Timberwolves – Page 3 – David Shama's Minnesota Sports Headliners

Vikings Near ’98 & ’09 Fast Starts

Posted on October 30, 2022October 30, 2022 by David Shama

The Vikings are 6-1 after today’s 34-26 win over the Cardinals. With a win next Sunday over the Commanders, they can match the 7-1 starts of the 1998 and 2009 teams that are among the best in franchise history.

Those two teams went on to 15-1 and 12-4 regular season records respectively. Both flirted with Super Bowl trips before losing in NFC title games.

No one should put the 2022 Vikings in that company yet but the latest edition of the Purple has been impressive so far this season. They’ve managed to win five straight often making timely plays in close games (winning twice by eight points, and three, four and seven).

That was true today when Za’Darius Smith and Harrison Phillips put together consecutive sacks of Cardinals’ QB Kyler Murray in the closing seconds of the game. Smith had three sacks on the day, a fitting achievement on a day when sack master Jared Allen of the Vikings was inducted into the team’s Ring of Honor.

The raucous crowd at U.S. Bank Stadium was noisy today, even by their ear-pounding standards. This town loves a winner and the citizenry is passionate about the local NFL team above all others. Fans were giddy about the possibility of seeing the Vikings remain among the NFL elite today.

“You can’t say enough about our fans today, the noise they brought,” Vikings QB Kirk Cousins said on KFAN after the game. “From the first half to the last it’s just a tremendous environment. It’s a privilege to get to play here.”

Cousins completed 24 passes today and moved to 3,000 career completions. He is the 31^st QB in NFL history to reach 3,000 completions. He has also thrown a touchdown pass in 37 consecutive games.

The Cardinals’ set their defense to stop the Vikings outside offense so Minnesota took advantage rushing inside for many of their 173 yards. Dalvin Cook ran for 111 yards, approaching his total in last year’s loss to Arizona when he had 131. Cousins even ran for 22 yards including a rare touchdown run of 17 to score Minnesota’s first touchdown.

Cousins and the Vikings, though, have struggled this season against blitzes. The Cardinals used one to force a Cousins fumble in the third quarter that set up a touchdown drive narrowing the score to 28-23.

As usual, though, the Vikings won with contributions from the offense, defense, special teams and the crowd (4-0 record at home). The Vikings converted three Arizona turnovers into 13 points in the second half. Typical of seizing opportunities by this team.

Worth Noting

Reserve quarterback Nick Mullens recently praising the communications between the coaching staff and players: “If you can communicate, you can execute. That’s been a great trait for us here.”

Mullens said head coach Kevin O’Connell and his staff have created a player-friendly environment that includes expectations and boundaries. “The players are very aware of the standard that the coaches and ourselves hold for each other,” Mullens said. “Upholding that standard each week is what we strive for. And we’ve done a good job and look forward to just keep earning the right to do that.”

For a home game like today that started at noon Vikings will arrive at the stadium about 9:30 a.m. Veteran safety Harrison Smith will use the hot tub to warm up his 33-year-old body and doesn’t go out on the field much prior to kickoff. “Just try to get the body warm and loose. Nothing crazy,” he recently told Sports Headliners.

Smith said he doesn’t sleep well after games and sometimes tries to catch up on rest Monday when he’s also doing an assessment about his body. He will get a massage on Mondays or Tuesdays. Later in the week there will be more practice and preparation for the upcoming game.

“I’ve played golf a few times on Tuesdays (this year),” Smith said. “It’s a good excuse to get some vitamin D if the sun is out. If I am hurt, though, I don’t play.”

Vikings kicker Greg Joseph, 28, talking last week about his future in football and hoping to keep playing well into his 30s: “Oh, I feel like I’m only gonna get better and better and stronger and stronger, which is exciting. I keep trying to reset my ceiling every year. So yeah, just excited. …”

Plans after football? “Whatever God has in store for me,” Joseph said.

