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Zimmer endures rocky beginning to coaching tenure

By WTOP Staff

JON KRAWCZYNSKI
AP Sports Writer

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — Mike Zimmer had waited so long and interviewed so many times to be an NFL head coach that he almost turned down the Minnesota Vikings’ request to talk this offseason.

Now that he is finally in the top job, it hasn’t taken the longtime defensive coordinator long to discover that being a head coach is about so much more than actual coaching.

Zimmer’s Vikings have been in the eye of the NFL crisis storm this week after star running back Adrian Peterson was benched, then reinstated, then told to stay away while he addresses child abuse charges in Texas.

Suspended receiver Jerome Simpson was cut when a new arrest was revealed and Zimmer spent the week answering questions about abuse, discipline, fatherhood and morality while getting his team ready for a game at New Orleans.

It’s been a crash course for the first-time head coach, who is trying to keep a rattled team focused in the aftermath of so much controversy.

“I don’t know that you’re ever prepared for all the things that happen. At least, I wasn’t,” Zimmer said. “You deal with each one of them, you go on, you get back to work and get going.”

Zimmer has been a coach in the NFL since 1994, with 13 seasons spent in the pressure cooker with the Dallas Cowboys and another six years in Cincinnati, where the Bengals routinely had to deal with players who ran afoul of the law.

But being the one that everybody looks to for answers when things go wrong — both on and off the field — is a new experience for him, and he’s gotten a crash course in crisis management in his first few months on the job.

It all reached a head this week, when the Vikings admittedly bungled the handling of Peterson’s allegations. Peterson was indicted last Friday and the team deactivated him for the game last weekend against New England, only to reinstate him on Monday, a decision that caused an uproar with fans, media and most importantly, corporate sponsors.

Along with GM Rick Spielman, Zimmer took the heat on Monday, saying he was supporting his player, who spanked his 4-year-old son with a wooden switch, and waiting for the legal process to play out before making a final judgment.

Then sponsors such as Radisson hotels, Nike, Papa John’s and Anheuser-Busch began either pulling out of deals or expressing concern about the situation, and the Vikings responded on Wednesday by placing Peterson on the exempt-commissioner’s permission list, which means he will get paid while being away from the team and addressing the charges.

Two days after standing behind Peterson, Zimmer was at the podium again discussing the about-face.

“Quite honestly, there is no manual that you can go back and look through and figure out all of this stuff,” Zimmer said. “You continually do what you think is right. The organization continually does what they think is right, and then you move on.”

Adversity is nothing new to him. Zimmer has seen players arrested, coached teams that have been disappointments and even dealt with the in-season exodus of a head coach when Bobby Petrino bolted from the Atlanta Falcons with three games left in the 2007 season.

Worst of all, Zimmer’s wife died during the season in 2009. Then the defensive coordinator with the Bengals, Zimmer stayed with the team and they went on to win the AFC North title. Zimmer has shared that story with the Vikings this week, trying to assure them that all is not lost and that Peterson’s absence can be overcome.

“I think it was a strong point that no matter what we’re still going to go out there on Sunday,” quarterback Matt Cassel said. “As I said before, the other teams, our opposition isn’t going to feel sorry for us when we get out there. The one thing that we have to do is go out there and play good football.”

Zimmer said he has spoken with Bill Parcells about how to handle situations like he has faced this week and has tried to strike a balance between addressing the Peterson and Simpson situations with his players while also keeping their focus on their trip to New Orleans to face the Saints (0-2) on Sunday.

“I think the biggest thing is I’ve always considered myself a football coach. I am not a Speaker of the House or anything like that,” Zimmer said.

“What I do is I get in the film room, I start working on what we have to do, start figuring out how we can get this team better. I won’t say that at the beginning, things weren’t easy, but we have a job to do and we get paid to do this. Quite honestly, it’s what we love to do, so it’s kind of our refuge anyway.”

