RICHARD PITINO – Page 35 – David Shama's Minnesota Sports Headliners

GM, Coach Bios Give Vikes Draft Clues

Posted on May 2, 2014May 2, 2014 by David Shama

Anyone who claims to know for certain who the Vikings will draft first next week is hallucinating.

The Vikings have eight picks in the NFL Draft next Thursday, Friday and Saturday including the No. 8 choice in the first round. The team’s personnel decision makers have extensive information on prospects and know who they prefer and what their needs are going into next week’s seven round draft.

But locked and loaded on who to choose first? No chance.

Look at last year’s draft when general manager Rick Spielman made trades that gave his franchise three first round picks, not one. In 2012 Spielman maneuvered to secure two choices in the first round and extra picks in later rounds.

Spielman’s past willingness to make trades and shuffle his team’s draft order is a clue about what might happen next week. So, too, is the background of new head coach Mike Zimmer who made his reputation in the NFL as defensive coordinator of the Bengals. He will take his best shot at upgrading Minnesota’s defense as fast as possible. That could mean a preference in this draft for aggressive and rangy defensive players.

While the Zimmer file provides some draft clues, remember the offense looks like it will be at least partially entrusted to new coordinator Norv Turner. A former head coach and veteran quarterback authority, Turner’s views on offensive personnel figure to weigh heavily in the draft.

Opinions about the potential of the top quarterbacks are varied and controversial but if Turner is enamored with one or two prospects that could mean the Vikings stay at No. 8 in the first round, or even try to move up in the draft. Chris Burke’s mock draft in this week’s Sports Illustrated has the Vikings choosing Central Florida quarterback Blake Bortles. At 6-foot-5 with a strong and accurate arm, Bortles not only has classic NFL quarterback attributes, but his intelligence also seems like a good fit for Turner’s complex offense.

Spielman has scored in the past with some quality players in the draft including tight end Kyle Rudolph and wide receiver-kickoff returner Cordarrelle Patterson but his reputation with fans is tarnished because Christian Ponder, his No. 12 choice in 2011, hasn’t developed into a franchise quarterback. But because Spielman was burned with Ponder doesn’t mean the Vikings won’t risk another high draft choice on a quarterback.

It’s possible the Vikings could trade up in the draft to find their quarterback, or fill a linebacker spot with highly regarded Khalil Mack from Buffalo. To do that the Vikings might trade with the Rams who have the No. 2 pick. The Vikings could offer extra lower round draft choices to the Rams, plus their No. 8 first round spot.

Probably more likely, though, is a move by the Vikings to boost their total number of picks from eight to 10 or more for what is considered a draft deep in talent. The Vikings need help at so many positions, particularly on defense, that increasing the number of draft choices makes sense. Then, too, Zimmer is expected to work effectively with players who are regarded as projects and could be lower round selections.

The 49ers, a team in need of a personnel adjustment or two to perhaps return to the Super Bowl, might be a trade partner for Minnesota. The 49ers have the No. 30 pick in the first round but they have 11 total draft choices. Burke predicts the 49ers will take Ohio State cornerback Bradley Roby at No. 30 but wrote the 49ers have the “ammo for a leap up the board.”

The 49ers have six picks in the top 100 while the Vikings own four. Those are attractive numbers for both franchises. The stuff of trades but until draft day comes nobody knows for certain what’s next including those who are paid to make the moves.

Worth Noting

Burke’s mock draft for Sports Illustrated has defensive end Jadevon Clowney from South Carolina going No. 1 overall to the Texans. He predicts Texas A&M’s Johnny Manziel will be the first quarterback drafted at No. 4 by the Browns.

Here’s what Burke forecasts for Vikings NFC North rivals in the first round: Lions at No. 10 choose UCLA linebacker Anthony Barr; Bears, No. 14, pick Pittsburgh defensive tackle Aaron Donald; Packers, No. 21, take Ohio State linebacker Ryan Shazier.

