Vikings – Page 154 – David Shama's Minnesota Sports Headliners

Vikings Looking at Roster Again

Posted on November 14, 2016November 14, 2016 by David Shama

A notes-filled column including news from Vikings head coach Mike Zimmer, and also Gopher season ticket totals:

Zimmer said today he will meet this afternoon with general manager Rick Spielman to discuss personnel. Zimmer referenced the meeting when asked about the left tackle position and also placekicker Blair Walsh.

Starting left tackle Jake Long injured his left Achilles in yesterday’s loss to the Redskins and is out for the season. After the game left guard Alex Boone told reporters he might move to left tackle but Zimmer said that was premature and he will have more to say about his offensive line on Wednesday.

The Vikings have been devastated by injuries in the offensive line. If the team turns to the outside for help a possible addition might be tackle Carter Bykowski who was with Minnesota earlier this year. Bykowski, who is on the Falcons’ practice squad, knows the Vikings’ system.

Walsh missed another extra point (his fourth of the season) in yesterday’s game. He is also only 12 of 16 on field goals and last week the Vikings auditioned potential replacements. Things are so bad Fox TV analyst Chris Spielman (Rick’s brother) said during the game that Zimmer should just plan on Walsh missing kicks. After the game a caller on the Vikings radio network suggested the team should sign a “female soccer player” as the new kicker.

Zimmer on whether injured running back Adrian Peterson might play again this season: “I have no idea.” …

University of Minnesota nonstudent season tickets for both men’s basketball and men’s hockey are down by about 1,000 each from a year ago. As of last week, basketball was at 6,246 compared with 7,221 for the 2015-2016 season. The hockey number was 6,039 after totaling 7,080 in 2015-2016.

Hockey student season tickets were at 2,739 after last season’s figure of 2,788. The basketball student season tickets total was 1,181 after a 2015-2016 number of 1,748. …

After Saturday’s 24-17 loss to No. 21 ranked Nebraska, Tracy Claeys has a 5-7 Big Ten record as interim and head coach of the Gophers. Five of the defeats have been by seven points or less. Claeys has won just one close conference game, defeating Rutgers 32-31 this fall. He has no victories over nationally ranked, or rivalry teams.

The Gophers, 7-3 overall and 4-3 in league games, have lost to Penn State, Iowa and Nebraska—all top 25 ranked teams.

Game times announced: Minnesota’s home football game with Northwestern Saturday will be at 2:30 p.m. and the Gophers men’s hockey game against Minnesota State at Mariucci Arena will start at 8 p.m. …

The St. Thomas football team finished the regular season with a 10-0 record, including 8-0 in the MIAC. Last Saturday the Tommies defeated St. Olaf 73-7 to win the MIAC title. Saint John’s (9-1, 7-1) won second place by defeating Concordia-Moorhead (7-3, 6-2). The Johnnies, who lost their only game to St. Thomas, defeated Concordia 31-7. St. Thomas has an opening Division III playoff game at home on Saturday against Northwestern (Roseville), while Saint John’s hosts Wisconsin-Platteville.

Concordia had a 23-20 loss to St. Thomas earlier in the season. “They should have beaten St. Thomas,” said Saint John’s coach Gary Fasching.

Fasching offered that opinion while speaking to the CORES lunch crowd last Thursday. He had the audience laughing when he opened his talk by saying, “I notice some St. Thomas people (here), so I will try to speak a little slower.”

Fasching told the audience former Saint John’s coach John Gagliardi had his 90th birthday last week. The legendary Gagliardi sat in with the Johnnies’ coaching staff every Monday this season to review film. …

CORES emcee Dick Jonckowski introduced Gophers basketball coach Richard Pitino at a recent gathering of Minnesota high school basketball coaches. He referred to Pitino’s father, Louisville coach Rick Pitino, as the “Italian Stallion.” Then he introduced the “Pepperoni Pony.”

