Preps – Page 35 – David Shama's Minnesota Sports Headliners

U Basketball Ticket Sales Take a Hit

Posted on October 27, 2021October 27, 2021 by David Shama

Interest in University of Minnesota men’s basketball has been trending down for years as fans watched a parade of coaches fail to develop winning Big Ten teams. Ticket sales generally have been declining for decades as the U falters in duplicating the success of its national power teams of the 1970s, 1980s and 1990s.

Following coach Richard Pitino’s dismissal in March, passionate and knowledgeable patrons salivated over thoughts of a blue ribbon hire like Brian Dutcher (couldn’t have been more transparent in his strong interest) and Eric Musselman, also a prominent college coach and native of Minnesota who knows the past glory of the program. Instead U president Joan Gabel made the abrupt and controversial hire of Ben Johnson, a Minneapolis native and longtime college assistant coach with no head coaching experience.

A lot of Gophers basketball fans feel anger and disappointment with Gabel’s decision. Adding to the gloom is the 2021-2022 team is predicted to be the worst in the Big Ten.

Ticket sales totals obtained from the U by Sports Headliners show a continuation of the long decline in interest. The U said 5,503 public season tickets have been sold, with the first official home game coming up November 9 against Kansas City. For the 2019-2020 season 6,805 tickets were sold for games at Williams Arena (capacity 14,625).

That’s about a 20 percent decline from 2019-2020. No figures for 2020-2021 are reported because the pandemic prevented fans from attending games.

The number of accounts holding season tickets is down from 2,396 to 1,949. A minimal number of new season ticket sales are expected to occur in the coming weeks and month.

Ticket totals through the decades were requested by Sports Headliners but information provided goes back only to the 2009-2010 season (the beginning of digital records). For that season 9,946 public season tickets were sold, the most on digital record in one year. Eleven years ago, for the 2010-2011 schedule, season tickets totaled 8,931.

It’s believed that decades ago over 12,000 public season tickets were sold in multiple years, and Minnesota (at least once) led the nation in average attendance per game. During the 1980s Gophers basketball was so popular its TV ratings were the best in Minneapolis for any local sports team except the Vikings, per former Minnesota coach Jim Dutcher.

Part of ticket sales this fall includes mini-plans (combining multiple games together). The U reported 370 total tickets sold so far, adding such sales will increase when the season begins in November. For the 2019-2020 season, tickets sold in mini-plans totaled 1,970.

The current student allotment for season tickets is sold out at 2,105—that figure contrasts with a total of 1,332 two years ago. The record (dating back to 2009) for student season tickets is 2,199 for the 2013-2014 season.

The U said there have been no changes in the pricing of either public or student tickets from 2019 to now.

A crowd of 7,000 to 8,000 is expected for a November 1 exhibition game at Williams Arena against Concordia-St. Paul (tickets start at $5), with similar announced attendance likely for Kansas City November 9, according to the U.

Announced average per game attendance has declined in three out of the four most recent years. Only once in that span have the Gophers averaged over 11,000 per game. In 2019-2020 the average was 10,232, the lowest figure since 1970-1971.

Worth Noting

It was 30 years ago today the Twins won the 1991 World Series, defeating the Braves 1-0 in Minneapolis behind the seventh game pitching of series MVP Jack Morris.

Former Twins designated hitter Nelson Cruz is the winner of the 2021 Roberto Clemente Award. The annual honor goes to the MLB player who best represents the game on and off the field.

Kyle Rau, the former Gopher star, and Nick Swaney lead the Iowa Wild (3-1-0-0) in scoring with five points.

Word is secondary ticket sellers are offering seats at $6 each for Saturday’s Gopher game at Ryan Field in Evanston against the host Wildcats. Crowd support is minimal most seasons for the Wildcats and when there is inclement weather the stadium is all but empty. See the adjacent photo taken prior to the second half kickoff of the 2017 Minnesota game at Ryan Field.

Gophers coach P.J. Fleck likes what he sees from veteran quarterback Tanner Morgan but knows his receivers need to play better. “Tanner is playing better than he was at the beginning of the year,” Fleck said. “Our catch radius has to continue to improve which I know our guys have accepted that challenge. …”

Fleck talking about booing fans in the closing minute of the first half in last Saturday’s home game against Maryland when patrons wanted the Gophers to pass the football: “…I don’t have a chance to explain it to everybody over the intercom exactly what I am thinking in the final 40 seconds of the half. They just have to trust me that we’re going to do the right thing and go score points.”

