Golden Gophers – Page 150 – David Shama's Minnesota Sports Headliners

Don’t Expect Vikings to Change ID

Posted on October 3, 2019October 3, 2019 by David Shama

A Thursday notes column, focusing on the Minnesota Vikings and Minnesota Wild:

The 2-2 Vikings produced just 40 rushing yards last Sunday in their 16-6 loss to the Chicago Bears. But it will be a surprise if Minnesota doesn’t emphasize running the football against the 2-2 New York Giants this coming Sunday at MetLife Stadium in New Jersey.

Vikings head coach Mike Zimmer wants a physical, rushing offense and that was his message long before the season started. While the offensive line and quarterback Kirk Cousins have been inconsistent, no one doubts the skills of running back Dalvin Cook who ranks second in the NFL in rushing yards at 410.

“I think the way Dalvin is running the ball, I think it’s just kind of building things off of that…and just finding different ways to get people involved,” backup quarterback Sean Mannion told Sports Headliners when talking about what’s next for the offense.

Even when the offense is slowed like it was against the Bears (perhaps the NFL’s best defense) the Vikings are advised to still focus on their playmakers starting with Cook who makes both short and long gains with only minimal running space available. Wide receivers Adam Thielen and Stefon Diggs can also make the proverbial “something out of nothing” plays.

Looking toward next Sunday and beyond, Cook said “it’s important to get the running game going early” to open passing routes so wide receivers can make plays. He also expressed confidence in Cousins who has struggled in both of the team‘s losses, games that came against NFC North Division rivals the Bears and Packers—the two best teams Minnesota has played so far.

The Giants will offer a mediocre defense to test the Vikings playmakers. The unit ranks No. 25 in the 32-team NFL, giving up 389.2 yards per game. Former Viking Matt Birk predicted on KFAN Radio yesterday his old team will win by more than three touchdowns.

The Vikings’ defense has impressed after four games. Minnesota has allowed only one rushing touchdown and has made 24 tackles for loss (tied with Carolina and Pittsburgh for most in the league). The Vikings are giving up 321.8 yards per game, sixth best in the league.

The Giants have names familiar to Minnesota sports fans on the coaching staff. Head coach Pat Shurmur, now in his second season with the Giants, was the Viking offensive coordinator in 2017 when he was named NFL Assistant Coach of the Year by the Pro Football Writers Association.

Giants offensive coordinator Mike Shula was head coach at Alabama when the Golden Gophers defeated the Crimson Tide in the 2004 Music City Bowl.

John Gilbert, among the preeminent hockey writers in the country, is upbeat about the Wild’s likelihood of returning to the playoffs. “I think they got a great chance to really have a good season,” he told Sports Headliners.

For 30 years Gilbert covered pro and college hockey for Minneapolis daily newspapers, and he now lives in Duluth working as a freelance writer. He believes it’s no mystery why the Wild, who open the regular season tonight in Nashville against the Predators, didn’t make the playoffs last spring. He said injuries causing the absences of defenseman Matt Dumba and center Mikko Koivu put an end to six consecutive playoff runs by the Wild.

Gilbert regards Dumba as perhaps the top defenseman in the NHL. He considers Koivu to be among the league’s best centers when judged by all around play including coverage of the other team’s leading defenseman. “And he is a great leader,” Gilbert added.

Gilbert is confident that with Dumba and Koivu, Minnesota would have been in the 2019 postseason. “They (the Wild) lose those two guys, and they barely miss the playoffs,” he said.

Two key players can make that much difference, according to Gilbert. “So you look at every team that made the Stanley Cup playoffs last year, and you take away their best two-way centerman and you take away their best offensive defenseman, they don’t make it.”

The Wild didn’t do much to change the roster in the offseason but the club did sign free agent wing Mats Zuccarello who had 40 points playing for Dallas and the New York Rangers last season. Gilbert likes Zuccarello’s skills, believes goalie Devan Dubnyk “can stop anybody, at any time,” and refers to Bruce Boudreau as a “great coach.” With Boudreau’s coaching and a roster that includes the return of Dumba and Koivu, Gilbert has this forecast: “They’re going to be really strong this season.”