Jonckowski jokes that he met up with Blair Walsh at a local McDonald’s. Jonckowski asked the Vikings’ placekicker how he is doing. “I can’t kick,” Walsh supposedly said. …

That was Minnesota resident Eric Curry officiating the ESPN televised game Friday night in Hawaii between basketball powers Arizona and Michigan Sate. Curry is married to former Gophers basketball player and now Macalester coach Kelly Roysland. …

The Timberwolves had three players listed in Sports Illustrated’s ranking of the NBA’s top 100 players. The magazine’s NBA preview issue last month ranked center Karl-Anthony Towns No. 23, forward Andrew Wiggins No. 67 and point guard Rick Rubio No. 71. …

Twins owner Jim Pohlad told Sports Headliners he is open to spending more money on players as new baseball department bosses Derek Falvey and Thad Levine rebuild his team. The Twins’ payroll ranked 19th among MLB franchise’s in 2016, according to Espn.com.

Twins fans have noticed the Braves, who ranked with baseball’s worst teams last season, added free veteran agent pitchers R.A. Dickey and Bartolo Colon this month.

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Twins New Bosses Face Fan Anger

Posted on November 7, 2016November 7, 2016 by David Shama

The Twins introduced new baseball department bosses Derek Falvey and Thad Levine to the media and fans today. News of their appointments won’t sell many tickets or immediately improve a team that lost 103 games last season.

Falvey is the new executive vice president and chief baseball officer. Levine’s title is senior vice president and general manager. They represent a new start for a franchise that has lost over 90 games in five of the last six seasons. Home attendance has declined every year, with the Twins drawing less than two million fans last season for the first time since moving into Target Field in 2010.

Fans have become both angry and apathetic. A knowledgeable sports industry source told Sports Headliners he heard the Twins’ season tickets total is about 8,800 right now. Another source believes the final total for 2017 will be about 10,000. When the club started playing at Target Field the season tickets total was approximately 25,000.

TV viewership was dismal at times last season. A ratings authority said the Nielsen results for a Twins-Blue Jays game in August showed no viewers in the 600-home meters sample size. “That’s never happened before with the Twins,” the source said.

Twins president Dave St. Peter told Sports Headliners earlier this year market research shows fans “desperately” want to get behind the franchise. To rally the fan base, though, Falvey and Levine will have to make changes that re-energize the public.

At the top of the to-do list is adding a couple of marquee players to the roster before next season. The Twins have a reputation for usually not spending significantly on free agents—nor wisely when they do. Their offseason shopping list might start with free agent catcher Wilson Ramos who the Twins errantly traded away to the Nationals in 2010 for closer Matt Capps. Ramos, 29, had a breakout year in 2016, becoming a National League All-Star and hitting .307 with 22 home runs with 80 RBI.

Everyone knows the Twins need to upgrade their pitching staff and that assignment might be where Falvey and Levine can show their smarts first. If they can identity the right pitching help this offseason, that will be impressive. Without better starters and relievers, the Twins are probably a lock to finish last in the American League Central Division again.

The shopping list should also include a clubhouse leader. The Twins never replaced role model vet Torii Hunter who retired after the 2015 season. His leadership and hitting production were key reasons why the 2015 team had a winning record (83-79).

Falvey and Levine should show the fan base they are changing the culture in the baseball department. Change is anticipated to include increased use of analytics but it’s also expected to result in new faces in the organization. Changes might include new coaches.

Levine indicated at today’s news conference he and Falvey see manager Paul Molitor as “someone they can invest in.” No reassurances were made, though, that all the coaches on Molitor’s staff will return. Rob Antony, who has been leading the baseball operation, drew praise from Falvey who didn’t hint at change there.

The 33-year-old Falvey and the 44-year-old Levine have a big job ahead. In a few years the results of their decisions will be known. Let them do things now they believe will give the Twins the best chance to win in 2017 and beyond.

Falvey comes from the Indians where he was assistant general manager. His most extensive experience with the organization was serving four years as the director of baseball operations. Levine has spent the past 11 seasons as assistant general manager for the Rangers.

Worth Noting

Falvey and Levine impressed with their answers at today’s news conference, with the latter more than once showing a sense of humor. The transplanted Texan said he had been warned about Minneapolis weather in November but temps have been mild. “This is actually a lovely time of year up here,” Levine said.

Bo Hellquist, the former UMD pitcher from Savage who signed as a free agent with the Twins in June, had a 5-3 record with a 2.25 ERA in 11 games pitching in the Gulf Coast League for rookies.

Jay Buckley’s Baseball Tours, operating from La Crosse, Wisconsin, has announced 30 trips for 2017 including games to see the World Series champion Cubs. Billed as the “Ultimate Wrigley Field Experience,” the Chicago trip will allow fans to watch games from the stadium and a rooftop. More at Jaybuckley.com.

