David Shama's Minnesota Sports Headliners

P.J. Fleck Reeling in Hyped Reruits

Posted on December 19, 2017December 19, 2017 by David Shama

It sounds improbable but indefatigable P.J. Fleck will likely have an extra bounce in his step tomorrow when announcing his 26-man 2018 recruiting class. The first-year University of Minnesota head football coach and his staff will land a group on National Signing Day that recruiting evaluators believe is the school’s best this decade and could rank No. 1 in the Big Ten West Division.

Ryan Burns, the college football recruiting authority and publisher of GopherIllustrated.com, has studied Fleck’s recruits all year. “This is a different kind of recruiting class,” he told Sports Headliners during an interview last weekend.

How so?

Burns said the 24 high school and two junior college student-athletes expected to sign their paperwork committing them to the Gophers were pursued by more Power Five Conference schools than the 2013-2017 Minnesota recruiting classes combined. That’s an indication of the quality, he said, of Fleck’s 2018 class, that so many of the players were also recruited by schools from the ACC, Big-12, Big Ten, Pac-12 and SEC conferences.

“That’s a big deal,” Burns said. “For people who say P.J. is all smoke and mirrors, I don’t know how you can say that (now).”

Fleck, 37, came to Minnesota last January from Western Michigan with a reputation for recruiting and being one of college football’s rising stars among coaches. It certainly looks like Fleck, with his energy and ability to woo teenagers in person and via social media, is living up to his brand as a salesman. Fleck also has a staff of assistants who are known for their recruiting prowess, including Matt Simon and Ed Warinner.

Recruiting authorities like Rivals.com use a star system to label prep and junior college prospects. 247Sports analyzes information from other recruiting services and offers composite rankings. As of today, the Gophers have a 247Sports composite ranking of No. 28 in the country. Rivals.com ranks the Minnesota class No. 27.

Ohio State is ranked No. 1 nationally by 247Sports. Five of 14 Big Ten programs, including Ohio State, are ahead of Minnesota but all are from the Big Ten’s East Division. Wisconsin, the 2017 West Division champion, is No. 2 in the division rankings at No. 33.

There have long been skeptics about how much credibility there is in recruiting rankings. It’s obviously not a perfect predictor of a team’s future success but many of college football’s best programs—from Alabama to Washington—often are top-ranked in the recruiting game.

The Gophers need better talent to catch the Badgers, not just in the 2018 class but beyond. From a division perspective, they’re also looking up at a Northwestern team that finished 9-4 overall last season and has won seven consecutive Big Ten games. Iowa is always competitive and sometimes rises up for a breakthrough year like 2015 when the Hawkeyes earned their way to the Rose Bowl.

Minnesota has plenty of work ahead to compete against the Badgers, Wildcats, Hawkeyes and the other teams in the West Division. Upgrading personnel is where it starts for Minnesota and in the Internet era of recruiting rankings, the Gophers’ 2018 class is second only to the school’s 2008 class.

In next year’s class the Gophers have four athletes who have been labeled four-star recruits and they play positions of priority for Fleck. Wide receiver Rashod Bateman, offensive guard Curtis Dunlap, offensive tackle Daniel Faalele and quarterback Victor Viramontes could all become impact players for Minnesota.

Bateman, from Tifton, Georgia, is one of 10 candidates for the American Family All-USA Offensive Player of the Year award reported on this fall in USA Today. “Rashod Bateman is the crown jewel of this (recruiting) class—someone that we have rated as the No. 200 player overall in the country,” said Burns whose website is affiliated with 247Sports. “He is a four-star (out of five) wide receiver, and for him being an out of state recruit to turn down four different SEC schools in Georgia, South Carolina, Tennessee and Ole Miss, that’s a really big deal. That hasn’t happened for Minnesota recruits in quite some time.”

The Gophers have been struggling to find quality and depth among their pass receivers for awhile now. Burns believes help is on the way, and not just with Bateman who he expects will compete for a starting position as a freshman.

Jornell Manns, from Mansfield, Ohio, caught over 30 touchdown passes as a senior and was a Mr. Football candidate in his state. Burns foresees Manns as a slot receiver “who can make an immediate impact.”

