Golden Gophers – Page 25 – David Shama's Minnesota Sports Headliners

Don’t Bet on Long Term Sam Darnold Run with Vikings

Posted on October 15, 2024October 15, 2024 by David Shama

What’s that phrase, Vikings fans?

“Here today, gone tomorrow.”

Does that fit the future for quarterback Sam Darnold?

Darnold, on a one-year deal reportedly paying him up to about $10 million, is a golden boy in this town for his role in helping the Vikings to a stunning 5-0 start to the season. Although he didn’t dazzle in his last start (October 6 against the Jets before the team’s bye week), the 27-year-old journeyman has pumped new life into his career and a Vikings team that was expected to struggle and not make the playoffs.

Darnold’s early season production led to being named NFC Offensive Player of the Month for September. He led the Vikings to their first 4-0 start since 2016. On the morning of October 3, he had completed 73-of-106 for 932 passing yards and 11 touchdowns in four games in September. He led the NFL in touchdown passes, percentage of touchdowns thrown per attempt (10.4%) and passer rating (118.9).

However, it’s questionable the Vikings, who have an NFC North Division showdown against the 4-1 Lions in Minneapolis Sunday, are interested in Darnold beyond this year. On the extreme of developments, that interest likely changes if Minnesota goes to and wins the Super Bowl in February in New Orleans.

J.J. McCarthy, injured and out for the season, will be ready in 2025. The Vikings’ No. 1 draft pick last April has yet to play in a regular season game but during the spring and summer he did a lot to impress head coach Kevin O’Connell.

O’Connell is a gifted quarterback developer who has had plenty to do with Darnold’s emergence. It was no accident how he referred to McCarthy around the time of the rookie’s right knee meniscus surgery:

“As our fans either have already come to find out or will in the future, this guy is so motivated and so dialed in. As excited as I was to draft him, he’s confirmed everything that I hope to see not only early on through training camp, but through his performance last Saturday (August 10 preseason opening game). Our fan base and everyone should just be excited about the fact that we’ve got our young franchise quarterback, I believe, in the building.”

“Franchise quarterback” says a lot.

Sam Darnold image courtesy of the Minnesota Vikings

Not only do the Vikings believe in McCarthy’s talent but they know he is six years younger than Darnold and much less expensive. McCarthy, per Spotrac.com, will earn a base salary of $960,000 in 2025. If the Vikings have a big season in 2024 (they can even go 7-5 in their remaining games for a final record of 12-5), Darnold will play a significant role in their success and be positioned to command a huge pay raise from some team as a 2025 free agent.

The 15 top paid NFL quarterbacks this fall, according to Front Office Sports and USA Today, all earn $40 million or more. It could be a lock that Darnold, who at this stage of his career must capitalize on a first-ever breakout season, can demand and secure at least $30 million to $40 million for multiple years.

The Vikings will have significant salary cap space in 2025, but do they want to commit a large portion to Darnold, given his age, lack of success with other teams and McCarthy waiting on the bench? Probably not, with the front office wanting to use money in 2025 and beyond to strengthen other positions while knowing they already have some of the NFL’s more expensive talent including wide receiver Justin Jefferson.

Darnold and his representatives, if not wanted here, will no doubt prefer a new team with similar resources to those in Minneapolis. That includes a coaching staff of exceptional teachers and play callers, and a group of talented receivers.

Hard to say where Darnold might land but the Rams could be ideal if 36-year-old QB Matthew Stafford decides to retire. He has made a lot of money, taken a lot of hits and has a Super Bowl ring. Head coach and QB whisperer Sean McVay, only 38, coached that Super Bowl team in 2022 with O’Connell as his offensive coordinator. If Darnold couldn’t play for the Vikings, McVay and the Rams with their gifted receivers, would be choice 1B.

U Football Recruiting Home Base Ranks Low in Big Ten

In the 247Sports composite college football recruiting rankings for the class of 2025, the Golden Gophers are in familiar territory. Minnesota, with 23 verbal commitments, is ranked No. 45, with 11 other Big Ten programs listed ahead of Minnesota including five in the top 15.

Having recruiting classes ranked in the upper 30s or in the 40s is common for the Gophers. College football recruiting authority Ryan Burns, who is based in Minnesota, was asked how fans should feel about the reality of University of Minnesota recruiting.

“I am not going to tell anybody how to feel. I just think it’s the reality of your recruiting base (state of Minnesota)…which in this in-state class doesn’t have a single four-star in it.

“You look at the state of New Jersey, for example. New Jersey has 20-plus kids that are higher rated than Minnesota’s top rated kid in the state. This recruiting base is not good. I continue to say they and Oregon are the two worst in the Big Ten and Oregon can buy whoever they want because they have Phil Knight’s money.

