By Jolene FarleyThe Hills-Beaver Creek School Board approved changes to the Little Patriot Academy, elementary and high school handbooks at a Monday meeting. Superintendent Dave Deragisch explained changes in the deficiency list policies in the high school handbook to the board. A committee of the superintendent, school board members and staff studied the deficiency list policy this spring."Before, we had the week-by-week deficiency list, and we had some problems," Deragisch said.Students could not turn in important assignments, make the deficiency list one week, and not be on the list again because consecutive assignments were turned in on time. Students could fail a class if the missing assignment was a large portion of their grade.Now, a notice will be sent home to parents if a student fails to turn in homework or fails a test in any class during the week. The notice will not place a student on the deficiency list, but is a warning to students and parents that work for the week wasn’t up to school standards. Students in seventh through ninth grades will now be required to attend study table sessions or individual sessions with teachers if they receive one deficiency warning. Students in the 10th through 11th grades will have the same requirement after two deficiency warnings. "My goal is to watch and observe this (the new policy) for the first quarter," Deragisch said. Other changes in the handbook include a section that students must sign up for activity buses by noon the day of an event. If fewer than seven students sign up, the bus will be canceled. This change came about because of budget cuts. The dress code was changed to prevent students from wearing spaghetti strap shirts, tank tops and anything the superintendent or dean of students deems not appropriate."There were times at basketball and football games I wasn’t real proud of how our kids dressed," Deragisch said.Elementary Principal Todd Holthaus reviewed the proposed changes for the Little Patriot Academy and elementary handbooks with the board. The only change in the Little Patriot handbook was that the required birth date for students attending the Monday, Wednesday, Friday classes was changed.This change ensured that the oldest students at Little Patriot Academy would attend the same sessions. The attendance policy in the elementary handbook was "tweaked" by Holthaus. "I was trying to make sure we catch those kids that are falling through the cracks," he said. Other minor changes tightened procedures for the district. "It’s trying to be consistent and making sure we have a paper trail to come back to," he said.Holthaus stressed that the changes to the handbook are meant to be proactive, that the district hasn’t had any specific problems. Holthaus plans to review the handbook with students and their parents at the elementary open house planned for Monday, Aug. 30.Students and parents are asked to sign when they have read the handbook. The changes in the handbooks make things easier for those disciplining students, according to Deragisch. "This is the violation, this is the consequence," he said. "Here’s the offense, this is what I have to do."Superintendent contractDeragisch’s contract was renewed until June 30, 2007. His previous contract expired June 30 of this year.The superintendent’s salary will increase, from the current $79,000, by 3-percent each of the three years of the new contract.A clause allowing 20 working days of annual paid vacation was omitted from the contract by mutual agreement. Deragisch currently has 30-to-40 days out of the 240-day work year off. A clause allowing the superintendent to accrue up to 120 days of sick leave replaced a clause that allowed only 15 days per year, with the 15 days lost at the end of the year if unused.Another clause concerning severance pay for unused sick days at $100 per day not to exceed 75 days was also removed from the contract because of retirement allowances made in other areas of the contract.The changes to the contract removed contradictory language and further clarified the employment contract, according to Esselink.Fuel oil and gas bidsThe board debated asking for fixed or sliding scale bids from vendors for fuel oil and gas for the 2004-05 school year.Deragisch told the board it was difficult to compare apples to apples last year when the bids came in differently. "Probably to be fair, since we have a number of vendors in our community, it would be better to have an even playing field," Esselink said. Bids will be accepted until 3 p.m. Monday, Aug. 9. Milk and bread bidsThe board passed a motion to cooperate with the Luverne district for milk and bread purchases. Buying in larger quantities gives the districts more pricing leverage, according to Deragisch.

