Golden Gophers – Page 333 – David Shama's Minnesota Sports Headliners

Engel Out to Prove Doubters Wrong Again

Posted on March 12, 2014March 12, 2014 by David Shama

Derrick Engel knows all about long odds. That’s why he doesn’t hesitate much when talking about the possibility of running at full speed in April despite having ACL surgery only a few months ago.

The 6-foot-2 former Gophers wide receiver from Chaska has been proving football folks wrong for years. Now he’s trying to prove himself again by not only making a quick and complete recovery from a serious knee injury, but also that he is worthy of playing for an NFL team.

Engel started jogging two weeks ago, another step in his rehab and weight programs. His weight dropped to 172 following the ACL surgery that came last December. The knee injury and later surgery caused him to miss the last two regular season Gopher games and the Texas Bowl. Now Engle’s weight is up to 185 pounds and his determination is strong.

Engel hopes to be medically approved for contact in May, admitting that is “kind of a lofty goal” coming less than six months following surgery. The calendar is on his mind because the NFL Draft is May 8-10 and teams will be setting up not only their draft choices but free agent possibilities. If Engel is healthy by some date in May he hopes teams will bring him in for a private workout that could at least lead to a free agent opportunity as a non-drafted player.

Engel’s May timeline could be too ambitious but he’s not discouraged about his football future. Scouts have expressed interest and Engel has retained Minneapolis-based agents James Selmer and Shawn Stuckey to represent him. He and his agents will see if NFL opportunities develop in June, if not May. Canadian pro football, not just the NFL, is also a possibility.

“If it doesn’t work out this year I think I am definitely going to give it another year… to fully train and get this knee healthy, and show people what I can do,” Engel told Sports Headliners.

Show people what he can do. Those words define Engel’s football career dating back to Chaska High School.

“I didn’t take the easy route to D-I,” Engel said. “I had to prove myself from the bottom up. Start (the college career) at D-2. Even in high school I didn’t play as a sophomore. I had to kind of prove myself. I didn’t get on the field until my junior year. I am kind of used to taking the rougher path.”

At Chaska Engel caught 50 passes for 637 yards and nine touchdowns his senior year. He was honorable mention all-state but had no Division I college scholarship offers. He did make multiple visits to Evanston, Illinois where Northwestern coach Pat Fitzgerald wanted him to be a preferred walk-on but at $50,000 per year for school that was a high cost for the Engel family that includes dad Joel and mom Karen, both former college athletes.

Engel was slender in high school and his build has influenced the way football coaches and scouts look at him even to this day. “I don’t really pass the eye test. Just walking down the street in street clothes, you probably don’t point at me and say, ‘Oh, that kid is a football player.’

“I’ve had to get by with my speed, my brain and my ball skills. I am definitely lacking in size and strength so that’s probably the main reason why people don’t take a second look at me a lot of times. Once they see me play, they can see that I make up for that with the way that I play.”

Engel’s first college stop was at Winona State. His first season in 2009 he made honorable mention All-Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference. The second year he led the team in receptions with 39 and 584 receiving yards and was named all-conference.

Engel wanted to play at a higher college level and was interested in the Gophers while in high school. He decided to leave Winona and walk-on at Minnesota where he had to sit out the 2011 season.

The Gophers 2012 season opener was at UNLV. During late summer practices Engel was trying to move up the depth chart and convince himself and the coaches he deserved playing time.

Engel entered the UNLV game as the No. 3 slot receiver. Freshman Jamel Harbison tore his ACL in the first quarter and so Minnesota lost its starting slot receiver. During a timeout in the second quarter Engel was told he was going into the game for the first time as a Gopher.

“I knew I was getting the ball for about two minutes there and had all the time in the world to think about it, which didn’t help me at all, but I ended up getting in there and caught the ball,” Engel said. “I think it was like a 30 yard gain. It was a pretty neat way to start my career.”

A nervous Engel had proven himself once again and he would receive other limited opportunities in 2012. For the season he started only one game, catching 18 passes for 375 yards and one touchdown.

In Engel’s senior season last fall he became Minnesota’s premier wide receiver. Despite missing three games, he tied tight end Maxx Williams for team highs in receptions with 25 and touchdown catches with five. Engel averaged 16 yards per catch. After he was injured the absence of his speed and deep threat ability was a major loss for the Gophers’ passing game that faltered late in the season.

The ACL injury and missed games took away the possibility of performing at his best closing out his career and impressing NFL scouts. Now he is determined to increase his weight to about 200 pounds and to run a “sub-4.40 forty.”

Engel believes he has a “lot of upside” that football scouts haven’t seen. But he also realizes he has much to prove, “Kind of what I’ve done my whole career anyway.”

