Vikings – Page 198 – David Shama's Minnesota Sports Headliners

Schedule Gives Vikings Shot at 8-8

Posted on October 31, 2014October 31, 2014 by David Shama

The Vikings, with a 3-5 record, are halfway through their 16-game schedule. Bob Lurtsema predicted last summer new coach Mike Zimmer and a reorganized staff would improve last year’s 5-10-1 record to 8-8.

Despite the absence of key offensive starters including quarterback Matt Cassel, running back Adrian Peterson and tight end Kyle Rudolph, the Vikings have done enough to maintain Lurtsema’s confidence about an 8-8 finish. “I am still sticking with 8-8,” said the former Viking who attends practices and remains close to the team.

The Vikings play the Redskins, 3-5, at TCF Bank Stadium on Sunday—the first of eight remaining games. The Vikings have two games on the upcoming schedule with the Bears, 3-5, and also will play the Packers, 5-3, Panthers, 3-4-1, Jets, 1-7, Lions, 6-2, and Dolphins, 4-3. Those seven teams have a combined record of 25 wins, 29 losses and one tie.

Those aren’t intimidating numbers, and the Vikings’ opportunity to finish with a record around .500 percent is enhanced by another factor. Five of the remaining eight games will be in Minneapolis.

An 8-8 record is unlikely to earn entry into the playoffs. In 2013 the worst regular season record for an NFL playoff team was the Packers at 8-7-1. The Chargers, 9-7, also qualified. When the Vikings made the playoffs in 2012 as a wildcard entry their record was 10-6.

Lurtsema is conceding the NFC North title and automatic entry into the playoffs to the Packers. “I think too much of (quarterback) Aaron Rodgers. I just think that the Green Bay Packers are almost a machine.”

But that prediction doesn’t lessen Lurtsema’s enthusiasm for Zimmer and the Vikings. Minnesota won last Sunday, defeating the now 1-6 Bucs, and the Vikings have held their three most recent opponents to 15.6 points per game. A loss in the closing seconds to the Bills a week ago Sunday is a game that got away.

“We should be .500 now at the turn,” Lurtsema said. “We should be 4-4. Coach Zimmer has done everything I expected from (him), plus 20 percent. That man has got those players playing hard.”

Peterson is a former NFL MVP. Rudolph won the 2013 Pro Bowl MVP award. But because the NFL is a quarterback driven league, it’s the season ending injury to Cassel—a journeyman QB—that makes Lurtsema talk about what might have been. “If Cassel was in there I think we would have at least one more win. We’d have no trouble going 8-8.”

Worth Noting

Lurtsema likes Cassel’s successor, rookie Teddy Bridgewater. He praises the rookie’s poise and “velocity” on his passes but described a need for improvement. “He’s got to be able to read the field faster. That’s the part—some quarterbacks—never, ever, ever pick up on. They cannot quicken their reads.”

Lurtsema raved about the team’s other 2014 No. 1 draft choice—linebacker Anthony Barr who caused a fumble in overtime last Sunday and scooped up the ball to run for the winning touchdown against the Bucs.

“Anthony Barr is the real deal. He could be Rookie of the Year.” Lurtsema said. “He’s got such great closing speed. The sky’s the limit for that guy. He’s smart, he’s respectful.

“He’s got everything you want. His long arms, his agility, his 40-yard speed, his 10-yard speed, whatever you want to talk about. That kid can play.”

Lurtsema played on the defensive line for not only the Vikings but the Giants and Seahawks, too. Ironically, all three organizations are hosting alumni gatherings this weekend and Lurtsema will travel to New York for the Giants’ homecoming.

A Vikings spokesman e-mailed earlier this week that except for the possibility of visiting teams returning tickets, the home games against the Redskins on Sunday and Packers, November 23, are sold out.

Former Bears coach Mike Ditka likes to say today is a gift because yesterday is history and tomorrow is a mystery. Ditka was talking about his philosophy on ESPN Radio’s “Mike & Mike Show” on Monday. “I didn’t make it up but I say it a lot,” said Mike Golic who co-costs the show with Mike Greenberg.

Bob Bossons, a Gophers assistant coach and top recruiter from 1958-1966, died earlier this month after a long struggle with Alzheimer’s. Bossons was a key contributor to the Gophers 1960 national championship and Rose Bowl teams of 1961 and 1962.

