He lasted 13 seasons, almost 10 years longer than the span of the average NFL career. He won the USA Today All-Joe Team award for under-appreciated players two consecutive years in 2007 and 2008. Kleinsasser stays true to his roots - Dickinson Press TCO Legends Connection: Jim Kleinsasser - vikings.com "To have somebody like him talk like that, it feels good," Kleinsasser said. He was a reliable receiver early in his career, hauling in 46 passes and four touchdowns in 2003 before tearing his anterior cruciate ligament the following year. In my mind, hes probably one of the top three players on this team. Culpepper likely had himself and Randy Moss in mind for the other two. Kleinsasser shakes his head when asked to put his career in perspective. "I drove down the main street just to embarrass him," Carter said. The past 13 years, Carter and Kathe Kleinsasser have made the six-hour drive to the Metrodome for Vikings games that didn't coincide with blizzards or harvests. Or pets. He was a basketball player at Carrington High School. ", Souhan is a sports columnist at the Minneapolis Star Tribune. Sheri was four years older than Jimmy, who adored her and couldn't stand losing to her. Jim Kleinsasser's House Maps / Jim Kleinsasser's House Info Nearby (810) Like No Thumbnail Google Maps Google Maps Bing Maps Birds Eye By tlp333 @ 2007-10-03 19:25:21 @ 44.920206, -93.697647 Mound, Minnesota (MN), US The professional football player lives here. As a senior, he was the MVP of the state basketball tournament when Carrington won the state title. Jim Kleinsasser expects a raucous cheering section in the Metrodome's north end zone Sunday for the final game of his unlikely 13-year career with the Vikings. He played in his first NFL game, and started his second. He was always a good eater.". "For him, Advil is a cure-all. Listen to Full Show. He defines what a Viking is supposed to be.". "He has been lifting weights as long as I can remember.". He was a two-time Gatorade Circle of Champions North Dakota player of the year in football. "He's still very considerate, still very much himself. "He's still very considerate, still very much himself. Jim Kleinsassers mothers name is unknown at this time and his fathers name is under review. Kleinsasser has been under the radar from the start, growing up as a boy in the small town of Carrington, N.D., going to college at North Dakota and getting overshadowed by quarterback Daunte . Former Vikings RB Adrian Peterson was Tatum Everett's 'TCO Legends Connection' during Sunday's game against the Giants. Once they took him to the shoe store, and the salesman asked why Jimmy wasn't in school. Vikings tight end Jim Kleinsasser confirmed today that he will retire at the end of the season. Jimmy Kleinsasser Stats, News, Bio | ESPN He played in his first NFL game, and started his second. Kathe is about to be bracketed by retired workaholics, men who spent a lifetime of autumns reaping what they sowed. Since retiring, Kleinsasser has spent time with his wife and two sons, who are 6 and 4 years old. [3][4][5] He demonstrated remarkable durability throughout his career, playing in all 16 games up to 2010, except for missing 15 games because of an knee injury in 2004. People born on a Monday tend to be a bit sensitive and emotional. JIM KLEINSASSER - PREP ATHLETIC STANDOUT AT CARRINGTON HIGH SCHOOL GRADUATION YEAR: 1995 HIGH SCHOOL ATHLETIC CAREER FOOTBALL Letter winner for the Cardinals in football. "That poor animal," Kathe said. The 46-year-old football player was born in North Dakota, United States. ", Jimmy would get angry at his father, too, during games of H-O-R-S-E. "He'd cheat," Carter said. Singer-songwriter, guitarist and musical pioneer Malina Moye performed the National Anthem prior to the Vikings-Colts game on Dec. 17. But he does have one thing that many of his current teammates do not: accountability. He's not what you'd call an impact player. We knew how good he was.". "Carrington has to be one of the greatest places you could grow up," Kleinsasser said. Published April 25, 2022 at 3:14 PM CDT. Before he became an iron man, Kleinsasser was a farm boy. Thats kind of how your clock works. When Jimmy was in middle school, Carter fired up the obsolete machine that produced square bales, just to show the kids how farm work was done before modern machines did the hoisting. From the Herald vault: Kleinsasser catch against - Grand Forks Herald At North Dakota, Kleinsasser was a four-time first-team All-North Central Conference (NCC) pick and in 1998 was the only Division II football player selected as a Gannett News Service All-American. Even among NFL players, Kleinsasser's toughness astounds. Even coach Leslie Frazier, who's in his first year as a head coach, had this to say about Kleinsasser: "He's someone you can always count on. '", Years later, Jimmy ran into Theismann at a golf tournament and told him he cried the day Theismann's leg was broken in one of the more grotesque moments in NFL history. Then Vikings coach Denny Green traded three draft choices to the Steelers for the chance to take Jimmy with the 44th pick. "I don't think we ever finished a game," Jimmy said. Jim Kleinsasser is a Aquarius and his 47th birthday is in, The 46-year-old American was born in the Generation X and the Year of the Serpent. Sunday's Hometown Heroes were 10-year-old Jordan, a survivor of the Robb Elementary School shooting in May who helped pull a classmate to safety, and his mother Virginia, an EMT who was among first responders. While we work diligently to ensure that our numbers are as accurate as possible, unless otherwise indicated they are only estimates. He was 3. Or pets. Of the players who were on the Vikings' roster for that game, only he and Birk, his friend who left the Vikings to sign with the Baltimore Ravens, are still in the NFL. Please enable javascript and refresh the page to continue reading local news. Vikings coach Leslie Frazier vowed to send off Kleinsasser with a touchdown, which the blocking specialist has not scored in four years. 