Minnesota Vikings Players

Wide Receivers

Description

In 2023, what started as a standard drywall booking for a 65-inch TV turned into one of the most unique "Hollywood Handyman" stories in the Twin Cities. The call came from a client in Plymouth, Minnesota, but when I arrived, I realized this wasn't a standard residential living room. It was a massive warehouse facility being used as a private "sanctuary" for Minnesota Vikings wide receivers.

The players had bought the space to create an elite, private training environment away from the main team facility. As one of them explained, going to the official facility in the offseason feels a bit like "seeing your teachers during summer break"—you don't always want to be under the coaches' watchful eyes when you're just trying to get your work in.

The technical challenge was significant. The booking was for a 65-inch screen on drywall, but the reality was an 86-inch display that needed to be mounted 12 feet high onto corrugated metal warehouse siding. There was no drywall in sight; we were dealing with structural sheet metal that required finding the underlying purlins (metal framing) to ensure a safe, permanent hold.

Because of the height and the weight of the 86-inch glass, I called in my technician, John, to assist with the team lift. Before we hoisted the TV, I decided to give these elite athletes a little demonstration of "Mounting Man" engineering. I hung from the heavy-duty mounting bracket and performed a set of pull-ups 12 feet in the air to prove that the mount was rock-solid. They got a kick out of the showmanship, but more importantly, it built instant trust that their workout regimen display wasn't going anywhere.

We successfully "walked" the TV up two ladders with a third person in the middle providing a vertical push. It was a "sketchy" high-altitude maneuver that most companies would turn down, but it’s exactly the kind of abnormal, high-stakes job that The Mounting Man is built for.

Summary of Work

High-Altitude Display Integration: Installed a massive 86-inch display at a height of 12 feet within a private training warehouse for Minnesota Vikings players in Plymouth.
Specialized Substrate Mounting: Identified and secured the mounting system into structural metal purlins behind industrial corrugated metal siding, bypassing the lack of traditional drywall.
Heavy-Duty Hardware: Utilized a high-capacity extended tilt bracket designed to support the 86-inch panel’s weight while providing an optimal downward viewing angle for players tracking their daily workout regimens.
Structural Load Testing: Conducted a 190lb+ "Mounting Man" pull-up test directly on the bracket at the 12-foot mark to verify structural integrity before mounting the glass.
Team-Based Lift Coordination: Managed a complex three-person ladder lift to safely position and lock the display onto the high-elevation mounting bracket.

Nerdy Insight: Mounting to Metal PurlinsIn a warehouse, you can't rely on the "skin" (the sheet metal siding) to hold a TV, especially an 86-inch beast. The siding is often just 24 or 26-gauge steel—thin enough to tear under the leverage of a heavy mount. To get a "Mounting Man" level hold, we have to use self-tapping structural screws to bite directly into the purlins or girts—the heavy Z-shaped or C-shaped metal beams that form the actual skeleton of the building. Once you're into the purlin, the wall will fail before that bracket ever does.

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Christian Darrisaw

Offensive Tackle, Minnesota Vikings

Samsung Frame installations, 86-inch TV mounts, soundbar installations, PlayStation and Xbox setups, custom shelving for NFL helmet displays, 40 NFL jersey mounts (from post-game jersey swaps), security camera installations, bedroom deadbolt installations

Drake Callender

Goalkeeper, Minnesota United

Drake Callender is the goalkeeper for the Minnesota United. He formerly played with Messi on the Inter-Miami team. Work: 55-inch Samsung Frame with deco frame, fireplace mount with extended 15-meter One Connect cord

Drake Lindsay

Star Quarterback, Minnesota Gophers

55-inch TV with full-motion bracket (dorms), three TV mounts at second residence

Gavin Kaysen

Iron Chef Champion & Restaurateur

TV installations as digital menu displays across restaurant locations

Jaylen Clark

Guard, Minnesota Timberwolves

65-inch TV mount (first apartment), TV mount at new house

Malik Beasley

Minnesota Timberwolves (at the time)

Multiple TV installations (86-inch, 75-inch, 65-inch), security camera installation, gaming chair assembly, Supreme Version arcade game assembly

Matt Boldy

Forward, Minnesota Wild

86-inch TV with power bridge installation, soundbar mount, full man cave buildout

Ron Gardenhire

Former Hall of Fame manager of the Minnesota Twins

The Installation: 75-Inch Masterpiece on Drywall

This project involved mounting a massive 75-inch display in the lower level of the client’s home. We secured the TV to a standard drywall surface using a heavy-duty tilt mounting bracket, allowing for a slight downward angle to optimize viewing from the lounge area. Following the "Engineering Marshall Wayne" protocol, we utilized lag bolts driven directly into wall studs to provide a rock-solid hold for the large-format screen while maintaining the clean, "magazine-ready" finish that The Mounting Man is known for.

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