Media – Page 58 – David Shama's Minnesota Sports Headliners

Frazier to Address Locker Room Attitude

Posted on November 4, 2013November 4, 2013 by David Shama

Leslie Frazier wasn’t pointing fingers at his news conference today despite the team’s fourth consecutive loss yesterday, a 1-7 record and criticism from veteran players. The Vikings head coach plans to address his players this afternoon about team attitude in the locker room.

Today’s Star Tribune reported that following yesterday’s game Vikings players made critical comments about defensive coordinator Alan Williams and offensive coordinator Bill Musgrave. “I respect their opinions and I know how competitive they are. How much they want to win,” Frazier said. “I’d like for them to talk to their coaches and myself about whatever concerns they have. Try to get those worked out, but I do understand their frustration.”

Frazier, who expressed confidence the Vikings can start winning, acknowledged he “probably” needs to talk with individual players who have been critical in the media. He wants players on the “same page.”

Frazier doesn’t foresee any staff changes in responsibilities or titles.

Former Vikings head coach Jerry Burns remains supportive of Frazier despite the record and preseason optimism about contending for the NFC North Division championship. “I think Leslie Frazier is a very fine coach,” Burns told Sports Headliners. “If he gave too much command (to his coordinators) I don’t know. I don’t think Leslie Frazier is at fault.”

Burns said criticism causes problems for team cohesiveness. “I don’t like to see that to be honest with you,” Burns said. “It doesn’t help the team. It doesn’t help the fans behind the Vikings.”

Burns is “proud” of Frazier and advises against any major changes to staff and personnel during the season. He said players could be making staff decisions look bad because of problems with execution, and added that it’s difficult to make any major changes in the middle of the season.

The Vikings’ 1-7 record is the worst in franchise history since the same start to the season in 1961. Burns said the team’s record should be better but isn’t partly because of having lost three games in the final minutes of fourth quarters.

Worth Noting

How times change. Sports Headliners was told by a local source that Vikings officials and Frazier discussed extending the coach’s contract late last summer. There was supposedly mutual interest after Frazier’s 10-6 record in 2012 and optimism about the 2013 season. Frazier’s current contract reportedly has an option for the 2014 season but management has declined to make a further commitment.

The same source who talked about Frazier’s contract said ex-NFL coach Jon Gruden was in town several weeks ago but didn’t know the reason for the visit.

Frazier said today tight end Kyle Rudolph’s fractured left foot could keep him from playing for another month. The coach plans to start Christian Ponder at quarterback for a third consecutive game when the Vikings play at home on Thursday night against the Redskins.

The NFL Network will air a one hour documentary on former Vikings quarterback Randall Cunningham tomorrow night starting at 8 p.m. Minneapolis time. The program includes interviews with Cunningham, former Vikings teammate Cris Carter and ex-Vikings coach Dennis Green. Cunningham quarterbacked the 15-1 1998 Vikings team and he has lived a dramatic life on and off the field.

Cretin-Derham Hall High School assistant coach Ray Hitchcock said there’s a “pail of mail” at school every day from colleges wooing junior defensive end Jashon Cornell. He has been rated the No. 1 high school football prospect in the nation for the class of 2015 by ESPN.com. Hitchcock believes Gophers coach Jerry Kill has reason for optimism in the recruitment of the 16-year-old. “I think Jerry has a great shot,” Hitchcock said.

Jeff Jones, the Gophers’ only four-star recruit per Rivals.com who has verbally committed for 2014, ended his senior season for Washburn on Friday night with 44 touchdowns — 34 rushing, eight receiving and two kickoff returns for scores. Coach Giovan Jenkins told Sports Headliners that Kill’s struggles with epilepsy haven’t diminished his running back’s interest in the Gophers.

“If he had to pick a school today, I think Minnesota would be No. 1 due to his relationships with the coaches,” said Jenkins who coached the Millers to a 6-0 City Conference record and 13^th consecutive title.

After Saturday’s improbable 42-39 win over Indiana, the Gophers have won three consecutive Big Ten games for the first time since 2008 and only the fourth time dating back to 2003. Minnesota is a surprising 7-2 overall, 3-2 in the Big Ten and justifies the faith of program insiders who before the season thought the Gophers’ record could be significantly better than last year’s 6-7 and 2-6 totals. The last time Minnesota won four consecutive conference games was 1973.