By Jolene FarleyWith the Rock County Fair starting next week, 4-H families are putting the finishing touches on their entries. Meanwhile behind the scenes, Extension officials are working to organize the 1,289 exhibits at this year’s fair. Preparation for the Rock County Fair began several months ahead of time for 4-H Program Coordinator Nancy Sandager and Extension Office Manager Deb DenHerder. This year, they have the help of summer interns Kristi Oeding and Jessica Boersma. The Rock County Fair Board also helps.Finding judgesFirst on the "to do" list for the fair is recruiting judges for the exhibits. Sandager and DenHerder recruit on average 10 livestock judges each year, 16 non-livestock judges for 4-H entries and eight open class judges. "We try to line the judges up early, based on what we had the year before," Sandager said. For some of entry classes, the judges must be accredited. For all classes, judges are required to have training. "Generally, judges are supposed to have attended a judges training in the last five years," she said. Each judge usually ends up judging about 30 entries, according to Sandager.OrganizingAlso early in the spring the Rock County Fair Board meets with Sandager to start planning the fair. Sandager meets with the food stand and livestock committees as well."There are a lot of planning-type meetings based on what’s changed this year from other years," she said. Entrants start preparing early in the spring too. Livestock weigh-ins to track the rate-of-gain in the animals for sheep are in May, and beef weigh-ins are in February. "The kids have to be thinking that far ahead, too," Sandager said.Livestock is brought in ahead of time for identification by tattoo or ear tag number. Owners are required to sign affidavits that the animals they bring in for identification are the same animals they will bring to the fair.Right before the fairAs the time for the fair draws closer, a pre-fair cleanup night for the fairgrounds is scheduled with the help of local 4-H clubs.Time is spent "keeping up with the little problems that arise." This year, housing the horse entries was an issue. The horse barn at the fairgrounds holds 22 horses and 29 people entered exhibits. Some enter more than one animal, but this year, only one horse can be stalled at the fair.It was decided that the extra horses would be housed in the swine barn. "A lot of that kind of troubleshooting stuff — that’s what I end up doing," Sandager said. Paperwork, paperwork, paperworkOnce exhibits are registered, paperwork has to be completed for each one.Judge boxes are prepared with the information the judges will need. Registration files are also prepared for each exhibitor. "When you are talking about over 1,000 exhibits, it’s a lot of paperwork," Sandager said.For livestock judging, Tupperware containers are filled with the items the judge’s need. Days will be hectic next week while non-perishable exhibits are checked in Monday. Wednesday is the day for check-in for livestock, judging for non-perishable items, a pet show and a cat show. By the end of the weekend it will all be over until next year."Saturday night at about midnight, you’re going, ‘Ohhh … it’s done,’" Sandager said. Judging the exhibitsFair 4-H entries are judged one-half on the project itself and one-half on the knowledge of the person entering the project, according to Sandager.What entrants can tell the judges about their projects is important, according to Sandager."It’s much more of a learning process," she said.Some people may see 4-H entries at the fair and wonder why they earned a purple. Entrants can earn purple ribbons by knowing steps in the process of their project from start to finish and demonstrating to judges what they learned from their projects. In the open class, just the entries themselves are judged.

By John RittenhouseThe Luverne Redbirds wrapped up a 10-8 regular season by dropping two of three games since Wednesday, July 14.Luverne secured a two-run home win over Wilmont July 14, but the Redbirds dropped both ends of a doubleheader in Hadley Sunday.The Redbirds opened the Gopher League player last night (July 21) by hosting Worthington. A win against the Cubs would send Luverne to Pipestone Friday, where it would play a 7:30 p.m. game. A loss would send the Redbirds into the loser’s bracket, where they would resume play Sunday at a site and time to be determined.Hadley 10, Luverne 1The Buttermakers had little trouble in disposing of the Redbirds by nine runs during Sunday’s first game in Hadley.Playing as the visiting team in the opener, Hadley scored the game’s first 10 runs before Luverne