My top 35 Minnesota sports icons vs. the StarTrib's list

The StarTribune sports staff has spent part of its coronavirus downtime compiling a list of Minnesota’s top 36 sports icons, athletes and coaches, and, of course, it’s a great excuse for debate. It’s an OK list. If you know me, you know what my main complaint is going to be. Like most such lists, it’s very heavy on the more contemporary figures and gives pretty short shrift to figures from the more distant past which, in Minnesota, means before, oh, say, about 1960, though it’s also true that John Gagliardi didn’t make the list. 

Among the other big screw-ups:

• Football greats Bernie Bierman and Pudge Heffelfinger didn’t make the list.

• Lindsay Vonn was just honorable mention.

• Bobby Marshall didn’t make the list.

• 1920s stars Tommy Gibbons and Tommy Milton didn’t make the list.

• Coaches Dick Siebert and Joe Hutton didn’t make the list.

• Jim Marshall was rated ahead of Alan Page, Carl Eller and Fran Tarkenton.

• Janet Karvonen didn’t make the list. 

• Will Steger didn’t make the list.

• Herschel Walker made the list. 

I'm not even gonna worry about people that we both had rated, but rated a little bit differently. Bud Grant is a case in point. I have him at #7, the Strib has him at #16. Following is my list of 35 with the place of each on the Strib’s list also noted.