Among receivers, Burns also highlighted Brevyn Spann-Ford from St. Cloud Tech. Spann-Ford is 6-6, 237 pounds and Burns sees him as a “red zone threat” as either a wide receiver or tight end.

Minnesota’s lack of depth on the offensive line was an ongoing story in 2017. Dunlap and six other offensive linemen in the 2018 recruiting class are expected to help fix the depth problem and also upgrade the talent level. It’s been more than 11 years since a Minnesota offensive lineman has been drafted by the NFL.

Dunlap, 6-4, 368 pounds, is from the IMG Academy in Florida. Burns said Dunlap is Minnesota’s highest ranked offensive lineman commit in memory. Dunlap’s IMG teammate, the 6-8, 400-pound Faalele, was pursued by Alabama and Georgia, but he will play for Minnesota as one of the biggest Gophers in program history.

Burns said Texas prep offensive tackle Jack York was extended scholarship offers in recent weeks by multiple SEC schools but is keeping his commitment to Minnesota. Grant Norton, an offensive tackle commit from Missouri, turned down Nebraska and Wisconsin, according to Burns.

Burns believes junior college transfer Jason Dickson from California could soon be Minnesota’s starting right tackle. Dickson reportedly declined offers from Arizona State and UCLA.

“You just don’t find seven offensive line commits like this—that are all some of the hottest names—for schools trying to come and flip them,” Burns said.

While receivers and offensive linemen have commanded attention in the past, it’s been the quarterback position, more than any other, which has often had Minnesota fans on edge and reaching for Maalox. Next year the Gophers go into spring practice without any significant game experience at the position. There are, however, two quarterbacks in the 2018 recruiting class who are much anticipated and will likely be in a spring battle with redshirt freshman Tanner Morgan.

Already the favorite for the job, at least among fans, is Viramontes who coming out of high school committed to Michigan. He ended up at California and instead of being Jared Goff’s successor as the Golden Bears’ quarterback got caught up in a coaching change. This fall, after playing for Riverside Community College in California, he was rated by 247Sports the best junior college quarterback in the country.

Viramontes, 6-2, 230 pounds, has been compared with former Heisman Trophy winner Tim Tebow. He has that kind of athleticism and showed skills running and passing at Riverside.

“You’re going to see the read-option make a triumphant return with Viramontes there (at Minnesota),” Burns predicted. “He is one of the best athletes I think we’ve seen at Minnesota in quite some time. He is going to have the ball in his hands every snap of the game.”

Burns said Viramontes must improve his decision making when passing. “He only did throw eight interceptions this year but I think he is going to be a big boom or bust player in the passing game. He is either going to be hitting big shots or he might be throwing an interception or two, which…is something Minnesota fans are used to.

“But I think you’ll also see a Minnesota passing game—which…stop the presses—completes more than nine passes a game with Viramontes. I think that he has a very high ceiling here at Minnesota and he’s going to have three years to accomplish that.”

It’s uncommon for a preferred walk-on to be a candidate to become the starting quarterback at a Big Ten program but Zack Annexstad might be the exception. The Mankato, Minnesota native was outstanding this fall playing at IMG Academy in Florida. Burns said by mid-season the pro-style quarterback had won the starting job, beating out Artur Sitkowski, a 247Sports four-star commit headed to Rutgers.

Annexstad reportedly had scholarship offers from other programs but chose to walk-on with his home state team. Burns points out how unusual that is and said it’s an indication of both Annexstad’s abilities and Fleck’s persuasiveness.

Like Viaramontes and several others, Annexstad will enroll in school in January and be preparing for the 2018 Gopher season. “Annexstad is going to have every opportunity (to start),” Burns said.

The Gophers have a large class they are hoping to finalize tomorrow and it includes defensive players who Burns raves about. Names include defensive tackle Elijah Teague from Chicago who reportedly had offers from Oklahoma and Wisconsin. Georgia cornerback Terell Smith has exceptional speed and Burns said Smith will remind Gophers fans of a bigger Jalen Myrick.

Then there is Eden Prairie High School cornerback Benny Sapp III who despite missing most of the season with a knee injury received a scholarship offer recently from new Nebraska coach Scott Frost. Sapp is keeping the commitment to Minnesota he made last winter.

