NCAA – Page 93 – David Shama's Minnesota Sports Headliners

History Making Awaits U WR & QB

Posted on June 16, 2020June 16, 2020 by David Shama

With a 2020 college football season looking more probable by the week, University of Minnesota fans can anticipate potential history making firsts for a pair of Golden Gopher juniors—wide receiver Rashod Bateman and quarterback Tanner Morgan.

Both are being mentioned as potential 2021 first round NFL Draft choices. Minnesota’s program has never had a wide receiver or quarterback taken in the first round. The best for a wide receiver was Eric Decker going to Denver in the third round of the 2010 draft. John Hankinson to the Vikings in 1965 and Craig Curry to Miami in 1972, both drafted in the eighth round, are tops in program history for quarterbacks. Minnesota hasn’t had a player drafted in the first round since running back Laurence Maroney was chosen at 21 by New England in the 2006 draft.

Bateman, who appears all but certain to be drafted in the first round next spring, is already the first wide receiver in school history to be named All-American. He was Associated Press third-team All-American in 2019, plus being named the Big Ten’s best wide receiver.

Bateman is a Walter Camp Football Foundation 2020 preseason All-American. He was placed on the second team, and he will be a focus of attention for NFL scouts who might evaluate him as a top 15 pick. The Gophers haven’t had a top 15 first round player in more than 50 years.

Bateman, from Tifton, Ga., has caught at least one pass in all 26 games of his Gopher career (tied for seventh in school history). The elusive and sure-handed Bateman has 111 career receptions for 1,923 yards and 17 touchdowns. Those totals rank 12th, seventh and fifth respectively in Gopher history. He has seven 100-yard receiving games, including the top two for a Gopher in TCF Bank Stadium history (2019 Penn State with 203 yards and 2019 Wisconsin with 147 yards).

Morgan is a potential first or second round draft choice. There is consensus he is the Big Ten’s second best returning quarterback after Ohio State’s Justin Fields. A 247Sports April 12 story projecting the nation’s top 25 college quarterbacks had Morgan No. 7 and Fields No. 1.

Morgan was named second team All-Big Ten in 2019. In the last 30-plus years only two other Minnesota quarterbacks (Adam Weber in 2008 and Rickey Foggie 1987) have earned that distinction. The Gophers haven’t had an All-American QB since Sandy Stephens in 1961.

The Union, Kentucky native is 15-4 as Minnesota’s starting quarterback and is praised for both his leadership and passing. A precision passer, Morgan set school season records in 2019 for his 66 percent completion mark, 3,253 passing yards and 30 touchdowns.

Looks like Bateman and Morgan, already history makers at the U after last season, are positioned to add more to their Gopher legacies this fall.

Worth Noting

In a 247Sports story last Friday Athlon magazine named Bateman first team preseason All-Big Ten and Morgan second team. Athlon referred to Bateman as a “potential top-10 prospect in the NFL Draft.”

Gopher junior running back Mohamed Ibrahim made the Athlon second team offense, as did junior guard-tackle Blaise Andries. Senior corner Coney Durr was selected for the third team defense.

Minnesota, 11-2 last season, is seen by multiple sources as a top-25 team entering the 2020 season. In a May 23, 247Sports online story Athlon ranked the Gophers No. 20 nationally. Big Ten West Division rivals Wisconsin and Iowa ranked No. 12 and No. 25.

Michele Tafoya, the Minnesota resident and prominent longtime national sports reporter on television, talked about her career experiences, COVID-19 and social justice on the Twin Cities cable TV program “Behind the Game.” Tafoya told host Patrick Klinger: “It’s really a soul-searching time.”

Tafoya, seen by millions in the fall as the sideline reporter on NBC Sunday Night Football, was supposed to cover the summer Olympics before they were postponed until 2021. One of the most successful female sports broadcasters in American history, Tafoya has been impersonated on television’s “Saturday Night Live.”

Although she has experienced several roles in her broadcast career, Tafoya said an NBA play-by-play assignment is something she would enjoy if the timing is right.Tafoya grew up in southern California and when she was young wanted to be “the next Meryl Streep.”

“Behind the Game” can also be seen on YouTube.

Speaking of COVID-19, top leaders from the Timberwolves, Twins, United, Vikings and Wild have been sharing ideas weekly this spring as professional teams here and across the country shape policies to start up again.

It’s believed the NCAA will vote Wednesday on whether to approve the University of St. Thomas’ request to participate in Division I sports starting with the 2021-2022 school year. That vote was to have happened in April but got postponed because of the COVID-19 pandemic. The Tommies are requesting a transition from Division III status to Division I after involuntarily being removed from the D-3 MIAC starting in 2021-2022.

