Mar 20, 2009 6:34 pm US/Central
Coach Says MN Viking Offers To Save College Team
MASON CITY, Iowa (AP) ―
-
-
Coach Steve LaLonde said Adrian Peterson has ties to assistant coach Kevin Griffith dating back to his high school playing days. (Peterson, File)
Minnesota Vikings
Northern Iowa Area Community College's football coach says a group of NFL players led by Minnesota Vikings star Adrian Peterson has offered to help save the team.
Coach Steve LaLonde said Peterson and three others have agreed to donate nearly $150,000 to the program. School officials had announced Tuesday plans to cut the program as it looked for ways to close an $800,000 budget shortfall.
LaLonde said that assistant coach Kevin Griffith contacted Peterson shortly after being told the program's fate. Griffith has ties to Peterson dating back to his high school playing days in Palestine, Texas.
LaLonde said he hopes the money is enough to field a team next season, which begins Aug. 29, while giving officials time to come up with a plan to save the program for the long run.
He said the extra year could help fundraising efforts. The team could also looking into switching to a conference based in Minnesota to help cut back on travel expenses.
Currently, the Trojans play in the Midwest Football Conference, which has teams spanning from Wahpeton in southeast North Dakota to Grand Rapids in western Michigan.
School president Debra Derr said the offer would be "a miracle." But following a Friday morning meeting with LaLonde, the school issued a statement saying they had asked the coaching staff for potential donors' contact information. Further fundraising would be handled by the NIACC Foundation, the school's official fundraising arm.
School officials had no further comment. Phone messages and an e-mail sent by the Associated Press for Peterson's agent, Bill Henkel, were not immediately returned.
Northern Iowa Area Community College has fielded a football team since the 1940s. Its alumni include lineman Marshall Yanda, who later starred at the University of Iowa and now plays for the Baltimore Ravens.
(© 2009 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.)
Mike Max's News & Notes
Click to enlarge
Stumble It!
