Can anyone stop the Tigers? Maybe not

They turn away all challengers: the MACA boys basketball Tigers. What a winter this team and its fans are having. Such great therapy for putting aside the harsh weather too. Hey we'll  be getting a reprieve on Thursday. That's the word from the media: a very pleasant temperature setting in. Can we handle it? Will we get giddy? 

It is Tuesday and our community is bathing in the glow of an undefeated basketball team. The Tigers played a Monday game against the Huskies of Albany, here. And the orange and black rolled forward with an 80-76  win. So we sit at 16-0, 7-0 in section and 8-0 in conference. We have ruled the home gym with a 7-0 mark. To remind: it's the Tiger Sports Center. 

On Saturday our success was by a score of 81-49 over ACGC. On Thursday we cruised past Melrose 76-45. The beat goes on. Quite a bit remains of the regular season. We'll be playing on Friday and Saturday.

 

Tigers 80, Albany 76

The Huskies got on I-94 to visit Tiger country. And here they showed a very high caliber of play in the first half. My, it looked as if those Huskies might be in a good mood heading back home on the Interstate. They led 43-29. But, what a reversal in second half play. Did our coaching staff make adjustments? Did our shots just start falling more? 

Fans at Tiger Center cheered lustily as the Tigers outscored the foe 51-33. The final horn was with an 80-76 score. 

Oh shoot! I thought at first that the boxscore was filled out in full on "Maxpreps." I scrolled down to discover that no, it was not. It's great when our coaching staff can cooperate to make this happen. I don't have the standing to make requests on this front. The most I might do is make a "hint" to Mark Torgerson who has family connections to the coaching staff! 

I have never spoken to our current head coach. Alas, a new generation has taken over. I used to work with Mark Torgerson and Paul Daly, quite intensively in fact. I don't know their sons at all. It was great when I could reach Paul when he wasn't ice fishing! Mark was always communicative. He also says I'd be welcome at Faith Lutheran if I wanted to start attending. 

My regular church of First Lutheran has "died." What terrible consequences we've seen from the ELCA vote on gay ordination. I accept basic gay rights. But the vote was seen as a step too far by so many. Just look at the consequences: a widespread fleeing from the ELCA churches. Truman Carlson was mad at the time he left First Lutheran. That was sad to see by both him and others. 

And First Lutheran can be said to have been taken off life support, now that it can no longer have weekly Sunday services at its own building. So the holdover members are now half Methodist? I don't dislike Methodists. But my family chose a mainstream Lutheran when we came to Morris. 

 

"Bait and switch" 

And I'm bitter about having written my annual check to First Lutheran in November of 2024 only to find in the next year that we've had the rug pulled out from under us. I told a friend that it was like a "bait and switch." I wrote my annual check with a certain basic understanding or assumption. We'd be "cool" for the next 12 months. 

I could have seen the writing on the wall. Guess I was too optimistic, something I'm not often accused of! First I was "fooled" by being told we were pairing with Federated just for the summer. Surprise! It's pretty obvious now that it's permanent. They'll keep both buildings going for a while. Too much of a shock to close one right at the present time. 

First Lutheran would have to be the building that closes. First Lutheran was designed at a time when no one thought about elderly/handicapped access. Federated is all on one level. So is Faith Lutheran, an ELCA church that is holding its own as a stand-alone. I went there Saturday for the funeral for Dolora Hendrickson. Rev. Wayne Kopitzke is serving there now but it's my understanding this arrangement is not long-term. He's in very good shape to keep going. 

You can say Faith Lutheran is the only ELCA church left in town now. It's a nice operation. I enjoy knowing Kelvin Tschetter. It is nothing short of amazing how far First Lutheran fell until its demise was reached. I have a long memory of First Lutheran being such a prime Protestant church in town with two services on Sunday. There's really nothing left now. 

Shall I get back to basketball?

 

Tigers 82, ACGC 49

I may have whiffed when looking for the Albany game boxscore. Fortunately I had better success with the ACGC game. I like to stay connected with MACA activities. We led the Falcons 45-27 at halftime. 

The game's stats: Tyson Grove topped our scoring list with 20 points on seven of 14 shooting. Ben Tiernan supplied 15 points on an efficient five of seven. Our third double figures scorer was Riley Asmus: 11 points, five of eight. 

Lots of players got in the scoring act. Let's acknowledge: Alex Asmus and Jonah Huebner each with nine points. Ozzy Jerome scored six, Jack Kehoe five, Tanner Friesen four, Ian Grove 2 and Drake Asmus 1. 

Another Asmus comes along! I have a long memory of Huebners in Tiger sports, including my own generation. Good bloodlines! 

Our team shooting was 26 for 60, 43 percent. We were 12 of 32 in 3's for 38 percent. Is that a good percentage? Tiernan was mighty sharp as he made five of seven. But Tyson Grove led in total 3's with his six, in 13 attempts. Alex Asmus made our other 3-pointer. 

The freethrow category saw MACA shoot 18 of 30, 60 percent. 

Rebounds! We had 42 total rebounds of which 22 were offensive. Four players shared team-best in rebounds, each with six. These were: Kehoe, Jerome, Riley Asmus and Huebner. Tiernan had four of our 14 assists. Tyson Grove and Huebner each had three steals among our team total of 14. 

Kehoe blocked two shots. Alex Asmus, Friesen and Jerome each blocked one. The Tigers had seven turnovers.

 

Girls: KMS 73, Tigers 54

Not such good news to share on the Tiger GBB front. The Tigers were dealt defeat by the Saints of KMS at Kerkhoven. I remember the days when I'd drive through Kerkhoven and see the school building that looked like a prison. We had a school board member in Morris who talked about how a lot of the new schools looked like that on the outskirts of towns. 

