Wild – David Shama's Minnesota Sports Headliners

No Sleeping on Danielle Hunter’s Sacks

Posted on September 26, 2023September 26, 2023 by David Shama

Enjoy a Tuesday notes column.

After three games Viking outside linebacker Danielle Hunter ranks second in the NFL with five sacks. Long known as one of the league’s best rushers, Hunter missed all of the 2020 season and was limited to seven games in 2021 because of injuries.

“I’ve learned a lot about taking care of the body over the years,” Hunter told Sports Headliners. When Hunter was younger, he “used to stay up all night playing video games.”

What’s his approach to staying healthy now? “I feel like the biggest thing is just rest,” he said. “Sleep, nutrition. That’s the most important thing. Over the years, being younger, you think you don’t need sleep but as time goes on, sleep and nutrition is probably the most important thing.”

Hunter, 28 years old and now in his ninth NFL season with the Vikings, avoids unhealthy foods and takes magnesium before going to sleep because the mineral helps him relax. He targets about eight hours of sleep and doesn’t nap. “I try to stay up as much as I can and reward myself with a good deep sleep.”

Hunter’s fast start in accumulating sacks is not new. In the first seven games in 2021 he had six sacks.

Danielle Hunter image courtesy of Minnesota Vikings.

Hunter has averaged double figures in sacks four times during his career including last season at 11.5. He had 29 sacks and 36 tackles for loss in 2018-2019, ranking second and third in the NFL over that span.

It wouldn’t be surprising if Dalton Risner makes his first start for the Vikings Sunday in Charlotte against the Panthers. Risner, who signed as a free agent with the Vikings last week, played four seasons at left guard with the Broncos. He could line up there Sunday, with Ezra Cleveland moving to right guard where he has previous experience and replacing Ed Ingram.

Another possibility is Risner could play right guard, with Cleveland remaining on the left side. Risner has practiced at right guard with the Vikings.

His offensive line versatility includes playing center and tackle at Kansas State. “I can still snap the football,” Risner told Sports Headliners. “Primarily I think I am a left guard, right guard, right tackle, center emergency. I played three years at right tackle (in college). In the NFL, nobody talks to me as a right tackle, man. …I don’t know if you should trust me at left tackle.”

Alexander Mattison said some of the best advice he received from Dalvin Cook, the man he replaced as the Vikings’ starting running back, is “be the kid that fell in love with the game.”

That means playing relaxed and loose. Challenging? Yes, because Mattison can be his harshest critic and he said “no one can beat myself up, criticize me more than myself.”

Mattison had his best rushing total of 2023 in last Sunday’s loss to the Chargers. He gained 93 yards on 20 carries.

Former Vikings wide receiver Adam Thielen, now with 0-3 Carolina, said “next week (against 0-3 Minnesota Sunday) kind of feels like a playoff game.”

It’s that kind of dramatic situation for both teams, with ESPN.com’s Bill Barnwell writing earlier this month that since 2002 99 NFL teams have started their seasons 0-3 but only one (the 2018 Texans) has made the playoffs. And only one 0-4 team has ever earned its way into the postseason, the 1992 Chargers. Take note, though, that the NFL started playing a 17-game regular season schedule in 2021 which now provides an extra game to recover from a difficult start.

Thielen, 33, is still a playmaker and last Sunday had 11 receptions for 145 yards, the fourth most for a single game in his 10-season NFL career.

Former Vikings quarterback and NFL Hall of Famer Brett Favre was a big hit in Winona earlier this month. A consummate storyteller, he was the celebrity speaker for the Morrie Miller Athletic Foundation Banquet. The dinner, along with a golf tournament, raised a record $410,000 for Winona area athletics. Many attendees said he was the best guest ever and the past celebrity list includes Joe Montana, Mike Ditka, Bart Starr and Bud Grant.

If Darius Taylor, injured late in last Saturday’s loss to Northwestern, can’t play in this Saturday’s Gopher Homecoming Game against Louisiana it will be interesting to see if redshirt freshman Zach Evans receives some reps. Evans, with an impressive reputation coming out of high school in Texas, hasn’t carried the ball in the first four games. He had a brief head turning debut in one game last season, with six carries for 29 yards and one touchdown against Northwestern.