The guess here is Gophers wide receiver Drew Wolitarsky will be out indefinitely after suffering a high ankle sprain against Illinois last Saturday. The Gophers have a bye on the schedule tomorrow but don’t count on him playing against Iowa November 8 at TCF Bank Stadium.

The Timberwolves announced attendance of 18,296 for last night’s regular season home opener. The attendance came close but didn’t sell out (19,500 capacity) and a franchise spokesman told Sports Headliners earlier this week tickets are available for all home games including the much anticipated appearance by LeBron James, Kevin Love and the other Cavs on January 31.

Sports Illustrated’s NBA preview issue of last week predicted the Wolves, who are 1-1 this season, will finish 14th out of 15 teams in the Western Conference. An anonymous scout expressed concern in the magazine about point guard Ricky Rubio, now starting his fourth NBA season with the Wolves. “The great players add to their games in the off-season. I haven’t seen any change in Ricky Rubio over the last three years. His poor shooting has kept him from becoming a Tony Parker-like scorer. He’s a phenomenal passer, but it will take those young guys (Rubio’s new teammates) some time to grow accustomed to his creativity.”

An anonymous scout, perhaps the same one, spoke bluntly in the preview issue about former Wolves executive and coach Kevin McHale, now the Rockets head coach who has his team off to a 2-0 start. “They are the easiest team to scout because they have the smallest playbook and are lackadaisically coached. It’s as close to pickup basketball as there is in the NBA.”

The Wolves play the Bulls at Target Center tomorrow night and Sports Illustrated predicts Chicago will play the Spurs for the NBA championship next spring with San Antonio winning the title.

WCHA commissioner Bill Robertson is excited about KTWN-FM agreeing to be the exclusive radio promotional partner for the 2015 Final Five at Xcel Energy Center March 20-21. KTWN is the Twin Cities radio home for Minnesota Twins games.

Former Gophers athletic director Joel Maturi, sportscaster Joe Schmit, author of the book Silent Impact, and Frank White, founder of Respect Sports, will make presentations next Wednesday on leadership at the Minneapolis campus of St. Thomas. The “Leading with Character: What’s Your Direction?” conference will be from 10 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. More details at Synergyexchange.org.

The Gophers wrestling team hasn’t started its schedule but is No. 1 nationally in the InterMat College Dual Meet Rankings. Eight other Big Ten teams are in the rankings: No. 2 Ohio State, No. 3 Iowa, No. 5 Penn State, No. 7 Nebraska, No. 9 Michigan, No. 11 Illinois, No. 14 Wisconsin and No. 16 Northwestern.

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Frazier Knows Vikes but Will It Matter?

Posted on October 20, 2014October 20, 2014 by David Shama

A year ago Leslie Frazier was the Vikings head coach but on Sunday his job will be to help defeat his old team. In his role as the Bucs defensive coordinator, Frazier will not only lead the plan of how to stop the Vikings but he is qualified to provide information to his fellow Tampa Bay coaches about the personnel he had on the Minnesota roster.

“I am sure this is going to be one he wants to win,” Vikings linebacker Audie Cole told Sports Headliners today. “You want to beat your last team. I am sure he’s going to be thinking about it.”

Frazier’s familiarity with players he coached here could help the Bucs. “It always gives a coach the upper hand” knowing his former players, said Vikings long snapper Cullen Loeffler who like other players interviewed voiced respect and fondness for Frazier.

It won’t be Frazier’s intent but he could witness an improvement in the Vikings’ offense on Sunday. The Vikings, 2-5, have managed to score just 45 points in their losses, averaging nine points per game. Frazier has seen his unit give up the most points, 204, of any NFL team so far this season.

The Bucs, 1-5, had a bye yesterday. It had to be welcome after a 48-17 loss to the Ravens a week ago Sunday. In that game Tampa Bay was behind 38-0 in the second quarter. The Bucs are giving up an NFL worst 422.8 yards per game and fans have to wonder if the team’s Tampa 2 defensive alignment is passé.

Frazier and Bucs coach Lovie Smith have long been advocates of the defense but things haven’t gone well in their first season together in Tampa Bay. Results aren’t so good in the points production category, either. The Bucs have scored 120 points and that total ties them with the Vikings for lowest in the NFC.

