Golden Gophers – Page 18 – David Shama's Minnesota Sports Headliners

Look for Vikings to Extend GM’s Contract Soon

Posted on March 11, 2025March 11, 2025 by David Shama

The Vikings hired general manager Kwesi Adofo-Mensah in January of 2022, giving him a four-year contract. Kevin O’Connell was hired as head coach in February of that year, also on a four-year deal.

Almost two months ago the Vikings announced a multi-year extension for O’Connell, but nothing has apparently been finalized regarding an extension for the GM whose original contract will end after next season.

What’s going on?

A former executive with NFL teams, who spoke to Sports Headliners on condition of anonymity, said there was “urgency” to get an extension done with O’Connell. He said players and staff become “nervous” when a head coach goes into his final season with uncertainty. The general manager’s staff is much smaller.

“No, I think he’s going to get extended,” the source said. “Certainly, before the draft, I think.”

The NFL Draft is April 24-26. The authority quoted here disagrees with speculation ownership and chief operating officer Andrew Miller may be waiting on a new Adofo-Mensah deal to see how the 2025 draft and free agency signings materialize.

Adofo-Mensah’s initial draft in 2022 was a flop but in fairness he had only a few months to prepare. Draft results since then have been better, and free agent signings and trades are impressive.

O’Connell, who was named AP NFL Coach of the Year in February, has won 34 games in the last three regular seasons, with free agent signings playing a major role in the success. That group includes: Blake Cashman, Sam Darnold, Jonathan Greenard, Stephon Gilmore, Shaquill Griffin, Aaron Jones, Byron Murphy Jr., Harrison Phillips, and Andrew Van Ginkel.

A majority of those players signed during the offseason in 2024 and were key contributors to a 14-3 team that was a Super Bowl contender. The source described the work in signing them as “fantastic.”

Kwesi Adofo-Mensah image courtesy of Minnesota Vikings

He also praised trades during the Adofo-Mensah era. Acquisitions include one of the NFL’s best tight ends in T.J. Hockenson, plus offensive tackle Cam Robinson and running back Cam Akers.

“And I am sure they’re happy with the way he navigated the Cousins deal to get them out from under that deal. Especially the way it turned out for Atlanta.”

Rather than become salary cap strapped with a $100 million-plus contract for an aging quarterback, the Vikings chose not to do an expensive multi-year deal with Kirk Cousins. Instead, they replaced him with Darnold who for much of 2024 was among the better quarterbacks in the NFL.

In recent days the Vikings reportedly are off to a head turning start in free agent signings of players who can help them in 2025. Included are defensive tackle Jonathan Allen, guard Will Fries, center Ryan Kelly and cornerback Isaiah Rodgers.

It’s evident Adofo-Mensah is deserving of an extension which could be for three or four more years. His original deal was for four years and $12 million, per NFL Network’s Cameron Wolfe and Ian Rapoport in 2022.

Worth Noting

The NFL source referenced above believes this is a deep draft, with high quality players to be found going into the second round. Among Minnesota priorities after the first round could be a running back with speed and shiftiness to complement 30-year-old Aaron Jones who the Vikings just re-signed. He had a career high rushing attempts of 255 last season, but the NFL authority said his workload was too extensive.

“I think Aaron played a little too much this year, and at the end he kind of fell off. Compared with how Green Bay used him in the past he really was more of a split time guy and then he was great in the playoffs two years ago for them. …He just didn’t look the same at the end of the year (for Vikings) as he did earlier.”

Saturday’s column on Gopher men’s basketball prompted many comments from readers with the majority favoring a new head coach. One reader suggested Ben McCollum, now in his first season at Drake after winning four Division II national championships at Northwest Missouri State.

Vikings’ linebacker Blake Cashman will join his former Gopher and Eden Prairie teammate Carter Coughlin, now a linebacker with the New York Giants, in speaking to the Twin Cities Dunkers on March 19 at Interlachen Country Club.

