Will Vikings still get the player they want?

The current Vikings administration certainly has a reputation of drafting as well as any team in the NFL.

On Thursday night, they traded their first-round pick (30th overall) to the Lions to drop four spots in the draft. That means they will have the second pick in the second round Friday (34th overall).

The word was that the Vikings had four players who they believed would be available when they draft. The big question is, will their first choice today be one of those four?

Before Rick Spielman joined the team as vice president of player personnel, the club had its problems making the right picks.

They had two first-round picks in 2005 -- wide receiver Troy Williamson of South Carolina and defensive end Erasmus James of Wisconsin. Neither contributed much, and eventually both were traded.

The first pick in 2006 turned out to be Chad Greenway, and he has developed into one of the better linebackers in the NFL. Incidentally, he will be a free agent after this year and he will be hard to keep unless the Vikings pay him a lot of money.

The present administration has done one fantastic job, selecting running back Adrian Peterson in the first round in 2007 and wide receiver Percy Harvin last year. Their first-round pick in 2008 went to Kansas City in the Jared Allen trade.

The Vikings will have nine picks over the next six rounds, and have some holes to fill.

Maturi concerned A big concern for Gophers athletic director Joel Maturi is the number of University of Minnesota athletes who have gotten in trouble, with the latest being linebacker Gary Tinsley facing a number of possible charges following a weekend arrest.

"It's a very negative reflection on the individual team, on our athletics program and on our institution," Maturi said. "We have met several times this week to try and figure out what we're doing right and what we're not doing right.

"I have met with some of the individuals who have been involved with the public incidents that everybody is aware of. We don't make everything public. It's not the right thing to do. Obviously, we need to continue to re-evaluate and to rethink how we're doing things. To this point, we aren't doing well enough."

Maturi said football coach Tim Brewster had the University of Minnesota chief of police and several of his officers talk to the team.

White, Smith meet Royce White met for about an hour Thursday with Gophers basketball coach Tubby Smith, with the former Hopkins star asking Smith for an opportunity to rejoin the team.

White admitted he had made some mistakes, and said he talked to Smith about the future, with the hope that the past can be forgotten. White dropped out of school because he was suspended from playing because of some legal problems.

Beyond saying his return to the team "is up to the coach," White had no other comment.

Smith admitted meeting with White, but said he would have to think about bringing White back.

There is some question whether White, who attended the university for about half of a semester as a freshman, could be admitted and academically eligible for the 2010-2011 season, or if he would have to attend a junior college next season to be eligible in 2011-2012.

Former Gopher Jordan Schroeder has three goals and two assists in four playoff games for Manitoba of the AHL, second on the team in scoring. ... Former Gopher Jeff Taffe has one goal and five assists for Rochester in four AHL playoff games after scoring 28 goals and 28 assists in 61 regular-season games. ... South St. Paul native and former Minnesota Duluth standout Alex Stalock is 4-1 with a 1.89 goals-against average in five playoff games for Worcester.

The 385 bicycle stalls for those who ride to Target Field for Twins games have been filled for the nine home games to date. Late-arriving bicyclists have been forced to find other downtown stalls.

Former Twins reliever Carl Willis has been replaced after serving as Cleveland's pitching coach from 2003 through last season. His replacement is longtime major leaguer Tim Belcher, who was drafted No. 1 overall by the Twins in 1983 but refused to sign with the team. ... Mike Redmond, the former Twins catcher now with Cleveland, appeared in 82 games for the Twins in 2007. But he appeared in only 38 in 2008 and 45 last season.

Jayson Ness, the Gophers senior who had an undefeated season, won the NCAA title at 133 pounds and was named the tournament's Most Outstanding Wrestler, is practice teaching at Fridley High School while he considers his wrestling future.

Ex-NCAA wrestling champion Cole Konrad, another former Gopher, will fight in a mixed martial arts event on May 6 on FSN. The opponent and site have not yet been selected.