Happy Hour with John Gaskins

Balling with future NFL running back Zach Zenner. Rooming with current South Dakota State tight ends coach Vince Benedetto. Getting chewed out by Brandon Valley coaching legends.
These are stories that can only be told by Austin Sumner, a gun-slinging quarterback who smashed passing records and elevated SDSU from up-and-comers to uppercrusters.
No Mount Rushmore of SDSU quarterbacks is complete without Sumner, the son of two Augustana athletes, whose growth spurt before his freshman year of high school supercharged him into a super talent for nearly a decade.
Dive into the huddle as Sumner screams play calls over the deafening thunder of the Fargodome and Nebraska's Sea of Red. 
Sit next to him in the locker room to witness Zenner's unusual if not amazing, pregame ritual. Sit next to him in the car, in the moment he realizes he wanted to be a Jackrabbit.

The SDSU quarterback legend grew up in Brandon, which would re-emerge as a state football powerhouse during his time with late, great coach Chad Garrow.

Balling with future NFL running back Zach Zenner. Rooming with current South Dakota State tight ends coach Vince Benedetto. Getting chewed out by Brandon Valley coaching legends.
These are stories that can only be told by Austin Sumner, a gun-slinging quarterback who smashed passing records and elevated football programs at both BVHS and SDSU from up-and-comers to uppercrusters.
No Mount Rushmore of SDSU or BVHS quarterbacks is complete without Sumner, the son of two Augustana athletes, whose growth spurt before his freshman year of high school supercharged him into a super talent for nearly a decade.
Dive into the huddle as Sumner screams play calls over the deafening thunder of the Fargodome and Nebraska's Sea of Red. Walk with him to the sideline for a nose-to-nose tongue lashing from BV football coach Chad Garrow. Walk with him to the locker room for an earful from infuriated BV basketball coach Brent Deckert.
Sit next to him in the locker room to witness Zenner's unusual if not amazing, pregame ritual. Sit next to him in the car, in the moment he realizes he wanted to be a Jackrabbit.
Sumner takes you to all those places in an 85-minute stroll down memory lane with Happy Hour host John Gaskins in the Gateway Lounge. But first, he'll take you to wear he is now, working alongside, of all people, the man who broke his SDSU records — Taryn Christion.

What a short, strange trip it's been.
 
Also — spirited, successful, and at times sensational.
 
Now, it's over. Now what?
 
Over Miller Lite tallboys at Orion Pub in downtown Sioux Falls, Sioux Falls Live writer Trent Singer joins the Happy Hour host to look back on a unique season of USD women's basketball, which came to an end with a WNIT "Fab Four" loss on Wednesday.
 
An almost entirely new roster made of mostly transfers. The "core four" senior transfers immediately gelled and swept Coyotes fans, who were hungry for a return to relevance, off their feet by the end of their postseason run.
 
Take a bow, Carrie Eighmey. But don't take a very long breath. It's re-loading season once again. 
 
The Coyotes conversation naturally flows into the USD men's issue of roster turnover, which, like many mid-major men's teams, is a byproduct of the transfer portal and irresistible NIL money at higher levels for those who perform well. 
 
How much would it help to have more in-state players? Why is Eric Peterson uniquely equipped to handle the turnstile? 
 
Next, a high school hoops discussion starts with Sioux Falls Live's Super Six All-Metro team and the recent All-State honors, then dives into the complicated case of the Sioux Falls Lincoln girls, who have won one game in the last two seasons.
 
All roads lead to a grand finale of local food talk. Why is Trent so crazy about Raisin' Canes coming to town and where are the hosts' favorite local places to eat?
 
 
Michael Rand, Minnesota Star Tribune
The veteran columnist recently wrote about the Gopher women's basketball resurgence under former USD coach Dawn Plitzuweit. How did she manage to scrape the program out of the scrap heap of the saturated Twin Cities sports scene, at least for a few days?
 
Rand also wrote about Augustana hockey coach Garrett Raboin reportedly turning down the plum Gopher job. What is it about the seat that Raboin's mentor Bob Motzko gave up that may have kept Raboin in Sioux Falls?
 
How well will the Kyler Murray pickup work with the Minnesota Vikings? What should we anticipate they will do with their first round draft pick?
 
The Timberwolves have been to back-to-back Western Conference Finals. How equipped is this year's team to get back there?
 
And then there are the Twins, whose fans have hit a low point, at least in this century. What is there to actually watch and enjoy?

The veteran columnist recently wrote about the Gopher women's basketball resurgence under former USD coach Dawn Plitzuweit. How did she manage to scrape the program out of the scrap heap of the saturated Twin Cities sports scene, at least for a few days?
 
Rand also wrote about Augustana hockey coach Garrett Raboin reportedly turning down the plum Gopher job. What is it about the seat that Raboin's mentor Bob Motzko gave up that may have kept Raboin in Sioux Falls?
 
How well will the Kyler Murray pickup work with the Minnesota Vikings? What should we anticipate they will do with their first round draft pick?
 
The Timberwolves have been to back-to-back Western Conference Finals. How equipped is this year's team to get back there?
 
And then there are the Twins, whose fans have hit a low point, at least in this century. What is there to actually watch and enjoy?