Happy Hour with John Gaskins

South Dakota native and SDSU alumnus Adam Vinatieri sure packed a lot into his nearly 19-minute Pro Football Hall of Fame speech on Saturday:
 
* The common "thank you's" to people who helped get him there— parents, siblings, children, wife, NFL coaches and teammates
 
* Common Hall of Fame speech messages about character, humility, dedication, determination, character, teamwork, and never giving up
 
* His incredible resume of accomplishments (NFL all-time scoring leader, record for most career field goals, four Super Bowl titles, NFL's "All 100 team" of best 100 players in the first 100 years of the league)
 
* Most famously, now-viral jokes directed at Vinatieri's Patriots coach Bill Bellichick (well, the 74-year-old North Carolina coach's 25-year-old girlfriend), Pats quarterback Tom Brady, Colts quarterback Peyton Manning (specifically Manning's massive forehead), and sports talking head Pat McAfee ("who enjoyed holding my balls more than my wife")
 
In a speech that ran nearly nine minutes over the requested 10-minute limit, the Rapid City native never mentioned his high school alma mater, Rapid City Central.
 
More shockingly, there was no mention of his time at SDSU (1991-94), despite the presence in Canton, Ohio, of Vinatieri's SDSU head coach Mike Daly and then-defensive coordinator John Stiegelmeier, who took over for Daly in 1997 and spent 26 seasons transforming SDSU from a middling Div. II program to an FCS national champion.
 
Why did Vinatieri omit his entire high school and college career during the biggest moment of his life, in front of thousands in Canton and millions on live national television?
 
That is unknown to the Happy Hour host, who sheds light on how Vinatieri's time as a Jackrabbit wasn't completely decorated in glory... and how Vinatieri missed a golden opportunity to send a powerful message by including his low point at SDSU.
 
FCS Analyst Samuel Akem
 
The FCS season's opening game week for SDSU and USD is just two weeks away. The Jackrabbits are picked to win the Missouri Valley Football Conference and are rated No. 3 in the STATS Preseason Top 25 FCS poll.
 
USD is picked fifth in the MVFC and ranked No. 12 in the STATS poll.
 
The team that knocked both the Jacks and Yotes out of the playoffs is slotted at No. 2 in the nation. That'd be Montana, whose arch rival Montana State received all 57 first place votes as the Bobcats begin a run at back-to-back national championships.
 
How does former Griz wideout and current FCS podcast host Samuel Akem feel about these rankings, and why does he feel the Jacks should be rated ahead of his alma mater?
 
Almost more intriguingly, why does Akem not see SDSU quarterback Chase Mason as a Top Five FCS QB at the moment?
 
Why do the Montana schools and Dakotas schools seem to dominate the FCS year after year, and which teams outside those two states should be considered national title contenders?
 
Oh, and what is the outlook for the future of the Bobcats, Grizzlies, and a potential move to the FBS like North Dakota State just made?
 
 
Zach Borg talks prep football
 
Two weeks from now will also mark the first game week of high school football season for the 11-man teams in the Sioux Falls metro area.
 
Is defending 11AAA champion Brandon Valley still the team to beat in the state's largest class? What about the Lincoln squad that returns dazzling quarterback Brody Schafer? 
 
Zach Borg has covered prep pigskin in the Sioux Empire for nearly 15 years and joins the Happy Hour host to handicap the 11AAA field. He'll cover one school per day in the soon-to-be-released "Camp Confidential" series on Sioux Falls Live and Midwest Sports Plus.
 
It is also Borg's first day as a full-time Midwest Sports Plus sports reporter, a title and position well-earned through his relentless work ethic and a treasure chest of feature stories he compiled this past year for Forum Communications.

Two weeks from now will also mark the first game week of high school football season for the 11-man teams in the Sioux Falls metro area.
 
Is defending 11AAA champion Brandon Valley still the team to beat in the state's largest class? What about the Lincoln squad that returns dazzling quarterback Brody Schafer? 
 
Zach Borg has covered prep pigskin in the Sioux Empire for nearly 15 years and joins the Happy Hour host to handicap the 11AAA field. He'll cover one school per day in the soon-to-be-released "Camp Confidential" series on Sioux Falls Live and Midwest Sports Plus.
 
It is also Borg's first day as a full-time Midwest Sports Plus sports reporter, a title and position well-earned through his relentless work ethic and a treasure chest of feature stories he compiled this past year for Forum Communications.