plated its lone counter in the bottom half of the seventh inning.Hadley scored three runs in the third inning, six in the sixth and one in the seventh.Luverne avoided being shut out when Eric Edstrom drew a walk, stole second base, advanced to third on an error and scored on Joey Pick’s sacrifice fly.Jeff Sehr tossed the first five innings and took the loss for the Redbirds. He allowed four runs (three were earned).Joel Nath surrendered five runs (four were earned) in one inning of relief. Jake Studer also pitched one inning of relief, yielding one unearned run.Box score AB R H BIStuder 4 0 0 0Sandbulte 3 0 1 0Boen 3 0 2 0Weber 3 0 0 0Jarchow 3 0 0 0Edstrom 2 1 0 0Fisher 3 0 0 0Kuhlman 3 0 1 0Pick 1 0 0 1Hadley 9, Luverne 8The Redbirds let a three-run lead slip away in the final two innings of Sunday’s second game in Hadley.The game was tied at five when Luverne plated two runs in the fifth inning and one in the sixth to open an 8-5 cushion.Hadley, however, scored two runs in the bottom of the sixth to trail by one (8-7) before scoring twice in the seventh inning to complete the comeback.The Buttermakers tied the game at five by scoring one run in the fourth inning before Luverne regained the lead at 7-5 in the fifth.Walks to Edstrom and Jesse Kuhlman set the table for Pick in the fifth, who put the Redbirds in front with a two-run single.Mike Boen walked, advanced to third on a throwing error and gave Luverne an 8-5 advantage when he scored on James Fisher’s RBI single in the sixth.Luverne took an early 1-0 lead in the top of the first when Studer doubled and scored on Brian Weber’s single.Hadley scored four runs in the home half of the first inning, but Luverne struck for four runs in the second inning to regain the lead at 5-4.Nath singled and advanced to third when Pick singled in the second. Studer plated Nath with the inning’s first run with a sacrifice fly.Tony Sandbulte singled to continue the rally, which ended when Boen cleared the bases with a three-run homer.Studer tossed the first four and two-thirds innings without gaining a decision for Luverne. He allowed six hits and five runs (three were earned).Kuhlman worked the next two and two-thirds innings and took the loss after surrendering four runs (three were earned). Boen was unable to record an out after pitching to two batters in the seventh.Box score AB R H BIStuder 4 1 1 1Sandbulte 5 1 2 0Boen 2 2 1 3Weber 4 0 1 1Edstrom 2 1 1 0Fisher 4 0 1 1Kuhlman 3 1 0 0Nath 2 1 1 0Pick 4 1 2 2Luverne 6, Wilmont 4A big game by Jon Jarchow carried the Redbirds to a two-run road win in Wilmont Wednesday, July 14.Jarchow drove in two runs at the plate and pitched seven and one-third innings of one-run relief to pick up the win for Luverne.Wilmont scored three unearned runs against Luverne starting pitcher Kuhlman in the bottom of the second inning, when Kuhlman had to leave the mound after jamming his thumb with two outs in the inning.Jarchow took over at that point and limited the Cardinals to one earned run in the bottom of the ninth inning. Jarchow walked four batters and recorded five strikeouts during his relief appearance.The Redbirds scored two runs in the third inning and four in the fifth to make Jarchow a winner.Pick walked and Boen reached base on an error in the top of the third. Both runners scored on wild pitches, trimming Wilmont’s lead to one run at 3-2.Luverne loaded the bases with walks to Luke Iveland, Pick and Sehr in the fifth inning. Weber drew a walk to force home Iveland with the tying run, and Jarchow put the Redbirds in front 5-3 with a two-run single. Weber scored the final run of the inning on an error to give the Redbirds a 6-3 cushion.Box score AB R H BIBoen 4 1 0 0Sandbulte 4 0 1 0Sehr 3 1 1 0Weber 3 1 0 1Jarchow 5 0 1 2Shelton 2 0 0 0Kuhlman 2 0 0 0Fisher 3 0 0 0Iveland 1 1 0 0Nath 2 0 0 0Pick 1 2 0 0

By John RittenhouseFeature races fell in favor of three area drivers during a weekend packed with racing action.Luverne’s Jesse Akkerman and Kanaranzi’s Colter Deutsch secured feature wins during Friday’s races at Rapid Speedway in Rock Rapids, Iowa.Darrin Korthals, a former Rock County resident who now lives in Rock Rapids, took a checkered flag at I-90 Speedway in Hartford, S.D., Saturday.Akkerman fought off a field that included four other area drivers to post his first feature win at Rapid Speedway.Competing in the late model street stock class, Akkerman placed second in the second heat race before winning the feature.Adrian’s Mark DeBoer (first in the first heat and second in the feature), Luverne’s Scott Overgaard (second in the first heat and ninth in the feature), Korthals (first in