As of yesterday morning Mike Nowakowski from Ticket King said the least expensive ticket for Sunday night’s Vikings-Cowboys game at U.S. Bank Stadium is $175 (upper level corner location). On the 50-yard line lower level club seats were selling for $799 and on the upper level at midfield the price was $250.

Nowakowski also said demand is picking up for the November 6 Illinois-Gopher game at Huntington Bank Stadium. The stunning Bowling Green loss, he said, was a major hit to Gopher sales this fall.

Former Vikings guard Steve Hutchinson, inducted in August into the Pro Football Hall of Fame, will be honored at Sunday night’s game. He speaks to the Twin Cities Dunkers Friday.

Vikings wide receiver Adam Thielen admits there are times during games when players on the sidelines don’t do as much as they could to create energy for one another. “…I am literally pointing all of the fingers right at myself because I have a habit to kind of go into my own little zone and to just kind of focus on the next play, right?”

Legendary ex-Vikings coach Bud Grant, 94, is articulate as ever but deals with a painful back.

Mike Grant, Bud’s son, has his Eden Prairie Eagles chasing a 12th state football title but injuries have been a challenge including to four-star Golden Gopher recruit and defensive lineman Trey Bixby.

Eden Prairie defeated 6A power Stillwater last week whose junior quarterback is Max Shikenjanski, son of former Gophers basketball center Jim Shikenjanski.

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U Goal to Lead League in ‘High Fives’

Posted on October 20, 2021October 20, 2021 by David Shama

New University of Minnesota basketball coach Ben Johnson puts his team in front of a Williams Arena crowd for the first time in less than two weeks when the Golden Gophers play an exhibition game against the Golden Bears of Concordia-St. Paul.

The November 1 game will provide first impressions of a roster with two returning players from last season. That total of two comes with an asterisk. Senior redshirt forward Eric Curry, who has struggled through injuries during his college career, is back and available for limited playing time but junior forward Isaiah Ihnen is out for the 2021-2022 season with a knee injury.

This Gopher team is not only new to the fans but also to themselves. The arrival of 13 new players with different backgrounds, skill sets and personalities makes Johnson’s crew among the most transitional in the college basketball world.

This roster is loaded with players who before transferring to Dinkytown were members of mid-major and lower division college programs. The collective talent, judged by past performances, looks modest. As expected, media forecasts have Minnesota finishing last in the Big Ten standings.

For the Gophers to win games, Johnson preaches unselfishness to his players. They have to sacrifice on the court for one another. Do the little things and the most important ones to make the whole better than the parts. Be a unit that plays with a togetherness the opponent can’t match.

“We need to be a team of all teams,” Johnson said. “We need to lead the league in high fives and butt slaps.”

Johnson’s roster has eight seniors, two juniors, two sophomores and three freshmen. That maturity could result in a buy-in all season to what Johnson and his staff are teaching and asking of the players.

The coach knows his team must not only be selfless, but also imposing. “We’ve gotta be the toughest team, especially this year. We don’t have a lot of room for error. Our mental toughness, our physical toughness has got to be on point.”

If the players are to perform the way Johnson intends for them, it will help if they like one another. He said the “chemistry,” including off the court, is there. The players are bonding. “Their personalities all meshed,” he said.

Johnson and his assistants are determined to have both player and team development be core values in their program. They want to see and for fans to witness the improvement of the team and individuals.

Playing together, toughness and improvement are to be bedrocks of the new program. “When fans walk away from Williams Arena, we want them to know what Minnesota basketball is all about,” Johnson said.

Worth Noting

Johnson talking about assistant coach Dave Thorson: “He is going to have a heavy voice in what we do defensively.”

Lindy’s college basketball magazine is among the media predicting a slow start to the new Gopher basketball era. “Ben Johnson’s dream job in his hometown should come with some grace from the fans,” writes Lindsey Willhite.

Lindy’s top 100 prep seniors for the class of 2022 includes at No. 63 Gopher commit Braeden Carrington of Park Center. Other Minnesotans on the list are No. 15 Michigan State commit Tre Holloman from Cretin-Derham Hall and No. 96 Boston College commit Prince Aligbe from Minnehaha Academy.

