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A closer look at the Vikings draft
Kevin O’Connell and the Vikings reached an agreement to make the 36-year-old the new head coach on Feb. 16, before the former Los Angeles offensive coordinator attended the Rams victory parade. O’Connell, his wife and their three children boarded a private plane provided by the Wilf family that touched down in St. Paul late that night.
The next morning, he spoke candidly during a press conference at Twin Cities Orthopedics Performance Center when asked to sum up the balancing act between being at his best during the Rams title quest and while interviewing for the Vikings job.
O’Connell maintained his commitment to the Rams, the Vikings exercised patience and enjoyed watching their future coach from afar.
Vikings Owner/Chairman Zygi Wilf said: “It was great to be along for his journey of winning [the Super Bowl], and I saw in him the ability to come here and do the same thing. That was very exciting to see him there and come to that final goal that we’re always reaching for, and I think with the group that we have here, we’ll do that.”
Adofo-Mensah credited O’Connell for being “incredibly bright with a calm demeanor through adversity.”
“He is well-regarded across the league for his genuine personality almost as much as his football acumen,” Adofo-Mensah said. “He is committed to building a championship culture through positivity and purpose. One of Kevin’s best attributes is his ability to communicate complexity in a simple and relatable way. Like some of the best football minds I’ve been around, the way he talks about football is very visual, simple and clear.”
The hiring of O’Connell completed an arduous process that began on Jan. 10, the day after Minnesota finished the 2021 season at 8-9.
Initial interviews for the general manager position began on Jan. 16, including Adofo-Mensah on Jan. 17. Realizing that the Rams could go all the way to the Super Bowl, the committee also made sure to request initial interviews with O’Connell and Rams Defensive Coordinator Raheem Morris on Jan. 21 (during the permitted window allowed by NFL rules). Adofo-Mensah participated in the second interview with O’Connell and described theimpression he made. “When there are big decisions in life, a lot of times you like to think back, ‘Was there a moment when you sort of knew?’ I … was thinking about the second-round interview. We were talking about offensive philosophy, personnel, player evaluations, and it was like I was talking with one of my close football friends who I’ve spent hours and hours upon hours with, and this was an hour into the interview. It was just so natural. “Everybody else that was in that interview said it right after, that the connection, the energy was incredible there, and upon reflection, I think in that moment I probably knew myself,” Adofo-Mensah said. “I’m extremely pleased with the thorough and detailed process we went through. I think we interviewed multiple future head coaches, but we’re excited about the guy sitting next to me and what we have.” Mark Wilf said observers could see “the collaboration between Kwesi and Kevin right off the bat.”
O’Connell said the “chance to partner with Kwesi was one of the huge draws to this job.”
“We’ve known from day one that we’re going to be able to collaborate, communicate with one another and build a culture here that the players will feel,” O’Connell said. “They’ll feel a connectedness between obviously your staff and our coaching staff, and that will only lead to the players feeling as connected as they’ve ever been to a coaching staff before.”
NFL Draft Analysis A closer look at the Vikings draft
by TYLER FORNESS
Let’s Play Football Contributor
Nintendo’s Pokemon has been around for over 25 years. The game is relatively simple in nature. You take your Pokemon, train them, and try to beat all the gym leaders in the region before the Elite Four. The game of football is very similar to Pokemon: grow, learn, and evolve.
Going into the draft, the Minnesota Vikings seemed to have a direction in place. They fired both Mike Zimmer and Rick Spielman and replaced them with first-timers at their respective positions in Kevin O’Connell and Kwesi Adofo-Mensah. There was some hope that this would be a rebuild instead of trying to run it back. Leading up to the start of free agency, there was a lot of discussion as to what direction the Vikings would go. They made their intentions abundantly clear on Sunday, March 13 when the team announced that they were extending starting quarterback Kirk Cousins through the 2023 season.
The rest of free agency reflected the idea that the Vikings weren’t content taking a step back. Their actions were that of a team that wanted to compete this year while they grow the roster back to prominence. Adofo-Mensah has used the phrase competitive rebuild often when discussing the offseason moves and direction of the team. The phrase itself is somewhat contradictory, but it’s also held true throughout the entire offseason.
