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he University of Minnesota has 25 men’s and women’s varsity sports made up of more than 750 student-athletes and there are just as many stories to tell as there are student-athletes, coaches and staff. One of the reasons we publish Ski-U-Mah is to be able to share those stories with readers like you, so you can then share them with other Gopher fans. Once again, we’ve been able to find multiple compelling stories coming out of this athletic department that are about more than just sports and competition. These are tales of perseverance, hard work, dedication, prioritization, loyalty, success and far too many other qualities to name here. In this issue alone, we celebrate two of the finest divers in the country that comfortably live in near-anonymity on their own campus; a gymnast carrying on a family tradition so strong she can’t remember when she wasn’t tumbling; a basketball player whose educational
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odyssey ends here and will not keep him from graduating; and a wrestler competing to be the first three-time NCAA champion in the history of the University and it still won’t be the most impressive achievement he’ll take from here. Alongside these inspirational vignettes, you’ll find updates on former student-athletes still providing tales of hard work in other arenas of life and success as they enter the M Club Hall of Fame. Lastly, you’ll read about the unsung heroes of Mariucci and Ridder Arenas, steadily piloting their Zambonis as they diligently smooth the canvas on which our ice hockey teams display their masterpieces. These are the stories that aren’t told in sports section headlines or box scores; the images not captured on BTN or the local news. These are student-athletes, coaches and staff doing what they do each and every day as they prove to be far more interesting and inspiration than anything between the first and final whistles. Norwood Teague Director of Athletics
DECEMBER 2013 / SKI-U-MAH / 3
S KI - U - M A H DECEMBER the
official
2013
/
ISSUE
magazine
of
4
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Gopher
VOL.
I
Athletics
GOPHER SPORTS features 10
DUSTI RUSSELL
16
ACADEMIC SUCCESS
20
MAGGIE KEEFER & MANNY POLLARD
24
TONY NELSON
34
MALIK SMITH
10
additional content 3
NEWSWORTHY
4
FOOTBALL PHOTO FEATURE
6
PHOTO FEATURE
8
CREDITS
14
THE BIG NIGHT
19
BY THE NUMBERS
28
BILLMAN LEGACY
30
EIGHTH ANNUAL WINE DINNER
32
GGF SCHOLARSHIP BANQUET
38
WHERE ARE THEY NOW:
24
ADAM STEELE 40
BEHIND THE SCENES: THE ICEMAKERS
for these stories and much more, visit the home of Gopher Sports at gophersports.com.
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{ A record crowd of 53,090 packed into TCF Bank Stadium despite a game-time temperatures of 18 degrees, the lowest in the five-year history of the building. }
PHOTO: BRACE HEMMELGARN
NEWSWORTHY All of Minnesota’s fall teams reached NCAA postseason play. Volleyball reached the NCAA Sweet 16 while Soccer earned an NCAA berth, losing in the first round. Women’s Cross Country placed 20th at the NCAA meet while the men’s program reached Regional action. The football team earned a berth in the Texas Bowl. Eric Decker [‘09], tied a Denver Broncos record with four touchdown receptions in the Broncos’ 35-28 win over Kansas City on December 1. He had 8 receptions for 174 yards in the game.
The Gopher Men’s Golf team won its first tournament title since the 2006-07 season when it captured the Barnabas Health Intercollegiate by 17 strokes (October 20-21). Senior Jon Trasamar shot a final round 66, including a back nine score of 29 (7-under par). Freshman soccer goalie Tarah Hobbs was named the 2013 Big Ten Goalkeeper of the Year and First Team All-Big Ten. She was also invited to the U.S. Under-20 Women’s National Team final training camp.
The University of Minnesota was named to host several major upcoming NCAA Championships, including the 2015 and 2018 Women’s Frozen Four (Ridder Arena), the 2018 Men’s Frozen Four and 2016 Men’s Hockey West Regional (Xcel Energy Center) and the 2018. Minnesota was also awarded the 2018 Men’s Swimming and Diving Championships and Women’s Gymnastics Regionals in 2016 and 2018.
The Gopher Football team won four consecutive Big Ten games for the first time since 1973 and finished with eight regular season wins for just the fifth time in the modern era. Ra’Shede Hageman and Brock Vereen became Minnesota’s first All-Big Ten First Team selections since 2009. 72 Gopher student-athletes were named Academic All-Big Ten for the fall season (35 - football, 6 - men’s cross country, 16 - women’s cross country, 10 - soccer, 5 - volleyball).
PHOTO: ERIC MILLER
PHOTO: ERIC MILLER
PHOTO: ERIC MILLER
PHOTO: ERIC MILLER
PHOTO: ERIC MILLER
PHOTO: BRACE HEMMELGARN
PHOTO: BRACE HEMMELGARN
PHOTO: ERIC MILLER
{ DeAndre Mathieu against Coastal Carolina, 11/19/13 }
{ Dylan Ness pins a Wyoming opponent, 11/24/13 }
PHOTOS: ERIC MILER
{ Rachel Banham no-look pass against Loyola, 11/26/13 }
{ The triple block of Ashley Wittman, Tori Dixon and Katie Schau goes to block Nebraska, 11/10/13 }
{ Adam Wilcox looks for an angle against Boston College, 10/25/13 }
{ The Gopher rowing team practices in the early morning on the Mississippi River, 10/1/13 }
{ Devin Ste. Marie competes in the 200 butterfly at the Minnesota Grand Prix, 11/14/13 } { Lindsey Lawmaster celebrates during Minnesota’s 3-0 win over Duke, 9/7/13 }
DECEMBER 2013 / SKI-U-MAH / 9
SKI-U-MAH Issue
4
DIRECTOR OF ATHLETICS Norwood Teague DEPUTY ATHLETICS DIRECTOR David Benedict SENIOR ASSOCIATE ATHLETICS DIRECTOR FOR STRATEGIC COMMUNICATIONS Chris Werle
EDITOR-IN-CHIEF / ASSISTANT ATHLETICS DIRECTOR FOR CREATIVE SERVICES Jeff Keiser
CONTRIBUTING WRITERS Rick Moore, Kevin Kurtt, Justine Buerkle, Michael Molde, Brian Deutsch CONTRIBUTING DESIGNER Chris Lagasse CONTRIBUTORS Paul Rovnak, Matt Slieter, Michelle Traen, Jake Ricker DIRECTOR OF PHOTOGRAPHY Eric Miller CONTRIBUTING PHOTOGRAPHERS Jerry Lee, Christopher Mitchell, Jim Rosvold, Courtney Anderson, Craig Lassig, Brace Hemmelgarn, Walt Middleton Advertising: 612.626.2300 GOPHERSPORTS.com Ski-U-Mah is written and designed by University of Minnesota Athletics and is provided as a courtesy to our fans and may be used for personal and editorial purposes only. Any commercial use of this information is prohibited without the consent of University of Minnesota Athletics. for questions about the editorial content in this issue of Ski-U-Mah, please email keiser@umn.edu.
{ A crowd of 2,754 was in attendance at Ridder Arena for the unveiling of the Gophers’ 2013 National Championship banner, 10/11/13 }
10 / SKI-U-MAH / DECEMBER 2013 PHOTO: ERIC MILLER
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A In e
FAMILY Senior gymnast Dusti Russell carries on her family’s tradition of excelling in collegiate gymnastics.
hen it comes to families that are involved in the sport of gymnastics, it’s hard to imagine many with more combined talent than the one Dusti Russell comes from. Russell, a senior captain for Minnesota’s nationallyranked women’s gymnastics program, is the youngest of four children in a family where all six members have excelled in gymnastics. Dusti’s parents, Debbie and Dave, both were star gymnasts at the University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh. Her oldest sister, Rehana (28), competed for the Golden Gophers during 2005-07. Dusti’s sister, Randi Jo (26), was a member of the gymnastics team at the University of Arizona, and her brother, Cody (24), currently works as a professional acrobat and entertainer in Myrtle Beach, S.C. Then, of course, there’s Dusti (21). Now entering her final season for head coach Meg Stephenson’s Golden Gophers, Dusti’s been to the past two NCAA Championships -- as an individual in the all-around two years ago, and last year as a member of the team that tied for the Big Ten regular season title and finished eighth in the nation, Minnesota’s best-ever result at nationals. As the youngest member of her family, Dusti has literally grown up around the sport she loves. “I can remember when Dusti was about six months old, and her sisters would play with her and pretend they were her coaches,” Debbie said. “They would stretch her out by making her do all the stretches they did in their gymnastics classes. I’d tell them, ‘If she starts crying, you have to stop.’” “Well, from what my sisters have told me, my crying didn’t stop them,” Dusti said with a laugh. Dusti said that some of her earliest childhood memories are of her family playing in their yard. But, unlike many families, the Russells’ backyard games weren’t simply tag or hide-and-seek. “I think my first gymnastics memories are at our house, 12 / SKI-U-MAH / DECEMBER 2013
and either my dad spotting us on tricks in our yard, or we used to have family hand-stand contests,” Dusti said. “I remember, before I started going to the gym as much as my siblings did, they would teach me a skill before they went to practice. When they’d come back, I would have practiced it so much that I’d have it perfected. I just remember doing tricks around our kitchen, living room or yard.” Dusti formally began gymnastics at the age of two, when Debbie enrolled her in a class for tots that she was teaching. As former collegiate gymnasts, Debbie and Dave began coaching at Oshkosh Gymnastics Center shortly after graduating from UWO. All four Russell children trained and learned the sport at Oshkosh Gymnastics, where they were also coached by the same coaches who had trained Debbie and Dave. As an All-American on balance beam, Debbie helped Wisconsin-Oshkosh win a national championship in 1980. Dave led UW-Oshkosh to four national titles, and he captured three individual national championships on parallel bars. A five-time collegiate All-American, Dave is a member of UW-Oshkosh’s Hall of Fame and was named to the Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference’s “Team of the Century” in 2012. “From what people have told me, they were both very good gymnasts,” Dusti said. “I’ve never been able to see footage of them, but I’ve heard that they were phenomenal.” Dusti recalls a time when a friend of hers was wearing a Wisconsin-Oshkosh gymnastics shirt at an airport, and a stranger walked up to her and asked her if she had competed there. Her friend explained that she hadn’t, but that her friend’s mom (Debbie) had. As it turns out, the stranger had been a collegiate gymnast who competed against UWO during the time Debbie was on the team, and she still remembered Debbie’s beam routine a couple decades later. “I told my mom about that, and she didn’t make it seem like such a big deal,” Dusti said. “But, to me, it’s just very cool that someone had remembered her routine. She must have been amazing.”
