Minnesota News Anchor Mock Draft
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Here at Pulltab Sports, we’re blown away by the hype and fandom surrounding the NFL Draft. And honestly, the sheer number of mock drafts leading up to that overblown event is just as wild.
So, to commemorate all that glorious stupidity, we’re once again creating an over-the-top mock draft of our own—this time for something we Midwesterners love just as much as football: our beloved local news stations.
If we were building a championship-caliber news channel, here’s how we’d draft it:
Welcome to the 2025 Minnesota News Anchor Mock Draft.
#10 Jim Rich
Like in all drafts, when the greats retire, you need to fill their position. That’s the case for sports anchors in Minnesota. Gone are Rosey, Shaver, and Perk. And yet, nobody has stepped up to the plate.
We really wanted to take Kare 11’s Reggie Wilson here. C’mon—his name sounds like he’s a sports legend. But just like Byron Buxton, he’s so stiff he might pull a hammy at any moment. That’s why we’re going with Jim Rich.
Even though he’s more silverback gorilla than silver fox, he’s a veteran showing off his versatility. From his role as Fox 9’s Sports Director to hosting the Vikings Pregame Show, and even calling college hockey play-by-play, Richy’s a North Shore native who, like any good Minnesota grandpa, will be there to wipe away your tears after our local teams shit the bed.
#9 Randy Meier
We could’ve gone with KSTP’s Chris Egert here—he’s got some skill. And seriously, when’s the last time you saw a news anchor rocking a full-blown tattoo sleeve?
But with Randy Shaver retiring, we felt it was important to have at least one Randy represented in our mock draft. Crisp, distinguished, and just as polished as his luxury Mercedes S Class sitting front row in the Fox 9 Eden Prairie parking lot, Meier looks like the image AI would generate if you asked for “male news anchor from Minnesota.”
Meier’s got the pedigree too: three decades, multiple Emmys, and a résumé packed with national news exposure. Given his age and experience, is it fair to ask if he’s the last living journalist to report live from Normandy?
#8 Joe Schmit
Easily the top sports anchor in the city (hopefully Mike Max didn’t just bite off his bottom lip in angst), Papa Joe—as we like to call him—has been a steady force in broadcasting since back when Kent Hrbek wasn’t just a schlep for every Minnesota HVAC company.
Schmit isn’t just an old-school, all-pro—he gives back. How can you not like a guy who’s committed to community service? From his celebrity golf tournament to the Boys and Girls Club, and rumor has it, every time he reads the book he wrote about Joe Mauer to kindergartners; he donates his tears to be converted into safe drinking water for the less fortunate.
#7 Frank & Amelia
This package deal is one you couldn’t split apart with your grandpa’s crowbar. Just like Ben & Jerry’s, Crate & Barrel, and Hall & Oates, they’re another lovable ampersand brand that boring Midwesterners are totally obsessed with.
But truth be told, if you’re starting a news channel and want the classic male/female team, Frank and Amelia are the tops in the Twin Cities. A well-oiled machine (and no, we’re not talking about Frank’s hair), this news anchor power couple has their routine down—just like JJ to JJ.
#6 Jason Hackett
Moving up the draft board is newcomer Jason Hackett from Kare 11. With fresh, solid on-air personalities seemingly every year, Kare 11 develops more talent than Alabama does football players.
Waking up with Hackett is like getting the morning news delivered as comfortingly as a warm cup of coffee and a buttered croissant. He comes across as smart, caring, and authentic—a huge upgrade from the canned-laughing Kris Laudien, who seems to have been traded to Detroit for three boom mics and an “urban-feeling” backup field reporter.
#5 Jason Zeigler
From sports to good looks—and now, apparently, meteorology—it seems like Zeigler is one of those guys who makes everything look easy. WCCO and KSTP must be kicking themselves for missing their shot. Lately, their talent lineups feel like a joint venture between Make-A-Wish and KTKA Topeka.
By contrast, Zeigler’s got that All-American, nonchalant charisma of a guy who could easily be a last-minute add to your golf foursome—where, by the end of the round, you’re hitting him up for nicotine pouches, calling him the Zig-meister, and asking if he wants in on your buddy group text just so you can send him NSFW TikToks.
#4 Alicia Lewis
When Hoda Kotb retired from the Today Show, NBC struck out big-time by not hiring it-girl Alicia Lewis to balance the desk alongside that ultra-Karen, Savannah Guthrie.
While away from the anchor desk, Lewis could pass for the Kappa Kappa Gamma Alumni Council President—but make no mistake, she can deliver hard-hitting news with cool-girl confidence, then serve up that gooey marshmallow fluff without making viewers gag.
And for all you Future-is-Femalers out there, let us put it this way: Lewis is deep in her Slay Era—think Lana Del Rey montage, but girl-bossing and giving full main character energy for Kare 11.
#3 Julie Nelson
If you remember our last draft board (we’re sure you don’t), you’ll recall that Julie Nelson went first overall. So sure, Julie’s falling down the board a bit—but only because we’ve got some serious risers on the move.
Don’t get us wrong: Julie is still the top news anchor on our board. Composed, credible, and comforting, she keeps us Minnesotans calmly eating our Tater Tot Hotdish—even as she breaks the news that we’re losing our entire 401K savings and on the verge of WWIII. She also has that aspirational soccer mom flair to her. The kind that gives no Fs while delivering the news or when she parks her BMW X7 diagonally across two spots in the Target parking lot.
#2 Ian Leonard
If Kare 11weather has swagger, Ian Leonard has daggers—dorky daggers, but daggers nonetheless. He spits nerdy weather facts like a lyrical climatologist, calling out cold fronts like they owe him money. And he doesn’t just talk the talk—he walks the walk… in hotpants.
For 17 years, he’s been rocking ugly slacks and raising money for Special Olympics through his golf tournament, The Bad Pants Open. Don’t golf? No worries—you can catch Leonard in similarly bad pants doing a six-minute dance on top of corn roasters to mark the end of every Minnesota State Fair season.
Yes, he’s a fun-loving, mic-dropping meteorologist delivering the weather with the accuracy of a NASA algorithm.
#1 Belinda Jensen
The top-ranked meteorologist on our big board, Belinda—or Bell as the entire endeared state likes to call her—has our hearts and minds fully captured. She’s got the brains, beauty, and sophistication to short-circuit any science nerd. (Rumor has it she even turned down Kaley Cuoco’s role on The Big Bang Theory.)
Even when the barometric pressure is rising, she’s as cool as any Edina hockey mom at Braemar Arena, watching her team up 7–0. Count your blessings, Minnesota—it’s probably only a matter of time before Bell retires to hang out at Bearpath Country Club every day. It’s either that or opening a designer raincoat boutique inside the Galleria.
Draft Day Done
And with that, we conclude our 2025 News Anchor Mock Draft. Huge thanks to all of our draft picks—not just for your excellent reporting, but for letting us poke a little fun along the way. We’d hate to see you ditch our market and leave us with someone from Topeka… or worse, Green Bay.
