Vikings – Page 256 – David Shama's Minnesota Sports Headliners

Worth Noting

Posted on April 25, 2012April 25, 2012 by David Shama

The Vikings Draft Party tomorrow night at Mall of America Field opens at 4 p.m. Admission is free to season ticket holders. For others the cost is $10.

The Vikings are viewed as the fourth place team in the NFC North, although Bears tight end Matt Spaeth wouldn’t say that. He said with injuries and other variables it’s difficult to predict where teams will finish. “They’ve (the Vikings) got a lot of good players so they could be good,” the former Gopher told Sports Headliners.

Former Vikings head coach Mike Tice is the new Bears offensive coordinator. “Coach Tice’s offense is going to be a tight end friendly offense so I am excited about this year,” Spaeth said.

Spaeth, who has been a part-time starter during five previous NFL seasons, likes the improvement the Bears have made during the offseason. “We’re going to definitely contend (in the NFC North),” he said. “The Packers are tough. It’s going to be a tough deal for us, but we’re going to be good.”

Pioneer Press columnist Charley Walters undergoes right shoulder replacement surgery tomorrow. “Too many fastballs,” the former Twins pitcher said. He won’t be writing again until May 7.

Nick Blackburn, the Twins losing pitcher last night, is 0-6 in his last nine starts dating back to July 25, 2011.

Twins starters now have a combined ERA of 6.73.

New Gophers athletic director Norwood Teague signed a five-year contract in 2011 with a base pay of $240,000 at Virginia Commonwealth University, according to a story posted Monday by the Richmond Times-Dispatch website. Teague, according to Minnesota media reports, will earn $400,000 in base salary, plus incentives, at the University of Minnesota.

Former Gophers running back Darrell Thompson, who runs the Minneapolis-based Bolder Options program, will hold his organization’s annual dinner at TCF Bank Stadium on May 17. WCCO Radio’s Dave Lee will be master of ceremonies with the keynote speech given by Terry Hitchcock, who at age 57 in 1996 ran the equivalent of 75 marathons in 75 days. More information on the dinner is available at the Bolder Options website.

St. Thomas football coach Glenn Caruso notes that he, Vikings center John Sullivan and former Twins infielder Tim Teufel (now the Mets third base coach) are all from Greenwich, Connecticut.

Long range TV calendar planning: The summer Olympics begin on NBC July 27, and CBS will televise the Notre Dame-Navy football game from Dublin, Ireland on September 1.

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Persuasion Fails in Stadium Vote

Posted on April 18, 2012April 18, 2012 by David Shama

A legislative panel was told the Vikings are not “making money” and the state of Minnesota could make a $140 million profit from its stadium financing, but these and other arguments didn’t persuade the House Government Operations and Elections Committee to approve a bill on Monday night funding a new multi-purpose stadium in downtown Minneapolis.

The panel rejected the bill for a nearly $1 billion stadium by a 9-6 vote at the State Capitol in a meeting that Sports Headliners followed via Twin Cities Public Television. The vote may have ended hope during this legislative session for approving a new covered roof facility that would have the Vikings as its primary tenant, although Senate leadership could yet be heard from.

Among those voting no were two committee members from Minneapolis, Rep. Marion Greene and Rep. Frank Hornstein. They and the seven others who rejected the bill voiced numerous concerns and questions including why “billionaire owners” couldn’t fund part or the entire stadium project.

Committee member and bill advocate Rep. Terry Morrow said stadiums that base funding on private dollars have been financed in larger markets able to attract revenues through the sale of personal seat licenses in the facilities. In this market, consumers can’t support such a revenue stream, he said.

The majority of NFL stadiums and baseball parks are funded through public and private partnerships. Team executive Lester Bagley said the Vikings’ proposed stadium contribution of $427 million would be the third largest ever for an NFL franchise.

The Vikings have long argued their revenues are among the lowest in the NFL and remaining in the Metrodome isn’t an option. “The team is not making money,” said Ted Mondale, chairman of the Metropolitan Sports Facilities Commission.

The bill reviewed Monday night calls for $398 million from the state of Minnesota and also $150 million from the city of Minneapolis. Rep. Morrie Lanning, the chief author of the bill, said that after 30 years the state would make a $140 million profit because of income taxes received from the Vikings and visiting players. “This is a good deal for Minnesota,” he said.

Lanning said for seven years the Vikings have been before the legislature, and his bill was the best ever proposed. He also noted that the Government Operations and Elections Committee was where the bill stalled two years ago.

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Worth Noting

Posted on April 16, 2012April 16, 2012 by David Shama

The Twins have played five consecutive days or nights and won’t have a day off until April 26. They open a four-game series against the Yankees tonight in New York.

Infielder Tsuyoshi Nishioka, who hit .226 for the Twins last season, is batting .128 with no RBI in 39 at bats for Triple-A Rochester.

This year the Miller Lite Vikings Draft Party will be held at Mall of America Field for the first time. The event begins at 4 p.m. on Thursday, April 26 and continues through the conclusion of the NFL Draft’s first round. General admission tickets are $10 and can be purchased on the Vikings website. There’s no charge for season ticket holders. Activities will include games, stadium and locker room tours, and a bean bag tournament. Current and former players will sign autographs to benefit the Vikings Children’s Fund.

Game times have been set for the four Vikings preseason games: 8 p.m. at San Francisco, August 10; 7 p.m. for home games on August 17 and 24 against Buffalo and San Diego; and 6 p.m. at Houston, August 30. All times are Central Daylight.

The Gophers annual spring football game begins at 11 a.m. Saturday at TCF Bank Stadium. A replay telecast will be on the Big Ten Network starting at 6 p.m. next Sunday.

The Minnesota High School All-Star Football Game will be played at St. Cloud State, not at theUniversity of Minnesota as previously announced. The June 30 game has switched locations because of NCAA legislation passed last year prohibiting all-star games from being held on Division I and IAA campuses.

The Wild have the second best visiting team dressing room in the NHL, according to results of a players’ poll published in the April 16 issue of Sports Illustrated magazine.

Through games of last Wednesday, the Wolves Kevin Love had 10 games this season of at least 30 points and 15 rebounds while all the other players in the NBA had nine games combined.

Arlotta Stadium, named after the Arlotta family, is featured in the title of a lacrosse show on NBC Sports Network, “Notre Dame Lacrosse: Inside the Walls of Arlotta.” Minnesota Swarm owner John Arlotta and his family pledged the lead gift toward Arlotta Stadium in 2008. The half-hour show reports on the Irish men’s lacrosse team and is scheduled for airing on Wednesday starting at 2:30 p.m. and Friday at 2 p.m.

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