by Michael Molde
PHOTOS: ERIC MILLER
DECEMBER 2013 / SKI-U-MAH / 13
made her so awesome,” Dusti said. “She had a fire inside her and no one could tell her that she wasn’t going to be able to do something. She’s one of the strongest people I’ve ever met. She tore her ACL at Arizona and wound up doing a redshirt fifth year, which is so hard in gymnastics. And, as a fifth-year senior, she competed in the all-around, which is amazing.” Unlike Rehana and Dusti, who both confess to being “homebodies,” Randi Jo is the one sister who has never been afraid to venture far from the nest. She went to school in Arizona, where she majored in Spanish and political science, and she currently lives in Spain. Cody is the other adventurous soul in the family, and the one Dusti calls the most courageous, and also the craziest as far as gymnastics go. With the support of his family, Cody made a video of his acrobatic skills shortly after he graduated from high school, sending it out to various shows across the country. When Debbie and Dave heard about a new show that was starting in Myrtle Beach, they encouraged Cody to send his video, and it worked. He auditioned and was hired as a performer in Pirate’s Voyage Dinner Attraction, where he regularly displays his gymnastics skills in tramp wall and on the Russian Swing. He also recently spent six months performing in Japan. “Cody is really good at tramp wall, where there are two trampolines with a wall in between, and he flips over it and onto it,” Dusti said. “He’s insane (in a good way). I’d say he’s definitely the most courageous, and the craziest,
Dusti affectionately looks up to all of her siblings, and she credits each of them for having contributed in different ways to her success as a gymnast. “Rehana was always so compassionate with me,” Dusti said. “She always treated me like I was her little baby and she has the biggest heart of anyone I’ve ever met, so I’ve always looked up to her for that. I’ve always wanted to be like her in the way that she treats others.” Rehana, who now teaches pre-kindergarten students in Oshkosh, was seven years old when Dusti was born and Debbie thinks the age difference between her oldest and youngest daughters played a role in their close relationship. Rehana agrees. “Being the oldest, I always looked out for everyone, but since I was seven when Dusti was born, I was really well-aware that she was my little sister,” Rehana said. “I would always defend her, no matter what, and I used to call her ‘my cutie.’” “Rehana has this protective instinct in her that I love,” Dusti said. “She’s the kindest person in the world, but if someone messes with her younger siblings, she’s not timid about standing up for us.” Dusti credits Randi Jo for making her mentally tough. She said that Randi Jo used to get after her for being “sensitive” and that the first time Dusti made the decision to fight back, Randi Jo encouraged her and said, “Yeah, fight back!” “Randi had this spunkiness and drive that
PHOTOS: CHRISTOPHER MITCHELL (TOP), ERIC MILLER (MIDDLE, BOTTOM))
MORE FAMILY TIES
Dusti Russell and her siblings literally grew up around Oshkosh Gymnastics Center. Her parents, Debbie and Dave, trained there before going off to college and becoming standout gymnasts at the University of WisconsinOshkosh. After college, Debbie and Dave returned to OGC as coaches. Their four children, each of them spent much of their childhood having fun and learning the sport of gymnastics at OGC. Dusti and her oldest sister, Rehana, both went on to compete for head coach Meg Stephenson’s Golden Gopher women’s gymnastics team. Dusti is a senior captain this season, and she has competed at the past two NCAA Championships. But the connection between Oshkosh Gymnastics Center and Minnesota women’s gymnastics goes beyond the Russells. A native of Ripon, Wis., Minnesota associate head coach Jenny (Alf) Hansen also trained at Oshkosh Gymnastics, where her mom was the receptionist. So Hansen has known the Russells for much of her life, and she was someone both Rehana and Dusti admired. “Jenny basically grew up with our kids at the gym, and she was a great role model for our children,” Debbie said. “When she left for Minnesota, our kids were able to experience what college was like when we’d come to see her compete. And that’s how Rehana wound up at Minnesota, because we loved the atmosphere and the positive vibes of the coaches.” 14 / SKI-U-MAH / DECEMBER 2013
Hansen is a 2004 graduate of Minnesota, competing for the Gophers from 2000-03. She was an All-Big Ten selection in 2001, a three-time Academic All-Big Ten honoree and an Academic All-American in 2003. Rehana competed for the Gophers during 2005-07.
Gopher associate head coach Jenny Hansen, coaching Dusti Russell on the vault against Penn State on January 28, 2012, grew up training at the Oshkosh Gymnastics Center, the same place that the Russell family trained.
“It’s such a healthy environment among my family when it comes to and the kids just love being there,” gymnastics.” Dusti said. “When I help out in the Rehana feels the same about her summer, the girls get so excited. It’s so younger brother. amazing to see young gymnasts so “Cody’s body awareness when passionate and driven to learn.” he’s in the air is remarkable,” she said. Dusti’s last season as a collegiate “He does amazing flips and twists, gymnast begins in January, and she yet he always seems to know exactly has her sights set high for her final where he is in the air and how to land season with the Gophers. Minnesota safely.” will serve as a host site for the NCAA Asked whether she thinks Cody’s Regionals on April 5 and Dusti belike a cat, which will almost always lieves anything less than another trip land on its feet, Rehana said, “Yeah, to the 2014 NCAA Championships that’s a pretty good analogy.” for the Gophers will be disappointDusti has a very close bond with ing. Cody, who has always been protec“Every one of us who were able to tive of his only younger sister. travel to Los Angeles for nationals last “Cody is probably the best year know what it takes to get there, brother in the world,” Dusti said. and we all have the fire inside to get “He’s always looked out for me and I back there this year,” she said. “We’ve feel very blessed to be the only one been working so hard to prepare for in our family with a big brother. this season, and it’s just a blessing that There are lots of stories from when Dusti’s mother, Debbie, was an All-American on we’ll be able to host regionals at the we were younger where I’d break balance beam at UW-Oshkosh. Sports Pavilion.” something or do something to get in Dusti and her teammates are like trouble, and Cody would take the a family. But, with this “family,” she’s blame for it.” the big sister, and she watches over and protects all of her younger “sisters.” Actually, it wasn’t just Cody who watched out for his little sister. In the Russell As a team captain for the Gophers, Dusti will utilize what she learned from family, being the youngest had its advantages. Dusti’s siblings would always keep her own family – how to be a champion, like her parents; how to be compassionher out of trouble by taking the blame for things she had done. Rehana said that ate, like Rehana; how to be driven and strong, like Randi Jo; and how to persevere her youngest sister once colored their kitchen walls with a neon-pink Crayon, and find success no matter the circumstances, like Cody. and they all worked to keep Debbie out of the room long enough for them to When her career wraps up, Minnesota’s loyal fans hope she’ll walk away from clean up the mess. collegiate gymnastics as the latest success from a very talented family, with anThe fact that Rehana decided to attend Minnesota, where she competed for other championship ring on her finger. three seasons with the Gophers, had a big impact on Dusti’s decision to choose Minnesota, as well. Dusti considered following Randi Jo to Arizona, as well as some other Big Ten programs, but that homebody thing that she shares with ReMichael Molde is a freelance writer for Gopher Athletics. hana kept her close to home. Dusti said she always admired Rehana for becoming a Division I gymnast, and for being the first one to venture out from the family. Rehana was a bars specialist for the Gophers, and Dusti said, “I remember coming to watch her compete for the Gophers and she had the most gorgeous bars routine. I knew that, if she picked Minnesota, that’s where I’d want to go, too.” After Dusti left for college in 2010, Debbie and Dave made the decision to move on from coaching at Oshkosh Gymnastics Center. Debbie renewed her license to allow her to teach physical education classes, while Dave continued his work as a roofer. But, even though she enjoyed teaching physical education classes, Debbie said she and Dave missed being able to work with kids in gymnastics. So, in 2012, Debbie and Dave took a risk and invested some of their savings to open a small gym in Stevens Point, Wis. Russell Gymnastics opened its doors that fall in a small warehouse space, with 60 kids signed up for the initial classes. Dave continued to work as a roofer during the week, while coaching at the gym on the weekends. But the risk has paid off and the business has thrived, recently moving into a space that’s more than twice Rehana Russell was an uneven bars specialist for the Gophers and lettered from 2005-07. the square footage of the original facility, and increasing enrollment to more than 250. DECEMBER 2013 / SKI-U-MAH / 15
Big
THE ‘M’ CLUB INDUCTS TEN GREATS INTO ITS HALL OF FAME
2 0 1 3 ‘ M ’ C L U B H A L L O F FA M E I N D U C T I O N P H O T O F R O N T R O W : M a r y L a M o i s , A n n D ow n s , N a t a l i e D a r w i t z , K r i s s y We n d e l l , R i ck N a u m o f f. B A C K R O W : S t e v e R o s s , P a t r i c i a R o s s , C h a r l e s L i c k , J a n e L i c k , C h a r l i e S a n d e r s , G a r y W i l s o n , J i m C a r t e r, J o n A n d r e s e n .
JON ANDRESEN (Baseball, 1962-63) JIM CARTER (Football / Hockey, 1967-69) NATALIE DARWITZ (Hockey, 2002-05) LOYD LAMOIS (Track & Field, 1948) LOUIS LICK (Golf, 1943-45)
RICK NAUMOFF (Tennis, 1990-93) LARRY ROSS (Hockey, 1951-53) CHARLIE SANDERS (Football, 1965-67) KRISSY WENDELL-POHL (Hockey, 2002-05) GARY WILSON (Women’s Track & Field/Cross Country Coach, 1985-2012)
16 / SKI-U-MAH / DECEMBER 2013
Charlie Sanders (1965-67) was an all-conference tight end for the Gophers and went on to a Hall of Fame career with the Detroit Lions in the NFL.