Leah Wagner of the Saints reached the thousand-point career milestone in front of her home fans. She's a junior guard. She entered the game needing three points. And she got these with a 3-point shot! This was with 14:58 left in the first half. 

Impressive as this Saint is, she was actually upstaged some in the Monday game. I'm well familiar with the name "Acelynn Hacker." Acelynn became the all-time leading scorer for the Saints on Monday. She's a senior guard. My, this Saint has gone way past 1000 career points. In fact she's over 2000! 

Our Tigers lost to some very accomplished players. Hacker scored 28 points and had three steals. Wagner's totals: 21 points, nine rebounds and four steals. Maddie Silas was another standout for the victor. 

 

Discouraging 

I would love to type some data on our MACA Tigers. Alas, once again the West Central Tribune has "stats not available" for MACA. The sports department of the WC Trib can go sit under a cow. There is nothing that I as an unattached journo can do about this. As I often muse, "Mongo just pawn in game of life." (That's from "Blazing Saddles.")

 

- Brian Williams - morris mn minnesota - bwilly73@yahoo.com

Dolora Hendrickson, RIP

Dolora Hendrickson

Just got home from the funeral for Dolora Hendrickson. Funerals for dear friends are about the only thing that will get me into a Christian church building right now. Dolora left us in a time when our state of Minnesota is in terrible duress. Society has created this crisis by allowing our current president to retain his power. One term was not enough for him. And at present he is pulling strings to try to ensure that his party and his people retain power into the future, probably until the country virtually collapses. 

Really, are you ready for that? The Roman empire collapsed. Why couldn't we have Mitt Romney as president instead? Yes he'd be looking for "middle ground" from time to time. And that stance is necessary sometimes to maintain harmony. I voted for Ronald Reagan once. The regime we have now won't compromise with anyone. 

The president demonizes and personally insults anyone who might want to dissent from what he wants, even people with the Federal Reserve who are just trying to do the job of the Fed which is supposed to be separate from politics. Trump doesn't believe in politics as a place for occasional horsetrading - it's all or nothing with him, it's all about MAGA. 

And what is MAGA's primary fountain for support? It is the so-called "evangelicals" of America. They are allowed to represent the Christian faith as if they are fundamental. The media reports it that way, so if I profess to be Christian I must be some sort of "evangelical" i.e. a MAGA zealot. I'm not. 

The Christian faith is going to have a lot of answering to do. But in the end maybe we'll all end up struggling to just survive. If the flag-waving evangelicals of Trumpworld are allowed to stand as representing the Christian faith, I want nothing to do with the faith. 

But I was at Faith Lutheran today to pay final respects to Dolora who was a gem of a person. What a wonderful family she bequeathed to us all. Such a long and rich life. 

I have found that the best way to honor someone at the time of their passing is to tell a little story, to share a little anecdote. So here we go! This goes back to when Faith Lutheran was having some difficulty with conflict. On came a new minister who I recall had a rather short tenure presumably because of the conflict. I interviewed him for the Morris paper when he started. I found him to be agreeable. 

Back in those days I often formed a semi-personal friendship with many of the people I interviewed. It wasn't just "business." I told the guy that I could stop by sometime and catch a sermon of his. I was not a regular churchgoer then. My family church was First Lutheran. My parents attended Easter Sunday service there. It was on an Easter Sunday that I decided to go over to Faith Lutheran and sample the new guy's work. 

I walked in, received a nice greeting, took a seat in the pews and was then astonished. This guy who was the new full-time pastor was not there! A man of the cloth not present for Easter Sunday? Bev McNeill was in charge. Well, the congregation had its heart in being there. 

I did not stay long. I heard later that the pastor was not present because "his daughter was having a baby." Hmm. I wasn't really buying it. Easter Sunday? To put your own family's interests first instead of your flock? 

So I was discussing this with Dolora. She seemed receptive to my point of view. She said of the situation that "she (the daughter) was having the baby, not him."

I certainly could not have chosen better words. 

 

The old is new again?

I got to wondering the other day if "Pastor Emmy" might be in a position to come back to Faith Lutheran. She left here when her husband got a job as director of Norsk Hostfest. Well, I heard on KFGO this past week that this event has bitten the dust, it is terminated. So, might Pastor Emmy be in position to come back? She made friends here. I was told it was unlikely since her family has connections with where they are living now. 

Such transient people these ministers can be. ELCA ministers are hard to secure now.

Rev. Wayne Kopitzke did a quite fine job officiating for Dolora's funeral on Saturday. I didn't recognize as many people as I thought I would. Well, time passes and one generation gives way to the next, alas. 

I was pleased that the late Dave Holman's sons came and talked to me. I was also pleased to sit next to the Griffiths at the lunch. I went to high school with Dan Griffith's sister Maureen, Class of '73. We were a unique generation. 

I was pleased a few months back to run into Dolora's son Mike along the biking/walking trail east of town. So I said "Hi Mark." Well, Mark was his younger brother! 

Of course we all remember Dolora's husband Alan Hendrickson the iconic wrestling coach of the Tigers. Remember the "famous" photo of Alan cutting Dan Jost's hair?

 

Addendum: The pastor who stabilized things at Faith Lutheran was Dell Sanderson. That's two l's as it's not short for "Delmont." A clergy insider informed me that Dell "accepted the position on condition that a certain other person resign." And there's a million stories in the naked city. 

My understanding of Rev. Kopitzke is that it's a stop-gap assignment, not permanent or long-term. They are fortunate to have him. Meanwhile First Lutheran has partnered with the local Methodist Church.