Gophers quarterback Philip Nelson was named Co-Big Ten offensive Player of the Week for his play against Indiana including four touchdown passes and a 70 percent completion rate. Minnesota punter Peter Mortell was named Special Teams Player of the Week after averaging 43 yards per kick and placing two punts inside the Indiana 20 yard line. Nelson shared his honor with Penn State running back Bill Belton who had a career high 201 yards rushing versus Illinois.

Twins players can expect new coach Paul Molitor to be up front with them. Molitor has that reputation including a willingness to talk about the cocaine addiction he experienced early in his major league playing career.

Molitor is a smart baseball man and so, too, is another Minnesota native who could be on the Twins staff some day, Gene Glynn. He recently agreed to return for a third season as manager of the Twins’ AAA Rochester team.

It wouldn’t be surprising if the Twins and Saints develop a business relationship when the St. Paul minor league team moves into its new downtown ballpark in 2015.

Tubby Smith recently hired his son Saul Smith, who worked for him at Minnesota, as video coordinator at Texas Tech. Saul joins former Gophers assistants Joe Esposito and Vince Taylor on his dad’s staff at Tech.

The Gophers basketball team plays Concordia, St. Paul tonight in an exhibition game at Williams Arena. Minnesota defeated Cardinal Stritch 79-57 in an opening exhibition game last Friday night and now plays a Concordia program that was 9-18 last season.

The Gophers made 11 of 30 free throws on Friday night and were out rebounded 40-34 by Division II NAIA Cardinal Stritch. “We’re not worried about the free throws,” said Gophers guard Andre Hollins. “I think that was a lot of nerves from the first game.”

Rebounding could be an ongoing issue, though. The Gophers lack size, and coach Richard Pitino noted that 6-4 forward Austin Hollins played 23 minutes but had no rebounds.

In the Williams Arena concourse there are photos of the Gophers’ greatest players including Ron Johnson who is identified as being All-Big Ten in the late 1950s. That is correct but missing is acknowledgement of his two-time All-American status.

The Timberwolves, 3-0 for the first time since the 2001-2002 season, play at Cleveland tonight. Wolves forward Kevin Love leads the NBA in scoring average at 29.7 points per game.

Wild right wing Jason Pominville, Penguins goaltender Marc-Andre Fleury and Capitals left wing Jason Chimera have been named the NHL’s “Three Stars” for the week ending Nov. 3. During that period Pominville tied for the league lead in goals (4) and points (6), scoring in all three games to help the Wild (8-4-3, 19 points) earn four out of a possible team six points. He is tied for third in the NHL in goals this season with 10.

The Venture Bank 2014 Minnesota Golf Show will be February 14-16 at the Minneapolis Convention Center.

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Frazier Contract Extension Coming Soon?

Posted on September 16, 2013September 16, 2013 by David Shama

Are the Vikings and Leslie Frazier about to announce a contract extension?

A trusted source told Sports Headliners an announcement about a three-year deal will be made before the end of September. If the source is correct, the news will be positively received by media supporters who have been critical of ownership’s perceived lack of commitment to the head coach.

It was reported during the offseason the Vikings had an option on Frazier’s services in 2014 and wouldn’t be extending their commitment further. The news disappointed some fans and many in the media who are Frazier admirers because of his likeable personality and a 2012 season where the Vikings made the playoffs after improving to 10-6 following a 3-13 record in 2011. The Vikings set a franchise record by winning seven games more than the prior season.

What may have happened since last winter to initiate contract extension talks and reach an agreement? Owners Zygi and Mark Wilf have been front page news because of a New Jersey lawsuit that has generated a lot of negative publicity. Announcing a contract extension for a likeable coach would be positive news and a boost to the Wilf image.

Of course, in the “what have you done for me lately” environment of American professional sports, news of a Frazier contract extension would be better received by most fans after a Sunday win by the Vikings, not a loss. Frazier’s team is 0-2 this season after a 34-24 opening game loss to the Lions and the Bears 31-30 win yesterday.

But after watching Frazier operate in the offseason, training camp and the early weeks of the season, the Wilfs and general manager Rick Spielman could be more convinced than ever they want Frazier as head coach long term. He took over a dysfunctional team late in 2010 and finished with a 3-3 record as interim coach. The Vikings liked the strength of his leadership then and they have watched his skills, including game management, improve during his first opportunity as a NFL head coach.