What’s it feel like to often be doubted and not even wanted or accepted? “It definitely puts a chip on your shoulder,” Engel said. “You’re kind of thirsty to go out there and prove to everyone that they’re wrong. That their expert opinions aren’t as expert as they think they are. It’s probably better for me that way—that people doubt me because that kind of fuels my fire and gives me more motivation to prove people wrong.

“It’s not just like I am doing it to prove people wrong, it’s for myself, too. I want to play at a high level. But that’s definitely part of gaining motivation.”

Worth Noting

Former Vikings Ben Leber and John Randle will sign autographs tomorrow from 11 a.m. to noon at Franklin Street Bakery, 1020 East Franklin Ave. “Purple velvet cupcakes” will be on sale with proceeds going to Minnesota FoodShare. No purchase is necessary for autographs but donations to FoodShare are encouraged.

The five finalists for the 2014 Mr. Basketball Award are Wheeler Baker, Osseo; Brian Goodwin, Belgrade-Brooten-Elrosa; Tyus Jones, Apple Valley; J.P. Macura, Lakeville North; and Reid Travis, DeLaSalle. Only seniors are eligible for the award and the winner will be announced after this week’s boys’ tournament.

The Gophers women’s basketball team will learn Monday whether they are invited to the NCAA Tournament. If so, they will need better shooting accuracy from Big Ten scoring champion Rachel Banham. In last week’s two Big Ten Conference Tournament games the Gophers’ point guard made only nine of 34 shots despite playing 84 minutes in Minnesota’s overtime win against Wisconsin and loss to Nebraska.

Sports Headliners reader Paul Ehrhard e-mailed that Iowa’s fans were “raucous” at last weekend’s Big Ten Wrestling Championships in Madison. Ehrhard, who was in attendance, wrote that during the semi-finals and finals other Big Ten fans “cheered loudly and long” against Iowa’s wrestlers.

The Gophers finished third behind Penn State and Iowa. Senior redshirt freshman Tony Nelson was the only Minnesota wrestler to win a championship. The Gophers will be in Oklahoma City March 20-22 for the NCAA Championships. Nelson is a two-time defending national champion.

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Ariel McDonald: 2 Wins Gets U in Tourney

Posted on March 10, 2014March 10, 2014 by David Shama

The Gophers play Penn State in their Big Ten Tournament opener on Thursday night in Indianapolis and Ariel McDonald believes Minnesota has to win the game to remain a possibility for the NCAA Tournament. A second win in the tournament will make him even more optimistic about Minnesota’s NCAA chances.

“If they can get two wins they should be safe, but right now they live to see another day,” McDonald told Sports Headliners after the Gophers defeated Penn State yesterday at Williams Arena. McDonald, a former Gophers point guard, was the TV analyst for yesterday’s Big Ten Network game when Minnesota improved its conference record to 8-10 and overall to 19-12.

He believes there is some possibility the Gophers could earn an invite to the NCAA Tournament when selections are announced next Sunday if they win just their Big Ten opener. That optimism is based on Minnesota’s strength of schedule including wins over top 20 teams Iowa, Ohio State and Wisconsin.

But even though Minnesota has defeated Penn State twice this season, winning again on Thursday doesn’t figure to be nearly as easy as yesterday’s 81-63 victory. “I think one of the hardest things to do in sports is beat a team three times (in one season),” Gophers coach Richard Pitino said last night.

Penn State finished 6-12 in the Big Ten, 15-16 overall. The Nittany Lions had two wins over Ohio State, an indication of their abilities. “I think they’re really good,” Pitino said.

The coach expects a “war” on Thursday night and part of the fight will likely be low post scoring. McDonald said the Gophers need balanced offense coming from the outside and inside. The inside scoring must come from not only players driving to the basket but the team’s low post players like Elliott Eliason and Mo Walker. “When they can get you 22 to 25 points in the low post the Gophers usually don’t lose,” McDonald said.

When the Gophers experience five minute scoreless streaks like they did in some conference games McDonald understands why. “The reason (is) they don’t have anybody they can throw it down low to and just say, ‘Hey, go get us a bucket, or at least a foul so we can go shoot free throws and kind of overcome this lapse.’ ”

While Eliason, Walker and power forward Joey King are important to team success, McDonald said the Gophers hopes each game start with point guard DeAndre Mathieu who provides the offensive tempo Pitino wants. “He dominates the ball and he creates so much for them off the dribble. …Usually when you can control him you can control the Gophers so he is a big, big piece to their success.”

Mathieu is only 5-9, 165. but he is quick and fearless. “I like small guys who just have guts,” McDonald said. “They’re not scared to go in there to the big guys. That’s why I like DeAndre. He seems to be under control. I think he is special.”

Mathieu and the Gophers will find out soon if they’re special enough for the NCAA Selection Committee.