Bryce Williams, now in his sixth and final season with the Gophers, seems the likely starter if Taylor can’t play. He knows his assignments and is probably the best receiver among the running backs. Sean Tyler, the Western Michigan transfer fumbled three times against Eastern Michigan, and since then had three carries against North Carolina and none in the Northwestern game.

Taylor is the Big Ten Freshman of the Week after accounting for 198 yards rushing and 18 receiving yards last Saturday. It’s the third consecutive week he has won the honor, something that is a first in Gopher history.

Disgruntled Gophers fans after consecutive losses to North Carolina and Northwestern can do something positive by assisting Dinkytown Athletes. The official collective of Gophers sports accepts money designated to a specific program and money exclusively for football can reward current players for their Name, Image and Likeness. More money directed to football helps retain these players and assist future Gophers. Ideally, word gets out in the future that Minnesota is a strong NIL school, and that can do nothing but help attract quality talent and make the Gophers successful on the field.

If only two percent of football season ticket attendees, approximately 480, gave an average of $500 this fall it will increase revenues by $240,000. If 1,000 fans who follow the football Gophers only on TV gave an average of $250, that would jump revenues by $250,000. Sums like that, added to what is already in place and coming, would considerably boost football NIL money. https://dinkytownathletes.com/

The Gopher men’s hockey team is predicted to win the Big Ten regular season championship, per a poll of league coaches announced yesterday. Six Gophers are preseason All-Big Ten selections. Jimmy Snuggerud and Luke Mittelstadt are first teamers; Bryce Brodzinski, Mike Koster and Justen Close second teamers, and Ryan Chesley is an honorable mention choice.

No telecast of the Wild’s preseason opening game (start time 7 p.m.) in Dallas tonight against the Stars but KFAN has radio play-by-play. 100.3 FM.

Twins president Dave St. Peter talking about upcoming playoff games at Target Field: “We expect to sell out postseason games.”

St. Peter enjoys attending games at tradition-laden college football venues and on November 18 (after the World Series) plans to be in Knoxville to watch Tennessee against Georgia.

Not often in their history have the Twins made an offseason minor league free agent signing that turned out better than their late 2022 acquisition of Willi Castro. His versatility playing in the outfield and infield, timely hitting and base running (leads the team with 32 stolen bases) has been a factor in the Twins winning the AL Central Division.

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Communist China Can Boast about Wolves Player

Posted on August 20, 2023August 20, 2023 by David Shama

The Timberwolves will have five players participating in the FIBA World Cup that begins play this week. From a political perspective, the name jumping out is Kyle Anderson who has become a Chinese citizen and is expected to play for China’s national team starting Saturday against Serbia in the Philippines.

Anthony Edwards will play for the United States, Karl-Anthony Towns for the Dominican Republic, Rudy Gobert for France, and Nickeil Alexander-Walker for Canada. But Anderson has chosen Communist China—America’s No. 1 adversary and a nation with a long-term ambition to achieve global dominance.

But why?

Anderson is 29 and has nine years of NBA experience. He was born in New Jersey and attended college at UCLA, and he has been intrigued by China for a while. His maternal great grandfather was Chinese and family history is important to Anderson who visited the country a few years ago with his mother where they met relatives.

Using the connection with his great grandfather, Anderson was eligible to become a Chinese citizen and represent that nation on its FIBA team. He has adopted the name Li Kai’er.

U.S. law allows for dual citizenship. It’s not clear whether Anderson is renouncing his American citizenship but that seems unlikely with his lucrative NBA career. Giving up American citizenship is generally considered irrevocable and could cause issues with entry back into the United States. Anderson will earn $9.2 million playing in the NBA next season, per ESPN.com, while players reportedly earn a pittance competing for the FIBA World Cup.

What Anderson has done seems disrespectful at worst, and naïve at best. The Chinese Communist Party and its propagandists will utilize Anderson’s basketball participation and citizenship to its advantage. The party knows how to use sports to enhance its image and take the focus off its abuses including human rights, biological threats, spying and corporate theft in America, military armament, intimidation of Taiwan, and support of despots at home and internationally.

