Golden Gophers – Page 355 – David Shama's Minnesota Sports Headliners

Frazier Expects ‘Big Things’ of Simpson

Posted on August 7, 2013August 7, 2013 by David Shama

Jerome Simpson’s first season with the Vikings last year was a disappointment but he could be among the team’s most pleasant surprises in 2013.

Vikings coach Leslie Frazier is expecting “big things” from the 27-year-old wide receiver who because of a suspension and injury started only 10 games and played in 12 last season. Built for speed, Simpson averaged 14.5 yards per catch with four touchdown receptions in 2011 playing for the Bengals. With the Vikings he averaged 10.5 yards with no touchdown catches.

With a developing third-year quarterback in Christian Ponder and the need for an effective deep passing game, the Vikings brought in Greg Jennings to be a big play guy but an effective Simpson can create a potent one-two combo. Ponder threw a 50 yard pass to Simpson in last Saturday night’s training camp scrimmage to preview the kind of deep threat potential the Vikings have.

Last week and prior to that scrimmage Frazier was praising Simpson. “…He looks like the Jerome we had a year ago at this time. He was doing some very good things for us last preseason, and he had done some good things in camp, and then we had to fill the time for the suspension. Then he came back, played a game, and then he was injured and never really got on track after that.

“But we are seeing a guy right now that I think can help our football team and really make a difference for us in the passing game. He’s having a very, very good camp. His attitude has been great. It’s been great watching him get in and out of routes in the passing game and we are expecting big things out of him this year. We just need to keep him on the field and keep him healthy.”

Simpson missed three games last season because the NFL suspended him for violating league substance abuse policy. Simpson told Sports Headliners last September he recognized the need to change. “Just getting back to the old Jerome Simpson, and just being myself and not getting out of character,” Simpson said. “Just always staying humble and doing the right thing.”

Wide receivers coach George Stewart said earlier this summer that while Simpson was slowed by a foot injury in 2012 he can be a contributor, and not just catching passes. “He’s a young man, if he’s healthy (he) will help us in the vertical game, but (he) also has been a good leader,” Stewart said after watching Simpson in spring activities.

Starting his sixth pro season in September, Simpson has much to prove to himself and the Vikings. He has only a one year contract so there’s extra incentive to have a productive season, and perhaps become a breakthrough player on an offense that also has plenty to prove.

Worth Noting

It will be no surprise if Texans superstar defensive end J.J. Watt doesn’t play or sees only a few series on the field Friday night when Houston meets the Vikings in the opening preseason game for both teams. Watt, who had 20.5 sacks last season, dislocated his left elbow about a year ago. He acknowledged soreness on Sunday and will wear the same mammoth black brace on the elbow used in 2012.

The Texans plan to announce today their division of quarterback reps for the game. Matt Schaub is the starter. Christian Ponder is expected to play at least a few series for the Vikings as their No. 1 quarterback.

The Texans training camp is in Houston where temperatures this week have been at or near 100 degrees.

The Vikings have 32 new players on their 90-man roster since the end of last season. Along with nine draft choices, the Vikings have nine free agents and 14 undrafted free agents.

Vikings head coach Leslie Frazier and Texans head coach Gary Kubiak were teammates at Rice University.

The Vikings are promoting awareness of the NFL’s new game day policy limiting the size and types of bags allowed in league stadiums. More information for fans is available at NFL.com/allclear.

When the Gophers play UNLV at TCF Bank Stadium on August 29 it will be Minnesota’s first home season opener since 2008. The Gophers are set to open seasons at home on future schedules including 2014-2016.

If defensive tackle Ra’Shede Hageman is named All-Big Ten after this season he will be the first Gophers player so honored since Eric Decker in 2009. Since 2006 Minnesota has only two other All-Big Ten players, Matt Spaeth in 2006 and Willie VanDeSteeg in 2008.

Quoting Collegefootballnews.com in its Big Ten preview story: “Minnesota could very, very quietly be dangerous. Jerry Kill might not have a whole bunch of flash, but his team should be more than just competitive.”

Two of the best prep seniors in the state will lead their teams in the annual Timberwolves Shootout at Target Center January 4. Guard Tyus Jones and Apple Valley will play Blue Valley Northwest High School from Overland, Kansas. Forward Reid Travis and DeLaSalle will meet St. Rita High School from Chicago. Also, Cretin-Derham Hall will face Bettendorf High School from Bettendorf, Iowa. Grand Rapids, featuring junior center Alex Illikainen, will play against a team yet to be determined.

Jones’ younger brother Tre Jones is a gifted playmaker but is even a better defensive player. Tre, who as an eighth grader might play for the Apple Valley varsity next season, is a great on-ball defender.

The Saints new baseball park in Saint Paul’s Lowertown might command a $750,000 to $1 million per year naming rights fee, according to a sports industry source.

1 comment

New Vikings Stadium Linked to US Bank?