What Fleck and his assistants know is that the 2018 class will have to be the first of many exceptional recruiting groups for them to build not only a winning season or two, but more importantly to sustain a successful program. “You always want to out recruit the class you just signed,” Burns said.

Burns predicts the 2019 class will be smaller in total number but perhaps have a higher ranking than in 2018. That will have everything to do with signing high profile players like Edina junior offensive tackle Quinn Carroll. Another local player who Burns sees the Gophers targeting is Eden Prairie quarterback Cole Kramer. Burns predicted Kramer, the grandson of former Gopher player and athletic director Tom Moe, could be the first commitment for the class of 2019.

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Honors Coming for Minnesota Vikings

Posted on December 17, 2017December 17, 2017 by David Shama

With team success also comes recognition for individuals. Voting for the Pro Bowl ended last week and the announcement of those selected will be made Tuesday night on the NFL Network, and several Vikings are expected to be included.

Defensive end Everson Griffen, safety Harrison Smith and wide receiver Adam Thielen seem certain to have their names announced for the January 28 game in Orlando matching NFC and AFC rosters. Other Vikings could include linebacker Anthony Barr, defensive tackle Linval Joseph, cornerback Xavier Rhodes and tight end Kyle Rudolph. The announcement show begins at 7 p.m. Minneapolis time.

“We’ve got a group of guys that definitely are deserving of that (Pro Bowl selection),” said Vikings cornerback Terence Newman who was chosen for Pro Bowl games in 2007 and 2009 while with the Cowboys.

Barr, Griffen and Smith have been selected for the two previous Pro Bowls. Rudolph was the MVP of the 2012 game. Voting for the Pro Bowl is done by fans, players and coaches.

Of course Vikings players would like nothing more than to excuse themselves from the game because their team qualifies for the February 4 Super Bowl in Minneapolis. The Vikings, 10-3, have the second best record in the NFC and could clinch the North Division title and a playoff spot with a win today over the Bengals at U.S. Bank Stadium.

At the NFL Honors program to be held in Minnesota the night before the Super Bowl, Griffen could find his name announced as the league’s Defensive Player of the Year. Griffen, 29, is having an impressive season that puts his name into consideration for defensive Player of the Year awards given out by multiple organizations.

“It would be an honor but right now my focus is on helping this team win,” Griffen told Sports Headliners. “I’ve been working my (blank) off to help this team win games, be the best player I can be. If that’s one of the accolades that comes along with winning games, and me playing great ball for my team, then I will take it with open arms.”

With three regular season games remaining, Griffen ranks third in the NFL with 13 sacks. He got a career-high 13th sack last Sunday in the Vikings’ game against the Panthers.

Griffen, playing for one of the league’s top defenses, has a sack in all but two games this season and has been a leader among NFL defensive ends in forced fumbles and tackles. He got six sacks in a five-game span during October, and was named NFC Defensive Player of the Month.

Griffen’s pass rushing and exuberant style reminds fans of former Vikings defensive tackle John Randle. A Pro Football Hall of Famer, Randle has praised Griffen this fall.

“…I love John Randle like a brother,” Griffen said. “I try to have the same passion that he has. Like I said on Twitter, it’s not where you start, it’s where you finish. He came from nothing. Now he’s at home playing golf and collecting checks. That’s how you want it.”

Vikings Notes

The Packers have activated quarterback Aaron Rodgers—Minnesota’s nemesis—for today’s game against the Panthers. The subject of Rodgers, who the Vikings could face next Saturday night in Green Bay, was one Griffen declined to comment on last week—emphasizing the need to stay focused now.

Griffen’s 30th birthday is Friday.

This month is the 50th anniversary of the famous “Ice Bowl” played on December 31, 1967 between the Packers and Cowboys at Green Bay’s Lambeau Field—or “Lambert Field” as presidential candidate John Kerry referred to it in 2004.

Newman, 39, is in his 15th NFL season, and may play beyond this season. He is enjoying 2017. He said his teammates don’t always get along, but he’s impressed with them.