A former NBA authority, speaking anonymously to Sports Headliners about Anderson’s alliance with China, described it as a “horrible idea for his future.” How Anderson will be perceived by some Americans in the years ahead will include his confirmed loyalty to China by becoming a citizen in that tyrannical country.

The authority suggested Anderson’s China connection could become a distraction as he plays out the remainder of his career. NBA teams and locker rooms don’t need distractions and franchises have choices as to who fits on their teams. “Those considerations are on top (in addition) of talent,” the former insider said.

The source isn’t suggesting Anderson will be blacklisted but his Chinese connection is now part of who he is and will “hang over him.” The public and employers have a right to wonder how Anderson might be manipulated and used by a mega adversary of the free world.

The NBA and China have long held a business relationship. The large Chinese market has been a target for the league’s development of fans and revenues. But always lurking in the background, the authority said, is the realization of what the Chinese Communist Party is and represents.

Anderson was acquired by the Timberwolves last summer in a free agent signing. Playing mostly as a key reserve, the 6-6 small forward averaged 9.4 points, 5.3 rebounds and 4.9 assists. He is known for his all-around skills, unselfish play and being a good teammate.

Anderson’s profile now, though, includes more than basketball and he apparently is enthused with his citizenship decision. “Hello, fans in China, this is Li Kai’er. I’m so happy to announce I will be representing China in the World Cup. Really proud and honored to wear the Team China jersey,” Anderson said in a video posted on his Weibo account.

Timberwolves leadership didn’t respond to interview requests by Sports Headliners. In today’s individual rights environment NBA players have considerable freedom to do as they please during the offseason.

Worth Noting

Ivan Pace, the promising Vikings free agent rookie linebacker is only 5-foot-10, and must prove his pass defense abilities, but he is impressive in the preseason. He was responsible for play calls in last night’s game with the Titans.

Not only do the Vikings stay at the Omni Vikings Lakes during training camp but so, too, do the Titans and Cardinals when they are in Eagan this month for joint practices. The hotel is part of the Vikings Lakes complex that includes the TCO Performance Center which is still considered state-of-the-art in the NFL.

Jack Gibbens, the former Gophers linebacker who started two games for the Titans last year, got the nickname “doctor” from his head coach Mike Vrabel. Why did Gibbens get that tag last year as a rookie? He’s “Dr. Gibby” because he is smart.

The August 31 Minnesota-Nebraska game at Huntington Bank Stadium (capacity 50,805) will sell out soon. The Gophers figure to be about a seven-point favorite against the Cornhuskers.

Stillwater-based Creative Charters has sold out its travel inventory for the Gophers game at North Carolina next month.

Byron Buxton, out of the Twins lineup with a right hamstring strain since August 1, still has a chance at playing in 100 games—something he has done one time in his nine-year career. He has been in 85 games and, if healthy, figures to play in most games when he soon returns.

MLB.com points out this morning that the Twins, with a 13.1 FanGraphs WAR, have the best starting pitching rotation in the majors. WAR means wins above replacement.

The Twins announced today they have switched right-handed relievers on the roster, sending Jordan Balazovic to the Saints and bringing up Oliver Ortega from St. Paul.

Minnesotan Eric Curry starts his 25^th year of basketball officiating this fall and again plans to work games in the Pac-12, Mountain West and Big Ten. His wife Kelly, a former top assistant on Lindsay Whalen’s staff with the Gophers, is out of coaching and working in business.

Minnesota Wild forward Matt Boldy, with a sponsor’s exemption, will play in the PGA Canada CRMC Championship at Cragun’s Resort August 31-September 3. The course is one of two at the popular Brainerd area resort renovated by Minnesota golf legend Tom Lehman.

Hannah Boraas, headed to Montana State after leading Alexandria to the 2023 Class AAA state golf tournament title, is a protégé of former Gopher men’s coach John Means.

