J is for Jordan as Toms roll, 35-14

By DOUG HENNES

COLLEGEVILLE, Minn. – It was The Purple's turn to storm the field.

After two years of watching St. John's red-clothed fans stream across Palmer Field at O'Shaughnessy Stadium to celebrate wins, the Tommie faithful returned the favor Saturday – and in a big way.

They engulfed their No. 12-ranked football team after its convincing 35-14 victory over the No. 8 Johnnies, hoisting Coach Glenn Caruso atop their shoulders and not letting him down until he led the victors in a rousing version of their fight song.

"It's great to get this win," Caruso said. "We will savor it for the next 365 days."

Caruso exulted over his 3-0 team's performance: a defense that forced three turnovers and held All-America Sam Sura to 74 rushing yards, an offensive line that dominated its opponent in the second half and a running back (Jordan Roberts) who ran for four touchdowns and 230 yards.

"We played well, and we played together," Caruso said. "I couldn't ask more than that."

The Tommies did so before a NCAA Division III record crowd of 17,327 fans who jammed every corner of Clemens Stadium, eclipsing the mark of 16,421 set here in a St. Thomas-St. John's clash five years ago. It turned out to be a long day for those fans who showed up at 6 a.m. for a two-hour live broadcast of ESPN SportsCenter on the Road.

The game was in doubt at halftime, with the teams locked in a 7-7 struggle, but the Tommies scored the first three times they touched the ball in the second half to jump to a 28-7 lead early in the fourth quarter and seal the game.

Roberts was the star of those second-half drives, piling up 172 yards on 18 carries. St. Thomas was so dominant with its running game that quarterback John Gould attempted – and completed – only two passes after halftime and finished 9 of 22 for 76 yards.

Tied at Half

Neither team could move the ball with consistency on their first two possessions of the game, but St. Thomas scored early in the second quarter after a 16-play, 80-yard drive. Roberts ran the ball in from the St. John's 5 on fourth and 1, the Tommies' second fourth-down conversion in the 6:33 drive. Paul Graupner's extra point kick gave St. Thomas a 7-0 lead with 11:20 to go.

Two more unsuccessful St. John's drives left St. Thomas with the ball on its 20, but Gould threw an interception in the right flat on the first play. The Johnnies needed just five plays to score from the Tommies' 29, with Sura plunging in from the 1.

St. Thomas took control of the game with three touchdowns over a seven-minute span in the second half.

An 80-yard drive featured Roberts carrying six times for 49 yards and his second rushing touchdown. The 12-yard run put him over 100 yards on the ground and capped a 12-play drive.

"We really stressed the run game in the second half," said Roberts, a St. John Vianney Seminary junior who transferred from South Dakota because he is interested in studying for the priesthood. "Their defense wore down, and we took advantage of that."

Roberts credited the offensive line "for really opening some nice holes." Caruso singled out sophomore tight end Matt Christenson and center Stefan Sauer for their unselfish work, and tackle Dave Simmet was especially pleased at how well the line jelled in the second half.

"We just started to roll on them," he said, "and once it started they just couldn't stop us. Jordan and Jack (Kaiser, who ran for 68 yards) did a good job of hitting the holes."

Caruso praised the defense for making things "muddy" for Sura, who had 210 yards on the ground against St. Thomas last year and came into Saturday averaging 144 yards a game.

"The focus was on stopping Sura and forcing them into passing situations," said defensive coordinator Wallie Kuchinski, " and then guys like Isaac (Seering) and Mozus (Ikuenobe) made great interceptions that helped to turn the game."

The interception by Seering, a safety, came on a Nick Martin pass at midfield. Seering returned the ball to the St. John's 21, and two plays later, Roberts picked up his third rushing touchdown, from 15 yards, for a 21-7 St. Thomas lead.

"I had a good jump on the route," Seering said. "The quarterback was hit as he threw and the ball came right to me. I have to give the D-line credit on that one. I was able to get some positive yardage on the return and put the offense in a better position to score."

