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How defensive coordinator Brian Flores has helped Vikings turn things around

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 18:11:27 GMT

Those hot summer days in July and August provided the first sign that things might be different for the Vikings.CHICAGO, ILLINOIS – OCTOBER 15: Defensive coordinator Brian Flores of the Minnesota Vikings reacts against the Chicago Bears during the fourth quarter at Soldier Field on October 15, 2023 in Chicago, Illinois. (Photo by Michael Reaves/Getty Images)As the offense walked off the field during training camp at TCO Performance Center, many players shared a similar sentiment regarding the defense.Everybody was glad they didn’t have to go against new defensive coordinator Brian Flores anywhere other than practice.That momentum has carried over into this season as the Vikings have quickly turned it around on defense. They play with an aggressiveness under Flores that was sorely lacking under former defensive coordinator Ed Donatell. As a result, the defense has steadily improved, with seemingly a different player rising to the occasion each week.That was on display on ...

St. Paul-based comedians band together to form the St. Paul Comedy All-Stars

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 18:11:27 GMT

While the Twin Cities is known for a vibrant standup comic scene, Minneapolis tends to get the attention. An evening dubbed the St. Paul Comedy All-Stars hopes to change that.“I was talking to a fellow comic, Jesse the Shrink, and we had an ‘a ha’ moment. Let’s bring all the St. Paul comics together,” said Nate Hood, one of the organizers of the show, which will take place Wednesday night at the Laugh Camp Comedy Club inside Camp Bar in downtown St. Paul.Jesse the Shrink and Hood are hosting the evening, which features Pig’s Eye comics Elise Cole, Jimmie Davis, Maggie Faris, Ali Hormann, Jesse Jacobs, Malory Manderfield, Tiffany Norton and Jeff Pfoser.“St. Paul comics are a little different,” Hood said. “We’re very pro-St. Paul, generally a little older and generally a bit more boring. We want to highlight what St. Paul has to offer and have comics do sets about their town in their town.”To that end, Hood encouraged the performers to go local with their...

Country star Kenny Chesney books return trip to U.S. Bank Stadium in May

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 18:11:27 GMT

Country star Kenny Chesney will play his seventh Twin Cities stadium show May 4 when he headlines U.S. Bank Stadium for the third time.As is typically the case for the 55-year-old Tennessee native, he’s bringing along some high profile opening acts in 2023 CMA song of the year and new artist nominee Megan Moroney, “When The Sun Goes Down” duet partner Uncle Kracker and Zac Brown Band, who previously warmed the stage for Chesney at Target Field in 2013.Tickets go on sale at 10 a.m. Nov. 17 through Axs. Neither the promoter nor the venue announced ticket prices.Chesney is one of country music’s biggest touring acts. In the ’00s, only the Dave Matthews Band sold more tickets than Chesney, who has played St. Paul’s Xcel Energy Center eight times. He landed his first major hit with 1995’s “Fall in Love” and has remained a constant presence on country radio in the decades that followed. His recent hits include “Tip of My Tongue,” “Here and Now,” “Happy Does” and “Knowing You.” Chesn...

National Signing Day: 2023 East Metro fall signees

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 18:11:27 GMT

The following East Metro high school student-athletes are signing national letters of intent this week — Wednesday was the first day of the early-signing period — to compete on scholarship at the collegiate level next year:BaseballMax Arlich, East Ridge, Texas A&MJosh Berreth, Farmington, SW Minnesota StateBrayden Bezanson, Hudson, Maryville StateLandon Boisen, Rosemount, Upper IowaEthan Bombardier, Farmington, Upper IowaAlex Boston, Stillwater, Minnesota DuluthHunter Carlson, Hudson, Wichita StateNicholas Discher, Burnsville, Iowa CentralJD Dobis, St. Thomas Academy, MinnesotaCyrus Elrod, Farmington, SW Minnesota StateTyler Guerin, Mounds View, IowaCullen Huppert, Prescott, SW Minnesota StatePJ Jones, Cretin-Derham Hall, MarylandDalton Kesti, Farmington, Northern StateOwen Maslowski, Stillwater, Wisconsin-ParksideLucas McNeillis, Woodbury, St. ThomasChase McQuade, River Falls, Concordia-St. PaulAlex Mezzetti, East Ridge, Illinois-ChicagoCayden Mueller, River Falls, Winona State...

Body found in grassy area of north St. Louis County, death deemed suspicious

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 18:11:27 GMT

ST. LOUIS COUNTY, Mo. - Authorities are investigating a "suspicious death" Tuesday afternoon in north St. Louis County, just a few miles north of Interstate 270. St. Louis County officers responded to the situation just after 2 p.m. in the 12000 block of Columbia Bottom Road. Police found a man's body in a grassy area near the road. Incriminating comment helps solve 1993 cold case Arnold, Missouri murder Investigators have not yet identified the victim by name or age, and it's unclear what might have led up to his death."At this time, there is no obvious cause of death," said the St. Louis County Police Department in a news release. Police have also not disclosed any potential suspect information. Detectives worked to collect evidence and cleared the scene after several hours. They found the victim in a grassy area. Detectives also surveyed a patch of land that appeared to be burned, but it's unknown if that's linked to the investigation. Close Thanks for ...

