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Jones Undecided on U Official Visit

Posted on July 26, 2013July 26, 2013 by David Shama

Tyus Jones isn’t sure about making an official recruiting visit to the University of Minnesota, according to his mother Debbie Jones.

The family has made unofficial visits to Minnesota in the past to become acquainted with the Gophers’ basketball program. “We have talked about it (the official visit) but not decided,” Debbie told Sports Headliners on Wednesday.

The Gophers are on the Apple Valley High School point guard’s current list of possible college destinations along with Baylor, Duke, Kansas, Kentucky and Michigan State. There had been seven schools but Debbie said, “Ohio State is no longer recruiting Tyus.”

The National Collegiate Athletic Association allows a recruit to make five official visits to schools. An official visit is paid for by the school while an unofficial is at the family’s expense.

The first official visit by Tyus will be to Baylor in late August. Baylor director of player development Jared Nuness is a distant cousin of Tyus who is the Rivals.com No. 2 prospect in the country for the class of 2014.

Official visits by Tyus are planned for August, September and October with dates and schools beyond Baylor to be determined. High school seniors can sign National Letters of Intent with colleges in November, or they can wait until the following spring for a second period of signing dates. Asked by Sports Headliners on Sunday if Tyus will sign in November, his mom said: “I think so.”

Worth Noting

Twins president Dave St. Peter told Sports Headliners the 2014 All-Star Game logo will be revealed next Tuesday at Target Field. Among those present for the unveiling will be officials from Major League Baseball.

The Twins will host the first ever All-Star Game at Target Field on July 15, 2014. The franchise hosted All-Star Games in 1965 at Met Stadium and 1985 in the Metrodome.

During the 2012 and 2013 baseball seasons Target Field has been the site of Kenny Chesney concerts drawing crowds of more than 42,000. No decision has been made on a concert for next year including type of music or date. “We’re likely to host one major show (in 2014),” St. Peter said. “It’s likely to be post-All-Star Game.”

St. Peter also said the Twins are “hopeful” about hosting the NHL Winter Classic on January 1, 2015 but that will be the final decision of the Wild and National Hockey League. Both the Wild and Twins have long been interested in bringing the Classic to Minnesota where the local NHL team would play against an opponent to be announced, perhaps the Blackhawks.

St. Peter is co-coach of an Eden Prairie travelling baseball team for 15 year olds that includes twin sons Ben and Eric. Asked about their prospects of playing college baseball, St. Peter said they inherited their dad’s slowness of foot.

Vikings coach Leslie Frazier said he and his wife enjoyed a one-week vacation in Carmel, California. The Vikings reported to training camp at Minnesota State Mankato yesterday with the first practice today.

Frazier on whether it’s fair for observers to tie so much of the expectations about the Vikings to starting quarterback Christian Ponder: “It’s a team game and we need a lot of guys to step up. We definitely need Christian just to continue to improve, but we need the rest of our offense, our defense, our special teams, to improve as well.

“And if we all improve across the board we’ll be a better football team and we’ll have a chance of reaching our goals as a team. It’s not fair to say we’ll only go as far as Christian will take us. We have a lot of people that have to play well also.”

Frazier said the team will practice today and tomorrow, take Sunday off and then be in pads for the first time on Monday and for the duration of training camp in Mankato.

Chris Burke, writing last Tuesday for S.I.com, ranked new Viking Matt Cassel as the fifth best backup quarterback in the NFL. Burke said Cassel was “awful” last season for the Chiefs but played on a bad team. He noted Cassel was outstanding in 2010 for the Chiefs and 2008 for the Patriots. “A lot of time has passed since then but Cassel has more NFL on-field experience than just about anyone on this list,” Burke wrote.

Kyle Orton of the Cowboys is Burke’s No. 1 followed by Matt Moore (Dolphins), Ryan Fitzpatrick (Titans) and Matt Hasselbeck (Colts).

