GOLDEN VALLEY, Minn. — Mike Grant and Dave Nelson are two of the most successful high school football coaches on Minnesota's landscape. Both have won countless conference and section titles, led teams to the Prep Bowl and enjoyed the sweet feeling that comes with wearing the crown as Minnesota's best football team.
In 1997 both Nelson's Blaine Bengals and Grant's Eden Prairie Eagles were undefeated with 12-0 records heading into the big school Prep Bowl Championship... not a surprise, as the clubs had collided in the title game the previous year as well. The Eagles had claimed the 1996 Class 5A crown in a 23-22 squeaker, and Nelson's Bengals were looking for revenge.
Randy Shaver invited Grant and Nelson into the studio on the eve of the big game to talk about the highly-hyped matchup, their different styles (Nelson intense and no-nonsense, Grant laid-back and filled with laughter), and what makes a good football team. They capped off an interesting conversation with an old-school surprise that is worth waiting for.
Enjoy.