David Shama's Minnesota Sports Headliners

U Boosters Voice Concerns to Governor

Posted on April 25, 2016April 26, 2016 by David Shama

Jim Carter thought it was an idea going nowhere. Carter’s friend Jim Brunzell told him a few weeks ago he requested a meeting with Governor Mark Dayton to talk about University of Minnesota athletics.

Not only did the Governor’s office respond but a lunch meeting was scheduled with Brunzell, Carter and Alvin Ray Hawes. Last Friday the three U alums met with Dayton at the Governor’s residence in St. Paul. Shannon Patrick, Dayton’s senior policy advisor for higher education, was also there.

Brunzell, Carter and Hawes played football together at Minnesota in the late 1960s. They and many other Gophers boosters have been concerned for some time about the school’s leadership in athletics, and the performances and reputations of football, and men’s basketball and hockey—the highest profile sports at the University and major producers of revenues contributing to a $100 million annual budget supporting 25 men’s and women’s sports.

Carter came to the meeting with a list of facts and concerns including how long it’s taking to find a permanent athletic director, how fundraising is stalled on the $190 million Athletes Village project, the missed opportunity to place former football coach Jerry Kill in a high level position within the Athletic Department, how department monies have been used inefficiently, and how the revenues, culture and image of the department could be much better.

“We just wanted the Governor to know how frustrated we are,” Carter said of the meeting. “How frustrated we’ve been with the lack of pursuit of excellence in athletics at the University. With the long time—almost a year now—to put an athletic director in place. What we see with continuing issues in the Athletic Department that make us wonder where the tradition of the Golden Gophers has gone. We shared that with the Governor.

“It was very positive (the discussion), not mudslinging. We talked with him…and discovered he’s got the same love for Golden Gophers football, hockey, basketball, and many of the sports that we all do.”

The Governor, 69, is about the same age as Carter, Brunzell and Hawes. A Minneapolis native, Dayton grew up in Minnesota and loved hockey. He was an all-state goalie for Blake and followed Gophers hockey and football teams. “He seemed to be one of us,” Carter said.

Carter said during lunch Dayton expressed similar concerns to what his visitors voiced. Dayton also recalled an offer he made to former Gophers athletics director Norwood Teague and later to interim AD Beth Goetz. Dayton is willing to use his residence to help the Athletic Department, including to host Gopher donors. While Teague didn’t take him up on the offer, Goetz has scheduled a dinner.

What may transpire from the meeting last Friday? “I think the only thing that we could expect for him to do would be to use influence,” Carter said. “Not financial necessarily but he speaks with the president of the University. He speaks with people over there.”

Vikings & NFL Draft

The Vikings have eight selections in next week’s NFL Draft and a priority should be finding a speed receiver who runs disciplined routes. At least that’s the opinion of former Viking Bob Lurtsema who remains close to the franchise.

Lurtsema is an admirer of third-year quarterback Teddy Bridgewater who he said “can throw the ball” but doesn’t receive enough praise from the media. Bridgewater ranked No. 22 in the NFL last season with 3,231 passing yards. The 23-year-old had a just okay 88.7 passer rater.

Teddy Bridgewater (photo courtesy of Minnesota Vikings).

It takes awhile for young quarterbacks to establish themselves but Lurtsema believes Bridgewater’s numbers and the perception of him would be more positive if his wide receivers ran better routes than they did last season. Bridgewater, he said, often made superior judgments compared to his targets.

“They (wide receivers) would come off the routes,” Lurtsema said. “They weren’t reading the same (as Bridgewater). A lot of it is the responsibility of the receiver.”

Lurtsema hopes to see improvement among the wide receivers next season. “You talk to the players themselves and you talk to them off the record, they tell you all the little things that Teddy Bridgewater can do,” Lurtsema said.

The first of the Vikings’ eight selections comes Thursday night when Minnesota has the No. 23 pick in the first round. Mock drafts frequently project the Vikings will use the selection on a wide receiver, perhaps TCU’s Josh Doctson, Notre Dame’s Will Fuller or Ohio State’s Mike Thomas. All three have first round credentials but on their NFL.com profiles none draws praise for route running.

The Vikings will also draft No. 23 in rounds two through five, then No. 5 in the sixth round, and 19th and 23rd in the seventh and final round. The first round begins at 7 p.m. CDT Thursday. Rounds two and three start at 6 p.m. Friday, while rounds four through seven begin at 11 a.m. Saturday. All three days of the draft from Chicago will be televised by ESPN and the NFL Network.