 

- Brian Williams - morris mn minnesota - bwilly73@yahoo.com 

Keeping MACA in front of the public

Wow! Just checked the "Maxpreps" site for MACA boys basketball and things are further developing there. There's an exciting video highlight feature at the top. 

"Maxpreps" has long held potential for getting attention for the team. Mark Torgerson and now his successor have been good at getting individual stats posted, even with less than 100 percent consistency or reliability. Anything these guys can do to connect with fans is terrific. So I personally say "kudos." 

Actually there's a good chance that yours truly was the one who got Mark aware of the possibilities of Maxpreps years ago. Chalk one up for me if that's true. I even remember Mark typing game comments from time to time. There was one problem with that: the Maxpreps template assumed the games were organized in quarters, not halves as is the case in Minnesota. Last night (Wednesday) at UMM I attended the UMM games where we see the "quarters" format. Women lost in the first game. Men looked like they were headed for a loss in the nightcap. 

Update: Men lost in overtime!

 

It's only money 

I noticed that non-senior citizens are charged $10 for admission. Maybe I'm having a hard time staying aware of inflation. But I think the admission charge is way too much for non-seniors. 

On a positive note, I'll observe that the caliber of play for both women's and men's games came across as very good. I'll have to elevate my view of the UMAC. Cougar basketball is a great way to make life interesting when the frigid weather outside limits our choices. It's a long night of basketball and not boring. 

But, no pep band last night. The grand experiment of pep band was unveiled on Saturday. It was a modest start but one to be commended. 

Back to the prepsters: the top of the MACA "Maxpreps" site has video highlights of the win versus Eden Valley-Watkins. There are several categories where info can be posted on this site. I'd like to see a group of students get ambitious about this just like the "YouTube geniuses." When I was in high school, early '70s, we couldn't have envisioned any of this. Seems like Star Trek or something. 

Speaking of Star Trek, a friend emailed me one of those birthday greeting messages featuring a celebrity yesterday (Jan. 28). And the celebrity was. . .William Shatner! I couldn't have been more pleased. I'm highly pleased to have reached the age of 71. How about that? 

I received a grand total of two birthday cards. One was from the UMM giving department. The other was from their counterpart in the Twin Cities. Yes I give $ in order to receive such gestures. No matter, the greetings seem quite sincere. I have no family. I get no personal acknowledgment from my church because it is now my former church. So, no family and no church. But why hang one's head? I'm not. 

Did I ever get any public acknowledgment for giving $2000 to support the MAHS band's trip to New Orleans a couple years ago? Music enabled me to see the world when I was age 17. And so I'm happy to give something back. 

I even performed with a group at the then-new Kennedy Center. Today it's called the Trump/Kennedy Center I guess. Well, no one ever stops the guy. My musical group appeared in a photo on the front page of the style section of the Washington Post. This was in the summer when the Watergate story was first breaking in the Post. I kept an edition that had a front page article co-written by Bob Woodward and someone other than Carl Bernstein. 

I was in Austria when George McGovern announced Tom Eagleton as his runningmate. Saw the big picture of the two on the cover of Time Magazine. Eagleton didn't exactly work out. We got Nixon redux and continued hell with the Vietnam war. I was a little too young to have to worry (much) about being sent to war there. 

At present we have the hell of Donald Trump and his "Federal police" in America. Has our congressperson spoken out about the ICE outrage in the Twin Cities? Has she stepped forward to defend the interests of her own state vs. the overreaching Federal government with its ICE presence? Well I don't think so. She stands idly by while Trump gives billions of dollars to Argentina. 

Trump in effect then declares war on one of the states of the U.S. Our state? We tend to vote Democrat. Russia is Trump's friend, not Minnesota. But we approve of this. Our local churches are full of people who would vote for Trump again. Well, this nation once put up with the Vietnam war, for years and years in fact. Actor John Wayne was a cheerleader for that. We are such flawed mortal beings, n'est-ce pas? 

 

Tigers 78, Lakers 51

Let's focus on the Tuesday night win by the MACA boys basketball team. "Maxpreps" tells us we are 13-0. The Tuesday success was by a score of 78-51 over Minnewaska. We were up at halftime 42-30. 

There was a nice distribution of scoring totals: four Tigers in double figures. And leading that charge were the Asmus boys. Riley put in 20 points, Alex had 14. Right behind was Jack Kehoe 13 and then we see Tanner Friesen with 11. 

Riley made nine of his 13 shots while Alex was six of ten. Friesen made all four of his shots. Jonah Huebner came through with nine points. Other totals: Ben Tiernan 3, Tyson Grove 3, Bryce Hardy 2, Mason Koehl 2 and Jorge Rodriguez 1. As a team we shot 31 of 54, 57 percent. 

Tiernan and Friesen each went one-for-one in 3-pointers. Grove and Alex Asmus each added a '3'. We were four of nine in long-rangers. In freethrows our numbers were 12 of 24. Huebner was five of eight at the line. 

Rebounds! Here the team total was 36, ten offensive. Alex Asmus had nine boards and Huebner had eight. Huebner had four of our 16 assists. Huebner had four of our nine steals. Grove and Kehoe each blocked two shots. 

Final note on "Maxpreps": Maximizing the possibilities of this website, and getting the public aware of it, will make us less dependent on the Morris newspaper which has the huge drawback of only coming out once a week. Of course the paper has a website. Looks like they need some prodding to develop that. Someday we may care very little about what the SCT does. And you have to BUY the thing. Those people will have to be humbled before they roll up their sleeves.

 

Girls: Tigers 75, Montevideo 21

Surely a big night for MACA girls hoops Tuesday as the orange and black won in a breeze, score of 75-21. 