All of the free agency moves that the Vikings made were unique in comparison to the Spielman era. While they did a similar thing in restructuring a few deals, the new contracts that were signed gave Adofo-Mensah ultimate flexibility long-term. They have outs with nearly everybody on the roster next offseason as they try to chase that seemingly uncatchable Super Bowl title. How things transpired during draft weekend this year was ultimately different from what we saw with Spielman over the final four years of his tenure. Early on, Spielman was the trade-happy general manager we have known him to be for the past decade. The major difference was that he was not only aggressive in acquiring capital on day three but also aggressive in moving back up into the first round. For three straight years (2012-2014), Spielman traded back into the first round to go get a player that he coveted (Harrison Smith, Cordarrelle Patterson, Teddy Bridgewater). He also got aggressive in 2017. After trading a first-round pick for Sam Bradford, Spielman double and tripled down by trading up in both the second and third rounds for Dalvin Cook and Pat Elflein. After that, Spielman never traded up on the first two days of the draft again. He did trade up two more times with two coming in 2018 and one in 2019 but didn’t move up in either of his last two drafts. By the end of his term, Spielman had become increasingly conservative with his drafts, wanting to maximize his potential of hitting the jackpot instead of trying to secure a great player that has fallen.
Early on, things felt like more of the same with Adofo-Mensah. Not only did he trade down twice within the first 34 selections but he did so with division rivals Detroit and Green Bay. The value gained/lost in those trades are a point of contention across the injury. Some are using the antiquated Jimmy Johnson trade chart but the more accurate Rich Hill chart is the way to properly measure it. The Rich Hill trade chart is based on by a writer for SB Nation’s Pats Pulpit of the same name. He took historical data based on how teams value draft picks with trades. The biggest difference between Hill’s model and Johnson’s? Aggregate data. Johnson’s is based on his own values of the picks. Since the advent of the Johnson chart came about, how teams value them has increasingly changed. It is much better to use a model that has historical data built into it. Let’s take a look at how Hill’s chart valued the trades.
The value for both was vastly different and losing 32 selections in value across the first two trades is a rough start. There are numerous reasons why Adofo-Mensah wasn’t able to get proper value but the lack of quarterbacks and top-end talent were likely the biggest factor in not securing premium value. The rest of the trades made over the weekend were balanced. The biggest difference between Spielman and Adofo-Mensah? Evolved aggresiveness. After those first two trade downs, Adofo-Mensah traded down two more times, but he also got hyper aggressive and traded up twice to secure cornerbacks that he valued highly. A healthy Andrew Booth Jr is a top-20 player on my board and Akayleb Evans has the length, size, and athleticism to blossom into a starter. Spielman had lost his fastball in targeting players on the board with a trade up. Whether or not the picks work for Adofo-Mensah and the Vikings is a story that will be told over the next few years.
I gave Adofo-Mensah a B in his first draft as the Vikings general manager. The aggressiveness to go get the two cornerbacks along with Lewis Cine at 32 was great but, as with any team, the rest of the picks left a lot of questions that still need to be answered.
The Vikings are currently Charmeleon: a second-stage Pokemon that is looking to take his final form. The process in trying to reach that final form has already begun and Adofo-Mensah believes that collaboration and aggressively playing the market will help the Vikings reach the next level. Time will tell if this new, analytically based approach will be effective and they reach their final evolution: Charizzard and Super Bowl Champions.
Tyler Forness is a sports writer and podcaster that has been featured across many platforms including NBC Sports Edge, USA Today’s Vikings Wire, SB Nations The Daily Norseman, and Voices of Wrestling. He is an avid wrestling fan, lover of craft beer and a connoisseur of the Oilers run-n-shoot offense. He currently resides in Delano, MN and you can find him on Twitter @TheRealForno.
Academic All State programs for 2021
There’s more to a complete football player than knowing the playbook. They must also know their classroom textbooks. The following teams were the top teams in their respective classes who not only worked hard on the field but in the classroom as well. Kudos to the following schools, programs, student-athletes and coaches for their excellence in the classroom.
