contracted to operate and manage the facility on behalf of the MSFA. Talty joins SMG from World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) where he most recently served as the senior vice president of Live Events. Talty’s career experiences include assistant general manager for the University of Phoenix Stadium in Glendale.

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OSU ‘Transformation’ Wows Glen Mason

Posted on January 11, 2015January 11, 2015 by David Shama

Former Gophers head coach Glen Mason predicts Ohio State will win the first ever College Football Playoff National Championship tomorrow night in Arlington, Texas. Oregon is about a six point favorite but Mason spoke with conviction and enthusiasm regarding the Buckeyes during a telephone interview with Sports Headliners.

Mason played football at Ohio State and later was an assistant coach for the Buckeyes. Now he’s a lead analyst for the Big Ten Network. There is no disputing Mason has Ohio State and Big Ten roots but he was convincing the other day when he raved about the Buckeyes’ last two games and the talent coach Urban Meyer has assembled in Columbus.

The Buckeyes were an unexpected entrant in the four-team college playoffs. Despite their 11-1 record going into the Big Ten Championship game on December 6, the Buckeyes didn’t come up a lot in conversations targeting the four teams likely to be invited to participate in the playoffs. In the last regular season game on November 29 against Michigan, starting quarterback J.T. Barrett broke his ankle. Barrett had replaced the injured Braxton Miller as the starter in August. For the Big Ten title game the Buckeyes had to start their third team quarterback from last summer, Cardale Jones.

No problem.

Ohio State destroyed Wisconsin 59-0 to win the Big Ten championship. That stunning performance and score earned an invitation to join Alabama, Florida State and Oregon in the playoffs. Alabama was the most popular choice to emerge as the national champion but the Buckeyes refused a ride on the Crimson Tide bandwagon. In the semifinal playoff game between the two legendary programs, the Buckeyes rallied from a 21-6 deficit to win 42-35.

A lot of college football observers are impressed with the Buckeyes. “They’re on a roll right now,” Mason said. “I’ve never seen a team that’s gone through a transformation in two games like Ohio State. They were a good team this year, now they’re a really good team. They became a really good team against Wisconsin and parlayed it right into the game against Alabama.”

Oregon, of course, hasn’t exactly stumbled in its last couple of games. In the Pac-12 championship game the Ducks avenged their only loss of the season with a convincing 51-13 win over Arizona. Then in the semifinal playoff game against undefeated Florida State the Ducks easily defeated the Seminoles, 59-20. “Both these teams are peaking at the right time,” Mason said.

When Mason coached the Gophers he spoke about “swagger.” After the Gophers earned a big win, he might talk about the program’s confidence. The secretaries in the football office even carried themselves differently, he claimed.

Mason sees that “swagger” with the Buckeyes. He brought that up with Meyer before the Alabama game and the Buckeyes coach agreed his team was different than earlier in the season. “They’ve gotten their swagger back, their confidence,” Mason said. “I don’t think they had it during the year up until they played Wisconsin. …”

Mason described it as “truly amazing” Ohio State can be playing in tomorrow night’s national championship game after not only losing their two top quarterbacks but also seeing seven players from last year’s team become starters in the NFL.

Among the losses from the 2013 team were four starting offensive linemen. Replacing those four and having such an inexperienced line was worrisome last summer regarding national championship hopes but those prospects really seemed doomed when Miller—a leading candidate to win the Hesiman Trophy—injured his shoulder and was ruled out for the season.

“If they win Monday they’ll have a national championship. It’s a testament to the amount of talent that Ohio State (has) and it’s a testament to the coaching job being done by Urban Meyer and the coaching staff,” Mason said.

Jones, a 6-5, 250-pound redshirt sophomore, threw for 243 yards and one long touchdown against Alabama. He also ran for 89 yards. Mason praised Jones’ abilities to “punish” tacklers when he runs and also the inexperienced quarterback’s arm strength. “They call him 12-gauge because he wears No. 12 and he’s got an arm like a shotgun,” Mason said.

Miller, a senior, has twice been the Big Ten MVP. Barrett, a redshirt freshman, was so impressive for most of the 2014 season he finished fifth in the Heisman Trophy voting. Jones has turned heads in his two starts against Wisconsin and Alabama.

Mason couldn’t remember one college team ever having three quarterbacks so talented. All three have remaining college eligibility and they could be back with the Buckeyes next season—although transferring to another school perhaps is also in the mix for Miller or Jones. “If they all stayed at Ohio State, you’d have three guys that would be (in) the Heisman Trophy discussion at the same position going into the season,” Mason said.