Perhaps the two greatest players in Gopher women’s hockey history, Krissy Wendell and Natalie Darwitz led Minnesota to two national championships (2004, 2005). Wendell played on two U.S. Olympic teams and Darwitz three. Darwitz remains the all-time leading scorer in school history while Wendell is second.
Jon Andresen (1962-63) was a first team All-American second baseman in 1963.
A dual sport star, Jim Carter, pictured with emcee Desi Williamson, played football and hockey from 1967-69.
The daughter of track and field great Loyd LaMois, Ann Downs, accepts her father’s induction to the Hall of Fame.
The family of golfing great Louis Lick (1943-45). Lick was Minnesota’s first NCAA individual golf champion in 1944.
PHOTOS: JERRY LEE
Rick Naumoff (1990-93) became just the second tennis player to be inducted into the Hall of Fame.
Women’s track and field/cross country coaching icon Gary Wilson, pictured with his wife, Suzy, current women’s cross country coach Sarah Hopkins, Deborah Olson and women’s swimming coach and fellow Hall of Famer Terry Ganley.
The family of hockey legend Larry Ross (1951-53). Ross was a first team All-American in 1953.
DECEMBER 2013 / SKI-U-MAH / 17
A REPORT CARD worth showing off
b y rick moore
Golden Gopher Athletics programs shine in Academic Progress Rates
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he grades are in—both figuratively and literally—and the collective report card for Gopher student-athletes is definitely something to write home about.
According to the most recent Academic Progress Rates (APR) report, 22 of Minnesota’s 25 athletics programs have either maintained or improved their multi-year scores, and all 25 teams scored well above the 930 standard for avoiding possible scholarship reductions and post-season sanctions. But this isn’t about staying above the lowest of the bars; it’s about reaching new heights. The U had five athletic programs—baseball, men’s tennis, women’s basketball, women’s gymnastics, and soccer—register perfect multi-year scores of 1,000. (The data cover the four years from 2008-09 through 2011-12.) In addition, 14 Gopher teams garnered a perfect 1,000 for their 201112 single-year score, and the women’s soccer team notched its fourthstraight season with a perfect score. Of the 22 teams that maintained or improved their multi-year scores, football saw the biggest improvement— a gain of 23 points—and the team’s latest multi-year score and 2011-12 score of 994 are both program records. Add the fact that the U finished 22nd nationally in the Learfield Director’s Cup standings (the measure of program-wide athletics excellence) and notched a second straight national championship in women’s hockey, and it’s apparent that these are good times for Gopher Athletics. “First and foremost, for the recent success we’ve had academically, the credit goes to the student-athletes and then, from my perspective, the coaches,” says Lynn Holleran, director of the McNamara Academic Center for Student-Athletes. “We have a great group of coaches at the University. They get it. Since I walked in the door we’ve changed a lot of what we do, and we rely on
18 / SKI-U-MAH / DECEMBER 2013
them to hold their student-athletes accountable. I feel like we have a partnership and that’s why we’ve been successful. And my staff has done a great job working with the coaches and building those relationships.”
A center of activity It’s a sunny and warm weekday in late July and the Bierman Field Athletic Building, like the rest of campus, is in summer mode. But walk into the McNamara Academic Center—a focal point in the building—and you’re sure to find company. On this day the big spreadsheet that lists tutoring and private study sessions has an impressive array of colored blocks, and Holleran says it’s nothing compared to the buzz of activity during the school year proper, when student-athletes are doing their best to get ahead, or at least stay on track, during their demanding sports seasons. Her staff includes seven academic advisors who, divided among them, provide advising services for all the student-athletes, including keeping them on track to graduate in four years. As well, there are two coordinators of learning services whose responsibilities include the tutoring programs. Those tutors number about 150. Some help athletes in specific subjects, while others are mentor tutors who, Holleran says, “work with students—usually first-year students—not necessarily tutoring them in a subject matter but meeting with them a couple times a week just to help them from an organizational standpoint.” She notes that the staff has “reinvented” the tutoring program to make it more proactive, occasionally even mandating tutoring for certain student-athletes based on factors like prior performance or their academic profile upon entering the University.
MAKING THE GRADE > The soccer team was one of five Gopher programs to receive a perfect 1,000 APR score for the four-year data period from 2008-11. The soccer program has notched four consecutive seasons of perfect APR scores.
“The greatest problem we’ve created for ourselves, because of our change in our tutor program and being more proactive, is that we’ve run out of space,” she says. “We have a little less than 12,000 square feet of space for the McNamara Academic Center and we use every inch of it for study space and tutor space and then don’t even have enough. “Football has been so gracious that in the evenings during the academic year we use their position rooms for tutoring.” Wesley Powers is a senior majoring in microbiology who works as both a subject tutor and a mentor tutor. He says he was guilty of holding the stereotype that a lot of athletes were trying to coast through college with easy classes … until he started meeting them. “One of my first mentor-tutor students was taking some advanced-level biochemistry and I said, ‘Sorry, I can tell you how to study for it, but don’t ask me any questions.’ … “I’ve seen the schedules that these kids have with training and practice and meets and games. And then they have to, at the same time, maintain their classes, and a lot of that stuff is pretty advanced work that some of them are doing. I’m impressed.”
“For instance, the academic advisors will meet with incoming kids on their official visits. For football, when they bring their recruits in I’ll speak at a breakfast about the services we offer. We give them tours of the areas and we’re very engaged in that piece of it, which helps the coaches because they can say, ‘This is what we’ll offer you; this is the support we’re going to give you.’ It also helps us because we’re able to—even before they get here—start to build a relationship and get a better feel for that student. And that’s very helpful when you’re trying to figure out, ‘How are we going to support you academically?’”
Raising the bar A different way of doing business
“I’ve seen the schedules that these kids have with training and practice and meets and games. And then they have to, at the same time, maintain their classes, and a lot of that stuff is pretty advanced work that some of them are doing. I’m impressed.” — – LYNN HOLLERAN, Director of the McNamara Academic Center
Holleran was tabbed to move to the McNamara Academic Center from the Office of the President about three years ago in part because of her background, which included stints in athletics administration at Boston College and academic administration at Northwestern University. “I thought, what a great chance to go [to the McNamara Center] and see if I can change some things and maybe do some things differently,” she says. The center itself has undergone some shifts. About 13 years ago it moved out of the athletics department and into the Office of Undergraduate Education. She says the Minnesota was one of the first Big Ten universities to separate its student-athlete academic center from athletics, but in recent years some of the other schools have shifted in that direction, too, so that approximately half of the conference schools are structured this way. “There are benefits to both,” Holleran says. “Given our history here at the U, there is no doubt this model is the best for the University of Minnesota.” Even though the McNamara Academic Center staff is not under the purview of the athletics department, the two entities still work very closely together. “Our office is very involved in recruiting,” Holleran says. “Coaches utilize us in the recruiting process so that parents and incoming students understand the type of support we’re going to give [them].
Holleran is quick to give ample credit to her staff. And the work that she and her staff have done in reaching out across campus has also been instrumental. “I think we’ve done a better job of building relationships on campus— [with] the academic advisors on campus, the associate deans that I’ve worked with, and the department chairs. They’ve just been awesome,” Holleran notes. “That has a lot to do with it. Plus, Provost (Karen) Hanson and Vice Provost (Bob) McMaster have supported me 110 percent. Their backing of what we do down here has been tremendous.” All that support, plus the hard work of Holleran’s staff and, especially, the student-athletes themselves, has paid off in spades—and grades. She tips her hat to the football team and its spectacular one-year jump— believed to be the largest in the nation—in its APR score. And she beams at the success of the five programs with the perfect multi-year scores. “That’s phenomenal,” she says. “Not to pull out anyone in particular, but especially in baseball and women’s basketball—nationally, that’s hard to find. But all five of them, kudos to them; that’s really spectacular.” But the academic success spans all 25 sports. “This is the first time that I can find record of that every team is projected to have over a 3.0 spring term GPA,” Holleran says, “and we have 23 out of 25 teams that have a cumulative GPA over 3.0.” And here’s one other statistic that, in the minds of Holleran and others, means every bit as much as points per game or goals-against average: The cumulative GPA for student-athletes at the University stands at a robust 3.20, while the cumulative GPA for the entire undergraduate population is 3.18. “It’s the highest cumulative GPA for our student-athletes ever,” says Holleran. “Our student-athletes should be performing at the same level or better than the [general] student population,” she adds. “And the good news is, we are.” Rick Moore is a writer and editor in University Relations and a long-time follower of Gopher Athletics. Contact him at moore112@umn.edu.
DECEMBER 2013 / SKI-U-MAH / 19
For Aulana, being born with a major portion of her spine missing made walking on her hands a day-to-day reality. But doctors at the U of M invented a solution no one else could. Using donor bone and one of Aulana’s own ribs, they built her a new spine, giving her the ability to sit upright like any other child.
And in the process, illuminated the entire medical world with a new possibility for people living with spinal deformities. Discover more at umn.edu.
122
1,202 5,748
Season saves by Tarah Hobbs, to lead the Big Ten Conference.
by the
Fans packed into the Sports Pavlion to see Minnesota face Penn State in a pivotal Big Ten volleyball match on November 16.
NUMBERS
7
Non-offensive touchdowns by Minnesota in 2013, a school record.
Rushing yards by David Cobb, the most by a Gopher since 2006.
36 62
Minnesota’s NCAA-record winning streak in women’s hockey that came to an end on November 17, 2013 against North Dakota.
1,000
3,257
Points by Rachel Banham in the Gophers’ 63-62 win over Chattanooga on Nov. 29.
5
Gopher women’s cross country runners that earned All-Region honors. Career points scored by Austin Hollins (reached milestone on 12/10 against South Dakota State) and Andre Hollins (reached milestone on 12/20 against Omaha.)