GOLD = 3.26 - 4.00 SILVER = 3.00 - 3.25 High School Class Team GPA Head Coach Name CLASS 9-MAN GOLD Fertile-Beltrami 9-Man 3.27 Brian Nelson
Park Christian
9-Man 3.33 Kittson County Central 9-Man 3.3 Grand Meadow 9-Man 3.45 Hancock High School 9-Man 3.59 Clinton-Graceville-Beardsley 9-Man 3.7 SILVER Brandon-Evansville 9-Man 3.19 Lawton Burgstahler Cory Waling Gary Sloan Chad Christianson Ben Blees
Tim Pattrin Verndale High School 9-Man 3.15 Michael Mahlen Heron Lake-Okabena/Fulda 9-Man 3.17 Jonathon Curry and Jared Bourquin CLASS 1A GOLD Lakeview 1A 3.4 Scott Hanson Upsala/Swanville Area 1A 3.41 Jay Loven Parkers Prairie 1A 3.31 Mike Johnson Yellow Medicine East 1A 3.32 Dave Schueler Randolph High School 1A 3.26 Mike Schmidt SILVER Fillmore Central 1A 3.0 Chris Mensink Rushford-Peterson 1A 3.11 Davin Thompson GFW High School 1A 3.14 Patrick Hentges Adrian-Ellsworth 1A 3.06 Randy Schettler Ada-Borup-West 1A 3.08 Paul Tinjum Bethlehem Academy 1A 3.18 Jim Beckmann Springfield High School 1A 3.17 Adam Meyer and Bob Fink Russell-Tyler-Ruthton 1A 3.22 Joshua Fredrickson Martin County West 1A 3.1 Tom Elliott Minneota 1A 3.18 Chad Johnston CLASS 2A GOLD West Central Area-Ashby 2A 3.43 Nate Wood Minnesota Valley Lutheran 2A 3.39 Jim Buboltz Maple River 2A 3.47 Dusty Drager Goodhue High School 2A 3.395 Tony Poncelet St. Clair/Loyola 2A 3.32 Dustin Bosshart Eden Valley-Watkins 2A 3.29 Adam Tri Concordia Academy HS 2A 3.38 Bob Wolf SILVER Barnesville 2A 3.2 Bryan Strand Rush City Public Schools 2A 3.12 Joe Lattimore/Mike O’Donnell Royalton High School 2A 3.1 Jamie Morford Hawley 2A 3.09 Peder Naatz Lewiston-Altura 2A 3.01 Brent Olson Triton High School 2A 3.026 Mike Ellingson Blue Earth Area 2A 3.22 Randy Kuechenmeister CLASS 3A GOLD Worthington High School 3A 3.425 Gene Lais Albany High School 3A 3.34 Mike Kleinschmidt Perham High School 3A 3.54 Aron Velde Montevideo 3A 3.42 Kyle Goslee Morris Area-Chokio/Alberta 3A 3.27 Kevin Pope Breck School 3A 3.49 Jon Martin Holy Family Catholic H.S. 3A 3.3 Ian Parzyck Tri-City United 3A 3.32 Matt Collins St. Cloud Cathedral 3A 3.34 Andrew Leintz & Jason Klinefelter SILVER Glencoe-Silver Lake 3A 3.21 Scott Tschimperle Plainview Elgin Millville 3A 3.24 Kevin Lamb Minnewaska Area 3A 3.07 Jeremy Christensen Lake City High School 3A 3.11 Trevor Narum Foley High School 3A 3.15 David Dahlstrom Pierz 3A 3.04 Dan Saehr Rockford 3A 3.19 Dan Houghton Dassel Cokato 3A 3.17 Ryan Weinandt Litchfield High School 3A 3.03 Jim Jackman Watertown-Mayer 3A 3.09 Andrew Phillips CLASS 4A GOLD Benilde-St. Margaret’s 4A 3.51 Sean McMenomy Rocori High School 4A 3.3 James Herberg SILVER Mound Westonka 4A 3.13 Nick David Byron High School 4A 3.07 Ben Halder Orono High School 4A 3.18 Joe McPherson Marshall 4A 3.11 Terry Bahlmann Saint Anthony Village 4A 3.11 Luke Tressel Chisago Lakes 4A 3.24 Bill Weiss Detroit Lakes HS 4A 3.17 Reed Hefta Academy of Holy Angels 4A 3.16 Jimi Gunderson CLASS 5A GOLD Rochester Mayo 5A 3.34 Donny Holcomb Chanhassen HS 5A 3.34 Cullen Nelson Monticello High School 5A 3.33 Andy Pierskalla Andover 5A 3.33 Tom Develice Hastings 5A 3.38 Dana Strain New Prague High School 5A 3.26 Jake Norby Owatonna 5A 3.26 Jeff Williams Alexandria Area