Golden Gophers – Page 264 – David Shama's Minnesota Sports Headliners

U Boosters Voice Concerns to Governor

Posted on April 25, 2016April 26, 2016 by David Shama

Jim Carter thought it was an idea going nowhere. Carter’s friend Jim Brunzell told him a few weeks ago he requested a meeting with Governor Mark Dayton to talk about University of Minnesota athletics.

Not only did the Governor’s office respond but a lunch meeting was scheduled with Brunzell, Carter and Alvin Ray Hawes. Last Friday the three U alums met with Dayton at the Governor’s residence in St. Paul. Shannon Patrick, Dayton’s senior policy advisor for higher education, was also there.

Brunzell, Carter and Hawes played football together at Minnesota in the late 1960s. They and many other Gophers boosters have been concerned for some time about the school’s leadership in athletics, and the performances and reputations of football, and men’s basketball and hockey—the highest profile sports at the University and major producers of revenues contributing to a $100 million annual budget supporting 25 men’s and women’s sports.

Carter came to the meeting with a list of facts and concerns including how long it’s taking to find a permanent athletic director, how fundraising is stalled on the $190 million Athletes Village project, the missed opportunity to place former football coach Jerry Kill in a high level position within the Athletic Department, how department monies have been used inefficiently, and how the revenues, culture and image of the department could be much better.

“We just wanted the Governor to know how frustrated we are,” Carter said of the meeting. “How frustrated we’ve been with the lack of pursuit of excellence in athletics at the University. With the long time—almost a year now—to put an athletic director in place. What we see with continuing issues in the Athletic Department that make us wonder where the tradition of the Golden Gophers has gone. We shared that with the Governor.

“It was very positive (the discussion), not mudslinging. We talked with him…and discovered he’s got the same love for Golden Gophers football, hockey, basketball, and many of the sports that we all do.”

The Governor, 69, is about the same age as Carter, Brunzell and Hawes. A Minneapolis native, Dayton grew up in Minnesota and loved hockey. He was an all-state goalie for Blake and followed Gophers hockey and football teams. “He seemed to be one of us,” Carter said.

Carter said during lunch Dayton expressed similar concerns to what his visitors voiced. Dayton also recalled an offer he made to former Gophers athletics director Norwood Teague and later to interim AD Beth Goetz. Dayton is willing to use his residence to help the Athletic Department, including to host Gopher donors. While Teague didn’t take him up on the offer, Goetz has scheduled a dinner.

What may transpire from the meeting last Friday? “I think the only thing that we could expect for him to do would be to use influence,” Carter said. “Not financial necessarily but he speaks with the president of the University. He speaks with people over there.”

Vikings & NFL Draft

The Vikings have eight selections in next week’s NFL Draft and a priority should be finding a speed receiver who runs disciplined routes. At least that’s the opinion of former Viking Bob Lurtsema who remains close to the franchise.

Lurtsema is an admirer of third-year quarterback Teddy Bridgewater who he said “can throw the ball” but doesn’t receive enough praise from the media. Bridgewater ranked No. 22 in the NFL last season with 3,231 passing yards. The 23-year-old had a just okay 88.7 passer rater.

Teddy Bridgewater (photo courtesy of Minnesota Vikings).

It takes awhile for young quarterbacks to establish themselves but Lurtsema believes Bridgewater’s numbers and the perception of him would be more positive if his wide receivers ran better routes than they did last season. Bridgewater, he said, often made superior judgments compared to his targets.

“They (wide receivers) would come off the routes,” Lurtsema said. “They weren’t reading the same (as Bridgewater). A lot of it is the responsibility of the receiver.”

Lurtsema hopes to see improvement among the wide receivers next season. “You talk to the players themselves and you talk to them off the record, they tell you all the little things that Teddy Bridgewater can do,” Lurtsema said.

The first of the Vikings’ eight selections comes Thursday night when Minnesota has the No. 23 pick in the first round. Mock drafts frequently project the Vikings will use the selection on a wide receiver, perhaps TCU’s Josh Doctson, Notre Dame’s Will Fuller or Ohio State’s Mike Thomas. All three have first round credentials but on their NFL.com profiles none draws praise for route running.