Burke’s second round includes the Vikings choosing BYU linebacker Kyle Van Noy at No. 40.

Gerry DiNardo said on the Big Ten TV Network Monday night Iowa and Nebraska are the teams most likely to win the Big Ten Conference’s new West Division next fall. His choices in the East are Michigan State and Ohio State.

DiNardo said the Gophers, a member of the West, need to improve their offense. In eight Big Ten games last season Minnesota was 8^th in rushing, 12^th in passing and 10^th in scoring.

The Wild, who open a second round Stanley Cup playoff series tonight in Chicago against the Blackhawks, will have tickets for Minnesota’s home games going on sale tomorrow beginning at 10 a.m. at Xcel Energy Center and Ticketmaster. Single game tickets range in price from $49 to $146.

It will be interesting to follow the local TV ratings in the series. Wednesday night’s game seven first round finale between the Wild and Avalanche was the highest-rated telecast ever in Fox Sports North history. The telecast had a 16.4 household rating in the Minneapolis–St. Paul area, according to Nielsen Media Research. The previous record, a 15.3 rating, was in August of 2010 for a Twins-White Sox game.

In the Minneapolis–St. Paul market, 17,280 households represent one rating point. That means over 283,390 households tuned in Wednesday night. The telecast received a 32 share, signifying 32 percent of the viewing audience in the Twins Cities area watched the game. During overtime the telecast reached its peak viewing audience with a 18.3 rating and 49 share, indicating nearly half of Twin Cities households were tuned in.

Coach Richard Pitino’s 2014 six-man recruiting class includes one Minnesota native, shooting guard Zach Lofton who attended Columbia Heights High School and is transferring to the Gophers from Illinois State. Lofton will sit out next season as a transfer and junior forward Joey King from Eagan will be the only scholarship Minnesotan on the roster.

Pitino’s 2015 recruiting class could be led by two Minnesotans, DeLaSalle point guard Jarvis Johnson and Grand Rapids forward Alex Illikainen. Both have been ranked as top 100 recruits by Rivals.com but neither has made a college commitment.

New Gophers women’s basketball coach Marlene Stollings is working on completing her staff.

The Twins lost a doubleheader with the Dodgers yesterday as part of a three game interleague series. The Dodgers won all three games in the series including the extra innings finale last night, the longest in Target Field history at 5 hours, 11 minutes.

Aaron Hicks, who has seen his playing time reduced recently, started in center field in both games. He was hitless and his average for the season dropped to .178. Last year as a rookie he batted .192. Hicks left the second game after suffering concussion-like symptoms. If healthy, and not on the injured list, it seems probable that when Twins outfielders Josh Willingham and Oswaldo Arcia return from injuries Hicks will be demoted to Triple-A Rochester.

The National League Dodgers have a history here. The Dodgers not only played the Twins in the 1965 World Series but during the 1950s had their American Association farm team in St. Paul. The Dodgers moved from Brooklyn to Los Angeles in 1958 but before that tried to convince the New York borough to build major league baseball’s first domed stadium. The New York Giants, who operated the Minneapolis Millers farm team here, joined the Dodgers in California in 1958 by moving to San Francisco. Before deciding on California the Giants seriously considered moving to Minneapolis.

KARE TV’s Randy Shaver will speak at the Thursday, May 8 CORES luncheon at the Knights of Columbus Hall in Bloomington. Shaver, who is well known for his work in raising money for cancer research and patient aid, was a sportscaster at the station for almost 30 years before becoming a weeknight news anchor. Reservations for the lunch and program should be made by next Monday or sooner. Contact Jim Dotseth, dotsethj@comcast.net. CORES is an acronym for coaches, officials, reporters, educators and sports fans.

The Gustavus Adolphus men’s tennis team won the MIAC regular season championship for the 26th consecutive season. This year’s title is the 47th for the program since 1940 and the fifth for head coach Tommy Valentini since taking over the program in the 2009-10 season. Within their run of 26 straight league titles, the Gusties won 242 consecutive MIAC matches.