Minnesota’s Top 50 Athletes and Leaders	What They Did
1. Dan Patch, harness racing horse; owned by Marion Savage of Savage, MN; was the 35th athlete mentioned on the Strib’s list	Patch was possibly the greatest racehorse of all-time. But, he raced in a harness, pulling a buggy. His form of horse racing quickly became second-tier, behind so-called “flat racing” with a jockey up on top of the horse in the saddle. But, no horse of any kind ever dominated horse racing like Dan Patch did. He was a nationwide sensation, setting world records in the half-mile and mile in 1903, 1904, 1905 and 1906. The last of these came before 95,000 fans at the Minnesota State Fair. Only George Mikan, Lindsay Vonn and Pudge Heffelfinger can match Patch in being regarded as the best athlete in the world at one time.
2. Kirby Puckett, Minnesota Twins; the Strib’s #1	Puckett was a baseball genius. He hit a respectable .291 with 4 HR as a Twins rookie. Then, in 1986, the genius exploded for 31 HR. Over the next decade, he was as good as anybody, with almost 2,000 hits, more than 200 HR, a .324 average, 6 Silver Sluggers and 6 Gold Gloves. More importantly, he led the Twins to their only 2 world championships. It is absolutely inconceivable that the Twins would have won a world title without Kirby Puckett in the lineup.
3. George Mikan, DePaul, Minneapolis Lakers; the Strib’s #2, but of course the guy worked for Sid Hartman	George Mikan was regarded as the greatest basketball player in the world, and he was. He led the Lakers to 7 championships (4 in the NBA, one each in the NBL and BAA, and one in the last of the World Professional Tournaments) in 7 years. He led his league in scoring 5 times. Previously, he was the college Player of the Year in 1944 and 1945.
4. Bernie Bierman, Minnesota Gophers; he played and coached at the U of M; didn't make the Strib’s list	Bierman led the Gophers to a 54-9-1 record and 5 national titles in eight years from 1934 to 1941. Only one other college team has ever done the same (5 of 8) and that was Yale from 1881 to 1888. 3 yards and a cloud of dust? Well, yeah, but Bierman was also a creative coach. He once punted on second down all day long until a Chicago receiver muffed a punt, and the Gophers steamrolled the Maroons from there.
5. Bronko Nagurski, International Falls, Minnesota Gophers, Chicago Bears; #10 on the Strib’s list	The Gopher gridders hadn’t had a lot of success in the 1920s, but went 18-4-2 in Nagurski’s 3 years with the team. He won all-America honors at both tackle and fullback as a senior. He then led the Chicago Bears to the 1932 and 1933 NFL titles. His size 19½ championship ring is still the largest ever produced for an NFL champion. Another favorite Nagurski story has him scoring a touchdown against the Washington Redskins, knocking down two linebackers, stomping on a defensive back, bouncing off the goalposts and then crashing into Wrigley Field’s brick wall. He returned to the huddle and said, “That last guy hit me pretty hard.”
6. Herb Brooks, St. Paul Johnson, Minnesota Gophers, U.S. Olympic hockey, Minnesota North Stars; #6 and the #1 coach on the Strib’s list	You already know that the Gophers won their first 3 titles ever under Herbie and, of course, he pushed the 1980 Olympic team to achieve a “Miracle on Ice.” Herbie was something of a hybrid—a street-fightin’ city kid who dressed up real nice. His coaching was also a hybrid of the tough, physical North American style of play and the speed and creativity of European hockey. He also stressed conditioning. He was convinced that the Soviets won because they were in better shape than anybody else. Fans loved him. Many of his players hated his guts. Nobody could argue with his results.
7. Bud Grant, Minnesota Gophers, Minnesota Vikings; just #16 on the Strib’s list	158-96-5 (.622) as Vikings coach from 1967 to 1985. Oh, and 10-12 in the post-season. Those 4 Super Bowl losses sure hurt, but wouldn’t you love to get back there? The Vikes have of course gone 44 years without a Super Bowl, and have never played one without Bud Grant patrolling the sidelines.
8. Pudge Heffelfinger, Minneapolis Central, Yale; didn’t make the Strib’s list	Four-time all-American and two-time national champion for the Yale football team of 1888-1992. He also lettered in baseball, rowing and track, and was the university heavyweight boxing champ. He was regarded as the greatest football player of the 19th century, and indeed he was the first player ever to be paid to play—the first professional player ever—for the Allegheny Athletic Club. Earlier, he had played football for the Minnesota Gophers while still enrolled in Minneapolis Central high school.
9. Lindsay Vonn, Alpine skiing; honorable mention on the Strib’s list	Vonn won a record (for both men and women) 20 World Cups from 2008 to 2016. Her 4 overall titles ties her with Annemarie Moser-Proll for the most by a woman skier. She battled injuries throughout her career and so she won only one Olympic gold in the 2010 downhill. As noted above, she joins Dan Patch, Mikan and Heffelfinger among 4 Minnesotans who were regarded as the best in the world at some point in their careers.
10. Harmon Killebrew, Minnesota Twins; #7 on the Strib’s list	Killebrew hit 40 home runs or more eight times and retired as the fourth most prolific home run hitter in major league history with 573 taters. He led the Twins to the 1965 World Series and 1969 and 1970 Western Division titles, winning the AL MVP award in 1969. He was the first Twin to make the baseball Hall of Fame.