March 28 Cashman will participate in a Q & A at the Minnesota Football Coaches Association Clinic at the DoubleTree Park Place in St. Louis Park. Gopher head coach P.J. Fleck also speaks to clinic attendees on that date. https://www.mnfootballcoaches.com/page/show/2279758-mfca-clinic-information

That Friday there will be a free noon reception at the DoubleTree for retired football coaches. Committee chair Dan Essler is seeking contact information for retired coaches to send invitations. His email is esslerd@nls.k12.mn.us

Jess Graba and Alison Lim, coaches for St. Paul’s two-time Olympic Gold Medalist Suni Lee, will headline the Capital Club breakfast meeting this Thursday at Mendakota Country Club. Minnesota Sports & Events CEO Wendy Blackshaw, who was responsible for bringing the 2024 US Olympic Gymnastics Trials to Minneapolis, will moderate the discussion.

Lynx head coach Cheryl Reeve will speak to the club on March 19. Also, the franchise’s president of basketball operations, Reeve has won four WNBA Championships with the Lynx. More information about the Capital Club is available from Patrick Klinger, patrick@agilemarketingco.com.

Comments Welcome

What to Know about Golden Gophers Men’s Basketball Job

Posted on March 8, 2025March 8, 2025 by David Shama

Next week Mark Coyle is likely to make news about the University of Minnesota basketball program. The athletic director could announce the dismissal of men’s head coach Ben Johnson, or make it clear the Minneapolis native will return for a fifth season leading his alma mater.

Either action will make headlines and depending upon your view of the program be polarizing.

A source with knowledge inside the Athletic Department indicated it’s not known which direction Coyle will proceed. Other valued sources aren’t predicting an outcome either, but if pressed believe Coyle will give Johnson another year.

Their view is that 2025 is already a tumultuous time for the department as power four schools anticipate revenue sharing for the first time with athletes. The U is expected to allocate at least $20 million this year to athletes in football, men’s and women’s basketball, men’s hockey and volleyball.

The budget for the 22-sports at the U will be challenging for the self-supporting Athletic Department. To buy out the contracts of Johnson and staff likely totals in the range of $5 million. Then add a similar total for a new staff, plus a possible substantial contract buyout for the new coach’s old school, and it’s clear any change will be significantly more costly than status quo with the men’s basketball program. (Of course, immediate success by a new coach could change the budget with a jump in revenues).

Johnson has struggled to attract Name, Image and Likeness money for his players. If the U had north of $1 million in NIL money this past season, other power programs had totals dwarfing that figure.

With revenue sharing in line with what other Big Ten schools are expected to pay players, the pay-for-play gap narrows for the Gophers next season. Coyle may believe it’s fair to give the likeable Johnson another season because of revenue sharing.

It would be naïve, though, to believe Johnson isn’t under scrutiny by superiors. Deputy athletics director Julie Manning was seated at court side, for example, at the March 1, road game against Nebraska in Lincoln. Her roles at the U include supervising men’s basketball.

Coyle has been the school’s AD since 2016. He is known for his patience and support for coaches, but Johnson’s four-year resume is concerning. The Gophers have two last place regular season finishes during his leadership. They’ve never produced a winning conference record or qualified for the NCAA Tournament and have one appearance in the NIT. Sunday they play their final regular season game on the bubble of whether they will be one of the 15 teams in the 18-member conference who qualify for next week’s Big Ten Tournament.

Minnesota is 7-12 in league games this year, 15-15 overall. Donor support and Fan apathy is apparent.

Johnson’s on-court results have held back donor enthusiasm for NIL which could be even more difficult to generate going forward than in the past if he returns as head coach. Although he has generated sympathy from the media for not having enough NIL money, he is the program leader and someone who previous to the Minnesota job had no head coaching experience and brand recognition to impress donors and the general public.

Regarding attendance at games, the Gophers drew a home sellout crowd last Wednesday for the first time since 2020. Public season ticket totals have been declining for years. As recently as 2019-2020 season tickets totaled 6,820. Next fall that total could be under 4,000.

As a revenue generator men’s basketball is overwhelmingly underperforming. With ticket sales and other revenue streams, the program should be carrying much more of the financial load for the Athletic Department and Coyle knows that better than anyone.

The guess here is Coyle will make a change after making a deliberate and objective evaluation of the program. He could decide he needs more from a program that has good citizens, improved academics and complies with department and NCCA policy. A new start and renewed enthusiasm could certainly be on his mind.