Of course, the prediction comes without a guarantee. “No league has the parity that the NHL has,” Gilbert said. “You can finish 16th, and scratch your way in, and win the Stanley Cup if your goalie gets hot and your guys are playing well.”

Gilbert just finished authoring a book, Miracle in Lake Placid, that celebrates the 40th anniversary next year of the U.S. Olympic hockey team’s stunning march to the Gold Medal in 1980. Gilbert covered the team back then and had access to players and coach Herb Brooks that others didn’t.

Gilbert saved his notes from covering the American team almost 40 years ago. “I could recreate the West Germany game (for example) like it happened this afternoon,” he said.

Quoting new Wild general manager Bill Guerin’s message to the team: “I am not here to win friends. I am here to win games.”

Anthony LaPanta, the TV play-by-play voice of the Wild, is also an assistant football coach for the 4-1 Totino-Grace football team.

Gophers coach Richard Pitino, with seven new players, acknowledged he probably would have a different team if Amir Coffey hadn’t passed up his senior season of eligibility to turn pro. “But you can’t hold these guys back from doing what’s great for them and what they have dreamed of their whole lives,” he said at Big Ten Media Day yesterday in Rosemont, Illinois where expectations were high for teams like Michigan State and Ohio State, but low for Minnesota and Nebraska where Fred Hoiberg will coach his first Cornhuskers team.

Hoiberg, the former Minnesota Timberwolves player and front office executive, won’t lack for fan support in Lincoln. Despite minimal success predicted for his first team, all home games are sold out.

Forty years ago Mike Prochaska, Joe Hoffman, Kevin Keohen, and Dale Lapic were members of the Montgomery, Minnesota team that won the 1979 Babe Ruth state championship. The four are now part of the Union Hill Greyhounds team that last weekend won the amateur baseball Class 6A state championship for players over 50 years old with an 11-10 win over the Alexandria Redbirds. Hoffman scored the winning run for his team whose roster includes Dave “Greek” Wagner, a member of the Minnesota State Amateur Men’s Baseball Hall of Fame.

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Gopher Catalyst: Illini Loss in 2018

Posted on October 1, 2019October 1, 2019 by David Shama

A Tuesday notes column:

The Golden Gophers are 7-1 since last year’s embarrassing 55-31 loss to a bad Illinois team on the road. Minnesota has also won six straight games dating back to last season and that includes road wins over Wisconsin in 2018 and at Purdue last Saturday.

The last time the Gophers won six straight was during the 2003-2004 seasons. Minnesota’s overall records during those years were 10-3 and 7-5; with 5-3 and 3-5 totals in Big Ten games. Off to a 4-0 start this season, coach P.J. Fleck got his first opening conference win in three years against Purdue.

Right now the Gophers are favorites in their next four games, including this Saturday at home against 2-2 Illinois. The favorite label changes almost for sure when Big Ten power Penn State comes to Minneapolis November 9. After Illinois the Gophers face Nebraska, Rutgers and Maryland.

No team in the country runs slant patterns better than Minnesota does with its outstanding wide receivers. That’s what former Minnesota coach Glen Mason said on BTN Saturday after watching the Gophers gain 396 yards passing in their 38-31 win over Purdue, with a lot of yards coming on slant patterns.

Minnesota had four touchdown receptions from wide receivers in the game, with two by sophomore Rashod Bateman and one each from sophomore Chris Autman-Bell and senior Tyler Johnson. Fleck, who saw his Gophers score two touchdowns on plays following timeouts he called, said on his KFAN Radio show this afternoon that Bateman and Autman-Bell run about 22 miles per hour.

Minnesota sophomore quarterback Tanner Morgan is the Big Ten’s Co-Offensive Player of the Week after setting a single game conference record for passing completions. He was 21 of 22, a .955 percentage, the most in league history for any quarterback with 13 attempts or more.

The Gophers had issues with missed tackles in the Purdue game and Fleck said on the radio there was an emphasis on correcting the problem in practice today.

It will be interesting to see if the Gophers Athletic Department offers any more $10 flash sale tickets for home games. That seems unlikely for the Illinois, Nebraska and Wisconsin games but possible for Maryland and perhaps Penn State. A flash sale resulted in 7,150 tickets being sold for the home opener against South Dakota State.

