University of St. Thomas Athletics
Stetson
Game Notes -- Football plays Stetson on Sat.; final home game
11/11/2022 2:46:00 PM | Football
St. Paul, Minn. -- St. Thomas Football (8-1 overall, 6-0 Pioneer) has won eight in a row this season since a 44-13 opening loss at FCS scholarship team Southern Utah (Southern Utah scored game's final 16 points). The Toms are at home Saturday facing Stetson (Fla.) (3-5, 1-4) in a noon kickoff here in St. Paul.
The contest can be heard live on AM-1500 Radio Skor North, with Corbu Stathes on the play-by-play call with Christopher Ohm as the color analyst.
Live video can be access HERE.
Saturday is Senior Day. While a few seniors have one season of eligibility left and are deciding whether or not to return in 2023, these players are being honored:
#2-Savion Johnson; #5-Joshua Komis; #6-Jacob Miller; #12-Trent Meyer; #14-Malik Jackson; #14-Cade Sexauer; #15-Julian Cavin; #19-Simon Stark; #23-Luke Glenna; #25-Michael D'Angelo; #27-Kellan McKeag; #37-Ty Barron; #49-Brent Robley; #53 Matt Weimann; #61-Ben Boorsma; #71-Mark Schmitz; #73-Brandon Prentis; #82-James Klecker; #86 Max Zimmerman; #90-Noah Borgeson; #91-Seth Bickett
Top career stats leaders for the graduating Tommie seniors include:
- QB Cade Sexauer 2,479 passing yards, 20 TDs, 408 rushing yards, 7 rush TDs
- FB Josh Komis 324 rushing yards, 5 TDs, 21 receptions for 189 yards, 5 TDs
- TE Max Zimmerman 16 receptions, 242 yards, 5 TDs
- LB Trent Meyer 86 tackles, 23 TFL, 8 sacks, 1 interception, 2 forced fumbles
- DB Luke Glenna 159 tackles, 7 TFL, 12 interceptions, 2 forced and 2 recovered fumbles
Big Picture
The 6-0 Toms sit atop the Pioneer Football League with two games to go, holding a one-game lead over Davidson, Dayton and Butler (all 5-1 in the PFL). This week, Davidson plays at San Diego; Butler plays at Drake; and Dayton is hosting Morehead State. The Toms need one win to secure at least a share of the Pioneer championship, and can clinch a solo title with wins both Saturday and on Nov. 19 at Butler.
The Toms climbed in the national AFCA Coaches poll this week to No. 23 – the best national team ranking in any sport thus far in St. Thomas' D-I era. Only two non-scholarship teams are in the top 25: St. Thomas, and Ivy League leader Princeton.
Big Numbers
- The Toms are 102-0 in regular-season games in the Glenn Caruso era when they score 25 or more points.
- The balanced Purple average 195.6 rushing yards and 193.3 passing yards a game. Offensive backs have 19 rushing TDs, receivers have 17. Last season, the Toms averaged 168 rushing yards and 152 passing yards a contest.
- Senior QB Cade Sexauer has thrown a TD pass in all nine games this season. He has 16 touchdown passes with just six interceptions, and his offensive line has only allowed four sacks in six conference games.
- The Tommies' have won 25 in a row on their home field, third most consecutive current wins across all of NCAA Football (top seven are Clemson 38, Cincinnati 31, St. Thomas 25, Oregon 23, Linfield (Ore.) 23, Alabama 18, NW Missouri 18).
- St. Thomas has held a second-half lead in 21 of its last 22 conference games (MIAC, Pioneer). The exception was a 2021 season road loss to Davidson.
- The Toms have received seven special teams or defensive touchdowns by seven different players during their current eight-game win streak.
- The Purple's 43 touchdowns have come from 19 different athletes, and five different players contributed the five scores last Saturday at Valparaiso.
- St. Thomas has come from behind to win in three of its last four games.
- The Toms also have 10 consecutive victories in games played on Saturdays.
- The Toms are 8-1 despite having a minus-7 in season takeaways vs. their foes' totals (18 lost, including nine fumbles; 11 gained, including nine pickoffs)
- Stephen Shagen is 17-of-17 in PAT kicks; the Toms are 4-of-5 in FG tries
Most Days Since Home-Field Loss/NCAA Football
2,192, Clemson (FBS) (11-12-2016)
2,171, St. Thomas (D-III/FCS) (12-3-2016)
1,884, Linfield (Ore.) (D-III) (9-13-2017)
1,827, Cincinnati (FBS) (11-10-2017)
1,513, Oregon (FBS) (9-22-2018)
Diggin' into Stetson
Stetson (3-5, 1-4) enters Saturday's game 0-2 away and 0-3 in one-score games. Stetson's roster includes 14 players in their fourth or final season of eligibility, and 17 juniors. The Hatters are looking to halt a three-game losing streak, which included an eight-point, 2 OT loss to Davidson last Saturday. This will be the second game between these programs, and Stetson's first trip to St. Paul. The Tommies beat the Hatters in DeLand, Fla., last season, 38-7.
