OF NOTE

George Bandy

Andersen Corp., a Bayport-based maker of windows and doors for residential construction, announced George Bandy has joined the company as vice president and chief sustainability officer. Bandy previously held sustainability leadership roles at Amazon and Mohawk Industries and most recently as chief sustainability officer at Darling Fibers, a polyester chip and fiber manufacturer.

ARCHITECTURE/ENGINEERING

Golden Valley-based engineering and consulting firm WSB announced the hire of Brian Hotovy as controller. Hotovy is a CPA specializing in the architecture, engineering and construction fields.

FINANCIAL SERVICES

U.S. Bancorp, Minneapolis, announced that Arijit Roy, who leads the company’s Consumer and Business Banking product division, will join the Managing Committee, a group of 16 executives responsible for the company’s revenue lines, enabling functions and independent risk teams.

HONORS

Malco Tools, an Annandale, Minn.-based maker of professional hand tools for workers in the HVAC, construction and automotive trades, announced that it has earned two of the state’s top safety recognitions: Minnesota STAR (MNSTAR) certification from the Minnesota Occupational Safety and Health Administration, and the 2024 Governor’s Safety Award, awarded by the Minnesota Safety Council. … The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, St. Paul District, announced it has named Jon Hendrickson of Forest Lake as its 2024 hall of fame inductee. Hendrickson has served as a senior hydraulic engineer and regional technical specialist for ecosystem and water quality for the Mississippi Valley Division.

LAW

The Minnesota Judicial Branch announced that State Court Administrator Jeff Shorba has received the Mary McQueen Award for exemplary service to justice. The award is given jointly by the Conference of Chief Justices, the Conference of State Court Administrators, the National Association for Presiding Judges and Court Executive Officers, and the National Association for Court Management. Shorba has served as the state court administrator since 2012. … Fredrikson, Minneapolis, announced that Emily Pontius and Ben Tozer were reelected to the board of directors for the Fredrikson & Byron Foundation. They join current Foundation board members Lisa Agrimonti, Leah Huyser and John Parzych, as well as Foundation administrator Julie Snow-Samanant. … Robins Kaplan, Minneapolis, announced that Logan Drew has been named chair of its National Intellectual Property and Technology Litigation Group. Drew succeeds Christopher Larus, who will join Roman Silberfeld in leading the firm’s trial practice as as National Trial Chair.

MANUFACTURING

Winnebago Industries, an Eden Prairie-based maker of large recreational vehicles, motorhomes and watercraft, announced Chris West has been named president of Winnebago brand products, succeeding Huw Bower. West previously was senior vice president of Winnebago Industries enterprise operations and its Barletta Boats line. The company also announced that Barletta Boats President Jeff Haradine will join the Winnebago Industries executive leadership team.

NONPROFITS

The Women’s Foundation of Minnesota, a Minneapolis-based organization focused on funding and advocating for women, girls and gender-expansive people, announced that Briana Joyner has joined as executive vice president of People & Culture. Joyner previously served as interim executive director of the Hallie Q. Brown Community Center, an African American institution in St. Paul’s Rondo neighborhood, and was chief human resources and inclusion officer with the Minnesota Historical Society.

SERVICES

Waytek Inc., a Chanhassen-based distributor of electrical components for industry, announced that CEO and Board Chair Charlie Kanan plans to retire as CEO in the first quarter of 2025 and as board chair at the end of 2026. Kanan has led the company since 2012. … The National Court Reporters Foundation announced it has presented a New Professional Reporter Grant in the amount of $2,000 to Karli Pikala, an official court reporter in Minneapolis.

SPONSORSHIPS

The Minnesota Timberwolves NBA franchise announced a multi-year partnership with Sezzle, a Minneapolis-based consumer payments platform, to be the “Official Jersey Patch Partner of the Minnesota Timberwolves.” The agreement also includes WNBA franchise Minnesota Lynx.

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Darius Taylor missed seven games last season, and the Gophers top running back has already missed one this year, the season-opening 19-17 loss to North Carolina on Thursday.

How many more game could (and should) Minnesota’s leading rusher be sidelined?

Taylor is believed to be dealing with a hamstring injury, a notoriously persnickety issue that can be prone to aggravation. It’s what cost him more than half of last season, and in the offseason, the U athletic training staff and Taylor focused on improving how Taylor cares for his body.

Taylor, who had 799 yards in six games a year ago, was ruled out before the Tar Heels loss, but bounced around in some warm-up exercises a few hours before kickoff at Huntington Bank Stadium.

“He’s really close from being out there, but I don’t make those decisions,” head coach P.J. Fleck said. “I support them 100%. I don’t make them. (We) have a whole medical staff that makes those things. I know he was disappointed and he really wants to go, but our medical staff always has our players’ best interest at heart and they are going to make those decisions. But he will be ready very soon.”

But how soon will that be? Minnesota has two nonconference home games remaining — FCS-level Rhode Island on Saturday and Nevada, which is picked to finish last in the Mountain West Conference, on Sept. 14.