South Dakota native and SDSU alumnus Adam Vinatieri sure packed a lot into his nearly 19-minute Pro Football Hall of Fame speech on Saturday:
 
* The common "thank you's" to people who helped get him there— parents, siblings, children, wife, NFL coaches and teammates
 
* Common Hall of Fame speech messages about character, humility, dedication, determination, character, teamwork, and never giving up
 
* His incredible resume of accomplishments (NFL all-time scoring leader, record for most career field goals, four Super Bowl titles, NFL's "All 100 team" of best 100 players in the first 100 years of the league)
 
* Most famously, now-viral jokes directed at Vinatieri's Patriots coach Bill Bellichick (well, the 74-year-old North Carolina coach's 25-year-old girlfriend), Pats quarterback Tom Brady, Colts quarterback Peyton Manning (specifically Manning's massive forehead), and sports talking head Pat McAfee ("who enjoyed holding my balls more than my wife")
 
In a speech that ran nearly nine minutes over the requested 10-minute limit, the Rapid City native never mentioned his high school alma mater, Rapid City Central.
 
More shockingly, there was no mention of his time at SDSU (1991-94), despite the presence in Canton, Ohio, of Vinatieri's SDSU head coach Mike Daly and then-defensive coordinator John Stiegelmeier, who took over for Daly in 1997 and spent 26 seasons transforming SDSU from a middling Div. II program to an FCS national champion.
 
Why did Vinatieri omit his entire high school and college career during the biggest moment of his life, in front of thousands in Canton and millions on live national television?
 
That is unknown to the Happy Hour host, who sheds light on how Vinatieri's time as a Jackrabbit wasn't completely decorated in glory... and how Vinatieri missed a golden opportunity to send a powerful message by including his low point at SDSU.

The FCS season's opening game week for SDSU and USD is just two weeks away. The Jackrabbits are picked to win the Missouri Valley Football Conference and are rated No. 3 in the STATS Preseason Top 25 FCS poll.
 
USD is picked fifth in the MVFC and ranked No. 12 in the STATS poll.
 
The team that knocked both the Jacks and Yotes out of the playoffs is slotted at No. 2 in the nation. That'd be Montana, whose arch rival Montana State received all 57 first place votes as the Bobcats begin a run at back-to-back national championships.
 
How does former Griz wideout and current FCS podcast host Samuel Akem feel about these rankings, and why does he feel the Jacks should be rated ahead of his alma mater?
 
Almost more intriguingly, why does Akem not see SDSU quarterback Chase Mason as a Top Five FCS QB at the moment?
 
Why do the Montana schools and Dakotas schools seem to dominate the FCS year after year, and which teams outside those two states should be considered national title contenders?
 
Oh, and what is the outlook for the future of the Bobcats, Grizzlies, and a potential move to the FBS like North Dakota State just made?

Every week, "South Dakota Sports Lounge" displays some of the most captivating and entertaining conversations from daily sports talk shows in Sioux Falls, Rapid City, and Fargo.
 
Here are this week's segments:
 
Happy Hour with John Gaskins (Sioux Falls): The hosts of the budding Jackrabbit Illustrated podcasts dive into the rivalry void left by North Dakota State's exit to the FBS and how much bigger (if at all) the annual battle with in-state rival South Dakota will become while there is no Dakota Marker at stake. 
 
Plus, the fan/alumni hosts explain the impact NIL and the transfer portal have on their enjoyment and investment in major sports like football and men's basketball, where some of the best SDSU players leave for big bucks at higher-profile schools. Plus, what are their predictions for Chase Mason and the '26 Jacks, who are picked to win the MVFC and contend for a national title?
 
Hot Mic with Dom Izzo (Fargo): NDSU basketball star Avery Koenen, the Summit League Player of the Year, discusses her engagement to Bison quarterback Trey Drake. They first became aware of each other during a Hot Mic appearance. They also had a former SDSU basketball player (Ellie Colbeck) as the engagement photographer.
 
The Nate Brown Show (Rapid City): Post 22 head coach Rich Downs discusses the state championship American Legion season and playing in the upcoming regional tournament in Mandan, ND.
 
Zach Borg feature on Sioux Falls Canaries veteran Mike Hart, who has been with the Birds for almost a decade and carved a reputation as a Pete Rose-style player and leader for a team that has become a consistent winner. Why did he decide to come back in 2026 after contemplating retirement last season?