“So it’s kind of the reality of where they’re at, especially when you’re not winning consistently like they haven’t been here now for a couple of years. You kind of reap what you sew at that point.”

With the 2024 expansion of the Big Ten Conference, the league now has 18 schools. The arrival of Oregon, UCLA, USC and Washington means more programs to recruit against but also opens up recruiting opportunities in the talent rich state of California.

The golden state has been more on Minnesota’s recruiting radar of late, in part because the Gophers are expected to play one game on the West Coast in coming seasons. “You can sell them (recruits on) once a year we’re going to go back to where you’re from,” Burns told Sports Headliners.

It doesn’t go unnoticed that on the last two football Saturdays the Gophers have defeated USC and UCLA. The most recent victory was in Pasadena and Fleck, with his team having a bye on the schedule this week, is spending time recruiting in California this week.

Minnesota currently has three Californians among their verbal commits. “Without the Big Ten expansion, I don’t think Minnesota has anywhere near as close to as many commits as they have from the Pacific time zone,” Burns said.

The headliner of the recruiting class is quarterback Jackson Kollock from Laguna Beach who is a near four-star composite prospect. “His team in Laguna Beach is undefeated but a lot of it is because of Jackson Kollock,” Burns said. “Doesn’t have the greatest offensive line or pass catchers.

“I think he’s the most athletic quarterback you’ve seen (offensive coordinator Greg) Harbaugh recruit. He’s certainly more athletic than (present Gophers) Max Brosmer or Drake Lindsey. I don’t know if they will do too much with him in the run game, but he certainly has the athleticism to move.”

Kollock was committed to Washington until after last season’s playoffs when head coach Kalen DeBoer and offensive coordinator Ryan Grubb left the Huskies. DeBoer is now head coach at Alabama and Grubb is the NFL Seahawks offensive coordinator. It’s a tribute to Kollock’s talent and potential those offensive gurus pursued him.

Daniel Shipp is a three-star recruit from Corona, California. “I am really a big fan of Daniel Shipp, who is their offensive line commit from Centennial High School out there in California,” Burns said.

“They took a chance on him as someone who tore his knee and missed most of his junior season. His early senior film has been pretty good, and they need tackle bodies in this program.”

The third California recruit is an exceptional wide receiver and another three-star player. “Someone from the all-name team, Legend Lyons, has been very prolific out there at Charter Oaks (Covina),” Burns said. He describes Lyons as ”a receiver who can really catch the football, which is something that this program needs.”

Verbal pledges can change but Burns believes their commitments are “solid” to Minnesota. “I am a big fan of those three guys out there.”

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Perich Teases at Becoming a Generational Talent for Gophers

Posted on October 13, 2024October 13, 2024 by David Shama

Seven games into his University of Minnesota football career, true freshman Koi Perich looks like he will become a generational football player in Dinkytown. He has set a standard for impacting games as a safety and punt returner that teases at a golden legacy he will leave behind at the U.

There he was in the Rose Bowl last night ending the game by intercepting a pass near his end zone as the Golden Gophers held off UCLA for a 21-17 victory. It was the second week in a row for such heroics, having ended the USC game with an end zone interception as Minnesota upset the No. 11 ranked Trojans in Minneapolis.

Perich had two interceptions last night. The first one was a turning point in the game after he intercepted UCLA quarterback Ethan Garbers in the third quarter. It was a show-stopper pick with Perich laying out his body to catch the ball inside the UCLA 40-yard line. The Gophers, trailing 10-7, took advantage of the turnover and put together a short drive to go up 14-10 in the game.

Koi Perich photo courtesy of University of Minnesota

The Esko, Minnesota native is an instinctual player with superb athleticism. He is perhaps the most gifted player to come out of the state and play for the Gophers since Rochester running back Darrell Thompson set school records in Dinkytown more than 30 years ago. Perich’s talent can be mentioned in the same breath with two of Fleck’s most prominent players since 2017—wide receiver Rashod Bateman and safety Antoine Winfield Jr.

Perich, who played sparingly early in the season, has won the punt and kickoff jobs, and is a regular presence at safety. He was chosen the National Freshman of the Week (Shaun Alexander Award) following the USC game. He had six tackles, a forced fumble and an interception in the game.

The week before, at Michigan, Perich burst on the college football radar with a team leading 108 all-purpose yards, 82 on punt returns and 26 on kickoff returns. One of those punt returns was for 60 yards and that set up a second half score in Minnesota’s bid for an upset win. Perich had teased his punt return talent with a 28-yard return against Rhode Island before the Gophers started Big Ten play.

Perich has become a target for opposing players when he is trying to return punts—and not always in a high character way. In the USC game a Trojan tackler picked up the 6-foot-1, 200-pound Perich and body slammed him to the ground in WWE style. That was an infraction and so, too, was last night’s incident when a UCLA tackler was penalized for targeting Perich.