The Vikings will also draft No. 23 in rounds two through five, then No. 5 in the sixth round, and 19th and 23rd in the seventh and final round. The first round begins at 7 p.m. CDT Thursday. Rounds two and three start at 6 p.m. Friday, while rounds four through seven begin at 11 a.m. Saturday. All three days of the draft from Chicago will be televised by ESPN and the NFL Network.

Vikings general manager Rick Spielman meets with the media tomorrow (Tuesday) to preview the draft.

Lurtsema talking about 33-year-old linebacker Chad Greenway who has decided to play an 11th season for the Vikings and whether a player that age slows down: “You might lose a half a step but your experience picks up a half a step—so you’re still a pretty good athlete.”

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Gopher AD List May Include Hawkeye

Posted on April 20, 2016April 20, 2016 by David Shama

A lot of names are being mentioned as candidates to become the Gophers’ next athletics director but one drawing minimal speculation is Gene Taylor, the No. 2 leader in the Iowa Hawkeyes Athletic Department.

Taylor was athletics director at North Dakota State for 13 years prior to joining the Hawkeyes in 2014. Taylor, 58, helped put in place the Bison football program that is working on a run of five consecutive FCS national championships.

Taylor has an extensive background in athletics administration dating back to his first job at the United States Naval Academy. His career commitment to female and male athletes, involvement with funding to improve facilities, success with football, and his understanding of this geographic region should resonate with Turnkey Search, the firm retained by the University of Minnesota to identify and vet candidates.

Multiple sources report Turnkey is interviewing candidates this week in the Midwest and East. One source told Sports Headliners over a dozen candidates will be interviewed in the first round of talks. Eventually Turnkey will vet those who the firm believes are the best candidates and bring those names to a 16-person search committee of volunteers headed by co-chairs Katrice Albert and Perry Leo. Albert is the University’s vice president for equity and diversity. Leo is professor of aerospace engineering and the U faculty athletics representative.

Recommendations by the committee will go to University president Eric Kaler. After Kaler’s disastrous hire of Norwood Teague in 2013, the president’s reputation and perhaps legacy is in play with a decision on the next AD who is expected to be on the job by July 1.

No candidate has probably been more open about his interest than former Gophers linebacker and Wall Street whiz Pete Najarian. The 52-year-old Minneapolis native and TV personality appears ready to start a new life leading the Gophers athletics department.

Najarian spent last weekend in Lincoln, Nebraska where daughter Alexis is on the University of Nebraska track team. He also visited with Cornhuskers legend Tom Osborne to learn more about running an athletics department. Before retiring, Osborne won national championships in football and was the school’s athletics director.

Najarian raves about Osborne’s wisdom and inclusive, caring approach with people. The two have known each other since the early 1980s when Osborne tried to recruit Najarian to become a Cornhusker. Najarian said Osborne was one of the few coaches who still showed interest in him as a person after he committed to the Gophers.

Najarian, former Gophers All-American defensive end Bob Stein, and WCHA commissioner and St. Paul native Bill Robertson are names with Minnesota roots who have been mentioned with the AD opening. Many Gophers boosters favor candidates who have local relationships and understand the culture here. Najarian, Stein and Robertson have ties to the Minneapolis-St. Paul business community—an asset critics assert has been underutilized by the Gophers.

Although he hasn’t lived in Minnesota for years, Blake James attended Coon Rapids High School and Minnesota State-Mankato. Now the athletic director at the University of Miami in Coral Gables, James will no doubt at least cross the minds of Turnkey executives, even if he has no interest in coming to Dinkytown.

Another no-brainer for Turnkey is Northern Illinois athletics director Sean Frazier. Highly praised by Sports Headliners sources, he is a favorite to be on a list of finalists. Frazier is African-American as is McKinley Boston, who was the Gophers’ AD in the 1990s. Boston has mentored Frazier who has worked as a top assistant to Wisconsin athletics director Barry Alvarez. Frazier and Kaler know each other.

Sources tell Sports Headliners the best athletic director in the country could be Northwestern’s Jim Phillips who supposedly has turned down other jobs including Michigan to stay in Evanston. If Minnesota and Turnkey leaders wanted to take a “nothing is impossible” approach, they could access a private jet and fly to Evanston with an offer to make Phillips the best paid AD in the country—and bring along a briefcase stuffed with articles about the quality of life in Minnesota.