It’s a red flag that the Gophers can be so much more successful in football than in basketball. Head coach P.J. Fleck has succeeded in a sport demanding five times the number of players, and he’s done it in a state where the quality of high school basketball is significantly better in talent than in football.

Basketball is a sport that can see a team’s fortunes change within a year or two, and sometimes overnight, with the right influx of players, coaching, timing—and let’s be honest—luck. After multiple failed hires this millennium, the prerequisite at Minnesota is to find the right fit to lead the program.

The assignment doesn’t necessarily have to command a marquee hire. A few miles from Dinkytown John Tauer, believed to be earning a salary less than $600,000 per season, has been turning heads for years as the St. Thomas head coach.

Tauer won a Division III national title in 2016. For four seasons he has led an ultra-successful transition into Division I with his mid-majors program in the Summit League. This season the Tommies are 12-4 in conference regular season games and 23-9 overall. Think Tauer, with a foundation built on former Minnesota prep players, could win at Minnesota?

Yup.

No one is predicting Tauer, whose roots are deep at St. Thomas, would take the Minnesota job if offered but if he did the expectation would be for him to run a savvy program like the Wisconsin Badgers have done for decades. Wisconsin turned around its basketball program in the 1990s with low profile coaching talent starting with Dick Bennett. Then Bo Ryan and Greg Gard overachieved this millennium with Final Fours, Big Ten titles and national rankings.

The Wisconsin way succeeds without blue-blood players The Badgers are no pipeline to the NBA. But they do have a pipeline to Minnesota preps, for decades featuring talent from the Gopher state. The current roster has five Minnesota natives and five Wisconsin natives.

The Badger program, built around fundamentals and unselfish attitude, is a case study in hard-ass defense, exploiting the weaknesses of opponents and minimizing mistakes including turnovers. At 13-6 in Big Ten games and 23-7 overall, the Badgers are again a force to be reckoned with.

Last Wednesday night’s game with the Gophers was a microcosm of what works for Wisconsin and doesn’t for Minnesota. The Gophers lost their ninth consecutive game in their border rivalry series.

They saw how the Badgers run out of bounds plays contributing to points in a tight game that was tied in the second half. They saw how the Badgers drained three-point shots and balanced that offense with drives to the baskets for scores. They saw how repeatedly Badger defenders offered no path to the basket. And they saw how the decades old Wisconsin winning philosophy includes fundamentals as straight forward as making most of their free throws.

It was another game where all the little things added up to the big thing: A 74-67 Wisconsin win. At places like Wisconsin, the sum is more valuable than the parts.

8 comments

Here’s a Guess at Minnesota Twins Opening Day Lineup

Posted on February 28, 2025February 28, 2025 by David Shama

Who starts for the Twins on opening day of the regular season March 27 in St. Louis against the Cardinals? Well, the lineup will likely include several players who were in the starting lineup for Minnesota in the opening spring training game last Saturday in Fort Myers against the Braves.

This was the lineup on February 22: Matt Wallner, right field; Carlos Correa, shortstop; Byron Buxton, center field; Trevor Larnach, DH; Royce Lewis, third base; Willi Castro, second base; Christian Vázquez, catcher; Ty France, first base; Harrison Bader, left field; and Zebby Matthews, pitcher.

Matthews, of course, won’t be the opening day pitcher. He will exceed expectations by making the five-man regular rotation of starters. Staff ace Pablo López likely receives opening day honors, with a relief corps that could be among baseball’s best backing up the 15-game winner in 2024.

Ryan Jeffers, the team’s more valuable catcher last season, probably gets penciled in for Vázquez.

Manager Rocco Baldelli might prefer to use Edouardo Julien at second, rather the multi-positional Castro who is one of baseball’s better subs. Neither player is a whiz there defensively, and Julien’s offense is in question after a .199 batting average last season.

Slugger Jose Miranda figures to see plenty of opportunities during the season as a DH, or first or third baseman. He could be an opening day starter after hitting a career best .284 last season.

Miranda and Julien are in a group of several “shadow hitters” whose projected offensive production looks like a mystery in 2025. Add to the list Jeffers and all the starters in the spring training opener except for Buxton, Correa and Lewis. It’s a collection of bats that in past MLB seasons have produced inconsistency.

