Gophers coach Tubby Smith can win his 400^th career game if Minnesota defeats Ohio State on Saturday in Columbus.

Smith and staff hosted high school basketball recruits on Sunday at the Michigan State game including Colton Iverson of Yankton, South Dakota and Chad Calcaterra of Cloquet, Minnesota. Iverson, a 6-foot-10 senior, signed a national letter of intent with the Gophers last fall.  He told Sports Headliners the schools that he had been interested in committing to included national champion Florida before deciding on Minnesota.

What impressed him about Smith? “Oh, just everything,” he said.  “I knew he was a great person, off the court and on the court. He just impressed me everyway he could. From touring me around campus, talking about his leadership and what his goals were for the program. …”  Those goals, Iverson said, include winning Big Ten championships.

Calcaterra, also 6-10, is only a sophomore but is already drawing interest from schools like Minnesota and Michigan State.  Chad’s father, John, played high school basketball in Michigan against Spartans’ coach Tom Izzo.  Chad, who is one of the most coveted high school sophomores in the region, has only played in four games after missing about two months of the season with a foot injury.  During Sunday’s game he showed enthusiasm for the Gophers.

Minnesota associate athletics director Phil Esten told Sports Headliners that a virtual tour of the new TCF Bank stadium will be on the Web starting February 6, www.gophersports.com.  Esten said that from an elevated view the bowl shape of the new stadium can now be seen.  He expects the stadium to open on schedule in summer of 2009, with the athletic department having a finished facility about 30 days prior to the first game on September 12.

The stadium will seat approximately 50,000 but is expandable to about 80,000.  Esten said it will require extra expense to prepare the stadium infrastructure if stadium capacity were expanded beyond 80,000.

Esten’s grandmother is a stockholder in the Green Bay Packers.  Years ago she purchased two of the original 100 shares in the Packers.

Minneapolis Community and Technical College men’s basketball coach Jay Pivec hopes to celebrate his 500^th career coaching win with a victory tonight at home against Anoka Ramsey.

Marian Gaborik will represent the Minnesota Wild in NHL skill activities on Saturday and then play in the league’s all-star game on Sunday in Atlanta.  VERSUS will televise the Dodge/NHL SuperSkills on Saturday at 6 p.m. and the game on Sunday at 5 p.m.  This will be Gaborik’s second all-star weekend.  In 2003 he won the fastest skater competition.  Earlier this season against the New York Rangers he had the NHL’s first five-goal game in almost 11 years.

Gophers’ freshman goaltender Alex Kangas has been named the Western Collegiate Hockey Association Rookie of the Week after he and his Minnesota teammates had a 1-1 tie and 2-1 win over UMD last weekend. He had 18 saves in the tie on Friday and stopped 25 shots in Saturday’s victory. Kangas ranks second among all NCAA Division I freshmen goaltenders with a 2.25 goals against average and third among rookie goalies with a .920 save percentage. He is undefeated in road starts with a 2-0-3 record.

Bethel guard Tim Madson is the MIAC men’s basketball athlete of the week.  Other athlete of the week selections are St. Thomas forward Carrie Embree (women’s basketball), Bethel center Dan Bonne (men’s hockey), Saint Mary’s goalie Brittany Lemke (women’s hockey), Macalester’s Nathan Young (men’s swimming and diving), and Carleton’s Kale Zicafoose (women’s swimming and diving). Also honored are the following track and field athletes: David Swanson and Ryan Doyle, both from St. Olaf, and Derall King of Hamline, and Katie Theisen and Carol Comp, both of St. Thomas.

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Musings from a Florida vacation after enjoying sun, sand and surf, plus watching television and my growing waistline. …

The geriatric crowd has arrived at the beach.  I witnessed walkers and wheelchairs navigating near the sands of Sarasota.

Florida has a new state song: “Florida, Where the Sawgrass Meets the Sky.”  I read it twice and tried to sing it once.  I sounded like an American Idol first round reject.

With or without Johan Santana, Twins pitchers and catchers report to spring training in Fort Myers on February 17.   The prediction here: Santana is gone before April, probably to the New York Mets.