11. Patty Berg, LPGA golf; #5 on the Strib’s list	Widely regarded as the best woman golfer before the TV era, Berg won 63 professional tournaments, still #4 all-time, with 15 major titles, still the best ever by a woman golfer.
12 (tie). Dr. Louis J. Cooke, Minnesota Gophers	Cooke coached the Gopher men’s basketball team from 1896 to 1924, winniong 5 Big 10 titles and national championships in 1902, 1903 and 1919. Williams coached the Gopher football team from 1900 to 1921, with a record of 141-34-12, 8 Big 10 titles and a national title in 1904. These were the unquestioned pioneers of Minnesota sports who brought the Gophers and the state into the “big time”—that is, competing at a national level.
12 (tie). Dr. Henry Williams, Minnesota Gophers; needless to say, neither Cooke nor Williams was remembered by anybody at the Strib
13 (tie). Bobby Marshall, Minneapolis Central, Minnesota Gophers, St. Paul; Colored Gophers, Minneapolis Marines; did not make the Strib’s list	Minnesota’s three great multi-sport athletes. Marshall was an all-American in football at the U of M, and later played baseball for the St. Paul Colored Gophers and football for the Minneapolis Marines. In 1909, his 11th-inning home run won game one of the “world colored championship” series that was eventually won by the Gophers, 3 games to 2, over the Leland Giants.  Mauer was the only athlete ever chosen as high school player of the year in two sports—football and baseball—and he scored more than 80 points in the state basketball tournament, too. He of course went on to become a 3-time AL batting champion and 2009 MVP, finished his Minnesota Twins career with 2,123 hits and a .306 batting average. Winfield led the Minnesota Gophers to the semi-finals of the 1973 College World Series as a pitcher, then went on to a Hall of Fame baseball career as an outfielder with 465 HR and 3,110 hits. He got his 3,000th hit as a member of the Minnesota Twins. We thought that while Winfield was a little bit better as a baseball player, Mauer was a truly outstanding football player while Winfield was “just” pretty good on the basketball court.
13 (tie). Joe Mauer, Cretin-Derham Hall, Minnesota Twins; #13 on the Strib’s list
13 (tie). Dave Winfield, St. Paul Central, Minnesota Gophers, San Diego Padres, Minnesota Twins; #9 on the Strib’s list
14. John Mayasich, Eveleth, Minnesota Gophers, U.S. Olympic hockey; honorable mention on the Strib’s list	Mayasich is generally regarded as Minnesota’s greatest hockey player and that’s where we have him rated. The Strib has Neal Broten rated higher, and we get it. Mayasich was the best high school player with four state titles and 46 state tournament points. He is still the Gophers all-time leading scorer with 144 goals and 154 assists in just 111 games. He was among the top scorers for the U.S. Olympic teams in 1956 and 1960. But, for whatever reason, he never made it in the NHL….
15. Rod Carew, Minnesota Twins; #18 on the Strib’s list	How did Rod Carew only get 3,053 hits? It seemed that he was banging out the singles and doubles pretty much at will for a long, long time. Only Tony Gwynn and Wade Boggs hit better than Carew’s .328 among players who made their MLB debut since WWII. He was the Twins’ second Hall of Famer.
16 (tie). Kevin Garnett, Minnesota Timberwolves; #3 on the Strib’s list	What am I missing? The Strib has him #3. I have him #16, though he is #7 among players whose main claim to fame is as a pro athlete. I have Rod Carew ahead of him, they’ve got Carew 15 spots lower. Carew was an 18-time all-star who finished #1, #4, #7, #9, #10, #11, #14 and #26 in the MVP voting. Garnett was a 15-time all-star with #1, #2, #2, #3, #5, #9, #10, #11, #12 and #12 finishes in MVP voting. OK, slight advantage Garnett in MVP voting. And Garnett played 14 years with the Timberwolves, Carew 12 as a Twin; and Garnett is far and away the Timberwolves best player ever, while Carew is the #3 Twin; and Garnett is more recent. More of the current Strib staff saw him play than saw Carew. Put it all together and maybe Garnett should rate ahead of Carew. Maybe. I’ve got them #15 and #16. The Strib has them 15 spots apart. I think I’m closer to the truth than they are.
16 (tie). Lindsay Whalen, Hutchinson, Minnesota Gophers, Minnesota Lynx; #8 on the Strib’s list	Lindsay is a lot like Kevin McHale. Mostly overlooked as a high schooler. Major break-out as a Minnesota Gopher. Then (Lindsay) 5-time all-star and 4-time WNBA champion, and (Kevin) 7-time all-star and 3-time NBA champion. Wow. That’s a close call. But Lindsay did her thing as a pro for the hometown Lynx. That’s a difference maker to me. But, in fact, Lindsay is more comparable to Kevin Garnett because each of them had their biggest year in 2004.
17 (tie). Tommy Gibbons, boxing; didn’t make the Strib’s list; too long ago	Gibbons was 96-5-4 as a pro boxer, and he is the only man ever to go 15 rounds with Jack Dempsey, though he lost a unanimous decision that day. Still, it was a fight Dempsey would never forget, and Gibbons was a boxer he would never fight again.