We are blessed to be able to see individual scoring totals for MACA on the WC Trib website. The game was played in Montevideo. I remember all the years of going there and seeing the "Mohawk" mural. Monte of course abandoned the "Mohawks" nickname. Today we see Benson surviving with the "Braves" name. 

I wonder if the Monte coach supplied the MACA individual stats to the WC Trib as a favor. If so, thanks. We see that Chloe Fehr led the charge for the Tigers with 19 points. Samantha Konz put in 16. Leah Berlinger was our third double figures scorer: 11. 

Other totals: Mia Lu Asche 8, Alexa Raths 6, Madalyn Pope 5, Addie Cihak 4, Mylie Fehr 4 and Olivia Huebner 2. We led at halftime 43-10. Monte's top scorer was Megan Koosmann with nine points. 

If you wish to acknowledge my birthday which was yesterday, you can do so by clicking to listen to Elvis Presley sing "Funny How Time Slips way." Here's the link, thanks and God bless.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_ZcnT5gqRXk&list=RD_ZcnT5gqRXk&start_radio=1 

  

71 years old! And I have been writing about Tiger sports since 1972. You've heard the lyrics "Rock 'n' roll is here to stay, it will never die." Well, same with me and Tiger sports.

 

- Brian Williams - morris mn minnesota - bwilly73@yahoo.com 

Basketball and band together at UMN-Morris!

The UMN-Morris men played the late game of the basketball doubleheader Saturday at the P.E. Center. There was a lively atmosphere for appreciating hoops. The atmosphere was built by the very pleasant surprise of a UMM pep band. Eureka! It was adequate if not outstanding. It was just nice to see. And the main thing is that maybe this just represents a start. Word might start circulating. 

I'm sure there has always been a high percentage of UMM students who played in their high school band. They don't necessarily focus on music studies at UMM. The pep band would seem to be a nice outlet for any student with that background. How many would still have their old instruments? I kept mine because I kept playing after high school. 

Would the UMM music discipline have instruments available to provide? I suppose there's always a risk of instruments getting damaged. I think UMM guards all of its assets more than in "the old days" just because of the sheer cost of maintenance. I wouldn't have to tell you that the cost is "up." Does science dictate that prices go up? 

I remember the wear and tear that campus assets were subjected to in the days when major high school basketball tournament games were played at the P.E. Center. Obviously both sides of bleachers were pulled out. Excited people streamed into the place. UMM must have gotten compensation from some source for hosting this, at least I assume. 

For years and years it was commonplace: going to the P.E. Center in March for the much-anticipated games. I was with the Morris newspaper. Heavens, today I'd be expected to get in my vehicle, gas it up and head south to Marshall for high-level games. The only time I have ever been at the Marshall facility was actually for a music concert! It was the Maynard Ferguson band in the early 1980s. Packed house and great show. Maynard was "on." To refresh: he was a trumpet player. 

But I have never been to the SSU campus for a high school sports event. I have speculated that the high-level games like sub-section or section championship draw fewer fans than when UMM was a hub. I shared that thought with a friend who offered analysis. He agreed but said that distance was not the only factor. He said "these days the parents are divided into so many activities." 

Yes, "the miracle of the multiplication of the loaves." 

I was at the paper when new teams/programs were being added. I mean, hockey went from being a sandlot type of sport to fully established with the Lee Center. I provided coverage in the "sandlot" days. There was lots of commitment in spite of the lack of amenities. Obviously we were at the mercy of weather. 

Speaking of that, what a mid-winter time we are having right as I write this, late January. Late January means I become another year older. On January 28 I turn 71 years of age. I feel fortunate to have made it this far. Once you've attended your 50-year high school reunion, the rest is gravy, n'est-ce pas? 

I was in the Morris High School Class of '73. We weren't "Morris Area" then. The highlight of our commencement was the speech given by Edith Martin, sister of the Martins we know so well from the grocery store. Could they all have dreamt that their store would have no competitor in the year 2026? I wonder what Edith in 1973 would think of the grocery prices of today. 

Willie's was "Red Owl" when Edith and I were young. I laugh as I remember how she referred to Super Valu then as "America's number one skinflint." 

Our high school has added gymnastics and swimming. I remember the late Rick Lucken expressing some concern about swimming as "another non-revenue sport." 

I'll be blunt and say I covered gymnastics and swimming in a grudging way. These were not fan-oriented sports so where's the interest? Was I supposed to put that consideration aside? Well yes, in the estimation of many. 

And all along we had the UMM teams. Only with the development of the UMM website did we really get a "sports information" department at UMM. For years the "SID" position was in name only and if Mark Fohl were to read this, he would not dispute it. Such far-reaching change brought by the Internet. It is a GIVEN now that colleges supply timely and extensive info on their sports teams. 

Jack Imholte would have been indifferent. He actually would have been skeptical of allocating resources for the purpose of in-depth sports info. And this is not to criticize him. Those were just different times. Staggeringly different. 

One norm was that it was always permissible to criticize ME. I never pretended to be thorough or consistent covering UMM sports. But I nevertheless did a lot of it in the long run. I made it a personal priority to cover UMM soccer in its first year because I felt "this is history." I recalled this in one of my recent meetings with UMM's new chancellor Michael Rodriguez. I guess the Williams family has a sense for "firsts." My father was the only music faculty in UMM's first year. 

 

The prepsters 

Covering Morris High School sports was difficult for a long time. The school had tremendous problems in the 1980s. While this was most evident in co-curricular, the problem went deeper to an underlying culture in the system. There was one individual who made so many of his colleagues cynical and defensive. To this day I'm amazed at the power that person had to influence others. 

I could have wrung my hands over how long it took to overcome that dysfunction. And there sat the superintendent pulling in his big check all the time. He'd probably say his hands were tied. While it may still be hard to "fire a teacher," I think the people who run the schools have leverage to apply heat on problem people in the system. 