The Vikings, though, have 120 points in seven games, while the Bucs have only played six games. Minnesota has scored just two touchdowns in the last three games, all losses. Playing with “spare parts,” the Vikings’ offense is without five starters who began the season as regulars including quarterback Matt Cassel, running back Adrian Peterson and tight end Kyle Rudolph.

The Vikings’ offense has to be hoping it’s the same old same old on Sunday for the Bucs’ defense. Both teams are almost desperate in need of a win as the midpoint in the NFL schedule approaches. The Vikings will take that win against anyone including their former coach, Frazier. “We’ll talk to him after the game but I gotta get ready for a win against Tampa Bay,” said defensive end Brian Robison. “That’s all I am concerned about.”

Worth Noting

A bronze statue of Bud Grant will be unveiled outside the Winnipeg Blue Bombers stadium this week. Grant coached the Bombers to four Grey Cup championships. He led the Bombers of the CFL before coaching the Vikings to four Super Bowls.

Troubled wide receiver Percy Harvin, who was traded last week by the Seahawks to the Jets, was dealt by the Vikings to Seattle in 2013 for draft choices that turned out to include defensive back Xavier Rhodes and running back Jerick McKinnon, both contributors to this year’s team.

Here’s how Sports Headliners ranks the Big Ten teams at about halfway through the college football season: 1. Michigan State; 2. Ohio State; 3. Nebraska; 4. Wisconsin; 5. Maryland; 6. Minnesota; 7. Iowa; 8. Penn State; 9. Northwestern; 10. Michigan; 11. Rutgers; 12. Purdue; 13. Illinois; 14. Indiana.

A representative of the Florida Citrus Bowl attended the Gophers-Purdue game on Saturday and later congratulated Minnesota coach Jerry Kill on his team’s win. Located in Orlando, Florida, the bowl was formerly known as the Capital One Bowl and is seeking a new corporate sponsor. The Citrus Bowl is played on January 1 of each year. The Gophers, 6-1 overall and 3-0 in the Big Ten, haven’t played in a January 1 bowl game since 1962.

Kill on coaching this team: “I told them all year, if you listen to us (the coaches), you listen to me, good things will happen.”

The Gophers sold about 9,700 student tickets for the Purdue game with about 9,000 of those tickets used, according to an athletic department source. The announced attendance of 51,241 was a TCF Bank Stadium record for a Gophers game.

Former Iowa All-American quarterback Chuck Long, who was in Minneapolis to provide color commentary on the game, was asked if he will lobby Big Ten Network decision makers to work the telecast of the November 8 Gophers-Hawkeyes game on November 8. “They won’t let me do Iowa games,” he said laughing. “I show too much bias.”

The optimistic guess on Gophers running back David Cobb is he will be a midround NFL Draft choice. Cobb, who is fourth among Big Ten rushers with 144.7 yards per game, doesn’t have breakaway speed but he is an extraordinary runner for Minnesota. A senior, the Gophers wish they had redshirted him.

The Gophers Tommy Olson is one of 167 semifinalists for the William V. Campbell Trophy given to the best college football scholar-athlete. Others on the list include Division II players Thomas Obarski, Concordia, St. Paul; Charlie Kem, Southwest Minnesota State; and Ryan Gerts, Winona State; and from Division III Josh Treimer, Bethel; Josh Sinnen, Northwestern, St. Paul; and J.T. Ford, Saint John’s.

Mississippi State coach Dan Mullen was in his second season with the Bulldogs in 2010 when the Gophers were looking to replace head coach Tim Brewster. Mullen, who has Mississippi State No. 1 ranked in the polls, wasn’t interested in the Gophers job, a source told Sports Headliners on Saturday.

The Don Lucia Radio Show will be heard Monday nights from 6 to 6:30 p.m. on 1500 ESPN. The first show of the season is tonight and the Gophers hockey coach is joined by co-hosts Judd Zulgad and Wally Shaver.

Minnesota Wild—the restaurant—is scheduled to open later this month at Minneapolis-Saint Paul International Airport. The hockey-themed restaurant will seat over 200 customers and will be located beyond the Terminal 2-Humphrey security checkpoint. There will be displays of goalie helmets, jerseys from the Wild and also youth players from around the state of Minnesota, and a mosaic made with hockey pucks in the shape of the State of Hockey logo.

