Golden Gophers – Page 197 – David Shama's Minnesota Sports Headliners

Battle for Fans Tight in Twin Cities

Posted on May 21, 2018May 21, 2018 by David Shama

On a gorgeous Sunday yesterday we got a reminder about our crowded sports marketplace. The Twins and United played outdoors, while the Lynx opened their season indoors at Target Center.

The Golden Gophers and our seven pro teams (add in the Saints, Timberwolves, Vikings and Wild) often butt heads on the same day. The winners are Minnesota sports fans who have a plethora of professional and Gopher teams to follow in a society that thrives on choices and variety in everything from autos to wieners.

This area’s sports smorgasbord is among the most diverse in the nation. We also rank at the top with our lineup of (mostly) modern venues: Allianz Field, CHS Field, Target Center, Target Field, TCF Bank Stadium, 3M Arena at Mariucci, U.S. Bank Stadium, Williams Arena and Xcel Energy Center.

Ask the business side leaders of Minneapolis-St. Paul teams how they view all the competition from one another, and then get ready for a politically correct answer. They will tell you how great it is to have a rich sports landscape and that all the teams can be successful financially. The stock answers will include how they cheer for each other and wish for success by all.

Kumbaya? Maybe.

Truth is, if you eliminated several of the teams, popularity and box office success would increase for at least some organizations. Last Sunday the Twins drew 28,577 fans and the Lynx attracted 13,002, according to the Star Tribune. Despite playing in spectacular weather against border rival Milwaukee, the Twins missed a sellout by about 10,000 customers. The Lynx, in a seaon opener celebrating last year’s WNBA title and playing a top team in the Sparks, had over 6,000 seats that went unsold. The United reported a sellout audience of 23,117 at its temporary home at TCF Bank Stadium.

At 3.5 million, this is one of the 20 largest metropolitan areas in the country and that large population helps to support all of our entertainment options, but imagine if neither the Twins, nor the Lynx, or United, had box office competition in the spring and summer. What if the Gophers didn’t have to battle the Vikings, Timberwolves and Wild for football, basketball and hockey customers?

Some operations get hurt in this crowded sports marketplace that includes a battle not just to sell tickets but also to generate revenues from suites, sponsorships, venue and broadcast advertisers, concessions and merchandising. Despite four WNBA titles in seven years, the Lynx work hard to sell tickets including in the playoffs. The Timberwolves and Gophers, even with infrequent successes, have histories of disappointing their fans. Support for these teams can be iffy and conditional.

You can add the Twins to that list. They and MLB also face the problems of inclement weather, lengthy games and slow pace of play.

The Vikings win any and all popularity contests here. With a winning team and fabulous venue in U.S. Bank Stadium, the Vikings can withstand any number of competitors for the sports dollar in this marketplace. The NFL, despite its infamous reputation for head trauma, remains at the top of the American sports kingdom including in Minneapolis.

The Wild has produced competitive teams but little to cheer about in the playoffs. The organization, though, excels at customer relations and is in sync with the rabid hockey market in Minnesota. Hockey fans have a special passion for their sport and the Wild has never seriously broken the bond with its fanbase.

It’s niche loyalty that serves the Saints, too. The local independent baseball franchise’s shtick has branded the Saints as entertainment first, winning second. Comedian Bill Murray is an owner and there seemingly is no end to the gimmicks in the organization’s marketing plan. The Saints do it right, including dividing up their CHS Field seat allotment into thirds for season tickets, groups and individual sales.

Saints games are family friendly and tickets inexpensive compared with many of the offerings in this market. Affordable pricing is part of the United’s strategy, also. The second-year Minnesota MLS franchise is aiming to fill its stadium with what executives see as an unfilled opportunity to satisfy the existing and growing soccer interest in the state.

Part of what’s fueled the population growth in this area is an increasing immigrant population. Many of those newcomers love the “world’s sport”—soccer. A lot of immigrants are young and like other Minnesota millennials have grown up playing soccer.

