Utah prep receiver Kai Meza backed out of his commitment to the Gophers football program on Sunday.

The 6-foot, 185-pound, three-star prospect from Corner Canyon High School has drawn increased interest in recent weeks, with Utah, Colorado, Kansas State and Kansas among the colleges known to have come calling.

“After much thought and reflection, I’ve made the difficult decision to de-commit from the University of Minnesota,” Meza posted on X. “I’m incredibly grateful for the support and opportunity from the coaching staff and Gopher community. At this time, I’ve chosen to reopen my recruitment to explore all options for my future.”

As a junior, Meza posted 46 receptions for 944 yards and 13 touchdowns, and as a sophomore, he had 57 receptions for 1,131 yards and 10 touchdowns at Herriman Mountain Ridge.

The Gophers have 22 total commitments, while Meza is the second de-commitment. He joined Norman, Okla., offensive Daniel McMorris, who backed out on Sept. 1.

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As it turns out, the guy who was available to be picked up in August may not be the Vikings’ almighty answer.

Carson Wentz‘s stat line didn’t reek of disaster in Sunday’s loss to Pittsburgh in Dublin. Making his second consecutive start, the journeyman threw for 350 yards and two scores.

But Wentz was a major reason the Vikings dropped back to .500 after four games. More than half those passing yards came in the final 12 minutes of play, with Minnesota already trailing by multiple scores — a very Kirk Cousins-esque performance.

Over the first three frames, Wentz was unable to maneuver around traffic in the pocket. He succumbed to pressure time and time again. And when he did have opportunities to make plays, few of his throws were placed in the proper spots to either complete the pass or set up his receiver to maximize a gain.

Wentz was solid a week ago against the Bengals, but who wouldn’t be on a day the running game and the defense were on fire? There are 50 quarterbacks at the pro level who can succeed under optimal conditions. When the chips were stacked against him Sunday, Wentz looked lost.

Given the chance to salvage the performance with a game-tying field goal drive in the final minute, he again underwhelmed. Wentz should have been intercepted on the opening play of the drive, and later took an intentional grounding penalty that effectively doomed Minnesota.

This is what everyone should have expected from Wentz, who has bounced from one stop to another during an 11-year NFL career. He’s not a guy who you will win because of. Those quarterbacks don’t grow on trees, but they’re the ones franchises anchor themselves to.

Because those are the guys who help you lift Lombardis.

Sunday’s disappointment not withstanding, Minnesota has a good enough team this year to win 10 games and reach the playoffs with a caretaker under center. But what’s the point of that? Even after a 14-win regular season campaign, fans didn’t exactly leave last year’s playoff drubbing at the hands of the Rams overly enthused about their professional football franchise.

The point of this league is to contend for a Super Bowl. To do that, you need a star under center.

It’s too early in the season to punt on the prospect of identifying a quarterback who can make something happen while staring trouble in the face in a pivotal moment once or twice a game. Yes, this offensive line is a work in progress, to put it politely, but the skill position players are awesome and the defense is very good.

There’s more than enough on this roster to win, and win big.

But it has to be led by a quarterback who can win under less-than-ideal circumstances. Wentz is not that guy. He’s proven that at countless junctures in his career. And after looking solid last week in a 48-10 victory over Cincinnati, he reminded everyone of it Sunday.

J.J. McCarthy was unimpressive in seven of his first eight quarters of play this season. But if the potential exists for the second-year signal caller to grow into that type of player, coach Kevin O’Connell and Co. likely have to roll the dice on the 22-year-old.

There is also a Door No. 3 here — Max Brosmer. That sounds silly, but his play against the Titans’ defensive starters when surrounded by third stringers in Minnesota’s preseason finale was the closest thing we’ve seen to high-level quarterbacking thus far this fall.

Just a thought.

The simple answer to Minnesota’s quandary was suited up for the Steelers on Sunday. Aaron Rodgers is no longer an elite quarterback in the latter stages of his career. But he was probably the best choice to steer the ship for a ready-to-win roster.

The Vikings neglected that route. And, nearly a quarter of the way through the season, still find themselves searching for a solution that, unfortunately, may not exist.

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DUBLIN — It wasn’t simply that the Vikings lost to the Los Angeles Rams in the playoffs roughly 10 months ago. It was the way the Vikings lost, getting absolutely mauled up front.

It wasn’t a fair fight as former quarterback Sam Darnold spent a good chunk of the game peeling himself off the turf.

That prompted head coach Kevin O’Connell to stand at the podium afterward and declare the need to revamp the interior of the offensive line.

That statement served as a compass for the Vikings as they aggressively fortified the trenches from the inside out. They signed center Ryan Kelly to a two-year, $18 million contract, then signed right guard Will Fries to a five-year, $88 million deal. They continued to lean in by selecting left guard Donovan Jackson in the first round of the April draft.

The masterplan this spring was to have Jackson, Kelly, and Fries hold down the fort in the middle while left tackle Christian Darrisaw and right tackle Brian O’Neill served as the bookends.

Not once has that group been healthy enough to play together this fall, and after what happened on Sunday afternoon here at Croke Park, it doesn’t look as if that group is going to play together anytime soon.

To say the Vikings lost more than the game in their 24-21 loss to the Pittsburgh Steelers on Sunday would be an understatement. After losing O’Neill to a knee injury early in the game, they lost center Kelly to a concussion after halftime.

