By Michelle Richardson
ST. PAUL, MINN. – The end is near for the University of St. Thomas football team. The Tommies will play their final game of the 2024 season on Saturday, as they host the University of Dayton in the season finale. Kickoff is scheduled for 1:00 p.m. at O’Shaughnessy Stadium in St. Paul, Minnesota.
Tickets are still available for Saturday’s contest and can be purchased online at www.tommiesports.com/tickets. Fans who are unable to attend in person can now watch St. Thomas football through Midco Sports Plus and the Midco Sports Plus App. The subscription-based service will provide a digital streaming platform for regular season home St. Thomas football games along with exclusive Tommie and Pioneer Football League (PFL) content, including replays, highlights, interviews, and special feature stories. Subscriptions cost $9.99 per month or $79.99 for an annual plan. Fans can also listen to the call on 1500 ESPN and the Varsity Network App and follow Live Stats on TommieSports.com. The game will also air on FOX9+
OPENING KICK: The Tommies look to close 2024 in the win column when they host the University of Dayton in the season finale on Saturday. Kickoff is scheduled for 1:00 p.m. at O’Shaughnessy Stadium in St. Paul, Minnesota.
LAST TIME OUT: St. Thomas was entered uncharted waters on Saturday, as the team lost three consecutive conference games for the first time in the Glenn Caruso era. Despite strong play from the Tommies offense, they fell on the road to #25 Butler by a final score of 36-20. St. Thomas was able to keep pace with the nationally ranked Bulldogs, trailing 13-7 at the half and 23-14 entering the fourth and final quarter of play. However, the Tommies were outscored 13-6 in the final 15 minutes of play, as Butler cemented its victory a touchdown in the final three minutes of play.
THE OPPOSITION: Dayton is one of the most improved teams in the PFL this season. The Flyers posted a 4-6 record in 2023, head coach Trevor Andrews first season at the helm, including a 2-6 mark in PFL play. This season, Dayton is 6-4 and 4-3 in conference play thanks in large part to a rejuvenized defense. Through 10 games, the Flyers are holding their opponents to just 15.5 points per game, which ranks second in the PFL behind Butler’s 15.1 points per game average. Dayton’s pass offense has been stifling, holding opponents to just 121.6 passing yards per game in 2024.
AIR RAID: The Tommies will put its revamped passing game to the test against Dayton after putting up historic numbers in the loss to Butler Saturday. St. Thomas tallied 300+ passing yards as a team for the first time in 2024, closing the game with 305 total between Tak Tateoka and Michael Rostberg. It marks the first 300+ passing yard performance for St. Thomas since 2022, when the team recorded 322 yards in a win over San Diego.
NOT QUITE FOUR SCORE AND SEVEN YEARS AGO…: But it has been a while since the Tommies last tallied 300+ passing yards in a game. Twenty-four games, almost two full seasons and four different starting quarterbacks have passed between St. Thomas’ two 300+ passing yard performances (October 2022 to November 2024). In that time, the Tommies have posted an 18-6 overall record and gone 14-4 in PFL play. Maybe more staggering? St. Thomas has utilized four different starting quarterbacks between the two 300+ yard performances: Cade Sexauer, Amari, Powell, Tak Tateoka and Michael Rostberg.
HISTORIC FIRSTS: The Tommies continued to make history even in Saturday’s loss (in a good way, we swear). St. Thomas saw two wide receivers record 100+ receiving yards in the same game for the first time in the DI era. Junior wide receiver Colin Chase and senior wideout Jacob Wildermuth both eclipsed the 100-yard receiving mark in Saturday’s loss to Butler, as Chase led the way with a career high 121 yards. Wildermuth closed the game with a career-high 103 receiving yards, becoming the first Tommie tandem to eclipse the mark in the same game.
NEVER HAVE WE EVER…: Lost three consecutive games in conference play under head coach Glenn Caruso. Entering Saturday’s game in Indianapolis, the Tommies were 30-4 all-time in games following a loss in the Glenn Caruso era, including a 21-0 mark in the Division III era. Since making the leap to Division I, however, Caruso is 8-4 in games following a loss, including a 2-3 mark this season. Until last season, Caruso had never lost back-to-back games as the head coach of St. Thomas and had never lost back-to-back conference games in his tenure.
HOME SWEET HOME: Perhaps more impressive? The Tommies had never lost a PFL contest within the confines of O’Shaughnessy Stadium until the November 9 game against Drake. Yes, the Bulldogs managed to snap St. Thomas’ 14-game home field win streak against PFL opponents, which included wins over every team in the conference except Dayton, whom the Tommies will host for the first time in program history this upcoming weekend.
MORE OFFENSE PLEASE: There is one common denominator in St. Thomas’ six losses this season, the most ever for the Tommies in the Caruso era: the lack of a well-balanced offense. St. Thomas is 0-6 when scoring 20 points or less in games this season, and 5-0 when scoring at least 24. Additionally, the Tommies fell to 0-3 when rushing for less than 100 yards in a game. Hope Adebayo was held to under 100 yards for the second consecutive game on Saturday, as the Tommies recorded just 62 net rush yards as a team in the loss to Butler. It marks just the third time this season the Tommies rushed for under 100 yards as a team, the first being in the season opener against Sioux Falls on August 29. St. Thomas was also held to under 100 rush yards in the loss to Drake two weeks ago.
GOAL LINE STAND: Tommie fans are hoping Saturday’s game will be slightly less nerve wracking than the first ever meeting between St. Thomas and Dayton. Last season’s game featured plenty of drama, as the Tommies rushed out to a 20-7 first half lead before behind held to zero second half points. However, thanks to former standout Johnson Fallah and the St. Thomas defense, the Tommies were able to hold off the Flyers last second push to win and tie the game. After a failed field goal attempt by St. Thomas, Dayton took over from its own 28-yard line and marched right on down to the Tommie six with five seconds to spare. On fourth and four, Fallah came up with a huge pass break up, ending the Flyers’ hopes of a dramatic comeback.
HAPPY SENIOR DAY: St. Thomas will recognize its 2024 senior class prior to Saturday’s contest in one last farewell to the final Division III recruit class. This group of seniors, which includes both the final DIII recruit class and the first DI recruit class, helped the Tommies claim their first ever PFL title in 2022 and post a 25-6 record in Division I conference play. The class includes Hope Adebayo, David Ayeni, Luke Herzog, IBK Mafe, Nick Hand, Caden Nelson, Landon Reed, Nick Flaskamp, Langston Robinson, Alec Rasmussen, Brock Stanek, Shea Albrecht, Aiden Carlson, Noah Friedt, Grif Wurtz, Jacob Wildermuth, Matthew Guggemos, Seth Hopkins and CJ Warren.
COURTESY ST. THOMAS ATHLETIC COMMUNICATIONS
