When Hank Williams Jr. sings his opening lyrics on Monday Night Football he will ask, “Are you ready for some football?”  The roar of “amens” from Mahtomedi to Mound will shake the metro area.  As Hank warms up the audience, the Minnesota Vikings will be ready to play their opening game of the season against the Washington Redskins on ESPN before a national TV audience on the Monday night stage. 

Our kingdom loves the Vikings and media expert John Rash predicts a huge local audience will tune in (even more viewers than watch the Vikings on Sundays).  Rash, senior vice president at the Campbell Mithun marketing communications agency in Minneapolis, expects the TV rating here to be 30 or 35.  By contrast, the local viewing audience for the Super Bowl is about 40, he said.  (A rating point is a percentage of households watching a particular program). 

With about 500,000 local households watching the game, the Vikings will add to their reputation as the most popular team in town.  Even for a pre-season game the Vikings solidly beat the Twins in the local ratings.  The Vikings had a 12.8 rating for their August 25 game against Baltimore while the Twins, fighting for a playoff spot, were playing the World Champion White Sox in Chicago and drew an 8.9 rating, according to the Star Tribune. 

The August 25 ratings caught Rash’s attention.  “What’s surprising is that it remains such a strong Vikings town considering the Twins on-field performance and the Vikings off-field behavior,” he said. 

The Lake Minnetonka boat scandal and other off-field incidents may discourage some casual followers of the Purple, but Rash said following the Vikings is about more than just watching a game.  “Pro football has transcended a sporting event and become a social event, particularly in Minnesota,” he explained. “People get together and visit during the games, and the games become a back drop, not necessarily a compelling event in itself.” 

Interest in the Vikings exceeds the popularity of many other NFL teams in their markets.  One factor, Rash said, is so many people here (unlike other markets with a higher percentage of residents who have relocated) grew up in Minnesota and followed the team for years.  He also said another reason is the cool weather here during much of the NFL season (unlike many markets where the weather may be the best of the year). 

Monday night’s game will be the first regular season Monday telecast by ESPN, ending the 36-year tradition of games on ABC.  Rash said the Monday night series will produce the highest ratings for continuous programming ever on ESPN, but the audience will be smaller than ABC.  He said ABC has 99% coverage throughout the country, while ESPN has 85%.

Although he is only 19, Alex Daniels has made it clear during his high school and college football careers he’s capable of playing multiple positions.  At Brookhaven High School in Columbus, Ohio he played linebacker, safety and running back.  Last season, playing linebacker for the Gophers, he was one of only three true freshmen (non-red shirts) to earn a letter. 

After the opening game he was named co-Big Ten Conference Offensive Player of the Week for his performance as a running back in the Gophers’ 44-0 win over Kent State.  Daniels had a game-high 155 yards on 24 carries (6.5 yards per rush) and scored three touchdowns.  

Not bad for a guy moved to running back in early August when expectations were that Daniels would become a star linebacker on a defense in need of athleticism and big plays.  Coach Glen Mason decided to try Daniels at running back based on the need to add quality and depth to that position.   

There was more to it than need, though, because Mason had been impressed with Daniels’ athleticism and running in high school.  “One of the things that caught my eye was his ability to run in the games that I saw him, plus I saw him in a track meet,” Mason said. 

At 6-foot-3, 260-pounds, Daniels is much more of a power back than the Gophers were accustomed to when they had speedsters Laurence Maroney and Gary Russell, but Mason made it clear his newest tailback is no slow-poke even with all that size and muscle.  “He probably runs more like a 6-1, 220 pound guy, and so if we do a good job up front and he can get up a full head of steam, he can wear you out pretty quickly,” Mason said. 

As a newcomer, Daniels has a lot to learn about the Gophers’ offense and the running back position.  “It started out as an experiment and I am not saying it is still in the experimental stages but we still have a long way to go… he is improving daily and had a good first game,” Mason said. 

Daniels was a prize catch in the Gophers’ 2005 recruiting class.  At Brookhaven he was ranked nationally as America’s No. 10 best safety, 11^th best athlete, 16^th best safety and the 108^th best overall player.  Now that he is a running back at Minnesota he can target some more rankings.

Brad Childress listed nachos as his favorite food on an NFL questionnaire.  Here are several other responses by the Vikings’ first year coach.  Last book read:  “Blink” by Malcolm Gladwell.  Best football nickname: Phoenix College Artichokes.  Favorite vacation spot: Bonita Springs, Florida.  What NFL team did you follow as a child? Chicago Bears.   

Favorite sports uniform other than your own:  Dallas Cowboys.  Best advice ever received: Don’t lose confidence or it will be unanimous!  Toughest coach you’ve ever faced and why:  Bill Walsh at Stanford—he was way ahead of us Midwesterners, throwing it back then.  Greatest team you’ve ever competed against: 1985 Chicago Bears.  Most overrated aspect of football:  halftime adjustments and pre-game speeches.  Most underrated aspect of football: meticulous preparation and attention to detail; the will to prepare to win.