High School 5A 3.43 Mike Empting SILVER Bloomington Jefferson 5A 3.05 Tim Carlson Spring Lake Park 5A 3.00 John Stewart Minneapolis Southwest 5A 3.17 Josh Zoucha Northfield High School 5A 3.2 Brent Yule Mankato East 5A 3.18 Eric Davis Waconia HS 5A 3.19 Corey Shea Sauk Rapids-Rice 5A 3.24 Phillip Klaphake Buffalo High School 5A 3.11 Craig Lachowitzer CLASS 6A GOLD Lakeville South 6A 3.37 Ben Burk East Ridge 6A 3.3 Dan Fritze Farmington 6A 3.33 Rick Sutton/Jon Pieper Maple Grove 6A 3.44 Matt Lombardi Anoka 6A 3.32 Bo Wasurick Eastview High School 6A 3.51 Kelly Sherwin Lakeville North High School 6A 3.28 Brain Vossen Wayzata High School 6A 3.28 Lambert Brown SILVER Woodbury High School 6A 3.17 Andy Hill Brainerd High School 6A 3.1 Jason Freed Minnetonka High School 6A 3.05 Mark Esch Stillwater Area High School 6A 3.18 Beau LaBore Saint Michael-Albertville 6A 3.1 Jared Essler Centennial 6A 3.12 Mike Diggins Edina High School 6A 3.11 Jason Potts Forest Lake High School 6A 3.07 Sam Ferraro The following players received Academic All-State Awards for their excellence in the classroom in 2021-22.
Academic Individual All-State Selections
Class 6A Player Name High School Tommy Barrett Anoka Nathaniel Staehling Brainerd Colton Gregersen Burnsville Lance Liu Centennial Alex Lachenmayer Eagan Sam Tollison East Ridge Benjamin Vande Berg Eastview Ben Buesgens Farmington Colin McGeary Forest Lake Blake Gode Lakeville North Josh Jacobson Lakeville South Zach Juckel Lakeville South Mason South Maple Grove Sawyer Skanson Maple Grove Caden McDaniel Minnetonka Owen Neros Saint Michael-Albertville Nick Katona Shakopee Mason Wilson Stillwater Area Mason Molitor Totino-Grace
Class 5A Player Name High School Wyatt Odland Alexandria Area Connor Develice Andover Caden Bolte Bemidji Noah Karels Buffalo Charlie Coenen Chanhassen James Morrison Cretin-Derham Hall Luke Gintz Elk River Jacob Eggert Mankato East Ben Kattreh-Kuritz Minneapolis Southwest Charlie Boucher Minneapolis Southwest Sanders Hanson Monticello Wyatt Sawatzke Monticello Brendan Pieper New Prague Jayce Walrath Sauk Rapids-Rice Nate Litke Spring Lake Park Devon Fisher St. Francis Eric Lail Two Rivers Owen Amrhein Waconia
Class 4A Player Name High School Max Herro Benilde-St. Margaret’s Hayden Thieke Big Lake Braeden Carr Chisago Lakes Ethan Thomas Delano Christian Solberg Detroit Lakes Mitchell Piehl Hutchinson Owen Montreuil Jordan Brock Swanson Kasson-Mantorville Bryant Paulsen Marshall Jake Gaylord Mound Westonka Zachary Harris ROCORI Josh Painter Simley Charlie Stoeckel St. Anthony Village Patrick Njoya St. Cloud Apollo Bennett Olson St. Peter Alex Larson Stewartville Alex Schramm Willmar Class 3A Player Name High School Thomas Odenthal Albany Carson Gagnon Annandale Colton Loeschke Cannon Falls Jack Hillmann Dassel-Cokato Cole Zierden Fergus Falls Ryan Piepgras Foley Nathan Stoltenburg Glencoe-Silver Lake Carson Matzke Lake City Nathan Rankin Minnewaska Area Ethan Lebrija Morris Area-Chokio/Alberta Colton Hackel Perham Colton Blaisdel Pine City Peyton Schumacher Plainview-Elgin-Millville Jacob Meissner Providence Academy Will Bittmann Rock Ridge Cole Lange Watertown-Mayer
