Vikings – Page 267 – David Shama's Minnesota Sports Headliners

Worth Noting

Posted on December 27, 2011December 29, 2011 by David Shama

Minnesota starters tonight are expected to be forwards Julian Welch and Rodney Williams, center Ralph Sampson III, guards Austin Hollins and Maverick Ahanmisi. Williams will be one of the Big Ten’s best solo defenders.

The Gophers and North Dakota State have played each other six of the last seven seasons, and are scheduled again in 2012. All games have been in Minneapolis and Bison coach Saul Phillips has invited the Gophers to play in Fargo, but so far no promises from Minnesota. “I’ll (even) cook for them,” Phillips joked.

Tom Wistrcill, the former Gophers senior associate athletic director and now athletic director at Akron, made headlines last week with his hire of Terry Bowden as the new Zips football coach.

The December issue of Sporting News Magazine ranks new Ohio State hire Urban Meyer as the No. 1 coach in college football. Northwestern’s Pat Fitzgerald and Wisconsin’s Brett Bielema were the two other Big Ten coaches who made the list.

In the same issue, USC coach Lane Kiffin claims his father Monte, the Trojans defensive coordinator, starts his day in the office by 5:30 a.m. and works until 2 a.m.

Rumors that Vikings defensive coordinator Fred Pagac will be let go after the season lead to speculation that linebackers coach Mike Singletary will succeed him.

Vikings coach Leslie Frazier was asked this question yesterday about quarterback Joe Webb: “Is Joe best used in a role where he takes a series or two here and there? If he starts and defensive coordinators can game plan for him, is the impact of how he plays gone?”

“That does factor in when you’re not preparing for him and all of a sudden he comes in the ball game,” Frazier answered. “It definitely makes a difference from a coordinator standpoint because they (Webb and Christian Ponder) are similar quarterbacks but dissimilar in so many ways. You almost have to have two game plans if you think Joe is going to play, and people do.

“They (opposing coaches) have a Joe Webb package because they know we use him for certain snaps and they have a defensive package for when he is on the field. It’s a little bit different when he starts or he comes into the ball game and he’s a true quarterback for a number of snaps. Those are some of things we’ll talk about as we go forward.”

“America’s Team” is nearby, Vikings fans. The Packers have replaced the Cowboys for that title, according to a story on NFL.com. The Public Policy Polling’s national survey reported 22 percent of voters regard the Packers as their favorite NFL team, followed by 11 percent for the Cowboys and eight percent for the Bears, Giants and Steelers.

Eden Prairie Class 5A state championship football coach Mike Grant will be the speaker on Thursday, January 12 at the C.O.R.E.S. luncheon in Bloomington. C.O.R.E.S. members can contact Jim Dotseth for more information, dotsethj@comcast.net.

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Worth Noting

Posted on December 16, 2011December 29, 2011 by David Shama

Christian Ponder threw three interceptions, with one returned for a touchdown last Sunday in a 34-28 loss to Detroit. For the season he has 11 interceptions and a lowly passer rating of 73.4. He also had a fumble in the Lions game leading to a touchdown.

It’s difficult to be patient with a rookie quarterback but reality is it requires time to develop efficiency. Four years ago in New Jersey Giants quarterback Eli Manning, then 26, was still learning the NFL game and threw four interceptions — including three returned for touchdowns — in a 41-17 loss to the Vikings. And Manning was in his third season as a full time starter. This season Manning might be headed for a career season and has a rating of 95.5, his best ever in the NFL.

Vikings wide receiver Percy Harvin’s 38 receptions since week 10 of the NFL schedule (11/14/11) are the most in the league. His five touchdowns are second best in the NFL during that period.

With 200 career receptions, Harvin ranks third on the franchise’s all-time list for most catches by a wide receiver during the first three seasons.

The 2-11 Vikings have three remaining games on the schedule and will be underdogs in all of them. In franchise history three teams won three games in a season while the 1962 team had a worst ever 2-11-1 record.

The Vikings have chosen 30 prep football players for its All-State team and will recognize them at halftime of Sunday’s home game against New Orleans. Totino-Grace coach Jeff Ferguson has been selected Coach of the Year.

Unlike Rivals.com which lists the projected Gophers 2012 football recruiting class last in the Big Ten, Scout.com has Minnesota ahead of Nebraska and Illinois.

The Twins are sending an electronic holiday greetings card featuring “Gardy Claus.” Poke Gardy in the belly and he announces what he wants for Christmas including “Joe Mauer’s hair” and “lasik” surgery for umpires. Well done.

Minneapolis native and former Mr. Basketball Kevin Noreen, a redshirt freshman forward at West Virginia, is averaging 3.1 points for the Mountaineers. His brother Kyle Noreen is a freshman guard at Radford where he averages 1.7 points per game.

Mike Stehlik announced his resignation after 22 years of directing the women’s soccer program at Gustavus. He had an overall record of 223-137-30 in 22 seasons and ranks 35th in career victories in NCAA Division III women’s soccer.

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Vikings Camarillo Makes a Difference for Kids

Posted on December 14, 2011December 29, 2011 by David Shama

Greg Camarillo is a benchwarmer for the Vikings, a wide receiver who has just six receptions for 93 yards this season, but to disadvantaged kids like Kitam Hamm he’s a hero.

Hamm is a high school senior who lives in the infamous town of Compton, California. It’s a place where youngsters are maybe more likely to be shot than attend college. Hamm, a football player and student of promise, has hope for the future because of his own hard work and encouragement from family and people like Camarillo and his brother Jeff Camarillo.

Hamm was a seventh grader when the Camarillos started the Charging Forward program in southern California. Compton was targeted not only for the youngsters there who needed help, but also because the Camarillos’ father Albert grew up in the city.

Greg said the Charging Forward program’s goal is to work with student-athletes “that will benefit from a little encouragement and a little reward for hard work in the classroom and on the playing field.” Rewards for those performing well include meetings with guest speakers and gifts like gloves, cleats and tickets to San Diego Chargers games.

“That simple thing that would get them out of their neighborhood for a day — for a weekend — was just what they needed to work hard,” Greg said. “Something to look forward to, (and) something to be excited about.”

Hamm’s success was documented in a lengthy feature for the December 5 issue of Sports Illustrated. The article details the reality of living in a gang-infested community and how Hamm has excelled on the football field and in the classroom.

“He’s a great kid,” Greg said. “He comes from a great household. The article does a great job of portraying what he made it past to be successful.”

Greg has used his money and also fundraisers to provide a budget for Charging Forward. During the next offseason he and his brother plan to start up with another group of youngsters, similar to what they did six years ago with Hamm. The effort will be made easier now that Camarillo has sold his home in Florida and moved back to San Diego.

Greg and Frank hope to have Charging Forward chapters not only in Compton, but San Diego and East Palo Alto, California. Frank, who was a teacher in Compton, is now an educator in East Palo Alto.

“It’s amazing what just a little bit will do to the hopes and dreams of the kids,” Greg said.

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