Career kills by senior All-Americans Ashley Wittman and Tori Dixon.
PHOTOS: ERIC MILLER, CHRIS MITCHELL, COURTNEY ANDERSON, GREG SMITH
DECEMBER 2013 / SKI-U-MAH / 21
GREAT
HEIGHTS Maggie Keefer and Manny Pollard took different routes into the sport of diving but both have excelled at the very difficult mental and physical challenges the sport requires to become some of the nation’s best. ––– by Justine Buerkle
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SPOTLIGHT
S
|
DIVING
ix dives lasting a few seconds each. That’s it. That’s all the chance divers get to show the judges what they can do. The meet may last several hours, but a diver’s actual competition time adds up to less than a minute.
It takes an extraordinary level of skill and mental preparation to handle that pressure and execute difficult dives -- approach, takeoff, elevation, execution and entry, all in mere seconds. University of Minnesota divers Maggie Keefer and Manny Pollard know how to handle those challenges. Keefer, a senior and seven-time All-American, was the 2013 NCAA 1-meter runner-up and Big Ten Diver of the Year. Pollard, a sophomore, scored in all three diving events at the 2013 Big Ten Championships and has a chance to go the NCAA meet this year.
Approach and takeoff Keefer, a native of Stillwater, Minn., has been diving competitively since she was 12 years old, including several meets at the University of Minnesota Aquatic Center. She grew up watching her older sister dive and already had a background in gymnastics, a common crossover sport for divers, as she started learning the basics of the sport as a toddler. “(Gymnastics) really helped my spatial awareness, knowing where I am in the flip,” she said. “It was pretty easy to grasp the concept of diving, just because I had already been flipping since I was so young.” Pollard wanted to sign up for gymnastics. As a child, the Troy, N.Y., native watched gymnastics and taught himself how to do some of the things he saw. With a disregard for “Don’t try this at home” warnings, Pollard used the couch and bed as mats for his flips. Despite his passion, he still wasn’t enrolled in the sport by middle school. So he took a different path. “I just picked the next best thing and I joined the diving team,” Pollard said. He doesn’t feel that the lack of a formal gymnastics background set him back in diving. “You’d have to relearn stuff,” he said. “I think going straight to diving was good for me.” One thing divers learn right away is the importance of visualization. “Your body wants to do what your mind wants it to do,” Pollard said. “If you visualize yourself doing the dive, you’re most likely going to do a good dive.” Before her turn on the board, Keefer models her dives, going through the basic motions while standing on the pool deck. Visualizing and modeling are important tools for divers, but there is a fine line between good mental preparation and overthinking. PHOTOS: ERIC MILLER (LEFT, TOP MIDDLE), WALT MIDDLETON (BOTTOM RIGHT)
“I model my dive probably once or twice before,” Keefer said. “Afterwards, I don’t really think about it. I really concentrate on my breathing. If I’m breathing really fast or I know my heart is racing a little bit faster than normal, I take a couple more deep breaths and I just go.” A lot of practice has led up to that moment. The divers must work on 1-meter and 3-meter springboard and 10-meter platform, so they may not practice every dive every day, but Pollard estimated he performs each dive about 40 times each week. Both he and Keefer named the same key to successful diving. “Consistency,” Keefer said. “Training the same skills over and over and over again. As much as I hate to say it, you really need to train the same skills every day or you’re not going to develop proper techniques.” “Even now, everyone on our team is still learning consistency,” Pollard said. “What makes the Chinese divers so spectacular is that they can do six perfect dives in a row. We’re all just trying to do that. Once we’re able to do that, we’ll be able to compete at our highest potential.” During a meet, even the routines leading into dives should remain consistent. Pollard listens to music and then thinks about just one or two things diving coach Wenbo Chen told him. Keefer tries to keep her meet warm-ups the same as practice. She has no special rituals. She just models her dive and then gets up on the board. Once on the board, Keefer must have a steady approach that will allow her to leave the board correctly. Keeping her steps approximately the same size is usually the best way to ensure proper takeoff. A dive can start from a forward or backward position, or even an armstand on the platform. Standing on the edge of a springboard might be a little intimidating to someone first learning to dive, but those boards are nothing compared to the 10meter platform. Even when Keefer and Pollard hesitated to stand near the edge of the platform during the photo shoot for this article. Keefer said that she started the sport at a young enough age to overcome the fear of diving from that height. Pollard said that flipping rather than jumping off the platform makes it less scary, beDECEMBER 2013 / SKI-U-MAH / 23
the
MASTERMIND After his own diving career in China, Wenbo Chen began coaching the sport. After decades of coaching in China, Canada and the U.S., he came in Minnesota in 2009, and the Golden Gopher diving program has thrived ever since. During his time coaching at Purdue from 2001 to 2005, Chen saw the Gopher men win multiple Big Ten titles. The success of Minnesota’s swimming team was encouraging to him when he took the diving job. “A few years before I came, they were a little down in the diving area, but I could see the potential,” Chen said. “They have a great high school program in Minnesota. The high school competition for diving has lots of people with lots of talent. Also, they have a great pool here. That’s another thing that can help you build a good program for the diving side.” Since his arrival, Minnesota women’s divers have earned 11 All-America certificates and six Big Ten titles, and the men have tallied five All-America honors. Chen guided Kelci Bryant to two NCAA titles (2010 and 2011) and a silver medal at the 2012 Olympic Games. Bryant was twice an NCAA runner-up, and Maggie Keefer finished second in 1meter in 2013. Bryant was named Big Ten Diver of the Year in 2010, and Keefer earned that title in 2013. Both years, Chen was named Big Ten Diving Coach of the Year. He was also named the National Diving Coach of the Year by the CSCAA in 2011. Coaching Bryant has helped Chen in recruiting, one of the key areas in building a program. He said that conditioning has been the other critical area because it makes injuries less likely. Coaching everyone from junior divers to Olympic medalists, Chen picks up new information and ways to teach at every stop. And a lot of it has to do with what happens before his divers step on the board. “Diving is a mental sport,” Chen said. “If you don’t have a mental program for them, it’s very difficult to get them to move to another level. I also have a lot of conditioning training and basic skill training so they have good mechanics. That way they feel more comfortable with themselves, and that’s the way they can move up another level.” Chen’s teaching has worked for Minnesota’s divers, and he expects big things from them again this spring. He sees five women and four men potentially scoring at the Big Ten meet, with several having a shot at the NCAA meet. “I think right now is probably the best team so far for the last five years,” Chen said.
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PHOTOS: ERIC MILLER (TOP LEFT), WALT MIDDLETON (TOP RIGHT)
> Wenbo Chen is in his fifth season as the head diving coach at the U of M and has coached his divers to 16 All-America awards in that short time period.
cause concentrating on the flip allows him to forget how high he is above the pool. He stays calm by reminding himself that Chen would not make him do anything he isn’t ready to do. “When I’m at the end of the board, I try to tell myself to relax and I try to think about the two things he told me and just let my body do the rest of the work,” Pollard said.
Elevation and execution Some dives require Pollard to hurtle off the end of the board up into the air to gain extra elevation for the acrobatic maneuvers he wants to execute. Both this takeoff and the ensuing body positions require strength, which Pollard said that he has gained from his weightlifting and conditioning Keefer after finishing as the runner-up on the 1-meter springboard at the NCAA Championships last March. regimen at Minnesota. The mental aspect of diving is just as important in the air as it is before takeoff. Although the trip from board to water doesn’t last long, there is still plenty of time to think. “Sometimes that can be really detrimental to your dive,” Pollard said. “If you think too much, it can ruin what else you’re supposed to be doing. Autocorrecting yourself in the air might make the dive worse. Trying to trust yourself is one of the big aspects of the sport.” Divers need to trust their abilities and muscle memory, but also be aware of their surroundings. During high school, Pollard taught himself to get oriented during dives after watching so many divers who had no idea where they were in the air. “When you’re in the air, it’s good to open your eyes and see where you are at all times, even – Manny Pollard though it might be scary,” Pollard said. “I see everything,” Keefer said. “I see the water. I see the ceiling. If I’m spinning fast on 10-meter, I’ll be doing five somersaults. I know where I am in the air, so that allows me to come out at the right time.” Keefer and Pollard’s gymnastics backgrounds – whether formal or self-taught – helped the pikes, somersaults and twists come naturally to them.
“When I’m at the end of the board, I try to tell myself to relax and I try to think about the two things (Chen) told me and just let my body do the rest of the work.”
Water entry As gravity draws Keefer faster and faster toward the pool, she must complete the dive and straighten out. She wants to enter the water with her hands together above her head, her palms flat and facing the water to break the surface tension and make the smallest splash possible. “I can feel myself going in the hole I create, which feels a lot better than, say, landing flat on my back,” Keefer said. Even skilled divers still have some rough landings, in practice if not in competition. “Sometimes you forget to close your eyes and it just rushes in your eyes,” Pollard said. “Or you breathe in at the wrong time.” Landing at the wrong angle can make the water seem more like rock than liquid. Keefer came away with bruises all over her legs after trying a new dive recently. But before the bruises were gone, she continued to work on that same dive. “If you are scared of doing dives or don’t force yourself to do any dives, then obviously you’re not going to get better,” she said.
ALL-AMERICAN > Maggie Keefer took every Big Ten award in 2013, winning the Big Ten Diver of the Year and Big Ten Diver of the Championships. She won the 1-meter and 3-meter springboard titles. Keefer later went on to finish second at the NCAA Championships on the 1-meter and sixth on the 3meter. She’s a seven-time All-American heading into her final championship season.