Class 2A Player Name High School Cameron Heng Barnesville Bradley Simon Blooming Prairie Vern Johnson Blue Earth Area Camden Erskine Concordia Academy Jackson Geislinger Eden Valley-Watkins Maddox O’Reilly Goodhue Matthew Schell Lewiston-Altura Colten Berkner Maple River Josh Giefer Minnesota Valley Lutheran Alex Dobberstein (NRHEG) Drew Lundeen Redwood Valley Ty Stepp Rush City Zachary Pazdernik Sibley East Owen Petersohn Triton Matthew Hard Warroad
Class 1A Player Name High School Dawson Krahling Adrian Connor Plumley BOLD Tait Kongsjord Deer River Brody Hentges Gibbon-Fairfax-Winthrop Tanner Sinn Martin County West Jonah Gruenes Minneota Dawson Blankenship Murray County Central Tanner Arndt Otter Tail Central Jacob Wagner Parkers Prairie Sam Gapp Polk County West Brendon Buerkle Springfield Levi Lampert Upsala/Swanville Area (USA) Carson Strosahl Walker-Hackensack-Akeley Patrick Hoernemann Yellow Medicine East
9-Man Player Name High School Kole Weishalla Bertha-Hewitt Zevvus Smith Cromwell-Wright Area Nolan Buckridge Edgerton Rylin Petry Fertile-Beltrami Jacob Moeller Granada-Huntley-East Chain Taylor Glynn Grand Meadow Matt Thompson Hancock Ryder Henning Heron Lake-Okabena/Fulda Caden Fischer Hillcrest Lutheran Academy Kade Wassman Mountain Lake Riley Erkenbrack Park Christian Eion Ness Sebeka Benjamin Brownlow Verndale
Adofo-Mensah continued from page 12_________
Ten days prior, Adofo-Mensah had participated in his initial interview with the Vikings general manager hiring committee and felt “an immediate fit” during the virtual interview.
“It just felt right,” said Adofo-Mensah, who told his “big brother” Browns General Manager Andrew Berry (and now former boss) about the interview.
Snow in Cleveland had prompted Adofo-Mensah to conduct the interview from his apartment’s study instead of his office at the Browns facility. When the meeting ended, he went downstairs and “was kind of like skipping.”
“My fiancée [Chelsea said], ‘What’s wrong with you?’ I said, ‘I don’t know, there was just this energy from it.’ I felt energized from it and we joked — she actually went on Etsy at that moment and bought a vintage Vikings hat that [she wore to the press conference]. I think she knew before I knew that I would be here.”
Adofo-Mensah earned economics degrees from Princeton and Stanford and initially worked as an associate portfolio manager on Wall Street before joining the NFL with San Francisco in 2013.
He worked as the 49ers Manager of Football Research and Development until 2017 when he was promoted to Director of Football Research and Development. Berry hired Adofo-Mensah to be Cleveland’s Vice President of Football Operations in 2020.
“I know my background’s unique, but when you think about this job, the job is about making decisions. Building consensus in the building. Combining different sources of information into one answer and having everybody behind it,” Adofo-Mensah said. “Along those lines, I don’t think there’s many people more qualified than I am. Just my background on Wall Street, having the emotional stability to make those decisions at a high level, be accountable to yourself, and kind of learning and growing from that standpoint. That’s an education that I’ll never fully appreciate.