the second heat and 11th in the feature) and Adrian’s Brad Klaassen (third in the second heat and third in the feature) competed against Akkerman in the street stock class.Deutsch posted a pair of wins during the hobby stock competition at Rapid Speedway.He won the first heat race before taking his fourth feature title of the season at the track.The hobby stock field drew five more area drivers to Rapid Speedway.Luverne’s Robert Carlson (fifth in the first heat and sixth in the feature), Magnolia’s Josh Klay (sixth in the first heat and 17th in the feature), Ellsworth’s Mike Deutsch (second in the third heat and seventh in the feature), Luverne’s Seth Stegenga (fourth in the third heat and fifth in the feature) and Magnolia’s Bobbi Kracht (fifth in the third heat and 12th in the feature) also mixed it up in the hobby stock class.Two area men raced in the sportsmen division at the Iowa track.Former Luverne resident Anthony Mann placed second in the first heat and third in the feature. Ellsworth’s Greg Roemen placed third in the second heat and seventh in the feature.Korthals had a good night Saturday in the street stock class at I-90 Speedway.The Hills-Beaver Creek High School graduate won the first heat race before winning the feature event.Akkerman also raced in the street stock division in Hartford, placing first in the second heat and finishing fourth in the feature.Luverne’s Chad Overgaard placed third in the first heat and sixth in the feature in the Wissota late model competition at I-90 Speedway.Luverne’s Mike Steensma picked up places as a modified driver at different Minnesota tracks over the weekend.Steensma finished fourth in the feature at Nobles County Speedway in Worthington Sunday. He finished third in the feature at Murray County Speedway in Slayton Friday.Luverne’s Brett DeJager competed against Steensma in Slayton, placing fourth in the feature.Three area drivers attended Saturday’s races at Lake County Speedway in Madison, S.D.Adrian’s DeBoer placed second in the second heat and 12th in the street stock feature. Ellsworth’s Roemen placed third in the second heat and 11th in the sportsmen feature. Kanaranzi’s Colter Deutsch won the first heat race before placing fourth in the hobby stock feature.Six Rock County men competed in two divisions during Sunday’s races at Huset’s Speedway near Brandon, S.D.Luverne’s Akkerman placed fifth in the first heat race and third in the street stock feature.Magnolia’s Klay (first in the second heat and second in the feature), Luverne’s Carlson (second in the second heat and fourth in the feature), Luverne’s Cory Schmuck (fourth in the second heat and fifth in the feature), Luverne’s Tom Cauwels (fifth in the second heat and 10th in the feature) and Kanaranzi’s Colter Deutsch (sixth in the second heat and sixth in the feature) raced in the hobby stock class.

By John RittenhouseWeekend play at the Luverne Country Club featured the first aces of their career for a pair of Luverne men.Gary Kurtz recorded the first ace of the weekend while playing in a Couples Golf Scrambler Friday night.Pete Connell recorded a hole in one while playing a round with friends on Sunday.Kurtz was playing his third hole of the night during the scrambler when he stepped up to the tee box on the par-3 seventh hole.Selecting an 8-iron, he struck a shot that bounced six feet in front of the pin, which was located near the front of the green.The ball bounced and headed for the pin, but Kurtz, his wife, Tami, and playing partners Amy Vande Voort and Virgil Van Hulzen did not see the ball enter the cup."I knew it was close, but I didn’t see it go in," Kurtz admitted. "I thought it might have rolled off the green, but we couldn’t find the ball when we looked around the green. Then we looked in the cup, and there it was."Kurtz said the hole was playing at 157 yards when he recorded his ace.Connell, a Minnesota State University-Mankato student who is spending his summer break at home in Luverne, aced the LCC’s par-3 third hole on Sunday.Connell, Travis Johnson, Marcus Walgrave and Ryan Schultz were playing the third hole of their first round of the day early Sunday afternoon when he recorded his first hole in one.The former Luverne High School player used his 8-iron to ace the hole, which was playing somewhere between 160 and 165 yards that day."The ball hit the fringe in front of the green, took one bounce and dropped into the hole," Connell said. "It didn’t even roll. "We all kind of looked at each other, and I asked if the ball went in the hole. It was kind of funny."Connell and Kurtz join Mike Lammert as members to ace holes at the LCC this season.

