Golden Gophers – Page 253 – David Shama's Minnesota Sports Headliners

Crowds May Favor U.S. Ryder Cup Win

Posted on September 30, 2016September 30, 2016 by David Shama

Rich Beem and other PGA players have long been impressed with the size of the crowds and support at major golf events in Minnesota. Beem, who saw such crowds at Hazeltine National Golf Club in 2002 when he won the PGA championship, predicts the fans will provide a big edge when the Ryder Cup is played over the next three days at Hazeltine.

Beem is in town working for Sky Sports, a group of sports TV channels popular in England and elsewhere. The major storyline at the Ryder Cup is the Americans have lost the last three matchups with the Europeans, and eight of the last 10.

“I think the U.S. will win,” Beem told Sports Headliners. “It won’t be easy. Crowds will make a big difference.”

Those crowds, a raucous mix of Minnesotans and others from various parts of the United States and the world, will create an intense environment for an event widely considered the most special in golf. Starting today the focus of golfers on both sides will be tested, but in Beem’s view that might be a particular challenge for Europe’s rookie players. “I think it’s our time,” he said.

Scottish–born Colin Montgomerie told Sports Headliners last summer he, too, believes the U.S. will win the 2016 cup. The former European Ryder Cup great talked about the electric atmosphere and home course advantage expected at Hazeltine all weekend. Montgomerie said other factors favoring U.S. success are the leadership of captain Davis Love III, and the “aura” of having vice captain Tiger Woods around the American players. …

Glen Taylor has extended Kevin Garnett an invitation to meet and discuss a possible future association with the Timberwolves. Garnett retired as a player earlier this month and Taylor suggested he take awhile before the two meet.

Before Wolves basketball president Flip Saunders died, Garnett talked about partial ownership of the franchise. If Taylor wanted to eventually sell the team, or a major share, Saunders could be counted on to form a group of investors. Saunders owned a small share of the team prior to his death in 2015.

Taylor gave no indication in a conversation with Sports Headliners whether he will talk ownership with Garnett but that doesn’t mean there couldn’t be other involvement with the franchise. “He came back here (in a 2015 trade with the Nets) because he wanted to be more involved, but on the other hand, he thought he was going to do it with Flip,” Taylor said. “I think he is concerned if that will ever be the same without Flip.”

Taylor said Garnett’s decision to retire after 21 seasons (13-plus with the Wolves in two eras) was of his own doing. New coach Tom Thibodeau is a strong leader and Garnett has been a powerful locker-room voice. Did Thibodeau tell Taylor he wanted to block Garnett’s return? “Oh, no, no, no, because he didn’t get involved with it,” Taylor said of offseason talks with Garnett that were only between the future Hall of Famer and the owner.

Garnett, 40, has struggled with knee problems. During the summer he also struggled with a decision whether to play another season. “What he said to me was, ‘I would like to play but I don’t know if I can.’ So I guess he’s telling me that he wasn’t getting the strength or something in his knees that he had hoped to.” …

Gophers coach Tracy Claeys was asked what he will do to celebrate if his team wins its opening Big Ten game tomorrow at Penn State. “I like to get back (home) and enjoy a little TV and a little pizza, and I like to watch other college games,” he said.

The Gophers frequently used a three-man defensive front in their 31-24 win over Colorado State last week—at times abandoning their more traditional four-man look. Rams coach Mike Bobo was impressed with the change. “I thought that (the three-man front) had us a little bit confused at first,” he said. “I thought the speed of their players had us a little bit taken aback.”

Bobo said mixing the three and four-man fronts “will cause confusion for an offensive line.” He praised the Gophers linebackers and defensive linemen, singling out junior defensive tackle Steven Richardson who had four tackles for loss against the Rams, and referred to him as “unblockable.”

The 300-pound Richardson has been outstanding in two wins against the Rams in 2015 and 2016. “He is about 5-9 but he’s one of the best players that we’ve played against the last two years,” Bobo said. “He’s wreaked havoc on us both years and he did again today (last Saturday).”

