Preps – Page 136 – David Shama's Minnesota Sports Headliners

Worth Noting

Posted on January 23, 2012January 23, 2012 by David Shama

Gophers football coach Jerry Kill will speak to the C.O.R.E.S. group on Thursday, March 8.

Former Highland Park and Gophers player Tony Levine, now head coach at Houston, will be among the headline speakers at the MFCA Clinic in late March. The clinic is sponsored by the Minnesota Football Coaches Association. The MFCA is also sponsoring the “Everything but X’s and O’s Clinic” on Saturday at the University of St. Thomas.

Another MFCA event, the annual All-Star game, will be played on Saturday, June 30 at TCF Bank Stadium.

Penn State coach Joe Paterno, who died yesterday at 85, had an 8-4 record against the Gophers, including four straight wins.

The Gophers (3-4 in the Big Ten) played some of their best first half basketball in memory yesterday, building a 41-24 against Northwestern (2-5) and went on to win 75-52. Although Minnesota won its third straight conference game, coach Tubby Smith said the Gophers are “not close to where we need to be.”

The Gophers won road games at Indiana and Penn State before coming home to win yesterday. Michigan State (5-2) hosts Minnesota on Wednesday night. “I can feel us gaining confidence with each win,” Smith said.

This March will be the 100^th anniversary of the Minnesota high school boys basketball tournament. Among those involved with the celebration planning is former Edgerton High School star Dean Verdoes.

High school basketball will lose one of its legends and best gentlemen when Mounds View coach Ziggy Kauls retires after this season.

ESPN in-studio NBA analyst Jon Barry ranked the Wolves’ Kevin Love as the league’s No. 1 power forward last week. Blake Griffin from the Clippers was ranked No. 2.

The Tapemark Annual Charity Pro-Am Tournament dates are June 8, 9 and 10 for the men’s event and June 5 and 10 for the women’s.

Happy birthday to KSTP TV’s Darren Doogie Wolfson who turned 32 on Friday.

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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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Worth Noting

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

Timberwolves rookie forward Derrick Williams talking about the competition for playing time including at power forward where several players like him are in the mix: “Even people on your team are enemies.”

The Wolves will play only two preseason games — at home against Milwaukee on December 17 and at Milwaukee on December 21— and both will be televised on FOX Sports North.

Vikings placekicker Ryan Longwell said his friend Brett Favre mentors nephew Dylan Favre, a college quarterback who has left Mississippi State. “When you have a resource like Brett Favre in the family tree, you should certainly use it,” Longwell said.

Longwell plans to work during the offseason with a PGA pro to improve his golf game and possibly qualify for the 2012 U.S. Open next June. He said his golf project won’t hurt preparations for football. He doesn’t kick during the offseason until a “couple weeks” before minicamp and training camp.

Vikings rookie tight end Kyle Rudolph: “Whenever the ball is in the air, I treat it as mine.”

Mankato West’s Phillip Nelson was selected as the Mr. Football winner yesterday. He passed for 35 touchdowns and threw for 20 this season. The Gophers recruit and all-state quarterback was also honored as Minnesota prep player of the year by the Associated Press and ESPN. The Mr. Football program is sponsored by the Minnesota Football Coaches Association and the Vikings.

Troy Gloster, who is a redshirt freshman linebacker at West Virginia, is the grandson of the late Sandy Stephens, the former Gophers All-American quarterback.

The 10-1 basketball Gophers play Central Michigan tomorrow night at Williams Arena. The Chippewas are 4-4 and lost their last game, 65-57 to Tennessee State. The team’s best player is guard Trey Zeigler who is averaging 17.8 points and 8.3 rebounds. Dad Ernie Zeigler is head coach.

Point guard Andre Hollins, who has an ankle injury, didn’t play in the Gophers win over Saint Peter’s on Saturday but Minnesota coach Tubby Smith said after the game he expects Hollins to be ready for tomorrow night.

Prep basketball authority Ken Lien emailed news that DeLaSalle sophomore Reid Travis has been offered a scholarship by Northwestern.

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