Posted July 29, 2011    

•Leslie Frazier

•Adrian Peterson

•Tony Oliva

•Francisco Liriano

•Adam Weber

Frazier: Vikings Need to Embrace Now, Let Go of 2010 

New Vikings coach Leslie Frazier was a popular choice by the players to succeed Brad Childress last season.  Frazier coached the team as interim boss and earned the confidence of not only players but owners, too.   

The 2010 Vikings were among the popular picks to reach the Super Bowl before the season began.  But the team had various disappointments including the performances of the offensive line, receivers and quarterback Brett Favre.  Childress was let go after the Green Bay game in Minneapolis on November 21.  The Vikings had a 3-7 record then and finished 6-10. 

Frazier had been the Vikings defensive coordinator since 2007 and earned the respect of players with his football knowledge and leadership.  Now 52, Frazier hasn’t been a head coach for a full season since he helped start the football program at Trinity College in Illinois in the late 1980s.  But Frazier radiates positivity, has a football background that includes Super Bowl wins as a player and assistant coach, and seems comfortable with the challenge of leading a Vikings team that some media believe will finish last in the NFC North behind Green Bay, Chicago and Detroit.   

Doubts about the 2011 Vikings include the quarterback position, offensive line and a revised coaching staff.  Frazier talked with Sports Headliners this week about a variety of subjects including what he needs to establish with his team.  Here is the interview Q & A: 

What do you think the team expects from you as the new head coach? 

Frazier: “I think our players are looking for leadership, someone to really chart the direction of our team as we navigate this new season. … They’re looking for guidance and that’s what I am here to provide.” 

What do you need to prove or establish this year? 

“I think I need to make sure that we don’t have a bad taste in our mouths from last season.  That we’re moving forward and looking forward to 2011, and not holding on to 2010.  If I can get that done, where we’re focused on 2011, that will be a big boon for our team.” 

Do you need to establish yourself more with the offensive players?  Or did you establish that as interim coach? 

“I think they’re familiar with me.  Now we’ve got some new guys coming to our club that I will have to get familiar with and vice versa.  But I think they kind of have a good feel for the way I lead and what’s expected.”

 

Leslie Frazier

Frazier Expects Vikings to Compete for NFC North Title 

How good of a football team can you have this year? 

“I think we can compete again for the NFC North championship.  I really do.  I know last year didn’t turn out so well for us but I don’t think we’re as far away as some people think.” 

Will this team likely be focused more on running the football no matter who is quarterbacking? 

“For sure.  We’re going to definitely try to use Adrian Peterson as a strength like we have in the past and just make sure that everything starts with Adrian.  Hopefully our passing game will feed off of that.”    

How do you develop the offensive line? 

“You know, we’ve got some guys that we drafted that we think are going to help.  Being able to have a healthy Anthony Herrera (guard) will make a difference.  A healthy Steve Hutchinson (guard) will make a difference.  So if we can get some of our key guys back healthy again, including our center (John) Sullivan, we’ll have a chance to improve our offensive line.” 

How much of a difference can leadership make in the wins and losses for a team? 

“If you’ve got good leadership in your locker room, you may not have the most talented team, but your leaders can really turn a team around by their attitude and their approach everyday.  And that’s the intangible that gets overlooked sometimes when you talk about talent.  But great leadership—and I’ve been on teams with great leadership—you can win games with it.”

 

Worth Noting   

Trevor Mbakwe injured his left thigh in last night’s Howard Pulley ProCity championship game and didn’t play in the second half.  He leaves for the USA’s world university games team training camp today and told Sports Headliners he hopes the injury won’t diminish his chances of making the team. 

The Gophers senior, playing for the Errol Carlstrom team, lost last night to El-Amin’s Fish House team that included former Gopher Dan Coleman and was coached by Khalid El-Amin who was injured and couldn’t play.  It was the fourth consecutive ProCity title for El-Amin’s Fish House team.

Bert Blyleven’s last season in the major leagues was 1992.  The former Twins, California, Cleveland, Pittsburgh and Texas pitcher, who won 287 games during his career, was finally inducted into the Hall of Fame this month.  Former three time American League batting champion Tony Oliva, who had a .304 lifetime average playing his entire big league career for the Twins, retired after the 1976 season and is still awaiting a call from Cooperstown. 

Oliva, 71, told Sports Headliners that according to Hall of Fame rules he will have to wait three more years for consideration if he doesn’t receive enshrinement in 2012.  “I should have been there 20 years ago,” he said. 

Oliva has no regrets about playing in Minnesota but admitted the more powerful New York and Boston media would have made his Hall of Fame selection likelier if he had been a Yankees or Red Sox outfielder.  “My numbers are better than a lot of people in the Hall of Fame,” he said. 

The Twins open a three game series in Oakland tonight with starting pitchers expected to be Francisco Liriano, Nick Blackburn and Carl Pavano.  The Twins travel to Anaheim for games next Tuesday-Thursday before coming home to play the White Sox.  The Twins are 10-9 against AL West Division teams this year.  

Former Gopher All-Big Ten tight end Charlie Sanders has a son, Jordan Sanders, who is a redshirt freshman defensive lineman at Michigan State.  The younger Sanders, 6-1, 288, wasn’t recruited by the Gophers two years ago when he was a high school senior, according to an email from a Sports Headliners source.  

Charlie Sanders is assistant director of pro personnel for the NFL Lions.  He and his wife Georgianna have nine children.  

Former Gopher quarterback Adam Weber will try to make the Broncos roster as a free agent but if pro football doesn’t work out he has the background and intelligence to coach.  Weber’s ex-teammate at Minnesota, receiver Eric Decker, enters his second season with the Broncos in search of a position and more playing time.   

Fifty of the state's top high school goalies are participating in the Minnesota Hockey Dave Peterson Reebok High Performance Goalie Camp now through Sunday at the Schwan Super Rink in Blaine. The invite-only development program, now in its seventh year, is designed to improve the individual skills and techniques of goalies in the 15-to 17-year-old age group.

 

Adam Weber

Eric Decker