Sid Hartman: Johnson will start, but Jackson is ready

I could be wrong, but I don't think there is any doubt that Brad Johnson will continue to be the starting quarterback when the Vikings, still in contention for a playoff spot, play at Detroit on Sunday.

Johnson beat the Lions earlier this year, although it took a 23-point, fourth-quarter rally to win the game. It would be extremely unlike a football coach such as Brad Childress to gamble by giving rookie Tarvaris Jackson his first NFL start in a game the Vikings must win if they have any hopes for the playoffs.

However, Jackson says he is confident he can do the job if he is called upon, something I can't believe will happen.

"Yeah, it's been just learning how to prepare for a game," Jackson said. "I have learned a lot more than I knew in college, so the stuff that I learned this year will help me be a better quarterback next year."

Jackson doesn't expect to start Sunday, but he is confident he can be the Vikings' No. 1 quarterback in the future.

"Yeah, I'm very confident," he said. "And I am just getting prepared. You know, if I work hard like I always do and just prepare myself, I feel like I can be good.

"I've learned a lot from watching Brad and watching Brooks [Bollinger] and just being out there and preseason stuff."

He said he doesn't initiate any conversation with Johnson and Bollinger, but he makes sure to listen to what they say.

If called upon Sunday, Jackson says he is confident he can lead the team to victory.

"Yeah, I'll be ready to play," he said. "My coaches will put me in a good position to understand. And they'll prepare me."

Like McNabb

Jackson, who has shown he can scramble, was asked if he believes his style is similar to any other NFL quarterback.

"I'm not like [Atlanta's Michael] Vick," Jackson said. "Vick is a lot faster. Maybe [like Philadelphia's] Donovan McNabb. You know, he can stay in the pocket and make plays, and he can run outside the pocket and make plays."

Even though he has played little this year, Jackson is confident he was drafted by the right team and he will get the opportunity to be the No. 1 quarterback in the future.

In his Monday news conference, Childress was asked if he would consider starting Jackson against the Lions.

"I think you'd consider everybody," Childress said. "You just need to see where you are at and what you think you can accomplish here. These next four games are obviously important for the Minnesota Vikings. But I'm not necessarily looking to cast my gaze to the future, and nor would a quarterback change mean how I look at the next four games is any different."

Yes, Johnson had a bad game against the Bears with four interceptions, but he still is a quarterback with a Super Bowl ring on his hand. Like Vikings offensive coordinator Darrell Bevell said Thursday: "I don't think you can throw it all at Brad Johnson's feet for one. You can look at the four interceptions from last week and you can definitely see how all four of them can't just be attributed to Brad. There's 10 other guys out there that have a job to do."

Robinson underpaid?

J Robinson, the controversial Gophers wrestling coach, is on a year-to-year contract. He claims he is underpaid at $76,000 a year while many of the women coaches with similar jobs are paid a lot more. Robinson said he was told by Oklahoma State coach John Smith on Wednesday, when the Gophers beat the Cowboys 21-15 and likely will regain the No. 1 ranking in the country, that Smith's salary is double that of Robinson's.

The Gophers wrestling team goes against No. 4 Iowa State at Ames tonight. They will face 12 teams ranked in the top 20 in the country this season. "This potentially could be our best team ever," Robinson said following the victory over Oklahoma State. "But it's early in the season."

Jottings

The 2007 Gophers football schedule is final, with the opening home game on Sept. 1 against Bowling Green. Miami (Ohio) visits on Sept. 8, then the Gophers travel to Boca Raton, Fla., to play Florida Atlantic. Purdue comes to the Metrodome on Sept. 22, followed by a home game against Ohio State and two road games at Indiana and Northwestern before playing host to North Dakota State. The Gophers play at Michigan, play host to Illinois, play at Iowa and then close the season by playing host to Wisconsin.

The University of Minnesota received $1.9 million as its share of the bowl games played after the 2005 regular season, when there were two Big Ten teams in the Bowl Championship Series. This year's estimate of $1.67 million to each of the Big Ten teams was made on the basis of one BCS team. Now that there are two -- Ohio State and Michigan -- the Gophers again will receive in the area of $1.9 million for their share.

The Gophers have sold about 3,000 tickets for the Insight Bowl against Texas Tech in Tempe, Ariz. ... It's no secret that the Gophers are hoping to add some outstanding junior college players on defense. One of the most recent commitments they received was from Eric Small, a 272-pound defensive end from Joliet (Ill.) Community College, who will have three years of eligibility left when he enrolls at Minnesota. Small told GopherIllustrated.com: "Coach [Carey] Bailey told me he sees me playing inside tackle. He didn't guarantee me a starting job or any playing time, but he told me if I work hard I will have a good chance to contribute right away and that is all I want. He wants me to play at 285 pounds."

The Gophers men's tennis program has signed three recruits, including Sebastian Gallego, who lives in Medellin, Colombia, and is the No. 1-ranked tennis player in his country and No. 22 in South America as an 18-and-under player. The others are John Nanosky from Ridge High School in Tucson, Ariz., where he won the 2006 Class 4A singles championship, and Dino Bilankov from Croatia. He completed his junior career ranked No. 1 in the nation. ... Bennie Joppru, the former Minnetonka tight end who played at Michigan and missed his first three NFL seasons because of serious injuries, recently was claimed by Seattle off the Chicago Bears' practice squad.

Weston Leutz, the outstanding Bismarck (N.D.) Century track athlete, turned down Minnesota and will attend North Dakota State, where his father attended.

Former Gophers guard Moe Hargrow has signed with the Minnesota Ripknees of the ABA. The Ripknees play their home games at Concordia (St. Paul).

Sid Hartman can be heard weekdays on WCCO AM-830 at 6:40, 7:40 and 8:40 a.m. and on his Podcast twice a week at www.startribune.com/sidcast. shartman@startribune.com