“This locker room is amazing,” Newman said. “We’ve got tremendous character in here. A lot of different personalities; a lot of different backgrounds. The fact that this group is so open to other diversities—whether it be a guy who was brought up by money, or a guy…(whose) family often struggled. Everybody here is for the same purpose, and the same goal. …”

Vikings’ defensive end Brian Robison is expected to play in his 171st career game tomorrow against the Bengals. That would tie him for sixth all-time with Paul Krause and Kevin Williams among defensive players for most games with the franchise.

The Vikings’ eight game winning streak ended last Sunday against the Panthers in Charlotte and offensive tackle Rashod Hill jokes that he knows why. After road wins during the winning streak he drank grape soda on the team airplane returning to Minneapolis. But flying from Minneapolis to Charlotte before last Sunday’s game, Hill mixed things up and drank a grape soda.

Gulp, went the win streak.

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Here’s What to Make of U Basketball

Posted on December 14, 2017December 14, 2017 by David Shama

Thud?

The University of Minnesota men’s basketball season hasn’t crashed but the last couple of weeks haven’t been much fun either. Minnesota, undefeated and ranked No. 12 in the country in late November, has lost three of its last five games and at times looked awful.

The now 9-3 Gophers weren’t even that impressive in their most recent win, a 68-67 home victory earlier this week against mediocre and undersized Drake. Oh, how things can change in a hurry.

Did college basketball authority Seth Davis really mention Minnesota as a potential Final Four team? Guess he and others got caught up in the November and even earlier optimism about the Gophers who returned all five starters from last winter’s NCAA Tournament team that had a surprising 11-7 Big Ten record and fourth place finish in the standings. An impressive season for the players and Richard Pitino who was named Big Ten Coach of the Year.

Coffey photo courtesy of Minnesota Athletic Communications

Yup, it was easy to hype a team that last offseason had a No. 10 national ranking by Sporting News. Back in October media covering the Big Ten voted Minnesota forward Amir Coffey and guard Nate Mason first team preseason All-Big Ten. It was also easy to believe that by the end of the conference season center Reggie Lynch would be a repeat winner of the Defensive Player of the Year Award, and that guard Isaiah Washington would be included on the All-Freshman team.

That’s the kind of stuff that made long-suffering Gopher fans rush to the box office last offseason. And when the team ran off seven consecutive season-opening wins and junior forward Jordan Murphy started reeling off one double-double after another, Minnesota fans were absolutely giddy.

When No. 10 ranked Miami came to town November 29 the Hurricanes were undefeated like the Gophers. Williams Arena was sold out and the crowd of 14,625 was raucous. The atmosphere was reminiscent of the 1970s, 1980s and 1990s when Williams Arena hosted the best show in town and one of the top attractions in college basketball.

Minnesota played well, but the Hurricanes better in their 86-81 win. The Gophers played without injured starting guard Dupree McBrayer. His absence was telling, with teammates, particularly Washington, mishandling the ball too many times. Miami scored 17 points on turnovers, Minnesota two. The Gophers had just 12 assists in the game, only three in the first half.

McBrayer returned for the next game, a lethargic opening Big Ten win over lowly Rutgers at Williams Arena. The Gophers’ collective energy was probably even worse when two nights later they went to Nebraska and lost to the just okay Cornhuskers in a second conference game.

Then before last Saturday night’s SEC Network televised game at Arkansas a Gopher social media booster suggested U officials should be arranging a viewing party for the many fans without access to that network. The way the Gophers played it wasn’t even worth listening to on the radio.

The Razorbacks won easily, 95-79. They controlled the game from the beginning when Arkansas players were making easy baskets by hustling down the court faster than the Gophers. Lynch had two fouls in the opening minutes of the game and sat until halftime. At the beginning of the second half he committed a third foul. It was that kind of night.

Minnesota struggled to make shots in the first half against Drake and the Bulldogs led at halftime by four points. The Gophers rallied in the second half led by Coffey who had 16 points after scoring none in the opening 20 minutes. The one point win was indicative of how close the 5-5 Bulldogs—whose losses include a 93-65 beat down by South Dakota—came to pulling off a major upset.

So what has happened to the Gophers? What’s going on with a team that once looked so confident and efficient but now is left out of the top 25 national rankings and struggles with an opponent like the Missouri Valley Conference’s Drake Bulldogs?

