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Mixed Results on Vikings First Rounders

Posted on May 1, 2015May 1, 2015 by David Shama

There’s nothing wrong with being upbeat about the Vikings’ choice of cornerback Trae Waynes with the No. 11 selection in the first round of last night’s NFL Draft. But fans are advised to evaluate the success of the selection in a few years.

The Vikings have made 11 first round selections dating back to 2007, including last night. In addition to Waynes, those selections were for Adrian Peterson (2007), Percy Harvin (2009), Christian Ponder (2011), Matt Kalil (2012), Harrison Smith (2012), Sharrif Floyd (2013), Xavier Rhodes (2013), Cordarrelle Patterson (2013), Anthony Barr (2014) and Teddy Bridgewater (2014).

All 10 of the previous first rounders from past years became starters as rookies. Seven were All-Rookie selections and four made the Pro Bowl. Peterson and Harvin were both NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year. Peterson was also selected first team Associated Press All-Pro as a running back.

Honors are nice but performance over time is what matters most—individually and contributing to team success.

Peterson will one day be a Hall of Fame running back and was worthy of going even higher in the 2007 draft’s first round than his No. 7 selection. Harvin, despite his superb talents as a slot receiver and runner, became a “headache” specialist with the Vikings—both suffering from head pain and giving it to coaches and management before he was traded to the Seahawks.

Ponder was mostly ineffective and didn’t follow the script to become the quarterback savior. Kalil is supposed to be the team’s franchise left tackle but he’s been inconsistent and sometimes awful. Safety Smith and cornerback Rhodes form half of a talented and promising defensive secondary. Floyd, a defensive tackle, started one game as a rookie and 13 last season, and faces a prove-it season in 2015.

Patterson’s talents—he was All-Pro as a kick returner for 2013 and flashed promise as a receiver—reminds us of Harvin’s skills, but he seems unfocused and perhaps difficult to handle. Barr and Bridgewater teased with their abilities and promise last season as rookies, and left coaches and fans anticipating how much more they can contribute in future years.

The report card is mixed for the 10 players referenced above, and more importantly so are the team results on the field. The Vikings have had losing seasons three of the last four years, making the playoffs once and compiling an overall record of 25-38-1.

That record, of course, isn’t just the responsibility of the 10 first round draft choices. Other players—whether they were later rounds selections or veterans already on the club—are accountable too. Coaches and personnel decision makers are also part of the story. But what would the team record be the last couple years if Ponder had been a franchise quarterback? If Harvin had been All-Pro every year? Or if Patterson was the equal of Harvin in making explosive plays by catching passes and running for extra yardage? And if Kalil was mentioned in the same breath with the league’s best left tackles.

Get the idea? Let’s wait a few years and see what the impact really is of Waynes and past first round draft selections, and how the wins and losses are adding up for the Vikings.

Worth Noting

With their selection of Waynes in the first round last night, the Vikings tied the Bengals (1984-1987) for most NFL first round selections in a four-year period, with eight.

Last Sunday’s first round Game 6 between the Wild and Blues from Xcel Energy Center was the most watched hockey game ever on NBC in the Minneapolis-St. Paul market. Late in the game 53 percent of all television households in this market with TV’s on were tuned to the Wild game.

The Wild will host a Playoff Pep Rally at the IDS Center Crystal Court in downtown Minneapolis today from noon to 1 p.m. The Wild face the Blackhawks in Game 1 of the Stanley Cup playoffs tonight in Chicago. Fans are encouraged to wear Wild team colors on Friday and for future playoff game days. Team mascot Nordy will join former Wild captain Wes Walz, 1995 Stanley Cup Champion Tom Chorske, and others on stage at the rally.

Round 2 Rally Towels will be distributed to 500 fans beginning at noon. One lucky fan will win a Zach Parise autographed jersey. Complimentary raffle tickets will be distributed beginning at 11 a.m. There is a limit of one raffle ticket per person and the winner must be present when announced.

The new Capital Club featuring local sports figures as speakers meets on selected mornings at Town & Country Club in St. Paul. Gophers football coach Jerry Kill will speak next Tuesday. For more information contact, Patrick Klinger, patrickklinger@klingercompany.com.

Patrick Talty, the SMG executive working on attracting events to the new Minneapolis Vikings stadium, said a bid will be submitted by the end of May to host the college football national championship game. The downtown facility, opening in 2016, might be the site of the game in 2018, 2019 or 2020.

Among other attractions, the stadium could also host the WWE’s WrestleMania. Talty said the economic impact for a city having the event can be $100 million.

