Recruiting – Page 20 – David Shama's Minnesota Sports Headliners

Prep Authority Raves about U Hire

Posted on March 19, 2023March 19, 2023 by David Shama

University of Minnesota Director of Athletics Mark Coyle checked the right boxes with the hire of Dawn Plitzuweit as the Gophers new head women’s basketball coach. Plitzuweit (pronounced PLITTS-zoo-white) is an experienced coach with a winning record who has recruiting relationships and cultural ties to this region.

Brian Cosgriff, the girls’ basketball coaching legend who won seven state titles at Hopkins and is now at Minnetonka, told Sports Headliners “it’s an incredible hire.” Plitzuweit and Cosgriff have known each other for years and the new Gopher coach called her friend Saturday morning. “She is really a bright, forward-thinking lady,” Cosgriff said.

In regard to experience, she is in contrast to Lindsay Whalen who as a first-time coach couldn’t make the transition from great player to building a winning program at her alma mater during a five-year trial. Coyle took a chance on Whalen and most everybody else in the state would have done the same with the former Gopher and Lynx legend.

Plitzuweit has 28 years of coaching experience, with 16 as a head coach. She has been the head coach of winning teams at (most recently) West Virginia, South Dakota, Northern Kentucky and Grand Valley State.

As a head coach she has 15 winning seasons including nine 20-win seasons and two 30-win years. Plitzuweit’s teams have participated in the postseason 15 of 16 seasons and been in the last four NCAA Tournaments. Her career coaching record is 356-141 (.721) and she is 201-66 (.752) in league play.

Her resume includes the Big Ten where she was associate head coach at Michigan. The Michigan Tech graduate and West Bend, Wisconsin native has recruited Minnesota over the years.”…I am…looking forward to reconnecting with local high school and club coaches. I can’t wait to get to work,” Plitzuweit said in a statement released by the Gophers.

Plitzuweit, 50, could be the right age to make Minnesota her last career stop and turn the Gophers into a special program. “I honestly think it’s her dream job,” said Cosgriff.

She reportedly earned $550,000 last season at West Virginia. Whalen, who stepped down as Gopher coach in early March, was to be paid $574,761 starting next month. Most recently she earned $547,391. Specific compensation hasn’t been announced for Plitzuweit but she will receive a six-year contract pending approval by the Board of Regents.

Plitzuweit is the 13^th head women’s basketball coach at Minnesota, all females. The Gophers will hold a news conference Monday at 12:30 p.m. to introduce their coach. It will be carried live on the Big Ten Network and the Gophers’ YouTube channel.

Worth Noting

Minnesota lost the Big Ten Tournament hockey championship game last night to Michigan, 4-3 , playing in an electric atmosphere at 3M Arena at Mariucci. The game sold out in less than 36 hours and was the team’s ninth home sellout of the season as fans clamored to see a game between the No. 1 nationally ranked Gophers and No. 4 Wolverines and featuring 26 NHL draft choices.

In a home two-game series against Michigan January 20-21, the Gophers had a total attendance of 20,755, the most fans for a weekend series in arena history. Minnesota has been a draw on the road, too, mostly playing in front of sellout crowds.

Saturday morning StubHub, the Gophers’ secondary ticket partner, was listing tickets ranging from $135 each to $666. The public is starved for a Minnesota winner and this Gopher team has a chance to win the school’s first national championship since 2002.

The foundation is built on both defense and goal scoring. Defenseman Brock Faber and goalie Justen Close are names that surface quickly when talking about shutting down opponents, while the nationally publicized line of Logan Cooley, Matthew Knies and Jimmy Snuggerud is talked about as among the best in school history. Cooley and Knies are among 10 finalists for the Hobey Baker Award, and one of them could win the honor of being named the nation’s best college hockey player, and the first Gopher to do that since Jordan Leopold in 2002.

