University of St. Thomas Athletics
St. Thomas football wraps up season, claims third straight top-3 finish in PFL play
11/27/2024 8:57:00 AM | Football
ST. PAUL, MINN. – All good things must come to an end, even for the University of St. Thomas football team. The Tommies concluded their 2024 campaign on Saturday, November 23 with an impressive 32-9 win over the University of Dayton. The win capped off another strong season for St. Thomas, as the team once again earned a top-3 finish in the Pioneer Football League (PFL) thanks to a conference record of 5-3.
The Tommies 2024 was filled with ups and downs, as the team opened with a 1-3 record in nonconference play. However, St. Thomas held its own with some of the top teams in the nation, leading (RV) Northern Iowa through the first three quarters of play before ultimately falling by a final score of 17-10. The Tommies were also plagued by injuries early in the season, losing several All-Conference caliber players to injury, including several starters, during the first four games of the season.
A healthy St. Thomas roster took the PFL by storm, rattling off four consecutive wins over Stetson, Marist, Valparaiso and San Diego, to open the conference slate with a perfect 4-0 record. During the month of October, the Tommie offense averaged 37.25 points per game, and Tak Tateoka (Waukesha, Wis. / Waukesha South) and Hope Adebayo (Inver Grove Heights, Minn. / Simley) were named the PFL Offensive Players of the Week for their respective performances against Marist and San Diego. Adebayo made headlines throughout the month of October and was named the FCS and FCS Stats Performance National Player of the Week for his record-breaking performance against the Toreros on October 26.
November brought its own sets of challenges for St. Thomas, as the Tommies took on three of the top teams in the PFL: Morehead State, (RV) Drake and #25 Butler. Though St. Thomas went 0-3 in the three contests, the team competed from start to finish, nearly mounting comebacks against both Drake and Butler and making history along the way. Colin Chase (Orange County, Calif. / St. John Bosco) and Jacob Wildermuth (Plymouth, Minn. / Wayzata) became the first wide receiver duo in the DI era to record 100+ receiving yards in the same game against the #25 Bulldogs, combining for 224 yards and two touchdowns in the loss.
The Tommies closed the season in the best way possible. Thanks to strong play by the offense, defense and special teams, St. Thomas honored its senior class with a 32-9 win over Dayton, closing the season with a 5-3 record in PFL play. It marks the fourth consecutive top-3 finish by the Tommies since joining the conference in 2021 and their fourth consecutive .500+ finish in PFL play. St. Thomas also improved to 16-0 in the Caruso era on Senior Day and have lost only three regular season games during the month of November since the head coach took over in 2008. The Tommies also improved to 129-3 in the Caruso era when scores at least 25 points in a game.
Comments on the 2024 Senior Class from head coach Glenn Caruso:
"This senior class was special for so many reasons. Due to the divisional transition, as well as the COVID-19 pandemic, this class is made up of traditional fourth year, a few fifth year and two sixth year players, along with three transfers; so, the diversity of background and education helped guide and mold their leadership greatly. It is also our first graduating Division I class, which when you consider all the adversity our program faced between the transition and pandemic, their faith and belief in St. Thomas football and this university is something that I will always consider to be a professional and personal highlight.
We always believe that the heroes of our program come not from the guys who necessarily score the most touchdowns or record the most tackles, but the ones who give thoughtfully and tirelessly to their brothers in the locker room and are willing to outwork and outlast anyone else. The fact that these guys drew a line in the sand and decided to grow the culture at St. Thomas is something this program will forever be indebted to."
The 2024 senior class led the Tommies to their first every Division I Championship in 2022, claiming the PFL title with a perfect 8-0 record in conference play. After dropping its first game to Southern Utah, St. Thomas rattled off ten consecutive wins, outscoring its opponents 358-189 throughout the course of 11 games, to finish the season with an overall record of 10-1. The Tommies also closed the season ranked #20 in the FCS Top-25 poll, the first national ranking for any St. Thomas team in the DI era.