The Big Ten season starts Sept. 21 with rival Iowa and the Hawkeyes’ annually stout defense. Do the Gophers keep Taylor on the sideline until then or give him some carries over the next two weeks?

Without Taylor, Marcus Major, a transfer from Oklahoma, averaged 3.6 yards per carry against North Carolina. He had a career-high 20 totes for 75 yards and one touchdown.

“I thought he ran really hard,” Fleck said of Major. “I think we got some really good tailbacks here. I’m really excited about the stable that we have, including getting Darius back. I feel really good about where we are at at that position.”

Jordan Nubin had two carries for three yards, while Ohio transfer Sieh Bangura, Michigan State transfer Jaren Mangham and true freshman Fame Ijeboi did not play. Fellow true freshman Jaydon Wright is out for the season.

Major, who proved to be the clear No. 2 tailback, impressed during training camp and said he had a week to prepare for a bigger role in the season opener. “I knew I had to come in and step up,” he said.

Major shared the offense was caught off-guard by varying fronts North Carolina’s defense presented, and the Gophers needed time to adjust. Minnesota managed only 22 yards on 11 carries in the first quarter, but were better with 44 yards on 11 carries in second quarter.

Major, who is listed at 6-foot and 220 pounds, scored his first Gopher touchdown from 5 yards out in the second quarter. “It felt wonderful,” he said. “Fans gave amazing energy. It felt amazing. They guys up front was moving the piles. It was good things for them.”

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Minnesota United’s long throw-ins have become a part of the team’s identity under head coach Eric Ramsay. But chucking it deep from the sideline is not considered a Hail Mary strategy.

It has recently produced big results: Joseph Rosales’ toss ended with Bongi Hlongwane’s second goal in a 2-1 win over San Jose on Saturday, and Michael Boxall’s heave was a precursor to Kelvin Yeboah earning a penalty kick in a 3-2 loss to Seattle last week.

Ramsay said long throw-ins are part of the repertoire, in part, because it’s one of his players’ strengths.

“First and foremost … we have probably an uncommon number of players in the team that can really throw the ball properly,” he said late Saturday from PayPal Park.

Going into Saturday’s match, Devin Padelford led the team with 136 throw-ins, with Rosales second at 98 and D.J. Taylor at 93. Boxall had chipped in 22.

Ramsay acknowledged it can “feel very repetitive” and not a lot might seem to be gained from it, but even incremental improvements in field position can add up.

“We’re getting corners as a consequence of throwing the ball long. We’re getting territory in a very meaningful, purposeful way, and we have the capacity to score in the way that we did (Saturday),” Ramsay said. “So, it would be … remiss of me to not use that when we have players that have real weapons in that sense. It’s something that we’re pretty persistent (in using).”

Forward thinking

With Yeboah scoring twice versus Seattle and Tani Oluwaseyi coming back from injury, it was tantalizing to think about the two of them starting against San Jose.

But MNUFC’s two-forward set-up is not limited to traditional strikers — Yeboah, Oluwaseyi and Teemu Pukki. Bongi Hlongwane, who usually plays in wider areas, was the one who started next to Yeboah at forward on Saturday.

“He’s earned his spot by me knowing that he has the attributes to play that position well for us, and he gave us dynamism and unpredictability, which was obviously very effective in the opening stages,” Ramsay said.

Hlongwane scored in the ninth minute and again in the 64th; he has now moved past Oluwaseyi with nine goals in MLS play this season. Oluwaseyi did return from a month-long absence to play the final 27 minutes next to Yeboah. Pukki didn’t come off the bench.

“We now are in a position where we’ve got some nice tools at our disposal on that front line and we can do a couple of different things,” Ramsay said. “I’m excited to see what we’re able to get from the team and what those guys are able to produce.”

Options are going to grow in midfield, too, with Argentine signing Joaquin Pereyra set to join the team in training sessions before their next game at St. Louis on Sept. 14.

Dotson on point

Midfielder Hassani Dotson, who won the ball back before Hlongwane’s first goal, was commended by Ramsay post-match.

“He’s been very good in the last two games,” Ramsay said. “He’s played with a real commitment. He’s been really dialed in. He’s obviously very athletic, very capable defensively as well as what he brings on the ball with his level of energy, his capacity to steal the ball in the middle and drive and give the team a really dynamic look.”

On duty

The Loons are off next weekend during the FIFA international window, but seven first-team players will head to their national teams: Dayne St. Clair and Tani Oluwaseyi (Canada), Robin Lod and Teemu Pukki (Finland), Joseph Rosales (Honduras), defender Michael Boxall (New Zealand) and Zarek Valentin (Puerto Rico).

Loaned-out midfielder MNUFC Alejandro Bran (Costa Rica) and MNUFC Academy Under-18 defender Tamer Ibsais of Eden Prairie (Palestine U20 team) are also off to represent their nations over the next week.