MIAC – Page 34 – David Shama's Minnesota Sports Headliners

U Not Topping Dome Football Crowds

Posted on November 8, 2013November 8, 2013 by David Shama

Despite the momentum of winning three consecutive Big Ten games for the first time since 2008, there was a reminder this week TCF Bank Stadium hasn’t been a cure-all for Gophers football attendance. The University of Minnesota athletic department has been airing radio commercials titled “Bring the Heat” to entice Minnesotans to buy tickets for tomorrow’s outdoor football game when the 7-2 Gophers play 5-3 Penn State in a November Big Ten game.

If enough ticket buyers respond and decide to watch the “hot” Gophers on a chilly day (temps predicted in the low 40s at kickoff) the athletic department will have its second sell out of the season. The Gophers have played five home games so far this season, including a historic upset of Nebraska, but sold out only the Iowa game when record TCF Bank Stadium attendance of 51,382 was announced. As of yesterday morning, an athletic department spokesman said 47,000 tickets had “been distributed” for Saturday’s game.

The $288.5 million TCF Bank Stadium, with official capacity of 50,805, opened in 2009 and that season every game sold out. The season averages since have been 49,513, 47,714 and 46,637. This year the average is 46,673, with home games yet to be played tomorrow and November 16 against Wisconsin.

In the last four seasons in the Metrodome the Gophers averaged 50,494 fans. The four-year average from 2009-2012 at the Bank is 48,667.

Winning and losing was comparable during the 2005-2008 and 2009-2012 periods. The final four years in the dome saw the Gophers win 10 conference games and lose 22. From 2009-2012 the league record was 9-23.

With a capacity of 64,172 at the dome, large crowds for some games (think ticket buying Iowans and Wisconsinites) did inflate season averages more than is possible at the Bank. But it’s hard to support the position that the new on-campus stadium created a ticket buying boom among consumers.

During the last two years the Gophers have sold out only two home games. Even when the weather is mild many of the best seats in the stadium are unoccupied. A University policy to guarantee 10,000 seats for students has been a flop, with less than half that many showing up for games and filling a portion of seats in the student section of the stadium.

When the weather turns cold — and in past years when losses are also piling up— luring fans to the Bank can be even a bigger problem than in September and October when temperatures are warm and there’s optimism about the team. The dome’s guarantee was that indoor temps were as steady in November as September and no one needed to use an umbrella or wear a parka while watching the game.

There was a vote of confidence for the dome in the first four years (1982-1985) that it was home to indoor Gophers football. Minnesota averaged 55,102 fans per game compared to the previous four seasons at outdoor Memorial Stadium when the average was 41,528.

Being back on campus with the opening of the Bank has its perks. The stadium is beautiful and the sightlines are outstanding. The environment, including a walk through campus to the stadium, provides a college experience the dome can’t offer. With the Gophers owning the facility, the team doesn’t have the scheduling problems faced at the dome when Twins playoff games created chaos. And the University captures revenues from various sources including parking and concessions.

Through the years the Gophers have learned there are trade-offs to indoor and outdoor football venues but where they play comes second to winning. That’s what really “Brings the Heat.”

Worth Noting

This year the University has designated a football tailgating lot just for students. Nadine Babu, a passionate Gophers fan and social media expert whose successes include Gopherhole.com, said “probably a handful” of students used the lot at the last game on October 26. “I just remember a lot of people came up to me and made comments; asked if that was the student tailgate lot because they couldn’t believe it was so empty.”

Gophers senior associate athletic director Chris Werle said student attendance is an issue at other schools, not just Minnesota. “You need to change behavior like you do with any consumer marketing program. And we need to get kids in the habit of coming to games to see what it (is like), to enjoy it, to see what it brings them.”

Whether it’s the students or adults, Babu encourages the athletic department to continue working on gameday atmosphere. “Create a real experience, a gameday experience like they do in Green Bay (for Packers games). Like they do down South for games, so even when the teams are losing, people are still loving that experience. They’re loving the tailgate, they’re loving the camaraderie, they’re loving seeing people. They’re going to enjoy going to the games regardless of the win or loss.”

This year the Gophers’ season ticket total is 33,361 including 4,908 student season tickets, according to Werle.

The Gophers’ offense struggled early in the season but in the last two games has scored 76 points with 1,003 yards in total offense. “We’re still not even close to where we can be,” coach Jerry Kill said.