The two Minnesota-bred thoroughbreds with the highest career earnings, Mr. Jagermeister and Hot Shot Kid, face off in the 10,000 Lakes Stakes Wednesday at Canterbury Park. The Lakes Stakes is six furlongs for a purse of $50,000.

Running Aces starts its live harness racing season Saturday.

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D-1 NCAA Vote on Tommies Next Week

Posted on June 9, 2020June 9, 2020 by David Shama

Phil Esten, vice president and director of athletics at the University of St. Thomas, told Sports Headliners Monday the NCAA will vote next week whether to approve the Tommies’ request to participate in Division I sports starting with the 2021-2022 school year.

That vote was to have happened in April but got postponed because of the COVID-19 pandemic. The Tommies are requesting a transition from Division III status to Division I after involuntarily being removed from the D-3 MIAC starting in 2021-2022.

Historically, the NCAA does not allow immediate transition from D-3 to D-1 but for various reasons it’s believed the Tommies are a likely exception. “I remain optimistic (about approval),” Esten said.

Playing at the D-1 level would allow St. Thomas athletes to test themselves against far better competition. After the MIAC’s decision to ask the Tommies to find another home (conference presidents thought UST was too dominant in athletics), school leadership contemplated whether to remain at D-3, or transition to a higher level. The D-1 alternative became more realistic when the Summit League extended an invitation to the Tommies last fall.

The Summit not only provides a home for 19 of the Tommies’ 22 sports (football and men’s and women’s hockey excluded) but the NCAA can also look at other favorable factors encouraging a vote of approval for D-1 status. While the private school has a small undergraduate enrollment of about 6,000, it has a prominent history of academic and athletic success, with generous funding including alumni support. Unlike many states Minnesota only has one D-1 program with the University of Minnesota, so the big time college sports platform here is not crowded.

The Twin Cities media market has to be attractive to the NCAA and Summit League whose full participation schools (all sports offered) in 2019-2020 were Denver, North Dakota, North Dakota State, Omaha, Oral Roberts, South Dakota, South Dakota State and Western Illinois. St. Thomas’ presence in the revenue producing sport of men’s basketball is a plus for future Summit League TV and corporate sponsorship deals. The recruiting base of Twin Cities athletes is also a major asset for Summit League schools.

The COVID-19 epidemic has made the major college athletics landscape uncertain in regard to future revenues. There is plenty of speculation about drastically reducing athletic department budgets including travel. More regional (less national) travel seems all but certain, and that is another reason why Esten believes a D-1 program in the Upper Midwest could benefit not just the Tommies but other schools looking for shorter travel distances with their schedules.

With the Summit League not an option, Esten said he is still “sorting” through where his hockey programs will find new conference homes, but the plan is for the Tommies to be part of the non-scholarship Pioneer Football League whose 10-members last fall consisted of Butler, Davidson, Dayton, Drake, Jacksonville, Marist, Morehead State, San Diego, Stetson, and Valparaiso.

Some of those schools are not exactly located just around the corner from the St. Thomas campus, and travel along with the usual expenses associated with the sport of football will certainly contribute to an overall UST athletics budget expected to jump from about $5 million annually to perhaps $10 million.

Esten declined to offer specifics on budgets but the foreseeable future will have St. Thomas subsidizing its athletics budget as in the past, with revenues not matching expenses. On the fields and courts the Tommies will face more difficult opposition and there could be one-sided results for awhile, with Esten saying the school goes into D-1 territory with “eyes wide open.”

St. Thomas coaches already have and are recruiting D-1 caliber athletes. The Tommies are accustomed to winning championships, and even on the national stage coaches like John Tauer from men’s basketball and football’s Glenn Caruso have had their teams in the news as NCAA D-3 championship contenders.

St. Thomas president Julie Sullivan wrote about the Division I process in an October, 2019 article on the school’s website last fall. In that article she expressed what the school sees as the value of transitioning to D-1 status. “This decision is about more than athletics – it’s about advancing our vision to be a leading Catholic university recognized at the national level. An important outcome of increasing St. Thomas’ visibility, for example, is an ability to attract a more geographically diverse cross section of students who are accomplished in and out of the classroom.

“This additional representation would add value to classroom discussions, campus life, co-curricular activities and virtually every aspect of St. Thomas while providing St. Thomas with the opportunity to extend the reach of our mission and impact. The presence of Division I sports teams will also build on the strong Tommie fan loyalty and provide the campus and alumni with more engaging fan experiences.”