Worth Noting

McDonald wasn’t even one of the Big Ten Network analysts before the season but he used his persistence to get on the air. He worked three network games this season and hopes to have frequent assignments in 2014-15. He has previous analyst experience working Minnesota State High School League games and this winter has given his basketball opinions weekly on 1500 ESPN.

Ross Travis, from Chaska, started at forward for the Nittany Lions yesterday and scored four points after entering the game averaging nine. Reserve guard Graham Woodward, from Edina, didn’t score.

While the Nittany Lions have two native Minnesotans on their roster, the Gophers have one in power forward Joey King from Eagan. The Gophers began playing basketball in 1896 and this might be the first time in program history only one player from the state has been on the roster.

Look for the five finalists for the 2014 high school Mr. Basketball Award to be announced today or tomorrow.

College national championship teams, including the 2013 Gophers women’s hockey team, will be honored by President Barack Obama today at the White House. The event will be streamed live on Whitehouse.gov/live. The Gophers had a record of 41-0-0, the only undefeated women’s hockey team ever.

Ron Stolski, the winningest high school football coach in state history, shares his wisdom in an interview for the American Football Coaches Association website. Stolski, still coaching at Brainerd, has been a Minnesota prep coach for over 50 years. The interview can be accessed at Mfca.com.

Stolski is also executive director of the Minnesota Football Coaches Association, the organization offering events throughout the year promoting football. Upcoming events include the MFCA Clinic March 27-29 and the recruiting fair May 5.

Minnetonka High School alum Will Leer, competing for the U.S. track team, finished sixth in the 1500 meters final on Saturday at the IAAF World Indoor Championships in Sopot, Poland. His time was 3:39.60.

Adrian Peterson figures to be happy about the Vikings re-signing Matt Cassel to quarterback the team. In the February 10 issue of Sports Illustrated he was asked who he wanted as the team’s starter next season. “Matt Cassel,” Peterson answered. “We were productive when he was behind center. If (we do) draft a quarterback, (Johnny) Manziel or (Teddy) Bridgewater. They have the potential to come in and play.”

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U Women’s Team Needs Tourney Run

Posted on March 5, 2014March 5, 2014 by David Shama

Although apathy characterizes the attitude of many fans toward Gophers women’s basketball, there is anticipation and curiosity about the team that begins play in the Big Ten Tournament tomorrow night as the No. 6 seed.

Coach Pam Borton’s team finished 8-8 during the regular season, the program’s best showing since 2009 and the last year Minnesota was invited to the NCAA Tournament. The Gophers won six of their final eight league games, and a win over No. 11 seed Wisconsin tomorrow evening would almost certainly guarantee an NCAA invite. Minnesota is 19-11 overall and may qualify for the NCAA Tournament even if the Gophers can’t win a game in the conference tourney in Indianapolis.

But Borton and her team need to build momentum in the program by not only winning a couple of NCAA tourney games this month, but also earn major success in the future with plus-.500 Big Ten records. The program has faltered since the glory days of 2003, 2004 and 2005 when Minnesota played in the Sweet 16 twice and Final Four once. The Gophers were 6^th in the conference standings this season, certainly an improvement over the previous four years of 11^th, 9^th and two 8^th place finishes.

The Gophers averaged 9,800 fans per game in 2003-2004, and 9,200 and 8,329 the following seasons, ranking in the top five or six nationally for women’s college basketball attendance. The last three seasons the Gophers have averaged 2,835, 3,277 and 3,178 fans per game.

The Gophers can do better on the court and at the box office than the results of more recent seasons. The program has the potential to be a revenue producer for the athletic department and no doubt athletic director Norwood Teague wants to see home attendance more comparable with Big Ten leaders like Purdue and Michigan State who averaged 8,031 and 7,145 fans per game this season.

Teague’s reputation is that of a basketball authority. He hired nationally respected Shaka Smart as men’s coach at VCU. Last year he dismissed Tubby Smith as Gophers men’s coach and hired Richard Pitino who has impressed with his teaching skills while working with minimal talent compared to the Big Ten’s best teams.

Teague also hired Beth Goetz last year as his department’s senior women’s administrator. Before coming to the Gophers, Goetz was at Butler where she earned praise from Bulldogs’ renowned head basketball coach Brad Stevens. Her responsibilities at Minnesota include women’s basketball and it seems likely she will play a key role in evaluating Borton after this season.

Borton has been Minnesota’s head coach since 2002. The athletic department invested significantly in her despite struggles on the court and large financial losses with the program. (Example: a May 4, 2013 Star Tribune story reported a 2011-2012 “deficit of almost $2 million.”) Borton has received over $400,000 annually since the 2008-2009 season and at that time was in the top one-third of the Big Ten’s best paid women’s coaches. Her contract extends through the 2016 season.