Coach Bob Motzko has been true to program tradition in assembling a 26-man roster dominated by Minnesotans with 20 players from the state. But he’s kept up with the times bringing key personnel from beyond the border. Cooley is from Pittsburgh, Knies from Phoenix and Close from Saskatchewan.

If the Gophers qualify, Stillwater-based Creative Charters is offering a fan trip, April 6 to 9, to the Frozen Four in Tampa. The trip is part of a creative list of 2023 travel experiences planned by Steve and Dorothy Erban including what they’re billing as “the trip of a lifetime” to North Carolina in September.

The football Gophers play in Chapel Hill Saturday, September 16 against North Carolina and Heisman Trophy quarterback candidate Drake Maye. In addition to football entertainment, the goal of the September 13-17 trip is to “provide a true North Carolina experience.”

Travelers will visit the Charlotte Speedway and get an inside look at NASCAR racing. Not only that, but some Minnesotans will be able to ride in a high-speed Ford Mustang performance car driven by a professional driver. There will also be a visit to learn about the famous North Carolina furniture industry, opportunity to play golf and tour the historic North Carolina and Duke campuses.

Matt Weimann (left). Photo courtesy of University of St. Thomas.

Among the many prospects working out in front of professional scouts at Minnesota Pro Day last week were decorated players like Gophers All-Americans Mo Ibrahim and John Michael Schmitz. But there were also many players much more uncertain about their professional football futures including former St. Thomas center Matt Weimann.

The former Hill-Murray player told Sports Headliners his hope is to be signed as a free agent and gain an NFL tryout but he “would love to play anywhere.” In his mind the USFL or Canadian Football League could be options.

Weimann, about 6-3 and 300 plus-pounds, was All-Pioneer League last season. He has lost some weight and was pleased with his 28-inch vertical jump at the U Pro Day. He said his strength is as a run blocker and he is training to play guard and center at the next level, knowing versatility in skills is valuable.

Weimann raves about the coaching he received at St. Thomas including from head coach Glenn Caruso who he refers to as “phenomenal.” He said Caruso treats his players like family and that his leadership is unlike any he’s seen in coaching.

An All-District player in high school, Weimann didn’t receive attention from the Gophers. “The U didn’t recruit me at all. I tried to reach out. Definitely would have been interested in walking on, or at least looking and seeing what the program was about. But I never got any responses from any sort of recruiting from the U of M.”

Schmitz, one of college football’s premier centers last season, is expected to be drafted in the early rounds. Ibrahim, cornerback Terell Smith, safety Jordan Howden and quarterback Tanner Morgan are candidates for later rounds.

Cathy Gorlin & Marshall Tanick with Mark Wilf (center). Photo courtesy of Marshall Tanick.

Vikings co-owner Mark Wilf paid tribute to the late Bud Grant and spoke on other subjects Friday as the guest speaker at the Minnesota Breakfast gathering in Naples, Florida. Wilf also referenced a survey of NFL players that ranked the Vikings No. 1 among 32 teams in off the field satisfaction with the organization. He said the team will seek offensive linemen in the NFL Draft and through free agency to provide better pass protection and promised an improved defense in 2023.

Wilf also told breakfast attendees ownership rarely gets involved with decision making for the NFL Draft, except for concerns about player character. He added that “60 to 70” draft prospects are disqualified each year by the Vikings because of character issues.

Archives quote from Bud Grant about dancing: “Not only am I not good, I’ve never danced in my life. I always was very shy (as a youth) and I never learned to dance. I was too self-conscious and I was taller than most of the girls so I never learned how to dance—much to the chagrin of my wife.”

A former NFL executive talking anonymously about departed Vikings wide receiver Adam Thielen: “…I think Adam Thielen will find a good opportunity, perhaps with the Jets if Aaron Rodgers ends up there. Because they have a tight relationship.”

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Coach Ben Johnson’s Job Safe for Now

Posted on February 5, 2023November 5, 2023 by David Shama

Updated November 5, 2023

The Gophers have been playing Big Ten basketball for over 115 years. A last place finish this winter in the Big Ten standings (all but certain) will be the program’s second straight in the basement.