Kill described redshirt freshman tight end Maxx Williams from Waconia as an “unbelievable player for his age.” Williams, 19, caught the winning pass in last Saturday’s 42-39 victory over Indiana.

Dieter Kurtenbach, writing for the October 31 Sun-Sentinel.com, speculated on candidates for the Florida Atlantic head football coaching job and included Tim Brewster with this comment: “This is a wildcard selection but Brewster established a better-than-expected program at Minnesota before getting the boot.”

Quarterback Christian Ponder played one of his better games last night in helping the Vikings defeat the Redskins and win their second game of the season. All-Pro running back Adrian Peterson noticed Ponder’s confidence.

“Yeah, he looked more calm. He looked comfortable. He just went out there and played football. The way he came out and approached it allowed us to be balanced offensively. He was able to complete a lot of balls to a lot of different receivers and it kept Washington’s defense on their heels. He was able to sneak a run in there and be more balanced offensively…and we were able to move the ball.”

Cris Carter was honored by the Vikings last night during halftime for his 2013 induction into the Pro Football Hall of Fame. His son, wide receiver Duron Carter, had a tryout this year with the Vikings but didn’t make the team and is playing in the CFL for Montreal averaging 18.6 yards per catch. He has 909 receiving yards and five touchdowns.

Bethel (8-0 overall, 6-0 MIAC) can earn at least a share of the conference football title with a win tomorrow over St. Olaf (1-7, 0-6). If the Royals stay unbeaten and St. Thomas (6-2, 4-2) defeats Concordia (7-1, 5-1) tomorrow, Bethel will clinch the outright MIAC championship. Bethel last won the league title in 2007 and is seeking its fifth conference championship.

When the Gophers hockey team plays at Notre Dame tonight it won’t be the first time this fall Minnesota coach Don Lucia has seen his son Mario play for the Fighting Irish. The older Lucia’s schedule has allowed him to watch Mario’s games at Minnesota-Duluth and Vermont.

Lucia has two goals and one assist in eight games. He was friends in suburban Minneapolis youth hockey with Gophers Mike Reilly and Justin Kloos. Lucia and Reilly helped the BCHL’s Penticton Vees set a North American junior hockey record with a 42-game win streak in 2011-12 en route to RBC Cup and Doyle Cup championships.

Notre Dame, 6-2, is ranked No. 4 in the USCHO national poll while the 5-0-1 Gophers are No. 1. Boston College, who the Gophers played in an October two-game series, is probably the most talented team Minnesota has faced but the Irish will be a challenge, too. Notre Dame has 10 seniors on their roster.

The Lehigh basketball team that plays the Gophers tonight at Williams Arena in Minnesota’s opening regular season game could be a contender in the Patriot League despite losing shooting guard C.J. McCollum who went No.10 in last June’s NBA draft. The 7 p.m. game will be televised by ESPN3.

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Claeys Won’t Go Rah-Rah on Saturday

Posted on October 15, 2013October 15, 2013 by David Shama

Interim Gophers football coach Tracy Claeys said this afternoon there is nothing new on a date for the return to work of head coach Jerry Kill. It appears Kill will miss his second consecutive game on Saturday when the Gophers play at Northwestern.

“I don’t anticipate him being at that game,” Claeys said.

Kill is not at his Gophers office and few details have been made available during his absence that began with missing the Michigan game on October 5. Kill likely won’t return to work until he and his medical advisors have a very high level of confidence he can avoid the repetitive seizures that have sidelined him in the past and made national headlines.

Kill talks with Claeys by telephone. How much input does Kill have? “As much as he wants,” Claeys said.

Claeys will coach from the sidelines on Saturday, a change from the press box locations he normally uses as defensive coordinator. But Claeys will continue to handle the defense, plus the responsibilities of a head coach.

Will he offer a pep talk prior to the Northwestern game? “Those rah-rah speeches, you give those and they work for one or two plays,” he said. “As soon as someone belts you a good one, the rah-rah speech is gone. Winning football games still comes down to playing hard and executing. Doing your job. We’ll remind the kids of the things they need to do well and I have no doubt we’ll play hard.”

Claeys will start Mitch Leidner at quarterback but Philip Nelson could play for a series as early as the first half. “There will be no set rotation or anything like that,” Claeys said.

