The St. Thomas Tommies football program represents University of St. Thomas in Saint Paul, Minnesota. Football began at the university in the late 1890s and the first official varsity intercollegiate games were played in 1904.[2] St. Thomas was a charter member of the Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference, formed in 1920.[3] The Tommies also appeared at the 1949 Cigar Bowl.[4] In 2019, the MIAC announced that St. Thomas would be "involuntarily removed" from the conference at the end of the spring 2021 athletic season citing "athletic competitive parity" concerns.[5][6] St. Thomas received approval from the NCAA to begin competing at the NCAA Division I FCS level as a member of the Pioneer Football League starting with the 2021 season and became the first program to jump from NCAA Division III to Division I FCS.[7]
| St. Thomas (Minnesota) Tommies football | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| |||
 | |||
| First season | 1904 | ||
| Athletic director | Phil Esten | ||
| Head coach | Glenn Caruso 14th season, 144–25 (.852) | ||
| Stadium | O'Shaughnessy Stadium (capacity: 5,025) | ||
| Field surface | Turf | ||
| Location | Saint Paul, Minnesota | ||
| Conference | Pioneer Football League | ||
| All-time record | 593–239–24 (.707) | ||
| Conference titles | 22 Division III: 21 Division I: 1 | ||
| Rivalries | |||
| Colors | Purple and gray[1] | ||
| Mascot | Tommies | ||
| Website | tommiesports.com | ||
Conference championships
| Year | Conference | Coach | Overall record | Conference record |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1922† | Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (D-III) | Joe Brandy | 8–1 | 4–0 |
| 1929 | Joe Boland | 7–2 | 4–2 | |
| 1930† | 7–2 | 5–0 | ||
| 1939 | Nic Musty | 5–3 | 4–1 | |
| 1941 | Willie Walsh | 7–1 | 5–0 | |
| 1942† | 8–0 | 5–0 | ||
| 1946† | Frank Deig | 4–3 | 3–1 | |
| 1947† | 4–3 | 4–0 | ||
| 1948† | 7–1–1 | 5–0 | ||
| 1949 | 6–2 | 6–0 | ||
| 1956 | 8–0 | 7–0 | ||
| 1973† | DuWayne Deitz | 9–1 | 6–1 | |
| 1979† | 6–3 | 6–2 | ||
| 1983 | Mark Dienhart | 9–2 | 9–0 | |
| 1990† | Vic Wallace | 8–3–1 | 7–2 | |
| 2010 | Glenn Caruso | 12–1 | 8–0 | |
| 2011 | 13–1 | 8–0 | ||
| 2012 | 14–1 | 8–0 | ||
| 2015 | 14–1 | 8–0 | ||
| 2016 | 12–1 | 8–0 | ||
| 2017 | 11–2 | 8–0 | ||
| 2019† | 8–2 | 7–1 | ||
| 2022* | Pioneer Football League (D-I FCS) | 10–1 | 8–0 |
† Co-champions
* Ineligible for FCS postseason play due to transition from NCAA Division III
Playoffs
NCAA Division III
The Tommies made nine appearances in the NCAA Division III football playoffs, with a combined record of 20–9.
| Year | Round | Opponent | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1990 | First Round Quarterfinals | Wisconsin–Whitewater Central (IA) | W, 24–23 L, 32–33 |
| 2009 | First Round Second Round Quarterfinals | Monmouth (IL) Coe Linfield | W, 43–21 W, 34–7 L, 20–31 |
| 2010 | First Round Second Round Quarterfinals | Benedictine Linfield Bethel (MN) | W, 57–10 W, 24–17 2OT L, 7–12 |
| 2011 | First Round Second Round Quarterfinals Semifinals | St. Scholastica Monmouth (IL) St. John Fisher Wisconsin–Whitewater | W, 48–2 W, 38–10 W, 45–10 L, 0–20 |
| 2012 | First Round Second Round Quarterfinals Semifinals Stagg Bowl | St. Norbert Elmhurst Hobart Wisconsin–Oshkosh Mount Union | W, 48–17 W, 24–17 W, 47–7 W, 28–14 L, 10–28 |
| 2014 | First Round | Wartburg | L, 31–37 |
| 2015 | First Round Second Round Quarterfinals Semifinals Stagg Bowl | La Verne St. John's (MN) Wabash Linfield Mount Union | W, 57–14 W, 38–19 W, 38–7 W, 38–17 L, 35–49 |
| 2016 | First Round Second Round Quarterfinals | Northwestern (MN) Coe Wisconsin–Oshkosh | W, 43–0 W, 55–6 L, 31–34 |
| 2017 | First Round Second Round Quarterfinals | Eureka Berry Mary Hardin–Baylor | W, 47–8 W, 29–13 L, 10–24 |
Future non-conference opponents
Future non-conference opponents announced as of January 23, 2023.[8]
| 2023 | 2024 | 2025 | 2026 | 2027 | 2028 | 2029 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Black Hills State | Northern Iowa | Idaho | at North Dakota | at Idaho | Harvard | |
| at South Dakota | Black Hills State | at North Dakota State | Southern Utah | |||
| at Harvard |