Looking ahead, Claeys called it “situational” whether to use more of the three-man front alignment that puts additional mobile players and pass rushers on the field. He said the three-man look is more likely if the Gophers have big leads in games and teams are passing, trying to narrow the score. …

Former Gophers football coach Jerry Kill, who grew up in Kansas, will be inducted into the Kansas Sports Hall of Fame Sunday night in Wichita. Kill, now a leader in the Kansas State athletic department after a nationally recognized coaching career, is from Cheney, Kansas where his mother and brother still reside.

Kill’s new book that came out late last smmer has already raised $200,000 to assist the Epilepsy Foundation of Minnesota. Chasing Dreams: Living My Life One Yard at a Time has raised another $80,000 for Kill’s cancer fund in Illinois.

chasing-dreams1 Kill wrote the book with former Gophers football player Jim Bruton. “Triumph Books in Chicago released 40 new books this fall and Chasing Dreams was their leading seller last week,” Bruton said via email. …

Hamline’s football team is 3-0 for the first time since 1988 and fans are looking forward to the Pipers Homecoming game October 8 against St. Olaf.The celebration will include a reunion of the 1966 MIAC title team. Wins that year included a 6-3 victory over defending NAIA champion Saint John’s. Among those expected to attend the reunion is 92-year-old Dick Mulkern, who coached the 1966 Pipers. …

Congratulations to coach Clay Anderson of the Pipestone Area Arrows who won his 100th football game last week with a 48-7 win over St. James Area. His overall career record at five high schools is now 100-90 in 19 seasons. …

The Oakes family and Gophers baseball program are helping with the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society Minnesota Chapter’s annual Light The Night Walk on October 16 in Minneapolis. Gophers players, coaches and alumni, and the Oakes family, are raising funds and awareness to support blood cancer research and patient services to honor the late Todd Oakes, the former UM pitching coach. More at Gophersports.com.

The Gophers will play their first baseball series in U.S. Bank Stadium February 24-26 against Seattle University. The Gophers will play several games in the covered stadium from February 24 thru March 12, including the Dairy Queen Classic March 3, 4 and 5.

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Kill Not Buying Limegrover Edge Saturday

Posted on September 28, 2016September 28, 2016 by David Shama

Matt Limegrover coached 16 years for Jerry Kill. Limegrover was a leader of the Gophers program from the time the two arrived in Minneapolis for the 2010 season, but now he works as the offensive line coach for Penn State, the team Minnesota opens its Big Ten season against Saturday in University Park, Pennsylvania.

Does Limegrover’s experience with the Minnesota program and knowledge about players give the Nittany Lions a significant edge in preparations this week? “I don’t think that’s (going to be) a major factor in the game,” Kill told Sports Headliners.

Kill said college coaching staffs are so thorough in their evaluations of opponents through films and general scouting that having someone who worked for the opposition just isn’t a big deal. But Kill does expect Limegrover, his former assistant and friend, to be motivated Saturday.

After Kill resigned as the Gophers head coach in October last year, defensive coordinator Tracy Claeys was named interim coach. A few weeks later University of Minnesota president Eric Kaler removed the interim in Claeys’ title. Then after the regular season ended Claeys fired Limegrover.

“There’s that natural instinct that you want to go beat the team that you were let go from,” Kill said. “That’s self-motivation, but that’s not going to affect how his kids play at Penn State. I think all that stuff is overrated. I think the team that prepares the most is the team that is going to win.”

With all his titles, Limegrover had a business card challenge at Minnesota. He was assistant head coach, offensive coordinator and offensive line coach. If that sounds like a lot of responsibility and work, it was. Early in the 2015 season the Gophers were struggling offensively and the pressures on both Kill and Limegrover were significant. The two were working unusually long hours trying to find answers and Kill, whose workload was also burdened by not having a permanent athletic director, resigned because of health issues.