Da Beauty League, the summer hockey league that features NHL and NCAA players at Braemar Arena in Edina, has its semi-finals Monday night and championship game Wednesday.

The Bloomington-based CORES lunch programs featuring prominent speakers, mostly from Minnesota sports, is seeking new leadership to continue. Anyone interested in learning more about the volunteer-based organization should email Jim Dotseth, dotsethj@comcast.net. CORES is an acronym for coaches, officials, reporters, educators and sports fans.

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95-Year-Old ‘Barn’ Still Special to Golden Gophers

Posted on July 16, 2023 by David Shama

Williams Arena is only five years away from its 100^th birthday. The home of Golden Gophers basketball turned 95 last February and if you ask Ben Johnson the facility, despite its age, is still special.

Johnson’s opinion counts and not just because he is Minnesota’s head men’s coach. He played in the building for the Gophers for two seasons, from 2002-2004, and was an assistant at Minnesota from 2013-2018. Before he was in college the Minneapolis native also watched the hometown team in the iconic building that features intimate seating and a raised floor.

Johnson, 42, told Sports Headliners he remembers his first game in Williams Arana like this: “You can get 13,000 people in here being wild and being loud cheering for their team. I thought that was pretty cool.”

Williams Arena. Photo credit University of Minnesota

Looking like an airplane hangar or barn on the outside, the revered building is the oldest arena in the Big Ten and among the most ancient college basketball venues in America. Named for former Gophers’ football coach Dr. Henry Williams, the arena once had the largest seating capacity in the country for college basketball, 18,025. With a wink to the fire marshal, the Gophers and Iowa packed “the Barn” in 1955 with a record crowd of over 20,000.

Renovations over the years, including partial replacement of bench seating, have brought capacity now to 14,625. Filling the building with fans was on Johnson’s mind the other day. His team is practicing this summer with the goal of major improvement from the last two seasons when the Gophers finished at the bottom of the Big Ten standings. Last winter the Gophers didn’t sell out a home game, not even against border rivals Iowa and Wisconsin. Johnson knows a packed house with delirious fans can create an electric atmosphere helping his team win games that otherwise might end in losses.

“We have to do our job and have a really good product and get people excited to come out, but they definitely make a difference,” he said. “And if you can win your home games in this league you set yourself up really well for post season play…and to have a successful Big Ten league season, and that’s what we want to do.

“We want to have every advantage we can to put our players in a position to have that special year. …I’ve seen it as a player and a coach that when Williams Arena is full—and it’s packed and there’s juice and energy in there –that for sure is two, three, four wins without a doubt. “

When a facility is 95 and has limited glitz and fan amenities compared to state-of-the-art buildings, speculation surfaces about the building’s future. Johnson acknowledged “people are always asking and wondering” but he isn’t aware of any major renovations or tear down planned for the arena.

Fans may also wonder what impressionable 17-year-old recruits think of the facility that is older than their great grandparents. Does the arena’s age present Johnson and his staff with a challenge in recruiting?

“It’s never come up as an issue,” Johnson said. “If anything, I think they really like it because it’s historic. It’s a venue that’s different with the elevated floor…makes it unique. Our guys actually love it and look forward to competing on it (the floor and venue). And I know our new players that haven’t played there think it’s pretty cool and have heard stories and are really looking forward to this year.”

“The Barn” is not for everyone, though. With no windows in the interior, the building relies only on artificial light. There are still bench seats that are uncomfortable for older fans. There are also seats where patrons crane their necks around poles to see the action. Concourse space is cozy, and the building won’t win any design prizes for the size or feel of its bathrooms.

But when the old building is filled and rocking with fans, there is an atmosphere to rival any in college basketball.

Because of Johnson’s roots here he has long appreciated the venue. “You see new arenas that don’t have that home feeling. I think that is what separates us. I’ve been in a couple (of other) older arenas and there’s a mystique to it. Kind of a magical feeling…there’s a history.”

In five years, Williams Arena will be feted with a birthday celebration like no other in its history. Johnson wants to be around then and have an outstanding team worthy of that milestone. “Without question, that would be pretty special,” he said.