40. A husband's dread during an abortion ordeal in Oklahoma, JPMorgan Chase buys troubled First Republic Bank after U.S. government takeover. He doesn't eat cereal. ", When Sheri got her license, she'd drive into Carrington daily to shoot hoops or lift weights. This author advises parents to reclaim the word 'fat'. '", Years later, Jimmy ran into Theismann at a golf tournament and told him he cried the day Theismann's leg was broken in one of the more grotesque moments in NFL history. Teammates are using his swan song as a rallying cry to finish 4-12 and avoid matching the 1984 Vikings for the worst 16-game record in franchise history. Leaving that locker room for the last time is probably going to be tough, though.. The house is small, warm and modest. Watching the game for the first time, it was weird. We are very proud of him.". We are very proud of him.". It would be downright wrong, in my opinion, if he didn't make it and make it someday soon. In third grade, on career day, Kleinsasser wore his Joe Theismann Redskins jersey to class. "The Vikings are smart enough to realize that a guy that like, who is so dependable and is still a dominating blocker on the outside, is someone you've got to hold on to," Birk said. He signed with North Dakota, and his parents suggest that he did so because his sister, Sheri, was a basketball star there. Kleinsasser was selected by the Vikings in the second round of the 1999 draft. I let him, as long as he would lay down in the backseat. He's broken many a rushing record and could eventually go down as one of the greatest of all time. "Kid," Theismann told him, "I cried, too. Jim Kleinsasser's House in Mound, MN - Virtual Globetrotting For him to make it 13 years, damn near 180 games, and still be standing at the end of it, that's something special. Kleinsasser retired after the 2011 season and said it has been different not suiting up on Sunday. asked Marty Hochhalter, Kleinsasser's high school coach. Of course, even as a freshman, we'd put in special plays for him. "I thought for sure the ball was overthrown. ), 'Smiley-face killer' theorist accused of St. Paul sex assault at time of Zamlen search, Do Not Sell/Share My Personal Information. Week%2016%20-%20NYG%20-%20Legends%20Connection%20-%20Ben%20Leber.mp4. In track, he has the N.D. Class B State T&F Meet records for shot put (62ft, 2 in) and discus throw (183ft, 11 in). His blocking skills also paved the way for 7 of the top 8 single-season rushing marks in Vikings history, including Adrian Peterson's then team record and NFL leading 1,760 yds in 2008. and 272 pounds, he became a tight end for the Minnesota Vikings. Though he hasn't ever been an impact player, he's always been one of the most reliableperhaps the most reliableguys in his locker room. These hippie kids protested against the Vietnam War and participated in the civil rights movement. He also played in the North Dakota Shrine game and the Montana-North Dakota All-Star game. The 34-year-old veteran has given his body and 13 years of his life to the great fans of the Minnesota Vikings. She would turn her back, post me up and hit this sweet little fadeaway baseline jumper, and I'd try to lean on her and fall on my butt. People of this zodiac sign like to have fun with friends, help others, fight for causes, are a good listener and dislike broken promises, being bored, and people who disagree with them. He demonstrated remarkable durability throughout his career, playing in all 16 games up to 2010, except for missing 15 games because of an knee injury in 2004. "It's going to be quite an offseason," Carter said. Jim Kleinsasser was born on the 31st of January, 1977. "He's one of the special few who has the genetic makeup to endure the brutality of this game and come back, week after week, and play through injuries, and at a high level. 2023 Minnesota Vikings Football, LLC , All Rights Reserved. "You've got the farms and the bars and the churches and the characters. Kleinsasser was as tough on basketball backboards as he was on linebackers. When is Jim Kleinsassers birthday? is 1.91m . "I thought for sure the ball was overthrown. Jimmy Kleinsasser attended Carrington High School in Carrington, North Dakota and was a letterman and a standout in football, basketball, and track & field. He's a product of nature and nurture, combining genetics that created 6-3, 275-pound man who ran sprints and played basketball in high school and a work ethic inherited from parents who ran a farm without any outside help. "You see big, strong, tough guys who can't make it more than a couple of years in this league. The Kleinsassers moved here in 1974, to acquire more farmland, and planted a long row of evergreens for beauty and protection from the high winds, and a couple of ash trees for shade. Kleinsasser's first love was basketball, but football came naturally because he liked hitting people.