Axios Sports points out that dating back to last Thursday and going through November 22 “there will be either FBS college football or NFL every single day.”

St. Paul native Pat Eilers, who played safety for the Vikings and Notre Dame, has made (along with wife Jana) a $5 million donation to his alma mater to support the director of sports performance position. The Eilers have provided previous gifts to Notre Dame and their children have attended school there.

It seems like a roll of the dice as to what kind of season starting Wild goalie Marc–Andre Fleury can have at age 38. Coach Dean Evason and GM Bill Guerin must be monitoring his performance and calculating how to handle the goalie roster.

Fleury’s 38^th birthday is November 28, the same age that goalie Gump Worsley was a member of the Stanley Cup Canadiens decades ago. Worsley won another Cup with the Canadiens in 1969 at age 39 (almost 40) and is the oldest NHL goaltender to have that distinction. Worsley later played for the North Stars and retired at age 44.

Retired Twins executive Terry Ryan, who was with the Phillies after leaving the Twins, is living in Eagan.

It was 35 years ago last Tuesday the Twins defeated the Cardinals in Game Seven of the 1987 World Series in Minneapolis. Wheaties boxes celebrating the World Series championship are available for sale on Ebay.

The Timberwolves sold $5 upper level tickets for home games last week against the Spurs.

Timberwolves limited partner Alex Rodriguez has purchased a home in Minnesota.

Stillwater-based Creative Charters is offering a same day trip to the Minnesota-Nebraska football game Saturday in Lincoln and has space available on the plane. Kickoff is 11 a.m.

St. Thomas football coach Glenn Caruso speaks to the CORES lunch group November 10 at the Bloomington Event Center. He is a six-time National Coach of the Year and is leading the Tommies in their second season of Division I competition where they top the Pioneer League at 5-0. CORES is open to the public but reservations must be made by November 7. More information about CORES is available by contacting Jim Dotseth, dotsethj@comcast.net. CORES is an acronym for coaches, officials, reporters, educators and sports fans.

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Injuries: Savvy & Luck Help Vikings?

Posted on October 25, 2022 by David Shama

Coming out of the bye-week, the question in Viking-crazed Minnesota is whether the Purple can sustain their hot start to the season.

Kevin O’Connell photo courtesy of Minnesota Vikings

The Vikings, 5-1, are likely to continue playing winning football but with 11 games remaining on the schedule it might not be realistic to expect they will dodge key injuries so successfully while seeing their opponents troubled by them. Maybe Kevin O’Connell, who has made impressive adjustments to the offense, called winning plays and hired a solid staff of assistants, has brought along not only coaching skills but also the luck of the Irish.

Safety Harrison Smith is the only starter to miss a game so far. Outside linebacker D.J. Wonnum, a sack specialist and key reserve, missed a game because of illness. Weekly looks at Minnesota’s list of injured or ill players has frequently been minimal compared with other NFL clubs. Minnesota’s practice report on players whose game status was in question, or ruled out, has typically listed six or so names.

Smith missed the Lions game September 25 but returned the next Sunday for the London match up with the Saints. Wonnum didn’t play against the Dolphins October 16. Star running back Dalvin Cook, who injured his shoulder in the Lions game, was in doubt for London but did start and play in the October 2 international game.

Not so fortunate in England were the Saints who were missing starting quarterback Jameis Winston and former All-Pro RB Alvin Kamara. In the Vikings’ last game before the bye, October 16 in Miami, they played a Dolphins team without its starting quarterback, Tua Tagovailoa. Then early in the game backup QB Skylar Thompson was sidelined with an injury. Tyreek Hill, on the short list of the NFL’s best wide receivers, played for Miami despite an injured foot.

Minnesota’s good fortune goes back to the September 9 opener against the Packers who went through a troubled offseason and training camp trying to figure out their receivers corps. Veteran Allen Lazard, a QB Aaron Rodgers favorite, seemed the best of the group after star WR Davante Adams left for free agency and a spot with the Raiders during the offseason, but Lazard was injured and couldn’t play in Minneapolis. Injured David Bakhtiari, among the best offensive tackles in the pros, was also unavailable to Green Bay.