Not a bad thought considering the potential revenue an athletic director could affect at Minnesota, where both winning and income aren’t what they should be.

Worth Noting

The Wild, who appear to be building momentum, shouldn’t lack for confidence going into tonight’s Game Four against the Stars at Xcel Energy Center. Wild players seemed unsure in Game 1 of their Stanley Cup Playoff Series in Dallas, losing 4-0. Then a close loss in Game 2 in Texas was followed by the Wild’s 5-3 win on Monday night in St. Paul.

The Wild entered the series having faltered at the close of the regular season and facing the Stars without Zach Parise, Minnesota’s best player. The Stars were among the NHL’s better teams during the season while featuring a productive offense. But the Wild has slowed down Dallas and found its own playmakers including Erik Haula, who has impressed with a line that includes Jason Pominville and Nino Niederreiter.

The Stars want to force Wild turnovers tonight and turn those into scoring opportunities. If that works, there will be more pressure on Wild goalie Devan Dubynk. Goalie, though, is a position where the Wild should be better than the Stars.

In the series so far the storyline for the Wild is the team gets better each game. Can the script continue tonight?

The International Champions Cup match between Chelsea and A.C. Milan will be played on real grass at U.S. Bank Stadium. Vikings and amateur baseball games will be played on artificial turf but the August 3 soccer event, the first sports activity in the new covered stadium, will use sod.

St. Thomas football coach Glenn Caruso told Sports Headliners Gopher transfer Jacques Perra, who will be a sophomore next fall, is a leading candidate for the starting quarterback job. Tommies’ spring practices started earlier this month and continue into May.

A source emailed yesterday that the Timberwolves are talking to former NBA guard and Warriors coach Mark Jackson about their coaching vacancy.

Condolences to family and friends of Bill Light who passed away last Friday after struggling with pancreatic cancer. Bill was a great high school football player at Hopkins and an All-Big Ten linebacker for the Gophers in 1970-71. He was also team captain in 1971. He was inducted into the “M” Club’s Hall of Fame in 2014, and once owned Billy’s Lighthouse restaurant in Long Lake.

Vashti Cunningham, daughter of former Vikings quarterback Randall Cunningham, is a senior at Gorman High School in Las Vegas. Ed Graney, writing Saturday for the Las Vegas Review-Journal, reported in an online story that Vashti, who turned professional in March, will next month be the first American women’s high jumper in 20 years to be featured on the cover of Track & Field News.

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‘Ballet Genes’ Gave Max Kepler Edge

Posted on April 15, 2016April 15, 2016 by David Shama

There are several interesting things about Max Kepler but the most important to the Twins’ future is whether he can become a regular in their lineup—perhaps even a star.

The 23-year-old rookie outfielder was called up from Triple-A Rochester last weekend to replace infielder-outfielder Danny Santana who went on the 15-day disabled list. Kepler played in Sunday’s game as a late inning defensive replacement in right field for Miguel Sano. It didn’t take long for Kepler to show his athleticism when he raced toward the fence and made a spectacular catch on a ball that could have gone for extra bases.

“To tell you the truth I don’t know how he caught that ball,” Jim Rantz told Sports Headliners. “It turned him around about three times, I think, and he caught that ball.”

Max Kepler (photo courtesy of Minnesota Twins).

Rantz is a retired Twins executive who was involved with personnel development when the club signed Kepler as a 16-year-old undrafted free agent in 2009. The Twins found Kepler in Germany and liked his potential so much they gave him a reported $800,000 signing bonus—believed at the time to be the largest ever for a European player.

The Twins were willing to take a gamble on a prospect from far away (going into the 2016 season only 43 German-born players had ever been major leaguers). “I think the genes were there,” Rantz said of the long and athletic Kepler. “His mother and father were ballet dancers.”

Parents Mark Rozycki and Kathy Kepler raised an athletic wunderkind who played baseball, soccer and tennis. He was a swimmer and skier too. He even earned a tennis scholarship to the Steffi Graff Tennis Foundation in Berlin. Along the way he has also learned to speak four languages including English.