Vikings general manager Rick Spielman meets with the media tomorrow (Tuesday) to preview the draft.

Lurtsema talking about 33-year-old linebacker Chad Greenway who has decided to play an 11th season for the Vikings and whether a player that age slows down: “You might lose a half a step but your experience picks up a half a step—so you’re still a pretty good athlete.”

Comments Welcome

Authority Lines Drawn for Wolves Leaders

Posted on April 22, 2016April 22, 2016 by David Shama

Timberwolves owner Glen Taylor expects new hires Tom Thibodeau and Scott Layden to agree on decisions “95 percent” of the time.

Taylor signed Thibodeau, his new coach and president of basketball operations, and Layden, the franchise’s new general manager, to five-year contracts on Wednesday. Thibodeau has more than 25 years of NBA coaching experience and Layden has been with league teams since 1981 in coaching and front office work. Taylor said the two men like and respect one another, making it possible for them to mostly work in agreement.

But what happens with decisions when Thibodeau and Layden don’t agree?

Taylor told Sports Headliners in an interview yesterday there are defined areas of authority. He wouldn’t identify all of those areas but mentioned free agents and the NBA Draft as examples where Thibodeau and Layden know who has the final word.

Taylor said Layden might want to sign a certain free agent but if the coach doesn’t want him that won’t go further. Thibodeau has the final word on what personnel will comprise his roster. Layden will run the NBA Draft for the Wolves. Taylor also mentioned analytics as another area of authority for Layden who most recently has been assistant general manager for the Spurs.

Glen Taylor (photo courtesy of Minnesota Timberwolves).

Few problems are anticipated by Taylor who by coincidence signed Thibodeau and Layden on the owner’s 75th birthday. “They’re two seasoned guys who are going to work off of each other and (they) know that both of them sometimes may have to comprise a little bit, but they aren’t going to move ahead unless they resolve the issue,” said Taylor who expressed clear confidence they will.

Thibodeau made a reputation for winning games as head coach of the Bulls for five seasons, never missing the playoffs. His .647 winning percentage ranks seventh in NBA history (minimum 200 games).

Known for his attention to detail and demanding ways including on defense, Thibodeau will sometimes use his starters for long stretches. Taylor asked Thibodeau about the reputation that his regulars play too many minutes. The coach suggested the Wolves’ owner talk to guys who have played for him. “The way he said it, he would be confident they aren’t going to be critical of him,” Taylor said.

Taylor’s representatives did speak to players who said Thibodeau worked them hard and was demanding but the owner isn’t worried about his Wolves playing too many minutes. “Not after a long discussion with him on it, I am not concerned about it,” Taylor said.

Thibodeau and Layden spent hours interviewing with Taylor by telephone and in person. The interviews with the two were separate. “I just think that I can trust these two guys now to make the decisions that need to be made,” Taylor said. “I don’t think they’re going to rely on me. …”

Major financial decisions about salaries will be an area where Thibodeau and Layden come to Taylor. The three have talked salary cap but Taylor didn’t elaborate on his willingness to exceed the NBA maximum, indicating various details enter into such decisions and the timing of them. It seems likely, though, if Taylor is convinced extra money will bring the franchise closer to its first ever NBA title he will green-light Thibodeau and Layden.

Taylor said his new hires were his first choice when he looked for staffing to leading his basketball department. “I was very fortunate,” he said.

Worth Noting

The late Flip Saunders, who was Taylor’s coach and president of basketball operations, owned a small percentage of the team. Taylor asked Saunders’ widow, if she wanted to sell but Debbie answered the family wants to keep its ownership.

Watch the first period tonight with extra interest when the Wild, trailing 3-1 in its best of seven playoff series, plays the Stars in Dallas. “See if Dallas comes out swinging (focused), scores a couple of goals and takes the life out of the Wild,” a hockey industry source told Sports Headliners.

The Wild has just eight goals in four games and the team’s lack of offense was problematic during the regular season too. One issue, the source said, is lack of chemistry between the older and younger players. The club also doesn’t have a leader, with no one stepping forward to claim that role, he said.

The Stars can gain much valued playoff rest if they close out the series tonight and wait a few days for their second round games. That’s a real incentive but no more than what the Wild is playing for—a chance to stay alive in the Stanley Cup Playoffs and force a Game 6 in St. Paul Sunday.