Claeys decided he didn’t want one person serving as both offensive coordinator and line coach. He announced in late November Limegrover wasn’t going to be on his staff, preferring to eventually hire Jay Johnson as offensive coordinator and Bart Miller as line coach. It was a move that upset Limegrover loyalists but generally was supported by the media and public who understood a new head coach needs to make decisions he believes are best for the program.

Anyone who knew Limegrover, though, extended compassion to the well-liked 47-year-old. Kill wasn’t surprised about his friend’s response to the dismissal.

“Matt is a great person and I think that showed up when he was let go of his job and how he handled it,” said Kill who also remains close to Claeys. “He handled it first-class all the way, and that’s why Penn State hired him—I really do (believe). One of the things coach Franklin talked about was Matt being a first-class person. You could tell that after the situation he had. He could have come out and been very bitter. …”

Penn State head coach James Franklin created a homecoming for Limegrover when he hired him last winter. Limegrover is a Pennsylvania native and now is back in his home state able to concentrate on one task—coaching the offensive line.

The Nittany Lions, 2-2 this season, have scored over 30 points in three of their four games. With a defensive unit that has been hit hard by injuries, PSU may have to score more than 30 to beat the Gophers. That’s part of Limegrover’s mission on Saturday, even though he will be coaching against a lot of faces he knows and players he cares about.

Gophers like tight end Nate Wozniak plan to greet Limegrover sometime on Saturday but their focus will be on the Nittany Lions players. “We just know he’s there,” Wozniak said.

Worth Noting

The 3-0 Gophers will play on the road for the first time Saturday. About 100,000 fans will “welcome” Minnesota to Beaver Stadium. Wouldn’t a road game have helped the Gophers prepare for a raucous environment? “It would have been nice but at the same time it’s always fun to have played at home,” said Gophers quarterback Mitch Leidner.

Brandon Lingen, the Gophers tight end with All-Big Ten potential, is still about three weeks away from playing because of his broken clavicle, Claeys said yesterday. Other Gophers not expected to play Saturday are Carter Coughlin, Ta’yon Devers, Coney Durr, Nick Rallis, Ace Rogers, Alex Starks and Rashad Still.

Marshall, Minnesota athlete Drew Hmielewski who is missing his freshman season with the Gophers football team following shoulder surgery, will play baseball at Minnesota starting in January. Gophers assistant baseball coach Rob Fornasiere told Sports Headliners the receiver and outfielder will split time in the spring between football practice and baseball. “He’s an Eric Decker-type clone,” Fornasiere said.

Decker was drafted twice by major league baseball teams as an outfielder while at Minnesota but mostly drew attention as an All-Big Ten wide receiver for the Gophers. Fornasiere said the Gophers offered a baseball scholarship to Hmielewski before the football program did.

Gophers second team redshirt freshman punter Jacob Herbers, from Battle Creek, Michigan, was a first baseman on the baseball team last season and is expected back next year. Gophers running back Rodney Smith hit .587 as a baseball middle infielder in his senior year of high school in Georgia. Fornasiere said Smith hasn’t asked about coming out for baseball.

Fornasiere’s daughter Katie will be married Saturday in the Twin Cities area to Steve Mathei.

The attitude of Cordarrelle Patterson was questioned in his first three seasons with the Vikings but he seems different this year. Patterson looks better as a route running wide receiver, remains explosive on kickoff returns and even is willing to take a spot on the kickoff coverage team.

Vikings head coach Mike Zimmer admitted the coverage role is one Patterson probably wouldn’t have accepted in the past. Why the change? “I think he wants to play,” Zimmer said.. “I think he’s trying to do everything he can to get on the field.”

The 3-0 Vikings, who have defeated two of the better teams in the NFL in the Packers and Panthers, have created a lot of hype with their impressive defense that has allowed a league second-best 13.3 points per game. Zimmer, though, isn’t interested in listening to gushing praise. “Typically, I don’t even look at the stats until at least Thanksgiving. So, I don’t know where we fall defensively or anything like that. I just try to get us better each day in the things that we’re doing,” he said.