Worth Noting

Kirk Cousins is known as a polarizing figure and that comes through when reading Twitter comments about him prompted by the just released NetFlix docuseries “Quarterback” that chronicles the lives of NFL QBs Cousins, Patrick Mahomes and Marcus Mariota. Tweeters offer Cousins love, dislike and everything in between.

Odds seem likely 85-year-old Jim Marshall, known for his Iron Man playing streak of never missing a game in 19 seasons with the Vikings, will finally be inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2024. Marshall is up for consideration again and his peers, including the late Bud Grant, think the former defensive end who is in the Vikings Ring of Honor is overdue for induction.

Speculation continues as to where defenseman Matt Dumba will play next season, but it seems all but certain the free agent won’t return to the Wild.

Congratulations to family, friends and former teammates of the late “Miracle on Ice” hockey hero Mark Pavelich who contributed to the new mental health facility in Sauk Centre, The Ranch. Pavelich, the great 1980 hockey Olympian and former Minnesota North Star, committed suicide in 2021.

Fired Northwestern football coach Pat Fitzgerald uses the same agent (Bryan Harlan) as the Gophers’ P.J. Fleck. Harlan BTW is the brother of Kevin Harlan, the original broadcast voice of the Timberwolves and a national sportscaster icon for years.

MLB.com speculated yesterday that if the Mets make 35-year-old left fielder Tommy Pham available in a trade this summer the Twins could be interested. A right-handed bat, Pham is batting .301 in his last 30 games.

Don’t expect the Twins to part with manager Rocco Baldelli any time soon, even if the club slumps during the second half of the season. If it’s a rough finish Baldelli might well have reason to worry about his job security.

Bill Robertson, former WCHA and USHL commissioner, is reviewing consulting opportunities from sports and entertainment entities as he makes his transition into semi-retirement and relocation from Eagan to Buffington, South Carolina.

Gopher pitcher George Klassen, who can throw over 100 miles per hour, and Gopher second team All-Big Ten outfielder Brett Bateman have signed contracts with the Phillies and Cubs respectively. Klassen was taken in the sixth round of the MLB Draft earlier this month and Bateman was drafted in the eighth, with both reporting now to minor league operations.

Sorry to learn of Joe Pung’s recent passing. He was captain of the 1964 football Gophers and a second team All-Big Ten center that year.

Popular emcee and former Gopher football and basketball public address announcer Dick Jonckowski reports he is cancer free since last September. He will be a celebrity host starting on September 7 for the Jay Buckley Baseball Tour to Boston, New York, Baltimore, Philadelphia, and Pittsburgh.

The CORES lunch programs featuring prominent speakers, mostly from Minnesota sports, has been in place since 1985 but now there is a transition with long time organizers Jim Dotseth and Phil Ferek unable to continue their leadership. CORES speakers over the years have included Bud Grant, Rick Spielman, Jerry Kill, Mike Veeck, Pete Najarian and John Gagliardi who drew a record turnout of 216 attendees. Anyone interested in potentially stepping forward to assume leadership in the volunteer-based organization should email dotsethj@comcast.net. CORES is an acronym for coaches, officials, reporters, educators and sports fans.

Sam Bennett, who finished as the 2023 Masters Tournament low amateur, speaks to the Twin Cities Dunkers Tuesday, July 25. Bennett is one of four young pros who have been given sponsor exemptions for the 3M Open scheduled July 24-30 at TPC Twin Cities in Blaine. The others are Brazilian Fred Biondi, and Minnesotans Derek Hitchner and Frankie Capan III who were state champions at Blake and Stillwater respectively.

The Minneapolis Aquatennial begins Wednesday with the Torchlight Parade. Three Grand Marshals for the parade will represent the Lynx in recognition of the franchise’s 25^th anniversary: coach Cheryl Reeve, GM Clare Duwelius, and Carley Knox, president of business operations.

Longtime Twin Cities TV news and sports anchor Jeff Passolt is retired living in Florida but spending summers at his lake home in Wisconsin. A native of Minnesotan, Passolt’s knowledge and recall of the state’s sports history is impressive.

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