By John RittenhouseThe Luverne VFW baseball team completed a 17-8 regular season by playing three games in two days late last week.Luverne rallied to nip Pipestone by one run at Redbird Field Wednesday, July 14, in a game that was resumed after a rainout July 12.The Cardinals also posted a 13-3 win over Pipestone in a non-league game after the one-run win, but no statistics were kept from that tilt.Luverne then lost an eight-run home decision to Edgerton Monday to cap the regular season.The Cardinals host Slayton at 6:30 p.m. tonight to open the South Third District VFW Baseball Playoffs.Edgerton 15, Luverne 7Erratic pitching by Luverne set the stage for an eight-run loss to Edgerton at Redbird Field Thursday.Luverne hurlers issued 12 walks in the contest, allowing Edgerton to turn what was a close game through four innings into a lopsided contest.The Cardinals led 3-2 after four innings of play, but the visitors outscored them 13-4 the rest of the night.Edgerton moved in front 6-3 after scoring four runs in the top of the fifth inning before icing the contest with a seven-run sixth inning, and scoring two more runs in the seventh.The teams traded runs in the first inning, with Luverne tying the game at one when Jake Clark singled and scored on Ben Nath’s groundout in the bottom of the first.The Cards moved in front 3-1 when Andrew DeBoer slapped a two-run single in the bottom of the second, but Edgerton closed the gap to one run (3-2) with a counter in the top of the fourth.Luverne did score two runs in the fifth and seventh innings, but it was the 13 runs Edgerton plated in the final three frames that settled the issue.Craig Oeding singled home two runs in the fifth for Luverne. Nath reached base on an error and scored on a passed ball in the seventh. Brian Deutsch received an RBI for a groundout in the seventh.Caleb Bruynes tossed the first four innings without earning a decision for the Cards. Nath took the loss in relief of Bruynes. Clark and Micah Boomgaarden also pitched in relief for Luverne.Box score AB R H BIClark 4 1 1 0DeBoer 2 0 2 2Reisch 3 0 0 0Nath 3 2 1 1Boler 2 1 0 0Oeding 3 0 1 2Boomgaarden 3 1 0 0Deutsch 4 0 0 1Bruynes 1 0 1 0Finke 1 0 0 0Luverne 3, Pipestone 2A late-game rally gave the Cardinals a victory during a Wednesday, July 14 tilt played at Redbird Field.The game was scheduled to be played Monday, July 12, but rain forced the game to be postponed with Luverne batting and facing a 2-1 deficit with one out in the bottom of the fourth inning.The game was picked up where it left off on July 14, and the Cards pulled out a victory by scoring single runs in the fifth and seventh innings.Oeding drew a walk and advanced to third before scoring the tying run in the fifth when Boomgaarden drew a throw to first base after laying down a bunt.Oeding singled and advanced to third base with no outs in the bottom of the seventh. He scored the game-winning run on a successful suicide-squeeze bunt by Boomgaarden.Nath doubled and scored the game’s first run for Luverne in the second inning when Nathan Boler singled. Pipestone scored two runs in the top of the fourth to gain a 2-1 edge.Brett Lundgren tossed the first four and one-third innings for Luverne. DeBoer worked the final two and two-thirds innings to get the win. DeBoer didn’t allow a hit while fanning four batters.Box score AB R H BIClark 3 0 0 0Lundgren 3 0 0 0Reisch 3 0 0 0Nath 3 1 2 0Boler 3 1 1 1Oeding 2 2 1 0DeBoer 3 0 3 0Boomgaarden 2 0 0 2Deutsch 0 0 0 0

By John RittenhouseThe journey that led to a scouting position with the Houston Texans began in Luverne for Monti Ossenfort.The 26-year old son of Rodger and Dianne Ossenfort, was raised here after being born in Kansas, and he has fond memories of the town he still calls his home.Many may recall that Monti was a standout athlete at Luverne High School in the 1990s, competing in varsity sports during the fall, winter and spring seasons.Ossenfort played the quarterback position for then LHS head coach Joel Swanson for two seasons.Ossenfort shared the position with Andrew Suby as a junior in 1994, when the Cardinals earned a share of the Southwest Conference championship.He was tabbed the team’s No. 1 quarterback in 1995, when Luverne won its first outright SWC title in seven years and compiled a 7-2 overall record.Ossenfort also was a two-year starter for the Luverne boys’ basketball program.A solid forward, Monti was one of the senior leaders of the 1995-96 LHS team that won a sub-section championship and moved to within one win of advancing to the state tournament before falling to MACCRAY in the Section 3A championship game.Ossenfort was a successful tennis player when spring rolled around during his high school