And today's administrators appear better trained and conditioned to be true managers relative to the teachers. Previously they came across as warmed-over teachers themselves. So I'm happy about a lot of the strides. But I did have some trying years. I suffered some personal damage because of that (and some other things). 

When I write about sports today, I think you can sense that I feel genuine joy about it all. That is the real me. I probably lost my job at the Morris paper because of fallout from the goalpost incident of 2005. Of course I wasn't prepared to deal with that. And I'll finally reveal a little secret. On that day, I felt about zero interest in the UMM football team. We played at such a bottom level. And I felt considerably more inspiration to cover the area high-schoolers. 

I was flummoxed by the goalpost incident. A letter to the editor from Mike Busian probably set the wheels in motion for my exit months later from the commercial media. And it hurt profoundly. To this day I have some PTSD resulting from things that happened toward the end. I wake up sometimes having had a vivid dream where I'm still with the paper. Happened just in the last few days. I'll wake up and then realize "I haven't worked for the paper in 20 years." 

20 years! And then consider that I'll be 71 years old tomorrow (Wednesday). I'll write about local sports for as long as I can. I will do so right here and now.

 

Carvin Fish

Cougars 80, UW-Superior 78

Yes, a close game to entertain fans at the P.E. Center. It followed the women's victory which I blogged about in my previous post on this site. A slice of pizza costs $4 at the P.E. Center. I remember the years when I'd have my evening meal there for a basketball event: $3 for two slices of pizza! 

The UMM men got to .500 in overall won-lost, at 9-9. Things look better in the UMAC at 4-1. 

Carvin Fish was our big gun with 27 points. Carvin has been "in the zone" of late. He shot 10 of 14 and 2 of 3 in threes. Plus 5 of 10 at the freethrow line. He had eight rebounds, two assists and two blocked shots. Fish comes to UMM from Sisseton SD, Tiospa Zina Tribal School. 

Kaden Pieper scored 18 points and Matt Thompson ten. As a team we shot 26 of 55. In 3-pointers the numbers were 9 of 19. In freethrows: 19 of 29. 

Wasn't Maddy Grove spectacular in the women's game? 28 points.

January 28 of 1961 when this photo was taken. It's me turning age six. Williams family comfortably settled in Morris. History-making time: UMM's very first year! We were devoted to helping get the institution off the ground. Previously it was the West Central School of Agriculture. There are still some vestiges of the "school of ag" on campus. I have suggested that maybe it's time to move past that nostalgia.

I have enjoyed getting to know the new UMM chancellor Michael Rodriguez. The photo shows Dr. Rodriguez (left) with yours truly on Friday morning at Common Cup. The picture makes me think that I should stop cutting my own hair! I started that because of covid. Also stopped seeing the dentist. I finally went to dentist a few months ago and had a tooth pulled. Rodriguez has a major job ahead of him. He insists that UMM does not face a threat of closure. I wish him luck with that pledge. I don't think it's actually a slam-dunk. And with all the stormy weather our state is experiencing right now at the hands of the "Federal police," our economy could be damaged and this could obviously have ramifications for the U. Are you ready to get word that UMM is closing? Well that would certainly be a nightmare scenario. Let us strive to move forward led by the new guy in the chancellor's chair. Good luck!

 

- Brian Williams - morris mn minnesota - bwilly73@yahoo.com 

Kehoe scores team-best 18 in Tuesday win

The weather has slowed the pace of things for MACA basketball. We're hoping to resume on Tuesday for the boys. Home game against Minnewaska Area. Our most recent game was the previous Tuesday, Jan. 20. On that day the Tigers won yet again. That's all they do, is win! Twelve times they have taken the court this season, successful every time out. 

That 12-0 record includes 6-0 in conference play. It's not premature to think about high-level post-season games. All the way to the top maybe? 

The Jan. 20 opponent was Eden Valley-Watkins. And MACA came away with an 80-56 victory. It was a night for Jack Kehoe to lead the charge in scoring. Kehoe made seven of ten field goal shots to post 18 points. Tyson Grove and Alex Asmus shared the No. 2 position on the scoring list. Each scored 16. Grove made seven of 14 shots, Alex six of 14. 

Jonah Huebner had impact with 12 points on five of eight. Riley Asmus joined in with his nine points on four of six. Then we had Ozzy Jerome with six points and Ian Grove with three. This is the first time I have typed Ian's name. Welcome to my blogs. 

I saw Maddy Grove play fantastic last night (Saturday) for the UMM women. It was a historic might for UMM basketball because there was a pep band! I don't recall even once seeing this in all my years with the Morris newspaper. Who says things are on a downward course at UMM? 

The Tigers' team shooting numbers were 32 of 65, 49 percent. We weren't really scintillating in 3-pointers where we made seven of 28. Alex Asmus was three of nine and Tyson Grove was two of eight. Ian Grove made his only attempt. So did Ozzy Jerome. 

In freethrows the Tigers were nine of 15, 60 percent. Kehoe was four of seven and Huebner two of two. Rebounds! Our team total was 30, 12 coming on offense. The top individual was Alex Asmus with seven. In assists it was Tyson Grove and Alex Asmus leading the way with four and three respectively. We had 18 total assists. 

Alex topped the steals list with his five. Huebner and Kehoe each had four. We had 17 total steals. We had two blocked shots with Tyson Grove and Kehoe taking the honors. 

Now let's get the harrowing winter weather put aside and get into the rest of this exciting season!

 

UMM women win

So it was a marquee night for the "Grove connection" on the UMN-Morris women's hoops team. A good turnout of fans was present on the bleacher seats at our P.E. Center for UMAC action. And as I already mentioned, an actual pep band on hand! Man I could have done a double-take! Seems like not asking too much to have a band organized, n'est-ce pas? 