DWI charges likely after driver hits three MoDOT workers

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 18:11:27 GMT

ST. LOUIS COUNTY, Mo. - A driver hit three MoDOT contract workers in a Ferguson construction zone late Monday night, sending them to the hospital. DWI charges are likely against the driver. According to the Missouri Highway Patrol, a driver in a white Ford Focus hit the MoDOT contract workers around 10:30 p.m. Monday near New Halls Ferry Road and I-270.Officials say the accused driver, a 33-year-old man, initially ran away, but he was caught a short time later by St. Louis County police. Incriminating comment helps solve 1993 cold case Arnold, Missouri murder The three MoDOT contractors work for Pace Construction. They were laying asphalt in a closed section of Northbound New Halls Ferry Road.  An ambulance took all three workers to the hospital. The workers are 22, 35 and 38 years old. Some are in serious condition and require surgery. “First and foremost, our focus is on our employees and their families right now," said Joseph Reichmuth, Pace Safety Dir...

Pipe bombs lead Hannibal man to several years behind bars

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 18:11:27 GMT

ST. LOUIS - A Hannibal man will spend several years behind bars after making a series of illegal pipe bombs. Joshua Eugene Rickey, 34, was sentenced Tuesday to six years in federal prison. He admitted to detonating two pipe bombs last year. According to his plea agreement, Rickey admitted making a series of pipe bombs out of sparklers and plastic or metal pipes between July 4 and Aug. 13 last year. Investigators say Rickey detonated one in a burned-out house across from his own home in late July 2022 and once lit one at his grandmother’s house, damaging a fence. Incriminating comment helps solve 1993 cold case Arnold, Missouri murder The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives says pipe bombs and other “improvised explosive devices constructed from various objects are prohibited and extremely dangerous.”“This case illustrates ATF’s commitment in preventing attacks instead of responding to their aftermath,” said Special Agent in Charge Bernard Hansen for ...

Logan O’Connor continues NHL come-up by emerging as pillar for Avs early in season: “He’s probably been our best player”

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 18:11:27 GMT

As a University of Denver freshman in 2015, Logan O’Connor was scratched from his first 13 games with the Pioneers, and doubt started to swirl in the forward’s head.“That was the first time in my career that the vision of making it to the NHL was blurred, and I wasn’t exactly sure it was going to work out,” O’Connor recalled on Tuesday. “But I focused on being a good teammate, on what I could prove in practice, and I used that offseason to make sure that didn’t happen again.”Fast-forward eight years, and LOC’s come-up is on full display early in the season for the Avalanche. O’Connor, the league leader with three shorthanded goals, earned a promotion to Colorado’s third line last week. Over the past two-plus years, he’s gone from an undrafted variable into one of the Avs’ pillars amid another season with championship expectations.“He’s been a guy where through these first 10 games we can ...

Diamond-encrusted necklaces among items stolen from CU Buffs locker room at Rose Bowl

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 18:11:27 GMT

Police in Pasadena, California on Tuesday released additional details about a theft from the University of Colorado Buffaloes locker room during a game against UCLA at the Rose Bowl on Oct. 28.Four CU football players were identified as victims in a report released by the Pasadena Police Department, ranging from 20 to 23 years old. Police are not aware of additional victims in the case, according to city officials.The incident was reported at 9:22 p.m. at the visiting locker room at the Rose Bowl when unknown suspects entered the locker room “by unknown means” and stole items from the players’  lockers.The items stolen were three “diamond-plated” necklaces with medallions bearing the players’ initials, a pair of headphones and miscellaneous football equipment, according to a police report.Buffs football coach Deion Sanders has pushed back against critics questioning why the players were flaunting their jewelry.Related ArticlesCrime and Public Safety | Deion Sa...

Avalanche newcomers Miles Wood, Tomas Tatar have chance to “stick it to” former team

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 18:11:27 GMT

There were a few more players from the opposing team watching parts of the Colorado Avalanche’s morning skate Tuesday at Ball Arena, and it’s a pretty safe bet on the reasoning for it: Two of their old pals were on the ice.Miles Wood and Tomas Tatar were getting ready to face their former team for the first time with the New Jersey Devils in town.“It’s exciting to see all the guys again,” Tatar said. “You want to play well to kind of stick it to them. I have a lot of friends on the team and I had a great two years there. I’m looking forward to the challenge of playing against them.”Wood was a fourth-round pick by the Devils in 2013, and spent eight seasons in New Jersey. His best year was 2017-18, when he had a career-high 19 goals and 32 points, and the club made the playoffs for the first time in six seasons.After that, it was a long grind of a rebuild, followed by a couple of seasons with increased preseason expectations but disappo...