Vikings – Page 243 – David Shama's Minnesota Sports Headliners

After 7 Titles, Grant Still ‘Fired Up’

Posted on January 23, 2012January 23, 2012 by David Shama

“I am still fired up about football.”

Eden Prairie coach Mike Grant made that statement earlier this month when he spoke at a C.O.R.E.S. luncheon. Grant is 54 and last November finished his 20^th season as Eagles coach by winning a seventh state championship.

And, no surprise, he wants to win some more.

C.O.R.E.S. is an acronym for coaches, officials, reporters, educators and sports fans, although Grant suggested it means “crotchety, old, retired, educators.” He had fun talking to the group, many of whom he’s known for years, and they have been admirers of not only Mike but his famous father, legendary Vikings coach Bud Grant who had four Super Bowl teams.

There’s a lot of the father in the son including the Grant way of “not getting too high, not getting too low.” That doesn’t mean Mike isn’t passionate about football, though, and he’s looking forward to next season. “We get ready (following a state title), one day after,” he said.

Grant expects Champlin Park to “probably be the No. 1” team in the state next season among schools with large student enrollments. His Eagles will pay a visit to Champlin Park in a much anticipated pre-Labor Day game.

Champlin Park may deserve a preseason No. 1 ranking but the Eagles will be special, too. Grant expects 11 starters back from his 2011 Class 5A state championship team. Between 280 and 380 candidates will try out for the team and already about 120 are working in the weight room preparing for next season. “Our kids are committed,” Grant said.

Obviously there’s depth and talent at Eden Prairie High but that doesn’t mean the Eagles win every game. In 2010 Brainerd pulled a big upset over Eden Prairie in the playoffs and last fall during the regular season Wayzata beat the Eagles. Eden Prairie got the most important win against the Trojans, though, winning the state championship game.

“I think they were better than us,” Grant said. “They had better talent. If we played them 10 times, we might win one time.”

Grant’s teams emphasize fundamentals. In the last three seasons his starting quarterbacks have thrown zero interceptions. “We try not to do anything pretty,” he said.

The first fundamental Grant preaches is having the best players available for games. “We try not to get anyone hurt in practice,” he said.

Grant’s dad is still a passionate hunter and Mike is sometimes his companion. “He says ‘let’s go hunting’ and I just drop everything,” Mike said.

Bud is 84 now and his wife Pat died in 2009. But Bud has a girlfriend and he remains a true character, a guy who speaks his mind and enjoys his life.

Mike told C.O.R.E.S. members about how former Vikings owner Red McCombs arranged for his dad to shoot turkeys inTexas. At day’s end Bud’s hosts were nervous about how to entertain the famous coach, suggesting a nearby bar or a game of billiards. “You know what? I like quiet,” Bud said. And then, Mike recalled, his dad sat and read a newspaper for two hours.

The younger Grant said he’s approaching retirement, too, but doesn’t talk like a man who expects to quit coaching anytime soon. “Not unless the A.D. fires me,” Grant said.

The Activities Director at Eden Prairie High—just in case you didn’t know—is Mike Grant. Yup, that Mike Grant.

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Ex-Coach Predicts 7th Place Finish for U

Posted on January 4, 2012January 4, 2012 by David Shama

Jim Dutcher predicts the Gophers will finish seventh in the Big Ten and likely will play in a post-season tournament, but he said 0-2 Minnesota needs to win its next two conference games starting tonight against Iowa at Williams Arena.

Dutcher, the former Gophers coach whose team 30 years ago won the Big Ten, is a passionate follower of college basketball and watches many games on TV. “Minnesota is not a Big Ten (title) contender but can get into a post-season tourney (NCAA or NIT),” Dutcher told Sports Headliners.

He believes a 9-9 conference record is possible for the Gophers, and that would give Minnesota a 21-10 overall record before the Big Ten Tournament. He said the Gophers might finish their conference schedule with a 6-3 home record and 3-6 on the road.