St. Thomas has the internal commitment to become D-1, and now all it needs is NCAA approval next week.

Comments Welcome

Gophers’ Meyer Ranks with Glen Perkins

Posted on June 2, 2020June 2, 2020 by David Shama

Enjoy a Tuesday notes column…

The Minnesota Twins, selecting at No. 27 in next week’s MLB Draft, aren’t positioned to acquire University of Minnesota pitcher Max Meyer from Woodbury. Speculation this spring is the sophomore right-hander will be selected among the first 10 picks, and Gophers coach John Anderson told Sports Headliners Meyer “may be top five.”

Anderson, the Gopher coach since 1981, ranks Meyer and Glen Perkins his two best pitchers ever. The St. Paul-born Perkins was selected No. 22 in the first round by the Twins in June of 2004, and later became a big time reliever for Minnesota.

Anderson said Meyer has a superb work ethic and trained hard to achieve his success as both a reliever and starter for the Gophers. Meyer caught the attention of scouts this spring with a slider moving at an impressive spin rate. His other top pitches are a changeup and fast ball that has reached 100 miles per hour, Anderson added.

Meyer finished his Gopher career with a lifetime 2.07 ERA (fourth best all-time in the program), with 187 strikeouts in 148 innings pitched. His 18 saves are the third-most in 132 seasons of the program’s history.

Jerry Kline Jr. told Sports Headliners yesterday there have been “no conversations” with Treyton Thompson or his family this spring about transferring to Cretin-Derham Hall. Conjecture in recent weeks has Thompson, a top 100 prep player for the class of 2021 and a verbal commit to the Gophers, playing his senior season for coach Kline.

Thompson, a native of Alexandria, Minnesota and a power forward, played as a junior at La Lumiere School in Indiana last year. He and his family inquired more than 12 months ago about a transfer to CDH but that wasn’t possible because metro area residence is required. It’s not known if Thompson is looking at other options than La Lumiere for his senior season.

The Raiders lose four starters from last season’s team but return Trejuan Holloman, a junior point guard drawing national attention from recruiters. He is an unselfish playmaker who consistently gets others involved. “He’s a fun player to play with, and he’s a fun kid to coach, and he’s all about team,” Kline said.

No high school player from the state will be the object of more attention next winter than Minnehaha Academy 7-footer Chet Holmgren, who both ESPN and 247Sports rank as the No. 2 prep player nationally in the class of 2021. Despite his size, he has extraordinary versatility including ball handling. Holmgren’s shooting and shot blocking are also among his most noticeable skills.

Kline refers to him as unique. “He’s just a phenomenal player and he’s only going to get better,” Kline said.

Chet weighs less than 200 pounds and is similar in size to his father David Holmgren who played four seasons as a reserve for the Gophers from 1984-1988. “He hadn’t really filled out yet when I had him,” said Jim Dutcher, who coached David his first two seasons.

A scholarship player, David played in 57 games, starting three times during his Gopher career. He averaged 1 point and .08 rebounds per game in limited minutes during at Minnesota after being a standout center at Prior Lake High School.

Tomorrow (Wednesday) was originally supposed to be the last day college basketball players could withdraw their names from the NBA Draft and still be eligible for next season. The NCAA nixed the June 3 date awhile ago and has yet to announce a new deadline. That gives Marcus Carr, Minnesota’s best player if he returns to the team, more time to contemplate whether his immediate future is with the Gophers or pros.

My guess as to Carr’s draft appeal to NBA clubs? At best, mid to late second round.

Happy birthday to Minnesota hockey legend Lou Nanne who turns 79 today.

It was eight years ago yesterday that media icon Dark Star (real name George Chapple) died at his home in Minnetonka. A character among characters, Dark loved sports including horse racing and is a member of Canterbury Park’s Hall of Fame.

The current issue of Sports Illustrated devotes its cover and 10 inside pages to the financial “crisis” facing minor league baseball. The article begins with this: “In response to an SI survey on the effects of the pandemic, three-quarters of teams express serious concerns over either their survival or that of fellow clubs.”

College football is second only to the NFL in “core fans,” per a news release last week from the National Football Foundation. The release cited a Gallup poll that reported college football’s popularity surpassed the American professional sports of baseball, basketball, hockey and soccer.

The Gophers had the third largest jump in attendance among FBS schools in 2019, with an average of 8,275 more in average announced attendance for seven home games. Minnesota’s average for the season was 46,190 versus 37,915 in 2018.

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