Nobody's Listening Anyway

Plus, thoughts on Octoberfest beers, Gruden's firing, NFL ratings, and Vikings most recent... Vikings thing.

Answering our critics after Cousins answered his in win over Seattle. Zim describes being at a rock-bottom Goofs loss. Why is John (somewhat) optimistic about Nebraska? And what is Augie really trying to do in the long game by going D1 in hockey?

Both Matt and John's favorite teams lost in head-banging fashion. Are the Vikings cursed with kickers? Will Nebraska ever be great again? And what is there to take away from the fourth Sanford International? 

Why ORU is a tough SCHOOL to root for, USD's NCAAW and football nightmares, ISU chickening out, and even some HS hoops talk!

Was a fan-less tourney proof fans DO make a HUGE difference, especially for SDSU? Plus, Matt and John exchange stories about drinking on the job.

It was a (mostly) awesome weekend to be a Jack fan, and beat writer Zim. Does either host buy any conspiracy about the USD men's hoops Sunday cancelation? And why is Noah Freidel brave for sitting out the rest of the season?  

Plus, our thoughts on the frigid weather, Valentine's Day, and Tom Brady drunk in public.

How does Zim imagine reacting to a Vikings' Super Bowl if they finally made it after 40 years of life? The same way it has been for John the last two years as a Chiefs fan?

How much blame does Rodgers deserve for GB's decade full of title flops? Did Brady prove he was the true alpha in NE? Would Mahomes make other teams elite? Plus, a bizarre story from USD hoops and someone who got lucky not gambling on it.

John and Matt talk about getting fat, Christmas presents they received from spouses, favorite and least favorite Christmas flicks, and if the Vikings should fire Mike Zimmer after a 3rd straight infuriating loss and disappointing season.

Jacks-Yotes rivalry gets a punch in the nuts from Noah Freidel (6:00). What would it take to get Sioux Falls an affiliated team now that the Saints have joined the Twins (28:30)? Plus the Dan Bailey blame game (41:45). Ben Leber on Vikings (46:30) and his observations on two flawed CFB teams -- Minnesota and Nebraska, a game he analyzed on FS1. 

SDSU (9:00), Vikings (37:20) but we begin with John (kinda) relating to the guy who slept in Tom Brady's vacant house, and end with Carson Wentz's woes and future.  

SD native Tim Miles (38:00) on his loyalty to Coors Light, his TV gig & new podcast, the weird new world of CBB, Jacks & other teams who played in Sioux Falls,  reflections on his Husker tenure. But we start with the overblown heroes Chad Beebe and Kirk Cousins beating overblown old flame Teddy Bridgewater in a mud bath for the ages. 

At 53:00, veteran Nebraska and Iowa sports talk host Travis Justice describes why the Big Red (still) blows at football, why Husker fans are an easy target, and the budding Black Friday rivalry.

Yes, the Vikings are in the playoff picture, but do they feel like a playoff team? Why should there be pessimism heading into the Bears game? Plus, how covid keeps messing with sports, including locally, and SDPB's voice of prep state championships Craig Mattick joins John to get us up to speed on life after his daily radio show of 20 years was canceled -- and took look back on the 7 years of "Craig and John."

A Vikings vent after putrid loss. If Zim & Cousins were canned, would we object? And as Gophers/Huskers and Big 10 start, why are Zim and John just aren't in the mood. Plus, insight into HUGE college hoops event coming to Sioux Falls. 

Cousins, Vikings are a steaming pile. Mahomes, Russell, Brady, Cam. Huskers flex muscle then get testy after saving B1G football. Personal Gardy stories that will make you laugh and smile.