And the band students do not have to be actual music students on campus, do they? I'm certain there are always lots of students around who have a background of having played in their high school band. Would they still be in possession of their instruments? If not, could the music department help out? 

Well we certainly had a bona fide band present Saturday to build the atmosphere for the doubleheader slate of collegiate hoops. Why so many years without a pep band? How would I rate the band from Saturday night? Well that's not important. It might have been rather threadbare but who cares? Let's consider it a "start." If the fans are happy, that's what matters. The fans and the players! 

The band was announced as being directed by Simon Tillier. So without a doubt the music department has applied its imprimatur. (I like using that word.) I think Simon was actually playing an instrument with the band, from my view up along the concourse. But my eyesight has been in decline. 

We have a different yardstick for judging things at UMM these days, it seems. No longer does it seem necessary to apply the highest college-level standards. It is enough to just keep as many programs going as possible. In other words, for the institution to survive. As long as everyone is having a good time, I'll raise a toast to that. 

But we'll probably never see the bleachers pulled out on  both sides of the gym again. I remember when that was the norm for years and years. I also remember the norm of UMM regularly playing the state universities like Moorhead State and all the others. I really do miss that. You would think that the mighty U of M could keep its Morris campus at the level where we could compete with, and defeat, the state U's. You second that? But those days appear unlikely to return. 

We have a new chancellor at UMN-Morris now who shall we say is trying to right the ship, to land the plane. He's an agreeable guy, Mike Rodriguez. I told him he's probably happy to be here in Morris instead of the Twin Cities where there is a violent disturbance involving the Federal police a.k.a. "ICE." The scenes from there make me think we're heading into dystopian times. Things remain peaceful in Morris and at UMM, thank God. 

President Trump gets so much of his support from places like rural western Minnesota. But then the Twin Cities are where all hell breaks loose with what Trump wants. I think he wants a white supremacist society. And he appears to get backing from our Christian churches like the kind of churches we have out here on the prairie, with few exceptions. 

 

Maddy Grove

Maddy's showcase 

The UMM women's basketball team won 59-48 over UW-Superior on Saturday. And what a night for Maddy Grove as she scored 28 points. She made her only two 3-point shot tries. She was 13 of 26 overall in field goal shooting. She really was our dominant force in scoring. 

Shelby Mortenson had our second-high total of 15 points. I didn't see Gianna Klarenbeek's name in the boxscore. Mortenson topped rebounds with seven. Grace Perry led in assists with four. Wow: Mortenson dominated in blocked shots with seven! Grove had four of our 12 steals. As a team we shot 23 of 62. 

With the win the Cougars improved to 4-1 in league and 7-11 overall. UW-Superior is known as the "Yellowjackets." 

I'm writing this on a most chilly Sunday morning. I have to wonder: Should anyone of truly good conscience consider attending a Christian church in Stevens County today? In Stevens County, this most "red" county that walks hand-in-hand with the orange god, Trump, not the true god of the Bible? 

I will stick to the true God and true Jesus no matter what it takes. Jesus could sometimes sound a little like Bernie Sanders, a "liberal." Pastors have become tentative about quoting from Jesus' Sermon on the Mount. They get complaints. I will never be ashamed to cite the quotes from Jesus Christ. I would never put any mortal person like Trump ahead of Jesus. So I would not fit in with most of the churches here in coyote country of Stevens County. 

The Twin Cities are where the people are. Never dismiss that. I continue warning my Apostolic church friends, "beware false prophets."

 

Addendum: From an email I received from a friend a couple days ago:

 

Marshall Hoffman interviewed Dr. Rodriguez on his “Community Connection” KMRS program the other day. It all went well, but then toward the end Marshall mentioned the concern and disappointment on campus with the “sudden departure of his predecessor” (no name was mentioned). Mike kind of hemmed and hawed, didn’t really answer, and changed the subject.

Someday, we’ll have to talk about KMRS – it’s really changed a lot since they moved into the new studio. And not necessarily for the better. Yes, the on-air talent (3 individuals in particular) are much more “polished” and professional than the standard fare of announcers they usually hire. But, they aren’t in the studio – they “work” from very distant locales, i.e. Florida, California, wherever. So that’s how Ingstad Media could afford better talent – they don’t have to pay them to move to Morris and be “live” in the studio. I haven’t talked to Deb (Mattheis) in quite a while, so I haven’t got the skinny yet on how all of that shook out.

 

My answer to Hoffman would have been: "Transitions happen in education all the time." Sometimes it's not for the faint of heart. The institutions are organisms with their own survival instincts. Someone once asked Ringo about the firing of Pete Best. And Ringo said "they could have fired me too."

 

Addendum #2: A friend with a UMM background responded to an email where I made note of the UMM pep band. Historical background, interesting:

 

Wow, a UMM pep band - what a pleasant surprise! I think the last “real” pep bands (not semi-organized, rag-tag student-led groups) were my sophomore year out there, winter of ‘72-‘73. Clyde (Johnson) divided us into 2 groups, A& B, to split the load for home basketball games (men only, no such thing as women’s BB then). But then Title 9 was passed, and instead of funding from the men’s sports programs, they took money from the Humanities division. Clyde didn’t like that, and he told us where athletic department could put their pep bands. Nothing since.  

 

My response: These days so many UMM basketball games are women's/men's doubleheaders, so it's not like the pep band has to make separate commitments to the two genders. I know all about the complications caused for certain people when the number of sports programs proliferated. I was in the commercial media! 