“And then, really, in my experience in the NFL, I’ve learned from some great teachers,” Adofo-Mensah said. “I went in not thinking I knew anything, and I think a lot of times an impediment to learning is trying to affirm what you already think or just not really being open-hearted, open-minded, about learning. I approach it [as], if I’m going to be around great ones, I’m just going to listen to everything they say. So I’ve built a really strong foundation through that, an ability to really be in every room, talk to every person, really communicate in their language. And that gives me that faith and confidence to make those decisions.”
Hutchinson’s Andy Rostberg was named the 2021 Coach of the Year by the Minnesota Football Coaches Association. Rostberg has been coaching at Hutchinson for 23 years and has a career winning percentage of .811.
Here are some more of Andy Rostberg coaching career highlights:
Number of years as a head coach = 23 (1999-2021, all at Hutchinson High School) 2021 season record: 12-1
Career record: 206-48 (winning percentage .811)
State Tournament appearances: 12 (1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2019, 2021)
Prep Bowl appearances: 4 (2003, 2012, 2013, 2021)
State Championships: 3 (2012, 2013, 2021)
MFCA Coach of the Year: 1 (2021)
Sub-District Championships: 3 (2016, 2018, 2019)
Conference Championships: 8 (Missota 2000, 2001, 2002, 2007, 2009; Wright County 2012, 2013, 2014)
Minnesota High School All-Star Football Game coaching assignments: 2 (assistant coach 2002, head coach 2013)
Number of All-Star players coached:
15
Past Coaches of the Year Winners
2020 Justin Reese, Fridley 2019 Chad Gimbel, Blooming Prairie 2018 Mark Kesler, Rochester Lourdes 2017 Leo Pohlkamp, Pierz 2016 Jeff Ferguson, Totino-Grace 2015 Gary Sloan, Grand Meadow 9-Man 2014 Dwight Lundeen, Becker 4A 2013 Jeff Williams, Owatonna 5A 2012 Brent Schroeder, Caledonia 2A 2011 Carl Lemke, St. Croix Lutheran 3A 2010 Ron Stolski, Brainerd 5A
2009 Jon Bakken, Waterville-Elysian-Morristown 2A 2008 Carl Fruechte, Caledonia 2A 2007 Jeff Ferguson, Totino Grace 4A 2006 Jim Reinhardt, Rushford-Peterson, 1A 2005 Mark Kroulik, Stephen-Argyle, 9M 2004 Dave Nelson, Minnetonka, 5A 2003 Dave Dose, Glencoe-Silver Lake, 3A 2002 Mike Mahlen, Verndale, 9-man 2001 Flint Motschenbacher, Detroit Lakes, 4A 2000 Mike Grant, Eden Praire, 5A Past Coaches of the Year
1999 Lyle Anderson, Cook County, 2A 1998 Keith Bergstedt, Cromwell, 9-Man 1997 Bubba Sullivan, Northfield, Class 4A 1996 Clark Bergloff, Mora, Class A 1995 Ken Jacobson, Chatfield, Class C 1994 DeWayne Johnson, Anoka, Class AA 1993 Rick Manke, Detroit Lakes, Class A 1992 Larry Thompson, Lakeville, Class AA 1991 Neal Hofland, Chikio-Alberta, 9-Man 1990 Ken Bauman, Mahnomen, Class C
1989 Jim Mader, Albany, Class A 1988 Gerhard Meidt, Minneota, Class C 1987 Dave Brokke, Granite Falls, Class B 1986 George Larson, Cambridge, Class A 1985 Norm Johnson, Mpls Roosevelt, Class AA 1984 Grady Rostberg, Hutchinson, Class A 1983 Ron Scott, Coon Rapids, Class AA 1982 George Thole, Stillwater, Class AA 1981 Gary Roebuck, Holdingford, Class B 1980 Les E. Drechsel, Crookston, Class A
1979 Ron Raveling, Columbia Heights, Class AA 1978 Jim Simser, New Richland-Hartland, Reg. III 1977 Paul Benson, Granite Falls, Region III 1976 Lyle Eidsness, St. Peter, Region III 1975 Bob Swanson, Mountain Iron, Region VII 1974 John Drews, Rochester JM, Region I 1973 Dick Lawrence, Eveleth, Region VII 1972 George Wemeier, Mpls Washburn, Region V 1971 George Larson, Cambridge, Region IV 1970 Gary Gustafson, North St. Paul, Region IV
1969 Art Haas, Austin, Region I 1968 Jerry Sullivan, Mpls Roosevelt, Region V 1967 Tom Mahoney, Fairmont, Region II 1966 Stav Canakes, Edina, Region V 1965 Bill Severin, Grand Meadow, Region I
