As High School Football Kicks Off, It's All About The Heat (Index)
High school football kicks off Thursday night, and the storyline this week has been all about the heat.
High school football kicks off Thursday night, and the storyline this week has been all about the heat.
For as many as 21 Minnesota football teams, they've been practicing for two full weeks now, and all that hard work will be on display Friday night. It's "Zero Week" in prep football around the state, meaning that high school football is already kicking off officially.
We're less than two weeks away from the start of the regular season in high school football across the state. That means teams have gone from tryouts to solidifying rosters and getting ready for that all-important season opener. This year, the St. Paul City Conference appears to be Central's for the taking.
It's not uncommon to have one team dominate a conference for several years, but Minneapolis Washburn takes things to an entirely new level in the Minneapolis City Conference. Since the start of the 2008 season, the Millers have lost just one Minneapolis City Conference game.
It sometimes doesn't always get the credit it deserves being filled with smaller schools, but the Classic Suburban Conference is always competitive and has just enough talent to keep you on your toes. That said, it's a league that's been dominated recently by St. Thomas Academy and South St. Paul.
The sound of the whistle and team chants will be never more obvious than Monday, Aug. 12, as teams in all fall sports hit their practice fields to signal the start of the season. Everybody is equal right now, and many football teams are hoping the early two-a-day workouts before school starts will eventually get them to the promise land, the Prep Bowl in November.
Many high school athletes are enjoying their last week of the summer. It's the last week to work full-time, hit the pool or play a round of golf. That's because next week, practices start around the state for fall sports. But for at least 22 football programs, 21 of them in Minnesota, this past Monday signaled the start of the fall season.
Believe it or not, high school football season is already here for many programs. The official start of practice is a week away, but 22 schools get an extra week of practice because they play their first game a week early, on Aug. 23. It's called "Zero Week," and Edina coach Reed Boltmann says it's a good fit for his team.
You'll probably have to go back a long way in the history books to figure out the last time Eden Prairie lost two football games in a season, much less a regular season. Losing the last two games of the year heading into the 2012 postseason gave the Eagles plenty of fuel as they rebounded for five straight wins on the way to another state championship.
Last week, we started a slew of conference previews with the South Suburban Conference where it was predicted last year's state runner-up to be the favorite. This week, we head just a little north and west of the Twin Cities metro to take a look at the Northwest Suburban Conference.
School is out until the fall and we're in the heart of the summer, but prep football season isn't far from getting underway. Programs across the state will be starting their fall camps in less than a month, and games will get started in about six or seven weeks.
If you're looking for a fun high school football game to watch that's also very competitive for late June, you'll want to head to St. Cloud on Saturday. Husky Stadium on the campus of St. Cloud State University is the host for the 40th annual Minnesota High school All-Star Football game.
Nearly 100 Minnesota high school athletic directors gathered on Tuesday to listen to guest speakers help teach them about leadership, organization, and most importantly about getting the right coaches for the right kids. "To take the principals, the concepts, the legal issues, and the coaching issues and leadership issues and apply them to the schools they're at," Ted Schultz said.
Sometimes you don't always need to be the best team to win a state championship, you just need to get hot at the right time to get there. That was never more evident than at this year's state baseball tournament, where three state champions were crowned at Target Field on Monday.
Max Knutson gave up only four hits as Mounds View shut out Rocori of Cold Spring 8-0 for the Class 3A state championship at Target Field on Monday. Knutson struck out nine Spartan batters and yielded only one base on balls during the seven-inning game. He threw 90 pitches, 60 for strikes. The Mustangs (20-6) tagged three different Rocori pitchers for 14 hits, plus getting four walks.
The Minnesota Twins lost to the Kansas City Royals 5-0 on Friday night with the teams switching places in the AL Central and wild card standings.
Napheesa Collier scored nine of her 26 points in the third quarter, Bridget Carleton made three 3-pointers in the final four minutes and the Minnesota Lynx overcame a 25-point night by Caitlin Clark to snap Indiana's five-game winning streak with a 99-88 win over the Fever.