That’s never happened before but the 2023 Gophers are historically bad. They have one conference win after last night’s embarrassing 81-46 loss to Maryland—the largest margin of defeat ever for a Minnesota Big Ten home game.

No Gopher team since World War II has won only one conference game. Minnesota’s record is 7-15 overall, 1-11 in league games and the Gophers are stumbling through a seven game Big Ten losing streak.

There are eight games remaining on the regular season schedule and the Gophers are expected to lose them all. They might not but Minnesota faces an ambitious challenge trying to match last season’s dismal 4-16 conference record.

The results of head coach Ben Johnson’s first two seasons leading the program are painful and they substantiate concerns of critics about his hire as a former college assistant with no experience leading a program. But let’s be clear: he is going to be the Gopher head coach for the foreseeable future.

How long? If Johnson directs the program into a competitive position where the Gophers are contending annually for upper-level positioning in the standings, he will be a hero and working in Dinkytown indefinitely. But if the program can’t come out of the abyss by next winter, then athletic director Mark Coyle could be thinking of a change, or one additional trial season for the 42-year-old Minneapolis native.

It’s delusional to think Johnson will be terminated after this season. Also, Coyle doesn’t do knee-jerk reactions with coaches he hires. Patience with men’s basketball will be the mantra for a while. This comes in an environment where interest in the program has reached apathy status and program revenues are light years from their potential in an athletic department that counts on basketball to be a cash cow to help the budgets of other sports.

Johnson’s supporters argue he has a difficult task with a program rebuild. Previous coach Richard Pitino was fired after the 2020-2021 season, with his last team producing a 6-14 Big Ten record. Only once in eight seasons did Pitino win more than half of his conference games.

Johnson didn’t want to or couldn’t retain key leftover personnel in center Liam Robbins, and guards Marcus Carr and Gabe Kalscheur. Collectively, their talent surpasses any Johnson and staff have brought to town so far.

In the college sports transfer portal era, there is more potential than ever to successfully remake a roster in a hurry. Johnson scored with transfers Jamison Battle and Payton Willis in 2021, and with Dawson Garcia last offseason, but overall has come up short in filling needs.

So far players coming in from high school haven’t been difference makers. The present freshmen class is the first one Johnson and his assistants had a head start in recruiting. The first-year group is an athletic bunch but on the court they lack cohesiveness, judgment and scoring skills.

Forward-center Pharrel Payne is 6-foot-9, the other three freshmen are 6-4 to 6-7 and are also similar in offensive abilities as shown so far. Braeden Carrington, Jaden Henley and Joshua Ola-Joseph look athletic driving to the basket but don’t convert consistently and show minimal outside shooting accuracy.

The roster not only lacks talent and experience, but the pieces don’t complement one another. The Gophers don’t excel at any aspect of play. Offense, defense, rebounding and playmaking are all subpar. Even the free throw shooting is atrocious, with Minnesota making 60.9 percent of attempts and ranking No. 352 in the nation.

It’s dicey to question the effort of players but it’s easier to comment on focus and mental lapses. In last night’s debacle the Gophers made one of their 16 turnovers when they errored (against no pressure) inbounding the basketball after a made Maryland basket. In another game, a Gopher player was backdoored three times for scores in less than 10 minutes of playing time.

As limited as the personnel is, the Gophers should be playing better than a team that has consecutive losses twice by 35 points and once by 20. Questions can be asked about the impact of the coaching regarding ball movement, cuts to the basket, creating open shots, second chance points, offensive and defensive rebounding, minimizing turnovers, forcing turnovers, covering open spaces in the zone defense, defensive switches, lack of defensive intensity and team confidence.

Injuries have sidelined two Gophers, forwards Isaiah Ihnen and Parker Fox, for two consecutive seasons. Difficult to know what difference their presence would have made. Ihnen has averaged 3.1 points in two previous seasons. Fox has yet to play Division I basketball after a high scoring Division II career.

