The Oshkosh Northwestern from Oshkosh, Wisconsin • Page 17

Page 17 The Oshkosh Northwestern Monday, October 29, 1 990 Snorts Classified ads ji Mike A i JFroehlke sf Of the Northwestern JJU 1 Don't call me 'Wrong Way Patterson. I knew which way to go. Jl Shawn Patterson, Packers defensive end go in the third quarter. "We're down and whatever, we're not playing well, and we're not beating teams," said Rich Gannon, who is 0-4 as a starter since replacing the injured Wade Wilson at quarterback. "We're not putting teams away.

I don't know what it is. "I feel you guys (reporters) are looking for something to put in the paper to rip us even more and I don't blame you, go ahead and do it. But I'll tell you right now, I'm not going to quit." Patterson's first interception and first NFL touchdown were just two of the firsts for the Packers as they beat the Vikings for the sixth time in the last seven meetings. Rookie Darrell Thompson of the University of Minnesota put the Packers ahead 10-3 with his first career touchdown run, a 12-yarder in the second quarter, and rookie LeRoy Butler made his first two career interceptions in the fourth quarter. "It was nice to score my first touchdown against Minnesota because I have strong ties there," Thompson said.

"Our young guys are stepping forward to help us and it paid off. Any time you get that many turnovers, you have a great chance to win," Packers coach Lindy Infante said. The Vikings' defense didn't play badly, sacking Packers' quarterback Don Majkowski six times, but the offense didn't click at the right times, even though Anthony Carter had nine catches. "Maybe we should have tried MILWAUKEE (AP) Knee surgery shortened his season to six games a year ago, and a bad hamstring has been bugging him since training camp this year. But Shawn Patterson knew how to find the football field when he got a chance to play.

And Sunday he also located the end zone, a place where 270-pound defensive ends seldom roam. "Don't call me 'Wrong Way Patterson said after his interception and 9-yard touchdown return sparked the Green Bay Packers to a 24-10 victory over the stunned Minnesota Vikings. "I knew which way to Packers 24, Vikings 10 go." The Packers defense seemed to know where the Vikings were going all day. They intercepted five passes, four of them in the fourth quarter, and held the Vikings to 97 yards rushing. But Patterson's pickoff was the biggest play of the game as the Packers improved to 3-4 and sent the Vikings (1-6) to their fifth straight loss.

"I just reacted to the ball because it was right there. After a lineman hits the ball, it usually goes into the secondary or right into the ground," said Patterson, playing in only his second game of the season. But this time Patterson hit the ball, caught the deflection and carried it in, giving the Packers a 17-3 lead with only 44 seconds to throwing the ball downfield and attacking the end zone a little more to try to make something happen," said Carter. "No one thought we would be in this position after this many games," Vikings' coach Jerry Burns said. "It's tough to put a finger on it, any one or two specific problems.

Obviously we have definite trouble on both sides of the football." After Majkowski's 6-yard touchdown run with a minute left gave the Packers a 24-3 lead, the Vikings scored as Carter caught a deflected 49-yard pass in the end zone with 38 seconds remaining. The Vikings got an onside kick, but Mark Murphy intercepted Gannon again, a fitting end to the game. "The big play obviously was when the defensive lineman (Patterson) picked one off and ran in it to make it 17-3," said Burns. "We didn't do a real good job of stopping their rush. I think he (Gannon) made some poor decisions on some of his throws and maybe his anticipating of the Please turn to Packers Page 18 Braatz's draft picks pay off MILWAUKEE Maybe now, finally, there will be no more Braatz fries in Wisconsin.

After some grilling from second-guessing fans and media over the past four years, Green Bay Packers executive vice president of football operations Tom Braatz should finally be removed from the heat. He has built a very strong foundation from which he and the Packers can stand. On Sunday, it was the House that Braatz Built that led the Packers to a 24-10 win over the Minnesota Vikings at County Stadium. With the stigma of Brent Fullwood, Braatz's first draft choice as head of the team's talent evaluation staff, lifted from his back, and the emergence of Tony Mandarich as a solid starter, the work of Braatz and the Packers siaii is sinning uugiuiy. Fullwood, who was the fourth overall pick in the 1987 college draft, was a one-man bad reputation for Braatz to shake.