Most season-ending injuries in the NFL are dramatic and immediate — think guys writhing on the ground in pain, then being carted off the field teary-eyed. But Minnesota Vikings quarterback J.J. McCarthy didn't even feel his waylaying wound until the day after it happened.
The team around Darnold is much better than when he was the third overall pick for the New York Jets and got benched by the Carolina Panthers.
A sports card collector from Minnesota just helped make the sale of a lifetime.
Edouard Julien hit a three-run homer, and the Minnesota Twins beat the Tampa Bay Rays 4-3 in a game with a 13-minute interruption largely caused by a video review.
The Metropolis Valkyries in Minneapolis are one of many growing women's rugby communities across the U.S.
The win over back-to-back national champion Texas was Minnesota's first victory over a top-ranked team since 2019. But the question for head coach Keegan Cook becomes: "can you respond to a good performance with great motivation?"
The Minnesota Vikings start another quest for their first Super Bowl victory this Sunday when they take on the New York Giants. CBS Sports' Cody Benjamin joined WCCO Mid-Morning to preview the matchup.
A family is heartbroken and a driver is on the run after crashing into an Uber carrying Kelvin Conteh back in December.
A 65-year-old woman is dead after she was hit by a motorist Friday afternoon in Shorewood.
The Minnesota Department of Natural Resources released its 2024 fall colors forecast on Friday. Here's what to know.
Authorities are investigating after a hit-and-run on Thursday evening in Savage.
For the first time in more than four decades, tiger cubs were born at the Como Park Zoo and Conservatory last month.
A central Minnesota Army National Guard unit is being honored with the U.S. military's highest unit award.
The Minnesota Department of Natural Resources released its 2024 fall colors forecast on Friday. Here's what to know.
A 26-year-old man is in the hospital with serious injuries after a hit-and-run incident in northern Minnesota Thursday afternoon.
A sports card collector from Minnesota just helped make the sale of a lifetime.
The Minnesota Department of Health has reported 46 cases of measles in the state this year, which has officials accelerating vaccine recommendations.
Two Wisconsin agencies are investigating a salmonella outbreak linked to recalled eggs from a poultry farm.
Wisconsin officials say 26 people have died so far this year in ATV-related crashes, putting 2024 on pace to be even deadlier on state roads and trails.
Richard was taken in by Coco's Heart Dog Rescue due to a hoarding situation.
A suspect has been arrested in the fatal shooting of a national gymnastics champion in an apartment near the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater campus.
Gov. Tim Walz spent Labor Day on the campaign trail talking to union workers.
Farming is one of the oldest professions in Minnesota with generations of families embedded in the land. But that can make it hard for newcomers, especially immigrant farmers, to set roots of their own.
As students prepare to head back to the classroom, it can be hard for many families to afford everything on the back-to-school shopping list, especially when it comes to electronics.
A brand new Ojibwe language dub of the epic space opera "Star Wars: A New Hope" is getting its first showtimes this weekend.
The second day of the fifth annual Black Entrepreneur State Fair ended in chaos when severe weather knocked down vendor tents and threw debris around.
One southern Minnesota town is approaching grief and loss in a unique way.
Trump was convicted in May on 34 felony counts of falsifying business records in relation to a "hush money" payment to an adult film star before the 2016 election.
U.S. District Judge Tanya Chutkan issued an order mostly siding with a timeline proposed by special counsel Jack Smith.
Iowa Lt. Gov. Adam Gregg is resigning after serving more than seven years in office to take the helm of the state's bankers association.
Tim Walz, Minnesota's governor and the Democratic nominee for vice president, may have to stand before a U.S. House of Representatives committee to answer questions about the Feeding Our Future fraud scandal.
The president's son Hunter Biden admitted to failing to pay at least $1.4 million in federal taxes.
Instead of dealing with drought like last year, they dealt with more rain than many fields could handle.
