NCAA – Page 12 – David Shama's Minnesota Sports Headliners

Vikings Likely Know Answer on Key Sam Darnold Question

Posted on February 4, 2025February 4, 2025 by David Shama

Quarterback Sam Darnold resurrected his NFL career in his first season with the Vikings. The Sporting News and Professional Football Writers Association of America both named him league Comeback Player of the Year for his 2024 performance that included career highs in several passing categories.

Darnold led the Vikings to a 14-3 regular season record but wasn’t sharp in the two biggest games of the year. With the NFC No. 1 seed in the playoffs at stake, Darnold and the Vikings lost in their regular season finale to the Lions and then failed to win in Minnesota’s opening playoff game against the Rams. Darnold was a combined 43 of 81 passes in the two games and was sacked nine times by the Rams.

Head coach Kevin O’Connell and his staff convincingly showed the football world this fall their magic in creating elite quarterback play. The reality that Darnold struggled in his biggest games is mostly on him and his teammates, not the coaching staff.

What KOC and his helpers have likely decided by now is whether Darnold is a solid bet to be able to take the next potential step in his development—excelling in the biggest moments. Does he have the skills and mental makeup to lead the Vikings to the Super Bowl or at least the NFC title game in the near future?

The Vikings almost certainly have a good handle on what the ceiling is for the 27-year-old Darnold, a guy who for six pro seasons was a journeyman with other clubs.

Along with that comes the conundrum of whether J.J. McCarthy, the rookie last year who never saw the field because of his knee injury, is the better bet to take the franchise to championships. A 10-year-old knows building a Super Bowl contending team begins with a quarterback who is among the best in the NFL.

They have invested emotionally in McCarthy, the No. 10 draft choice in the first round in 2024. After McCarthy was hurt in the preseason, O’Connell referred to him as the “young franchise quarterback.”

If that is still KOC’s conviction, then the smart move is to franchise or transition tag Darnold for perhaps $40 million and trade him. There are at least a half dozen NFL teams looking for quarterbacks and the 2025 college draft is weak in QB prospects.

A trade could return player assets to the Vikings and allow the franchise to spend the $40 million upgrading talent at other positions and retaining their own free agents. Roster needs include the interior offensive and defensive lines and cornerback.

It could be a benefit that McCarthy missed his first year. He had the opportunity to learn the system while rehabbing from two knee procedures. He figures to be much more comfortable in the offense in 2025, if healthy.

If the Vikings let Darnold go and gamble on McCarthy, fingers will be crossed in Skol Country that the 22-year-old is ready in every way. If not, KOC will be looking for another bridge quarterback and trying to work his “magic” on a Darnold 2.0—e.g. Daniel Jones if he elects to stay with the team as a free agent starting next month.

Worth Noting

Daniel House, the college and pro football authority, told Sports Headliners defensive tackle is a deep and quality position in the April college draft. That could be good news for the Vikings who need help. Follow House on X @DanielHouseMN and on his Gophers and Vikings websites. https://gophersguru.com/ http://www.mnvikingscorner.com/

Running back is another position with quality and depth in the draft. Iowa’s Kaleb Johnson, who was troublesome to the Gophers and others in the Big Ten, could certainly be available to the Vikings at No. 24 in the first round or after Day 1. The Vikings need an explosive runner as a successor to 30-year-old Aaron Jones.

Minnesota Breakfast attendees in Naples, Florida heard from first-year University of Minnesota president Rebecca Cunningham last Friday. Minneapolis-based attorney and journalist Marshall Tanick reported via email Dr. Cunningham “primarily focused on health sciences and technology challenges the University faces. But she touched upon Gopher athletics, telling the group of Minnesota expatriates and seasonal visitors that she and athletic Director Mark Coyle are ‘committed to having a competitive Big Ten program.’” She also praised the record 3.4 GPA compiled by U athletes last semester.

The expectation is that the drawn-out arbitration process to determine majority ownership of the Timberwolves and Lynx will conclude any day now. If the Marc Lore and Alex Rodriguez group wins the litigation with long-time owner Glen Taylor, they still must get no less than 75 percent approval from the NBA Board of Governors.

Based on NBAstore.com data through the first half of the NBA season the Warriors’ Steph Curry had the top selling jersey, while the Wolves’ Anthony Edwards ranked No. 6.

The Timberwolves, trying to establish favorable seeding for the Western Conference playoffs later this year, are in the midst of a five-game homestand. They will also have a five-game home schedule March 1-8. Both slates will be significant in determining the team’s final record.