As of late both Carrington and Dawson haven’t played because of injuries. Dawson’s absence, as the team’s leading scorer and rebounder, is significant but he could play as soon as Tuesday night at Illinois. With Dawson in the lineup the Gophers defeated Ohio State and had three league losses by a combined nine points.

For the more optimistic Gophers fans, it’s wait for next year mode. That’s when hyped center Dennis Evans and shooting guard Cameron Christie arrive. Evans, perhaps the best prep center in the country, will help the interior defense a lot and Christie, a prep sharpshooter, is a welcome addition to a team that can’t shoot straight (41.4 percent on field goals, ranking No. 315 nationally).

But like they say on Wall Street, there are no guarantees for the future. In addition to Evans and Christie, the Gophers need to add more potentially effective players. They also need to retain the ones they have, including Battle, Garcia and the current freshmen.

It’s been suggested the Gophers can’t win for awhile because the program is too low. But it only takes a couple of the right players and the right coaching to throw the switch, though. Quick turnarounds happen every year in college basketball.

With Gophers fans wondering if this is the historically worst of Gopher basketball, positive changes can’t come soon enough.

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Don’t Bet on Cook’s Future with Vikes

Posted on February 3, 2023February 3, 2023 by David Shama

Dalvin Cook has rushed for over 1,000 yards each of the last four seasons, but the 27-year-old may have played his last game for the Vikings as the club figures out how to manage the payroll. For 2023 the franchise is currently projected to be more than $24 million over the salary cap as allowed by the NFL.

A league insider told Sports Headliners he would move on from the player and what he said was an $11.8 million salary cap hit in 2022, and save $8 million in 2023. Cook is one of the more expensive running backs in the NFL and the source calls him a “luxury” that the team can no longer afford.

Cook, who has often been sidelined with injuries, has played a lot of football during his six-year pro career. He may no longer be the resource he once was. Last season he played in four more games than the year prior, but he had only 15 more carries and 14 more total rushing yards. His yards per carry of 4.4 was the lowest of his career.

Dalvin Cook photo courtesy of Minnesota Vikings

The importance of running backs for the more successful NFL teams isn’t what it used to be. Some clubs aren’t paying high salaries to running backs including the 2023 Super Bowl Chiefs who start a seventh-round rookie. The Vikings could replace Cook with a running back by committee approach led by veteran Alexander Mattison who is three years younger.

Vikings’ all-world receiver Justin Jefferson, now approaching his fourth season, has emerged as the bell cow on offense, replacing Cook. “He’s not the guy anymore on offense,” said the source. “It’s Jefferson, and they gotta extend Jefferson. Get a new deal for him.”

The source, who prominently worked in NFL front offices in the past and remains knowledgeable about the league, isn’t optimistic the Vikings could generate trade interest in Cook. “If you could get a third (round pick) or something for Dalvin, that would be great but I don’t think they’re going to get it, and I think they’ll end up releasing him.”

The authority, speaking in an interview this morning on condition of anonymity, sees the Vikings also moving on from veteran linebacker Jordan Hicks as they figure out the salary cap that will be set at almost $225 million per team for 2023. They could also be intent on downsizing deals with wide receiver Adam Thielen and safety Harrison Smith.

Jefferson is likely to become the NFL’s best paid wide receiver, with his cap hit perhaps reduced by receiving a large signing bonus. The Vikings are also likely to extend quarterback Kirk Cousins who in 2023 will be in the last year of his deal expected to carry a salary cap hit of about $36 million.

If Cousins isn’t offered a one-year extension, it won’t send a positive message to the 34-year-old or the team. Last season he led the offense to eight comeback victories in Minnesota’s 13-win season.