Review and repeat
2013 Maggie Keefer Maggie Keefer Sarah McCrady Jordan Lesser Mikey Ross
1-meter 3-meter platform 1-meter 3-meter
2nd 6th 16th 11th 11th
1-meter 3-meter platform platform
5th 12th 15th 11th
1-meter 3-meter 1-meter 3-meter
1st 2nd 11th 13th
1-meter 3-meter 1-meter
2nd 1st 13th
2012 Maggie Keefer Maggie Keefer Maggie Keefer Mikey Ross
2011 Kelci Bryant Kelci Bryant Maggie Keefer Drew Brown
2010 Kelci Bryant Kelci Bryant Drew Brown
It would be so easy for those seconds to end in disappointment. A slip on the board or a slight untuck of a somersault is all it would take. But that precariousness makes a perfect, straight, splashfree entry all the more exhilarating. In those moments, all the pressure seems worth it. “When you do a meet and you hit six out of six dives, or five out of six, it just feels good,” Pollard said. “When you do your best in the sport, it’s just awesome.” Justine Buerkle is an athletic communications assistant at the U of M. She can be reached at buer0034@umn.edu. She is also afraid to jump off the 10-meter platform.
RISING STAR > Manny Pollard emerged as one of the top freshman divers in the country in 2013. He finished fourth on the 1-meter board, ninth on the platform and 15th on the 3-meter board at the Big Ten Championships. He won his first Big Ten Diver of the Week honor in October after sweeping the springboard events in a dual meet with Arizona State.
PHOTOS: ERIC MILLER
After each dive during a meet, Keefer and Pollard talk to Chen for corrections before their next dive. They can also get instant visual feedback from the replay screens set up in the diving area. Keefer does not watch replays of her dives during competition and rarely watches video outside of the instant replays at practice. Pollard, a visual learner, devours video. His laptop holds 1,000 to 1,500 videos of other divers, including his coach and Kelci Bryant, a former Gopher and Olympic medalist. Pollard watches his own performances to see what he needs to correct and goes to Chen to learn how to fix it. Bryant, whom Pollard watched on TV before choosing Minnesota and now calls his “diving mom,” is another resource who gives him tips about competition. Both Pollard and Keefer said that working with Chen has taught them to be better competitors. As Keefer said, “You can be a good diver, but if you’re not a good competitor, then you’re not going to do that well.” Keefer and Pollard will compete in all three diving events at the Big Ten meet this season. Both have earned conference diver of the week honors this fall, but all the meets so far have mainly been preparation for bigger stages. Pollard hopes to move up in the Big Ten and compete in his first NCAA meet. Keefer has one more NCAA meet to win a national title. A few seconds’ lapse in the middle of a basketball or football championship might be easily corrected. But a few seconds’ lapse during a diving championship will most likely lose the gold. Keefer actually finds that pressure helpful. When she sees her fellow competitors perform well, it forces her to concentrate and bring out her best. To achieve greatness, elite divers endure painful landings and water up the nose. They repeat the same dives over and over again. They mediate constant mental battles within their own minds. And all for a handful of dives lasting a few seconds each.
CHEN’S ALL-AMERICANS
DECEMBER 2013 / SKI-U-MAH / 25
A Chance To Be
DIFFERENT
Ton y N el son p u rsu es a f eat never accomplished at the University of M i n n esot a: b ecom i n g a three-time national champion. by kevin kurtt
t’s Sunday, Nov. 24, at the Sports Pavilion and Leland Pfeifer is looking like the proverbial lamb before the slaughter. The University of Wyoming heavyweight is pacing behind his team’s bench, preparing for his match against top-ranked and two-time defending NCAA heavyweight champion Tony Nelson. Pfeifer is putting on his best tough-guy face, but he and everyone else in the arena knows he stands no chance. A little over two minutes later, the inevitable happens. Nelson rolls Pfeifer onto his back for the pin to close out a 41-5 victory for the second-ranked Golden Gophers. It’s a common sight at Minnesota wrestling matches: Nelson closing out a dual meet with an overwhelming performance. But the senior from Cambridge, Minn., is not your common heavyweight. He’s a 6-4, 260-pound beast of a
I
26 / SKI-U-MAH / DECEMBER 2013
wrestler on a quest to become the first Golden Gopher to do the uncommon: win a third straight national championship. Since the NCAA Division I Wrestling Championships began in 1928, only 26 wrestlers have won three individual titles (including a trio who won four times and 17 who won three straight). It’s a feat never accomplished at the University of Minnesota. In fact, Nelson entered the 2013-14 season as the first-ever Gopher to even have a chance at winning three national championships. Minnesota has had four previous two-time winners – Cole Konrad, Damion Hahn, Tim Hartung and Verne Gagne – but all achieved their second title in their senior season. Nelson has a chance to make history. A chance to be different. The heavyweight class is a different animal in the world of collegiate wrestling. Officially listed as 285 pounds, heavyweights can tip the scales at nearly 100
PHOTO: ERIC MILLER
pounds more than those at the nearest weight class (197). The style of wrestling tends to be different as well. While the lighter weight classes typically feature more action, matches at heavyweight tend toward a slower pace with hand fighting, positioning, defense and riding as trademarks. As Nelson puts it, heavyweight is “its own little weight class.” “Little” is a word not often associated with Nelson, nor the heavyweights. “Big,” on the other hand, comes up quite a bit. Take this comment by Gopher assistant coach Luke Becker: “Guys are so big and so strong. They’re hard to move. It’s hard to get a big guy out of position to get an angle on him because they are so big. They’re so big and powerful.” But what makes Nelson different? “Well, I’m a lot bigger,” Nelson jokes. “He’s a big, strong kid,” Becker says. “He’s such a great athlete. He’s a better athlete than every one of those other heavyweights out there.” That athleticism served Nelson well during his first two runs at the national championship. Weighing in at 240-245 pounds, Nelson’s opponents routinely outweighed him, but his speed and athleticism were key in out-wrestling bigger heavyweights.
“I was smaller than a lot of guys, but I could out-quick them,” Nelson says. “My sophomore year in the national finals, I was 245 and [Lehigh’s Zach Rey] was 275. It makes a difference. They have all that extra weight without even trying. It gives guys an advantage with a little strength. But I’ve always wrestled up a weight so I’ve gotten used to being the smaller guy, staying in good position and staying strong on guys.” Fast-forward to 2013 and the shoe is on the other foot. Nelson has packed about 20 pounds of muscle onto his imposing frame, while not giving up the speed and athleticism that paced him to his first NCAA crowns. “The weight I put on was good weight,” he says. “I tried to do it the right way, lifting heavy over the summer to put on the weight in a really good way. It helps. With riding, it just adds extra weight on top. It helps you keep a guy down easier. It hasn’t really slowed me down.” Speed isn’t the only factor that has allowed Nelson to reach the top of the collegiate wrestling world. According to his coaches, he’s the complete package on the mat. From his strength, to his quickness, to his top position, to his defense, Nelson has it all. “He has developed a good style that he can win with,” head coach J Robinson DECEMBER 2013 / SKI-U-MAH / 27
says. “He’s good on top which negates a lot of things. He's really worked on his defense – people have a hard time scoring on him. So it all kind of works together. If you can't score on a guy, then you have to beat him somewhere else. So then if you go down on the mat, he can get away from most people and he can ride most people. Then they have a problem. By having a great defense, he negates a lot of offense from other people which then puts them in his playground.” Then there’s the mental side of the game. Nelson seems to have that down as well. “Tony has confidence in himself,” assistant coach Brandon Eggum says. “He doesn’t believe it’s possible for him to lose a match. He’s very confident in that sense. That’s the thing that makes him great. He cannot see himself losing. He just believes that he’ll find a way to win.” A perfect example of Nelson’s belief in his inability to lose came in the semifinals of last year’s NCAA Championships. Trailing 4-3 late in the third period to Oklahoma State’s Alan Gelogaev, Nelson scrambled for a takedown to win 5-4 and punch his ticket to the finals. “He finds a way to win,” Eggum says. “A lot of guys can get in a situation like that and think it’s over and stop wrestling.” According to Nelson, confidence is a major reason for the success he has experienced in his three-plus seasons as a Gopher.
PHOTO: JERRY LEE
“A huge thing that gets overlooked is just confidence in yourself. That’s really what puts guys over the top – knowing that you’re the best, believing that you’re the best. I just believe in myself and stay confident. I’ve got two titles to be confident in.” With two national championships under his belt, Nelson has plenty of confidence in his ability to win a third, but he knows it won’t come easy. He is often reminded of the challenge he faces in making history. “The coaches remind me that it’s not going to just come to me,” Nelson says. “I can’t think that I’m going to walk through the year. You’re going to have some trouble looking at it like that. I’m just focused on improving every day and working to that final goal in March.” Thousands of wrestlers have worked toward the final goal of winning an individual NCAA championship in the 85-year history of the national tournament with most falling short of achieving their dream. Far fewer wrestlers have been able to see that dream achieved twice. In fact, of the hundreds of national titles won, only 126 wrestlers have captured multiple individual crowns. If winning one title is hard and winning two is even harder, the difficulty in becoming a three-time champion is immense. Why? “At this level, as weird as it is to believe, a lot of times the climb is the easy part,” says Becker, the 2002 NCAA champion at 157 pounds. “Once you get up there, the hard part is maintaining it and staying there.” “Every time you win one, it gets harder,” Eggum says. “As an individual, he’s made a point “People start gunning for you, you’ve got a name for yourthat if he’s going to do something self, there’s a target on your back.”
in his life, he’s going to be successful. Going into engineering, imagine the stress and commitment that takes on top of trying to become a three-time NCAA champion. He’s done a good job of balancing his life and putting the effort in where it needs to be.” 28 / SKI-U-MAH / DECEMBER 2013
Nelson admits that winning his second NCAA title was more difficult than the first, attributing much of the challenge to the added pressure and expectations. Pressure has felled many highly-seeded wrestlers at the national tournament. Every year sees several contenders lose early, succumbing to the burden of high expectations. “There’s pressure that builds on trying to win back-toback titles,” Eggum says. “Pressure that comes from yourself, your family, your friends, your community. You hear
HEAVYWEIGHT POWER > The Gophers have won seven national titles in the heavyweight class. They include Leonard Levy (1941), Verne Gagne (1949), Brock Lesnar (2000), Cole Konrad (2006, 2007) and Tony Nelson (2011, 2012). Minnesota has had an All-American at heavyweight at 16 of the last 21 NCAA Championships.