After opening conference road losses to Illinois and Michigan, the Gophers are home for games against Iowa and then Purdue on Sunday. “You gotta win your home games,” Dutcher said. “Go at least 6-3 at home and 3-6 on the road.”

The Gophers played better at Illinois and Michigan than Dutcher expected. Minnesota lost to the Illini, 81-72 in double overtime, and 61-56 to the Wolverines. “I was more impressed (with Minnesota) after the two losses than I was before,” Dutcher said. “One game (Illinois) they should have won and one (Michigan) they could have won.”

Obvious in both games was the Gophers don’t know who their clutch player is, and also Minnesota struggles to make outside shots, including three pointers. But Minnesota has athleticism, depth and plays with effort.

That could be enough to keep the Gophers just ahead ofIllinois in the final conference standings, a program Dutcher describes as “always a work in progress.” He thinks the Illini will finish eighth in the conference followed by Northwestern, Iowa, Nebraska and PennState.

Purdue has “marginal” talent” but Dutcher has been impressed enough with the Boilermakers to think they will finish sixth in the Big Ten. His top five teams are: Ohio State, Michigan State, Wisconsin, Indiana and Michigan. The Buckeyes could be a Final Four team, and the Spartans and Hoosiers might also make deep tournament runs, according to the former Gophers coach.

Neither the Badgers nor Wolverines have consistent inside scoring threats and that will be problematic. “Wisconsin (also) can’t play from behind (in a game) and get to the free throw line,” Dutcher said.

The Badgers’ deliberate offensive style and tenacious defense could be enough to push Wisconsin just ahead of a more talented Indiana team in the final standings, according to Dutcher.

Love Blossoms, Trade Rival Fades

It’s never too late to say thank you. How about tonight when the Grizzlies play the Timberwolves at TargetCenter?

In the hours following the 2008 NBA draft, Wolves executive Kevin McHale made a multi-player trade with the Grizzlies that brought power forward Kevin Love to Minnesota. The cornerstones of that trade were Love and shooting guard O.J. Mayo.

Love has become an NBA All-Star while Mayo doesn’t even start for Memphis. A league source told Sports Headliners McHale wanted to draft Love but instead the organization chose Mayo with the No. 3 pick in the draft. But Love, who was the No. 5 pick, soon became a Timberwolf when McHale and team owner Glen Taylor worked out a deal that involved eight players.

At the top of McHale’s things-to-like list back in 2008 was Love’s skill in rebounding. Love led the league in rebounding last season at 15.2 per game. In five games this season he’s second in NBA rebounding, again at 15.2.

Now in his fourth season, Love is maturing into one of the NBA’s best offensive forwards. He’s averaging a career high 25.4 points per game, making 47 percent of his field goals including 44 percent of three point attempts. He not only shoots with accuracy, but is the team’s best inside scorer.

Love’s passing is timely and accurate. At 6-10 he’s the best of the team’s big men passers and other than point guard Ricky Rubio, nobody on the Wolves is more unselfish.

During the off-season Love reshaped his body and reflected on his leadership skills. He’s become both the franchise’s definitive leader and best player, now even drawing comparisons to Kevin Garnett, the former Wolves All-Star forward who will be a certain Hall of Famer.

Love may or may not one day make the Hall of Fame, but you have to like his odds much better than Mayo’s who during the last three seasons has seen his scoring averages decline from 18.5 to 17.5 to 11.3. This season he’s averaging 8.6 points in five games.

McHale is no longer working for the Wolves and is coaching the Rockets, but he will be remembered tonight.

Worth Noting

Speculation is the National Collegiate Hockey Conference will announce former USOC CEO Jim Scherr as its first commissioner today at a news conference. The conference begins play in 2013-14 and consists of eight teams—Colorado College, Denver, Miami (Ohio), Nebraska-Omaha, North Dakota, St. Cloud State, UMD and Western Michigan.

