David Shama's Minnesota Sports Headliners

How about 10-6 Record for Vikings?

Posted on September 13, 2017September 13, 2017 by David Shama

News about the Vikings, Gophers, Lynx and Twins in today’s notes-focused column.

Vikings rookies Dalvin Cook and center Pat Elflein impressed in Monday night’s opening game win over the Saints. Cook broke Adrian Peterson’s opening game rushing record for a Vikings rookie with his 127 yards and Elflein became the franchise’s first rookie starter at center since Mick Tingelhoff in 1962.

Dalvin Cook (photo courtesy of Minnesota Vikings)

Cook was the best running back in Monday night’s game that included the return of Peterson in a Saints uniform. The No. 2 draft choice showed speed, power and moves. Former Viking Bob Lurtsema said the elusive Cook can even make a 90 degree change in direction without slowing down.

Elflein, who looks like a draft day steal after being chosen in the third round, kept pass rushers away from quarterback Sam Bradford and showed his mobility on run plays. “He is the real deal,” Lurtsema raved. “He played so well. His awareness and peripheral vision is spectacular.”

Lurtsema is known for his accurate predictions about Vikings regular season records for wins and losses. He is forecasting 10-6 for this year’s team and a spot in the playoffs after the regular season ends on December 31. He believes Minnesota will either win or tie for the NFC North title.

Most everyone sees the Vikings and Packers at the top of the division but Lurtsema labeled the Lions a potential surprise team. “They know they got something cooking there,” he said about the Lions who signed quarterback Matthew Stafford to a contract extension making him the highest paid player in the NFL.

Bradford was named NFC Offensive Player of the Week this morning after his career record 143.0 passer rating performance against the Saints. He completed 27 of 32 passes and threw three touchdown passes.

For those who like to speculate about coaching changes, it seems probable Saints boss Sean Payton has to do better than a fourth consecutive 7-9 record. His team was unimpressive in Monday night’s 29-19 loss, and Peterson had what appeared to be an emotional exchange with the head coach on the sidelines.

Jim Carter sent text messages to a half dozen football Gophers earlier this week about Jerry Kill, their former head coach. Carter, a close friend of Kill and wife Rebecca, wanted to assure the players Kill was okay after minor seizures on Sunday.

Carter, captain of the 1969 Gophers, said the players were grateful for the communication and relieved to receive an update about Kill. “I heard back from everyone,” Carter said.

Kill has been seizure free in recent years but Carter said the now Rutgers offensive coordinator had a “couple of quick seizures” on Sunday and was hospitalized that night. Carter spoke with Rebecca on Monday and learned the coach was back at work.

Kill was coaching on the sidelines when hit by a player last Saturday. The blow may have contributed to the seizures on Sunday. “I and others have urged him to go to the press box because it’s safer,” Carter said.

Kill, though, prefers the sidelines where he can be close to his quarterbacks. He is in his first season at Rutgers and coaching for the first time since resigning as Minnesota coach during the 2015 season because of health issues. He is expected to coach in Rutgers’ home game Saturday against Morgan State. The Scarlet Knights are 0-2 following losses to Washington and Eastern Michigan.

Andrew Harte, the former Gophers kicker under Kill, transferred to Rutgers where he has made two of three field goal attempts this season. Harte, 22, is from Downers Grove, Illinois and joined the Gophers program in 2013.

Jeff Jones, who was on Kill’s staff at Minnesota, is assistant director of player development at Rutgers.

Gopher redshirt senior linebacker Cody Poock, who had 14 career starts under Kill and Tracy Claeys, is now a reserve behind sophomore Thomas Barber.

Redshirt sophomore wide receiver Isaiah Gentry, who was a much anticipated recruit from Cincinnati in 2014, left the Gophers program last month after having two career catches for 36 yards.

M Club director George Adzick said more than 40 members of the 1967 Minnesota Big Ten championship team have committed to attending a 50-year celebration in Minneapolis later this month. Players will be honored during the Minnesota-Maryland game at TCF Bank Stadium on September 30.