My response #2: The restoration of pep band had a modest start Saturday. Really not a great performance but it was a start! If communication circulates about this, we'll likely see more interest. I personally have always considered pep band an art form! I gather - ahem - that our high school band director does not see it that way!

 

A final note: A photo that includes Dr. Rodriguez with yours truly at Common Cup appears with my current post on my "Morris of Course" blog site. Friends of UMM gathered informally at Common Cup Friday morning, very enjoyable. Here is the link to my post and thanks: 

https://morrisofcourse.blogspot.com/2026/01/we-may-be-cold-but-were-not-omaha.html 

  

- Brian Williams - morris mn minnesota - bwilly73@yahoo.com

Relief from the cold with UMM hoops

(KHOU image)

We're in another of those occasions where the weather preoccupies us in Minnesota. And we pride ourselves on being so resilient. Is it an intrinsic quality or just a matter of practicality, of survival? Well, rhetorical question. We have no choice in the matter. We do what we have to. 

While so much of normal life slows down or comes to a halt, we can feel some enthusiasm about a home UMM basketball game on Saturday. It's a 3 p.m. start at the place I still call the P.E. Center. Is it "Cougar Sports Center" now? 

I remember all the years before the RFC existed. I remember all the years when UMM teams played in the NIC and then the NSIC grouping. That's "Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference." 

Today we're in the UMAC which hasn't exactly stimulated my enthusiasm but that's the way it is. We play a lot of religious-themed schools. Meanwhile we are quite secular in our orientation with UMM. So there's an irony? Mark Fohl proclaimed that we can get along with these other schools just fine if we "stick to sports." It appears that objective has been accomplished. 
The UMM women's basketball team will face off against UW-Superior at 3 p.m. Not sure if I will walk or drive over. My car had a new battery installed just a couple weeks ago at Heartland Motors. It should be able to deal with the cold. 
The utter cold is the biggest story right now. So many days in a row: that is the novel thing. Looks like it'll continue right through Sunday morning when the Apostolic crowd of guys likes to gather at the Willie's Cafe. I sit close by and I always learn something! 

(B.W. photo)

This morning (Friday) I had an interesting social experience also. I attended a gathering of the UMM folks at Common Cup where Mike Rodriguez was the featured individual. He of course is the new UMM chancellor. I was invited by Erin Christensen. So I was definitely welcome. I have to be sure of these things. The UMM crowd has not always been a suitable milieu for yours truly. 
I am so fortunate to have had so much interaction with Rodriguez thus far. My association has been totally agreeable. Nice coffee cake available at Common Cup for the affair, gratis too. More than one type of coffee too. Very relaxed and fun interaction. 
It was a time to feel totally good about UMM even though we all know some storm clouds could be on the horizon. The big clarion call was issued by the Fourth Estate a while back. Talk about milieus: the press or the media has been my milieu all my life. Report and share opinions in a totally unencumbered way.
It is possible to get a foothold in the Fourth Estate - to have real reach with your writing - even if you don't have a particular degree or pedigree. But maybe my thoughts on this are most apt when reflecting on the pre-Internet age. Today any one of us can have reach. And it is a good thing, to an extent. It does appear that political conservatives have mastered the contemporary landscape to wield real power. This concerns me a great deal. 

Whither Minnesota? 
Minnesota continues to try to navigate as a "blue state." We might have sensed storm clouds about this a while back. Ah, so it is coming home to roost now? With the nation's president unleashing his power with ICE, i.e. the "Federal police." Do I have to tell you once again that Federal police are fundamentally different from the kind of police that we have always assumed to be around? 
ICE has built up a menacing presence in Minnesota. And maybe you cheer for it. I'm sure many of you do. Be careful what you wish for. We may see the "Federal police" burgeon in our Land of 10,000 Lakes, slowly so it would have the "boiling frog" effect. And then it may start asserting itself in ways that most of you would find objectionable. Like to spread around and keep close watch on polling places for the mid-terms, intimidating us. 
It would intimidate us because we all know the preferred outcome for elections by those who wield power in D.C. now. It is the president in concert with his fellow Republicans who are not your father's Republicans, to be sure. Maybe you only sense this in the abstract now. And you might attend a church that is cheerleading with what the MAGA crowd wants. So this is the purpose of church now: to twist arms for political objectives? 
And you pretend that Jesus Christ walks hand-in-hand with you? That is your fantasy or imagination. Well, religion is sort of a fantastical thing by definition, n'est-ce pas? 
Federal police could easily start morphing into the sort of thing we saw with the German autocratic empire of the mid-20th Century. Once the momentum for that starts building, we may well wake up only when it's too late. Do you think the German people are stupid? Well of course they aren't. But look what they acquiesced to. 
 
The seeds 
Here in America we are dealing with dysfunction that started with the 2008 "financial crisis" and how it was not dealt with properly. I actually think that's the whole story. We don't want to accept recessions anymore. But recessions have to be sustained in any properly ordered capitalistic system. To deny that is to invite potential catastrophe. The Federal Reserve may be dragging us to all-out crisis. Will you heed my words? Probably not. 
I may be taking risks for myself just expressing the kind of views that I do. Right at the present time, I am hunkered down at home because of the cold. Welcome to Greenland, you might say. Even Greenland can't escape Donald Trump. The polar bears might feel exasperated.
 

Maddy Grove

Cougars 73, Crown 39
Hey, the UMM women's basketball team is coming off a win! Good news! It was by a score of 73-39 at St. Bonifacius. Crown is one of those religious-themed schools in the UMAC. 
Maddy Grove co-led the scoring charge for our Cougars: 16 points. She made 8 of 15 field goal attempts. She had four rebounds, four assists, two blocked shots and three steals. 
My favorite player Gianna Klarenbeek from Iowa was back on course with her shooting. Following a sub-par game she came to life with 16 points to match Grove. And she was quite back on course with her 3-point shooting. She made three of her five long-range attempts and was six of nine overall. She had five rebounds, four assists, one shot block and one steal. She made her only freethrow try. Our third double figures scorer was Shelby Mortenson with 14 points on 7 of 12 shooting. Our top rebounder was Grace Perry with nine. She also led in assists with six. Anna Myers led in steals with four.