The defense forced a 3-and-out punt on the Johnnies' next possession, and St. Thomas needed less than three minutes to boost its lead to 28-7. Kaiser ran in from the 5; all seven plays on the 43-yard drive came on the ground.

St. John's quickly rebounded with a five-play drive to cut the St. Thomas lead to 28-14 with 12:27 left. But the Tommie defense twice held the Johnnies, the second possession ending when Ikuenobe stretched out to make a spectacular interception of a Martin pass with 4:21 left in the game.

The Tommies seemed to be content to run out the clock, but with 2:22 remaining, Roberts broke loose around left end and raced around defenders for 40 yards and his fourth touchdown.

Tommie Notes

• The visiting team in the series has won four years in a row. St. Thomas won 43-21 three years ago and the Johnnies came out on top 20-18 and 24-14 in 2013 and 2014 in St. Paul. In those two home games, St. Thomas had a total of nine turnovers to St. John's one, but on Saturday the Johnnies had three turnovers and the Tommies only one.

• St. Thomas defense came into the game averaging 55.5 yards and held St. John's to a net 45 yards in 33 rushes, or 1.4 yards per run.

• Caruso is 4-4 against St. John's – 1-3 at home and 3-1 in Collegeville.

• The Tommies head home for an Oct. 3 game against St. Olaf. The Oles dropped to 1-3 with a 31-7 loss to Concordia on Saturday.

• Caruso will hold his biweekly Quarterback Club event at 7 p.m. Monday at Plum's on Snelling Avenue in St. Paul.

COLLEGEVILLE, Minn. – Running back Jordan Roberts ran for four touchdowns and 233 yards to lead St. Thomas to a 35-14 win over St. John's before a NCAA Division III record crowd of 17,327 on Saturday.

The junior transfer from Sheridan, Wyoming, sparked an offense that scored 21 straight points in the third and early fourth quarters to jump to a 28-7 lead. St. John's scored once to trim the St. Thomas lead to 14 but the No. 12-ranked Tommies held on to break a two-game losing streak to the No. 8 Johnnies. It marked the fourth year in a row that the visiting team had won in the series.

After a 7-7 first half, St. Thomas took control of the game in the third quarter with two touchdowns on very different drives.

A 80-yard drive – the Tommies' second of the day – featured Roberts carrying six times for 49 yards and his second rushing touchdown. The 12-yard run put him over 100 yards on the ground for the day and capped a 12-play, 5:30 drive.

The Tommie defense set up the next touchdown less than three minutes later. Isaac Seering picked off a Nick Martin pass near midfield and returned it to the St. John's 21. Two plays later, Roberts picked up his third rushing touchdown, from 15 yards, and the Tommies led 21-7.

The defense forced a 3-and-out punt on the Johnnies' next possession, and St. Thomas needed just seven plays to boost its lead to 28-7. Halfback Jack Keiser ran in from the 5; all seven plays on the 43-yard drive came on the ground.

St. John's quickly rebounded with a drive to cut the St. Thomas lead to 28-14 with 12:27. But the Tommie defense held, and Roberts capped off the scoring with a 43-yard run with 2:14 left to put him over the 200-yard mark.

Scored tied at half

Neither team could move the ball with consistency on its first two possessions of the game, but St. Thomas scored early in the second quarter after a 16-play, 80-yard drive. Roberts ran the ball in from the St. John's 5 on fourth and 1, the Tommies' second fourth-down conversion in the 6:33 drive. Paul Graupner's extra point kick gave St. Thomas a 7-0 lead with 11:20 to go.

Two more unsuccessful St. John's drives left St. Thomas with the ball on its 20, but quarterback John Gould threw an interception in the right flat on the first play. The Johnnies needed just five plays to score from the Tommies' 29, with halfback Sam Sura plunging in from the 1.

Roberts carried 13 times for 58 yards in the half plus had 10 yards on two receptions, and the Tommies had 159 yards of offense to St. John's 115.

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Team Stats

John Gould

University of St. Thomas Athletics