Vikings defensive tackle Shariff Floyd will autograph memorabilia for $15 and $25 tomorrow (Saturday) from 1 to 2 p.m. at Southtown Shopping Center in Bloomington. His appearance is part of the two-day Saturday-Sunday Triple Crown Sports Collectibles Southtown Show. Show hours tomorrow are 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. and Sunday 11 a.m. to 4 p.m.

The Gophers, Twins, Vikings and Saints will all be playing home games the night of September 1. In three Minneapolis stadiums—within at the most six miles of each other—the Gophers have their opening nonconference game, the Twins face Central Division rival Chicago and the Vikings play their first ever preseason game in U.S. Bank Stadium. In St. Paul the Saints will host Winnipeg. More than 130,000 fans likely will be watching the four games.

Scheduling conflicts are routine in this overcrowded sports market. Last week, for example, the Timberwolves had a season-ending game in Target Center while a block away the Twins were playing their second home game of the year.

The Twins have opened on the road six of the last eight years but don’t look for that trend to change much in the future. The club doesn’t want to risk multiple postponements in Minneapolis because of bad weather in late March and during the first few days of April.

The Twins, now 5-11, lost their first nine games of the season, including six straight on the road. After yesterday’s loss to the Brewers in Milwaukee, Minnesota’s road record is 1-7.

While the Twins have struggled to find offensive production from their catchers since moving Joe Mauer to first base in 2014, Wilson Ramos is off to a fast start this spring with the Nationals. Ramos, who the Twins traded to the Nationals in 2010, is hitting .314. Last year he hit only .229 but had 15 home runs and a career high 68 RBI. The Twins figure to see Ramos this weekend during a three-game series at Washington that starts tonight.

The April 18 issue of Sports Illustrated includes former Gopher Eric Decker, Minneapolis native Larry Fitzgerald Jr., Burnsville native Lindsey Vonn and the Timberwolves Andrew Wiggins on its first ever Fashionable 50 list. Victor Cruz of the New York Giants ranks No. 1 among stylishly dressed athletes. Decker, Fitzgerald, Vonn and Wiggins didn’t make the top 10 listings but are included alphabetically among 40 other “sartorial icons.”

National Hall of Fame jockey Chris McCarron, who twice won the Kentucky Derby, will host a Casino Night Fundraiser Tuesday, April 26 at Canterbury Park to benefit the Leg Up Fund. The fund provides emergency financial assistance to jockeys injured while riding at the Shakopee racetrack.

Casino Night will be from 7 to 9:30 p.m. in Canterbury’s Triple Crown Club. Admission is $35 in advance, or $45 at the door, and includes a presentation by McCarron, dinner, soda, and 3,000 in chips. A $100 per-person VIP Meet and Greet event from 6 to 7 p.m. includes appetizers, open bar, and 6,000 in chips. Tickets can be purchased by calling (952) 445-7224.

Canterbury Park Hall of Famer and former WCCO Radio personality Dark Star, who died in 2012, would have been 70 Wednesday.

Comments Welcome

Gopher AD List May Include Hawkeye

Posted on April 20, 2016April 20, 2016 by David Shama

A lot of names are being mentioned as candidates to become the Gophers’ next athletics director but one drawing minimal speculation is Gene Taylor, the No. 2 leader in the Iowa Hawkeyes Athletic Department.

Taylor was athletics director at North Dakota State for 13 years prior to joining the Hawkeyes in 2014. Taylor, 58, helped put in place the Bison football program that is working on a run of five consecutive FCS national championships.

Taylor has an extensive background in athletics administration dating back to his first job at the United States Naval Academy. His career commitment to female and male athletes, involvement with funding to improve facilities, success with football, and his understanding of this geographic region should resonate with Turnkey Search, the firm retained by the University of Minnesota to identify and vet candidates.

Multiple sources report Turnkey is interviewing candidates this week in the Midwest and East. One source told Sports Headliners over a dozen candidates will be interviewed in the first round of talks. Eventually Turnkey will vet those who the firm believes are the best candidates and bring those names to a 16-person search committee of volunteers headed by co-chairs Katrice Albert and Perry Leo. Albert is the University’s vice president for equity and diversity. Leo is professor of aerospace engineering and the U faculty athletics representative.

Recommendations by the committee will go to University president Eric Kaler. After Kaler’s disastrous hire of Norwood Teague in 2013, the president’s reputation and perhaps legacy is in play with a decision on the next AD who is expected to be on the job by July 1.

No candidate has probably been more open about his interest than former Gophers linebacker and Wall Street whiz Pete Najarian. The 52-year-old Minneapolis native and TV personality appears ready to start a new life leading the Gophers athletics department.

