The college, which is leasing its TCF Bank Stadium to the Vikings as the team’s new stadium gets built for a scheduled 2016 opening, has also asked that the game not have any Washington apparel or paraphernalia sold on the premise; that the word “Redskins” not be uttered by the game’s public address announcer; and that the team’s moniker not appear on the scoreboard or in the program guide or other game-related print or digital material. Last year, hundreds of Native Americans and their supporters gathered outside the Metrodome before the Vikings played the Redskins to denounce the name of Washington’s team. “The two Vikings officials said they are part of the NFL and don’t have the authority to force the hand to change the Washington name but understand it’s offensive to some members of our community. “We are here to tell the NFL there is no honor in a racial slur,” Rep. Betty McCollum (D-Minn.) told the demonstrators. “I mean, how far do you go with this, you know?” he replied. “They said they’d make that request of the Washington team, but were not sure how it would be received,” she said. On Thursday, the tribe released a statement saying that it and other Minnesota tribes oppose the Redskins’ name “and other sports-related logos, mascots and names which degrade a race of people.” The community is working with the university to prepare “appropriate responses” to the NFL game and “minimize the damage that could be done by invoking the name in a place that respects and honors the Minnesota Native American community.” 
 
 A Vikings spokesman told The Post on Wednesday that the team was still trying to determine how it would handle the school’s request. More than 1,100 students throughout the University of Minnesota system identify themselves as Native Americans, and TCF Bank Stadium was built with the help of a $10 million donation from the Shakopee Mdewakanton Sioux Community. It was built with a $10 million donation from the Shakopee Mdewakanton Sioux Community — the largest private gift ever to Gophers athletics. The Vikings have a great working relationship with the tribal nations of Minnesota, and they’re very understanding of how this team name and logo impacts our community.” 
 
 The university’s stadium features a Tribal Nations Plaza dedicated in honor of the 11 Native American tribes in Minnesota.
– The Washington Redskins are having a rough time of it today: Things started with a crash this morning involving two of the team's buses, which were en route to play the Vikings in Minneapolis, reports the AP. A police escort in Minnesota crashed into a guardrail around 8:30am; the team bus immediately behind it braked to avoid hitting the cop car, but second bus rear-ended the first. No injuries. Arriving in Minneapolis, the team was met with chants of "Who are we? Not your mascot!" from some 3,200 protesting Native Americans who were none too happy with the "Redskins" moniker. "My Hubby Did Not Fight in Iraq To Be Called A 'Redskin,' read one sign. The protest raised familiar arguments, with one Redskins fan calling the name a "respectful" one in which Native Americans should "take pride." The name is nothing more than "a racial slur," counters one Democratic rep at the protest, citing Minnesota's "11 proud tribal nations. This was a government-funded policy of genocide." Indeed, as the Washington Post reports, Minneapolis is home to a sizable Native American presence, perhaps contributing to the size of the demonstration. The issue is compounded by the University of Minnesota, which currently leases its football stadium to the Vikings for a hefty $300,000 per game. With 1,100 students who identify as Native American, the university had in August demanded that the Redskins limit use of the mascot, logo, and team name during today's game.