Stetson leads the Pioneer League in passing yards per game (319.3), but sit last for rushing yards per game (88.7) in the conference.
Brady Meitz, a redshirt sophomore from Georgia and the Hatters starting quarterback, leads the Pioneer League in all passing categories. His 309.1 passing yards per game is more than 75 yards per game better than anyone else in the conference.
DEFENSIVE NOTES
Stetson's defense has averaged 361 yards allowed per game. They score an average 29.6 points a game and allow 30.1, and they have a positive turnover margin of four with 14 turnovers and 18 takeaways.
SPECIAL TEAMS NOTES
In a game earlier this season against Morehead State, Stetson and the Eagles combined for four blocked kicks.
Hatters' Happenings
The Hatters' 106-player roster has 55 native Floridians.
After less than one year away from the Hatters football program, Coach Brian Young is back for his 10th season as head coach. Young graduated from Georgia Southern University in 1997, where he also played defensive back. In 2020, he later went back to coach at his alma matter, where he led the Eagles to a record of 8-5 and a 38-3 win in the R+L Carriers New Orleans Bowl.
Young played a role in coaching Stetson linebacker, Donald Payne, a four-time All-American and a three-time Pioneer Football League Defensive Player of the Year. Payne was signed in 2017 as an undrafted free agent by the Baltimore Ravens, and now plays for the Houston Gamblers, who are a part of the United States Football League. He is also the first graduate of Stetson to play in the NFL.
Block Star
Morehead State's Jihad McCall and Holy Cross' Devin Haskins are tied and lead all FBC and FCS players this season in blocked punts with four apiece. Both sit just one short of the FCS season record of five held by Dominic Jones (The Citadel in 2011) and Tevin Richard (South Carolina State in 2015). The FBS season record is seven.
Temple's De'Von Fox has also blocked three punts -- all in one game vs. Layfayette -- and leads all FBS players.
St. Thomas' freshman Ryan Sever (Edina, Minn./Benilde-St. Margaret's) is among nine D-I players so far in 2022 with at least three blocked kicks -- all of his are blocked punts, and all have set up touchdowns (one he blocked and returned for six points against Presbyterian; one he blocked and was returned for six by Ty Barron vs. Lincoln; and the last he blocked and was recovered in the end zone for six points by Lucas Torgerson vs. Michigan Tech).
Most Division I Touchdowns off Blocked Punts in 2022
3, St. Thomas (FCS)
2, South Carolina (FBS)
2, San Diego State (FBS)
2, North Dakota (FCS)
All-Purpose Andrew
Sophomore WR Andrew McElroy ranks 18th nationally and first in the Pioneer Football League in all-purpose yards, averaging 135.8 all-purpose yards per game. McElroy has posted 1,222 total yards including 680 receiving yards, 98 punt return yards, 408 kick return yards, and 36 rushing yards.
Longest Current Win Streaks/FCS Football
10, Princeton
9, Holy Cross
9, Jackson State
9, Sacramento State
9, South Dakota State
8, St. Thomas
7, Florida A&M
7, Saint Francis (Pa.)
7, Samford
Longest Current D-I Football Win Streaks/FBS or FCS
11, Georgia
10, Ohio State
10, Princeton
9, Michigan
9, TCU
9, Holy Cross
9, Jackson State
9, Sacramento State
9, South Dakota State
8, Oregon
8, St. Thomas
7, Florida A&M
7, Saint Francis (Pa.)
7, Samford
Last Time Out
St. Thomas Football used two long return plays to help break open a close game en route to a 34-7 victory over Valparaiso Nov. 5 in Pioneer Football League play. The Purple overcame three early turnovers, never trailed, and received five touchdowns from five different players as they ran their season winning streak to eight games.
Sophomore RB Hope Adebayo ran 12 times for 128 yards -- his fifth 100-yard rushing game of the Division I era -- to lead the Tommie offensive attack.
The No. 25-ranked Toms remain atop the conference standings by one game over Dayton and Davidson (each 5-1 in the Pioneer) with two conference contests to go.
Junior defensive back Grif Wurtz raced 79 yards with a Valpo fumble in the opening quarter from his first collegiate touchdown to help build a 7-0 lead.
The Toms later led 14-0 at halftime, then pushed the margin to 20-0 on a Andrew McElroy 50-yard TD catch from Cade Sexauer.
The Beacons regained momentum with a short TD run that cut the third-quarter lead to 20-7. But freshman Owen Kanzler zipped 89 yards on the ensuing kickoff for his first collegiate touchdown -- in just his seventh touch of the season as a receiver and returner.
That victory was a bounce back game for the Tommie defense -- it went from allowing six TDs in the previous week's win against San Diego, to only allowing one touchdown as well as scoring a TD of its own at Valpo.
The St. Thomas offense set several personal bests and D-I era team records in their San Diego win. QB Cade Sexauer threw for 286 yards and surpassed 300 yards in total offense. WR-KR Andrew McElroy was named Pioneer Football League Offensive Player of the Week after he set D-I era bests with 200 receiving yards, a 95-yard kickoff return, a 75-yard TD catch and run, and 314 all-purpose yards.
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