Condolences to family and friends of Verne Gagne who died earlier this week at age 89. Gagne played football for the Gophers and was a two-time NCAA wrestling champion. As a pro wrestling champion and promoter, he made the Minneapolis-based American Wrestling Association a household phrase in this marketplace. His zest for life and entertaining will long be remembered by Minnesotans.

Gagne impacted the development and livelihoods of many athletes who made careers out of pro wrestling. Among them is former Gophers football player Jim Brunzell who became part of the famous “High Flyers” tag team along with Gagne’s son Greg Gagne. “Verne played a major part of my early wrestling career,” Brunzell wrote via e-mail. “He trained me, booked me, and enabled me to learn my trade from some of the greatest wrestlers of all-time. …

“He was a tremendous competitor, no matter what the activity—wrestling, racquetball, or tennis. He’d just as soon knock your teeth out, than lose! He loved the outdoors, fishing and hunting, and probably would have preferred to live in the early Wild West! He loved his family, and the University of Minnesota, and was truly a modern day icon!”

A sold out crowd of more than 800 is expected Sunday when The Minnesota Chapter of the National Football Foundation and College Hall of Fame hosts its 8th Annual Minnesota Football Honors event at the Hilton Minneapolis. See the April 16 issue of Sports Headliners for a listing of individuals being honored.

Twins marketers like this year’s home schedule that has the club playing 48 dates at Target Field between Memorial Day and Labor Day.

New Twins manager Paul Molitor told Sports Headliners the first month of the season and 22 games played isn’t a large enough sampling to know what he’s got for a team including decisions on who deserves to stay on the roster. “I think probably 30-40 games is a little better gauge…so let’s see how it plays out a little bit longer.”

Molitor said on Wednesday morning first baseman Joe Mauer is achieving more “quality at bats” than anyone else on his roster. Mauer, who entered this year with a career batting average of .319, hit just .277 last season. Molitor wouldn’t predict what Mauer’s average will be this season, but as of today he is at .318. Mauer is hitting .366 in his last 10 games, while driving in 12 runs in the past 14 games. “I do have confidence he’s going to have a good year,” Molitor said. “I am just not going to put a number on it.”

Jessie Aney, who won the MSHSL girls singles tennis title as an eight grader in 2011, has joined the Rochester Century High School boys team. Now a junior in eligibility, she is ranked No. 8 among Class AA players in the state by the boys tennis coaches association. A senior academically, Aney will be attending North Carolina on a tennis scholarship next fall.

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Vikings to Go Offense on First Round?

Posted on April 27, 2015April 28, 2015 by David Shama

The NFL Draft starts Thursday and this could be a historical week for the Vikings franchise. The opinion here is the Vikings will trade disgruntled Adrian Peterson before the clock strikes midnight on Thursday. Here is a list of other Sports Headliners items about the three-day draft during which the Vikings have one selection in each of the first five rounds, none in the sixth and two in the seventh.

With Peterson’s immediate playing future uncertain, the suspicion is the Vikings will select a running back within the first couple rounds of the draft. Even if a Peterson draft week trade doesn’t materialize, the Vikings have to be concerned about the superstar’s age (30) and disposition toward playing for them. A promising running back from this year’s draft makes sense.

Nobody I know about is predicting the Vikings will use the 11th pick in the first round for a running back but general manager Rick Spielman has a history of being trade-active the first night of the draft. If a deal resulted in the Vikings not drafting until late in the first round, a running back like Georgia’s Todd Gurley or Wisconsin’s Melvin Gordon III could be tempting. Yes, in the pass-happy NFL the role of the running back has been diminished but Vikings coach Mike Zimmer still wants a quality guy to pound the football.

As written here awhile ago, it wouldn’t be surprising to see the Vikings choose Louisville wide receiver DeVante Parker at No. 11. That move might help fulfill a big play receiver need and would reunite Vikings quarterback Teddy Bridgewater with a former college teammate.

Ex-Viking Bob Lurtsema, who remains close to the team, is “100 percent certain” Spielman will choose an offensive player in the first round. His thought is the Vikings have improved their defense dramatically under now second-year coach Mike Zimmer, and the need in the first round of the draft is for better players to complement the inexperienced Bridgewater.

The Vikings are trying to build an offense that can compete in today’s high scoring NFL. Lurtsema thinks the Vikings’ approach early in the draft is this: “We’re playing Arena Football. What’s going to make us the best?”