He also said Leidner’s past performance merits the start against Northwestern. Nelson lost his starting job during the nonconference season because of a hamstring injury but the coaching staff doesn’t want to forget about him. “There’s not that big a difference in skill between Philip and Mitch,” Claeys said. “We don’t have to go change our offense that much.”

Worth Noting

The Vikings could be shopping for a quarterback in the first round of next year’s NFL Draft. The top five prospects are Marcus Mariota, Oregon; Zach Mettenberger, LSU; Brett Hundley, UCLA; Johnny Manziel, Texas A&M; and Tajh Boyd, Clemson, according to a scout’s list in the October 14 issue of Sports Illustrated.

During the second half of Sunday’s Vikings-Panthers game a fan was hiding his face with a paper mask — an idea that could become more popular with the Purple off to a 1-4 start including the embarrassing 35-10 loss to the Panthers.

Fans sometimes pay a lot of money before they arrive in their seats for a game at Mall of America Field. First Covenant Church was charging $40 to park a vehicle on Sunday and inside the stadium Adrian Peterson jerseys were selling for $115 each.

When the Vikings play their home schedule at TCF Bank Stadium next year there may not be any single game tickets available. Steve LaCroix, the club’s vice president of sales and marketing, said the Vikings have total season tickets now in the “mid-50’s” range and will add about 2,000 seats to the present capacity of TCF Bank Stadium, 50,805. Announced attendance at Sunday’s game at Mall of America Field was 63,963.

Vikings wide receiver Jerome Simpson is averaging a career best 16.2 yards per reception. The 27-year-old missed games with the Vikings last year because of violating the NFL’s substance abuse policy but he told Sports Headliners 2013 is a new start.

“I am playing the best football of my career right now because I am just so relaxed and I am just tuned in,” he said last week. “I have no worries. I just go out there and just play football and have fun and entertain the people.”

Simpson, whose teammates nickname him “Juice” because of his energy, is focused too on his off-field behavior. “I am taking care of my business, and being the best person I can,” he said.

Vikings second-year placekicker Blair Walsh is tied with the Bears’ Robbie Gould for the NFL record for consecutive field goals of more than 50 yards with 12 and made All-Pro as a rookie last season. He also set the franchise record for most points in a single season. Asked if he thought about being remembered among the best kickers in NFL history, Walsh said, “It’s way too early for that.”

The PBS telecast last week about concussions and NFL players is a sobering look at pro football. “League of Denial: The NFL’s Concussion Crisis” focuses on how the NFL has addressed information about football causing long-term brain injuries. The program can be viewed on PBS.org.

Gophers fans thinking about buying tickets on Saturday morning at Ryan Field will find plenty of inventory. Although the Wildcats have become a strong program, fan support is underwhelming. Attendance has been less than 39,000 for three of four home games this season. The Ohio State game drew a capacity crowd of 47,130 but thousands of seats were filled with Buckeyes fans.

Here are Sports Headliners’ Big Ten football power rankings: Ohio State, Michigan State, Wisconsin, Nebraska, Michigan, Northwestern, Indiana, Penn State, Iowa, Illinois, Minnesota and Purdue.

The Gophers wear a variety of uniform combinations including the drab maroon jerseys and pants they have dressed in for three of four home games in 2013. Seniors vote to determine the uniform selections from game to game.

Former Gophers coach Tim Brewster, now tight ends coach and recruiting coordinator at Florida State, turned 53 on Sunday.

Brainerd’s Ron Stolski, the winningest prep football coach in Minnesota history, won his 350^th game last week. His career record is 350-155-5. State prep football coaches closing in on 100 career wins are Jim Galvin, Mounds View, 99-41; Dave Ziebarth, St. Thomas Academy, 98-26; John Austinson, Byron, 98-66; Bob Staska, McGregor, 97-59; and Jeff Weiland, Orono, 97-75.

MIAC attention this week will be on Saturday’s football game at Bethel when the first place Royals, 3-0, play St. Thomas, 2-1. Royal Stadium has a capacity of 3,500 but two years ago attendance was 5,842 when the Tommies came to Bethel. Bethel hasn’t defeated St. Thomas since 2007, 19-18.

Gophers coach Richard Pitino will have his team scrimmage in game format on Friday night at Williams Arena. The scrimmage is open to the public and begins at 7 p.m. Doors open at 6 p.m. and admission is free.