WCHA commissioner Bill Robertson meets tomorrow with representatives from Xcel Energy Center and Visit Saint Paul to discuss ideas to make the league’s March 20-21 Final Five Tournament a hospitality success. The agenda will target ways to benefit fans including through the involvement of bars and restaurants.

George Smilanich, 92 and a former Iron Range coach, served in World War II and was a consultant for the new movie “The Fury” starring Brad Pitt. Smilanich drove a Sherman tank during the war.

Highlights of the Gophers’ baseball schedule for next year include a March 4 exhibition game in Fort Myers against the Twins. The Gophers will also play games at Maryland and Rutgers, the two new programs in the Big Ten Conference which now has 13 teams (Wisconsin doesn’t participate in baseball). Minnesota’s home opener is scheduled for March 24 at Siebert Field. The Big Ten Tournament will be at Target Field May 20-23.

Major League Baseball faces a roll of the dice every year with the World Series and the weather gods but 2014 should not be problematic. When the Royals host games 1 and 2 in Kansas City Tuesday and Wednesday evenings temps will be in the 60s and 70s. Giants games in San Francisco figure to be played in mild weather too.

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U Winning but Future Looks Brighter

Posted on October 17, 2014October 17, 2014 by David Shama

With five victories already and six games remaining on the schedule, the Gophers could certainly reach last year’s win total of eight. But program supporters who are close to head coach Jerry Kill such as Ray Hitchcock are optimistic that in future years the Gophers could have double figure win totals.

Hitchcock, the former Gophers center and now a postgame radio host, told Sports Headliners that “2015, 2016, those could be 10, 11 year wins.” Kill and his staff have improved the player talent since taking over for the 2011 season and done a superior job of maximizing individual and team skills. The 2014 team is heavy with underclassmen—including starters who will return in 2015—and the staff is developing players who can come off the bench when needed.

Hitchcock readily offers enthusiasm about Kill and the future. “He’s building so much depth with these guys. What is he, 6-2 in his last eight Big Ten games?”

That’s exactly the number, and only Michigan State and Ohio State with 8-0 records can boast better numbers than the Gophers. Minnesota’s 6-2 record in league games is the program’s best since the Gophers came up with the same totals from November 6, 1999 through October 21, 2000.

Going into tomorrow’s game at home against Purdue, the Gophers are 5-1 overall and 2-0 in Big Ten games. The most difficult part of the schedule will come next month against Iowa, Ohio State, Nebraska and Wisconsin. Kill will be the first to acknowledge the Gophers need to still improve a lot but Minnesota’s next win makes the team bowl-eligible and is another step toward at least an eight win season.

Gophers teams have only won eight games 11 times since the program began in 1882. Minnesota has won nine games twice, 10 games three times, and earned 13 and 14 single season win totals once each. In today’s college football world of 12 game schedules—plus a bowl game—teams play more games than in most past years but for the Gophers to accomplish a win total of eight or more this fall will obviously be special.

To get there the Gophers will need to fix another number. Kill’s teams are 0-22 when trailing at halftime. The Gophers haven’t been capable of coming from behind and one reason has been struggles with their passing game. Instability at the quarterback position has characterized the offense but the Gophers might have a fix with redshirt sophomore Mitch Leidner who has impressed in his last two games, completing 24 of 37 passes for 320 yards.

“I think over the last two games, the biggest thing about Mitch, he’s relaxed,” Kill said. “Went out and played. Had a smile on his face. I think early in the year he was pressing, then he got hurt, went through some things. I think he’s feeling good, feeling better. I always say, if you feel good, you play good. I think he’s…more comfortable.”

Offensive coordinator Matt Limegrover said Leidner, who was only a part-time starter last season, felt a lot of pressure during the nonconference season. When Leidner was injured and couldn’t play in the last nonconference game against San Jose State he watched the Gophers win without him. Limegrover believes that relieved weight-of-the-world-expectations.

Leidner was back on the field for the next game, at Michigan on September 27. “He literally was like a different young man when we went to Michigan as far as just how he was on gameday, how he was in the huddle, his demeanor gameday, the enjoyment of it,” Limegrover said. “He was out there having fun. That carried over to last week (and) then there was that confidence.”