MPLS South’s Rodney Lossow named Jerry Kill Power of Influence Award winner
Rodney Lossow is a 1983 Graduate of Minneapolis South High School. He participated in Football, Hockey and Baseball while in High School. He attended the University of Wisconsin Madison on a Football Scholarship. After College, he was drafted by the New England Patriots and played 5 seasons of professional football. Since 1992, he has taught Physical Education and Developmental Adapted Physical Education in the Minneapolis School District. Rodney has coached Football for 3 decades in Minneapolis, 18 as the Head Coach at Roosevelt High School and 5 years at South High School.
Roosevelt High School, while Rodney was the head coach, went to state in the fall of 1998. Rodney has also been a head coach in Gymnastics, Softball and Badminton in Minneapolis. Rodney is married to Janine and has 3 sons, Malachi, Josiah and Elijah. Rodney believes that Sport provides great opportunities to teach people how to love one another unconditionally and develop the character traits that will better their lives and the lives of others. The Character Values that Rodney teaches come from the life of Christ. Rodney believes that if we can show Unconditional Love like Jesus has done for us and possess the Character Values of Christ, such as the acceptance of responsibility, rejection of passivity, the display of humility and courageous leadership, the world would be a better place.
Totino-Grace’s Ferguson recipient of Distinguished Service Award
2020-21 marked Jeff Ferguson’s 38th year working at Totino-Grace. He began as a biology teacher, became Associate Dean of Students in 1996 and was the Dean of Students from 2007 until 2017. He currently Jeff Ferguson works in Advancement for TG.
A 1974 graduate of Grace HS and a 1978 graduate of the University of St. Thomas, Jeff was the Head Football Coach at TG from 2002 through the 2019 season. He previously coached at St. Agnes (2 years, 1979 and 1980), and at Blaine (17 years, 1978 and 19811996) where he was the Defensive Coordinator for the Bengals. He began coaching at TG in 1998 as the Defensive Coordinator for the Eagles.
Jeff has received the MFCA Coach of the Year Award in 2007 and 2016, MFCA Power of Influence Award in 2010, Minnesota Vikings Coach of the year in 2011 and the U.S. Marines Semper Fidelis Award in 2013. In 2015 he was inducted into the Minnesota Football Coaches Association Hall of Fame. He and his staff have won 8 state championships at Totino-Grace. Jeff and his wife of 36 years, Barb, have four chil-
Past Winners
2020 Dave Nelson, Tackle Cancer 2019 Claud Allaire, MFC Clinic 2018 John Reglein, The Graphic Edge 2017 Dan O’Brien, U of M 2016 Jon Gross, Medford 2015 Jim Becker, Eagan 2014 Kevin Merkle, MSHSL 2013 Dave Giles, MFCA Historian 2012 Mike Turner, Varsity Photos, Inc 2011 Dave Lee, WCCO Radio 2010 TCF Bank 2009 Brad Madsen, Minnesota Vikings 2008 Dave Fritze, MN High School All-Star Game 2007 Doubletree Park Place Hotel, Minneapolis 2006 Healy Awards 2005 Bill Hoag, Varsity Gold Minnesota 2004 Gordy Shaw, University of Minnesota 2003 Ralph Anderson, Detroit Lakes Tribune 2002 Jostens 2001 Butch Nash, University of Minnesota 2000 Jim Simser, Fairmont High School 1999 Randy Shaver, KARE 11 TV 1998 Jim Dotseth, MPLS Henry High School 1997 Dick Walker, Richfield High School 1996 Joe Samuelson, Stillwater High School 1995 Tom Mahoney, Fairmont High School 1994 Bill Etter, Chi Chi’s Restaurant 1993 Don Swanson, Minneapolis Patrick Henry 1992 Bob Roy, St. Louis Park High School 1991 Bud Olson, Bud Olson Awards
dren: Jenna (and husband Adam Zamjahn),TG class of ’06 and St. Ben’s Class of ’09; Kelli (and husband Tiago Bremer-Martins),TG class of ’06 and Winona State class of ’11; Mike ,TG class of ’08 and UMD class of 2013; and Katelyn,TG class of ’11 and a graduate of UWStout.