For five straight years, insurance companies say they have lost money in Minnesota. Now, some people are paying up an additional $1,600 or more for coverage.
It used to be that moving to the suburbs meant renting a place for less than what you'd find in the city. But as more renters leave the city, that price gap is shrinking.
Target's popular car seat trade-in event is set to return later this month.
The deadline is fast approaching for the first wave of recipients to redeem their e-bike rebate.
A family is heartbroken and a driver is on the run after crashing into an Uber carrying Kelvin Conteh back in December.
Investigators in Wisconsin say an inmate serving time for trying to kill his mother killed his cellmate for being Black and gay.
A former basketball coach and Minneapolis school teacher was indicted by a grand jury Thursday for allegedly assaulting several of his students and players over the course of eight years.
A 26-year-old man is in the hospital with serious injuries after a hit-and-run incident in northern Minnesota Thursday afternoon.
A Burnsville woman says she is anxious after her purse was stolen in broad daylight at Turtle Bread Company in the southwest Minneapolis neighborhood of Linden Hills.
A nationwide listeria outbreak blamed for nine deaths is turning into a potential legal nightmare for food maker Boar's Head.
The empty nest can stir up all kinds of emotions, from excitement to sadness. So, how can parents cope with empty-nest syndrome? Good question.
The Minnesota Department of Health has reported 46 cases of measles in the state this year, which has officials accelerating vaccine recommendations.
The Crystal Police Department rallies around one of their newest officers as she battles breast cancer.
Minnesota Department of Health epidemiologist supervisor Elizabeth Schiffman says mosquito-borne diseases peak at the end of summer into early fall.
The Grammy-winning musician's composition "Mas Que Nada" was one of the songs that helped popularize the Brazilian music genre bossa nova worldwide in the 1960s.
A music festival in the North Loop has been canceled three days before it was set to take place.
The teen idol who helped ignite the 1960s surfing craze as a handsome beach boy in the "Gidget" movies, James Darren has died at 88.
Walt Disney Co. pulled ESPN, its Disney network and ABC stations from DirecTV's service, a move that came on a busy sports night.
After more than 40 years, the game show that's a TV institution has a new host, someone who's a broadcast institution himself: Ryan Seacrest, whose journey has taken him from tiny Dunwoody, Ga., to working with TV royalty Vanna White.
The Minnesota Twins lost to the Kansas City Royals 5-0 on Friday night with the teams switching places in the AL Central and wild card standings.
Napheesa Collier scored nine of her 26 points in the third quarter, Bridget Carleton made three 3-pointers in the final four minutes and the Minnesota Lynx overcame a 25-point night by Caitlin Clark to snap Indiana's five-game winning streak with a 99-88 win over the Fever.
Most season-ending injuries in the NFL are dramatic and immediate — think guys writhing on the ground in pain, then being carted off the field teary-eyed. But Minnesota Vikings quarterback J.J. McCarthy didn't even feel his waylaying wound until the day after it happened.
The team around Darnold is much better than when he was the third overall pick for the New York Jets and got benched by the Carolina Panthers.
A sports card collector from Minnesota just helped make the sale of a lifetime.
A rare open Minnesota Congressional seat is up for grabs this November. The Democratic candidate, Dr. Kelly Morrison, is running against Republican candidate Tad Jude for Minnesota's 3rd Congressional District.
A rare open Minnesota Congressional seat is up for grabs this November. The Democratic candidate, Dr. Kelly Morrison, is running against Republican candidate Tadd Jude for Minnesota's 3rd Congressional District. Morrison has a big fundraising edge she has raised $1.3 million compared to Jude's $162,000. In Talking Points, Esme Murphy spoke with Professor Larry Jacobs from the University of Minnesota about that edge.
A rare open Minnesota Congressional seat is up for grabs this November. The Democratic candidate, Dr. Kelly Morrison, is running against Republican candidate Tadd Jude for Minnesota's 3rd Congressional District. In Talking Points, Esme Murphy spoke with Morrison who aims to become the only pro-abortion rights OB-GYN on Capitol Hill.