Posted on August 5, 2013August 5, 2013 by David Shama

A pro sports industry source told Sports Headliners that US Bank will pay $15 million per year for the naming rights to the new Vikings stadium opening in 2016. The source, speaking on condition of anonymity, believes the naming rights deal between the bank and the local NFL team could be seven to 10 years in length and an announcement about US Bank Stadium will come later this year.

However, Vikings executive Lester Bagley said there are no announcement plans about US Bank or any other company, and the naming rights project is a detailed ongoing process.

“There are 16 Fortune 500 companies in the state. We’re confident we will have a great Minnesota company (name) on the building,” Bagley told Sports Headliners.

A $15 million figure would compare favorably with reports of recent stadium naming rights fees at or approaching $20 million per year for the Cowboys and the 49ers. Both teams operate in larger population centers than Minneapolis-St. Paul, an area described by Bagley as a “modest Midwest market.”

The rights fee paid by Target for naming rights to Target Field has been reported in the $5 million range per year. The source estimated the annual rights fees at $2 million for Xcel Energy Center and $1.5 million for Target Field.

The University of Minnesota has a $35 million, 25 year deal for TCF Bank Stadium. That arrangement provides TCF Bank with benefits beyond the name on the Gophers football stadium and includes campus ATMs and other financial services.

A naming rights deal will be a major revenue source for the Vikings who by agreement with the state receive those monies. The source said US Bank is expected to receive a variety of benefits ranging from in-stadium presence to bank promotions, and from social media to community outreach.

Gophers & Other Notes

The Gophers were 3-9 in 2011, 6-7 last season. Coach Jerry Kill recently told Sports Headliners he is optimistic about continued improvement.

“I think we’ll have a better football team than we did a year ago,” Kill said. “I don’t know what that means (in wins and losses). I know we feel that way as a coaching staff.”

Strength and conditioning coach Eric Klein has voiced optimism after watching players become bigger and stronger during the offseason. He told Kill he feels this is the “first time” he has helped position the Gophers “for success.”

Kill has said the program needs more experienced players in the years ahead. The Gophers may only have four or five senior starters, and a dozen or fewer seniors who contribute during the season.

Compare that to what the Gophers encountered in Lincoln last year when on Senior Day Nebraska honored more than two dozen seniors. “That’s when you get good,” Kill said. “You can have a senior class of 20 kids, 25 kids every year, then you’ve got a program. We haven’t had that.”

Before the Gophers started official practices late last week there was the expected preseason optimism among players. “We’re comfortable in coach Kill’s system, and we’re a lot more confident,” said senior safety Brock Vereen.

Vereen, senior linebacker Aaron Hill and some others are under consideration by Kill to become captains. “This year we do expect to have a tremendous turnaround and to have my name as part of a leader of a team that made such a great stride compared to last year, it would mean a lot,” Vereen said.

If the Gophers are to improve over last season, they will need high performance years from at least a few players. Senior defensive tackle Ra’Shede Hageman is the most high profile player right now, and is being included on preseason watch lists like the Bronko Nagurski Trophy, recognizing the nation’s best defensive player.

How much does Hageman want to be named All-American after this season? “You’re gonna see to my actions. … Just give it my all,” he said.

But for the Gophers to exceed last year’s six win total they will need players to emerge from obscurity too. One of those players could be true freshman running back Berkley Edwards who back home in Michigan was among the nation’s fastest prep sprinters.

Quarterback Philip Nelson watched Edwards this summer in Minneapolis. “From day one we all knew that he was a speed demon. … I think he has the capability of really being able to really get through the defense and make some good plays for us.”

Vikings coach Leslie Frazier evaluating the team’s two-minute offense last season: “There were some missed opportunities, we could have did a little bit better in. We are trying to correct that. …There were times we did a real good job in our two-minute situations that we had, but we think we can be more productive.”

Concordia-St. Paul junior Tom Obarski is on the Fred Mitchell Award Watch List for the second-straight year. The award recognizes place-kickers for excellence on the field and in the community. Obarski, who has made field goals of over 50 yards including a 59 yarder, is one of 34 place-kickers on the list from the Football Championship Subdivision (FCS), Division II, Division III, NAIA and NJCAA levels.

Glen Perkins, after his 27^th save of the year yesterday in a 3-2 Twins win over the Astros, now has the most single season saves by a Minnesota pitcher since 2009 when Joe Nathan had 47.

Twins rookie starting pitcher Kyle Gibson isn’t having much success lately. He lasted only three innings on Saturday night, the shortest start of his big league career, and he gave up four runs on nine hits. He has allowed a home run in each of his last three starts after yielding none in the first four outings.

The Twins play at Kansas City tomorrow night after being swept by the Royals at Target Field last week. The Twins have won three straight since winning yesterday against the Astros and sweeping them in a three game series.

Outfielder Byron Buxton, considered by many the best minor league prospect in baseball, has hit three home runs in his last 10 games playing for the Twins Class A Fort Myers team. He also has two triples.