So far nothing seems to rattle the precocious Perich who appears to take the good and bad in stride—with rock solid confidence and either a fiery expression or smile on his face. Among the moments that have made him beam was the crowd storming of fans at Huntington Bank Stadium after the Gophers stunned the Trojans.

“That was awesome,” Perich said a week ago. “There was a part where I was in the middle and I don’t know who lifted me up, but I could just see everybody on the field at the same time. That was one of the coolest moments of my life.”

Perich, who has already endeared himself to countless Gopher fans and sent them shopping for his merchandise (https://athletesthread.com/collections/koi-perich), didn’t arrive on campus until June. His learning curve has been fast and his production proved why most every college football program in the country wanted him.

Perich, though, was loyal to Minnesota. He believed in head coach P.J. Fleck who has sent not only Winfield to the NFL, but also 2023 All-American safety Tyler Nubin. “I trusted him for what he has done,” Perich said.

It also didn’t take long for Fleck to believe in his teenage star. “He’s a great football player and he’s just scratching the surface,” Fleck said recently. “He really is special in the way that he approaches the game.

“I’ve always said what I love about Antoine Winfield Jr. is there was always a smile on his face. What I love about Tyler Nubin is there was always a smile on his face.

“There is always a smile on this kid’s face. Not only there’s a smile on his face, there’s always hope in his eyes.

“And he’s the hope. He’s the solution. He’s the confidence. He’s the reason like that’s always in his eyes and it doesn’t matter what he’s doing.”

Along with Perich’s talent and confidence comes a ferocious will to win. “You want to go play him in pickleball, good luck… .He’s one of the most competitive people I’ve ever met, but you saw that. And that’s why everybody in the country wanted them (him).”

The Gophers are 4-3 on the season and 2-2 in Big Ten games. They have too often been mediocre, including on offense but guess who might—sooner or later—take some snaps on that side of the ball? Yup, the playmaker from up north. With Perich, opponents don’t know what’s coming next.

Wild’s Owner Talks Schedule, Expectations, Kaprizov

The Wild plays at Winnipeg tonight as part of an October schedule that has Minnesota on the road for the remainder of October. The Wild opened the regular season with home games last Thursday (3-2 win over the Blue Jackets) and Saturday (5-4 shootout loss to the Kraken).

In a recent interview with Sports Headliners Wild owner Craig Leipold said he takes his input from the players and coaches and that they are embracing the schedule that has them on the road for seven games this month. “…Let the players bond together and spend more time together, and feel like they’re a team, is really an advantage that we think we have,” Leipold said.

Here is a brief Q & A from an in-person conversation with Leipold who has owned the franchise since 2008.

What are you most excited about as the season starts up?

“I want to get the bad taste of last season out of my mouth. I don’t want to think about the problems our team had last year (including missing the playoffs). Our team is better than that. I am anxious to see the team back on the ice. I am very excited about the way that they’ve been practicing in preseason.”

NHL media authorities are unsure if the Wild can make the playoffs.

“I think that’s fine. I think that’s probably accurate right now. I say we are a playoff team. I get my read a lot from (GM) Billy (Guerin). Billy agrees this team is a playoff team. We should be in the playoffs. We expect to be in the playoffs and if we’re not we’ll be very disappointed.”

What are the strengths of this team?

“Everything kind of builds around (forward) Kirill Kaprizov. He is a special player. I think our first line is going to be really strong.

“We have practiced the penalty kill very hard. Our power play was in the top 10 last year. I think we’re going to be better this year. Preseason, our first line power and second line power play did fantastic.

“But we all know that’s preseason. I like our team. I think we’re going to be a grindier team, made of grinders, and I think we lacked a little bit of that last season.”

Kaprizov has two more years remaining on his contract and there is already speculation about his long term NHL home. The Wild will retain him, right?

“Ultimately that’s going to be Kirill’s decision, but we think we’re going to have a very compelling case. First of all, we own his rights for two years. We’re excited about that. He’s excited about being here.

“You know, I guess it is the down side of having a marquee player like this is that it gets people talking a lot about, what if you lose him?

“Well, we haven’t been thinking about that except for the fact that we’re not going to lose him. We’re going to make sure that this is where he wants to be. He will see that this is a team he can win (with) here, in this market. And as I’ve stated before, nobody is going to outspend us when it comes to Kirill.”

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Flip’s Ties to Timberwolves End with Towns Trade to Knicks

Posted on October 1, 2024October 1, 2024 by David Shama

Notes, quotes and observations from the Timberwolves beat as the team opens practice this week.

The last connection to the Flip Saunders era is gone now with this week’s trade sending Karl-Anthony Towns to the Knicks. Saunders, the beloved former U point guard, Wolves coach and president of basketball ops, made Towns the No. 1 overall pick in the 2015 draft before tragically passing away in October of that year.