A contract extension could help stabilize the atmosphere around the team. Without it, there’s been a “dangling in the wind” status attached to Frazier since the present contract commitment is so minimal. An extension means Frazier’s future is less tied to the performance of inconsistent third-year quarterback Christian Ponder. A Ponder flop in 2013 has been thought by some observers to mean not only a 2014 change in quarterbacks, but perhaps also head coach.

If the contract extension materializes soon, it is all but guaranteed Frazier will be around for awhile even if his much criticized quarterback is not.

Worth Noting

Frazier said at his news conference this afternoon that explosive rookie playmaker Cordarrelle Patterson “definitely deserves” to be used more in the team’s offensive plays starting with Sunday’s game with the Browns. Patterson has caught only three passes in the first two games.

Frazier talking about the team’s 0-2 start: “You don’t want to be 0-2 but we know who we are. It’s a long season.”

Star Tribune sports columnist Jim Souhan wrote yesterday that the Gophers football program—“and by extension the entire school”—became the “subject of pity and ridicule” after coach Jerry Kill’s latest seizure. “Even those who admire him most can’t believe that he should keep coaching major college football after his latest episode,” Souhan wrote.

Ron Stolski, who is in his 52^nd year of high school coaching and is also the executive director of the Minnesota Football Coaches Association, wrote an email to many of his friends yesterday expressing his personal anger with Souhan. “…I am appalled at the crass, insensitive, (perhaps cruel) position Souhan takes regarding coach Kill,” Stolski said in the email. “In my long career, I have never known a coach who on the local or national level is more highly regarded or respected than Jerry Kill!

“He is relentless in his support of and for football in this state. He is widely respected for conducting a ‘clean program.’ He is revered by former players for his ability to make an impact and change lives. He is nationally known as a coach you want to coach with and play for. AND foremost, he knows football and embraces the big picture…that the game and all it offers can make better citizens of us all.

“For Souhan to suggest that the Gopher program, and the UNIVERSITY, is a subject of pity and ridicule is an insult. Not only to coach, but the staff, team and the entire University. Souhan needs to apologize. The Tribune needs to consider carefully his further employment.”

Critics who have maintained for years Big Ten football is ordinary are nodding after last weekend when conference teams lost five of 12 games, including three of four against the Pac-12. Michigan almost made it six losses, narrowly defeating Akron in the last minutes of the game in Ann Arbor.

The shocker of the day was UCLA’s comeback win over Nebraska in Lincoln. Bo Pelini can’t fix his defense and it could eventually cost the Nebraska coach his job.

New Gophers basketball coach Richard Pitino will make his home in Edina. Pitino referred to the Gophers program as a “sleeping giant” on his September 6 blog for Gophersports.com.

KSTP TV’s Darren Wolfson reported last week Twins organization center fielder Aaron Hicks has decided not to play winter baseball following a disappointing rookie season, and also that the club’s second baseman, Brian Dozier, will be married during the offseason and honeymoon in Hawaii.

MIAC football teams are 12-1 after two weekends of nonconference play. The league is 28-3 in nonconference games this year and last.

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Tapemark Golf: Good Stories, Great Cause

Posted on May 24, 2013May 24, 2013 by David Shama

Okay, trivia fans, answer this one:

Who is the only golfer to win the British Open, Scottish Open and Tapemark Charity Pro-Am?

I bet my typewriter more than one of you answered correctly with, “Tom Lehman.”

Minnesota’s pro-am hasn’t been around as long as the British Open and Scottish Open, but in more than four decades the event has commanded a lot of attention including memories of Lehman winning the 1990 Tapemark.

That was before Lehman, the Alexandria, Minnesota native, made it big on the PGA Tour. Bob Klas Sr., who along with Tapemark company partner Tom Cody started the charity tournament, remembers Lehman was “flat broke” in 1990.

“He asked how long it would take to get a check, if he could win one,” Bob Sr. said. “He was very concerned about his lack of funds. It was interesting. That was really the launching of his pro career. That was the pint of blood that kept him going.”

Klas said he thought Lehman earned a check for about $3,000 by winning the 1990 tournament. Years later Lehman made a commercial promoting the event with this message: “Who won the British Open, the Scottish Open and the Tapemark Charity Pro-Am?”