Credit Lynx owner Glen Taylor with approving the temporary installation of air conditioning for his team’s WNBA playoff games at Williams Arena. “Glen was driven by two distinct motives, and none were financial,” said Lynx president Chris Wright. “No. 1 was the safety of players. No. 2 was the comfort of fans.”

The Lynx won its opening playoff game in nearly 90-year-old Williams Arena last night against the Mystics. Without a temporary air conditioning system that could cost nearly $1 million before the WNBA playoffs end in a few weeks, the temperature in the building would have been about 85 degrees.

But with air conditioning temps will be in the 61 to 71 degree range for all playoff games. The Aggreko company based in Houston has contracted with the Lynx to cool Williams Arena. The company has provided forced air for Olympic and PGA events in the past.

Wright said WNBA bylaws require that playoff games be scheduled in facilities with air conditioning. With Target Center’s renovation not completed, and Xcel Energy Center unavailable, the Lynx considered various options for home playoff games including locations outside Minneapolis-St. Paul. Taylor, though, didn’t want the team playing away from its home market.

The Lynx expect crowds of 8,000 to 10,000 for early playoff games but if the team qualifies for the WNBA Finals capacity crowds of 14,625 at Williams Arena are possible. Single game ticket prices for first round home games start at $6 for a college student.

Starting pitcher Kyle Gibson, 10-10, will be a key to whether the Twins qualify for the playoffs. He has a 4-0 record with a 1.38 ERA in his last five starts. Last night he pitched six innings, giving up four hits and no walks in Minnesota’s 16-0 win over the Padres.

The Twins won’t have to worry about cold weather postponing two of their Target Field games next April. The club will be the host team in two games in Puerto Rico against the Indians on April 17 and 18, with off days before and after the series. The Twins will play 79 home games instead of the usual 81.

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U, Fleck Raise Bar at Oregon State

Posted on September 11, 2017September 11, 2017 by David Shama

Impressions and memories of the Gophers and the state of Oregon after a trip west last week that included watching Minnesota’s dominant win Saturday night over Oregon State.

Great coaches make a difference, even in the early games of first seasons at their new schools. Let’s not rush to tag Minnesota’s P.J. Fleck with greatness, but after two games he and his staff deserve continued review with a hopeful perspective.

The Gophers had a great coach in Lou Holtz, who led the program in 1984 and 1985. He inherited inferior Big Ten talent from the previous coaching staff when he arrived in Minneapolis. In 1983 Minnesota’s record was 1-10 including an embarrassment for the ages against Nebraska. That 84-13 defeat was part of a humiliating season when opponents outscored the Gophers 518 to 181.

Using plenty of hold-over personnel, Holtz and his assistants changed schemes but mostly willed and demanded Minnesota to a 4-7 overall record in 1984. The Gophers became fundamentally sound and stopped crucifying themselves with mistakes. The players did as they were told, and Minnesota went from the dark side to a promising future during a season when they won three Big Ten games after being winless in the conference the prior year.

In Corvallis Saturday night the Gophers won 48-14 but their personnel isn’t 34 points better than Oregon State’s—especially on the Beavers home field. Minnesota made a few errors but other than quarterback Demry Croft’s fumble inside the Gopher 20 yard line, mistakes weren’t alarming against Oregon State, a Pac-12 team Minnesota struggled with in Minneapolis last season, winning 30-23.

The now 2-0 Gophers were fundamentally solid on offense, defense and special teams. Just as important, Minnesota played with energy. The Gophers followed the lead of their emotionally-charged 36-year-old coach who sprints on and off the field. The athletic Fleck even made a nice catch of an errant Beaver pass.

Despite a roster of young players that ranks among the more inexperienced in the nation, the Gophers played with poise Saturday evening as Fleck became the first Minnesota coach to win his first road game since Murray Warmath in 1954. Fleck is also the first since Warmath to win his initial two games at Minnesota.