Saunders was 60 years old when he died from cancer. He left behind a plan to make the Wolves a playoff contender, with the versatile and deft shooting 7-foot Towns as the center piece.

There was debate before the draft whether Towns or 6-10 Jahlil Okafor was most worthy of going No. 1. Saunders made the right selection in taking Towns who became Rookie of the Year averaging 18.3 points per game, 10.5 rebounds and 1.7 blocks. Okafor had a disappointing NBA career and last played in the league in 2020-2021.

Towns, who turns 29 in November, is one of the best shooting big men ever but his lack of consistency in big games has tarnished his reputation. Still, he was coveted by the Knicks and is reunited with coach Tom Thibodeau, a demanding leader who several years ago coached Towns with the Wolves.

The Knicks fill their center position with an All-Star while the Wolves receive an All-Star big man in power forward Julius Randle, versatile guard Donte DiVincenzo, and a future first round protected draft choice via the Pistons. “Minnesota gets two quality players,” Vinny Del Negro told Sports Headliners.

Del Negro, a former NBA player and executive, said the deal “made sense for both teams.” The Wolves were able to reduce salary, saving millions in payroll and luxury tax penalties, and stabilizing their financial outlook.

Karl-Anthony Towns photo courtesy of Minnesota Timberwolves.

There is no certainty whether the trade makes the Wolves even more likely to make a deep playoff run or take a step back. Towns’ talent is enormous, including his defensive presence that contributed so much to knocking the defending NBA champion Nuggets out of last spring’s playoffs. Whether the 2024-2025 roster is more talented than last year’s version may not even be the determiner in whether the Wolves can go beyond the Western Conference Finals as they did this year. Results could depend on how everyone blends together and key players avoiding injury.

“…We think we can play with anybody,” said Tim Connelly, the Wolves president of basketball operations. He indicated the Wolves want to be positioned financially to win now and in the long term. He also said he’s impressed with the offseason work done by the players making themselves the best “versions of themselves.”

While the players had an emotional bond with Towns, they also understand the NBA is a business that includes trades. “We have all the trust in the world in Tim and what he’s been able to do for this team in a short period of time, and where we’ve been able to get to,” said veteran point guard Mike Conley. “…From my understanding, they handled it better than probably any organization has probably ever handled trading somebody. Super professional and the way they worked their business. …”

The Wolves’ development may now be more than ever in the hands of 23-year-old All-Star guard Anthony Edwards, generally considered a top 10 player in the league. Last season, his fourth in the NBA, he averaged a career best 25.9 points per game and played for the gold medal winning US Olympic team in the summer.

“We continue to challenge Anthony because we think he can be one of the best players ever,” Connelly said. “We don’t say that lightly. With that expectation comes tremendous responsibility. Not just the last 20 games (of last season), he’s grown tremendously as a leader.

“He’s starting to find his voice where he’s more comfortable calling guys out in a very positive way. He’s one of the more positive great players I’ve been around. There’s no skipping steps. … I think when Anthony is locked in defensively there is no better on the ball defender in the NBA. And we’re just unbelievably encouraged by his development and really proud of him.”

Asked about the “one of the best ever” comment, Edwards replied: “Yea, I think he right.”

Edwards acknowledged that in addition to his all-around physical skills, he must have a superb work ethic to reach the highest levels of achievement and show he’s coachable. His goals over the summer included being in the weight room as much as possible “and take some fat off.”

Edwards said he begins training camp in the best physical shape of his pro career. Part of that is attributed to the physical challenge of preparing for and playing in the Olympics where his teammates included LeBron James, arguably one of the two or three greatest players ever.

Edwards didn’t offer details, but he said James has “like this little thing he do before every game.” Whatever it is, Edwards said it’s a great routine “that I stole.”

Edwards made 35.7 percent of his three-point shots, down from a career high of 36.9 the prior season. He made catching the basketball and shooting three pointers an offseason priority.

Among Edwards’ new teammates is veteran guard-forward Joe Ingles. He’s admired Edwards’ talent for awhile while playing for other teams and was attracted to signing with the Wolves as a free agent. “Obviously they’ve got ‘Ant’ who is probably more than likely going to be the face of the league soon,” Ingles said. “Just a great roster, a great coaching staff.”

Ingles turns 37 tomorrow (October 2) and for a short while will be the oldest player on the roster. Conley turns 37 on October 11.

Ingles has played with three other NBA teams including with the Jazz where he and Conley excelled in working pick-and-rolls with now Wolves center Rudy Gobert. Ingles, who will come off the bench to give the team spot minutes and hopefully a frequent playmaking spark, knows his presence in Minneapolis isn’t about stroking his ego.

“It’s about the team. It’s about winning. I am too old and too over the hill to be worried about myself at this point.”

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