The source quoted above doesn’t buy into fan interest for sending Cousins to the 49ers for either of two inexperienced quarterbacks (Trey Lance or Brock Purdy), plus perhaps a draft choice. “I think it would weaken the Vikings because I don’t think those guys at this stage of their careers are nearly as good as Kirk,” he said.

It’s believed that by extending Cousins, the Vikings could save about $15 million with the salary cap for 2023. That’s significant for a franchise looking for creative ways to stay within the cap.

The source expects either Ejiro Evero from the Broncos or Brian Flores from the Steelers to be the new defensive coordinator. He thinks head coach Kevin O’Connell wants to continue the 3-4 defensive scheme used by fired coordinator Ed Donatell but will be anticipating more blitzing and pressure on opposing quarterbacks. Schemes, of course, can be an asset but there is also consensus the Vikings need to upgrade their defensive personnel.

That includes a new deal to keep defensive lineman Dalvin Tomlinson and figuring out linebacker Za’Darius Smith. Smith was an elite sacks and tackles for loss performer for the first part of the season, but a knee issue changed his productivity.

Worth Noting

Gophers All-American center John Michael Schmitz plays in the 74^th Senior Bowl Saturday and will draw evaluation from NFL teams including the Vikings. Garrett Bradbury, the Vikings’ center who missed several games last year with back problems, is a 2023 unrestricted free agent. The NFL Network will televise the Senior Bowl from Mobile, Alabama, with game time at 1:30 p.m. central.

Evan Hull, the former Maple Grove all-state running back, will also play in the Senior Bowl after choosing to leave Northwestern. As a redshirt junior last fall he rushed for 913 yards on a 1-11 Northwestern team.

In the Rivals national listing of the top 150 prep basketball prospects for the class of 2023, Gopher signee Cameron Christie from Rolling Hills, Illinois is ranked No. 140, while another shooting guard, Taison Chatman from Totino-Grace, is at No. 40. Chatman is a verbal commit to Ohio State.

The Gophers’ other 2023 signee, Dennis Evans, the 7-foot-1 center from Riverside, California, is ranked No. 11 and only one prep center is rated higher.

Minneapolis native Chet Holmgren, the No. 2 overall pick in the 2022 NBA Draft, was featured recently in a New York Times story. He is missing his rookie season while rehabbing from offseason foot injury. Author David Gardner reported Thunder coach Mark Daigneault gave Holmgren a book from a Holocaust survivor to help him cope.

Michael Fulmer, who the Twins acquired last season from the Tigers, remains an unsigned free agent after posting a 3.39 ERA with the two teams in 2022. The right-handed reliever could fill a need for the 2023 Twins but be aware left-handed hitters hit .337 against him last season while he held right-handed batters to a .188 average, per stats from Baseballreference.com.

Former Minnesota slugger Miguel Sano, released by the Twins last year, seems like a potential fit in Japanese baseball but is still hoping to catch the interest of an MLB team.

Cory Provus, Twins radio play-by-play voice who stays busy in the baseball offseason working football and basketball games for the Big Ten Network, is the latest guest on the Behind the Game public access TV program with co-hosts Patrick Klinger and Bill Robertson. The Chicago native, who has been with the Twins since 2012, is a graduate of the renowned S.I. Newhouse School of Public Communications at Syracuse University. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0C10RLkOnMQ

Jack Larson, the longtime GM at Xcel Energy Center, is no longer in that role, with Jim Ibister the interim replacement.

I am speaking to the CORES lunch group Thursday, March 9 at the Bloomington Event Center. Organizer Jim Dotseth will be sending out a meeting notification to past CORES attendees later in the month. Reservations can be made by emailing dotsethj@comcast.net. CORES is an acronym for coaches, officials, reporters, educators and sports fans.

Randy Shaver, the KARE-11 news anchor and former sportscaster with the station, has been tireless in efforts to encourage funding for cancer research including through high school football games (Tackle Cancer). His annual Rush to the Cure event will be June 4 and 5. https://randyshavercancerfund.org/events/rush-creek-golf-classic-gala/

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