Fullwood's ousting from the Packers roster earlier this month left only the over-hyped Mandarich as a possible weak link in the Braatz regime. Mandarich was the second overall pick in 1989, a choice which brought Braatz under fire from some for passing on Heisman Trophy-winning running back Barry Sanders, who went on to an All-Pro season with Detroit while Mandarich struggled. But with his play on Sunday, Mandarich took long strides in proving his worth and making Braatz the hero of the day. Mandarich, the starter at right offensive tackle and under I-' i'' v' I 1 i I 1 iS' if-i-q Northwestern photo by Joe Sienkiewicz an interception for a score I i a -Al il ajftr ii -T krL Uf i 11 -A A A VJ, I i I I scrutiny for his questionable pass blocking ability, proved to be the best Packer tackle Sunday as he fought off Vikings All-Pro Chris Doleman several times early in the contest. Doleman, possibly frustrated with his inability to beat Mandarich, moved to the other side of the field and had his way with Alan Veingrad, who was starting in place of the injured Ken Ruettgers.

The significance is that Mandarich actually had the better of an All-Pro pass rusher and may finally be realizing his vast potential. The Packers active roster Sunday included 18 of Braatz's draft picks from the last four years, and the victory Sunday was a direct result of contributions from draft choices of each of the last four years. The young players' contributions did not go unnoticed by Packers coach Lindy Infante. "We've got some young guys here with some real fine careers in front of them," Infante said, "and they are starting to mature a little bit, and we feel like they will continue to do so." Rookie running back Darrell Thompson, a first-round pick, scored a touchdown and rushed for 40 yards to key a revived running attack. Keith Woodside, a third-round pick in 1986, led the team Sunday with 48 yards rushing and added a 25-yard pass reception.

Defensively, rookie second-round pick LeRoy Butler intercepted two passes and i i nuAnn Uin Shawn Patterson returns Packers' victory crucial By MIKE FROEHLKE of the Northwestern MILWAUKEE Sunday's matchup at Milwaukee County Stadium was much more than a battle between teams fighting to stay out of the cellar in the NFC Central Division. It was a battle to stay alive in the NFL's expanded three Wild Card playoff format and to find a way to recover from several straight disappointing performances. The Green Bay Packers, with their 24-10 victory over the Minnesota Vikings, won both battles and remained alive in the playoff race at 3-4 and showed signs of life after two straight losses. Following the game, Packers players and coaches were talking about building on the momentum gained from beating the Vikings, while the Vikings were still looking to regroup. "I give these guys a lot of credit," Packers coach Lindy Infante said of his team.

"We certainly had the monkey on our backs here for a couple of weeks, and I think we just got a little bit of it off right now. "This is certainly a step in the right direction and hopefully we can capitalize on this and build on it and go on and play the type of football we feel like we are capable of playing." "It was a desperately needed win," Packers quarterback Don Majkowski said. "Both teams were in a similar situation. Hopefully we can get a little run going from this win." With a bye the previous week, the Packers had two weeks to prepare for Sunday's game, and most of the Packers said the extra week helped. "I told you that after the game was over I would let you know if (the bye) helped or not," Infante said.

