Sid Hartman: Mason recruits make former coach proud

The other day, former Gophers football coach Glen Mason was talking about the current team and how much better it is from last year, and he had nothing but good things to say about the coaching staff that succeeded his.

Well, Saturday's 27-20 victory at Illinois might not compare with Mason's road victories at Penn State and Ohio State, but for a team that went 1-11 in 2007, it was big, and the type of game needed to put the program on the map.

There will be a little more respect for coach Tim Brewster after last year's poor performance. And this Gophers team -- which won as a double-digit underdog on the road for the first time since Mason beat Ohio State in 2000 -- could be a favorite in every remaining game except at Wisconsin.

Mason was part of the Big Ten Network television crew for the Gophers-Ohio State game Sept. 27. He said he was naturally proud of this year's performance of four players he recruited, Adam Weber, Jack Simmons, Eric Decker and Willie VanDeSteeg. As it turned out, those four played a big role Saturday in Champaign, Ill.

Weber completed 18 of 26 passes for 184 yards and a touchdown, performing well despite having minor knee surgery earlier in the week.

"When we were recruiting [Weber] I just thought, 'Boy, if we get him, he's really something special,' " Mason said. "If you take [Ohio State's] Terrelle Pryor out of the mix, because he's a phenom and a different type of athlete,... you tell me what quarterback you'd take in the Big Ten over Adam Weber? I can't think of one.

"It was funny, during the recruiting, as you know [Adam's father] Dr. Bobby Weber played at Minnesota, but his mom [Debbie] kept asking me, 'Are you sure you're recruiting him as a quarterback?' And I said, 'Why do you keep asking me that?' And she said, 'Well, everybody tells me you're going to sell him on coming to Minnesota as a quarterback and then you're going to switch him to defensive back.' And that never, ever, entered our mind."

Hard work pays off Like Weber, Simmons' father, Terry, played for the Gophers. Jack Simmons caught four passes for 33 yards Saturday and blocked very well at tight end.

"Just a kid that came in and worked extremely hard, and what you see now is really a product of him working his tail off," Mason said.

Decker's rise has been well-documented. He caught nine passes for 86 yards and a touchdown Saturday. Mason said Decker has all the skills a coach looks for in a wide receiver.

"When we got Decker, it was funny, the first call I got was from [St. John's coach] John Gagliardi and he said to me, 'You son of a gun, we kept our fingers crossed.' Because he's from Rocori High School up in Cold Springs there and he said, 'We thought maybe you wouldn't find him up here, maybe you'd overlook this guy, because we think he's a great one.' "

VanDeSteeg, who had three sacks Saturday, was another player Mason and his staff thought had a great future.

As for Mason, naturally the question you ask him is if he will coach again. Maybe he will someday, but right now he is very happy working for Carl Pohlad's Marquette Asset Management.

Tough job for Herron David Herron, whom the Vikings signed as a free agent last year, has the tough job of replacing injured middle linebacker E.J. Henderson. But defensive coordinator Leslie Frazier believes the former Michigan State player can succeed in the NFL.

"I mean, he'll be a solid inside linebacker who's really a rookie," Frazier said of Herron, who was on the practice squad most of last season before making the active roster in December and playing in the final two games. "It's really his rookie year in a lot of ways, but he'll get better as the year goes on. Very fortunate that we have him as a backup, and he's a guy who's practiced at the middle linebacker spot for us throughout this season and even in the OTAs [offseason training activities]. So he'll do a good job."

Frazier said he likes the fact that Herron can run.

"That's something that we always look for in linebackers, and he's a smart guy and he's able to get off of blocks and he can tackle," Frazier said. "... He has those ingredients."

Jottings Vikings left tackle Bryant McKinnie, who made his season debut Monday at New Orleans after serving a four-game NFL suspension, said his return wasn't too bad. "Not being here for a whole month and not having that contact, I felt like I did a pretty good job," he said. "It takes a little time to get used to the speed, and it's more intense, especially because it was a Monday night game. ... But I was able to hold my own, and I think I did pretty good."

Former Gophers running back Gary Russell is back on the Steelers active roster after being moved to the practice squad three weeks ago. One of the players he is backing up is ex-Viking Mewelde Moore, who has 26 rushes for 118 yards and six receptions for 54 yards. ... Former Vikings receiver Troy Williamson hasn't played for the Jaguars since their opener, when he injured his hamstring.

Former Gophers center Spencer Tollackson has left the German Basketball League and is coming back to North America to try to pursue a professional career.

Former Twins righthander Matt Garza is scheduled to start Game 3 of the American League championship series for Tampa Bay at Boston on Monday. Every team still in baseball's postseason has at least one former Twins player on its roster, and all serve key roles. The Rays have Garza, Jason Bartlett and Grant Balfour; the Red Sox have David Ortiz; the Phillies have J.C. Romero; and the Dodgers have Casey Blake and Joe Beimel. Philadelphia is managed by former Twin Charlie Manuel.

Corey Brewer, who shot 37.4 percent from the floor as a Timberwolves rookie last season, has shot 51.7 percent in three preseason games.