A tweet yesterday responding to a GopherHole post that Johnson’s team isn’t ranked in the AP preseason top 25: “Also, water is wet.”

The 3-0 Wild has only nine players on its roster who were with the club at the beginning of the 2019 season, including Joel Eriksson Ek who had the winning goal last night in overtime against the Jets. GM Bill Guerin, hired before the 2019 season, has reshaped the team and apparently the culture.

Owner Craig Leipold credited the fans for the energy that helped the Wild to the 6-5 win in front of a raucous crowd. He said that’s “the best marketing” the club could have.

Leipold on whether his team can go undefeated in the 82-game regular season: “I don’t think so.”

The Timberwolves open their season tonight at Target Center against the Rockets and it looks like two overriding elements will determine whether Minnesota can make the playoffs for only the second time since 2004. The Wolves core players have to avoid long stretches without being sidelined. Second, this team must go from being one of the NBA’s worst defensively to at least mediocre.

Set the ceiling for wins at 45.

The public will take a wait-and-see approach. “They’re tackling people to come to games,” a sports executive said Monday.

From the Nobody Asked Department but. …James Franklin will be the next head football coach at USC. Joe Brady will take over at LSU.

Vikings QB Kirk Cousins passed for 373 yards, three touchdowns and no interceptions for a 112.6 rating in Sunday’s 34-28 overtime win against the Panthers. He now has 20 career games with at least 300 passing yards, three touchdown throws and a passer rating of 110-or-better. That surpasses the Packers’ Aaron Rodgers (19 games) for the most such games by a QB in his first 10 NFL seasons.

Vikings wide receiver Adam Thielen said his superb TD catch at the pylon Sunday was in the same space of the Carolina stadium end zone where he dropped a ball in 2017.

Amani Hooker, the Titans safety from Park Center, returned from the injured list to play in Monday night’s upset win over the Bills. The 2019 fourth round draft choice is considered a potential star in Nashville.

With Billy Beane and Theo Epstein reportedly turning down the opportunity to lead the Mets, have to wonder if Twins boss Derek Falvey will receive an inquiry.

Minnesota youth of the 1960s loved the Twins but many worshipped Mickey Mantle and rooted for him when the great center fielder came to Met Stadium with the Yankees. If still alive, the Mick would be 90 years old today.

Danny Olsen, a Huntington Bank communications leader, is also an assistant boys basketball coach at Eastview High School.

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Fleck: NIL Can Be Game-Changer for U

Posted on October 5, 2021October 6, 2021 by David Shama

The NCAA approved a policy last summer allowing current and incoming college athletes the opportunity to benefit from their names, images and likenesses. Already there are scattered reports from around the country of both large and minimal amounts of money being provided to student-athletes.

Research by Sports Headliners doesn’t substantiate a lot of activity benefiting University of Minnesota athletes. The school athletic department can help educate but not arrange potential NIL opportunities for its athletes. There doesn’t appear to be much response so far from the outside community including the 16 Fortune 500 companies based in the state of Minnesota.

There certainly is potential to create a reputation that the U is a desirable NIL destination for student-athletes. The Minneapolis-St. Paul area has long been known for its successful businesses of all sizes. Many of those businesses are owned or have staff with passion for Gophers athletics.

NIL is not to be used for “under the table” payments by boosters to reward athletes for performance, or as a recruiting inducement. NIL is also not a pay-for-play tool in the sense that athletes receive a salary from their schools, making them employees. However, word is getting out about schools where athletes are profiting.

For example, at Miami (Florida) a gym owner proposed an NIL deal rewarding everyone on the Hurricanes football team with $500 per month. A University of Michigan retailer reportedly is selling football jerseys with the names of players on the back and more than $10 per shirt goes to the athlete. Paige Bueckers, the former Hopkins superstar who was named 2021 college basketball Player of the Year in her freshman season at Connecticut, is rumored to be lining up more than $500,000 in NIL money. Gable Steveson, the Gopher and gold medal winning Olympic wrestler, is still competing for the U but has (presumably) a lucrative deal with pro wrestling’s WWE.