“Every time you win one, it gets harder. People start gunning for you, you’ve got a name for yourself, there’s a target on your back.” his 111 career wins to his 23 pins, from his three AllAmerica honors to his two Big Ten and NCAA titles. Now he is on the verge of becoming, arguably, the most accomplished wrestler in University of Minnesota history. So what will it take for Nelson to attain that lofty status? For Becker, it’s about Nelson staying aggressive on the mat. “He’s going to have to put points up on the board. If he continues to open it up, there’s no one in the country who can wrestle with him. If he goes out there every match and opens it up and scores the first takedown, the match is over.” For Robinson, it’s about staying hungry for a third national championship. “He has to be just as hungry for the third as he was for the first one. He can't think ahead about what it's going to be like - the benefits that I can get, where I could be in the Hall of Fame, all those kind of things. They’re not there. You really have to stay in the present and dismiss the rest of that.” For Eggum, it’s about focusing on the task at hand. “He’s got to make sure that he compartmentalizes his thoughts and focuses on the guy in front of him and not the national title. It’s always going to be in his mind. How can it not be? But he needs to
stay focused on the position he’s in, winning the hand fight, scoring that takedown, defending that shot. If he focuses on that and not things ahead of him, then that’s his best chance to win another national title.” Three years ago, prior to the Big Ten Championships, Nelson pulled Robinson aside and told his head coach that he was going to become his first three-time national champion. “I went on to win it that year and did it last year, so now I’m sitting here able to win three,” Nelson says. “Just knowing that I said that and I’m here with the opportunity, it’s an awesome feeling.” In the meantime, Nelson will likely repeat what the fans saw at the Sports Pavilion on Nov. 24 – an elite wrestler exerting his will on an overmatched opponent. The Big Ten dual season, the National Duals and the Big Ten Championships await, but they’re a mere appetizer for the main course – Tony Nelson’s chance to be different, his chance to become the first three-time NCAA individual champion in University of Minnesota history. Kevin Kurtt is the editor of Let’s Play Hockey. He is a former assistant athletic communications director at the University of Minnesota where he handled the public relations for the Gopher wrestling team during its run to the 2001 and 2002 NCAA titles. DECEMBER 2013 / SKI-U-MAH / 29
PHOTO: ERIC MILLER
about it, you think about it. It’s added pressure. We remind guys all the time, ‘When you get to the Big Ten or NCAA finals, you have to go out and do everything you can to win because you may never be there again.’ The first one might be the easiest one. It only gets harder. After the first one, everyone knows who you are and it changes things.” With a huge target on his back and the pressure of trying to make Golden Gopher history, Nelson’s work is cut out for him during the 2013-14 season. Focusing on the clichéd “one match at a time” will be important. Focus is something that Nelson certainly doesn’t lack. In addition to his drive to achieve great things on the mat, Nelson is aiming big in the classroom as a mechanical engineering major. He admits that it has been a challenge balancing academics and athletics, but acknowledges that it has kept him focused and helped him get to where he is today. “As an individual, he’s made a point that if he’s going to do something in his life, he’s going to be successful,” Eggum says. “Going into engineering, imagine the stress and commitment that takes on top of trying to become a three-time NCAA champion. He’s done a good job of balancing his life and putting the effort in where it needs to be.” That effort has led Nelson to great things, from
the BILLMAN LEGACY T h e g i f t s of John and Kit Billman continue to contribute to the grow t h of G op h er student-athletes and the University as a whole.
ohn Billman's philanthropy at the University of Minnesota dates back to his days as a student in the early 1940's. The Gopher annual for 1943 contains a photo of John dressed as Santa distributing gifts at an orphanage as a representative of his fraternity. John, a proud World War II veteran, also liked being known as one of "Bernie's boys," a player from the golden era of Minnesota Gophers football when legendary coach Bernie Bierman was winning national championships. As a starting lineman John earned M Club membership and developed a lifelong love of the University of Minnesota, and especially of Golden Gopher Football. In addition to many outright gifts and pledges during life, John established two charitable gift annuities which benefited the Bernie Bierman Endowed Scholarship Fund, and he and his wife, Kit, both included generous gifts to the Billman Football Scholarship in their estate plans. Kit passed away in 2008 and John in 2012, but their legacy to the University of Minnesota will continue to benefit generations of student athletes well into the future. Although not a University graduate, Katharine "Kit" Billman felt it was important to give to the University. As the daughter of Franc Daniels, a former U horticulture professor, and the wife of businessman John Billman, she understood the value of a university education. Born and raised in northeast Minneapolis, John honed his football skills at Edison High School before enrolling at the University of Minnesota, where he played football from 1939 to 1942. As soon as he graduated with a degree in mortuary science, Billman was placed on active duty by the U.S. Navy and became a PT boat captain, stationed in the South Pacific. After Billman was discharged from the Navy, he played professional football briefly in the American Football League for the Brooklyn Dodgers and the Chicago Rockets. But the players were bigger by then and the money wasn't. So Billman returned to Minneapolis and went to work with his father in the family mortuary business. Kit left her psychiatric nursing career to assist her parents in their tree nursery business. After meeting the love of her life at a U fraternity gathering, she devoted her life to John, their three children, and supporting her husband's mortuary business. John and Kit gave back to the University in celebration of their good life. Many of their gifts, spread across the U, are in honor or memory of family and loved ones. "Like Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers, my parents were an inseparable team," explained their daughter, Jennifer Redmond. "Because of my dad's business, they were very involved in the community and my mom was right by his side for everything, including their giving." John never lost his passion for sports and fitness. “He was an athlete all of his life,” Jennifer said. “He and mom were golfing and walking the course into their ‘80s.” What makes the Billmans’ philanthropy unique is the many and varied ways
J
Kit and John Billman
they gave to the U, as well as the many aspects of the University that they have benefited, and continue to benefit, from their gifts. Among the many areas that the Billmans’ gifts benefited include Athletics (Billman Family Scholarship in football), The Office of International Programs (Billman International Scholarship Fund), The Institute of Technology/ROTC ( James Billman Scholarship), The Masonic Cancer Center (in John's sister Dorothy's name and Kit's name), The Minnesota Landscape Arboretum (in memory of Kit’s parents, Frank and Marion Daniels) and many others.
ESTATE GIVING > You too could support Athletics with an estate gift like the Billman's by calling 612-625-2933. 30 / SKI-U-MAH / DECEMBER 2013
[ T he L e g e nd s Dinne r honors supporters that gave at least $1 million to the construction of TCF Bank Stadium. ]
PHOTOS: CRAIG LASSIG
ďŹ fth annual
Legends Dinner A U GU S T 27, 2013 | TCF BANK STADIUM
DECEMBER 2013 / SKI-U-MAH / 31
PHOTOS: CRAIG LASSIG
L TO R: JULIA MADDOX, ANASTASIA HOEFT, BILL HOEFT
EMILY McNAMARA (THIRD FROM LEFT) AND FRIENDS
L TO R: BILL LANEY, DIANE ELMGREN, JOE ELMGREN
LOU NANNE, CHAIR OF THE WINE DINNER HOST COMMITTEE
eighth annual
Wine Dinner
S EPT EM B ER 16, 2013 | CALHOUN BEACH CLUB
32 / SKI-U-MAH / DECEMBER 2013
SAM GRABARSKI WITH PRESIDENT ERIC KALER
L TO R: DENNIS & JOYCE WAHR, KATHY & RANDY HANDEL, LISA & DAVID BENEDICT
L TO R: MARY JEAN SARGENT, ANNE MARIE ROGERS
L TO R: JANE NOYCE, JERRY NOYCE, JOANNE EDLEFSEN
L TO R: TONY GARDEN, RICHELLE GARDEN
L TO R: MARK CLOUTIER, JILL CLOUTIER, BILL DIRCKS
$220,000 raised for scholarships
L TO R: AMY ROBERTS, CHARLIE ROBERTS, WALLY CHAPMAN, CARA McADARAGH
L TO R: TOM MOE, KAREN MOE, KATHLEEN DANFORD, DAN DANFORD
DECEMBER 2013 / SKI-U-MAH / 33
PHOTOS: CRAIG LASSIG
L TO R: BETHANY BRAUSEN, KATIE THYKEN, TAYLOR WODNICK, DEBORAH OLSON, PAM BORTON
BILL McREAVY WITH TONY NELSON
GOLDEN GOPHER FUND
S C HOL ARSHIP BANQU E T OCTOBER 21, 2013 | TCF BANK STADIUM
An evening to celebrate the charitable giving of our scholarship supporters with the opportunity to meet an spend time with their respective scholarship recipients.
