Preps – Page 64 – David Shama's Minnesota Sports Headliners

Winfield May Return Punts for Gophers

Posted on August 15, 2018August 15, 2018 by David Shama

Enjoy a Wednesday notes column.

Safety and post-season Big Ten awards candidate Antoine Winfield Jr. was fielding punts at a recent Gophers football scrimmage open to the public and media. Winfield, who missed eight games last season because of injury, is part of an “experiment” by head coach P.J. Fleck to determine who will have the punt return job when the season opens August 30 at home against New Mexico State.

Fleck is also considering redshirt senior cornerback Antonio Shenault and true freshman wide receiver Rashod Bateman. Winfield is a redshirt sophomore who probably is Minnesota’s best player regardless of position.

No doubt Fleck wants an athlete with sure hands to become his No. 1 punt returner. He will welcome a playmaker at the position who can advance the ball up field when few could. The Gophers, who struggled to score points last season and could again in 2018, didn’t return a punt for a touchdown last season, or the year before.

Shenault shared punt returning last season with the departed Drew Hmielewski. Shenault had four returns for 11 yards. Winfield hasn’t returned punts in college, while Bateman has yet to step on the field for a college game.

Bateman made some difficult catches at last week’s scrimmage open to the public and media. “He’s like that everyday,” Fleck said.

A four-star recruit in high school, per 247/Sports and Rivals, the Tifton, Georgia native has a reputation for speed, explosiveness and big plays. National power Georgia tried to persuade Bateman to change his mind about becoming a Gopher.

The Gophers’ football schedule avoids three of the five Big Ten teams Sports Illustrated has in its top 15 teams in the nation. The S.I. college football issue out last week ranks Wisconsin No. 3 (predicting a national playoff spot), Penn State No. 7, Ohio State No. 9, Michigan State No. 11 and Michigan No. 15. Minnesota plays at Ohio State October 13 and closes the regular season at Wisconsin November 24.

Eden Prairie, defending 6A football state champs, started two-a-day practices this week along with other high school teams in the state. Head coach Mike Grant minimizes tackling in preparation for the season. His best players might only participate in contact for a series or two in a scrimmage before the Eagles open the season against Eastview on August 30. Excluded from any contact will be starting quarterback Cole Kramer.

Grant has won 11 titles at Eden Prairie since starting there in 1992. He told Sports Headliners the Eagles might have won five more if not for injuries.

A pro football source said the Vikings reached out to 59-year-old Mike Tice about becoming offensive line coach after the unexpected death this summer of Tony Sparano. Tice, a former Vikings head coach with a 33-34 record from 2001-2005, is retired from coaching after most recently working as offensive line coach for the Raiders.

Viking veteran Kai Forbath has a history of inconsistency on extra points. New rookie kicker Daniel Carlson will give Forbath a lot of competition for the job of converting extra points and field goals, and kicking off. This could be the most intense player competition in training camp.

Carlson was 4-for-4 on extra points and 2-for-2 on field goals last Saturday night in the Viking opening preseason win in Denver against the Broncos.

Another battle is to see who emerges as the No. 3 wide receiver. Laquon Treadwell, a No. 1 draft selection in 2016, hasn’t caught a touchdown pass in two seasons. In Saturday’s preseason opener he had one reception for three yards. Rookie Brandon Zylstra, injured and not able to play last Saturday, could not only make the roster but perhaps emerge as the No. 3 WR this season.

Legacy statistic for Lindsay Whalen who is retiring from the Lynx after this season: Since 2011 the club’s record is 60-3 when she has seven assists or more.

Former Gopher basketball player Larry Overskei, a three-year starter from 1967-1970, is retired after 47 years of coaching including most recently the boys golf team at Coon Rapids High School. During Overskei’s career he also coached basketball and one of his players was now Baseball Hall of Famer Jack Morris. At Highland Park High Morris helped the team win two St. Paul conference titles.

“Quick as a cat, tenacious, and a wonderful shooter,” Overskei wrote about Morris via email.

It will be interesting to see how center fielder Jake Cave of the Twins hits the rest of the season. Since being recalled on June 25, he is batting .377 (20-for-53) at Target Field. He has a hit in 18 of 22 games at home this season, batting .358 (24-for-67) with 18 RBI.

The 25-year-old Cave enters today’s home game against the Pirates hitting .273 with four home runs and 22 RBI in 139 at bats.

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Jerry Kill: New Rule Helps Gophers

Posted on July 10, 2018July 10, 2018 by David Shama

A Tuesday notes column:

The NCAA’s recent decision allowing Division I college football players to play in up to four games and still preserve their redshirt status will help the Golden Gophers starting this fall.

In prior years a player lost his redshirt status just by taking one snap in a game. Effective this season coaches will have more roster depth because they can use players that in the past were sidelined so they could redshirt, allowing five years to complete four seasons of eligibility.

The five years and four seasons status remains, and former Minnesota coach Jerry Kill likes the rule change. “I think you get banged up (with injuries) and it gives you a chance to look at some of those freshmen for four games and it doesn’t count as a year,” he told Sports Headliners on Monday.