Phil Nicolaides hired as head coach at Macalester
Macalester College Director of Athletics Donnie Brooks has announced the hiring of Phil Nicolaides as the Scots’ head football coach. Nicolaides has served as the defensive coordinator at Randolph-Macon College in Ashland, Va., for the past six years.
“Phil is a champion for his players and the student-athlete experience, while also setting a high standard for success on and off the field,” Brooks said. “As one of the youngest coordinators and now head coaches in the country, his experiences and vision for a highly competitive program and successful student-athlete experience left the committee excited for what’s ahead for the Scots.”
Nicolaides, 31, led a Yellow Jackets defense that ranked either first or second in the Old Dominion Athletic Conference (ODAC) in points allowed during all six of his seasons at Randolph-Macon. Their stout defense helped the Yellow Jackets claim three ODAC championships and compile a 48-11 record, which followed a 9-11 record the two years prior to Nicolaides’ arrival in Ashland. In 2018, Randolph-Macon upset John Carroll, ranked eighth nationally at the time, for the first NCAA Playoff victory in the program’s history. The Yellow Jackets finished the 2018 and 2021 seasons ranked in the Division III top 20.
Along with leading the Yellow Jackets’ defense, Nicolaides was heavily involved in recruiting as well as coordinating multiple camps for prospects and youth players. He also worked with special teams, helping to develop schemes for each unit. Off the field, Nicolaides contributed to the overall development of the student-athletes, assisting with the academic guidance and lifestyle accountability for Randolph-Macon’s players.
“I am extremely grateful to have been selected as the next head football coach at Macalester College,” Nicolaides said. “I would like to thank Director of Athletics Donnie Brooks and
the search committee for this incredible opportunity to work with some of the most driven student-athletes in the country. As I met with faculty, staff, alumni, and players throughout the interview process, it became clear that Macalester is a very special place because of its incredible people and their common vision. My wife, Stephanie, and I are excited to immerse ourselves in the Macalester and St. Paul Phil Nicolaides communities. I cannot wait to meet the team, build relationships, and begin preparing for the 2022 season.” Prior to coaching at Randolph-Macon, Nicolaides spent two seasons at Franklin & Marshall College in Lancaster, Pa., as the defensive backs coach and video coordinator. He began his coaching career in 2013 as the linebackers/defensive backs coach at Pine Creek High School in Colorado Springs, Colo., while also working at 360 Sports as an NFL recruiting and scouting intern. A native of Exton, Pa., Nicolaides attended Carnegie Mellon University, where he played linebacker and safety for the Tartans From 2009-12. He graduated in 2013 with degrees in business finance and psychology. Macalester was 3-7 overall and 1-3 in the MIAC Skyline Division in the Scots’ first season back in the MIAC since leaving the conference in 2001. The Scots return the majority of their starters from last season, including receiver Rex Desso (Evergreen, Colo./Lakewood), who led Division III in receptions per game with 100 catches in 10 games. The season was highlighted by a 23-13 victory over Hamline in the historic Paint Bucket game. “Our entry back into the MIAC was successful in so many ways due to the work of KiJuan Ware and the current staff. I know the team is working hard and is excited to begin preparing for the 2022 season.” Nicolaides officially began his tenure at Macalester on April 1.