Will Brinson from Cbssports.com has the Vikings choosing Parker at No. 11, although most prominent mock drafts predict the selection will be Michigan State cornerback Trae Waynes. Waynes ran a 4.31 40-yard dash at the NFL Combine this winter and he has plenty of endorsements as the top cornerback in the draft. The Vikings have many draft needs including linebacker and left guard, but it might be hard to pass on Waynes who could give the team another quality young corner along with Xavier Rhodes.

While our five-state area has minimal reputation for producing high school running backs that become pros, this year’s NFL Draft prospects include four guys drawing attention: Wisconsin’s Gordon from Kenosha, Wisconsin; North Dakota State’s John Crockett from Minneapolis; Northern Iowa’s David Johnson, from Clinton, Iowa; and South Dakota State’s Zach Zenner from Eagan, Minnesota.

Gordon is forecast as a late first or early second round choice. Johnson has been compared with the Bears’ Matt Forte and could be selected in the second round, according to his profile on Nfldraft.com. That same source has projected Crockett and Zenner will either be taken in the last few rounds or signed as free agents.

Sports Illustrated’s April 20 NFL Draft issue ranks former Gopher David Cobb the seventh best running back available. The magazine said 2015 is a deep year for quality running backs, and praises Cobb’s durability and how he breaks tackles.

S.I. projects former Gopher Maxx Williams will be the first tight end taken in the draft, with the Broncos choosing him at No. 28 in the first round. “For $38 million less than Julius Thomas, Denver lands a TE with similar skills,” the magazine wrote.

Worth Noting

Vikings general manager Rick Spielman meets with the media tomorrow afternoon at Winter Park to preview the draft.

Spielman will speak at the May 14 CORES luncheon at the Knights of Columbus Hall in Bloomington, 1114 American Blvd. CORES is an acronym for coaches, officials, reporters, educators and sports fans. Reservations for the program (deadline May 11) can be made by contacting Jim Dotseth, dotsethj@comcast.net.

Bob Lurtsema attended a reunion of former Giants players in Atlanta last week. Fran Tarkenton, who like Lurtsema played for both the Giants and Vikings, attended and so too did Greg Larson, the center on the Gophers 1960 national championship team.

The Wild’s success story continues on after winning Game Six yesterday against the Blues and advancing to the second round of the Stanley Cup playoffs where Minnesota will play the Blackhawks. The Wild entered Sunday’s game with a 3-2 series lead and the 4-1 victory was the work of some timely goals, tight defense and extraordinary play again by goalie Devan Dubnyk who made 30 saves.

Left wing Zach Parise had two goals, while right wings Justin Fontaine (winning goal) and Nino Niederreiter (empty netter) had one each. Parise, who got the Wild off to an important 1-0 first period lead, is now tied for the franchise record in all-time playoff scoring with 22 points. Parise’s totals are eight goals and 14 assists, while former Wild star Marian Gaborik scored 12 goals with 10 assists. Fontaine’s goal was his first of the series and matched the one goal the Blues scored in the second period.

The Wild hasn’t lost consecutive games in regulation since January 11 and 13 (before acquiring Dubnyk from the Coyotes on January 14). Including a shootout loss, the Wild has only lost consecutive games once since the NHL All-Star Game on January 25. In a 36-game span to finish the season, the Wild lost only two games by more than one goal.

Although live horse racing doesn’t begin at Canterbury Park until May 15, the largest wagering day of the year is expected at the Shakopee track this Saturday for the Kentucky Derby.

From the just teasing department: If the Gophers play their way into next year’s national championship football game on January 11 it looks like University of Minnesota president Eric Kaler will miss out. Kaler and his wife are leading a University of Minnesota Alumni Association trip to Vietnam January 2-13.

Except for last weekend’s series against the Mariners, the Twins have faced only AL Central Division teams during the first month of the season. Although the Twins have a losing record (8-10), the club has played 12 of its first 18 games on the road, and won two of three games against the Mariners in Seattle. The Twins start a three-game home stand against the Tigers tonight, a team that swept a 3-0 series in Detroit to begin the season.

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Jerry Kill: 2015 Team Potentially Best

Posted on April 22, 2015April 22, 2015 by David Shama

Now that spring practices are completed Jerry Kill has a better assessment of his 2015 team. The head coach told Sports Headliners the talent is present for his fifth Gophers squad to be his best.

“I think we’ll have a better football team but we also play better people (opponents) next year,” Kill said.

A significant difference in the 2015 schedule compared with last season is playing at Colorado State in a nonconference game. The Rams were 10-3 last season and return junior wide receiver Rashard Higgins, only the second player in school history to be named a first team All-American. Last year the Gophers had one difficult nonconference opponent but this season face two with the Rams and TCU, a team already in conversations about winning the national championship.

