Sports

A Minnesota Public Radio-St. Paul Pioneer Press poll found a majority of Minnesotans think coming up with taxpayer-backed stadium plans for the Twins, the Viking and the Gophers should not be a legislative priority.
Gov. Pawlenty's stadium screening committee met again Thursday. They are expected to provide a report to the governor on Monday, advising him on site and finance options for new Twins and Vikings stadiums.
Gov. Tim Pawlenty's Stadium Screening Committee has approved a final set of recommendations for building new facilities for the Minnesota Twins and Vikings. The panel is recommending a mix of new or increased local taxes to be supplemented with dollars from the teams and fans. The committee will prepare a final draft to present to the governor on Monday. Minnesota Public Radio's Michael Khoo discusses the issue on MPR's All Things Considered.
Officials at the University of Minnesota's athletic department say they're looking into reports that Gopher football players took a group of high school recruits to bars and a strip club. One heavily recruited offensive lineman changed his mind after his recruiting visit and decided this week to attend another school. Some say this incident is an example of aggressive recruiting tactics that are a part of big time college athletics.
Gov. Tim Pawlenty's Stadium Screening Committee has pared a list of competing proposals down to four contenders: two each for the Minnesota Twins and Vikings. As expected, committee members selected locations in downtown Minneapolis and St. Paul as possible sites for a Twins ballpark. Blaine and Eden Prairie are the two possibilities for the Vikings. But other crucial parameters, such as how the state might assist ballpark financing, remain controversial. And state officials and the two teams clearly disagree about how to proceed on that front.
Gov. Pawlenty's stadium screening committee started winnowing down the list of stadium plans Monday. Ten written proposals made the first cut, and sixteen were tossed out. The committee will spend the next two days scrutinizing the 10 proposals, and could take pieces from various plans to come up with a recommendation for the governor.
As policymakers and state officials pore over the details of 26 stadium ideas submitted Thursday, one thread emerges bright and clear -- aside from the plans that call for new gambling revenues, all the major proposals rely heavily on increased tax dollars to build new homes for the Twins and Vikings. And, as in past years, convincing lawmakers, citizens, and businesses to accept new taxes won't be an easy sell.
The deadline to submit proposals to Gov. Pawlenty's stadium screening committee was 4 p.m. Thursday. The Twins, the Vikings and the University of Minnesota football team are all seeking new homes.
A live broadcast from The Grand View Lodge on Gull Lake features a preview of the Ice Fishing Extravaganza, the world's largest ice fishing contest.
More than two dozen cities, counties, and private citizens have pitched their ballpark solutions to Gov. Tim Pawlenty's Stadium Screening Committee. The governor solicited outside input to help him decide what role -- if any -- the state might play in financing new facilities for the Minnesota Twins and Vikings. The plans cover a range of sites across the metropolitan area, and offer funding options from local taxes to state dollars to casino revenues.