Eddie Guardado, who pitched for the Twins from 1993-2003, signed a one year contract with Texas earlier this month.  The former American League all-star, 37, had elbow surgery in 2006 and had 15 relief appearances last season with a 7.24 ERA pitching for Cincinnati.

Minneapolis native Walt Jocketty, former baseball executive with St. Louis, has joined Cincinnati as special advisor to president and chief executive officer Bob Castellini. Jocketty will advise and assist Castellini in every facet of baseball operations, according to a Reds news release.

Bert Blyleven, again turned down in voting for the baseball hall of fame, can find support among friends and fans.  The former Twins pitcher and now TV color commentator is among the franchise’s most popular alums ever.

Former Vikings Cris Carter, Randall McDaniel and Gary Zimmerman, all three of whom played together in the early 1990s, are pro football hall of fame candidates in February.  Carter played in eight consecutive Pro Bowls as a wide receiver from 1993-2000.  McDaniel set an NFL record by participating in 12 straight Pro Bowls as an offensive guard from 1989-2000.  He was also named to the Pro Football Hall of Fame team of the decade for the 1990s.  Zimmerman played in four Pro Bowls while with the Vikings as an offensive tackle from 1987-1992.

The Tampa Bay Rays have plans and hopes for a new 34,000 seat retractable roof stadium in St. Petersburg, moving the club from its dome home, Tropicana Field.  The project hasn’t been finalized but there’s talk of opening the stadium in 2012.

Former Gopher tennis player Gene Sperling is an economic adviser to Hillary Clinton.  Sperling also advised former president Bill Clinton.

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USA Today ranks Centennial No. 10 in the country among girls high school basketball teams. The Blaine school is No. 1 in the newspaper’s rankings of teams in the Midwest.

Sophomore forward Damian Johnson, probably the Gophers’ most improved player, is an early choice for my All-Big Ten defensive team.  The 6-7 forward is second on the Gophers in steals with 1.76 per game, plus he may deflect six or more basketballs in a game. Johnson ranks fifth in the Big Ten Conference in steals and Gopher freshman Al Nolen is first with 2.44 per game. Johnson had 14 steals in 28 games last season while averaging 1.4 rebounds and 1.6 points per game.  This season those averages are: 4.5 and 7.1.

With the crowds increasing and the temperatures plummeting, how about opening the doors at Williams Arena 90 minutes before game time instead of one hour?

Rick Majerus, who had loyalists here promoting him for the Gophers job last year, coached his St. Louis team to a 49-20 loss earlier this month.  The 20 points was the lowest in NCAA Division I basketball since the clock shot inception.  When Majerus was at Utah he coached in the 1998 national championship game against Tubby Smith’s Kentucky team.  Majerus is featured in a recent Sports Illustrated article that conveys his colorful (understatement) language, temper and also generous nature.  Michael Doleac, who starred for Majerus at Utah and now is a reserve with the Timberwolves, describes Majerus as the best coach he’s played for, high school, college or pros.

Texas Tech’s Bobby Knight, who had his boosters too for the Gophers job, won his 900^th career game recently, but didn’t express much pleasure about it at a news conference.  How can a man have so much success and seem so unhappy?

Freshman Cole Aldrich isn’t starting but is contributing for No.3 ranked Kansas.  The former McDonald’s All-American from Bloomington Jefferson has yet to start a game for the Jayhawks but is averaging 9.2 points and 3.4 rebounds per game.

John Bell Wilson, the former Gopher basketball manager and official scorer, includes Portland’s Joel Przybilla among his friends. Wilson said the former Gopher center blends his skills and unselfishness with whatever players are on the floor. Przybilla’s numbers are modest, 4.9 points and 7.3 rebounds per game, but he’s an effective role player for the young Blazers who are among the NBA’s surprise teams.

It’s anyone’s guess what Pryzbilla’s assignment and whereabouts will be next season when 2007 NBA No. 1 draft choice Greg Oden rejoins the Blazers after missing this season with a micro fracture knee injury. Wilson said there are reports that Oden’s weight has increased to 290 pounds.

Former Minnesota Timberwovles center Dean Garrett, now living in the Minneapolis area, told Sports Headliners he wants to work for his old team.  Garrett played with the Wolves from 1996-2002.

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