NORWOOD TEAGUE PRESENTS REGENT DAVID LARSON AND JANIS LARSON WITH THE DIRECTOR’S AWARD
BILL MILOTA, CATHY MILOTA, AL SCHRADER, JANE SCHRADER
34 / SKI-U-MAH / DECEMBER 2013
EMCEE MIKE GRIMM
FRANCINE NANNE, MIKE HALLORAN, TINO LETTIERI
L TO R: TOM HARDING, DEVIN CRAWFORD-TUFTS, MARY HARDING
BRAD FROST, BAYLEE GILLANDERS, ANN & BOB MILLIGAN
[TOM & MARY HARDING FAMILY SCHOLARSHIP]
[POWER PLAY CLUB SCHOLARSHIP]
GARY & SUZY WILSON, LAURA DOCHERTY
KAREN & SIMON ZELLER, SARI NOGA
[GARY & SUZY WILSON “ZONE OF DISCIPLINE” SCHOLARSHIP]
[SIMON & KAREN ZELLER SCHOLARSHIP]
HENRY WILLIAMS LEGACY SCHOLAR-ATHLETE AWARD RECIPIENT TONY NELSON AND PATTY BERG LEGACY SCHOLAR-ATHLETE AWARD RECIPIENT MAGGIE KEEFER
DUSTI RUSSELL, GARY ROONEY, KYLIE SCHERMANN [GARY & MARY LOU ROONEY SCHOLARSHIP]
LOGAN STORLEY, KEVIN STEINHAUS, J ROBINSON, TONY NELSON, ROBERT ROWELL, DYLAN NESS, DAVID THORN
ZACH SIEGMEIER, ANDY BUNGE
MIKE AAFEDT, ANDRE HOLLINS, DEANDRE MATHIEU, BILL WALTER
[ANDY & GAIL BUNGE SCHOLARSHIP]
[PAT AAFEDT SCHOLARSHIP, BILL & JUDY WALTER SCHOLARSHIP]
DECEMBER 2013 / SKI-U-MAH / 35
Basketball “journeyman” Malik Smith finds a home with Richard Pitino at the University of Minnesota.
by Rick Moore
36 / SKI-U-MAH / DECEMBER 2013
lue and gold. Purple and gold. Blue, orange, and white. Maroon and gold. Whatever color combination you prefer, chances are good it matches a basketball uniform that Malik Smith has worn his collegiate career. Smith, the senior three-point-shooting specialist for the Gophers, has played at four different colleges in four years, from West Texas to West Miami and finally the Great White North. Throw in two high schools in three years and he’s had… well, a lot of locker combinations to memorize. Now, Smith finds himself with an odd sense of continuity in the midst of more change. He’s the one Golden Gopher player who is in his second year with new head coach Richard Pitino, the man he jumped at a chance to play for— twice. He loves Pitino’s up-tempo, full court–pressing system and because of his experience with it last year at Florida International University, he became the guy that Gopher players went to this summer with questions about the system. Another new school, and finally a system that’s old hat.
B
A transfer student with a capital ‘T’ Smith is soft-spoken and entirely matterof-fact about his odyssey that began in high school in the Boston area. After attending a public school for two years, he transferred 50 miles west to Notre Dame Prep in Fitchburg for his junior and senior years. “It felt like I needed to get a better education coming out of high school because it was hard to focus in my public school with a lot going on over there,” he said. He didn’t qualify academically for a Division I university (“credit” those first two years for slowing his progress) so he ventured off to South Plains Junior College in Levelland, Texas—a place that, to Smith, was “in the middle of nowhere.” He only averaged about five points a game and says the system wasn’t a good fit for him, so he left for Jacksonville College near Dallas. In a new up-tempo sys-
tem there, he averaged about 15 points per game, which opened the eyes of Richard Pitino. “He had just got the job at Florida International (FIU), and once he called me I already knew that’s where I wanted to go,” says Smith. “I just trusted the name, being that his father is a big-time coach. I’m like, ‘This is exactly where I want to be.’” He actually knew a bit more about Coach Pitino than just the legendary name. “I knew, of course, that he worked for his father (Louisville head coach Rick Pitino) and then he worked for (Florida head coach) Billy Donovan,” Smith said. “He played a similar style to Rick Pitino—the up-tempo, pressing style— and that intrigued me, and I knew that working under those guys he had a recipe for winning, what with his father being a national champion and Billy Donovan having two national championships.” He signed during his trip to FIU without making any other visits, and helped spark a surprise season for a team picked to finish near the bottom of the Sun Belt Conference. Instead, the Panthers came a basket away from advancing to the NCAA Tournament. He averaged 14.1 points per game and set the record at FIU for three-pointers made in a single season with 96. His 3.0 threes per game ranked No. 1 in the conference and No. 16 in the nation.
Where Coach goes… When Richard Pitino left FIU to take the Minnesota job, Smith knew he wanted to transfer, again. He had calls from a number of schools, including Maryland, Texas, Alabama, and St. Mary’s. “But as soon as I learned that Coach Pitino wanted me to join him (at Minnesota), all those other schools were shut down, and I just signed here immediately. I’m just happy to be here right now.” Pitino felt the same way about having Smith on his roster at Minnesota and having a familar face in the locker room. “When I got the job, it was necesssary to bring Malik here,” Pitino said. “He understands me. He understands what our program is all about and he was a very important piece to our successful season last year. He understands our system. He
DECEMBER 2013 / SKI-U-MAH / 37
GOPHER
SUITES Teresa Grim 612-626-1064 tgrim@gophersportsproperties.com
VARIETY OF VENUES
Malik Smith has traveled 5,580 miles between his high schools and colleges. Below is a timeline:
2006-08 u Madison Park High School [Boston, Mass.] | 2008-10 u Notre Dame Preparatory School [Fitchburg, Mass.] 2010-11 u South Plains College [Levelland, Texas] | 2011-12 u Jacksonville College [Jacksonville, Texas] 2012-13 u Florida International University [Miami, Fla.] | 2013-14 u University of Minnesota [Minneapolis, Minn.] understands the day-to-day environment and he provides great leadership and knowledge of how we want to do things.” His latest transition has gone very well, according to Smith, and he’s “really comfortable” playing with his new teammates, who turned to him in the summer to try to get the lowdown on their new head coach. “Pretty much everybody on the team came up to me and asked me what it was going to be like,” Smith said with a smile, and those questions continued into the start of the season. “I just tell them, come in to work hard every day. We’re going to press. Every day is going to be fast-paced.” And, he added, “he (Pitino) is not going to hold anybody back from taking shots, so that’ll be fun.” Words to a shooter’s ears. But one of the biggest adjustments for Smith, outside of the frigid weather, is adapting to considerably less playing time. He started 31 of 32 games for FIU last year. This year, with Minnesota having Andre Hollins and Austin Hollins, his role is to come off the bench. “The hardest part was really adjusting to coming off the bench—being a 35-minute-a-game player last year and this year playing around 20 minutes a game. That was really the biggest adjustment, finding when to shoot and when to be relaxed and let other guys take over.” There will also be a difference in playing style from the Sun Belt Conference to the Big Ten. “I know it’s a more physical league, obviously, than what I was at last year—probably one of the more physical leagues in the country,” he said. “[But] not a lot of teams in this conference play our style or are used to our style. That’s why I think it could mess some people up.” That style is geared around getting people out of their comfort zones, both in the backcourt and the frontcourt. “We’re just trying to speed people up and make them do things they’re not used to doing, putting guys in positions that
they’re not used to,” he said. “Like pressuring the guards, trying to get the ball out of their hands and getting it into a big man’s hands where he has to make a decision that a guard would have to make, and that causes mistakes. “We’re not going to change for anybody,” he added. “People say we can’t play this way in the Big Ten. Coach just preaches to stay with the system, stay in the process and we’re going to keep doing that.”
The Barn and Ski-U-Mah Speaking of the Big Ten, Smith is relishing the games at Williams Arena. He watched on TV as the Gophers upset No. 1 Indiana last year, 77-73, and knows how loud ‘The Barn’ can get. Especially compared to the crowds he played in front of last year. “There’s no place like it in college basketball,” he said of his new home arena. “Our first scrimmage had about 8,000 people and that was a shock. Our biggest crowd at FIU was probably about 2,000. The arena was pretty big, but our fan base, they really didn’t care about basketball that much. Coming here, the fan support is a major change for me and I’m liking it a lot.” After a recent game, Smith joined his teammates in singing The Rouser in front of the student section. Asked whether or not he had conquered that song, he was perplexed… until he was told what The Rouser was. “Oh yeah, yeah. I did not know the name of it, but I’m just now getting used to it word for word,” he says. “I picked it up, though.” Easier 40 words than a whole new system. “Minnesota, hats off to thee! To thy colors true we shall ever be…” For Smith, those colors are Maroon and Gold, and a second straight season with a coach he’s inspired to play for. Rick Moore is a writer and editor in University Relations and a long-time follower of Gopher Athletics. Contact him at moore112@umn.edu.
DECEMBER 2013 / SKI-U-MAH / 39
where are they now
ADAM STEELE
Former Gopher track star Adam Steele is a law enforcement officer in Oregon.