Kill rebuilt Gopher football from 2011-2015. He and his staff upgraded the coaching and the talent. Although Minnesota became a winning program, Kill struggled to build adequate depth. That’s a challenge that also faces second-year coach P.J. Fleck going into this fall where he will have a much anticipated freshmen class.

When injuries hit most of the programs in college football they often don’t have the talent in reserve they would like. “It hurt us in a couple bowl games we played because we had no depth,” Kill said. “It made it tough on us. I think there’s no question that it helps Minnesota, and I think it helps everybody else, too.”

Kill is the new athletic director at Southern Illinois and has made a number of hires including Jeff Jones and Andy Harris. Jones worked for Kill at Minnesota as director of player personnel, and now is an administrator with Southern Illinois, his alma mater. Harris, who was involved with equipment when Kill was with the Gophers, is director of equipment operations with the Salukis.

Jamar Diggs, who runs the Twin Cites Pro Am summer basketball league at DeLaSalle, sees a variety of players including those still in high school. Among the youngest players who have impressed him is DeLaSalle High School guard Tyrell Terry who is headed to Stanford in 2019. “His skill set is through the roof,” Diggs said.

The Capital Club will have golf executive Hollis Cavner, who is bringing a PGA Tour event to Minnesota next year, as its speaker July 26 at Town & Country Club in St. Paul. Kate Mortenson, who heads up the 2019 Minneapolis Final Four Local Organizing Committee, speaks to the group August 14. More information about the Capital Club is available from Patrick Klinger, patrickklinger@klingercompany.com.

Klinger founded the Capital Club in November of 2014, almost five years ago. The club focuses on well-known speakers who provide perspective on what they do.

Jay Weiner, whose byline was seen on the Star Tribune sports pages for years, announced on Facebook he starts a new job this week in communications for the Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis. Most recently he worked for seven years as a speech writer for University of Minnesota president Eric Kaler.

Jeff Seeman, a Minnesota native and U alum, is returning for his 17th season as an NFL official. His father, the late Jerry Seeman, was one of the most revered officials in league history.

The Vikings are one of four NFL teams with the latest reporting date to training camp for veteran players. The Vikings, Broncos, Cardinals and Chargers all report to camps on July 27.

The Vikings rookies report to the TCO Performance Center in Eagan on July 24, three days before the veterans.

Jose Berrios will be on the American League All-Star pitching staff for the game against the National League All-Stars later this month in Washington, D.C. Berrios, 24, will be a first-time All-Star but he is likely to be selected multiple times in what looks like a long and promising career. Former Twins pitcher Jack Morris described Berrios as “almost unhittable” at times earlier this year.

Berrios, 9-7, beat the Royals last night while pitching seven innings and giving up one run. It was his 12th quality start of the year and the ninth time he has pitched seven innings or more.

Berrios could be pitching to former Twin Wilson Ramos in the D.C. All-Star Game. The Rays’ catcher has also been with the Nationals since Minnesota traded him to Washington on July 29, 2010 for relief pitcher Matt Capps. The Twins have struggled to solidify their catching for years, while Capps was gone after the 2012 season.

It’s not every day baseball fans can watch a 53-year-old player but former MLB star Rafael Palmeiro is with the American Association’s Cleburne Railroaders who take on the St. Paul Saints tonight at CHS Field.

The 2018 Schwan’s USA Cup youth soccer tournament at the National Sports Center in Blaine will generate $36 million in economic impact during its nine-day run, July 13-21. The economic impact from visitors staying overnight will be $28.1 million alone, according to a statement released yesterday by a Cup spokesman. Visitor spending will also generate a projected $233,515 in local tax revenue.

The 34th annual tournament will draw 1,150 teams, representing 20 different countries, 20 states, and four Canadian provinces. The tournament is the largest soccer tournament in the Western Hemisphere.

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Twins Need Catching Help Now

Posted on June 12, 2018June 12, 2018 by David Shama

A Tuesday notes column:

Catcher is the position where the Twins, currently with a 28-34 record, have their biggest need. The position is unsettled on the franchise’s major league roster, and in the minor league system the talent is thin. It wouldn’t be surprising if front office decision makers Derek Falvey and Thad Levine announce a trade this month involving a catcher, or acquiring a player at another position who can help the struggling offense.

Only seven of 30 MLB teams have scored fewer runs than the Twins. Minnesota is 3-13 in one-run games, and 17-26 in games decided by two runs or less.

Marlins catcher J.T. Realmuto might be available. The 27-year-old is hitting .301 and is a rising star. Miami is a bad team, struggling to draw fans and has a front office that can be unpredictable.

Falvey and Levine possess some trade pieces that could be attractive to other clubs including 30-year-old starting pitcher Kyle Gibson. Despite a 1-4 record and an inconsistent career path, Gibson this season has held opponents to two or fewer runs eight times. Gibson could be expendable because the Twins have depth in their starting rotation and quality prospects in the minor leagues.

The Twins also have numbers in middle infielders and that could mean minor league prospects and veterans Brian Dozier and Eduardo Escobar are likely to come up in trade talks. Both are free agents after this season.