The Nutrition Center at the Gophers’ Athletes Village is open to the public from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. A variety of breakfast and lunch items is offered for about $11 per person.

Congratulations to Bob Stein and Alan Page on being selected for the Sports Business Journal list of the 100 most accomplished NFL alumni for what they achieved in their post-football careers. Stein, the former Gophers All-American defensive end who played for four NFL teams including the Minnesota Vikings, was a driving force as CEO for the expansion Minnesota Timberwolves and prior to that was a sports attorney. Page, the former Vikings defensive tackle and league MVP, is a retired state of Minnesota Supreme Court Justice who has devoted much of his life to community causes and last year was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom at the White House.

BTN covers Big Ten Men’s Basketball Media Day Wednesday including the news conference by Minnesota coach Richard Pitino starting at 8:30 a.m. from Rosemount, Illinois.

Sales of the new Goldy Gopher book (What Should I Be When I Grow Up?) has already resulted in $1,500 being donated to the Goldy Gopher Enhancement Fund at the University of Minnesota. Goldy’s Locker Room has partnered with Karen Kaler (wife of former U President Eric Kaler) to publish the children’s book featuring Goldy Gopher, with proceeds benefitting future Goldys.

The book, which follows the popular mascot on a journey around the University as he explores various fields of study, is exclusively available at Goldy’s Locker Room stores throughout the Twin Cities and online at goldyslockerroom.com. “Contributing to the mission of Goldy Gopher and the student athletes who make up the Spirit Squad is important to us. After all, Goldy is the face of our brand,” said Ron Leafblad, President and CEO of Gold Country.

Prep football coaching milestones: Marc Franz, Rogers, and Brian Remick, Red Lake County, won their 100th career games last Friday. Franz’s career record is 100-60 in 17 seasons as head coach at Rogers High School. Remick is 100-91 in 20 seasons as a head coach, including 12 at Red Lake County.

The Twins rank No. 5 in a Usatoday.com power rankings story about the 10 MLB playoff teams. Ahead of the Twins in the article posted yesterday are the Astros, Dodgers, Yankees and Braves.

When the Twins open their playoff series Friday against the Yankees in New York they face a team that defeated them four of six times during the regular season. The most memorable game might be the extra inning 14-12 Yankees win at Target Field July 23 that lasted five hours. There were six home runs in the game, with three travelling over 400 feet including a 457 blast by Minnesota’s Miguel Sano.

The Twins depart for New York on Wednesday and will work out at Yankee Stadium Thursday afternoon.

Twins president Dave St. Peter talking about the joy this year’s team brought to owner Jim Pohlad: “Jim…at his heart is a fan.”

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U Boiler Wreckers Back Again

Posted on September 26, 2019September 26, 2019 by David Shama

University of Minnesota running backs Shannon Brooks, Rodney Smith and Mohamed Ibrahim are already names passionate Purdue fans should long remember. And Saturday afternoon in West Lafayette Boiler Nation has another look at the trio when the 3-0 Golden Gophers visit 1-2 Purdue in the opening Big Ten game of the season for both teams.

Injuries have troubled Brooks for much of his career but he has been cleared to play against the Boilermakers Saturday and he could make his season debut in the ESPN2 televised game. “I think there’s that spunk, that look in his eye, that he cannot wait to get back on the field,” Minnesota head coach P.J. Fleck said.

Brooks played in just one game last season and six the year before, but 2016 and 2015 were healthier seasons for the Georgia native known for his exceptional field vision and slashing style. He had a career high 176 yards rushing at Purdue in the 2015 game Minnesota dominated and won, 41-13. His 17 rushes included a 71-yard touchdown run. And although the Gophers lost at Purdue in 2017, Brooks rushed for 116 yards on 18 carries.

Smith, a redshirt senior and Georgia native like Brooks, had one of his best days in 2016 against Purdue in Minneapolis. Smith ran for 153 yards and three touchdowns on 24 carries as the Gophers won, 43-31. The 153 yards was his most ever in a single game until he equaled the total against New Mexico State in 2018. A hard runner who can turn short gains into longer ones, Smith is in the top 10 for most career rushing attempts and yards in Minnesota program history.