Gophers football coach Jerry Kill meets with the media next Tuesday with the opening practice for his team on Thursday. Four practices including the August 10 scrimmage (start time 4:40 p.m.) at TCF Bank Stadium are open to the public. More details at Gophersports.com. The Gophers open their season at home on August 29 against UNLV.

Will Rakeem Buckles transfer to the Gophers after finishing summer school at Florida International where new Minnesota basketball boss Richard Pitino coached last season? The 6-7 forward sat out last season after transferring from Louisville and could play this fall at Minnesota as a graduate student if the NCAA approves.

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Tyus Jones Likley to Sign in November

Posted on July 22, 2013July 24, 2013 by David Shama

Tyus Jones‘ mom told Sports Headliners yesterday she expects her son to make his official college commitment in November. Debbie Jones also said during the telephone interview her son Tre Jones, an eighth grader next school year, hopes to play on the Apple Valley High School varsity team with Tyus.

Tyus, a nationally recruited point guard who is among the most sought after Minnesota preps ever, could verbally commit to a college now but that won’t happen. The family plans official visits to colleges including possibly Minnesota in August, September and October before a decision is made. Debbie said reports Tyus was ready to commit verbally to the Gophers early last spring weren’t accurate. “He wasn’t going to commit anywhere until he made his official visits and got on campuses,” Debbie said.

High school seniors can sign National Letters of Intent with colleges in November, or they can wait until the following spring for a second period of signing dates. Asked if Tyus will sign in November, his mom said: “I think so.”

Tyus and his friend Jahlil Okafor, a center from Whitney High in Chicago, are rated the No. 2 and No. 1 players in the national prep class of 2014 by Rivals.com. Debbie confirmed it’s likely the two will attend college together. Not only have Tyus and Okafor had discussions, but Debbie has talked with Okafor’s father, Chuck Okafor, too.

Tre is a gifted athlete and basketball player like Tyus. Tre is 5-9 and has grown at least five inches since last summer. Debbie is looking into the possibility of Tre joining the Apple Valley varsity and having a memorable experience of playing with Tyus for one season. “I know it would be great,” she said.

Among the biggest fans of Tyus and Tre is Debbie’s dad, Dennis Deutsch. For some time he’s had multiple health issues and most recently was diagnosed with cancer and then had a heart attack. “He’s a battler,” said Debbie about her father who has been out of the hospital for awhile.

Worth Noting

The Big Ten Network will offer extensive coverage of the conference’s football media days in Chicago including five hours on Wednesday featuring remarks by the league’s 12 head coaches. Programming starts at 10 a.m. Minneapolis time. Press conferences will re-air beginning at 5 p.m. Wednesday.

Each coach brings players from his team. Representing the Gophers will be defensive tackle Ra’Shede Hageman, running back Donnell Kirkwood and safety Brock Vereen. Hageman is on the watch lists of candidates for the Outland Trophy and Bronko Nagurski Trophy.

The Gophers athletic department is pitching several different season ticket packages involving football, men’s basketball and men’s hockey to University of Minnesota students. Three of the packages have sold out, totaling 1,155 tickets. Student football season tickets sold as of July 18 totaled 1,281 compared with 776 on the same date last year.

University of Minnesota regent Dave Larson and others interested in Gophers athletics will meet with athletic director Norwood Teague a week from today to learn more about the Facilities Needs Assessment and Plan. Phase One comes with an estimated cost of $190 million, all of it to be privately funded.

Isaiah Whitehead from Brooklyn and Ja’Quan Newton from Philadelphia, who are Rivals.com top 50 players in the class of 2014, are interested in attending college together and the Gophers are one of only four schools to have offered scholarships to the two guards, according to a July 16 story on Collegebasketballtalk.nbcsports.com.

S.I.com is previewing the NFL’s divisions this month and in a July 10 analysis about the NFC North predicted the Vikings could be a playoff team for a second consecutive season. “They are capable of another run this season, but the margin for error is slim,” wrote Chris Burke.