Big Ten opponents will be the same as last season except the Gophers are playing teams at home they faced on the road in 2014 and vice versa. The schedule includes a trip to Columbus against defending national champion Ohio State.

Kill’s first four teams had overall and Big Ten Conference records of 3-9 and 2-6, 6-7 and 2-6, 8-5 and 4-4, and 8-5 and 5-3. No question the talent on the roster is better than a couple of years ago but Kill isn’t satisfied with his depth.

“Unless you’re Ohio State, you’re always fighting for depth,” Kill said. “They’re three-deep in Big Ten players and we’re not at that point, and it’s hard for us to get to that point.”

For Kill and his assistants to recruit even better players and acquire more depth, the athletic department must build the much discussed Football Development Center. It’s anticipated the center will transform the image of Gophers’ football practice and support facilities from the worst in the Big Ten to among the best.

“The people (including rival coaches) out there understand how tough this (coaching) job is and there’s a lot of things that have to happen here for us to continue to get the great athlete,” Kill said. “We’ve worked our (tails) off with what we’ve had, what we’ve done. It’s kind of amazing some of the players we’ve gotten. (They) disregarded all the stuff—eating in the hallway and all those kind of things to where we are right now.”

Most major college football powers have modern dining and nutrition facilities but the Gophers eat at temporary tables in the lobby of the Gibson-Nagurski Football Complex. The top of the indoor practice facility is so low punters sometimes knock pieces of the ceiling loose. Built in 1985, the facility was once known as the Taj Mahal Holtz—nicknamed after legendary Gophers coach Lou Holtz—and was a trendsetter in college football at that time.

“Now they call it the dungeon and health hazard,” Kill said.

A new football center is part of the University of Minnesota’s master facilities plan for athletics that also includes construction of the Student-Athlete Center for Excellence, and new Basketball Development Center, plus renovation of existing facilities. The plan is being privately financed but a loan from the University may be used to make the project a reality sooner than otherwise possible. Reportedly $70 million of the first phase goal of $150 million has already been secured from private sources. A total of $120 million—or 80 percent of $150 million—is necessary to start construction.

An athletic department spokesman stated awhile ago the Gophers hope to break ground this year on the master facilities plan and won’t do so in piecemeal fashion. That means the football facility won’t begin as a single endeavor.

Kill said progress is being made toward breaking ground, including soil samples examined. He expects groundbreaking for the football center to happen in August.

“I’ve been pushing for four years,” Kill said. “My job is to keep pushing. You talk about the alums, all that. I told them I’d get stuff done. I don’t even want to say we won’t get it, because we will. There’s no question it makes a difference in recruiting. …”

Hockey Notes & More

The Wild’s website lists 10 players on the roster of 25 forwards and defensemen who are 25 years old or younger, with defenseman Matt Dumba the youngest at 20.

Forward Nino Niederreiter, 22, scored an empty net goal in the third period on Monday night as the Wild won 3-0 over the Blues and took a 2-1 playoff series lead. Jason Pominville and Zach Parise scored the team’s other goals while goalie Devan Dubnyk made 17 saves to earn his first playoff shutout ever. In the series Dubnyk has a 2-1 record with 1.67 GAA and .922 save percentage.

Despite playing against a physical Blues team, the Wild had no penalties on Monday night—tying a franchise playoff record and a first for a postseason game at home.

Going into tonight’s Game Four, the Wild is 6-1 at Xcel Energy in playoff games dating back to last season. The only loss was in overtime to the Blackhawks last year.

The Wild will host a pre-game party from 6 to 8 p.m. tonight outside Gate 2 at Xcel Energy Center. Game tickets aren’t required to attend. The game begins at 8:30 p.m.

StubHub.com lists ticket prices ranging in cost from $170.72 to $880.92 for tonight’s game.

Minneapolis native and University of Minnesota law school graduate Tom Stillman is part of the Blues’ ownership group. Stillman is chairman and governor of the team.

Kevin Dorsey, who might start for the Gophers as a freshman next fall, was announced last Thursday as Player of the Year and first team selection on USA Today’s Maryland all-state basketball squad.

Tyus Jones signed autographs and posed for photos at Bloomington Kennedy High School where his brother Tre Jones played in an AAU Tournament last weekend. Tre, a ninth grader at Apple Valley High School, has experienced a growth spurt since last year and is now about the same height, 6-feet, as Tyus who declared for the NBA Draft last week as a college freshman at Duke.

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