NOTICE: This weekly show is now part of the "Happy Hour with John Gaskins" daily podcast, which you can find at SiouxFallsLive.com, MidwestSportsPlus.com, and most podcast platforms like the one you find here! So, if you enjoy the topics Matt & John cover, you'll get those topics, plus relevant local guests, every Monday through Thursday on Happy Hour... so we highly recommend you check that out! Hobo Day hiccup in 2025?Hardly a chance, or so it appears, with No. 2 South Dakota State barging through the second half in Youngstown to improve to 5-0 while 2-3 Northern Iowa stumbled through more growing pains under a new coaching staff in a 35-7 loss to North Dakota.But whenever UNI is listed on SDSU's football schedule as the homecoming opponent, some Jackrabbit fans — especially alumni from 2015 and 2017 — might wince in trauma from past Panther upsets.But is UNI worth any worry this Saturday? Sioux Falls Live sports editor Matt Zimmer has covered the Jacks for a decade and has his thoughts in the latest weekly edition of Happy Hour's "Nobody's Listening Anyway" with John Gaskins.SDSU coach Dan Jackson, in his weekly Happy Hour chat on Monday, conveyed a clear message about what he wants out of Jacks fans on Saturday — strong attempts at the biggest and loudest crowd in Dykhouse Stadium history — and this leads to a discussion about Jackson as the football program's "ambassador" and how natural that unofficial role is for him.Jackson credited his "great program" and "great culture" for the come-from-behind win at then-No. 24 YSU. But was it a great win? Zim and John break down what went wrong in the first half and why SDSU dominated the second half, assess the latest performance from quarterback Chase Mason, and the emerging strength of running back Julius Loughridge and the "605 Hogs" up front.From there, what is there to make of South Dakota's 49-24 win over Murray State, which has lost all of its nine Missouri Valley Conference games since joining the league last season? For at least a game, Travis Johansen was right when he told John last week that his program has too strong of a culture to let the season go off the rails. (Here is Johansen's follow-up chat from Tuesday, with plenty of insight about his defense, penalties, playing violent, and an update on retired predecessor Bob Nielson).The Coyotes have gone "back to the pack" of the rest of the MVFC challengers to NDSU and SDSU's supremacy, but where does USD, UND, Illinois State, Southern Illinois, and Youngstown State appear to be in the current picture?Then, a recap of the latest, incredible chapter in the "Key to the City" series between backyard rivals Augustana and the University of Sioux Falls in which the Vikings came back from a 28-10 fourth quarter deficit to win 29-28 at USF. While Carson Wentz played "fine" in guiding the Minnesota Vikings to their own fourth quarterback in London in another "boring, nondescript" overseas game, what fascinated Zim more than anything on Sunday morning was Will Reichard's fourth quarter field goal kick that was veered off line by striking a seemingly invisible camera — and how nobody seemed to know what the hell happened for a while.The episode ends with the battle between two native South Dakota head coaches in the WNBA Finals, Nate Tibbetts and Becky Hammon. As John mentioned to start Tuesday's show and Zim wrote in a Wednesday column, this source of Rushmore State pride has been decades in the making, a product of a state that has valued and supported girls and women's basketball since well before other states finally found it fashionable. 