Lynx owner Glen Taylor told Sports Headliners his WNBA club will have its most profitable year ever in 2016. He expects the profit to be between $1 million and $2 million for his defending WNBA champion franchise. The Lynx has its first 2016 playoff game tonight at Xcel Energy Center against the Mercury. The Lynx had a league-best regular season record of 28-6.

Media and coaches polls have made Bowling Green the preseason choice to win the WCHA. Bill Robertson, the league’s Edina-based commissioner, said several schools will compete for NCAA berths next March. “It will come down to the last weekend,” he said.

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Joe Mauer Decline Not Going Away

Posted on September 26, 2016September 27, 2016 by David Shama

Whatever is wrong with Joe Mauer isn’t changing. With the Twins season ending within days, the 33-year-old Mauer is finishing yet another dismal year at the plate.

The rumors about what ails Mauer have even included speculation he has a crippling disease. Truth could be the former three-time American League batting champion continues to deteriorate as a productive hitter because of concussions and aging.

A source with decades of experience in baseball told Sports Headliners he doesn’t know what’s wrong with Mauer but the causes might be the two factors mentioned immediately above.

Mauer’s well publicized concussion in 2013 led to him being moved from catching to first base.Dating back to high school who knows how many other concussions the Minnesota native may have experienced in athletics? Damage to the brain, the source speculated, could be impacting the response and effectiveness of Mauer’s body at the plate as he struggles to be the hitter he once was. Motor skills, the source reminded, are everything when trying to hit a baseball thrown at 95 miles per hour.

Mauer has a history of injuries and critics question how successfully he works through them. As of late, Mauer has been troubled by strained and sore quadriceps. With an aging body that turns 34 next April, injuries could be a continuing pattern for Mauer who no doubt will welcome the season’s end and the opportunity to rest.

Other than being supportive, the Twins don’t have much to say about the one-time superstar’s decline. Mauer thought before the season he was headed toward a better year after more time had gone by since his 2013 concussion. But the 2016 statistics tell a similar story to the last two seasons.

The lifetime .309 hitter, who won the 2009 league batting championship with a .365 average, is hitting .261 as the Twins approach the end of their schedule next Sunday. Mauer has 11 home runs and 49 RBI. Last year he hit .265 with 10 home runs and 66 RBI. In 2014 the numbers were .277, 4 homers and 55 RBI.

Mauer isn’t making contact with the ball like he did when he routinely hit over .300. He struck out a career high 112 times last season. This year, in about 100 fewer at bats, he has struck out 93 times.

Those are alarming numbers for a guy with Mauer’s past record of success. They also leave fans frustrated that the Twins are paying Mauer $23 million per season and receiving that kind of return. A lot more is expected from a hitter who bats high in the batting order earns mega compensation.

If the Twins were winning, Mauer would still be a sensitive subject with fans, but playing for a club that has lost more than 90 games in five of the last six years puts him in the eye of the storm. With two years left on his contract, Mauer is owed another $46 million.

Mauer and the Twins can only hope he can improve his production. He certainly isn’t finishing this season in that direction. In his last seven games he is batting .080, and in the last 30 games .196.

Worth Noting

At 100 losses and counting, there is still valid conversation that a contributing reason for the Twins’ awful record after finishing 83-79 last season is the absence of veteran outfielder Torii Hunter who retired. Hunter was a strong personality in the clubhouse who was willing to push underachieving teammates, and his leadership is still missed.

The Twins finished their 2016 home schedule drawing 1,963,912 fans—the lowest ever at Target Field and first time below 2 million.

Vikings guard Alex Boone suffered a reported hip injury in yesterday’s impressive win over the Panthers, and had an MRI today. “He should be okay, I think,” Vikings coach Mike Zimmer said this afternoon. Zimmer is unsure, though, if Boone will be able to play next Monday night against the Giants.

The 3-0 Vikings, who gave up just one touchdown in yesterday’s 22-10 win, are allowing an NFL-third best 13.3 points per game. Opponents have scored only 13 second half points this season.