With Brooks and Smith injured last season, the Gophers turned to then redshirt freshman Ibrahim to help them to a 41-10 win in Minneapolis. Among the more determined runners in the Big Ten, Ibrahim ran for 155 yards on 18 carries, an impressive 8.6 yards per carry. That was his best as a Gopher until he dominated Georgia Tech with 224 yards rushing in Minnesota’s Quick Lane Bowl win.

Brooks, Smith and Ibrahim have befuddled the Boilermakers in the past and Minnesota will want more of the same Saturday. Minnesota’s offensive game plan every week is to control the football and the clock, with an emphasis on running . The Gophers rank 10th nationally in time of possession at an average per game of 34:36.

Minnesota will want to keep the ball away from a Purdue offense averaging 371 yards passing per game, tops in the Big Ten and fourth nationally. The Boilers, however, are rushing for just 50 yards each game. Purdue is third worst in the conference in rushing defense, giving up 175.3 yards.

Not to be greedy but Brooks, Smith and Ibrahim have to hope at least one of them adds a page or two Saturday to their “Purdue scrapbooks.”

Worth Noting

The Gophers have won five of their last six against the Boilermakers, but the game Saturday looks like a tossup for those who wager. Minnesota is 3-0 in nonconference games but has won by a total of only 13 points, and going into the season was considered a lesser team to Purdue by college football authorities. Purdue has key injuries and has won only one nonconference game, but is playing at home and with an explosive offense could take an early lead and make it difficult for the Gophers to catch up.

Minnesota has won five of its last 18 Big Ten games, but coincidentally holds the nation’s longest nonconference winning streak at 18 straight.

Gophers basketball coach Lindsay Whalen has a five-star commit in Alexia Smith from Ohio. That will help the 2020 recruiting class because three of the top state of Minnesota prospects are headed elsewhere: Paige Bueckers of Hopkins to Connecticut, Lauren Jensen of Lakeville North to Iowa, and Alyssa Ustby of Rochester Lourdes to North Carolina.

Look for the Vikings, who since last year are annually scheduling Friday night prep football games at TCO Stadium in Eagan, to arrange for future matchups involving Minneapolis and St. Paul teams. Among schools under consideration should be Washburn, the first big school state champion when the Minnesota High School League created the football playoffs in the 1970s.

Vikings quarterback Kirk Cousins wowed business and other community leaders while speaking at Tuesday’s Twin Cities Dunkers meeting at the Minikahda Club. Cousins was inspiring and informative in his remarks including when he talked about the power of free enterprise and how much business does for society.

Cousins is a Murray’s patron and enjoys the downtown restaurant that opened in 1946, and is still a city favorite.

This year the Vikings are celebrating the 50th anniversary of the 1969 team that had a 12-2 regular season record and played in the 1970 Super Bowl. One of the team’s two losses came in the opening game against the New York Giants whose roster included Bob Lurtsema. He was awarded the game ball by the Giants for his performance in the 24-23 win. After joining the Vikings in 1971 he later became Benchwarmer Bob, backing up one of the great NFL defensive lines in history.

Lurtsema, 77, regularly walks about four miles at Orchard Lake near his home in Lakeville.

The 3M Open, scheduled next year for July 20-26, avoids the busy July 4 holiday that the PGA Tour Event faced in 2019. There is a seven-year commitment to hold the tournament at TPC Twin Cities in Blaine. Sports Headliners is told that only in 2023 might dates conflict with the Fourth of July period.

Gophers basketball coach Richard Pitino expects that redshirt junior forward Eric Curry, who missed much of last season because of injuries, will be ready when the schedule starts in November. Curry, who has shown skill but been slowed by injuries during his Minnesota career, will be a key player on a team reorganizing after the departures last spring of the two best players, forward-guard Amir Coffey and forward Jordan Murphy.

With the team in early practices for the 125th season of Gophers basketball, Pitino isn’t sure about many things with his team but believes a strength could be outside shooting. Now starting his seventh season, Pitino has coached two of his last three teams to the NCAA Tournament. “I think we’re building stability,” he said.

Dave Wright, sports information director at Hamline, announced on Facebook Monday he is retiring from his position in October. His varied experiences in communications include working for the St. Paul Saints in their early years under Mike Veeck.

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