The Beavers narrowed the score to 20-14 at halftime after Minnesota jumped to a 17-0 lead. The Gophers didn’t let an enthusiastic crowd, Beaver comeback, or even the sound of a chainsaw on steroids deter them from their work in the second half.

Minnesota got its anticipated rushing game going after a disappointing first game with Buffalo in Minneapolis. Minnesota stayed with the run in the second half and the Gophers pounded their way to 28 second half points. Junior rushers Rodney Smith and Shannon Brooks totaled 92 and 91 yards respectively for the game.

The defense hit with force, causing fumbles leading to points Saturday night. At times, the Gophers cornerbacks struggled, but the pass defense improved as the game wore on. Minnesota held Oregon State to only 80 yards rushing and 140 passing for the game.

The Gophers had a game plan, stayed with their fundamentals, and willed themselves to a surprising performance against a struggling Oregon State team that is 1-2, and giving up an average of 46 points per game.

Nobody is saying Fleck’s staff and players are going to be the Big 10 surprise team of the year, but this group deserves scrutiny as the weeks progress. More often than not, great coaches impress in the first year at a new program—even if the signs are subtle and the results modest. Those who saw Holtz’s magic show know that.

Unlike Holtz, Fleck inherited a solid program that had a 9-4 team last year. His job is much easier than Holtz signed on for, but despite improvement in recent years the Gophers have struggled to play above .500 in Big Ten games and have yet to win a conference title since 1967. Let’s see where Fleck and his “boat” are headed in the next 10 weeks including Saturday at home in their final nonconference game against Middle Tennessee State.

Streets in Oregon included a few folks wearing maroon and gold last week. The landscape, though, was more a “sea of red,” with an estimated 5,000 Cornhuskers fans in the state for Saturday’s Nebraska-Oregon game in Eugene, the town south of Portland and Corvallis.

Two Cornhuskers fans encountered on a shuttle to the airport were Nebraska-nice Sunday morning. They praised the hospitality of Oregonians while contrasting them to not so warm welcomes at other stadiums where they said Cornhusker fans have been on the receiving end of snow balls at Michigan, oranges at Miami, and beer cans at Missouri.

On the flight last week to Portland from Minneapolis was former Gophers linebacker Gary Reierson who played for the legendary Warmath. He chuckled at the remembrance of how stubborn the Gophers national championship coach could be.

Reierson also recalled how the man known for his defensive coaching fame arrived at a college football all-star game as an assistant but ended up taking charge of the North team’s offense.

Here is a final but appreciative close: Thank you to my wife’s brother Phil and sister-in-law Carole for hosting us for four nights and five days in Portland. Give Phil a game ball from last Saturday for going to Corvallis, despite recent foot surgeries and being confined to a wheelchair. Maybe that’s where the Gophers found part of their inspiration.

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What a Script Vikings May Write

Posted on September 4, 2017September 11, 2017 by David Shama

What a story it will be. A moment in state history that will be remembered by almost every Minnesotan—even a few that don’t even know the abbreviation “NFL.” The Vikings could fulfill a dream that dates back to the 1960s.

Next week the regular season begins in Minneapolis against the Saints. The Vikings need to successfully get through the regular season, win a couple of playoff games and then there it is—the Super Bowl in U.S. Bank Stadium.

The AFC can send its goliath, the Patriots, or an intruder like the Steelers. It won’t matter. The Vikings can come full circle, finishing as Super Bowl winners in front of their fans—in their stadium.

Mark Dayton might watch the postgame celebration from a seat that costs $20,000 in the “people’s stadium.” The Wilf brothers will jump up and down like little boys. Bud Grant may crack a smile. Fran Tarkenton will scramble on the field to congratulate Sam Bradford. Alan Page might philosophize about football’s relationship to the community.

The franchise’s legacy of faltering in the biggest games will be exorcised. The four Super Bowl losses in the 1970s were painful, but many Vikings fans weren’t alive when all that happened. The collective hurt is more palpable for the NFC championship game loss (at home) following a 15-1 regular season in 1998. Another nightmare finish was the playoff loss in 2010 to the Saints who with back alley shenanigans put a stop to the Vikings’ Super Bowl itinerary.