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Mike Yeo, Wild Notch Down the Heat

Posted on April 23, 2014April 23, 2014 by David Shama

Mike Yeo and his players energized their supporters with an overtime win on Monday night at Xcel Energy Center against the Avalanche. Tomorrow evening Minnesota can tie the series at 2-2 with another win at home.

The opener last week in Colorado was an opportunity to not only earn a 1-0 lead in the best of seven series but also put pressure on a young Avs team featuring flashy 18-year-old forward Nathan MacKinnon and 21-year-old captain Gabriel Landeskog. Instead, the Wild lost a more than winnable 5-4 overtime game, and then followed up with a disappointing performance and 4-2 loss in game two.

Monday night’s win did more than make the series 2-1 in favor of the Avs. The victory made it possible to place more pressure on the youthful Avs (seven players born in 1991 or later). Sending the series back to Colorado tied at 2-2 will mean momentum for Minnesota and maybe an Avalanche ready to fall.

That’s what the Wild needs for a franchise that has competed in the Stanley Cup Playoffs just five times and advanced beyond the opening round once. Moving on to the second round of the playoffs may be needed for Yeo, the team’s third year coach, to save his job. The talk about his uncertain status just doesn’t go away.

Yeo was reportedly in jeopardy during the season but the team played effectively enough to make the playoffs for a second consecutive season. He guided a team that had to use five different goalies this season, no minimal assignment for any coach. “It’s amazing they’ve done as well as they have,” a supportive source close to the team said on Monday night.

Still, Yeo was faulted by another source who criticized the coach for sometimes staying with a player longer than he should. Yeo is known as a player’s coach but the argument is loyalty can sometimes go too far.

A coach can make mistakes but even his best strategies, teaching lessons and locker room psychology can only accomplish so much. Yeo’s predecessor, Todd Richards, was fired for not winning enough games but now he’s earning praise in Columbus where the Blue Jackets are making a rare playoff appearance and finding some success.

The Wild, who played with new defensive energy on Monday night, struggle with goal scoring and penalty killing. They have just seven goals in the first three games with the Avs. On Monday evening it took 46 shots on Colorado goalie Semyon Varlamov before the Wild scored a goal on Mikael Granlund’s big overtime shot.

A press box observer watched the game and thought about how the Wild have to become better offensively next season. Job one in the offseason could be signing former Gopher Thomas Vanek who plays for Montreal. He makes his home in the Twin Cities east metro, not all that many miles from the Xcel Energy Center.

But there will be time later for sportswriters and perhaps the Wild to think about Vanek, a potential 30 goal scorer and unrestricted free agent this offseason. For tomorrow night at least the Wild will take just one goal if goalie Darcy Kuemper can again shutout the Avs.

Worth Noting

StubHub website offers tickets in a price range of $94.40 to $501.01 for tomorrow night’s Wild-Avs game at Xcel Energy Center.

Pioneer Press scoop sports columnist Charley Walters retires from full-time work at the end of May but will continue with the newspaper as a part-time employee writing Sunday columns only.

When the Gophers football team plays at TCU on September 13, they could be facing quarterback Matt Joeckel. He was Johnny Manziel’s backup at Texas A&M last season but because he has his undergraduate degree he can transfer to TCU as a senior and have one year of eligibility.

The Minnesota Fellowship of Christian Athletes will present Joe Ehrmann’s “InSideOut Coaching Seminar” on Sunday in the DQ Room at TCF Bank Stadium. He is a former defensive lineman and captain for the Baltimore Colts. He also has career experiences as a football coach, author, national speaker and minister.

On Sunday Ehrmann will address several hundred Minnesota coaches. His message will be about the powerful impact coaches have on players and the opportunity to exert that influence with positive, values-based methods.

Seminar sponsors are Manchester Companies, MKS and TCF Bank. More information about the event is available from Minnesotafca.org.