His opinion is that for the Vikings to become Super Bowl contenders, Adrian Peterson will need plenty of help including from quarterback Christian Ponder who has the resources to succeed in his third season. The team became better in the offseason at wide receiver with the additions of veteran Greg Jennings and rookie Cordarrelle Patterson, but worse at cornerback with veteran Antoine Winfield joining the Seahawks. Jennings’ departure from Green Bay is viewed as a weakness for the Packers. Vikings’ second year safety Harrison Smith is likely to be the team’s breakout player.

In 2015 the Vikings can celebrate 50 years of training camps in Mankato. The team opens its 48^thconsecutive Mankato camp on Thursday at Mankato State University. Among NFL teams, only the Packers have more training camp longevity at the same location. The Packers are working on 56 years at St. Norbert College in De Pere, Wisconsin.

The latest issue of Sports Illustrated offers a MLB mid-season “re-forecast,” and predictions include a 69-93 final record for the Twins, finishing ahead of only the White Sox (65-97) in the AL Central. If correct, that will follow Twins records of 63-99 in 2011 and 66-96 in 2012. The magazine predicts the Cardinals over the Rangers in six games in the World Series.

Scott Diamond, the Twins’ starter and losing pitcher in yesterday’s game against the Indians, gave up six runs (five earned) in four and two-thirds innings. It was the fifth time this season he has allowed six runs or more. Yesterday was the third consecutive start Diamond, 5-9 record with a 5.53 ERA this season, has lasted less than five innings.

Sports Headliners reader Dan Hennen made a trip to Cedar Rapids to see the Twins’ Class A affiliate Kernels team. He compared the stadium atmosphere to a Saint Paul Saints entertainment experience including postgame fireworks. Tip for foodies: the stadium’s pork tenderloin sandwich is a winner. Hennen and family included a stop in Dyersville, Iowa to visit the Field of Dreams attraction. Picture taking in the “knee-high corn,” per Hennen’s e-mail.

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Holtz Saw ‘Gold Mine’ at Minnesota

Posted on July 10, 2013July 10, 2013 by David Shama

George Stewart has been on vacation from his job as the Vikings’ wide receivers coach but it wouldn’t be a surprise if his thoughts have wandered back to 1983.

It was 30 years ago last spring that Stewart began his coaching career as a graduate assistant for Lou Holtz at Arkansas. In December of 1983 Holtz was hired by the Gophers as head coach and he made Stewart his offensive line coach.

“I’ve been very fortunate. Lou Holtz is the person who got me into coaching,” Stewart told Sports Headliners.

Without Holtz, Stewart wouldn’t have experienced a national championship at Notre Dame in 1988. That success in South Bend helped send Stewart into the NFL in 1989 coaching special teams for the Steelers and beginning a 25 year pro coaching career.

Stewart was reminded about his time with the Gophers under Holtz who quickly rebuilt the program in two seasons, 1984 and 1985. Even back then Holtz was one of America’s premier coaches and his ambitions for the program could have made an optimist blush.

Stewart believes the Gophers might have even earned glory beyond Big Ten titles and Rose Bowl victories under Holtz, who was fired for unknown reasons at Arkansas despite a 60-21-2 record. “We had a chance to build something very special (at Minnesota),” Stewart said.

How special? Well, how about the Gophers’ seventh national championship?

Scoff if you wish but first listen to Stewart. “When coach Holtz left in ‘85 that (first) recruiting class we had in South Bend, (the) majority of those guys were coming here,” he said. “They all switched (Minnesota commitments) and came to South Bend with coach Holtz (in 1986). You’re talking about a lot of great players. …We were able to have a national championship with those guys.”

Holtz—a devout Catholic who as a kid walked to school singing or humming the Notre Dame Fight Song—used an escape clause in his contract to leave the Gophers after just two seasons. Stewart believes South Bend might well have been the only place that could have made him depart Minneapolis.