Comments Welcome

Tim Brewster Recruits U Target

Posted on August 2, 2013August 2, 2013 by David Shama

Although former Gophers head coach Tim Brewster is recruiting Jeff Jones, the four-star Washburn High School running back remains committed to Minnesota, according to Giovan Jenkins.

Jenkins said Brewster, now an assistant coach at Florida State, started recruiting Jones early this summer. Jenkins, who starts his fifth season as Washburn head coach later this month, told Sports Headliners he doesn’t think Florida State will be where Jones attends college.

“He is still staying with his commitment to Minnesota as we speak,” Jenkins said. “He just wants to go through his senior year with an open mind (about other schools). Coach (Jerry) Kill has done a great job in developing a relationship with him. I think Minnesota is a good fit for him.”

Jenkins, who thinks chances are good Jones will ultimately choose the Gophers, said Iowa State is probably No. 2 on the list of possible college destinations.

Jones has been a starter for the Millers since ninth grade. He is the only Rivals.com four-star commit the Gophers have so far in their class of 2014.

Jenkins has another outstanding running back in Raymonte Maynard who has a scholarship offer from North Dakota. Other mid-major programs are interested too.

The Millers have won 12 consecutive City titles. “I expect to win our 13^th straight,” Jenkins said. Washburn, 8-3 overall last season, begins practice on August 12 and has its first game against St. Paul Highland Park August 30.

Worth Noting

Apple Valley’s Tyus Jones, along with Jahlil Okafor from Chicago, and Justise Winslow from Houston, are three of the best senior prep basketball players in the country and they will visit Baylor in Waco, Texas over Labor Day weekend. It’s been known for some time that Jones and Okafor will likely play at the same college but because Winslow is from Texas there is a possibility all three will be at Baylor for the 2014-15 season. Jones has a strong relationship with Baylor director of player development Jared Nuness who is a distant cousin.

The TPC Twin Cities, site of this weekend’s 3M Championship, has “27 bodies of water,” according to the golf course’s website. Asked about a make or break hole, Nick Price said: “Seventeen is probably a pivotal hole, especially when they put the pin in the back left-hand portion of the green, and you have any kind of wind.

“Those last two holes with the water; they’ll get your attention. The eighteenth hole is always very tempting. It’s like a carrot in front of the donkey. You know if you can get it over the water you have a good chance of making birdie.”

Price, who in the 1990s won more PGA Tour tournaments than anyone in the world, is among the name players competing at the Champions Tour event in Blaine. He’s a fan of the TCP Twin Cities. “This is a really, really good golf course. It’s almost a perfect venue for us, the seniors, because it’s the right length. The guys love the golf course. That’s why you always get such a good field.”

The 3M is only Price’s third tournament since having tennis elbow surgery to remove scar tissue. This will be the first tournament where he’s been able to practice in advance, hitting 150 balls per day.

Price said seniors enjoy the notoriety of the Champions Tour. “When you get to 45, 46, your tenure on the regular tour is done. You’ve past your sell-by date.”

New Vikings backup quarterback Matt Cassel played first and third base in high school in California, and was drafted by baseball’s Oakland A’s. His mother, Barbara, is a set director in Hollywood.

Ryan Santoso, the Gophers freshman punter and kicker who is on scholarship, had 46 touchbacks in 48 kickoffs at Pace High School in Pace, Florida. Walk-on freshman kicker Justin Juenemann made 80 percent of his career field goal attempts of between 40 and 50 yards at Phillipsburg High School in Phillipsburg, Kansas.

Gophers hockey coach Don Lucia plans to run in the Twin Cities Marathon on October 6 to benefit Defending the Blue Line, the nonprofit organization dedicated to financially helping children of military members participate in hockey.

Despite being in last place in the AL Central Division and losing four games in a row, the Twins are drawing near capacity crowds at Target Field. In yesterday’s 7-2 loss to the Royals, the Twins drew 35,448, their fifth crowd of over 35,000 in the last seven home games.

Twins batters struck out 30 times in the three-game series with the Royals. They have struck out 65 times in the last six games.

Scott Diamond, yesterday’s losing pitcher, is now 5-10 for the season and has lost four straight. After the game he and center fielder Aaron Hicks were optioned to Triple-A Rochester and outfielder Oswaldo Arcia was recalled from the Red Wings.

Justin Morneau hit his ninth home run of the season yesterday and No. 213 of his Twins career moving him within seven of Tony Oliva and No. 3 on the all-time Minnesota list.

The new Sanford Pentagon facility in Sioux Falls will host the preseason Timberwolves-Bucks game on October 10, and also a regular season college game between the Badgers and the St. John’s Red Storm on November 8.

The new Minnesota Poker Hall of Fame will be located at Canterbury Park. No inductees have been announced but the first honorees will be recognized on October 4 at the Shakopee gaming facility.

Comments Welcome