Iowa basketball coach Fran McCaffery’s wife Margaret was a Minnesota prep basketball star who later played and coached at Notre Dame. She grew up in St. Paul as Margaret Nowlin and met McCaffery when he was an assistant coach for the men’s team.

Michigan has opened a $20 million-plus basketball practice facility, leaving the Gophers and Northwestern as the only Big Ten schools without such a building. Minnesota is trying to raise funds for a $15 million facility.

The defending champion Mavericks have made personnel changes since last year including allowing point guard J.J. Barea to join the Wolves. Dallas is off to a slow start (2-4) and it doesn’t surprise Barea.

“No question. I knew they were going to have a tough time,” Barea told Sports Headliners. “It’s going to be a long year for them. They’ll win some games because they got enough talent and they like to compete and they like to win. …”

Derrick Williams, the Wolves 20-year-old rookie forward, said the difference between the Pac-12 where he played for Arizona and the NBA is a player needs to use his basketball intelligence in the pros or “get left behind.”

The Vikings promotion of Rick Spielman to general manager didn’t prompt a late afternoon headline yesterday on ESPN.com.

Vikings linebacker Chad Greenway talking about teammate and defensive end Jared Allen who set a new franchise single season record for sacks with 22: “It comes back to what makes him great is his ability to play hard every snap. …”

Vikings wide receiver Percy Harvin commenting about the quarterback competition between Christian Ponder and Joe Webb: “It will be tough to keep Webb off the field, but Ponder did some great things for us this year. It’s a good scenario to have two quality quarterbacks like that. That’s not my job, though. I will show up and do whatever they ask me to do.”

Kyle Rudolph, the Vikings rookie tight end, considers himself fortunate to have played one season having Jim Kleinsasser—the 13-year veteran tight end who retired on Sunday—as his mentor. Rudolph has referred to Kleinsasser as dad.

The MIAC is one of only three Division III conferences to have seven schools in the first 2011-12 Division III Learfield Sports Director’s Cup Standings of the season. The MIAC schools are St. Thomas, St. Olaf, Concordia, Saint Benedict, Carleton, Bethel and Hamline.

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Look for Wilf to Assess Vikings

Posted on January 2, 2012January 2, 2012 by David Shama

Bob Lurtsema expects Vikings owner Zygi Wilf to demand accountability in the organization following the team’s 3-13 season, among the worst records in franchise history.

“If I was him I would put people on the spot as far as job security,” Lurtsema told Sports Headliners. “From people in draft headquarters to assistant coaches. There’s (got to be) a wakeup call.”

Lurtsema doesn’t expect any change in the head coaching position where Leslie Frazier finished his first full season yesterday during the team’s 17-13 loss to the Bears. Lurtsema, who played 12 NFL seasons for the Vikings, Giants and Seahawks, said the players play hard for Frazier and that’s a “big, big plus.” He also acknowledged the importance of coaching, attributing any team’s success to “65 percent” of what the staff accomplishes.

Before Wilf became a Vikings owner he was a loyal Giants fan and friend of Lurtsema. “I love Zygi Wilf,” Lurtsema said. “I knew him in New York and have done a lot of different things with him.”

Wilf wants the Vikings to be winners and has shown a commitment to spending money for personnel. “After a loss you never see anybody more down than Zygi,” Lurtsema said.

While Wilf can assess the leaders in the organization, it’s up to those authorities to scrutinize themselves and people who work for them, according to Lurtsema who is a passionate follower of the team. Players have to do their own assessments, too. “Everyone has to be accountable,” Lurtsema said. “Being nice will get you nowhere.”

The Vikings need to draft better in the future, according to Lurtsema who credited the organization with “the steal of the draft” in 2011 with the second round selection of tight end Kyle Rudolph. Lurtsema believes the first draft priority in 2012 is a big play wide receiver who can open up the field for the offense. He also said fans have to realize the reality of NFL drafting is “one-third” of the picks will be busts.