Judging by results so far, the Viking strength and conditioning department, led by Josh Hingst in his second year with Minnesota, is doing its job. The Vikings have played like a team not only able to avoid injuries but respond effectively to the few they have had. They also have shown wherewithal in the fourth quarter, not playing like a team that was fatigued or beaten down.

Give the Vikings credit for their health and taking advantage of their opportunities, including opponents’ injuries and making big plays in the second half, but there’s nothing wrong with having good fortune, too.

Worth Noting

Best guess is coveted wide receiver Odell Beckham Jr. soon signs with one of the two best NFL teams, the Bills or Chiefs. A wildcard landing spot is the Vikings because of his previous relationship with O’Connell when both were with the Rams.

BTW, it probably can’t be helping the defending Super Bowl champion Rams, with a 3-3 record, that the coaching staff is without O’Connell, Wes Phillips and Chris O’Hara. When O’Connell took the head coaching job in Minnesota last winter, he made Phillips his offensive coordinator and O’Hara his quarterback coach.

Twin Cities Dunkers leader Dan Stoltz, whose SPIRE Credit Union features Kirk Cousins in TV commercials, has arranged for the Vikings’ quarterback to speak to the Dunkers October 31.

Did you know the Vikings’ most elite offensive playmaker, WR Justin Jefferson, is 23 years old, while the Gophers’ best, RB Mo Ibrahim, is 24?

From a personnel perspective beyond this season, the best thing about the Gophers’ program is the promising future of redshirt freshman quarterback Athan Kaliakmanis. He was poised in his first college start last Saturday evening in the crazed-white out atmosphere at Penn State and showed both his running and passing skills that include a strong arm.

It’s a possibility Minnesota, with Kaliakmanis, could have the Big Ten West Division’s most talented quarterback next season. Look for Kaliakmanis to start Saturday’s home game against Rutgers if senior Tanner Morgan is still injured and unable to play.

Yesterday head coach P.J. Fleck wasn’t sure who his starter will be. He also said it’s uncertain if reserve quarterback Cole Kramer’s injury will allow him to be on the field. Kramer played on two downs in the wildcat formation against Penn State, but he didn’t touch the ball because direct snaps went to Ibrahim.

The latest rankings of all 131 FBS football teams by Chris Vannini of the The Athletic has Minnesota No. 42. Rutgers is No 93, with the other remaining teams on the Minnesota schedule ranked as follows: Iowa No.61 Nebraska No. 92, Northwestern No. 119 and Wisconsin No. 47.

Morgan, the winningest quarterback in Gophers’ football history, will be remembered for more than his success on the field. His leadership with teammates and caring about the community are exemplary.

This fall Morgan, who lost his father to cancer last year, has a new partnership with the Mendota Heights-based Angel Foundation and its Kapps for Cancer initiative to raise funds. A variety of baseball and stocking caps are being sold. http://kappscustoms.com

Former Gopher football player Jim Bruton has authored 23 books including his latest on Washburn-McReavy Funeral Chapels.

The timing of Gopher volleyball coach Hugh McCutcheon’s announcement to retire at season’s end is stunning and without explanation yet. Gophers’ athletic director Mark Coyle said at a news conference earlier this year he worries about the extraordinary time all of his coaches must devote to recruiting in today’s competitive environment.

Bob Motzko’s No. 1 ranked hockey Gophers have a roster that continues the program’s tradition of using talent from the state. Twenty of the 26 players on the roster were born and raised in Minnesota, with 16 of them from within 40 miles of campus.

The Wild will host a free, open-to-the-public outdoor practice starting at 10 a.m. November 5 at St. Louis Park’s Recreation Outdoor Center, 3700 Monterey Drive. There will be fan giveaways and activities.