The Twins couldn’t sustain offense through the season in 2024 and this year could be the same. After playing some of the best baseball in the majors earlier in the season, Minnesota stumbled to a 12-29 record in the final 39 games. The club went through a stretch when it was two-for-19 with runners in scoring position. Even Lewis, a hitting phenom in two brief previous seasons, faded badly in late summer of 2024.

Tainting expectations for the offense this season is the always present drama of whether the big boppers, Lewis, Buxton and Correa, can avoid being out long periods with injuries. Their availability is crucial for a team that hopes for a rebound after winning the AL Central and a playoff series in 2023. The Twins will need their touted pitching to deliver all year, alongside sharp fielding and an ability to produce runs when the pressure is on, even if it means grinding out offense in the simplest of ways including hit-and-run, and savvy base running.

Optimism about the franchise isn’t lacking. BetMGM earlier this month made Minnesota the wagering favorite to win the Central Division which doesn’t have an elite team. Also, this winter club authority Dave St. Peter told Sports Headliners: “We’re better than what the public thinks we are right now.”

Marshall Tanick, the prominent Minneapolis-based attorney and journalist, reported via email on the upbeat outlook of Twins personnel boss Derek Falvey when he spoke to the Minnesota Breakfast group in Naples, Florida last week.

Morneau, Falvey, St. Peter photo by Marshall Tanick

Tanick wrote that Falvey, who March 3 is elevated to the position of president, baseball and business operations, believes the organization is positioned to improve on last year’s disappointing late-season collapse after conducting a “deep post-mortem” while reflecting on the major weakness of “lack of ability to score consistently” to complement solid pitching.

He expects the club to improve on “offense” under new hitting coach Matt Borgschulte, now in his second stint with the organization after previously working with the club’s minor league teams. (Borgschulte was the Orioles’ hitting coach last season and between 2018 and 2021 was a minor league hitting instructor in the Twins organization.)

Former Twins first baseman and 2006 American League Most Valuable Player Justin Morneau, now a Twins TV analyst, agreed with Falvey’s upbeat outlook. He noted the club’s “renewed focus on fundamentals” in getting prepared for the season—which provides “a lot of reasons to be optimistic.”

St. Peter, who becomes a strategic advisor to the franchise on March 3 after about 22 years as president, told the breakfast attendees there is “no really definitive timetable” regarding sale of the franchise but he anticipates a transaction within “the next several months.”

Worth Noting

Going to Fort Myers to watch the Twins in spring training games? Ticket prices vary including almost $70 for a dugout box seat and nearly $50 for a home plate box seat. Parking is $15 at the Lee Health Sports Complex. All transactions, including concessions, are plastic only.

Happy birthday to retired Twins TV play-by-play voice Dick Bremer who turns 69 on Saturday.

Former Gophers public address basketball legend Dick Jonckowski has battled cancer in the past and must have periodic checkups. His latest report was all good, he told Sports Headliners.

Bobby Jackson, the superstar guard on the Gophers’ 1997 Final Four team, will join former teammate and power forward John Thomas as speakers Tuesday at the Twin Cities Dunkers gathering at Interlachen Country Club. Jackson, now an assistant coach with the 76ers, will be in Minneapolis for a game against the Timberwolves Tuesday evening.

Terrence Shannon Jr., the rookie who led the Wolves in scoring in last night’s loss to the Lakers, not only has exceptional physical skills but maturity, too. He turns 25 in July and has scored 17 and 25 points coming off the bench in his last two games.

Cody Lindenberg, the 2024 Gophers linebacker who is recovering from hernia surgery and unable to participate in the NFL Scouting Combine’s on-field activities this week, is represented by Minneapolis-based Institute for Athletes. The agency also handles Vikings linebacker Blake Cashman who played for the Gophers from 2015-2018.

Condolences to family, friends and the many followers of Minnesota tennis legend Bob Larson who passed away at 93 earlier this month. His passion for tennis, including through his publications, made him an icon in the sport here and far beyond.

A number of Minnesota golf courses, including in Minneapolis and Emerald Greens in Hastings, have been open for play in February.

1 comment