Leslie Frazier – Page 14 – David Shama's Minnesota Sports Headliners

Worth Noting

Posted on December 27, 2011December 29, 2011 by David Shama

Minnesota starters tonight are expected to be forwards Julian Welch and Rodney Williams, center Ralph Sampson III, guards Austin Hollins and Maverick Ahanmisi. Williams will be one of the Big Ten’s best solo defenders.

The Gophers and North Dakota State have played each other six of the last seven seasons, and are scheduled again in 2012. All games have been in Minneapolis and Bison coach Saul Phillips has invited the Gophers to play in Fargo, but so far no promises from Minnesota. “I’ll (even) cook for them,” Phillips joked.

Tom Wistrcill, the former Gophers senior associate athletic director and now athletic director at Akron, made headlines last week with his hire of Terry Bowden as the new Zips football coach.

The December issue of Sporting News Magazine ranks new Ohio State hire Urban Meyer as the No. 1 coach in college football. Northwestern’s Pat Fitzgerald and Wisconsin’s Brett Bielema were the two other Big Ten coaches who made the list.

In the same issue, USC coach Lane Kiffin claims his father Monte, the Trojans defensive coordinator, starts his day in the office by 5:30 a.m. and works until 2 a.m.

Rumors that Vikings defensive coordinator Fred Pagac will be let go after the season lead to speculation that linebackers coach Mike Singletary will succeed him.

Vikings coach Leslie Frazier was asked this question yesterday about quarterback Joe Webb: “Is Joe best used in a role where he takes a series or two here and there? If he starts and defensive coordinators can game plan for him, is the impact of how he plays gone?”

“That does factor in when you’re not preparing for him and all of a sudden he comes in the ball game,” Frazier answered. “It definitely makes a difference from a coordinator standpoint because they (Webb and Christian Ponder) are similar quarterbacks but dissimilar in so many ways. You almost have to have two game plans if you think Joe is going to play, and people do.

“They (opposing coaches) have a Joe Webb package because they know we use him for certain snaps and they have a defensive package for when he is on the field. It’s a little bit different when he starts or he comes into the ball game and he’s a true quarterback for a number of snaps. Those are some of things we’ll talk about as we go forward.”

“America’s Team” is nearby, Vikings fans. The Packers have replaced the Cowboys for that title, according to a story on NFL.com. The Public Policy Polling’s national survey reported 22 percent of voters regard the Packers as their favorite NFL team, followed by 11 percent for the Cowboys and eight percent for the Bears, Giants and Steelers.

Eden Prairie Class 5A state championship football coach Mike Grant will be the speaker on Thursday, January 12 at the C.O.R.E.S. luncheon in Bloomington. C.O.R.E.S. members can contact Jim Dotseth for more information, dotsethj@comcast.net.

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Vikings Leader: ‘We Should All Be Held Accountable’

Posted on December 12, 2011December 29, 2011 by David Shama

Ryan Longwell, 37, is a veteran leader on the Vikings team, and he told Sports Headliners the team’s 2-11 record and on field performance deserves scrutiny. Accountability, he said, needs to be assessed among players, coaches and front office.

“I think everything has to be looked at when you have a record like this. …We should all be held accountable and ultimately we are,” Longwell said.

The Vikings are having one of the least successful seasons in franchise history and will miss the playoffs for a second consecutive season. Personnel needs are numerous and major reconstruction of the roster must be addressed.

Asked about possible roster changes for next season, the Vikings placekicker said, “Probably a lot of turnover, as there should be. Obviously this combination didn’t get it done. I think we’re all aware of that. We’re all aware our jobs are on the line each and every week. We know it’s a very fleeting profession.”

Leslie Frazier is in his first full year as head coach and he probably gets a “mulligan” for another season from owner Zygi Wilf. That doesn’t mean all the coaches will return, though, and the Star Tribune speculated last week about the job security of defensive coordinator Fred Pagac.

Longwell believes the Vikings should be comparing themselves to teams like Green Bay and New Orleans, two of the most successful NFC organizations in recent seasons. Those clubs have franchises headed by strongly positioned and clearly defined front office football authorities.

The Packers’ Ted Thompson is executive vice president, general manager and director of football operations. The Saints’ Mickey Loomis is the team’s executive vice president-general manager, and “responsible for the club’s entire football operations,” according to the franchise website. The perception about the Vikings —fair or not — is that decision making and leadership of the football department is less defined. The franchise’s most visible department figure is vice president Rick Spielman who oversees the “pro and college scouting departments,” according to the team website.

Fans and media complain the Vikings fragment the decision making process and should have one voice. Longwell was asked if he anticipates changes in the front office after this season.

He said “it’s tough to have people in power” and not provide “clear lines” of responsibility. He believes there are better organizational “setups” than the Vikings have and it will be up to ownership to decide whether changes are needed in that structure and with individuals.

Longwell doesn’t fault the effort of the players this season. He said, “Our record is not an indication of not getting along, being lazy, or not putting in the work.”

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Worth Noting

Posted on November 30, 2011December 29, 2011 by David Shama

NBADraft.net last week projected Gophers forward Trevor Mbakwe to be the No. 16 pick in the 2012 NBA draft. A Gophers official emailed that it’s “unknown at this point” whether Mbakwe could be granted a medical redshirt by the NCAA and play next season for Minnesota.

Minnesota athletic director Joel Maturi will be in New York next week to attend the College Football Hall of Fame event recognizing former Gophers All-American quarterback Sandy Stephens and others.

Don’t be surprised if Paul Chryst’s name comes up for the Illinois head coaching job. Chryst, the Wisconsin offensive coordinator, drew speculation as a candidate to coach the Gophers in 2007 and 2010.

Big Ten football games drew 6,008,814 fans for an average of 71,534 in 84 games (39 sellouts). The Gophers averaged 47,713 per home game, the lowest in the three year history of TCF Bank Stadium. Minnesota’s attendance exceeded Purdue, Indiana and Northwestern.

Vikings coach Leslie Frazier talking about his 2-9 team and what he wants to see accomplished in the remaining five games: “Well, you’d like to see improvement across the board, and we have lots of room for improvement in a lot of areas. You’re trying to continue to evaluate players along the way. …Really get some momentum, get some wins and see some improvement along the way.”

Percy Harvin, who had a 104 yard kickoff return for the Vikings against Atlanta last Sunday, returned kicks for 95 yards last season and 101 in 2009. He’s the only athlete in Virginia prep history to win five gold medals at the state track meet.

Gophers marketing executive Jason LaFrenz said there’s no remaining inventory for men’s hockey season tickets. Single game tickets are available for all games.

New Twin Jamey Carroll, who could be the team’s starting shortstop and No. 2 hitter in the batting order, has a career on base percentage of .359. That’s a positive for a No. 2 hitter and a lot better than the on base percentage for last year’s shortstop, Tsuyoshi Nishioka’s .278.

The Wild play in Edmonton tonight and Minnesota already has two wins in three games against the Oilers this season. Goalie Niklas Backstrom has won both games.

The Big Ten Network provides its most extensive coverage ever of Big Ten wrestling this season with 43 regular-season dual-meets, the 2011 Midlands Championships and the 2012 Big Ten Championships. All will be broadcast on the network or streamed online. Thirty-nine events will be shown live either online or on the network.

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