A rare open Minnesota Congressional seat is up for grabs this November. The Democratic candidate, Dr. Kelly Morrison, is running against Republican candidate Tadd Jude for Minnesota's 3rd Congressional District. In Talking Points, Esme Murphy spoke with Jude about this history of political service in Minnesota and his anti abortion stance.
As Gov. Tim Walz spends much of his time campaigning across the nation, Lt. Gov. Peggy Flanagan is shouldering more responsibility.
It's the center piece of the Walker Art Center's sculpture garden. And in many ways, it's become a state symbol. Roughly 600,000 people a year visit the Spoon and Cherry.
It's estimated that at least half of all fairgoers visit the Miracle of Birth Center, making it one of the most popular exhibits at the fair—and one of the most educational.
Llamas, hockey teams and even a president have made their presence felt at the Lee and Rose Warner Coliseum.
There are a few ghost towns in our state, but how about a ghost harbor? In this week's Finding Minnesota, John Lauritsen looks at the rise and fall of Taconite Harbor in Cook County.
In this week's Finding Minnesota, John Lauritsen travels to Fillmore County to show us how Mystery Cave got its name.
The empty nest can stir up all kinds of emotions, from excitement to sadness. So, how can parents cope with empty-nest syndrome? Good question.
Minnesota Department of Health epidemiologist supervisor Elizabeth Schiffman says mosquito-borne diseases peak at the end of summer into early fall.
Stepping into the Grandstand is like navigating a maze of merchandise. Forget food on a stick, how about the tools to cut one? Everything is for sale in there — even the kitchen sink.
Minnesota law requires drivers to stop when they see a bus with its red lights flashing and stop arm extended.
Monday evening, the latest CBS News and YouGov poll showed Vice President Kamala Harris with a three-point lead nationally over former President Donald Trump.
Storms ripped through parts of Minnesota and western Wisconsin on Thursday evening. There were several reports of tornadoes and trees were downed in the metro and beyond, including in Cottage Grove, Anoka, Champlin and Fridley.
A powerful thunderstorm tore through the grounds of the Minnesota State Fair on Monday night, delaying Tuesday's opening.
A severe thunderstorm swept through the Twin Cities metro late Monday evening, bringing sights to behold.
The northern lights dazzled Minnesotans overnight, and some WCCO viewers shared their best pictures.
The Minnesota State Fair has announced its new offerings for 2024, and they include plenty of fried foods, plenty of dairy, and plenty of sweet corn. See the full roster of new items here.
We have a cool night ahead. It'll feel more like late September than early September. We do have another round of summer like weather headed our way starting Monday. Mike Augustyniak gives the specifics.
In Minnesota, weather can be all over the place. Here at WCCO, we want to give you what you need to prepare for what's happening next.
WCCO meteorologist Mike Augustyniak says we'll have a cooler day tomorrow before warming back up to the 80s next week.
We have a wild few days of weather ahead. Tonight for the first time in a long time we have a frost advisory for northern parts of Minnesota. Some fall like temps are in our future Saturday and Sunday, but we'll return to summer come Monday. Mike Augustyniak breaks down everything for you.
There are some pop-up showers in store for parts of the state, and a frost advisory for Friday evening in northern Minnesota.
High School Sports Rally is back! Tonight's featured game was Eden Prairie at Edina. Maxi and Frank give you the latest scores and updates.
We have a cool night ahead. It'll feel more like late September than early September. We do have another round of summer like weather headed our way starting Monday. Mike Augustyniak gives the specifics.
A hit and run caused a man to land in a coma, sadly he died days later. Now, his family is grieving their loss.
WCCO meteorologist Mike Augustyniak says we'll have a cooler day tomorrow before warming back up to the 80s next week.
Starting on Friday, a festival will celebrate the culmination of Minnesota's journey of going green.