Najarian spent last weekend in Lincoln, Nebraska where daughter Alexis is on the University of Nebraska track team. He also visited with Cornhuskers legend Tom Osborne to learn more about running an athletics department. Before retiring, Osborne won national championships in football and was the school’s athletics director.

Najarian raves about Osborne’s wisdom and inclusive, caring approach with people. The two have known each other since the early 1980s when Osborne tried to recruit Najarian to become a Cornhusker. Najarian said Osborne was one of the few coaches who still showed interest in him as a person after he committed to the Gophers.

Najarian, former Gophers All-American defensive end Bob Stein, and WCHA commissioner and St. Paul native Bill Robertson are names with Minnesota roots who have been mentioned with the AD opening. Many Gophers boosters favor candidates who have local relationships and understand the culture here. Najarian, Stein and Robertson have ties to the Minneapolis-St. Paul business community—an asset critics assert has been underutilized by the Gophers.

Although he hasn’t lived in Minnesota for years, Blake James attended Coon Rapids High School and Minnesota State-Mankato. Now the athletic director at the University of Miami in Coral Gables, James will no doubt at least cross the minds of Turnkey executives, even if he has no interest in coming to Dinkytown.

Another no-brainer for Turnkey is Northern Illinois athletics director Sean Frazier. Highly praised by Sports Headliners sources, he is a favorite to be on a list of finalists. Frazier is African-American as is McKinley Boston, who was the Gophers’ AD in the 1990s. Boston has mentored Frazier who has worked as a top assistant to Wisconsin athletics director Barry Alvarez. Frazier and Kaler know each other.

Sources tell Sports Headliners the best athletic director in the country could be Northwestern’s Jim Phillips who supposedly has turned down other jobs including Michigan to stay in Evanston. If Minnesota and Turnkey leaders wanted to take a “nothing is impossible” approach, they could access a private jet and fly to Evanston with an offer to make Phillips the best paid AD in the country—and bring along a briefcase stuffed with articles about the quality of life in Minnesota.

Not a bad thought considering the potential revenue an athletic director could affect at Minnesota, where both winning and income aren’t what they should be.

Worth Noting

The Wild, who appear to be building momentum, shouldn’t lack for confidence going into tonight’s Game Four against the Stars at Xcel Energy Center. Wild players seemed unsure in Game 1 of their Stanley Cup Playoff Series in Dallas, losing 4-0. Then a close loss in Game 2 in Texas was followed by the Wild’s 5-3 win on Monday night in St. Paul.

The Wild entered the series having faltered at the close of the regular season and facing the Stars without Zach Parise, Minnesota’s best player. The Stars were among the NHL’s better teams during the season while featuring a productive offense. But the Wild has slowed down Dallas and found its own playmakers including Erik Haula, who has impressed with a line that includes Jason Pominville and Nino Niederreiter.

The Stars want to force Wild turnovers tonight and turn those into scoring opportunities. If that works, there will be more pressure on Wild goalie Devan Dubynk. Goalie, though, is a position where the Wild should be better than the Stars.

In the series so far the storyline for the Wild is the team gets better each game. Can the script continue tonight?

The International Champions Cup match between Chelsea and A.C. Milan will be played on real grass at U.S. Bank Stadium. Vikings and amateur baseball games will be played on artificial turf but the August 3 soccer event, the first sports activity in the new covered stadium, will use sod.

St. Thomas football coach Glenn Caruso told Sports Headliners Gopher transfer Jacques Perra, who will be a sophomore next fall, is a leading candidate for the starting quarterback job. Tommies’ spring practices started earlier this month and continue into May.

A source emailed yesterday that the Timberwolves are talking to former NBA guard and Warriors coach Mark Jackson about their coaching vacancy.

Condolences to family and friends of Bill Light who passed away last Friday after struggling with pancreatic cancer. Bill was a great high school football player at Hopkins and an All-Big Ten linebacker for the Gophers in 1970-71. He was also team captain in 1971. He was inducted into the “M” Club’s Hall of Fame in 2014, and once owned Billy’s Lighthouse restaurant in Long Lake.

Vashti Cunningham, daughter of former Vikings quarterback Randall Cunningham, is a senior at Gorman High School in Las Vegas. Ed Graney, writing Saturday for the Las Vegas Review-Journal, reported in an online story that Vashti, who turned professional in March, will next month be the first American women’s high jumper in 20 years to be featured on the cover of Track & Field News.

Comments Welcome