After last night’s loss to the Kings at Target Center the Wolves are 0-2 on the homestand that began Saturday night in a loss to the lowly Wizards. Coming up are games with the Bulls, Rockets and Trail Blazers.

The Wolves, 27-23, are only 12-12 in home games, while their road record is 15-11.

The Wild, 31-18-4 is 20-6-3 on the road and inexplicably 11-12-1 at Xcel Energy Center.

The Wild, who played nine road games in January, have their longest home schedule with seven games March 9-22. The month has Minnesota playing nine games at the Xcel, the most in any month this season.

If there is a men’s basketball head coaching vacancy at Minnesota or Iowa in the near future, it would be preposterous for hiring authorities to not have John Tauer on the short list of candidates who interest them. A Division III national champion at St. Thomas, Tauer has superbly guided the Tommies to Division I competition, and his 2025 team is in first place in the Summit League with an 8-1 record (18-6 overall).

The NCAA Men’s Basketball Net Rankings have Iowa No. 64, Minnesota No. 101 and St. Thomas No. 103.

With a deadline of February 27, the U Athletic Department is offering new purchasers of football season tickets two complimentary tickets to both a men’s and women’s Gopher home basketball game.

A concerning trend has developed with the U football staff. Offensive coordinator Kirk Ciarrocca left for Rutgers after the 2022 season and defensive coordinator Joe Rossi departed for Michigan State following 2023. Rossi’s replacement, Corey Hetherman, recently left for Miami and this week comes news that defensive line coach Winston DeLattiboudere is headed to the NFL Cardinals.

All left for more money, including Ciarrocca who reportedly has received an extension that will pay him $2 million in 2027. Head coach P.J. Fleck attracts quality assistants but it’s difficult to retain them when the salary pool for his staff is at or near the bottom of the 18-member Big Ten Conference.

DeLattiboudere, who becomes the Arizona defensive line coach, played with Cardinals defensive coordinator Nick Rallis, the Edina native, when the two were Gophers. Rallis was named defensive coordinator in 2023.

Perhaps the best clinic in the country for high school football coaches, the 2025 MFCA Clinic will be held March 27-29, with headquarters at the DoubleTree Park Place in St. Louis Park. Minnesota Football Coaches Association secretary-treasurer Jim Dotseth reported over 800 registrants so far. https://www.mnfootballcoaches.com/page/show/2279758-mfca-clinic-information

Almost 500 copies of The Book of Piv were sold on Amazon during a five-week period. The entertaining new book offers storytelling by Minneapolis native Jay Pivec, now retired but a well-traveled basketball coach who is in the NJCAA Coaches Association Hall of Fame.

Lily Hubanks, a senior from Madison, Wisconsin, and Amae-Kam Magruder, a sophomore from Anchorage, Alaska, are standouts for the St. Olaf women’s Nordic ski team. They recently represented the United States in the 2025 FISU Winter World University Games in Italy.

Hubanks and Magruder competed in five events as part of the four-member cross country teams for the U.S. It’s believed they are the first females from a Minnesota college to be on American teams in the Winter World University games.

2 comments

Glen Mason: Eslinger Induction Deserves Big-Time Turnout

Posted on February 2, 2025February 2, 2025 by David Shama

Glen Mason was “ecstatic” and thought it was “long overdue” when Greg Eslinger, the most decorated offensive lineman in Golden Gophers football history, was announced last month as a member of the College Football Hall of Fame class of 2025.

Mason, the former Minnesota head football coach, is adamant that a strong contingent of Gopher enthusiasts should turn out to support the best center he ever coached when Eslinger is inducted into the Hall of Fame December 9 in Las Vegas. The National Football Foundation sponsors the Hall of Fame which is located in Atlanta. Tickets are available at https://NFF2025.givesmart.com.

Mason would love to see a strong showing in Vegas by the Gopher Athletic Department, prominent boosters and other fans of U football. “This is a big deal,” he told Sports Headliners. “I hope they put a contingent of people together for the Hall of Fame banquet when he goes out there. …”

“Yes, we plan to have representation in Las Vegas,” Gopher athletic director Mark Coyle said in a text on Friday to Sports Headliners. (Understandably, those plans may be in the earliest stages.)

Mason, even though he didn’t have a player being inducted, used to regularly attend the induction event. He saw how successful programs made a splash at the banquet by doing even more than advertising in the printed program and buying tables.

