NLA: Zim on Vikings & Coyotes QB pictures clearing & Chase Mason set for monster year

Now, we're getting somewhere.   In the last few days, the Minnesota Vikings and South Dakota Coyotes signaled that the football season is close to actually happening.   Kyler Murray was (finally) named the Vikings starter on Tuesday, a few days after Sioux Falls Live sports editor Matt Zimmer reported freshman Austin Moderzewski is the front runner to take the Coyotes' reins.   So, let's talk.   Zimmer joined the Happy Hour host for their weekly "Nobody's Listening Anyway" get-together at Gateway Lounge to react to those developments, plus opine on South Dakota State quarterback Chase Mason's potential for a colossal senior season in Brookings for a Jackrabbits squad picked to win the Missouri Valley Football Conference and slotted at No. 3 — behind Montana and Montana State — in the STATS Top 25 preseason poll.   After all, August isn't just camp season. It's quarterback season.   What about this whole situation makes die-hard fan Zim think the Vikings are destined to miss the playoffs and fire Kevin O'Connell? Why does the Happy Hour host disagree and expect a potentially big season?  Was the Murray vs. McCarthy "open competition" a sham? Did it stunt Murray's growth in learning and processing the Vikings' offense? (Yes, that's an intended pun. You're welcome).   Why does Modrzweski get the (so far) firm lion's share of the No. 1 reps at USD, and how does a freshman beating a couple seniors for a QB1 gig differ in 2026 from the days before NIL and the wild wild west transfer portal?   Besides Mason's majestic arm, build, speed, and athleticism, what suggests he's in store for a monster 2026?    That last question leads the talkers down the Mark Gronowski rabbit hole. The Jackrabbit GOAT QB was just cut by the Miami Dolphins, who had signed him as an undrafted free agent. Was playing his senior year at Iowa (for $1 million to $2 million in reported NIL) a mistake?   Beyond the quarterbacks, Zim and the HHH dig into other positions at USD, the Minnesota Twins' continued drag toward contention for the wild card and even the A.L. Central title, and the "Dead Guy of the Week," an iconic basketball coach who didn't win an NBA title (as a coach) but certainly finished his post-hoops life winning... at life.