days. He was a two-time singles qualifier for the state tournament, and he formed a doubles team that advanced to state as a senior.After graduating from LHS in 1996, Ossenfort went on to play football at the University of Minnesota-Morris. He was the starting quarterback for the Cougars during his junior and senior college seasons.Graduating with majors in economics and management from Morris, he attended graduate school at Ohio University in Athens, Ohio. He picked up two degrees at OU, including a master’s degree in sports administration.Ossenfort accepted his first scouting summer internship with the Minnesota Vikings in 2001, and took similar positions with the Houston Texans and New England Patriots in 2002 and 2003 respectively. He now works as a College Scout and a Pro and College Scouting Assistant for the Houston Texans."I have always hoped to get a job in the NFL, and it started with a summer internship with the Vikings," Ossenfort said. "Since then I’ve been blessed to get a couple of opportunities with the Texans, and had a great year with the Patriots. This was something I wanted to try, and I’ve been lucky enough to keep it going."Ossenfort credits the upbringing provided by his parents as being the key to success during his young NFL career."I couldn’t have done anything without my mom and dad. Their support, both financially and emotionally, has been fantastic. They are the best parents I could ever hope for," he said.

By John RittenhouseMonti Ossenfort is not a superstitious man, but he now believes there’s a lot to be said for being in the right place at the right time.In Ossenfort’s case, the right place for him to be was serving an internship with the Personnel Department for the National Football League’s New England Patriots last year.It was the Patriots who defeated the Carolina Panthers 32-29 in an exciting Super Bowl last February.And Ossenfort, who was at Houston’s Reliant Stadium when New England kicker Adam Vinitari kicked the winning field goal late in the game, became a part of the celebration that goes along with winning a world championship."It was a great game," Ossenfort said. "We (Monti, and some other members of the New England Personnel Department) were sitting 10 rows off the field, right in the same end zone the winning field goal was kicked. I guess you could say it was a great time and a great year to be a member of the Patriots."Although Ossenfort’s position with the club would be unnoticed by the most avid Patriot fans, he was not overlooked by the organization when it became time to pass out football’s most meaningful symbol of success.When he returned home to Luverne for a short vacation July 13-18, Ossenfort brought his Super Bowl ring with him.The way things turned out, Ossenfort’s stint with the Patriots (his third internship with three different NFL teams), was a short one.He got the job in June of 2003, and he left the organization to accept a Pro and College Scouting Assistant with the Houston Texans shortly after the annual NFL draft in April."Scott Pioli (New England’s General Manager), the NFL’s Executive of the Year, was my boss," Ossenfort said. "My job was to keep track of player movements throughout the league, making cut up tapes of the players in case we wanted to sign them. I also worked on breaking down tapes of college players, getting ready for the draft in April."The final decisions were made by Pioli and the coaching staff, but the work of Ossenfort played a role in New England selecting defensive tackle Vince Wilfork (University of Miami) and tight end Ben Watson (University of Georgia) with its two first round selections in the April draft.Shortly after the draft, Ossenfort ironically opted to take a new job with the Texans, an organization he worked as an intern for during the franchise’s inaugural season in 2002."Two days after the draft I got an offer to back to the Texans as a College Scout and a Pro and College Scouting Assistant," he said. "I basically will be scouting 25-30 schools from the states of Texas, Louisiana and Oklahoma. We’ll be responsible for scouting all senior football players from those schools who will be draft-eligible next April.""I’ll be in an office part of the time, helping coordinate some guys who are doing basically what I’ve been doing as an intern the past two years," he added.Ossenfort will be working for Charley Casserly, the only General Manager Houston has had in its two years of existence. Monti says he consults with Casserly, who won some Super Bowls as a GM for the Washington Redskins, on a daily basis."I started work (for the Texans) May 1. We’ve been setting up traveling schedules and looking at tapes of players who were college