"It helped. "Maybe it let us reflect on what was happening and hopefully everybody is focused now, and we can put some wins back-to-back here and get a roll going and keep it going the rest of the year." With the San Francisco 49ers coming to Green Bay on Sunday, the Packers face a tough team to start a roll against. The two-time defending Super Bowl champion 49ers have not lost since the Packers defeated them 21-17 on Nov. 19, 1989, at San Francisco. The Vikings struggled with the Cleveland Browns Sunday before winning on a field goal by Mike Cofer with five seconds remaining in the game.

i "Hopefully everybody is focused now and we can put some wins back-to-back here, get a roll going, and keep it going the rest of the year' Mark Murphy said. Northwestern photo by Joe Sienkiewicz Milwaukee. Kemp caught five passes for 83 yards in the Packers' 24-10 win. Surrounded erback Audray McMillian, 26, during NFL action Sunday at County Stadium in Green Bay wide receiver Perry 81, is corralled by Minnesota Turnovers go Packers' way By MIKE SHERRY of the Northwestern MILWAUKEE Turnovers again played a big role in the outcome of a game for the Green Bay Packers Sunday. But unlike past weeks when it was the Packers offense committing the turnovers, this time the Packers forced turnovers intercepting five passes and recovering a fumble.

Three of the turnovers led to points for the Packers, including Kemp, corn- Packers notes Shawn Patterson's 9-yard interception return for a touchdown in the third quarter to give the Packers a 17-3 lead. "I think everybody on defense played excellent," said Patterson. "We controlled the line of scrimmage and got plenty of turnovers. That was a big issue for us." worst record in the NFL. The Vikings have been troubled by injuries, losing All-Pro defensive lineman Keith Millard to a knee injury and quarterback Wade Wilson to an injured thumb.

Herschel Walker, for whom the Vikings mortgaged much of their future in a huge 1989 trade with the Dallas Cowboys, has been a bust. He rushed three times for six yards against the Packers and did not catch a pass. General Manager Mike Lynn, Rookie cornerback LeRoy Butler had a big game for the Packers, intercepting the first two passes of his professional career. He returned the second one 28 yards. Butler said knowing the Vikings had to pass to get back into the game helped the defense.

"They're coming into your backyard, and you know they have to throw to get into the end zone," he said. "This is one of the biggest days IU1 have in a long time." search for who made the trade for Walker despite some opposition from the coaching staff, announced recently he would leave the Vikings to become commissioner of the World League of American Football. The Vikings are battered, and no one seems to know what to do about it. "We're 1-6; we'll keep fighting and do the best we can," said coach Jerry Burns. "I don't know where we go from here." The five interceptions for the Packers is the first time the defense has accomplished that feat since last December at Tampa Bay.

The Packers had only four interceptions in their previous six games. "It was nice," said safety Mark Murphy. "We came up with some big plays. We knew we had to come up with some turnovers, and we did today. We needed a day like this." Please turn to Notes Page 18 answers Minnesota played well early in the season, suffering three-point decisions in its first three losses.

But in the last three weeks, the Vikings have been tormented by turnovers and other physical errors. Against the Packers, Walker fumbled on the first play from scrimmage, setting up a field goal for the Packers. Quarterback Rich Gannon, who is 0-4 as Wilson's Please turn to Vikings Page 18 Vikings continue to KnocKea away uu ee uuici mo I best performance as a Packer and 100 SeCUIIU-IUUHU jjh.iv uiianu Patterson recorded his first interception and returned it for his first touchdown. Other Braatz draft picks who have given sizeable contributions in the Packers' recent success are quarterback Don Majkowski (10th round, 1987), linebacker Scott Stephen (3, '87), wide receiver Sterling Sharpe (1, '88), safety Chuck Cecil (4, '88), linebacker Johnny Holland (2, '87) and wide receiver Jeff Query (5, '89). Recent draft choices Matt Brock (3, '89), Tony Bennett (1, 90), Jackie Harris (4, '90) and Charles Wilson (5, '90) have also shown flashes of living up to their billing.

The Packers roster is young and the future is very bright, and it is becoming clear that the experts who praised Braatz since his arrival in Green Bay were correct. The doubters have probably fhanged their minds. By MIKE SHERRY of the Northwestern MILWAUKEE The Minnesota Vikings, picked by many to win the NFC Central Division this year, instead are looking for answers to find out where the season went wrong. The Vikings' 24-10 loss to the Green Bay Packers on Sunday at County Stadium dropped Minnesota to 1-6 this season, last in the Central Division. Minnesota is tied with New England for the.