Those injuries forced backup right tackle Justin Skule and backup center Michael Jurgens into action, which at least to some degree played a role in quarterback Carson Wentz being sacked six times. The scary part for the Vikings is that it doesn’t seem like it’s going to get any better in the short term. The initial prognoses for O’Neill and Kelly didn’t sound promising.

The initial fear is that O’Neill injured his medial collateral ligament in his knee. He was set to have imaging done on Sunday night to determine how much time he will have to miss.

“I know he was trying to do everything in his power to tape it up and see if he could go,” O’Connell said. “He’s one of the toughest guys on our team, so I know he would’ve absolutely tried to get back out there if he could.”

The path could be a little more complicated for Kelly as he navigates the aftermath of his fifth documented concussion.

“We’ll totally defer to the doctors and defer to the protocol,” O’Connell said. “Ultimately, we’re going to want to make sure Ryan is in a good place. That’s not anything I particularly ever want to mess around with. We’ll be smart.”

Though he admitted that the loss of O’Neill and Kelly had an effect on the offense, O’Connell refused to use it as an excuse both in the present and in the future. The Vikings are set to play Cleveland next Sunday at Tottenham Stadium in London.

“I expect everybody to be ready to rock and roll,” O’Connell said. “It’s next man up.”

It might be that way for the foreseeable future.

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HONORS

Bob Dunning

Stearns County announced that Agricultural Inspector Bob Dunning was honored with the Lifetime Achievement Award from the Minnesota Association of County Agricultural Inspectors and the Minnesota Department of Agriculture. Dunning was to retire at the end of August.

AGRICULTURE

Bongards Creameries, a Chanhassen-based dairy cooperative and cheese supplier for retail and institutional clients, announced that Dennis Thomas has been appointed president and chief executive officer, effective Jan. 1, succeeding Daryl Larson. Thomas currently is Bongards’ chief operating officer. Prior to Bongards, Thomas held management roles with Dairy Farmers of America, Foremost Farms, Land O’Lakes and Kraft Foods.

FINANCIAL SERVICES

Merchants Bank, Winona, announced that Julie Carstensen has joined as senior vice president / chief operations / process officer. Carstensen previously was SVP / manager, consumer operations for UMB Bank in Kansas City, Mo.

HEALTH CARE

The Society of Interventional Radiology Foundation announced that Dr. Wendaline M. VanBuren, a radiologist at Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minn., has been awarded the Dr. Scott C. Goodwin Grant for Adenomyosis. The grant will support VanBuren’s study, “Endo-Deep: An AI-Powered Model for Diagnosis and Treatment Planning in Adenomyosis and Endometriosis.” … Allina Health, a Minneapolis-based metrowide chain of hospitals and clinics, announced it has received American Heart Association Get With The Guidelines achievement awards for treatment of stroke. Eight Allina hospitals received recognitions. … Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Minnesota, an Eagan-based health insurer, announced the appointments of Erin Barney as president of commercial markets and Jamie Reuter as vice president of pharmacy solutions. Barney has more than 20 years of leadership in the organization, most recently serving as vice president of network solutions for the Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association; Reuter’s career path includes serving as director of pharmacy policy at CareFirst BlueCross.

LAW

Gov. Tim Walz announced the appointment of Jacob Fischmann and Carrie Doom as district court judges in Minnesota’s Tenth Judicial District, serving Kanabec County and Isanti County respectively. Fischmann succeeds the Honorable Krista K. Martin and Doom will be replacing the Honorable Amy R. Brosnahan.

MANUFACTURING

Sappi North America, a Boston-based maker of paper, packaging and other wood-derived products for industry, announced that Jeff Boulden has been appointed managing director of its Cloquet Mill in Cloquet, Minn. Boulden previously was director of manufacturing at the company and previously held leadership positions at other paper product manufacturers in the upper Midwest.

MEDICAL TECHNOLOGY

Inspire Medical Systems, a Golden Valley-based developer and provider of sleep apnea treatments, announced that Chief Financial Officer Rick Buchholz will step down effective Dec. 31. Buchholz will remain employed with the company in a financial advisory role through February 2026.

NONPROFITS

The Minnesota Ovarian Cancer Alliance, a Minneapolis-based support organization for ovarian cancer survivors and their families, announced the appointment of Mary Uran as executive director. Uran previously worked as managing director at Compass Pro Bono and is a co-founder of Girls on the Run Minnesota. … The Minnesota Zoo Foundation, Apple Valley, announced it has been awarded a $200,000 strategic grant from the Otto Bremer Trust, St. Paul, to support the zoo’s access programs.

RESTAURANTS

Caribou Coffee, a Minneapolis-based national specialty coffee retailer, announced the appointment of Scott Kennedy as president and chief executive officer. Kennedy previously served as the company’s chief financial officer and was appointed interim CEO in March 2025. Before joining Caribou, Kennedy spent 14 years in executive positions at Target Corp.

TECHNOLOGY

Izzi Software, a Minneapolis-based aggregator of smaller founder-led tech companies for investment and growth, announced that Frank Chu, software engineer at subsidiary ColeSoft Marketing, has been elected to join the board of SHARE, an independent volunteer-run information technology association that provides education, professional networking and industry influence for the enterprise IT community.

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EMAIL ITEMS to businessnews@pioneerpress.com.