Since Zimmer took over the team for the 2014 season, the Vikings have 99 sacks—second best in the NFL. During that period defensive end Everson Griffen, who had three sacks yesterday, has the fourth most sacks in the league with 26.5.

Zimmer stays in touch with his former boss and NFL Hall of Fame coach Bill Parcells who is now retired. “He gives me advice on my team,” Zimmer said.

If pressed for a way-too-early prediction on who the Gophers quarterback will be next season, Ryan Burns guessed Mark Williams. The GopherIllustrated authority likes the athleticism and arm strength of the true freshman from Gainestown, Alabama, and believes Williams could replace Mitch Leidner as Minnesota’s starting quarterback in 2017.

Penn State coach James Franklin and his players will attempt redemption in Saturday’s home game against the Gophers after being embarrassed 49-10 last weekend in Ann Arbor. Michigan led the Nittany Lions 28-0 in the third quarter when with fourth and two at the Wolverines’ goal line, Franklin decided on a field goal rather than pursue a touchdown.

Brandon Lingen, the Gophers tight end with All-Big Ten potential, is still about three weeks away from playing because of his broken clavicle, Minnesota coach Tracy Claeys said today (Tuesday). Other Gophers who won’t play Saturday are Carter Coughlin, Ta’yon Devers, Coney Durr, Nick Rallis, Ace Rogers, Alex Starks and Rashad Still.

Mountain West commissioner Craig Thompson, a Redwood Falls native and University of Minnesota alum, attended Saturday’s Gophers-Colorado State game. Mountain West officials worked the game.

Former Gophers defensive coordinator Greg Hudson now has that title at Notre Dame after Irish coach Brian Kelly fired Brian VanGorder last weekend. Hudson, a former Notre Dame player and assistant coach, was let go at Purdue after last season and was available to replace VanGorder for the defensive-challenged and 1-3 Irish.

There continues to be no word from the Gophers on the contract status of hockey coach Don Lucia. The 2016-2017 season is his last under contract.

Lindy’s College Basketball Magazine predicts the Gophers will finish 13th in the Big Ten, ahead of only Rutgers in the conference standings. “Best case scenario: They’re at least a year away from postseason play,” the magazine forecast.

The Gophers open their Big Ten schedule December 27 at home against Michigan State. Lindy’s ranks the Spartans No. 11 nationally. The magazine’s top-rated Big Ten team nationally is sixth ranked Wisconsin.

A source from Rochester, Minnesota told Sports Headliners North Carolina coach Roy Williams was in town last week recruiting John Marshall High School’s Matthew Hurt. Kansas coach Bill Self visited Rochester recently too in pursuit of the sophomore forward who is already among the more highly recruited boys basketball players in state history.

While Matthew wants a pro basketball career, older brother Michael is a freshman with the Gophers and plans to be a doctor. The close relationship between the two brothers will help Minnesota’s chances of gaining a commitment from Matthew.

St. Paul Saints part owner Bill Murray is scheduled to be among the celebrities participating in a nine-hole scramble tomorrow from 2 to 5:45 p.m. at Hazeltine National Golf Club. The Ryder Cup Celebrity Match will have personalities from the United States and Europe playing against one another. Michael Phelps is expected to be among Murray’s U.S. teammates, and Europe’s roster includes Martina Navratilova.

Ryder Cup ceremonies on Thursday will feature business leaders holding flags including WCHA men’s commissioner Bill Robertson with the American flag.

Cal Franklin of the American Marshals will be making the “Let’s Play Hockey” call at the Wild-Hurricanes preseason game tomorrow night at Xcel Energy. The Wayzata businessman is part of the Marshals group of golf enthusiasts who are unofficial ambassadors of the U.S. Ryder Cup team. They have provided support at the last four Ryder Cups in Kentucky, Wales, Chicago and Scotland.

Most Ryder Cup players are renting homes on Lake Minnetonka or at Bearpath Golf and Country Club.

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