College athletes are allowed NIL advisors to find deals such as making personal appearances, doing TV commercials or utilizing their social media platforms. Those advisors can’t be coaches from the athletes’ schools, but leaders at the U certainly recognize the potential in this market place given the vitality of the business community.

“…We have a very, very unique location of where we are, and we need to be able to use that, and we need our community to want to use that,” Gophers football coach P.J. Fleck said. “Use our student athletes and really take this program to a different level, and I think we’re very, very capable of doing that.”

Fleck considers NIL to be another major change benefitting athletes, along with things like player safety and the transfer portal. He knows NIL could be a huge catalyst for recruiting, perhaps annually boosting the Gophers into the company of recruiting classes that rank among the top 20 in the nation—a change resulting in rosters with plenty of four-star players, and perhaps a few five-stars.

Fleck is clearly excited about NIL and how it can benefit Gopher football. “I think there is great potential here for what we can become. …We just have to be incredibly creative. We have to be able to use it like everyone else. To be able to use it (as) part of recruiting student athletes to come here.

“Again, not setting those things up, but when you look at where you are and where you’re located, what resources we have around here, this can be game-changing for the University of Minnesota. It can be game-changing for where we are going in the future.”

Notes: Vikes Miss on Second Half Points

The Minnesota Vikings’ offense has no second half touchdowns in the last three games (two losses). After Sunday’s home loss to the Seattle Seahawks, head coach Mike Zimmer surprisingly said on KFAN radio he hadn’t thought about the scoring drought in the last two periods. “I’ll have to look at what we’re doing offensively at halftime,” he said.

The offense produced a crisp opening game touchdown drive in the 14-7 loss to the Cleveland Browns Sunday. Former Vikings linebacker Ben Leber, also talking on the KFAN post game show, said the early game plans of rookie offensive coordinator Klint Kubiak impress but production stalls out.

“But as the game goes on, and you have to start calling plays based on game situations, and it seems like we’re just not as creative,” Leber said. “We’re not ahead of it where we should be, where we are in the early parts of the game. …”

Leber believes blitzes and line twists by the Browns frustrated Vikings quarterback Kirk Cousins and his linemen. “We’ve seen Kirk where he gets in these games and he feels the pressure before it’s really there, and I think that really had an effect on him late in the game,” Leber said.

The one-win Vikings have lost three games by a total of 11 points. That’s part of why Zimmer keeps insisting he has a “good team” despite the record, while anticipating results will turn around as the season progresses.

Viking wide receiver Justin Jefferson had six receptions for 84 yards and the team’s lone touchdown Sunday. He has 114 receptions for 1,738 yards and 10 touchdowns in 20 career games. He and Odell Beckham Jr. and A.J. Green are the only NFL players in league history with at least 100 receptions, 1,500 receiving yards and 10 touchdown catches in their first 20 games.

Vikings veteran linebacker Anthony Barr (knee injury) has yet to play in the first four games but Zimmer is optimistic about a return to the field Sunday against the Detroit Lions at U.S. Bank Stadium. “I think he’ll play this week,” Zimmer said at his news conference yesterday.

The experience of the 29-year-old allows the Vikings to do things a younger player can’t, the coach said.

Zimmer also said the coaches are talking about how to keep 33-year-old defensive end Everson Griffen fresh for the balance of the season. He’s been effective in rushing the opposing quarterback, with two sacks in three games this season.

Single game tickets remain for the Minnesota Wild home opener against the Winnipeg Jets October 19. A promotional email Monday used this subject line: “Don’t Miss (Kirill) Kaprizov Opening Night.”

Starters for the Minnesota Timberwolves in their opening preseason game last night: center Karl-Anthony Towns, forward Jaden McDaniels, guards Josh Okogie, Anthony Edwards and D’Angelo Russell. Impressions: a skilled group capable of explosive offense and more than average defense, but not an adequate rebounding unit. Note to head coach Chris Finch: start Jarred Vanderbilt in place of McDaniels to improve the offensive and defensive rebounding.

Towns needs to be an alpha defender and rebounder all season. He also must cruise through a season without being sidelined with injuries (briefly missed time during the game last night).

The 20-year-old Edwards looks taller and stronger than during his rookie season last winter. Everyone knows about his offense but he’s going to be elite defensively. He had two blocks and two steals in his team’s 117-114 win over the New Orleans Pelicans.

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