The 31-year-old Dozier, who led the Twins in home runs the last two seasons, is struggling this year with a .239 batting average. The 29-year-old Escobar, though, is hitting a career high .289 that also includes 12 home runs, three more than Dozier. The Twins could be more likely to retain Escobar because he can play three infield positions and figures to command less money as a free agent than Dozier.

Rob Fornasiere’s last day as Golden Gophers assistant head baseball coach is July 2. The 62-year-old Fornasiere is retiring from his position at Minnesota and is unsure of future plans. For now he “will take a deep breath.”

Fornasiere is paid $79,000 annually at Minnesota and he has supplemented his income with baseball camps. Fornasiere said he and his wife Ruth have worked with a financial planner and “prepared for over 20 years” for retirement, leaving the couple confident they can maintain a lifestyle they are comfortable with.

Who will succeed the popular and admired assistant who has coached 33 years at Minnesota? Fornasiere doesn’t know but he praised former Gopher Dan Wilson when asked about him. “In my 39 years as a college coach, he is the greatest kid I ever met,” Fornasiere said.

Wilson works for the Mariners where his responsibilities include scouting and it’s not publicly known whether he would have an interest in coming to Minnesota. His son Eli is a catcher with the Gophers who has proven to be a productive leader and player. Minnesota went 33-7 when Wilson was the regular catcher.

Fornasiere couldn’t have asked for a better last season with the Gopher program. Minnesota won Big Ten regular season and conference tournament championships. For the first time ever during Fornasiere’s tenure with head coach John Anderson the Gophers were able to win an NCAA regional tournament.

The dream run ended last weekend in the Super Regional against an Oregon State team with better talent and playing on its home field. Fornasiere thinks the Beavers might win the NCAA title and “arguably has” the best pitcher in the country in Luke Heimlich, 16-1. He was outstanding in a Beaver win Friday night, striking out nine Gophers in 8.2 innings.

Jim Carter, who has been a close observer of the issues that led to the lawsuit by former and current Gopher football players against the University of Minnesota, said the two sides failed to reach a settlement before the lawsuit was filed. Carter, a former Gopher football captain in the late 1960s and loyal supporter of the program under ex-head coaches Jerry Kill and Tracy Claeys, said the nine players are seeking $45 million in damages, or about $5 million per player.

Carter predicted it could be a “couple of years” before the lawsuit is tried in federal court before a jury. The players allege they were the victims of racial and gender discrimination involving a 2016 incident.

Jirehl Brock, the four-star running back from Quincy, Illinois, visited the U over the weekend and spent time with No. 1 Gopher quarterback Tanner Morgan, according to recruiting authority Ryan Burns from GopherIllustrated. Burns told Sports Headliners Brock will make a seventh visit to Iowa June 22, and then a decision regarding his college choice is expected by month’s end.

Burns said Vic Viramontes decided to give up on his future as a quarterback after not meeting his expectations this spring. Viramontes wants to play linebacker and decided not to try that position at Minnesota because of the competition for playing time, opting instead to gain experience this fall in junior college, according to Burns.

Viramontes’ departure leaves the Gophers with one scholarship quarterback in redshirt freshman Morgan who has never played in a college game. That’s not only an unusual situation but a precarious one if Morgan is injured. True freshman Zack Annexstad is the backup and Burns said tight end Seth Green will be an emergency back up at the position.

The Vikings have their third offensive coordinator in two years and veteran defensive end Brian Robison sees the benefit of that for his unit. “The things that they’re doing, it kind of has changed from year to year,” Robison said. “It kind of allows us to see a broad spectrum of plays and a broad spectrum of the way the offense likes to do things. For us that keeps us on our toes and it’s kind of ever evolving as far as our learning process.”

Some NFL authorities see the Packers, with injured Aaron Rodgers recovered, as more likely to win the 2018 NFC North title than the defending champion Vikings. But Vikings wide receiver Adam Thielen said he is focused on spring work at OTAs and hasn’t heard the word. “Oh, yeah, I haven’t even noticed,” he told Sports Headliners. “I haven’t heard anything about it.”

Thielen, a Minnesota native, enjoyed talking with Gophers coach P.J. Fleck at OTAs last week. “I got a ton of respect for him and what he’s doing with that program, and I couldn’t be more excited to see what they’re going to do in the future,” Thielen said.

Ross Miller defeated Robert Bell and Don Berry in a playoff to win the 47th Tapemark Charity Pro-Am at Southview Country Club last weekend. Jeff Sorenson finished two strokes behind the leaders. Sorenson shot a course record 62 this spring to win a tournament at Redwood Falls Golf Club.

Ex-Cretin-Derham Hall and University of St. Thomas basketball guard Sean Sweeney, who has been on the NBA Bucks staff since 2014, will remain an assistant under new head coach Mike Budenholzer. Sweeney is valued for his defensive expertise and relationship with superstar Giannis Antetokounmpo. A Milwaukee Journal Sentinel story last Friday described the two as “virtually inseparable.”

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