Well, lots of things factor in. The schedule became more difficult in late November and December. While the Gophers had an impressive mid-November win at Providence and a neutral court victory over top 25 ranked Alabama, they hadn’t played a four-game stretch like Miami, Rutgers, Nebraska and Arkansas.

In those games it’s been more evident than ever how unproductive the Gophers’ bench has been scoring a total of 31 points. Add the Drake game into the total and the figure is 35 points, or an average of seven per game in the last five games.

Minnesota is 12 games into the 2017-2018 season and still trying to recover from the absences of guard Akeem Springs and power forward Eric Curry. Both subs were major contributors to last season’s success. Springs used up his eligibility and an offseason knee injury has Curry sidelined for the winter. Springs was often instant offense with his long-range shooting, while Curry provided inside scoring and made other contributions including rebounds and hustle plays.

Also, without going too much into the subtleties of basketball, let’s just say opponents have made adjustments to the Gophers. Lynch, for example, can be a ball-blocking machine near the basket but opponents will make him move away from the hoop to guard another center (perhaps positioned near the free throw line). Murphy is now facing double and triple teams. He can bull his way through gangs of lightweight defenders but when he faces the big boys on top teams he should adjust by passing more to open teammates.

In recent games the Gophers haven’t been moving the ball like they did when things were rolling. In the first half against Miami the Gophers had three assists. In the Arkansas loss Minnesota had 10 assists, the Razorbacks 23.

It’s not just ball movement either. Lynch can’t routinely be in early foul trouble. Minnesota also can’t be letting opposing players get down the floor for easy baskets. There has to be more consistent energy and focus, which can lead to steals and layups for the Gophers.

The Gophers don’t play again until December 21 against Oral Roberts. That’s the first of three winnable nonconference games at Williams Arena that takes them through the end of December. Then comes a return to Big Ten play on January 3 against Illinois at Williams Arena.

What can the Gophers, including not just the players but the coaches, do to get their stride back? First, don’t panic, don’t lose confidence and enjoy playing basketball.

Minnesota has a talented and experienced starting five. The front line of Lynch, Murphy and Coffey is one of the better units in college basketball. Mason, along with Lynch is one of two senior starters. Mason was all-Big Ten last season and will continue to make big plays for the Gophers. McBrayer, at the other guard, has to improve his shooting (10 of 33 in the last four games) but at 6-5 the junior is the only guard with length on the roster.

Coffey, a sophomore, is the most unselfish of the starters and probably should be handling the ball more. The Gophers could benefit by running their offense with him in charge. He will find open teammates and he also excels at slashing to the basket. With Coffey more as a playmaker and ball handler, it will free up point guard Mason, the team’s best long-range shooter, to come off screens.

What to do about the bench? A couple things.

If the starters (particularly Lynch and Murphy) have fewer fouls, than sometimes that will limit the need for subs. It’s a bit of a head scratcher why Pitino has used almost no zone defense to protect his foul-prone big men. With Lynch, Murphy, Coffey and McBrayer, the Gophers have a lot of length that can make a zone defense effective and minimize foul troubles.

There apparently isn’t much help to be found on the bench, and the only sub with big potential is Washington. He can become an ignitor off the bench, lending spark with his playmaking and ability to drive and score near the basket. It looks so far like he isn’t playing enough consecutive minutes to get into a rhythm. Maybe the coaches are trying to discipline him from freshman mistakes but he will be a key to whether this team earns a high finish in the conference standings and wins a couple of NCAA Tournament games.

Washington could not only help the starters but even lead four other subs playing briefly together. Make the bench guys a “go-to-unit” that plays together a couple of minutes around the TV timeouts before returning all five starters to the floor.

Right now a team that was supposed to take the next step after last season isn’t the equal of the 2016-2017 edition. But in a 30-plus game schedule teams go through highs and lows, and there’s minimal doubt the Gophers will recover and play better.

A former Gophers player who remains knowledgeable about the program sees the Big Ten as weak. He’s been raving for months that Minnesota could challenge for the championship. Even now he thinks Minnesota can finish second in the league standings to national title contender Michigan State.

He insists the Gophers need to make adjustments and improvements but he’s still on the bandwagon. His attitude provides a little pre-Christmas cheer.

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