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Don’t Settle for Student Loans to Pay for Online Education

By WTOP Staff
Online college programs are becoming a more popular choice for prospective students, with one study finding that more than 6 million students enrolled in at least one online course in fall 2015. The popularity of these courses can be attributed in part to their flexibility with working adults' schedules, students' ability to progress more quickly through online programs and, oftentimes, cheaper tuition. [See 10 low-cost online bachelor's programs for out-of-state students.]Online degrees can be beneficial to many college students, but some studies have shown online learners complete their programs at lower rates than students at traditional brick-and-mortar campuses. Individuals with student loans but no degree comprise two-thirds of defaulted borrowers. Though these numbers are not encouraging, just like for traditional programs, there are ways to reduce how much you'll need to borrow for an online program to ensure you won't become one of these statistics. Don't just settle on borrowing student loans to cover the whole cost of your program and living expenses. Instead, start thinking about how to cut costs and cover your balance in different ways, such as the following. -- Grants and scholarships: Even though you are taking an online course, you can still apply and receive grants and scholarships. But your first step should be to complete the Free Application for Federal Student Aid, commonly referred to as the FAFSA, which will allow you to receive a Pell Grant if your expected family contribution is low enough. The EFC criteria and award amounts are adjusted annually, but the 2017-2018 academic year awards range from $606 to $5,920, which could significantly lower the amount you borrow annually. Your next step is to apply for scholarships. You can start by checking online scholarship search engines, such as the Salt Scholarship Search, College Board's BigFuture and Peterson's. But don't forget to take advantage of local organizations and your school's financial aid office. Both may offer scholarships that you can't find with a national scholarship search. [Review these 10 sites to kick off your scholarship search.]For instance, organizations like the Elks Club, Knights of Columbus or the Rotary Club typically offer scholarships annually to local students. Just because you're going to school online doesn't mean you're ineligible. Visit your local library for scholarship listings, and ask around town. You might be surprised how many local organizations offer scholarships. While these scholarships typically aren't large, every little bit counts. Each dollar you receive in a scholarship is a dollar you don't have to borrow and pay interest on. -- Work-study: Another option for online students may be work-study awards. Not all students enrolled in online programs are eligible, but students at some schools -- including, for example, SUNY Empire State College and Liberty University -- are. Work-study awards are not given upfront like scholarships and grants. In most cases, they are an offer to earn up to the awarded amount if you secure an eligible work-study job. While there is a misconception that all work-study jobs must be on campus, students can work for off-campus, nonprofit or public employers as long as the work is in the public's interest. You may be able to work for a for-profit employer if the job is relevant to your course of study. No matter who the outside employer is, it will need to have an established agreement with your college for you to receive work-study funds. Remember, to be eligible for federal financial aid, you must be enrolled and pursuing a degree or certificate. If you're not working toward a credential, Pell Grants and work-study won't be option, but you may still be able to take advantage of private scholarships -- just be sure to read the eligibility criteria carefully. [Explore what to know about financial aid in online programs.]-- Pay as you go: One of the great benefits to enrolling online is the flexible schedule, which can allow you to complete your college coursework around your responsibilities. But prospective students often overlook using their part- or full-time job earnings as an option for paying for college. Almost 80 percent of college students in 2015 worked at least part time while attending classes, according to the National Center for Education Statistics. By budgeting and thinking strategically about your college costs, you can likely reduce your dependence on student loans by paying a portion out of pocket. Many -- but not all -- online programs are less expensive than traditional programs and often have shorter payment periods. Six, eight or 10 weeks are common course durations. Because of the frequency of payments in an online setting, you may be well-placed to pay as you go and possibly avoid borrowing altogether. Attending college online and avoiding student loans may be challenging, but if you are willing to put in the effort, you can limit the amount you need to borrow. More from U.S. News Q&A: Understanding Student Loan Discharge Eligibility Student Loan Refinancing Isn't Right for All Borrowers
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