Pitino’s father, Rick Pitino, is promoting a new book but got the brush off from Boston radio talk show host Fred Toucher who ripped Pitino for ruining the Celtics and then hung up on him after about 10 seconds, according to various media reports. Rick Pitino, coach of the defending national champion Louisville Cardinals, has a self-help book called The One-Day Contract. He is often criticized for his work as Celtics coach and president in the late 1990s.

Former Timberwolves guard and front office executive Fred Hoiberg is starting his fourth season as Iowa State’s head coach. Hoiberg has impressed with his coaching and it might be the Wolves will consider him if present head coach Rick Adelman retires in a year or two. Adelman, 67, has been concerned about his wife’s health and his coaching career seems year-to-year now. Hoiberg celebrates his 40^th today.

Dan Terhaar, former Minnesota Wild broadcaster, is the radio voice of St. Cloud State hockey on KNSI in St. Cloud.

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Gophers Use Predictions for Motivation

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

Andre Hollins calls it a “slap in the face.”

The Gophers’ best player is using predictions by college basketball writers that his team will be among the worst in the Big Ten Conference as motivation. “I think we can be a surprise team. …Nobody really knows what to expect, expecting us last. That’s the motivation that we’re using.”

Hollins, who led the Gophers in scoring last season at 14.6 points per game, is one of two returning starters from a team that finished 8-10 in Big Ten Conference games and 21-13 overall last season. He and Austin Hollins were starting guards last season but forwards Rodney Williams and Joe Coleman, and center Trevor Mbakwe, are no longer part of a Minnesota program with a new coach in 31-year-old Richard Pitino.

Basketball writers see a program in transition with changes in personnel and a new coaching staff. They forecast a challenging winter for the Gophers playing in the Big Ten, perhaps the nation’s best conference.

Andre Hollins said the Gophers, who have started fall practice preparing for their first exhibition game against Cardinal-Stritch at Williams Arena on November 1, are embracing the changes. “Much more energetic, enthusiastic. Just the whole program,” he said.

The team’s best players are likely to be the guards. The strategy could be to compensate for lack of size and talent in the frontcourt by playing wide open basketball — fast breaks, quick shots, full-court defense, double teams, and force turnovers.

The Gophers want opponents to panic and to do so Hollins is already seeing the importance of conditioning for himself and teammates. “We’re playing hard-nosed full-court defense an hour twenty minutes in practice,” he said. “I don’t think many teams do that in the nation.”

Hollins, a junior, has been known as an offensive player but when asked about personal goals for the season he said, “Be the best player I can be. Pick it up defensively. Be one of the best defending guards in the nation.”

Hollins said he improved his defense during the summer and made a comparison with how the Gophers will play defense this season versus last. While former coach Tubby Smith had players deny passes, the Gophers now will ease off on that so not to be vulnerable to backdoor cuts to the basket by opponents.

Hollins also said he’s learned to be more vocal, an attribute that will help him as one of three newly elected captains. Austin Hollins and guard Maverick Ahanmisi are the other captains.

Worth Noting

Forward Mo Walker, 6-10, has lost about 50 pounds and looks like a different person. Andre Hollins said Walker can now keep up with 6-11 center Elliott Eliason in running drills. Eliason is known for his ability to run up and down the court.

The Gophers haven’t set an October date when practice will be open to the public but plan to do so.

Pitino has converted the gym adjacent to his Bierman Building office into a practice facility. A wall has been constructed with power operated window shades to provide privacy. On the wall are video monitors showing images including of Minneapolis, the University campus and celebrities such as Ricky Rubio and Adrian Peterson.

The facility has a nearby locker room and showers. It is intended more for individual instruction, with the Gophers also using Williams Arena with its larger floor on practice days.

A passionate and knowledgeable Twins fan, disappointed with the decision to re-sign manager Ron Gardenhire for two more years, sent this e-mail to Sports Headliners: “After so many losses over the last three years, it’s hard to believe a change wasn’t made. Only in Minnesota do we accept such mediocrity on a consistent basis. I love Gardy as a person. It just seemed the right time to go in a different direction.