Tomorrow night Ohio State will have to contend with Oregon’s skilled passing and running quarterback Marcus Mariota. The redshirt junior from Hawaii has thrown 40 touchdown passes in 14 games this season and rushed for 15 more. He has thrown only three interceptions. He was a unanimous first-team All-American and won the 2014 Heisman Trophy.

Winning college football’s most prestigious individual award can be a precursor to something bigger—a national championship. Quarterbacks Cam Newton from Auburn and Jameis Winston of Florida State won Heismans in 2010 and 2013, and then led their teams to national titles.

The Ducks are known for their speed and Big Ten teams have long been considered a plodding bunch but don’t get too caught up in stereotypes. When Mason coached the Gophers they defeated Alabama and Arkansas, two programs from the speed-based Southeastern Conference. After those games opposing coaches told Mason they had underestimated the Gophers’ speed.

Mason didn’t even think the Gophers were a fast team but Ohio State is. He watched the Buckeyes against Alabama and thought, “Ohio State is the fastest team out here.”

Oregon is second in the country in scoring at 47.2 points per game while the Buckeyes are fifth at 45 points. OSU ranks at No. 26 in scoring defense allowing 22.1 points. The Ducks are No. 27, allowing 22.3 points.

Comparable stats for two 13-1 teams who have apparently saved their best football for the biggest stage. No wonder Mason predicts it will be a “heck of a contest.”

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Don’t Bid Adieu to Gophers Football Yet

Posted on January 7, 2015January 7, 2015 by David Shama

North Dakota State plays Illinois State for the FCS national title on Saturday and Ohio State faces Oregon for the College Football Playoff National Championship next Monday but otherwise the 2014-2015 college season, including for the Gophers, is history. Here are one man’s random observations about the Big Ten and Minnesota.

Big Ten Power Poll ranking teams? Let’s go six-deep: Ohio State, Michigan State, Wisconsin, Minnesota, Nebraska and Penn State. Power polls of teams are common but here’s a ranking in order of the conference’s best half-dozen coaches:

1. Urban Meyer, Ohio State. In three years in Columbus he is a preposterous 37-3, including 24-0 for Big Ten regular season games. Many college football authorities will argue he’s the best coach in the land. Need more be said?

2. Mark Dantonio, Michigan State. The Spartans’ stunning fourth quarter rally to defeat point-a-minute Baylor in the Cotton Bowl on New Year’s Day is just a snapshot of Dantonio’s success at MSU, a program that historically has underachieved. The Spartans are 75-31 under Dantonio and MSU has become more than a basketball school.

3. Jim Harbaugh, Michigan. He announced years ago at then-lowly Stanford that his program will bow to no one. The Cardinal became a national power and is still feeling his impact. Imagine now what he can do at Michigan, college football’s winningest program.

4. Jerry Kill, Minnesota. In four years at Minnesota Kill has become a poster boy for program turnarounds. The Gophers have won nine Big Ten games during the last two years, the best run like that since 1999-2000.

5. James Franklin, Penn State. Check the Rivals.com recruiting lists since last January when Franklin took over in Happy Valley to get one measure of his impact at this scandal torn program. Now look at his impressive 24-15 record at Vanderbilt—where nobody wins—to understand why Franklin is placing the roar back in the Nittany Lions.

6. Kyle Flood, Rutgers. Bet you never would have guessed the Scarlet Knights head coach gets the No. 6 spot. He is the lowest paid head coach in the Big Ten but far from the worst. In three seasons in Piscataway he is 23-16 including a win in the recent Quick Lane Bowl. He does more with less including hiring quality staff like former Maryland head coach Ralph Friedgen as offensive coordinator. Other assistants include Mitch Browning who coached for the Gophers and Norries Wilson who played for Minnesota.

Among those who didn’t make the super six list are Iowa’s Kirk Ferentz, Nebraska’s Mike Riley and Wisconsin’s Paul Chryst. The Iowa program has grown stale under Ferentz and that’s not a good thing when you earn about $4 million per year. Riley is a solid coach who proved his worth over and over at Oregon State—Oregon’s poor sister. Don’t expect him to be Tom Osborne, though. And another new head coach in the Big Ten, Chryst, will operate in the large shadow of Badgers athletic director Barry Alvarez. Badgers fans will expect a lot more than Chryst delivered as head coach at Pittsburgh where he was 19-19 in three years.