Gophers basketball coach Richard Pitino lists the following “unofficial” award winners for last season on his Gophersports.com blog: Team MVP, DeAndre Mathieu; Most Improved: Mo Walker; Best Defender, Austin Hollins; Hardest Worker, Austin Hollins; Best Attitude, Maverick Ahanmisi; Sacrifice Award, Oto Osenieks; Best Moment, Austin Hollins 3-pointer vs. SMU in the NIT Championship game.

Last season was Pitino’s first as Gophers coach. He wrote on the blog “his favorite moment” was walking up the stairs to the court at Williams Arena. “It gives me goosebumps every time.”

Pitino’s contract stipulates his base salary will be reviewed each year, and annually on May 1 he is to be awarded an increase of no less than five percent. His current salary is $500,000. He also earns supplemental compensation of $700,000 for various activities including endorsements, fundraising and media work. Speculation is Pitino may receive a $300,000 salary increase.

Timberwolves owner Glen Taylor told Sports Headliners recently that if he had known Kevin Love would become the player he is, the All-Star forward probably would have been given a five-year contract in 2012. Instead, Love signed a four-year deal allowing him to become a unrestricted free agent after next season.

“He can still get the money one way or another (on his next contract),” Taylor said. “He doesn’t lose anything from that by coming back and renegotiating with us. He can get all of his money. We’re the one (franchise) that can pay him the most.”

Here’s a suggestion that likely would improve the Wolves next season, particularly defensively. Make Gorgui Dieng the starting center and send Nikola Pekovic to the bench. Let the two players divide minutes each game with Pekovic, a skilled low post offensive scorer, filling a valuable “sixth man” role off the bench. The move might help the frequently injured Pekovic stay healthy and play in more games.

As a rookie last season, despite minimal playing time, Dieng became a team leader in rebounds and blocked shots. He was the NBA’s Rookie of the Month in March when his outstanding games included 22 points and 21 rebounds against the Rockets.

The Wolves have four selections in the NBA Draft on June 26. Based on their 40-42 regular season record, the Wolves currently have the No. 13 selection in the first round with a 0.6% chance of attaining the first overall pick. The final order of this year’s draft will be determined at the NBA Draft Lottery on May 20.

The Wolves will also have three second-round picks at No. 40, 44 and 53.

Wayne Kostroski, the local restaurant owner who co-founded Taste of the NFL, has a passion for music. He and other members of the CIRCUS band are reuniting for one night this Saturday at the Medina Entertainment Center for a show dedicated to 1970s music. More at MedinaEntertainment.com.

Taste of the NFL, a Twin Cities-based non-profit organization dedicated to reducing hunger in America, has raised over $15 million for local and national food banks. Proceeds for the concert on Saturday benefit Water for People, an international organization dedicated to improving and preserving drinking water.

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Rick Pitino Gushes about Son’s Future

Posted on April 4, 2014April 4, 2014 by David Shama

Rick Pitino watched his son Richard Pitino coach the Gophers to the NIT championship last night, defeating SMU 65-63 in New York. The older Pitino was feeling fatherly pride when interviewed after the game on 1500 ESPN.

In his first year coaching the Gophers and second season as a college head coach, Richard is earning praise at age 31. Dad said the NIT accomplishment by his son might be the “proudest moment” of his life and that apparently includes Rick coaching national championship teams at Kentucky and Louisville.

Then the Louisville head coach talked about how NIT champions frequently make deep runs in the NCAA Tournament the year after winning in New York. “Not that there is pressure on my son but I just think it’s an awesome segue into a very special career,” he said on the radio.

To continue building on his success, Pitino will have to soon lead the Gophers to the NCAA Tournament. In 2012 the Gophers advanced to the NIT Finals where they lost to Stanford and the following season earned an invitation to the NCAA Tournament. Will they receive an NCAA invite in 2015?

If you can find betting odds in Las Vegas, jump hard on Minnesota being in the “Big Dance” next year.