Gianna Klarenbeek

- Brian Williams - morris mn minnesota - bwilly73@yahoo.com

UMM women win in distressed Twin Cities

UMN-Morris traveled to play a "Christian University" on Saturday. The trip was to Gotham, i.e. the Twin Cities of Minnesota, where we've seen great unrest of late. "ICE" doing its thing. Protesters disrupted a church service. Increasingly we see American Christianity as synonymous with the aims of the Donald Trump presidency. 

The religious element in Trump's support has always puzzled a great many including myself. But the association just seems to burgeon. Leading where? Well I'm greatly concerned that it will endanger the already-fragile Christian churches across America. The churches hang on to their most fanatical, mostly old members. Mostly white: you know the profile. 

And I'm quite certain that Jesus Christ himself if he did in fact exist would want nothing to do with DJT and what he represents. But the media continues feeding us the meme that evangelicals across America - as if they define the Christian faith - are fighting to the end to support their Orange god. I have been perplexed for so long. And it never ends. 

The meme is supported by the vast media-based network of "conservative" personalities. Ironic, when you consider that the traditional grasp of conservatives suggests these people want calm and temperance and not disruption. Minnesota is in a fracas of disruption. And all that our congressperson will say is "I support law enforcement." 

A great deal of "law enforcement" was performed under the great German autocrat of the mid-20th Century too. Our congressperson should spell out more of what she means. Is she on the bandwagon for the U.S. taking over Greenland? And maybe also Canada, Cuba and heaven knows what else? Isn't this the kind of hostile expansionism that characterized the great German autocracy that finally had to be put down in war? 

Can't America just enjoy life without having to beat the drum in such an ominous way? Have we learned nothing from history? 

Christianity would normally be a refuge for what is right and good. But now in America it is the opposite. So many Trump sympathizers that we see in the media ("alternate reality") wear their Christian crosses around their necks. Like it's part of a uniform for their cause. Be cheerleaders for ICE. Keep pumping up the Orange Man. Do we need a total calamity in this country in order to wake up? 

 

Cougars win

Well on Saturday the UMM women's basketball team got a very satisfying win in St. Paul. We prevailed over University of Northwestern. It was a decisive win by a score of 82-65. The win had to lift spirits as it put our record at 5-11 overall, 2-1 in league. 

Our league is the UMAC, which frankly includes quite non-secular schools. They have missions that they feel are anointed by God, I guess. Keep MAGA strong. Can you deny that? 

Maddy Grove

Maddy Grove was a key contributor Saturday. She was a perfect 8-for-8 in freethrows. She made one of her three 3-point shots. Her 21 points was team-best. Shelby Mortenson was a force with her 17 points. She was 7 of 11 in field goals. Claire Stark added 13 points to the mix and Grace Perry was right behind with 12. 

Unfortunately Gianna Klarenbeek had an off night - it happens - as she was only one of nine in field goals and one of seven in 3's. She finished with five points. Anna Myers came through with seven. Rebounds saw Mortenson with the leading total of 15. Perry grabbed 13. Klarenbeek's four assists was tops. Mortenson blocked two shots. Grove and Klarenbeek each had four steals. 

Do I need to say this again: I miss the days when the Cougars played the state universities like Moorhead State. Looks like it's just not in the cards. 

 

And the campus itself. . .

What about the very survival of UMM? Informed voices are starting to express concern. I won't name names. Our new chancellor is in regular consultation with the U president Cunningham. And I think Cunningham is keeping her finger on the pulse of UMM. The Star Tribune expose on UMM may have begun a crisis atmosphere here. 

The sudden change in chancellors is a signal that all is not right. If the institution was in fact stable, the situation could have been "massaged" from above without such a drastic-appearing move, n'est-ce pas? Will our campus end up abandoned like the Appleton prison? Will blight take over in western Minnesota? 

At least we'll still have our MAGA congressperson, Michelle Fischbach, waving the flag for Trump and all he represents. With all the "Christians" of course. Just look at the Good Shepherd Church in the windswept prairie north of Morris: for sure it's 100 percent Trump voters all three times. 

 

Relieved at this 

I guess I can say one good thing about the decline of UMM: we have seen the apparent death of the once-powerful and pretentious "effete academic intelligentsia" of Morris. For this I would cheer lustily, as these people were once such a pain. They developed a strong dislike of yours truly many years ago. I cheer for their faltering and demise. To hell with all the talk of "GPA." Let's bury it. 

Does UMM care about "GPA" anymore? Or should they only care about trying to attract enough students who can pay their bills? Of course this would not include the Native Americans. Puzzling, since the Supreme Court has banned affirmative action. Academic people are masters at finessing their arguments.

 

Shelby Mortenson

A toast to sports 

UMM basketball is a joyful enterprise until the end finally comes. Am I concerned with my family $ fund to benefit UMM? No, because the fund can be transferred or adjusted under any scenario. I have had this explained to me in detail. 

It almost seems like the music department here has died. Any announcement yet of January music events? We have the cavernous "HFA" building that just hulks out there. 

None of the current travail could have been envisioned 15 years ago. The HFA is an albatross. The P.E. Center is way too nice a facility to be home to a UMAC team. The vision for the campus from years ago should be buried, it appears.

   

- Brian Williams - morris mn minnesota - bwilly73@yahoo.com