17 (tie). Tommy Milton, auto racing; also too long ago to make the Strib’s list	Milton, from St. Paul, was the first man to win the Indy 500 twice, despite having only one good eye. He wouldn’t be allowed to race today.
18. John Gagliardi, St. John’s; didn’t make the Strib’s list	At 489-183-11, he has the most wins of any college football coach, ever. How could he not make the Strib’s list? Led the Johnnies to 27 MIAC and 4 national titles in 1963, 1965, 1973 and 2006. His 2000 Johnnies also played in the NCAA D2 final.
19. Fran Tarkenton, Minnesota Vikings; #19 on the Strib’s list	Generally regarded as the greatest Viking at the time of his retirement. He was, after all, the all-time NFL leader in passing yards and TDs. Both of those records have been obliterated in the modern all-offensive game, of course, and Fran’s involvement in a securities fraud has probably diminished his standing as a QB as well. We still have him as the top Viking while the Strib has him behind Moss, Marshall, Peterson and Page, in that order. I think that is just plain silly. Tark and Page played in 3 and 4 Super Bowls, the other guys in zilch.
20. Joe Hutton, Carleton, Hamline; didn’t make the Strib’s list	The Gagliardi of Minnesota basketball, he went 591-207 in 35 years as Hamline coach with 19 MIAC and 3 national titles in 1942, 1949 and 1951. His 1949 team was rated #6 in the nation—not among small colleges, by the way, among them all.
21. Vern Gagne, Robbinsdale, Minnesota Gophers, professional wrestling; honorable mention on the Strib’s list	Won just 2 state high school championships, but became the first wrestler ever to win 4 Big 10 titles. He went on to become the face of professional wrestling in the Twin Cities. Sure, the matches were fixed but you had to be an athlete to do that shit.
22 (tie). Carl Eller, Minnesota Gophers, Minnesota Vikings; honorable mention on the Strib’s list	Page is the #2 player in Vikings history while Eller is an obvious top 10. But, Eller was also an all-American for the Minnesota Gophers in 1963. Page recorded an unofficial 148.5 sacks, most of them with the Vikings, which would be good for #8 all-time if they were official. Eller actually had more sacks as a Viking with 130.5 and his career total of 133.5 would be #16 if they were all official. Jim Marshall, who is ahead of Page and Eller on the Strib’s list, is #26 with 127 sacks.
22 (tie). Alan Page, Minnesota Vikings; #15 on the Strib’s list
23 (tie). Adrian Peterson, Minnesota Vikings; #14 on the Strib’s list	Minnesota’s great running backs, one from the heyday of the college game, one from the NFL. Peterson was of course amazing. His 2,097 yards rushing in 2012 was beyond belief. But the Vikings won one playoff game during the Peterson era. Smith is the Gophers’ only Heisman trophy winner from the 1941 national champions.
23 (tie). Bruce Smith, Faribault, Minnesota Gophers; honorable mention on the Strib’s list
24. Dick Siebert, Minnesota Gophers; didn’t make the Strib’s list	“The Chief” racked up a 754-361-6 record and 3 national champions as Gopher baseball coach. Keep in mind, the Gophers had never won so much as a Big 10 baseball title before he arrived.
25. Will Steger, explorer/adventurer; didn’t make the Strib’s list	Mushed to the North Pole, mushed to the South Pole, mushed across Greenland (no, it’s not for sale). I dunno. Is that a sport? Well, you try it.
26 (tie). Neal Broten, Roseau, Minnesota Gophers, U.S. Olympic hockey, Minnesota North Stars; #17 on the Strib’s list	Here’s a guy who had success everywhere—high school, college, the Olympics, the NHL. One analysis has him as the #5 American ever in the NHL with 923 points in 1,099 games, and a lot of those came with the hometown North Stars. (That same analysis has Frankie Brimsek at #6. He didn’t make the Strib’s list.)
26 (tie). Moose Goheen, St. Paul Athletic Club, U.S. Olympic hockey; didn’t make the Strib’s list	It’s hard to believe Moose didn’t make the Strib’s list; he is way beyond a legend. He led the St. Paul Athletic Club to status as one of America’s top amateur teams of the 1910s and 1920s, and he starred for the U.S. Olympic team in 1920.
27 (tie). Kevin McHale, Hibbing, Minnesota Gophers, Boston Celtics; #12 on the Strib’s list	#12 on the Strib’s list and I’ll bet there were complaints. Wow, wait til they find out I’ve got him at #27. But, he played the same position as Kevin Garnett and his record isn’t quite as good, and he did it in Boston. Still, he played for Hibbing in 2 state tournaments and won, well, a smattering of all-America support as a Minnesota Gopher. So, yeah, he was great, and #27 on this list is great!
27 (tie). Vern Mikkelson, Askov, Hamline, Minneapolis Lakers; didn’t make the Strib’s list	OK, I admit it. Vern wasn’t the player Kevin McHale was. McHale played in those 2 state tournaments, Mikkelsen never even won a district title at Askov. McHale was an all-American at Minnesota, Mikkelsen at Hamline. Kevion played 14 years in the NBA, was a 7-time all-star and a 3-time champion, thanks a lot to Larry Bird. Vern played 11 years, was a 6-time all-star and a 4-time champion, thanks mostly to George Mikan. Kevin averaged 18 points and 7 boards, Vern 14 and 9. Both are in the Hall of Fame. I dunno. Pretty close.