Former Gophers’ All-American basketball player Quincy Lewis, who was M Club director for about four years until October 14, is now director of alumni relations for the Utah Jazz, the NBA club he once played for.

Sports Illustrated’s pro and college basketball issue predicts the Wolves’ Anthony Edwards could be the NBA’s most improved player. “Now with even more talent around him, Edwards is looking at a third-year jump that could put him into the league’s elite,” the magazine said.

The Wolves are projected to finish second to the Nuggets in the Northwest Division and qualify for the eighth spot in the Western Conference playoffs. The magazine’s highest ranked Big Ten men’s team is Illinois at No. 15, with two other conference programs in the top 25, No. 20 Indiana and No. 24 Michigan.

Race Thompson, the Indiana senior forward from Armstrong and son of Minnesota football great Darrell Thompson, is profiting from NIL deals including a recently announced ambassador role with Merchants Bank.

Absurd: the length of college football games. Last Saturday’s Texas-Oklahoma State game started at 2:30 p.m. and didn’t end until about 6:45 p.m. (Four quarters, no overtime).

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U Football Frustration Merited, But…

Posted on October 18, 2022November 16, 2022 by David Shama

The results of the last two Golden Gophers football games are frustrating enough but now Minnesota goes on the road to play No.16 ranked Penn State with an uncertain quarterback situation. Tanner Morgan, the winningest Gopher quarterback in program history, was injured last Saturday and is being monitored this week by medical advisors.

Redshirt junior reserve Cole Kramer wasn’t available Saturday to relieve Morgan because of injury. Coach P.J. Fleck said Kramer’s status for Penn State is uncertain. That could leave quarterback duties up to redshirt freshman Athan Kaliakmanis who fumbled a snap and threw two interceptions in relief of Morgan.

Consecutive losses to Purdue and Illinois have resulted in a 1-2 Big Ten record, and frustration by the fanbase. It’s a long shot now the Gophers can win a first-ever West Division championship. Fans are rightfully hungry for a division title now that Fleck is in his sixth season leading the program.

Critics are piling on Fleck after 20-10 and 26-14 losses in the last two games (Gophers have a 4-2 overall record). He is unlikely to deliver a division title to Dinkytown until next season at the earliest, but his resume is solid while coaching at one of the most difficult places to win in the Big Ten.

Other than Nebraska, the Gophers have to go farther to recruit much of their roster than any school in the conference. Out of state recruiting is a must because Minnesota high schools don’t produce a lot of Big Ten prospects. And when it comes to recruiting, remember this about the University of Minnesota: the Gophers don’t cheat by paying players like some of their Power Five rivals. That puts programs like Minnesota at a competitive disadvantage.

The Gophers are a developmental program with a roster that has no five-star and few four-star players coming out of high school. Often developing talent works but there are also ongoing times of poor results. An epicenter in the last two games is the receiving corps. Too often receivers aren’t gaining separation to get open. There are instances where effort is lacking, like not contesting a catch or poor route running.

To be successful the Gophers need balance between passing and running. The passing game didn’t show up in the last two losses, with Minnesota scoring a total of 24 points. In the first four games of the season Minnesota had that balance and scored over 30 points in three nonconference wins and a Big Ten road victory at Michigan State. No doubt, though, one of the nation’s easiest schedules helped fuel the Gophers’ success.

In both losses this fall Minnesota trailed at the half, part of a history of not being able to stage second half comebacks. At one point in Jerry Kill’s coaching career at Minnesota his teams were 0-22 when trailing at halftime. Using a run-heavy offense over the years, the Gophers are currently 0-31 in their last 31 games when trailing by 10 points or more, per ESPN. Minnesota fell behind by 10 points early in their Purdue and Illinois losses.

Kill, a talented coach like Fleck, never won a division title while leading the Gophers from 2011 thru part of the 2015 season. Glen Mason, who coached some of the greatest rushing teams in program history, didn’t win a Big Ten title during his run in Minneapolis from 1997-2006.