Ten years ago, Adam Steele put Minnesota on the map as a sprinting school, winning the 400 meters at the 2003 NCAA Championships. The Eden Prairie, Minn. native clocked a time of 44.57, which was the fastest time in the world at that point in the season and ended up as the fourth-fastest time by an American in 2003. A nine-time All-American and seven-time Big Ten champion at the U of M, Steele continued his track career, competing Q: It's been a decade since you won the 400 meters at the NCAA Championships. Can you believe 10 years has passed? A: I can't believe it has been 10 years already! Last spring I had the chance to watch the NCAA meet in Eugene, Ore. and I had many opportunities to reflect on my experience at the NCAA meets and memories while competing for Minnesota. Over the last 10 years, I have enjoyed and appreciated the 2003 season more and more. I have a better appreciation for the accomplishments and experiences I had with my teammates and coaches. Q: What are you memories of that race? A: There are two things I remember vividly about the race and there are many small details I remember from throughout the week we were in Sacramento. I really think having great teammates, coaches and support staff made the whole experience that much better. The first thing I always think about when people ask me about winning the NCAA meet, was a conversation in the hotel I had with coaches and support staff the morning of the race. Without going into detail, they really made me believe I could win the 400 meters later in the day. Don't get me wrong, I dreamed about winning an NCAA title since my first NCAA indoor meet 40 / SKI-U-MAH / DECEMBER 2013
internationally in the U.S. and Europe where he won a gold medal on the 4x400 relay at the World Outdoor Championships and a gold in the 400 at the Pan American Games. In 2008, Steele hung up the professional running spikes and used his degree in Sociology – Law, Crime and Deviance, to become a law enforcement officer with the Eugene (Oregon) Police Department. as a freshman in Fayetteville, Arkansas but I don't know that I truly believed I could accomplish those goals. It was the conversations I had that morning that really made me think, yes, I can be an NCAA champion. The second vivid memory was from the race itself. I remember in my mind making a decision to push hard 200 meters into the race and carry the momentum off the turn, which set me up to "compete" the last 100m of the race. Coach and I knew, if I was in the race with 100 meters to go, I could run the last 100 meters with just about anybody in the country. Q: You were the first NCAA champion for Minnesota in any sort of sprint event and first in a running event since 1971. What does that mean to you? A: To be honest, I don't know that it ever crossed my mind I was the first sprinter in school history to be an NCAA champion. I hope that it paved the way and created the ground work for future Gophers to go after and achieve the same goals. It would be great to see a Gopher sprinter standing on the top of the podium in the near future. It was certainly a team effort and it did not come easy. It wouldn't have been possible without the help of Phil Lundin, the support staff and my teammates. They were the ones pushing me in prac-
tice, in the weight room, assisting me in the athletic medicine area, weekly massages and doing everything they could to keep me healthy and ready to race. I don't think it was a one-year process, it certainly took a number of years to reach my potential. I feel extremely fortunate to have great coaches that were knowledgable and passionate about the sport of track and field throughout my high school, college and professional career. I believe it is a testament to the running community in Minnesota. Q: You had the opportunity to compete internationally for a time after your college career was over. What was that experience like? A: I am very thankful for the opportunity to compete around the country and internationally. The opportunity really opened my eyes to observe and partake in dierent cultures around the world and ultimately opened the door for me to move out to Eugene, Oregon which is where I live currently with my wife, Katie and our Vizsla, Maple. Competing in the European competitions was amazing too, the fans treat the athletes like stars and really have an understanding of the sport. I met a number of fun people while training and competing in Europe and the U.S. I always enjoy reconnecting with friends, teammates and coaches when they come to the many track meets hosted in Eugene, also known as Tracktown USA. It was an honor to represent team USA a number of times but the most memorable teams included the 2003 World Championship team in Paris France and the 2003 Pan American team in Santo Domingo. Q: Talk a little bit about your career as a law enforcement oďŹƒcer and how you chose that as a career. A: I had been interested in a career in law enforcement since my senior year of high school. I remember going on ride alongs in high school with Eden Prairie P.D. and Minneapolis P.D. to get a feel for he career. While at Minnesota, I completed my degree in in Sociology - Law Crime and Deviance and my fifth year I focused on a coaching minor. After the 2003 season, it was apparent I would have opportunities to compete professionally. One of the opportunities available was to move to Eugene in 2007 and train with the Oregon Track Club - Elite team. While training in Oregon, I realized I really liked the state, the outdoor adventures and this girl named Katie. In 2007, I started to refocus on my law enforcement career and I was hired with the department a few weeks after the 2008 Olympic Trials. It made retiring from a sport I
love a little more manageable. I quickly had new goals and hurdles to overcome as I started a new career. Q: How has your track and fitness background helped your career? A: My fitness background has helped and will help in my career on a daily basis. The stress and unusual work hours really put a lot of stress on my body which can easily turn into weight gain and a less than ideal attitude. I turned to my fitness background to manage my stress and help me keep a more positive outlook on life. Now, I use athletics to manage my stress on a daily basis by commuting to work by bicycle (22 miles round trip), lifting weights, playing hockey, mountain biking and making sure the dog gets out for a run. My wife is active and athletic person as well (ran for the University of Oregon and Florida State University), so we do a lot of these activities together. Q: Have you had to physically chase down any criminals? That couldn't turn out well for them? A: Yes, I have chased down a few criminals in the past five years. The first, one is always my favorite, I just let my co-workers inform the suspect on who he tried to run from. As I am getting older, I realize I am not as fast as I once was. It took awhile but I have accepted it now. I guess you can say I have become wiser with experience and I am involved in less foot chases these days. Q: How much are you able to follow the Gopher sports programs and how often do you make it back to Minnesota? Do you keep in touch with a lot of your teammates? A: Thanks to social media, I am able to follow Gopher Athletics on a daily basis. It is nice to follow the former and current athletes on the track and cross country teams as well as the results throughout the season. I am also a huge Gopher hockey fan so I am able to follow those results as well and sometimes catch a game on television. Katie and I try to make it back at least once a year, sometimes it is more frequent, it all depends on sporting events in the Twin Cities and when my brother and sister are available to visit as well. I keep in touch with most of the guys I trained with, of course not as much as I would like. As we get older and families are growing it is harder and harder to keep in touch. When I return home, I will always try and get a group of guys together to catch up on lost time. Aside from looking a lot older and complaining about aches and pains, it is just like old times at the U!
interview by Jeff Keiser
DECEMBER 2013 / SKI-U-MAH / 41
n the state of Minnesota and within the sport of hockey, there may not be a job as revered as that of the Zamboni driver. To learn more about what it takes to drive the mythical Zamboni, Ski-U-Mah sat down with Mariucci Arena and Ridder Arena ice makers Lon Sorenson and Isaac Risbrudt.
I
Q: Everyone probably knows you guys are the Zamboni drivers, but what does your job entail here at the University of Minnesota? LS: Ultimately, we are responsible for everything involving the ice sheets at Mariucci Arena and Ridder Arena here on campus. Anything from the Zambonis to the refrigeration plant, the glass and dasher boards, we take care of it. Q: When did you know that this is something you wanted to do for a career? LS: It’s one of those jobs that are easy to enjoy. I consider myself pretty lucky because there are a lot of people who would kill to be able to do this. I really started enjoying this as a career when I was working for Minnesota State in Mankato a few years ago. I found out working at a higher lever was a lot more fun than working at a local rink. It was a great experience, and I started thinking about doing this for a career and moving up to a larger school and a larger venue with more responsibility. IR: I came in with literally zero previous experience related to ice rink facilities, but when they opened Ridder Arena, they added me as a second driver. I sort of learned on the fly and went from no driving experience to working at two of the top facilities in the country. It’s something I really enjoy now, and I’m happy the opportunity came up. Q: How long did it take you to learn how to drive the Zamboni? LS: Drive and operate are two different things, I would say. I could probably clean a sheet of ice after about two weeks of learning, but to operate the Zamboni to the level I do now takes years of experience – just getting the feel of the Zamboni and understanding how the machine actually works. It’s not like driving a car; you’re driving blind most of the time actually. It’s very hard to see, and you have to use a lot of instincts and secrets like using reflections in the glass to make sure you are getting the ice cleaned perfectly. You are basically driving a box on ice at nine miles per hour. IR: A good answer is that we are never done learning. I think I had a rigorous, nine-page training manual, but after about a month of training you start to get comfortable driving. The biggest adjustment is going from cleaning a sheet of ice after open skate with nobody watching and then going out and doing it in front of 10,000 people during a hockey game. Q: How much pressure is on you to be perfect on game night? IR: Well, if we miss a spot or screw up, it’s Lon’s fault. For me, it’s actually a little easier with the building full because you can’t focus on any one person watching you. It’s more pressure when there are only a couple people in the building and they are following your every move. That’s more uncomfortable for me. But you’re always looking for that perfect drive – get on and off the ice in a timely fashion and no missed ice. That’s always important. Q: Weirdest thing you’ve done with the Zamboni? LS: When we go through the Homecoming parades with the Zamboni, the tradition is to go through the drive-thru at McDonald’s. To see the people’s faces when we pull up to the window is priceless. IR: I don’t know if weird is the best way to describe this, but a few years ago we had hole behind the net that went down to the concrete. We were playing North Dakota on a Friday night, so we had a packed house and everybody was riled up. A couple guys hit the hole in the first period, and finally the refs called intermission early so we could fix the hole. An hour and twenty minutes later, we finally got the game going again.
42 / SKI-U-MAH / DECEMBER 2013
The Risbrudt File Started career as a student worker in 1999. Became full-time in 2000. Also oversees the Gopher golf practice facility. Hometown: Ashby, Minn. Alma Mater: Minnesota, 2005 (B.S. in Environmental Design) Family: Wife: Lisa Children: Caden, Kellan, Brinley
The Sorenson File Started career at the U of M in February, 2008 Hometown: Albert Lea, Minn. Alma Mater: Minnesota State Mankato, 2004 (B.S. in Recreation, Parks & Leisure Services)
BEHIND THE SCENES ICE MAKERS ISAAC RISBRUDT & LON SORENSON
Q: How much fun is it for you to give people rides on the Zamboni during intermissions? LS: I love that part of the game day experience. It’s great that we can do that with kids and even adults. Even on the worst days, having someone –especially a kid – come down and see how excited they are about riding the Zamboni, it really is great. Everyone gets off the Zamboni at the end of the ride with a smile, and it’s great to be a part of that experience. Q: What is your best memory of working at the University of Minnesota? LS: I would say working last year’s national championship game for Gopher women’s hockey. To see them have an undefeated season and have it culminate with a national championship in front of a full crowd at Ridder Arena was incredible. It was a special mo-
ment for that program, and it was great to be a part of it. IR: Yeah, that one was pretty high up there. In a sense, all the games kind of run together over the years, but some of the other events we’ve hosted have been cool too. We’ve hosted the world short-track speed skating competition a few years ago, random basketball games, each year we host a robot competition. Some of those different events are a lot of fun to be a part of. Q: With the Gophers set to host the Hockey City Classic on Jan. 17 at TCF Bank Stadium, how much does your job change when hockey moves outdoors? IR: It’s going to be exciting. Like I said, it’s really exciting to do some of these different events and having
the outdoor games in Minnesota will be a very special event. Hopefully the weather is great, and we have a packed house to cheer on the men’s and women’s programs. LS: When you move the game outdoors, you are at the mercy of the environment. At Mariucci Arena, we have a pretty consistent environment, but outdoors we will be working with temperatures we aren’t used to. The whole procedure for what we do on game day will pretty much change. But it’s going to be exciting. It’s something that none of us have done before on this scale, and something that hasn’t been done around here for a long, long time. It’s going to be fun for us to do it, but I think it will be even more fun for the fans. interview by Brian Deutsch DECEMBER 2013 / SKI-U-MAH / 43
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Alex Gaugert plays the third hole at Windsong Farm Golf Club, the host of the Gopher Invitational. Photo taken on September 8, 2013.
LASALLE PLAZA Downtown Minneapolis 612.310.6057 GALLERIA Edina, MN 612.382.2544 MALL OF AMERICA Bloomington, MN 612.382.2544 SHOPS AT WEST END St. Louis Park, MN 612.462.4194
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