NOTICE: This weekly show is now part of the "Happy Hour with John Gaskins" daily podcast, which you can find at SiouxFallsLive.com, MidwestSportsPlus.com, and most podcast platforms like the one you find here! So, if you enjoy the topics Matt & John cover, you'll get those topics, plus relevant local guests, every Monday through Thursday on Happy Hour... so we highly recommend you check that out! You get hired to get fired. That has become the new old adage in modern day, big business college and pro sports for coaches and managers. After seven seasons, three playoff appearances, and the first playoff series win in over 20 years, Twins manager Rocco Baldelli became the latest casualty of this concept. Was it warranted? Is he the "fall guy?"Is it best the Twins move on even if Rocco is quite clearly not the primary reason for the sad state of affairs at Target Field? Beyond asinine ownership, what else besides Baldelli can we blame for the sinking ship the Twins became the last couple years?Speaking of sinking ships, has a bruised and battered Minnesota Vikings offensive line given enough reason to already believe this could be a lost season, or can a quarterback — either J.J. McCarty or Carson Wentz — and an all-of-a-sudden leaky defense keep NFC North title and even Super Bowl hopes afloat? In a monster week of football for the city of Sioux Falls and South Dakota's two Div. I teams, Happy Hour host John Gaskins and Sioux Falls Live sports editor Matt Zimmer lead off with these pressing Minnesota matters.Then, it is time to pick apart the South Dakota Coyotes' latest ugly loss in a revealing "measuring stick game" at No. 1 North Dakota State. Just like Monday's episode with Kurtiss Riggs, John and Matt try best to answer this question now that the 2025 season is about one-third in the books:With both the Jackrabbits and Coyotes losing head coaches, assistants & a bunch of their best players from top 5 teams in 2024, how and why have the Jacks remained national championship contenders (so it appears) while the Yotes have fallen off the radar (and out of the Top 25 rankings)?Meanwhile, Augustana will take its No. 8 ranking and 5-0 record across Sioux Falls to Bob Young Field on Saturday against now-unranked University of Sioux Falls (3-2) in the Key to the City Game. While the Vikings have the better record and momentum — the Cougars have lost back-to-back games in convincing fashion to Top 15-rated Duluth and Mankato — why does Zim feel the Coo have the advantage, and not just because USF has home field advantage?Finally, a preview of the most-anticipated game in South Dakota 11AAA high school football so far — No. 1 Lincoln at No. 2 Brandon Valley on Friday, a game you'll be able to watch on the Midwest Sports Plus app or at MidwestSportsPlus.com, where you can also download the app and start your 30-day free trial.

NOTICE: This weekly show is now part of the "Happy Hour with John Gaskins" daily podcast, which you can find at SiouxFallsLive.com, MidwestSportsPlus.com, and most podcast platforms like the one you find here! So, if you enjoy the topics Matt & John cover, you'll get those topics, plus relevant local guests, every Monday through Thursday on Happy Hour... so we highly recommend you check that out! Missouri Valley Conference football play starts with a bang. We think.No. 17 South Dakota's visit to No. 1 North Dakota State was a definite Top 5 "circle this on the calendar" in the offseason, considering the Coyotes' "we have arrived" comeback win over in last season's finale to share the MVFC title with the Bison and South Dakota State. Plus, perhaps you remember, USD beat NDSU the last time the teams played in Fargo. Yeah, you probably remember. The Bison sure do, and they've had an extra week to prepare for revenge (perhaps you heard).But considering USD's slippery 1-2 start before a resounding win over Drake on Saturday, how loud of a bang is this 2025 MVFC opener?Happy Hour host John Gaskins and Sioux Falls Live sports editor Matt Zimmer describe their interest and intrigue in the game, and how competitive we should expect the Coyotes to be. Is the Aidan Bouman that at times torched the Bison back after a slow 2025 start?Can we really be impressed, or the Yotes intimidated, by NDSU's 139-17 obliteration of their three opponents and their combined 3-8 record — The Citadel (1-3), Tennessee State (1-2), and Southeast Missouri State (1-3)?The attention then turns to a "what to look for" discussion on No. 2 SDSU against Mercyhurst after its bye week. Plus, of course, a scratching of the mosquito bite that is "how do we compare SDSU and USD after they each hosted Drake in back-to-back games?"What does Carson Wentz have to do to threaten J.J. McCarthy's starting job with the Vikings once McCarthy is healthy enough to play? Or should it be McCarthy's job no matter what? And, did you catch the NFL Today's 50th anniversary show featuring orgininal host Brent Musberger? One of our two hosts did and gave his review. This leads us down the rabbit hole of the NFL's most famous broadcasters of the last 50 years and how fair of evaluation they get from viewers (we're talking about you Joe Buck, one of the most hated men in Minnesota). Finally, some baseball. Zim thinks the Canaries "choked" away their first American Association championship in 17 years. Is that fair? The two dig in, plus look forward to a possible Birds follow-up run. How difficult will it be? Who should we expect back in Sioux Falls to try?Finally... Zim thought "The Natural" sucked.