“What I find interesting is the Twins point to the A’s, Pirates and Rays and tell you a big payroll isn’t necessary to win. That may be true but then it’s an indictment of the team’s baseball operations department for failing to draft, sign and develop players that make an impact. If a team isn’t willing to spend money, then it better draft and develop well. Some of the Twins first-rounders like (Chris) Parmelee, (Trevor) Plouffe, (Aaron) Hicks and (Kyle) Gibson made it to the bigs but don’t appear to be impact players. Others, like (Denard) Span and (Ben) Revere, were traded before the start of the season.”

A guess is Gardenhire’s new deal pays him between $1.4 and $1.6 million annually. Baseballprospectus.com lists his two-year total compensation at $2.5 million for 2008-2009, but offers no figures more recent.

The Gophers (4-1) play at Michigan (4-0) tomorrow in a 2:30 p.m. ABC regionally televised game. The Gophers haven’t won in Ann Arbor since 2005 and have two victories in Michigan Stadium since 1980. The “Big House” has an official seating capacity of 109,901 but 115,109 saw the Wolverines defeat Notre Dame last month – the largest crowd ever to watch a college or pro football game.

Senior defensive tackle Ra’Shede Hageman said younger teammates might be somewhat “star-struck” playing against college football’s all-time winningest program in such a famous venue, but they need to know it’s “just a regular football game.”

Two years ago it wasn’t a regular game, as Michigan embarrassed Minnesota 58-0 in the “Big House” before 111,106 fans.

The Gophers average of only 27.4 penalty yards per game is the best among Big Ten teams. Coach Jerry Kill stresses in weekly meetings the importance of minimizing penalties.

“You wouldn’t want to be in here (the meeting room) after a ballgame and you were one who made a dumb penalty because it’s going to go up on that screen. That’s called the Daily News.” Kill said. “We all get educated through the Daily News and it helps because it’s not degrading anybody. This is why we didn’t score. This is why we kicked the field goal because we lined up wrong. So we’re gonna get that corrected. ‘Yes, sir.’ Okay, move on. So that’s kind of how we try to teach.”

The defensive secondary might be the Gophers’ top unit, comparing favorably with the best in the Big Ten. Safety Cedric Thompson thinks so and believes the unit is better than last year. “We’re a lot more physical, smarter and faster,” he said.

Vikings coach Leslie Frazier didn’t want to tell his players that because of the team’s unexpected poor start and 1-3 record they had to spend part of their bye week at Winter Park working: “I think it’s important that our players get a chance to get away, take their minds off some things for a little bit and also…get re-engaged from a physical standpoint as well. So I think this is the right decision. We’ll come back on Monday, get started on the next opponent. …”

Vikings rookie wide receiver Cordarrelle Patterson has turned heads with his kickoff return ability including a 105-yard touchdown return against the Bears last month. He is averaging 33.8 yards on 12 returns and was named the NFC Special Teams Player of the Month for September. Frazier allows him freedom about making decisions about whether to return a kickoff or down the ball in the end zone for a touchback.

“Yeah, we do have a lot of trust in him for sure,” Frazier said. “We have some parameters on when he can bring it out and when he doesn’t, but it’s not by yards. We think he can return one 109 yards, 108 yards and he’s done 105 so we trust his judgment. We do have some things we talk about when it comes to where the ball is kicked when he has to not return it, but he’s made good decisions up to this point.”

It wasn’t complacency that ended St. Thomas’ 36 game regular season winning streak last month. “Gosh, no. No way,” coach Glenn Caruso told Sports Headliners yesterday. “We would not tolerate it.”

The Tommies lost 20-18 to St. John’s on September 21 and had a bye last weekend. Caruso was surprised how poorly his team played “at times” against the Johnnies, committing five turnovers after a focused week of practice. “It was a great reminder of how strong the rest of the conference has gotten,” he said.

The Tommies are home for a 1:10 p.m. game tomorrow against Carleton, another MIAC opponent. Caruso said the St. John’s loss doesn’t end the dream of playing later this year for the Division III national championship but the Tommies need to focus on the present each week.

State basketball legend Janet Karvonen, now 50, is finishing studies at Luther Seminary in St. Paul, according to the latest issue of MVP Magazine. Bob Brown wrote in his story for the southeast Minnesota sports publication that Karvonen plans to intern at Living Waters Lutheran Church in Lino Lakes. “It’s still a new thing for women to be ordained as pastors,” said Karvonen who grew up in the Lutheran church.

The Lynx open the WNBA Finals on Sunday night at Target Center against the Dream. Single game tickets start at $26.

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