The Big Ten can thump its chest (for a change) about its bowl results. League teams are 5-5 in bowl games this season and the Buckeyes can give the Big Ten a winning postseason record if they win the national title. The Big Ten was 10-21 the previous four years in bowls. No team from the conference has won the national championship since Ohio State in 2002.

Rich Exner, writing on Monday for Cleveland.com, pointed out the Big Ten has more bowl wins in 2014-15 against ranked opponents than any other conference. The Pac-12 has the best bowl record at 6-2 while the SEC is 7-5.

It’s unique that Ohio State has three quarterbacks as talented as sophomore Cardale Jones (now the starter), freshman J.T. Barrett (No. 1 most of the season) and senior Braxton Miller (injured all year but a preseason Heisman Trophy candidate). Can’t think of another college team that ever had the collective skill set of the Jones, Barrett and Miller trio.

After the January 1 Citrus Bowl loss to Missouri, the Gophers are now winless in their last seven bowls, including 0-3 under Kill. Ball State and Minnesota have the longest bowl losing streak in the country at 0-7.

That’s something Kill and his staff will fix. The Gophers have been 8-5 the last two seasons and Kill expects to have his best team in 2015. Recruiting and coaching are paying off with more talent and production. The defense has been rebuilt and the special teams are usually solid if not exceptional. The way Missouri caught Minnesota unprepared at the Citrus Bowl on a fake punt and onside kick was unusual for the Gophers and not the norm.

The offense is still a project in Kill’s brick-by-brick rebuilding of the rubble he inherited in 2010. Against top 20 teams like Missouri, having an offense that produces 17 points isn’t going to generate a “w” very often. The staff still has to solve personnel challenges at quarterback, receiver and perhaps in the line.

Even if Mitch Leidner has arrived at being the program’s first consistent quarterback in awhile, a reliable backup who can pass is needed. Quality and depth at wide receiver has been an ongoing issue and that needs to be solved in 2015. Line play has been inconsistent during the Kill regime but improved last fall. That maturation should continue this spring and beyond.

Leidner’s 21 of 31 passing for 258 yards in the bowl game was impressive. The Gophers are 2-25 under Kill when trailing at halftime but a better passing game led by Leidner, a junior in 2015, will help change that stat. (Kill’s record when leading at halftime is 20-1).

Leidner, Gophers teammates and fans will obviously miss tight end Maxx Williams who is leaving for the NFL Draft with two seasons of eligibility remaining. The All-American simply was the best big play tight end in school history. His spectacular 54-yard touchdown against Missouri, after catching a Leidner pass, will be archived in the school’s football highlights vault for decades.

During spring practices eyes will be on the running back spot to see who can replace school-record setter David Cobb. Promising freshmen Jeff Jones and Rodney Smith will get plenty of stares but don’t be surprised if senior Rodrick Williams uses his experience, power and straight ahead speed to win the job. What about sophomore speed-man Berkley Edwards? Edwards must show he can avoid injuries and have an all-around game.

Defensively the Gophers’ best unit could again be the secondary. Senior cornerbacks Eric Murray and Briean Boddy-Calhoun will be All-Big Ten candidates, and there’s plenty of other help on defense too in the secondary, and among the linebackers and linemen. It will be interesting to watch several defensive players in the spring including linebacker junior college transfer Cody Poock who looked like a starter before tearing an ACL and also fireplug sophomore defensive tackle Steven Richardson who impressed so much as a freshman.

Special teams players include junior Jalen Myrick who finished second in the Big Ten on kickoff returns by averaging 28.2 yards. Senior punter Peter Mortell was second in conference punting average at 45.1 yards and junior placekicker Ryan Santos excelled in kickoffs, field goals and extra points. The three returnees help form the nucleus of outstanding special teams.

Offensive, defensive and special teams players all benefit learning from a staff that has remarkable longevity with Kill. Seven assistants have been with him 14 years or more. Leading the list are strength coach Eric Klein, 21 years, and defensive coordinator Tracy Claeys, 20.

The biggest offseason Gophers’ story seems likely to be the announcement of a new football complex expected to cost $25 million or more. Ground breaking and construction on the much talked about and coveted new facility is anticipated this year.

Season ticket holders and other Gophers fans will have a home nonconference game in 2015 to get excited about. The September 3 opening game at TCF Bank Stadium is against TCU, a team that looks like a cinch to be ranked somewhere between No. 1 and No. 5 nationally in the preseason polls. Every seat will be sold and hopefully occupied for that game because a Gophers upset could set the pace for a special season.

The season closes with two of the later fall home games in program history—November 21 with Illinois and November 28 against Wisconsin. Bundle up!

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