As a 16-year-old, Kepler moved to Fort Myers with his mother. The Twins wanted him working out at their complex while he attended nearby Fort Myers High School. “He didn’t have much time socially to do anything because he went from school to the ballpark,” Rantz said.

Kepler hit .322 with 32 doubles, 13 triples, nine home runs and 71 RBI in 112 games at Double-A Chattanooga last season. He was the Southern League MVP during what was his most impressive of six minor league seasons. He entered this year ranked near the top among Twins’ minor league prospects, and Baseball America said his strike-zone discipline was tops in the farm system.

Kepler, 6-4 and about 205 pounds, has played first base in the minors but he has transitioned to the outfield where he continues to be an intriguing fielding and hitting prospect. “He made himself into a pretty good defensive player,” Rantz said. “He’s got that kind of bat that he’s going to hit for average and show a little power at times. He’s got some versatility. He can play the outfield, he can play first base. He’s just a good all-around athlete.”

Manager Paul Molitor has started Kepler in one game so far, Wednesday night, when Kepler was 0-4 at the plate and played in right field. He might return to Rochester when Santana is healthy, and he may not be back in a Twins uniform for awhile, perhaps even next season. But Rantz expects Kepler will one day be a major league regular—maybe a star.

“I think so,” Rantz said. “I think he’s going to be for sure (at least) an average major league player.”

Minnesota is a state in which Germans are the largest ethnic group. Berlin-born Kepler might just make a second home here.

Worth Noting

The Wild, down 1-0 in its Stanley Cup Playoff series with the Stars, has a short turnaround after tomorrow night’s game two in Dallas. The team heads back to the Twin Cities and has scheduled an 11 a.m. practice Sunday at Xcel Energy Center.

Pete Najarian, the nationally-known investment guru and candidate for the Gophers’ athletic director position, speaks to the CORES luncheon group on Thursday, May 12 at the Knights of Columbus Hall in Bloomington, 1114 American Blvd. Najarian, a Minneapolis native, was a starting linebacker and captain of the 1985 Gophers. He was Academic All-Big Ten three times during his UM career. CORES is an acronym for coaches, officials, reporters, educators and sports fans. Reservations and more information are available by contacting Jim Dotseth, dotsethj@comcast.net.

Leave it to sports savant Dave Mona to come up with a startling comparison of Gophers and Purdue quarterbacks from the last 60 years. Mona researched back to 1956 and learned former Boilermakers quarterbacks—ranging from Len Dawson to Drew Brees—threw 1,340 touchdown passes as NFL/AFL players. Ex-Gophers have a total of five during the same period. Yes, five!

Minnesota’s Mike Hohensee threw four TD passes as a replacement player for the Bears during the NFL strike season of 1987. Gino Cappelletti, playing for the AFL Patriots, had one TD throw on a busted field goal attempt.

The Gophers’ total goes to six if Spergon Wynn is counted. Wynn played one season at Minnesota in 1996 when he attempted three of eight passes for no touchdowns, according to Sports-reference.com. Wynn, who transferred to Southwest Texas State, later played for the Vikings and threw the only NFL touchdown pass of his career for them, according to Wikipedia.com.

James Johannesson, the reserve redshirt freshman running back from Fargo who surprised fans at the Gophers Spring Game by rushing for 130 yards, comes from a football family. His father James played at Jamestown College while his uncle Jon Norstog played at North Dakota State. Johannesson is probably on anyone’s list of most improved Gophers coming out of spring practices.

Reed Larson, Bob Paradise and others will roast the late Herb Brooks for the Old-Timers Hockey Association during the evening of April 26 at the Prom Center in Oakdale. The Minnesota Minute Men will roast Jerry Kill at a noon lunch May 6 at Jax Café. Jim Carter, Joel Maturi and Ron Stolski will be among those roasting the former Gophers football coach. Dick Jonckowski will emcee both roasts.

Last Monday’s column about Gophers sports and the frustrations of boosters prompted more responses than any other since this website began in 2006. Nearly all responses expressed strong concern about the University of Minnesota’s commitment to athletics.

Baseball great Pete Rose, who was a celebrity guest at the Twin Cities’ Tapemark Charity Pro-Am years ago and still dreams of being enshrined in Cooperstown, turned 75 yesterday.

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