The Gophers will have four starters returning from their NIT title team. Three of the four returnees, guards Andre Hollins and DeAndre Mathieu, and center Mo Walker, will be seniors. The fourth regular is forward Joey King, a junior next season. Elliott Eliason, who was the starting center until an ankle injury reduced his minutes during the NIT games in New York, will also be a senior next season.

There are few absolutes in life—including college basketball—but having a senior-dominated starting lineup is a reason for optimism about the Gophers. The experience of the five players mentioned could translate into minimal mistakes and big plays like last night when senior guard Austin Hollins led the team with 19 points and four steals.

Eliason, King, Andre Hollins, Mathieu and Walker have a total of 13 seasons of Division I experience. Other leading players returning are redshirt freshman forward Charles Buggs and freshman guard Daquein McNeil. Those seven players not only are familiar with the demands of college basketball but now have learned the team system under Pitino who took over the Gophers’ program last spring.

Guards Andre Hollins and Mathieu are the team’s best returning players and that’s another reason to slap a smiley face on Goldy Gopher. There is a decades-old truism about successful teams in college basketball that goes like this: “You win with good guards.”

Hollins, a shooting guard, and Mathieu, a point guard, were selected as Big Ten Conference Honorable Mention players after last season by the media. In the NIT win last night Hollins was second in scoring with 14 points while Mathieu at times was simply the best player on the floor, scoring 13 points while darting around the court and producing a team high seven assists.

Pitino’s first-year coaching has been impressive and prompts positive anticipation about the future. His team came up with an 8-10 Big Ten record and Minnesota earned consideration for an NCAA Tournament invitation. The Gophers won five games in the NIT while finishing with an overall 25-13 record.

The total “balance sheet” for 2013-2014 left a lot of observers, including this one, feeling the Gophers overachieved. Previous coach Tubby Smith didn’t leave a lot of talent for Pitino. Smith’s roster for his last team was similar to what Pitino worked with except Trevor Mbakwe and Rodney Williams, the team’s best front court players, were seniors in 2012-2013.

Without Mbakwe and Williams, the Gophers lacked inside scoring. Their rebounding and shot blocking were missed, too. Eliason and Walker, both about 6-foot-11, improved their play to sometimes make up for the absence of Mbakwe and Williams but those two were shorter, more mobile players and their athleticism left a void in Minnesota’s talent pool.

Pitino and staff improved both the individual and team skills of the Gophers. Eliason, although inconsistent, turned into one of the Big Ten’s leading rebounders and shot blockers. Walker lost weight, reshaped his body and learned low post moves that turned him into a scoring threat near the basket.

Other Gophers improved, too, including upper classman Oto Osenieks who in his early years at Minnesota looked too timid to become a contributor. Osenieks gained enough skill and confidence to win the starting power forward position, a job he kept until a troublesome knee forced him to the bench and he was replaced by King.

With Smith coaching it often seemed like the Gophers were underachieving with the talent available. The Gophers disappointed in the Big Ten, losing more games than they won. At times players stood around on offense looking as confused as the bewildered fans watching.

Players didn’t improve from one season to the next. That was frustrating and so too was watching some of the better players transfer to other schools. And while recruiting was sometimes effective, the coaching staff struggled to make the point guard position a strength.

Pitino and staff will have to prove they can recruit if Minnesota is to some day challenge for Big Ten titles. After being hired last spring the coaches had minimal time to sign up quality recruits but did score big by finding Mathieu, a junior college transfer. The first fair test comes next fall. That’s when several new players arrive representing a group the Minnesota coaches had more months to attract.

Three players committed during the early signing period last fall and Pitino has scholarship inventory to sign a couple more this spring. Newcomers will need to contribute if the Gophers are to take a next step in 2014-2015, with help particularly needed at the small and power forward positions, plus a deeper and more talented bench.

But there’s plenty of time to see how that develops. For now the Gophers have already taken a step in the right direction.

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