This year’s Tapemark will be the 42^nd and involve men and women — pros and amateurs — in early June at Southview Country Club in West St. Paul. Golfers, volunteers and spectators are all welcome at the event that raises funds for agencies serving Minnesotans with developmental disabilities. Through the years nearly $7 million has been donated to nonprofits. More about the tournament online at tapemarkgolf.org.

Klas and Bob Jr. shared stories with Sports Headliners about the famous and not so famous figures associated with the Tapemark. Tournament followers from the 1990s remember Denny Hecker was the major sponsor for two years. He contributed about $70,000 in cash, plus promotional considerations. “I will say for all the things he was in the news for, everything he promised that he would do for us, he actually delivered on,” Bob Jr. said.

Hecker’s promotional assistance included bringing baseball great Pete Rose to town. Rose played golf on a Friday afternoon and that night Hecker hosted his famous guest and a large group of Tapemark supporters at Manny’s Steakhouse.

Rose was the attraction after drinks and dinner, and his remarks were not exactly boring. As a former player and manager for the Reds, Rose was well acquainted with franchise owner Marge Schott — a controversial figure even now after her death.

“She thought…Adolph Hitler did some pretty good things,” Bob Jr. recalled Rose saying about Schott. “He improved the roads in Germany. He started off okay but maybe toward the end (of his regime) he wasn’t so good.

“Pete tried to defend her (saying) ‘you need to understand that Marge has no friends. The only thing that might be close to a friend is her dog. Marge likes to drink. Night games are particularly hard because she spends most of the day drinking before the game.’

“Basically the defense of Marge Schott from Pete Rose was she’s not really a bigot. She’s a drunkard.”

Through the years there has been some great golf played at the Tapemark. For championship consistency nobody was better than Don Berry who won the tournament six times. George Shortridge won five times. Last year’s men’s and women’s pro champs were Craig Brischke and Martha Nause.

Long time Tapemark followers have fond memories of four-time champion Dave Tentis who first won the tournament in 1998 with his “miracle shot” at Southview. The final day Tentis trailed Aaron Barber by one shot on the last hole, No. 9. The hole is surrounded by challenges including a pond, parking lot and road. Despite the tight fairway, Tentis pulled out his driver, hit the ball about 330 yards and made it stick on the green. “The best shot I’ve ever seen in Minnesota tournament golf,” said Gregg Wong, the former golf writer for the Pioneer Press.

Tentis two-putted for birdie and went on to win the tournament in a playoff. No doubt he never looked back on his decision to use a driver, and not the five iron he contemplated.

Skill sometimes encounters luck at the Tapemark. When those two forces meet, the result could be a hole-in-one and winning a new car. Among the winners over the years has been Phil Johnson, son-in-law to Bob Sr. Johnson’s hole-in-one on No. 15 was reported the next day in the Star Tribune along with these somewhat painful words: “On his way to shooting 104.”

Sometimes there’s no avoiding a tough day on the course, particularly when the strokes pile up for amateurs. Years ago the tournament was on local television and the late Pete Boerboon, a great friend of the event, was really struggling on the course.

“His ball was in a bunker near the green and on his first shot he could not get out,” Bob Jr. said. “On his second shot he knocks the ball across the green and into another bunker.

“By his ninth shot he was on the green. Pete thought his saving grace was that the TV cameras had only been covering him from the start of playing No. 17, not all the way through his shots near and on the green.

“A few days after the tournament, he was taking the garbage outside when a neighbor said, ‘Hey, Pete, I saw you on TV and you had a rough time.’

“Pete replied, ‘Yeah, I had nine blows.’ The neighbor disagreed and countered, ‘No, you had 11.’ ”

Television coverage, other publicity and simply word of mouth has helped tell the Tapemark story over the years including the important purpose of the event. The inspiration for the tournament was Frances Klas, born in 1951 and mentally retarded. Her dad and mom, Bob and Sandy Klas, learned about organizations available to assist children like Frances, and they wanted to help.

Today society is much more aware and accepting of those with developmental and learning disabilities than decades ago. “The aware factor can’t be overemphasized because when we started out 42 years ago mental retardation was still in the background,” Bob Sr. said. “We’ve done a lot of good. Much of it has to do with the publicity we generated.”

Done a lot of good including fundraising…and had a lot of fun.

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