28 (tie). Mike Kelley, St. Paul Saints, Minneapolis Millers; didn’t make the Strib’s list	OK, here’s a guy I’m sure you’ve never heard of. Mike Kelley managed the St. Paul Saints for 18 years, and the 1920s Saints are regarded as one of the best minor league teams ever. dHis 1920 team won 115 games, his 1922 team 107 games, and in 1923 they won 111 games but finished second to Kansas City. His teams lost in the Junior World Series in 1904, 1919, 1920 and 1922. The irony is that when the Saints finally won a JWS in 1924, Kelley had moved across the river as owner-manager of the Minneapolis Millers. He had managed the Millers in 1906, and now he would do so from 1924 to 1931, then serve as club president through 1946. His 1932 Millers, managed by Donie Bush, got to the JWS but lost to the Newark Bears four games to two. His record in 30 years as a minor league manager was 2,390 wins and 2,102 losses, a .532 winning percentage.
28 (tie). Tom Kelly, Minnesota Twins; didn’t make the Strib’s list	Kelly won 1,140 games as the Twins manager and, of course, the 1987 and 1991 world titles. ‘Nuf sed. But, wait, we’ll add: Bill James called Kelly “an interesting manager” who is near the top or bottom of the list on various managerial tendencies, rarely in the middle. For instance, he switched his lineup around a lot and used a ton of pinch hitters, but he didn’t platoon. His teams were “fairly aggressive” on the basepaths, he didn’t bunt, he didn’t give up intentional walks and he didn’t throw pitchouts. Ironically, one of the knocks on Kelly, at least as the years went by, was his impatience with young players and his preference for playing the old-timers while the young guys rotted on the bench. This was 180 degrees from the Tom Kelly when he was named Twins manager for the first time in 1986.
29. Calvin Griffith, Minnesota Twins; didn’t make the Strib’s list	There’s not much to be said about ol’ Calvin. He is surely the most consequential owner in Minnesota professional history. He brought the big leagues to the cornfields. He said what he meant and he meant what he said. Of course, eventually he ran out of money. If you think money is the measure of all things, then Calvin ain’t your guy.
30 (tie). Natalie Darwitz, Eagan, Minnesota Gophers, U.S. Olympic hockey; honorable mention on the Strib’s list	The #3 and #4 scorers in Gopher women’s hockey history and winners of 2 NCAA titles. Two of the most exciting athletes I’ve ever seen.
30 (tie). Krissy Wendell, Park Center, Minnesota Gophers, U.S. Olympic hockey; honorable mention on the Strib’s list
31. Tony Oliva, Minnesota Twins; honorable mention on the Strib’s list	A poor man’s Rod Carew, I guess. He only hit .304 to Carew’s .328, but hit more than twice as many HR. If he had stayed healthy, he’d be the 2nd greatest Twin ever and a Hall of Famer. Damn those knees.
32 (tie). Bobby Bell, Minnesota Gophers; didn’t make the Strib’s list	Their impact on Minnesota sports was very short-lived, but what a peak it was. Not like 1934-1941, of course. But a Big 10 and a national title in 1960 and a Rose Bowl win in 1961. What we wouldn’t give for a little taste of that now. Bell was one of the best college players ever, trust me. And, Stephens has really been forgotten because he didn’t make it in the NFL. But, seriously, a unanimous 1stteam all-American QB? Today, such an athlete would be more popular than god.
32 (tie). Sandy Stephens, Minnesota Gophers; honorable mention on the Strib’s list
33. George Quam, handball; didn’t make the Strib’s list	OK, another guy you’ve never heard of. But Quam won the Minnesota handball championship 25 times, which is exactly 25 times more than the number of arms he had. Yes, he was a one-armed handball player, and he probably hung wallpaper in his spare time. I mean, think about that. In 1928, he defeated the defending national champion George Nelson on his home court in Baltimore. In 1932, he barnstormed across America and won 140 out of 156 matches.
34. Janet Karvonen, New York Mills, Old Dominion, Louisiana Tech; didn’t make the Strib’s list	Put girls sports and specifically girls basketball on the Minnesota sporting map. Hey, look, everybody! A girl can be a great athlete! A girl can play the game the way it’s meant to be played! Karvonen led New York Mills to 3 state titles and set records for career points and career points in a state tournament that stood for decades.
35. Ralph Samuelson, water skiing; #20 on the Strib’s list	Samuelson invented water skiing! No, really. Nobody had ever skittered across the top of a lake or river until Ralph strapped a couple of barrel staves to his feet and showed how it could be done. It all happened in 1922 on Lake Pepin in Lake City, MN. You can look it up!

The one athlete I most hated not getting on my top 35 was Fortune Gordien, Minneapolis Roosevelt, Minnesota Gophers, U.S. Olympic track & field; didn’t make the Strib’s list. Here’s another guy who has been forgotten but he was totally incredible—a discus thrower and shot putter who led the U of M to the 1948 NCAA track & field title. They had never even won a Big 10 title before. He set 4 world records in the discus that stood for almost 10 years, and he finished 2^nd, 3^rdand 4^th in the 1948, 1952 and 1956 Olympics.

Oh, yeah, the Strib had Randy Moss at #4. No way I could stomach that. And Paul Molitor, Kent Hrbek, Brock Lesnar, Tom Lehman and Paul Giel among their honorable mention. All but Lesnar made my top 50 so no arguments, really. But, if you like Lesnar, you should check out Marcus LeVesseur.

Stay safe everyone!