Among the positives Goetz could mention in an evaluation of the coach are two of Borton’s best recruits ever, junior guard Rachel Banham who led the Big Ten in scoring at 23.3 points per game and freshman center Amanda Zahui B., the conference’s top rebounder at 11.5 per game. Both players were chosen all-Big Ten first team by the media. The media and coaches chose Zahui B. as Freshman of the Year.

If Banham and Zahui B. could lead the Gophers to a couple of wins in the Big Ten tournament and two more in the NCAA, the momentum going into next season will be noticeable and that apathy bandwagon would have fewer passengers.

Worth Noting

The Timberwolves, 30-29, wouldn’t earn a spot in the NBA Western Conference playoffs if the season ended now but Minnesota can’t be counted out. Starting tonight at Target Center against the Knicks (21-40), the Wolves face six opponents in the next seven games with records at least a half dozen wins under .500. Six of the games are at home for the Wolves who have a realistic chance to earn the eighth and final playoff spot before the season ends on April 16.

Another opportunity awaits later this month when the club has games at Dallas and Memphis, and home against Phoenix. The Mavericks, Grizzlies, Suns and Warriors are the teams most immediately ahead of the Wolves in playoff positioning.

The possibility of the Wolves earning a playoff spot this year and next is expected to have a lot to do with whether All-Star forward Kevin Love opts out of his contract in the 2015 offseason. In his five previous seasons in Minneapolis the team has yet to make the playoffs. Winning is something Love knew at UCLA and as a pro with the 2012 gold medal U.S. Olympic team.

Although the lure of playing for a better team (perhaps in a warm weather climate) is worth worrying about, Love could decide to stay here if the Wolves become a legitimate top 10 NBA team with more promise ahead. He might not find another point guard who sets him up better for open shots than Ricky Rubio. Also, don’t discount the relationship between Love and Flip Saunders, the team’s president of basketball operations who has made it a priority to develop rapport with the 25-year-old superstar.

Former Vikings coach Bud Grant will speak at the March 13 CORES luncheon at the Knights of Columbus Hall in Bloomington. Grant, who was one of the Gophers greatest athletes ever and played two seasons for the Minneapolis Lakers, coached 11 championship teams with the Vikings. Grant, who turns 87 on May 20, will have copies of his book, I Did It My Way, on sale at the luncheon. CORES is an acronym for coaches, officials, reporters, educators and sports fans. Reservations (by March 10) for the lunch and program can be made by contacting dotsethj@comcast.net.

Grant’s buddy Sid Hartman, the Star Tribune columnist and WCCO Radio personality, will be 94 on March 15.

Defensive end Everson Griffen never won a starting job with the Vikings but figures to create some stir as a free agent because of his strong pass rushing skills.

No doubt former Gophers offensive coordinator Jedd Fisch, now the OC with the NFL’s Jags, has to be anticipating Jacksonville taking one of the top college quarterbacks with the No. 3 selection in the NFL Draft’s first round.

Former Twins first baseman Justin Morneau, in his first spring training camp with the Rockies, is hitless in two at bats.

Baseball America’s top 10 Twins prospects (in order) are Byron Buxton, Miguel Sano, Alex Meyer, Kohl Stewart, Jose Berrios, Eddie Rosario, Lewis Thorpe, Trevor May, Danny Santana and Jorge Polanco. Five of those prospects are pitchers including Thorpe who is among the least familiar names to some Twins fans. Thorpe, 18 and from Australia, signed with the Twins as an undrafted free agent last July. He led the Gulf Coast League in strikeouts with 64 in 44 innings pitched, starting eight games, relieving in four and compiling a 4-1 record with a 2.05 ERA.

FOX Sports 1, the nation’s new sports channel trying to rival ESPN, makes its major league baseball programming debut April 5 with a doubleheader that includes the Twins at Indians game. The other telecast will be the Giants at the Dodgers.

Former Vikings safety Darren Sharper, who faces multiple rape charges, has been fired by the NFL Network.

St. Olaf men’s basketball coach Dan Kosmoski, a former Gophers assistant, made his 20^th season memorable. The Oles are MIAC playoff champs for the first time in school history and advance to the NCAA Division III Tournament where they play Central College (Iowa) on Friday in Stevens Point, Wisconsin. St. Thomas, the team that lost to St. Olaf last weekend in the title playoff game, is also in the NCAA Tournament with a game on Friday against Augustana (Illinois) in Whitewater, Wisconsin.

St. Olaf’s Sam Daly and St. Thomas’ Courtney Pahl have won with the MIAC Elite 22 Award for men’s and women’s basketball. The elite 22 awards program recognizes MIAC athletes in various sports for high academic and athletic achievement. Daly, a senior with a 3.65 GPA, has a double-major in chemistry and psychology. Pahl, a sophomore with a 4.0 GPA, has a double-major in biochemistry and biology.

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