Minnesota is a difficult place to win consistently and at a high level. The Gophers haven’t won a Big Ten title since 1967 under coach Murray Warmath who was fired after the 1971 season for losing too many games. Since then, Minnesota has plowed through nine coaches including Fleck who has a resume that deserves respect.

Including bowl games, Fleck is 39-25 at Minnesota, with a winning percentage of .609 that ranks third in program history among head coaches who led the Gophers in 45 games or more. His Big Ten record is 22-24 but none of eight predecessors won more league games than they lost and most of them didn’t even come close. Warmath at 66-57-4 was the last Minnesota coach to have a winning record in conference games. Fleck’s 7-2 and 6-3 league records in 2019 and 2021 are among the best at Minnesota in more than 60 years.

Fleck is the only Gopher coach to go undefeated in bowl games. The Gophers have won three consecutive postseason games including the New Year’s Day Outback Bowl against Auburn after which they finished No. 10 nationally in the final AP poll.

Minnesota is 15-5 in its last 20 away games. Maybe the Gophers surprise their critics Saturday night and make it 16-5.

Wolves Owner Expects Fast Start

The Timberwolves play five of their first six games at Target Center including the season opener Wednesday night against the Thunder. The Wolves also have nine of their first 12 games at home—and for the most part the opponents are not a who’s who of NBA heavyweights.

With a reconfigured roster led by newly acquired all-NBA center Rudy Gobert and coming off a 46-36 season in 2021-2022, owner Glen Taylor has expectations for a fast start. “Well, I looked at the schedule. I think we’re playing against teams that I would say we have a very good chance of beating on paper. …Then we have the home games so expectations (are) we should come out of these first group of games with a pretty good record.”

Taylor has owned the franchise since 1994 and there have been plenty of difficult seasons. He counts the Kevin Garnett era and one season with Jimmy Butler as times of high expectations, along with right now. “This is the third time where I think we have a really good team, and my expectations are that we should go far into the season and do very well. You know it’s going to be fun for our fans, including myself.”

The way Taylor sees it is his team can make a statement in its first 12 games. “We have a history of not doing well against teams we should win (against). …Teams that are missing their stars, we go ahead and lose the game, and stuff like that. You know my expectations (are) that won’t happen this year.

“Get off to a good start. Now that’s good for the players but it’s also good for our fans too because I think it gets their interest and we’ll have a bigger attendance. …I think they’ll get behind the players (and) just motivate them to a higher level of play.”

Taylor also wants to see his team have playoff success, going beyond the first round of the postseason. That’s something Minnesota hasn’t done since 2004. The sting of last spring’s playoff series loss will last awhile since many observers will argue the Wolves were superior to the Grizzlies.

“That’s my expectation (to get beyond the first round),” Taylor said. “I think with the guys that we have, if other than injuries, they should deliver that. I am really confident in our coaching. I think they’ll get the most out of these guys. That’ll make a difference.”

A factor in how successfully the Wolves start the season will be the performance of Karl-Anthony Towns. The all-NBA big man has been asked to switch from center to power forward, and complicating the transition is an undisclosed illness that hospitalized him at the start of training camp.

Taylor didn’t describe the medical problem Towns faced. “Well, I am not going to go into it. They kept me advised everything that was going on. It was a setback, but we are hopeful given the next couple of weeks that he can get his strength and weight back.”

Taylor also said that as Towns recovers it doesn’t mean he “can’t play well.”

Is the nature of the medical issue something that can re-occur? “I don’t think so,” Taylor answered.

New owners Marc Lore and Alex Rodriguez are scheduled soon to make another installment on the payment plan leading to their taking over majority ownership of the Wolves and WNBA Lynx by December of 2023. Taylor believes the process is on schedule. “My expectation (is) that the end of this year they would be obligated to make their second payment.”

For now Taylor is basking in a time of high expectations for his team. A visitor suggested there is a buzz about the Wolves. “You’re correct,” the 81-year-old owner said.

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