juniors last year," Ossenfort said."We’re scouting some good schools like Louisiana State University, Texas and Oaklahoma, who have a lot of good prospects. We’ll start traveling to the schools once their practices begin. We scout their practices and their games." With the exception of the couple weeks before training camp begins (Houston begins camp July 30), Ossenfort said a scout’s job runs from professional draft to the next professional draft. They study hundreds of players and compile countless numbers of videotapes. Their work includes attending the annual College Scouting Combine, with the coaching staff and GM, staged every February."We do a lot of interviewing at the Scouting Combine, which really is a site to see. Every NFL team and their GMs are at the Combine, where the top college prospects work out and are mentally tested."Ossenfort says his new job with the Texans requires more responsibility on his part, but he’s happy with his decision to return to Houston, a city he loves."It was a tough decision to make," he said. "Leaving a team in good shape like New England, which probably will contend for Super Bowl championships the next couple of years, was hard to do. But, I thought it was a good time to make a career decision. I liked the position that was available in Houston, and I decided to make a move."The Houston Texans, who will play their third NFL season in 2004, appears to be a franchise on the rise.After sporting a surprising 4-12 record in 2002, Houston took another step forward by going 5-11 last season."A lot of those 11 losses were less than one touchdown, so we could have had a better record than 5-11. Some of the so-called experts are saying we could contend for a playoff spot this season. Others are saying that if we push for a .500 record, it would be a positive step," he said.A date Ossenfort has circled on Houston’s 2004 schedule is Sunday, Oct. 10, when the Texans host the Minnesota Vikings for a noon game at Reliant Stadium.As one would expect, Minnesota is the team Ossenfort grew up rooting for. His bond with the club grew even stronger in 2001,when he received his first scouting internship with Vikings.Don’t expect Ossenfort to experience divided loyalties come Oct. 10."I’ll cheer for the Vikings 15 games this season, but not when they come to Houston to play us. That’s when the alliance will end," he concluded.

10 years ago (1994)"The Rock County Board voted unanimously to deny a request by landowners to mine gravel in Section 19 of Vienna Township just east of Blue Mounds State Park.Their decision Tuesday was prompted by a recommendation from the Planning and Zoning Committee. At the committee’s June 11 meeting, members unanimously voted to deny Carlene Scott’s request to allow gravel extraction as a conditional use in the A-1 zone.The primary reason for denying the request, they said, was that the ordinance in the A-1 district specifically excludes gravel extraction as an allowable conditional use. A change in the ordinance in that A-1 district would have to apply to A-1 districts all over the county.25 years ago (1979)"County Commissioners have directed the law enforcement study committee to determine what, if anything, can be done to update existing buildings for continued use as law enforcement and court facilities.They also have asked the committee to determine what is required by the region and state with respect to law enforcement and crime prevention, and what the court system requires in the way of facilities."50 years ago (1954)"The Pix Theatre will be a thing of the past very soon as Herman Jochims announced that the Pix has been closed permanently. The trend that has prevailed in the movie industry the past few years which has found the number of movie houses being closed is going to prevail in Luverne.… Said Mr. Jochims, ‘Attendance has dropped, like it has in all other parts of the country. There was only one common sense decision we could make and that was close the Pix and concentrate our efforts on the Palace.’"75 years ago (1929)"A large number of our residents are getting in the habit of going to the Palace Theatre at Luverne, and all are loud in their praise of the Vitaphone, which is the best of its kind in these parts."100 years ago (1904)"Garretson is making an effort to secure a flour mill. A similar effort has been made here in the past, but there seems to be a question in the minds of some as to whether such an enterprise would pay out. Luverne has one of the best flour mills in the west and the Luverne flour is without an equal anywhere, yet any amount of flour is shipped into Luverne and put into direct competition with the local product, and the same is the case all over."