The Purple have been cursed for a long time. Maybe it was all part of a cosmic scheme to bring glory in 2018. Not only could the Vikings win their first Super Bowl next year, but they can become the first team ever to do so in their home stadium.

Perhaps the football gods have been scripting this story for awhile. Multiple elements are so perfect including the career coach Mike Zimmer, the straight talking defensive wizard who never had a head job in the NFL until the Wilfs hired him and hoped he could become Bill Parcells. A season ago Zimmer suffered the pain and anguish of eye issues, and has under gone multiple surgeries, but the 2018 Super Bowl could be his reward.

The biggest of stages can vindicate general manager Rick Spielman who enters this season with more than the usual number of eyeballs scrutinizing his work. A year ago he gave up draft choices to acquire Bradford from the Eagles. Winning the Super Bowl with Bradford and a whole roster Spielman assembled will quiet the critics who make a hobby of analyzing his draft choices over the years for a franchise that hasn’t won a playoff game since 2010.

There will be those who scoff at this Super Bowl prophecy, but be reminded greater minds share the vision. The Pioneer Press reported last month comic turned senator Al Franken predicts a Purple win over the Patriots next February. And back in 2015 Bob Lurstema, the ever optimistic former Viking, saw his favorite team in the 2017 Super Bowl. So what if he was off by a year?

Lurtsema, by the way, could have many phone calls to return next winter. For years his voicemail greeting has teased he will return calls after “the Vikings win the Super Bowl”—then adds, well, maybe not that long.

But not so fast, my friends. Sports Headliners is now having second thoughts.

Are the Vikings really good enough to make a Super Bowl run? Yeah, Zimmer is going to confuse offenses with gap packages and other goodies in his tool box, and gotta like the defensive personnel, too. The front seven ranks with the better groups in the 32-team NFL and the defensive backs compare with the best, too.

The Vikings top half dozen players might all be defensive guys, starting with the safety most everybody wishes they had, Harrison Smith. Cornerback Xavier Rhodes is coming into his prime years and monster defensive tackle Linval Joseph is generally underrated but not by the Vikings. Linebackers Anthony Barr and Eric Kendricks impress with athleticism, and defensive ends Everson Griffen and Danielle Hunter can be league leaders in sacks.

The offense, though, makes a writer hit the pause button on the Super Bowl script. Yes, if Bradford can play like last year, he won’t be THE problem. He set an NFL record for completion percentage, 71.6 percent. He also showed more than accuracy, displaying Houdini-like timing avoiding hordes of tacklers rushing through the team’s leaky offensive line.

That line is what should keep Vikings fans awake at night. If there was such a thing as an NFL auction for personnel, talent evaluators would label the Vikings’ offensive linemen as either mediocre based on past performance, or unproven. That’s not a formula for Super Bowl optimism.

Bradford’s strong and accurate arm, and his drop back timing, could get the offense out of many jams. Adam Thielen and Stefon Diggs will again be productive and favorite receivers. Rookie running back Dalvin Cook has potential to create the long gainers any balanced offense needs.

A subplot to the season could be the impact of Minnesota native Michael Floyd, the first-year Viking suspended for the first four games. How about a story ending in the Super Bowl where the veteran wide receiver catches the winning touchdown pass?

Sorry, don’t think it will happen. The Vikings might go 10-6 and make the playoffs, just like they did two years ago after an 11-5 regular season. But it takes more imagination and preseason optimism than this keyboard has to see a parade down Hennepin Avenue following the Super Bowl.

Let’s plan on a first or second round playoff loss derailing the Super Bowl train. And what team will dash Purple hopes?

The Packers, of course, who will not only cross the border to beat the Vikings in the playoffs, but again when they travel to Minneapolis to play in the 2018 Super Bowl.

Double sorry.

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