Millennials, though, are an elusive target for some sport marketers. Baseball, football and golf all want to score with millenials who have a reputation for short attention spans. Ask a millennial if he watched a Twins game, or even the Vikings, and a predictable answer is he opted for a 25-second video recap.

For now at least there isn’t any downsizing in this busy sports marketplace that includes the Minnesota Whitecaps, the women’s pro hockey franchise that has been around since 2004. Leaders announced last week the Whitecaps are joining the National Women’s Hockey League. That’s the highest level of American women’s professional hockey, so we’re big league in that, too.

Expansion of the sports menu appears likely with Minneapolis-St. Paul trading the 3M Championship senior golf tournament for a PGA Tour event starting in 2019. More competition for the sports dollar locally but another option for the consumer.

Comments Welcome

Pitino Moves Lift Gopher Outlook

Posted on May 17, 2018May 17, 2018 by David Shama

It’s been an interesting couple of months since Richard Pitino’s Golden Gophers finished their disappointing 15-17 season. Minnesota’s head basketball coach has replaced two assistant coaches (Ben Johnson and Kimani Young who took other jobs) and added three players.

In five seasons leading the Gophers Pitino has produced one NCAA Tournament team and only one year been above .500 in Big Ten games. Last season was among the most disappointing in program history—starting out with conference title dreams and collapsing in January with the suspension of center Reggie Lynch and the shoulder injury to Amir Coffey.

Pitino is on the hot seat with fans, and perhaps the University of Minnesota administration, but next season looks intriguing. The versatile Coffey returns, ready to help at forward or guard. The junior from Hopkins High School should be among the Big Ten’s better players, and joins senior forward Jordan Murphy in that category. A third starter returns in senior guard Dupree McBrayer, plus Minnesota has promising talent in sophomore guard Isaiah Washington and redshirt sophomore forward Eric Curry.

Pitino’s in-state recruiting reputation got a boost with the incoming freshmen class of three Minnesotans—Gabe Kalscheur (DeLaSalle), Jarvis Omersa (Orono), and Daniel Oturu (Cretin-Derham Hall). It was painful for Gopher fans watching former Maple Grove all-stater Brad Davison star for the Badgers last season as one of the better freshmen point guards in the country. Word is Davison is already revered in Madison, not only as a player but for his character and leadership.

Pitino’s freshmen will add depth next fall, and promise for more help in future seasons. Oturu’s recent shoulder surgery is a setback for his offseason development and could mean his early minutes in nonconference games are more limited than they otherwise would be. Oturu could be the team’s center of the future and is a multi-skilled player.

Omersa, a forward, is gifted athletically and also played football as a prep. Kalscheur, a guard, was a superb prep shooter. Pitino, who has reportedly made scholarship offers to several in-state high school players for future years, realizes there is a lot of high quality local talent.

Three transfers from other colleges have also boosted offseason spirits. The latest to announce for Minnesota is Wisconsin-Milwaukee transfer guard Brock Stull who will have one season of eligibility with the Gophers. He was recruited to Milwaukee by new Gopher assistant Rob Jeter when Jeter was head coach there. The 6-4 Stull led the Panthers last season in assists with 3.1 per game, was second in scoring at 13.4 points and third in rebound average, 4.8.

Jeter’s experience includes 11 seasons as head coach at UW-Milwaukee where he developed Midwest recruiting connections. Last season he was an assistant coach at UNLV where the 2017-2018 recruiting class was ranked as high as No. 12 in the nation. That group included a McDonald’s high school All-American and national junior college player of the year.

Jeter joined the staff in April and then last week Pitino announced Kyle Lindsted will also be an assistant coach. Lindsted was an assistant the last three seasons for a strong Wichita State program. “We are very excited about the addition of Kyle to our basketball program,” Pitino said in a statement. “He’s a great recruiter and will bring a lot to our team. He’s got contacts all over the world and a wealth of knowledge about the game.”