Give the Gophers and coach Don Lucia credit for a weekend with a tie and a win over North Dakota, a team that has been ranked No. 1 in the country. Saturday night’s announced attendance was 10,310—the ninth largest ever at Mariucci Arena.

The Sports Illustrated College Basketball Projection System simulates the season ahead 10,000 times and ranks teams from No. 1 to 351. The Gophers are No. 97, just behind East Tennessee State and one spot ahead of South Dakota State. Minnesota ranks 13th in the 14-team Big Ten Conference. Rutgers—ouch!—is 224th.

S.I. ranks Duke No. 1 in the nation, while Big Ten teams in the top 16 are Wisconsin No. 8, Purdue No. 11 and Indiana No. 14.

Emmit Carpenter, who kicked three field goals including two of over 50 yards in the Gophers’ win over Purdue Saturday, was named Big Ten Special Teams Player of the Week today.

New Vikings offensive coordinator Pat Shurmur impressed yesterday with his use of various personnel and play calling, including a surprise touchdown run by reserve tight end Rhett Ellison in Minnesota’s 22-16 loss to the Lions.

Bleacherreport.com’s NFL power rankings this morning have the Lions at No. 11 and the Vikings No. 12. The Redskins, who the Vikings play next Sunday, are No. 13, while the Patriots rank first.

Gridiron Glory: The Best of the Pro Football Hall of Fame is a current exhibit at the Minnesota History Center, and one that Vikings fans will enjoy. The travelling exhibit, on display through January 15, includes an area devoted to the Minnesota NFL franchise. In addition to the Hometown Heroes section, fans can enjoy and learn about the history of pro football including how Ole Haugsrud purchased the Duluth Eskimos franchise for $1 in 1925. Haugsrud later became one of the original Vikings owners.

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Gap Widens with Gophers & Pro Rivals

Posted on November 3, 2016November 3, 2016 by David Shama

With two home dates remaining, it looks like average Gophers attendance per game could be the lowest since the team began playing at TCF Bank Stadium in 2009.

For five games the average attendance is 45,140. The lowest average for a season at TCF is 46,637 for seven games in 2012.

Last month the athletic department reported a decline of about 19 percent in the sale of nonstudent football season tickets from 2015, and a fall off in student sales too. Obviously single game sales have been slow as well. The Gophers didn’t even sell out their rivalry game with Iowa, announcing an attendance of 49,145.

Not only have their been no sellouts this season in the 50,805 seat stadium, but many of the best seats have been unoccupied for all games—even though customers paid premium prices for them.

The TCF Bank Stadium attendance problem highlights the lack of fan interest regarding the high profile programs of football, basketball and hockey at the University of Minnesota. Those three sports have been trending down in public popularity. They are positioned less favorably when compared to their professional counterparts than at any time in memory—certainly dating back to the start of the millennium when the NHL expansion Minnesota Wild joined the Timberwolves, Twins and Vikings as pro franchises in Minneapolis-St. Paul.

This fall the Vikings, Timberwolves and Wild are far outdistancing the Gophers in ticket buyers and general interest from Minnesota sports fans. The gap between the Vikings and Gophers has been in place for decades but a 5-0 start to the season and the opening of spectacular U.S. Bank Stadium widened the difference between the two products. The perception of the Gophers is that they have both an unproven coach and team that is playing a soft schedule following last year’s disappointing 2-6 Big Ten record.

Back in the 1980s Gophers basketball had TV ratings rivaling or surpass any team in town except for the Vikings. The Gophers were riding high with the public through much of the 1990s, too, until the academic fraud scandal eroded confidence and interest by the public. The program and attendance have been in decline for years. Minnesota has finished better than .500 in Big Ten games only twice since 2000 and earned just four trips to the NCAA Tournament during that period. Minnesota was 2-16 in Big Ten games last season, the worst record in program history. Sellout crowds used to be the norm for Big Ten games but now are rare at 14,625 seat Williams Arena.

The media is predicting the Gophers will finish toward the bottom of the Big Ten standings again, while the Timberwolves are forecast to be the NBA’s most improved team. The Wolves have a roster of exciting young talent led by Tom Thibodeau, a first-year coach here but long considered one of the best in pro basketball.