“Typically, Ohio State or Notre Dame or Alabama or Oklahoma, when they had an inductee, they had a hospitality suite, and people used to bounce around from one suite to the other suites. That’s a big-time image.”

Regardless of whether a school has an inductee or not, Mason said it’s important to send a message to the NFF that you are a supporter, and establish relationships. Thinking about Eslinger, Mason said, a strong showing of support in Vegas next December emphatically says: “you can accomplish anything that you want if you come to the University of Minnesota.”

Major college programs weren’t pursuing Eslinger when he was playing high school football in Bismarck, North Dakota and he was definitely an under the radar prospect. But as a prep player he caught Mason’s eye when attending a Gopher summer camp in 2001. Mason had been the offensive line coach at Ohio State before a head coaching career at Kent State and Kansas before Minnesota.

“I decided we were going to recruit him because of his energy,” Mason said. “Everything he did. Everything was full speed—above board, likeable kid—and I thought, you know, we’ll take him.”

Eslinger didn’t have the weight and strength in high school that he would acquire with the Gophers. Mason had thoughts of making the prep lineman into a fullback eventually.

But prior to the 2002 season it became apparent that Eslinger, as a true freshman, was ready to be the team’s starting center. Playing at 6-3 and about 250-pounds, Eslinger became a remarkable four-year starter who was a key reason Mason’s teams made it to bowl games each season.

Eslinger (No. 61) photo courtesy of University of Minnesota

His resume is eye-popping. He blocked with precision for some of the best rushing teams in Gopher history and he was a two-time All-American in 2004 and 2005. He won the Outland Trophy given to college football’s best interior lineman and the Dave Rimington Trophy recognizing the game’s best center. He was the 2005 Big Ten Offensive Lineman of the Year (only Gopher ever honored) and was awarded with the 2006 Big Ten Medal of Honor (the conference’s oldest and most prestigious award). He was also a two-time Academic All-American.

Mason remembered when Bill Curry, an ESPN college football analyst, sat in his office during Eslinger’s sophomore season. The former Green Bay Packers center and college head coach marveled at Eslinger, describing him as “the best I’ve ever seen.”

Eslinger had an amazing combination of athleticism and smarts. A vivid image for fans is seeing him pull out from the line of scrimmage and move downfield knocking blockers out of the way and opening up paths for great running backs Marion Barber III and Laurence Maroney.

“It was a lot more difficult than you think because you have to (first) snap the ball,” Mason said. “You have to pull, and you know our running game was pretty sophisticated. He’d have to adjust who he was going after depending who the wide receiver was going to block, and he had to do it full speed, which he did.

“ And I remember after he (Greg) left, Tony Brinkhaus was an awful good lineman but we moved him to center, and running the same stuff, and I remember him saying to me, ‘I can’t believe how he did this stuff. This stuff is unbelievable.’ “

To write only about Eslinger’s on-field excellence is not doing him justice. “Every once in a while, you’ll come across a guy that I call a tone setter,” Mason said. “In other words, he is a cut above everybody in every degree. And what you want to do when you come across a guy like that is—and Greg was one of those guys—you put him out front and you try to encourage and motivate everybody to keep up with him.

“And so very seldom do you have a guy that is able to achieve what he did athletically and at the same time academically. And then within the program, within the University, if you would ask anybody who is the finest character on the team, almost everybody would say Greg Eslinger.”

Eslinger’s candidacy for the Hall of Fame was the result of multiple entities or individuals advocating for him, including the athletic department and Minnesota chapter of the NFF. He will be the 20^th Gopher player to join the Hall of Fame.

Eslinger is now an orthopedic sales consultant for DePuy Orthopedics in Fargo. His character shines through with his activities in the community including as a motivational speaker to elementary and junior high school students, and organizer of shoe collections and donations for underprivileged.

1 comment

Even More Success Could Be Next for Gophers Football

Posted on January 4, 2025January 4, 2025 by David Shama

What’s the ceiling now for University of Minnesota football?

P.J. Fleck has established a winning program since taking over in 2017. The latest triumph was last night’s 24-10 Duke’s Mayo Bowl win over Virginia Tech in Charlotte.

The Gophers entered the game about a 10-point betting favorite. With superior talent, a savvy college football authority told Sports Headliners he thought Minnesota might “play not to lose.”