Stull is a welcome addition to the roster because the Gophers need talent and depth in the backcourt. Fingers are crossed in Dinkytown that the NCAA will rule that Pitt transfer Marcus Carr will be granted immediate eligibility for next fall. As a freshman he started all but five games for Pitt, averaging 10 points per game and leading in assists with 129, a 4.0 average. Because Pitt coach Kevin Stallings was fired after last season, Carr might be able to play right away at Minnesota if the NCAA makes a ruling allowing such players immediate eligibility. Otherwise he will have to redshirt one season.

A third transfer, guard Payton Willis from Vanderbilt, must sit out next season before becoming eligible to play during the 2019-2020 season. After starting 16 of 66 games over two seasons at Vandy, he will have two years of eligibility with the Gophers and strengthens the guard roster for the future.

There have been a lot of changes in a short time for Pitino’s program. Give him credit for being proactive and creating optimism about the future.

Worth Noting

This week’s ESPN baseball power rankings have the Angels at No. 4 behind the Yankees, Red Sox and Astros. The Twins, who split four games with the Angeles last Thursday-Sunday, are No. 19.

The Cardinals, who the Twins split a two-game series with Tuesday and Wednesday, are ranked No. 6. The Twins swept the Cardinals in St. Louis on May 7 and 8.

The Brewers, who come to Minneapolis for a three-game series starting Friday, are No. 12.

After yesterday’s game Joe Mauer has 2,025 career hits with the Twins. That ranks No. 6 on the all-time Twins/Senators franchise list, trailing Sam Rice (2,887), Kirby Puckett (2,304), Joe Judge (2,291), Clyde Milan (2,100) and Rod Carew (2,085).

Former Twin pitcher Jack Morris turned 63 yesterday. Morris has been working on his induction speech for this summer when he goes into the National Baseball Hall of Fame. Allotted time for speeches is eight minutes, although most everyone exceeds the total.

Vikings coach Mike Zimmer will host a youth football camp for children in grades 1-8 at the Twin Cities Orthopedics Performance Center on Saturday and Sunday. There is a waitlist to participate in the camp that provides not only football instruction but tips on healthy living.

The annual Minnesota Vikings Golf Tournament is June 6 at the Meadows at Mystic Lake. The Taste of the Vikings at U.S. Bank Stadium will be June 12.

Gophers baseball coach John Anderson has some pro prospects on his team but points out “less than one percent” of college players make the big leagues.

Anderson’s first-place Gophers can win the Big Ten title by sweeping their three-game series at Rutgers that begins today.

Sad to see the passing of my friend Dennis McGrath, the public relations great who was always so encouraging to others. Dennis had many interests including boxing, a sport he followed with passion. Condolences to family and friends.

Condolences also to family and friends of Joe Shrake, the former Winona Cotter pitcher and DeLaSalle baseball coach who passed away several days ago.

Comments Welcome

Pack My Bags, Sports Trips Beckon

Posted on May 15, 2018May 15, 2018 by David Shama

I need to credit Jay Buckley’s Baseball Tours for today’s column idea. The company is promoting a September weekend in Seattle where customers can watch the University of Washington Huskies, Seattle Seahawks and Seattle Mariners—and I am tempted to sign-up.

I’ve always wanted to visit Seattle and the surrounding area. High on my wish list is seeing a UW game at iconic Husky Stadium overlooking Lake Washington. The venue is among the more revered in college football.

I am always up for visiting stadiums and arenas. My wife doesn’t share the same curiosity and enthusiasm, but she didn’t balk Sunday when I suggested stopping in Jordan, Minnesota to have a look at the “Mini Met.” First time visitor, but planning to go back and see the hometown baseball Brewers.