“I knew in his heart Notre Dame was where he wanted to be,” Stewart said. “Strong Catholic. …If Gerry Faust had done a great job, Lou Holtz probably would have finished his coaching at the University of Minnesota.”

Faust had jumped from Moeller High School in Cincinnati to head coach at Notre Dame. It was one of the strangest coaching hires in college football history and despite Faust’s bubbling optimism and passion for Notre Dame, the Fighting Irish often got kicked around during his era, compiling a 30-26-1 record in five seasons before he was fired. His postseason highlight was a one point win over Boston College in the 1983 Liberty Bowl.

Holtz was only 46 when hired by the Gophers in 1983. He took over a program in free fall, 1-10 during the 1983 season. The talent on the 1984 roster was probably worthy of duplicating the previous year’s record.

But in 1984 the Gophers were much improved, mostly because they played better fundamentally and had talented freshman quarterback Ricky Foggie. That team was 4-7 including 3-6 in the Big Ten after being winless in conference games the year before. In 1985 the Gophers improved to 7-5 overall, 4-4 in the Big Ten. Minnesota scared No. 3 ranked Oklahoma, losing 13-7 in the Metrodome. The Gophers gave No. 9 Ohio State the jitters in the dome before losing 23-19. At season’s end the Gophers, without Holtz coaching them while on his way to South Bend, beat Clemson 20-13 in the Independence Bowl game.

Stewart said Holtz thought the Gophers’ head coaching job was a “gold mine,” having the resources to turn the program into a national power. That was an opinion Holtz shared with Stewart back at Arkansas, even before the two arrived in Minneapolis. Stewart didn’t doubt the wisdom of the decision to come to Minnesota because he knew Holtz could out-coach and out-recruit most coaches.

Before Stewart coached for Holtz, he played for him at Arkansas as an All-Southwest Conference guard. From 1977-1980 Stewart saw the Holtz magic. “We always knew we had a chance to win because he was our coach,” Stewart said. “We knew our coach was better than the coach on the other sideline.”

For much of Holtz’s coaching career there was a perception he operated loosely with NCAA recruiting rules. Stewart said his experience was Holtz adhered to guidelines.

The two of them met when Stewart was a highly sought high school player in Little Rock. “People have a misperception of coach Holtz,” Stewart said. “I was the No. 1 prospect…in the south when I came out of high school. I had a choice go to any school in America. I was offered by a lot of other schools. …He (Holtz) promised me two things. He promised me an opportunity to get me my degree, and No. 2, I was going to work as hard as any player in the country.”

Stewart said other schools offered cars, money and easy grades, but not Holtz. Later as an assistant coach, Stewart saw Holtz operate within the rules. “He’s had a bad reputation for being a guy…that has had a lot of trickeries. But nothing was devious with Lou Holtz.”

Holtz may have mastered more roles than any college head football coach in history. He excelled in not just recruiting, but coaching practices and games, and hiring talented assistants. He could charm fans and boosters, raising funds and awareness for his program while throwing quips around the room and maybe performing a magic trick or two. He was a genius at understanding how to market Lou Holtz and his team.

Holtz, who during his coaching career entertained on the Tonight Show with Johnny Carson, had Minnesotans so enthralled about the program that in 1986 the Gophers’ season tickets total was 56,000, certainly among the largest totals in school history.

All those skills had everything to do with why Stewart chose to play and coach for Holtz. “He was like a father,” Stewart said. “He’s very demanding. I am glad I had an opportunity to learn how to coach from him. I was able to learn all aspects of football from him.”

When Holtz first approached Stewart about becoming a graduate assistant, Stewart was selling cars in Little Rock. Holtz convinced him to try coaching for three months. Three decades later Stewart has experienced a career that has included six years with the Vikings and many memories—even some might-have-beens in Dinkytown.

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