Worth Noting

If the Vikings decided to restructure their front office by creating a powerful general manager position, Brian Billick would be an interesting candidate. The former Vikings offensive coordinator and Super Bowl winning head coach with the Ravens is a TV commentator now, but last week expressed interest in the Dolphins coaching job.

Joe Webb considers himself a quarterback, not a wide receiver. His minutes at quarterback have been limited in playing behind Christian Ponder. Why hasn’t he played more?

“They (the coaches) don’t give me a reason,” Webb said last week. “I try not to get into all that. I just try to control what I can control.”

Webb has sometimes been impressive in spot duty but Lurtsema noted those are different circumstances than when opposing defenses game plan for a quarterback’s tendencies week after week. “He’s got a great attitude, studies hard and is athletic,” Lurtsema said.

Webb is conscious of being an upbeat leader. “They (teammates) see you down, they’re going to be down,” he said.

Vikings running back Toby Gerhart was drafted in 2010 but couldn’t participate in the team’s organized team activities because he was finishing school work at Stanford. In 2011 there were no OTA’s due to the NFL labor dispute so he’s looking forward to more thorough offseason preparations in 2012. Adrian Peterson’s left knee injuries have clouded the Vikings’ starting running back situation and yesterday Gerhart also hurt a knee.

“Adrian is a great friend of mine and he’s become like a brother,” Gerhart said recently. “You don’t want to see anybody get hurt, no matter what the circumstance. We pray for a speedy recovery for the interim. …”

Reserve wide receiver Greg Camarillo is a free agent after this season and may not return to the Vikings. Camarillo, who has played six seasons with the Vikings, Dolphins and Chargers, admires Vikings tight end Jim Kleinsasser whose last game yesterday ended a 13 year career.

“I was just telling Jimmy Kleinsasser he’s my hero,”Camarillo said last week. “Because if you can play 13 years and retire on your own free will, instead of injury or something like that, that is truly respectable. To have a career like that guy would be ideal.”

Defensive tackle Kevin Williams has two years remaining on his contract and is 31 years old. He’s undecided how much longer he wants to play, perhaps four or five more seasons. “I know if I can’t play at a high level, I don’t want to do it,” he said.

Glenn Caruso has been named 2011 Division III National Coach of the Year by American Football Monthly. The 37-year-oldSt. Thomas coach led his team to a school-record 13 wins and the program’s first trip to the Division III semifinals. He is also one of five finalists for the Liberty Mutual D-III National Coach of the Year award.

Concordia, St. Paul senior left offensive tackle Tyler Hendrickson placed fifth out of nine national finalists for the 2011 Gene Upshaw Division II Lineman of the Year award presented by the Manheim Touchdown Club. The award is given annually to the top NCAA Division II junior or senior lineman (offense or defense) in the nation.

It will be a surprise if major league baseball doesn’t award the 2014 All-Star game to Target Field.

The Timberwolves, who only sold out one game last season, sold out their first two home games this season. The TV rating of 5.6 for the home opener against Oklahoma City was the best in years.

Burt McGlynn, who was a Timberwolves owner and once owned the Minnesota Buckskins of World Team Tennis, died last month. He also owned McGlynn Bakeries.

Former Gophers coach Jim Dutcher said his ex-assistant Jimmy Williams was hired as an assistant at Memphis last month to fill the vacancy left by Luke Walton. Walton was working for the Tigers until the NBA labor dispute was settled and then returned to the Lakers.

Dutcher’s son Brian is the head coach in-waiting at San Diego State. When Steve Fisher retires the school has agreed to promote Brian from assistant to head coach. Jim said the Aztecs, ranked No. 25 in last week’s A.P. poll, are the only nationally rated team on the West Coast and have defeated three Pac-12 schools this season.

The Aztecs play in the Mountain West Conference and among the league’s best teams is UNLV. Jim said UNLV is the “most underrated” team in the country.

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