I give my wife a thumbs up for a planned trip to Athens, Georgia this fall. Her niece and husband will be hosting us for the Georgia-Auburn football game. I’ve always wanted to sample the hoopla of an SEC Conference football game and my day arrives on November 10.

I am excited to see the gameday atmosphere and the competition on the field between the Bulldogs and Tigers, two teams that could be in the chase for the national championship. And the anticipation of this trip also involves a stop in Atlanta to see the College Football Hall of Fame. I have visited the halls of fame for pro football, baseball, basketball and hockey but not the college shrine in Atlanta where there is sure to be some Golden Gophers memorabilia.

With inspiration from the Jay Buckley folks and my wife, I am listing below baseball, basketball, football, golf, hockey and tennis trips I am all in on—time, money and other priorities allowing.

Baseball

Cooperstown. I made a visit a long time ago and have always wanted to return. I could wander the halls of baseball’s shrine for days, and the town of Cooperstown is a charmer.

Fenway Park. The quirky home of the Red Sox has beckoned for years but despite a couple of trips to Boston I have yet to experience Fenway. Great town, great food and the basketball hall of fame is only a few hours away. Sign me up now.

AT&T Park. I haven’t been to San Francisco since the Giants opened their beautiful waterfront stadium at 24 Willie Mays Plaza. Give me a couple of days at the park, and then on to the wine country a short drive away.

Basketball

I have seen games in Madison Square Garden and the old Boston Garden so I am happy to check those off my list. NBA teams change venues so fast that 28-year-old Target Center falls into the “grandpa” category. The league doesn’t have any venues that make my heart pound so I will stick with the college scene.

Phog Allen Field House. This isn’t where the first peach basket was hung, but Wilt Chamberlain played there for the Jayhawks and the address is 1651 Naismith Drive. A “Beware of the Phog” banner looms on the north end of the court. “Rock, chalk, Jayhawks!”

Cameron Indoor Stadium. Duke’s home arena would top most any poll of college fans for a “must-see” venue. You can count on my vote. It’s kind of crazy that this place doesn’t even seat 10,000 but is referred to as a stadium. Seems like the Dukies have almost that many championships.

Football

This is where the list could get unmanageable, but here is my Fab Five.

Bryant-Denny Stadium. The home of the Alabama Crimson Tide probably ranks No. 1 on any list of future trips. I hear part of the gameday presentation includes a video clip of Bear Bryant growling, “I ain’t nothin’ but a winner.”

Michie Stadium. It’s been a long time since I toured West Point and I’ve never seen the Black Knights of the Hudson play in their football home since 1924. That has my attention and needs to change.

Rose Bowl. I saw Minnesota defeat UCLA, 21-3, in the 1962 Rose Bowl. Very sad the Gophers haven’t been able to earn their way back to one of the most majestic venues in sports. I am ready to return to Pasadena without them.

Lambeau Field. I write this with embarrassment. Never been to Lambeau but I will change part of that in June when we visit the stadium—while wishing it was fall and the Packers were playing.

Husky Stadium. We covered this in paragraph two, but permit me to add how cool it would be to arrive at the stadium via boat on Lake Washington. Prefer by yacht, if not asking for too much.

Hockey

Bell Centre. This choice is a little tricky. Let me explain. Years ago I was at the Montreal Forum, referred to by many as the “most storied building in hockey history.” But the Forum has been in decline for a long while and the NHL Canadiens have made the Bell Centre their 21st century home. So while I feel no urgency to see the Bell, a trip to Montreal rekindles memories of the Forum. Then, too, Montreal is the closest you come to experiencing a European city while still in North America. My wife likes that.

Tennis

Wimbledon. I have been a tennis fan and player most of my life. My wife loves London. What else is there to say?

Golf

The Masters. No golf event gets me in front of the television with more passion and pleasure than the Masters. It’s not just the great tradition and the gorgeous golf course. The April tournament signals to Minnesotans the snow season will end soon.

Amen.

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