The strength of the Gophers starts with their 15th ranked national scoring defense but the offense and Leidner might have to contribute more than usual tomorrow against a Purdue team that has scored 69 points in its last two games. The Boilermakers, 3-4 overall and 1-2 in league games, have changed quarterbacks from earlier in the season and Austin Appleby has challenged defenses with runs and passes. Gophers defensive coordinator Tracy Claeys targets holding opponents to 17 points or less and if Minnesota can limit Purdue to that total tomorrow a victory is very likely. And, so, too are a lot more wins later in the season and during the years ahead.

Gophers sophomore defensive back and kick return specialist Jalen Myrick said he has big expectations for the program. “That’s the reason I came here. I wanted to play for a Rose Bowl—so being in a Big Ten championship—that was always my goal and everyone else’s goal.”

Worth Noting

Myrick’s 100-yard kickoff return was the difference in Minnesota’s 24-17 win over Northwestern last Saturday. How has his life been impacted since? “A lot of media followed me on Twitter,” he answered while also mentioning friends who reached out.

Myrick said he was clocked at 21.5 miles per hour on the return but can run faster. “It’s not impossible,” he said.

Gophers defensive tackle Cameron Botticelli on whether tomorrow’s game could be a shootout since Purdue has a high scoring offense but suspect defense: “If I have anything to say about it, it won’t. …”

A source told Sports Headliners the Gophers received $500,000 for playing their September 13 nonconference game at TCU. The Horned Frogs, 4-1, defeated the Gophers, 30-7, and are ranked No. 12 nationally in the Associated Press poll.

Former Gophers defensive back Dom Barber hopes to have his communications degree by next March. Although he isn’t interested in coaching, Barber is working in a recruiting role for the Gophers. His brother Thomas Barber, a junior linebacker and running back, plays for Armstrong High School and is an outstanding college prospect.

The Vikings offensive line gave up eight sacks in last Sunday’s 17-3 loss to the Lions. Among those receiving blame is left tackle Matt Kalil who after a successful rookie season in 2012 has been much criticized since. In Kalil’s defense, a Vikings insider said the former USC star is facing some of the best pass rushers and highest paid players in the NFL. But he also said Kalil’s confidence needs to be restored.

“I would not trade Kalil,” the source said. “I would hope we could get him to play up to his potential.”

While rookie quarterback Teddy Bridgewater receives much of the public and media attention, the team’s other first round draft choice, Anthony Barr, leads the Vikings in tackles with 58 and is one of the more impressive first-year players in the NFL.

The Vikings play in suburban Buffalo on Sunday and fans here will recognize names associated with the Bills having Minnesota connections. Bills starting offensive tackle Seantrel Henderson is from Cretin-Derham Hall High School. Todd Downing, the team’s quarterbacks’ coach from Eden Prairie, graduated from the University of Minnesota and worked in quality control for the Vikings.

Bills offensive line coach Pat Morris had the same title with the Vikings from 2006-2010. Linebackers coach Fred Pagac was the Vikings defensive coordinator in 2011 and for several years was Minnesota’s linebackers coach. Vikings defensive coordinator George Edwards was the DC for the Bills from 2010-2011.

Gophers senior guard Rachel Banham is the Big Ten women’s basketball coaches choice for Preseason Player of the Year. Banham was also named to the coaches’ preseason All-Big Ten team that includes Minnesota native Nia Coffey, a sophomore forward at Northwestern.

Ali Lucia, daughter of Gophers hockey coach Don Lucia, is now with WCCO TV. Her journalism career experiences includes being a Fox news anchor in Rochester, Minnesota.

Her dad’s nationally No. 1 ranked Gophers have a bye this week after winning the Ice Breaker Tournament at Notre Dame, Indiana with games last Friday and Sunday. Only several hundred fans were in the seats at the games.

Gustavus, 6–0 overall and 4–0 in the MIAC, is off to its best start since the 1987 season when the “Cardiac Kids” went 10–0 and 9–0 while winning the league title. The Gusties probably will face their most formidable opponent tomorrow at home against Saint John’s, 4-1 and 2-1. The Gusties rank third in NCAA Division III with an average of 385 passing yards per game.

Congratulations to Luverne High School football coach Todd Oye who won his 100th career game last week. The victory gave him a 100-43 record in 13 seasons at Luverne.

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