Bad news might eventually cool Wilf's desire to be Vikings owner

Of the four owners of major professional sports teams in the Twin Cities, I believe the Vikings' Zygi Wilf takes defeat the hardest.

Wilf seems to be willing to spend whatever it takes to build a winner, as evidenced by the millions he has given to top players, as well as the money he made available to upgrade Winter Park to make it one of the better practice facilities in the NFL.

But regardless of how hard he tries to make the Vikings into a Super Bowl champion, his team seems to run into one problem after another.

You wonder if the latest blow -- the possible suspension of star defensive tackles Pat and Kevin Williams -- won't temper Wilf's interest in owning the Vikings. Yes, a Hennepin County judge has temporarily blocked their suspensions. But you can bet the NFL will fight that ruling with all of its power.

And if the two tackles can't play, it certainly will be difficult to the Vikings to advance to the playoffs, despite all the money Wilf spent in the offseason upgrading the team.

There is also talk of eliminating revenue sharing in the NFL, and should that happen, owning the Vikings would be a losing venture.

In addition, with the economy the way it is and the cost of building a new stadium going up every year, it might be impossible to get any public money for a stadium any time soon.

Wilf and his family want nothing more than to win. But I could see him selling the team if things continue to look bleak for the Vikings.

There is no doubt that Wilf will deny he has any idea of selling the Vikings, but don't bet he won't if the news keeps going negative.

Gophers men's basketball coach Tubby Smith compares junior forward Damian Johnson with Chuck Hayes and Tayshaun Prince, two outstanding players he coached at Kentucky who are now playing in the NBA -- Hayes for the Rockets and Prince for the Pistons.

"He's so versatile. He's a guy who can do so many things," Smith said of Johnson, who showed off that versatility Tuesday night with six points, six rebounds, three assists, three blocks and three steals in 33 minutes as the Gophers beat Virginia 66-56 at Williams Arena. "He's got that length, that athleticism, and he's got that heart. He's got a toughness, and he's really worked extremely hard to put on weight, keep weight on and get stronger. Now he's got the combination of both [strength and length].

"He's a guy that you really have to have out there because he's so active. He can cover up for other mistakes that players make because he's very intelligent."

Hayes wasn't known as a great scorer, but he could rebound and defend, and Smith told Sports Illustrated in 2004, "If I had 15 Chucks, I'd be the happiest man in the world." He didn't get drafted but signed a 10-day contract with Houston in January 2004 and has been with the Rockets ever since. Prince was a better shooter and more highly regarded coming out of college, drafted 23rd overall by Detroit in 2002, and he helped turn the Pistons into one of the NBA's best teams in recent years.

Smith said Johnson will play in the NBA, just like Hayes and Prince.

Vikings kicker Ryan Longwell is friends and neighbors with Tiger Woods; the two live in the same neighborhood near Orlando. Woods hasn't played a round of competitive golf since beating Rocco Mediate on the 19th hole of the U.S. Open playoff in June; he had knee surgery after that to end his 2008 season.

Woods was on the sidelines of the Vikings-Buccaneers game in Tampa on Nov. 16, and Longwell said he talked to him then.

"He's starting to get back into it a little bit fitness-wise," Longwell said. "He said after the first of the year he'll start working out some wedges and stuff, and kind of build back slowly. He's kind of targeting the Masters and trying to get full speed for that.

"But, it really just depends on how the knee starts taking the full swings -- I mean, if it sets him back or if it's able to take the aggressive swings. It's just an issue that you can't push, especially on the golf swing, there's so much torque on the left knee that you just can't push it faster than it's ready to heal. So, it's one of those things that time is your best friend."

Baseball America recently released its annual list of top minor league prospects, and the magazine listed the Twins' top 10 as outfielder Aaron Hicks, outfielder Ben Revere, catcher Wilson Ramos, lefthander Jose Mijares, third baseman Danny Valencia, righthander Anthony Swarzak, righthander Shooter Hunt, righthander Kevin Mulvey, righthander Carlos Gutierrez and outfielder Angel Morales. ... Stan Cliburn, the manager for Twins Class AAA affiliate Rochester, led the Phoenix Desert Dogs to the Arizona Fall League title. Twins prospects on the roster included pitchers Robert Delaney, Anthony Slama and Jeff Manship and position players Valencia, Steve Tolleson and Dustin Martin.

Because of the World Baseball Classic, major league spring training camps will open one week earlier in 2009. Twins pitchers and catchers are scheduled to report to Fort Myers, Fla., on Feb. 15, and position players on Feb. 20. The Twins open their Grapefruit League schedule Feb. 25 against Boston.

Minneapolis Washburn football coach Peter Haugen and Gustavus Adolphus offensive coordinator Tom Brown are the two finalists for the Gusties' coaching vacancy. Jay Schoenebeck resigned after 15 seasons as Gustavus coach.

Gustavus men's tennis player John Kauss, a senior from St. Paul, will play in the International University Challenge of Tennis in Poitiers, France, this weekend.

Former Gophers baseball player Ryan Beers, who is the athletic director at Murray County Central High School, recently received the Friends of Education Award at the American Education Banquet.

Tony Petersen, a Gophers football coach from 1998 to 2006, was fired by Iowa State coach Gene Chizik on Monday. Petersen had just finished his second season as Cyclones quarterbacks coach.

Ex-Gophers James McLean, Bronson LaCassie, Wilhelm Schauman and Antti Ahokas golfed in the Australian Masters tournament last week and will play in the Australian PGA this week. ... Gophers golf coach Brad James announced the men's team signed Jon Trasamar (Blue Earth, Minn.) and Shang Zhi (Chinese national champion) for next year, while the women's team signed Jackie Marshall (No. 2-ranked junior in Australia), Jacki Shepherd (Delafield, Wis.) and Tori Stock (Woodstock, Ill.).

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