The Wild is off to a fast start after years of playoff disappointments. New coach Bruce Boudreau is an experienced NHL leader, and hockey insiders think he could be the franchise’s best coach since Jacques Lemaire. A deep playoff run next spring might send the Wild’s popularity to second place in this town behind only the Vikings.

“Pride on Ice” was the Gophers hockey mantra for years. If you hear those words now they might be mostly whispered. The Gophers didn’t qualify for the NCAA Tournament last season and haven’t won a national championship since 2003. NCAA titles have long been the expectation at Minnesota but now the Gophers even have difficulty beating instate rivals like St. Cloud State who swept them last month.

Fans don’t like seeing the hockey Gophers in the Big Ten after fashioning a glory-filled past in the WCHA. This weekend old rival North Dakota comes to town for nonconference games and that will put some sparkle back in Gophers hockey. Seats that often go unused at Mariucci Arena are likely to be filled. Perhaps there is a possibility of selling standing-room only tickets for the games Friday and Saturday night in 10,000 capacity Mariucci Arena.

ND is among the top ranked teams in the country and a Gophers sweep would put momentum back in the program. Such a scenario could be a step in narrowing the gap a bit between the Wild and Gophers. That would be good news for an athletic department with plenty of work to do with its football, basketball and hockey programs.

Worth Noting

The nationally ranked Gophers volleyball program has sold about 900 more nonstudent season tickets this year than last. At a $100 per season ticket, the total this year is 1,977 versus 1,074 in 2015.

The Gophers sold out their match last week against Penn State, attracting a crowd of more than 5,000 to the Sports Pavilion. Additional home sellouts are expected against Nebraska and Wisconsin. The Gophers (18-4 overall, 10-3 in Big Ten games) drew 4,883 fans last night in a home win over Indiana.

With a 3-2 conference record and four games remaining, the football Gophers are a contender for the Big Ten’s West Division title. To be competitive later this month in games against Nebraska, Northwestern and Wisconsin, head coach Tracy Claeys may need to use quarterback Mitch Leidner more as a ball carrier. “…If that means Mitch runs it more, then that’s what we’ll do,” Claeys said.

The senior quarterback has rushed only 55 times in seven games—an average of 7.9 carries per game.

Claeys after being asked about the possible impact on recruiting for next year after winning three consecutive games this fall: “I don’t think recruits ever judge anybody on three games. It all comes down to the end of the season and relationships.”

Jerick McKinnon, the Vikings running back who missed Monday night’s game with the Bears because of an ankle injury, told Sports Headliners yesterday he will play Sunday against the Lions. He expressed frustration with his longest run this season being only for 25 yards and wants to target 50 yards or more.

McKinnon said he has “nothing but great things” to say about departing offensive coordinator Norv Turner who taught him the importance of “attention to detail” involving route running, pass protection and other aspects of football.

Vikings power running back Matt Asiata has these words tattooed on his chest: “Wherever you go, whatever you do, just be the best. Dad.”

Left tackle Jake Long, 31, who played his second game for the Vikings against the Bears after signing as a free agent, didn’t want to comment on playing next season if he is asked to return. He said, though, “I love this game.”

Vikings management decided not to sell standing-room tickets for any games during the first season at U.S. Bank Stadium. A team spokesman said the intent is to let fans and management become accustomed to the new facility, and that the standing-room ticket subject will be reviewed after this season. There are no unsold tickets for Sunday’s game with the Lions.

The Vikings and Lions play in Detroit on Thanksgiving Day. The Vikings are 5-1 in Thanksgiving Day games, and haven’t played in once since 2000 when they defeated the Cowboys. The Vikings have played all their Thanksgiving games on the road.

The Prep Bowl later this month, playing in U.S. Bank Stadium for the first time, could have total attendance of 40,000 or more. About 9,000 tickets had been sold as of earlier this week. Attendance was 24,917 last year at TCF Bank Stadium, while three years ago at the Metrodome it was 34,404.

Saint John’s head football coach Gary Fasching speaks to the CORES lunch group Thursday, November 10 at the Knights of Columbus Hall in Bloomington, 1114 American Blvd. Gophers athletic director Mark Coyle is the scheduled speaker for Thursday, January 12. More information is available by contacting Jim Dotseth, dotsethj@comcast.net.

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