But rather than take a conservative approach, the Gophers were aggressive on both sides of the ball. The authority, a former Big Ten and NFL player who spoke on condition of anonymity, said the offensive play-calling was “creative and fun,” while speculating the Gophers used more trick plays last night than in Fleck’s previous eight years leading the program. Defensively, the Gophers were aggressive with blitzes and sacked Tech quarterbacks five times.

“This was a really good football team,” the source said about a program he follows closely.

The victory made Fleck’s bowl record at Minnesota 6-0 and was Minnesota’s eighth straight post season win. Since Fleck arrived at Minnesota his teams are 24-3 against nonconference opponents including bowl teams. That’s one of the best marks in college football.

The Gophers finished 2024-2025 at 8-5. During the last four seasons Minnesota has averaged eight wins per season. This season and in three of the last four the Gophers had winning records in Big Ten games, with a cumulative mark of 19-17.

Fleck’s eight-year record is 58-39. He is fourth in program history in Big Ten wins (34) and is fifth in overall wins. His 597 winning percentage is third best among Minnesota coaches with at least 45 games leading the program.

Being the head coach at Minnesota is far from a cushy assignment. With limited Big Ten prospects among the high school ranks, and no adjacency to states with hotbeds of talent to recruit from, attracting elite personnel has long been a challenge for Gopher head coaches. In reality, his assignment probably is more difficult than any other coach at the U or professional coach in this town.

Fleck has established success despite the challenge, too, of more limited Name, Image and Likeness money than much of his competition. Not so long ago, Fleck could only wish a transferring player from his program good luck as he capitalized on NIL.

But through the efforts of Minnesota’s official collective, Dinkytown Athletes, that situation is improving. It’s believed the football program now has a few million dollars in NIL money with which to compete.

Revenue sharing with college athletes is expected to begin this year, and the Gophers will have similar money to their rivals with which to pay players. Power Four athletic departments are expected to devote about $20.5 million to revenue sharing with athletes in several sports. Minnesota will divide its money among football, men’s and women’s basketball, men’s hockey and women’s volleyball. Speculation is athletic departments, including Minnesota’s, could allocate $12 million or more annually to football players.

The revenue share model is a very positive development for programs like Minnesota. Fleck acknowledged as much recently when he expressed gratitude to the U administration and indicated the money will be a difference maker when recruiting against non-Power Four programs who don’t have the money to share revenue like the big boys.

“The SEC and the Big Ten have major TV contracts that allow that money to be real, allow that money to be there,” Fleck said. “Our NIL and collective with Dinkytown Athletes, that money is there. It’s real. I can’t say that for everybody around the country, you know?”

The marquee football schools will still have a money advantage over the Gophers because of NIL resources. As Fleck says, it’s the thing “that separates” parity for all.

“But I think that you’re starting to see us being able to get a high-quality athlete, retain a high-quality athlete, and a student-athlete that we can (get),” Fleck said.

The Gophers have 14 transfer players coming in and the group is ranked No. 14 in the country by 247Sports. Fleck credits his current players for the job they do as hosts in selling recruits on the Gophers program.

The thousands of players in the transfer portal each year has been a positive development for the Gophers. Minnesota has had few key losses in recent history, while adding talent such as they did a year ago with quarterback Max Brosmer and cornerback Ethan Robinson.

Truth is the portal can help the “have nots” of college football dramatically. While the Gophers had 13 transfers come in last year, Indiana had 30 under new coach Curt Cignetti. The formula worked with Indiana improving from a 3-9 team to 11-2 and a spot in the College Football Playoffs.

Along with revenue sharing and the transfer portal, the expansion of the playoffs to 12 teams is another development that raises the ceiling for Gopher football success. A Big Ten team can now finish fourth, or even fifth in the standings, and potentially receive a playoff invitation.

Participation in the playoffs would be a huge lift for Minnesota’s program. The fanbase would be energized and grow in numbers. NIL dollars would flow like never before (not to mention athletic department donations and general giving to the U).

More revenue would be welcome in so many ways including football staff salaries. The Gophers are known to rank near the bottom in money paid to assistant coaches.

Despite that situation, Fleck has one of his better staffs during his eight years at Minnesota headed by offensive coordinator Greg Harbaugh Jr. and defensive coordinator Corey Hetherman.

Give Fleck credit for those hires and the many other things he has helped to accomplish with his leadership, IQ and non-stop energy.

Even brighter days could be ahead for Golden Gophers football.

3 comments