A first for Tommie Football: 3 All-Americans in a season

December 20, 2009

No. 10-ranked St. Thomas had a school-record three players, all underclassmen, voted to D3Football.com's 2009 All-America team. The 76-man All-America team was announced Saturday.

The trio -- RB Ben Wartman, kick returner-WK Fritz Waldvogel and center Josh Ostrue -- led Coach Glenn Caruso's Tommies to a school record 11 wins and the program's second-ever berth the NCAA playoff quarterfinals.

Wartman (JR-Prior Lake) and Waldvogel (SO-Mendota Heights/St. Thomas Academy) were among 26 players voted to the first team. Ostrue (JR-South St. Paul) was a repeat honoree among 25 named to the second-team.

The three helped the Tommies post the biggest two-year improvement in Division III football -- from a 2-8 finish in 2007, to 7-3 last season, to 11-2 in 2009.

The Tommies' three honorees on the first and second teams were third most among all 241 Division III football programs. Only NCAA runner-up Mount Union (six) and NCAA champion UW-Whitewater (four) had more first- and second-team picks.

St. Thomas and Whitewater were the lone schools to have three underclassmen among the 76 players honored on the first, second and third teams.

The Tommies' three All-Americans matched their total in the previous 10 D3Footbal.com teams. Previous winners were Ostrue (2008, second team), P.J. Theisen (2007, HM wide receiver) and Andrew Ubbelohde (2005, first team linebacker).

Only one other MIAC player was among the 101 players honored on the D3Football's three teams and honorable mention -- St. John's senior DT Kyle Schroeder made third team.

Waldvogel was one of only two sophomores on the 26-man first-team. He joined 16 seniors and eight juniors.

Wartman was one of just two players -- along with Augustana (Ill.) tackle Blaine Westemeyer, the 2009 Gagliardi Trophy recipient -- to make first team CoSIDA Academic All-America and land on the D3Football All-America first team.

Ostrue is St. Thomas' first footbal player to make All-American as both a sophomore and a junior. Earlier this week, Ostrue was announced as a repeat honoree on the 25-man AFCA All-America team, and was among just 20 Division III players named to the 108-man Associated Press Little All-America team.

Ben Wartman

The 6-2, 205-pound Wartman ranked third among all NCAA players and closed with 1,827 yards, which ranks second in conference and UST history behind Gary Trettel's 1,861 yards in 1990. Wartman also had 2,118 all-purpose yards. His 24 touchdowns in 2009 broke a 19-year-old school record, tied for second most in Division III, and tied for third most in MIAC history. He’s surpassed 100 rushing yards 19 of his last 21 outings, and the Toms are 17-2 in those games. (He had 300 yards in a 2008 loss to Augsburg; 143 yards in the 2009 playoff loss at Linfield; and 90 and 80 yards in two games against St. John’s.)

In 23 career games at running back, Wartman has 3,138 rushing yards and 37 touchdowns. He’s had a productive last 15 months in general. In baseball, he played all 12 innings at catcher with two hits and threw two runners out stealing in a 3-2 NCAA championship game victory over Wooster (Ohio). He recently was named a first-team ESPN the Magazine Academic All-American with a 3.87 gpa in Business.

Fritz Waldvogel

Waldvogel was named 2009 MIAC Most Valuable Player. Waldvogel became the first St. Thomas MVP honoree, and first sophomore recipient of the award, which was first presented in 1995. He has 2,321 all-purpose yards in all 13 games this season to rank eighth in Division III per-game average, including 85 catches for 1,149 yards and 13 TDs.

He leads all NCAA players in kick/punt return touchdowns with six. He had had eight kick returns of 50 or more yards this season; ranks second in Division III in kick return average at 33.0 ypr; tied an NCAA record with two punt returns for TDs in one quarter; had a rare back-to-back performance where he returned the game's opening kickoff for a TD on Oct. 24 and 31; had a punt return TD and a kick return TD in the same half against Northwestern; had a 59-yard kickoff return against St. John's; and had a 71-yard kick return in the NCAA playoff win over Monmouth.

In just 23 career games, the 5-foot-9, 165-pounder 18 touchdowns, 137 receptions for 1,819 yards, and 3,298 all-purpose yards. That includes 22 gains of 38 or more yards on receptions, rushes and returns. His 86 catches for 1,149 yards finished one catch and 43 yards shy of tying Theisen's 2007 school records for season receptions and reception yards.

Waldvogel returned the opening kickoff for a touchdown on back-to-back weeks -- A 48-28 win at Carleton on Oct. 24 and a 42-3 win over Augsburg on Oct. 31. The conference had gone 171 games without an opening kickoff returned for a TD before Waldvogel's double. As a freshman for the Tommies in 2008, he also had one punt return to the end zone in a win over Carleton, and also had a 56-yard kick return against Bethel. Last May in an exhibition game in Canada, he had a 99-yard TD return negated by a penalty. He also scored three TDs on kick returns as a prep senior at St. Thomas Academy.

Josh Ostrue

Ostrue, a junior, has started all 33 games on his UST career. He made AFCA first-team All-America honors in 2008 and 2009, and received the 2008 Rimington Award as Division III's best center. He's the second Tommie football player in 60 years to receive the AP Little All-America honor. (UST tight end Ryan Davis was saluted in 1994).

In the 23 games since Ostrue moved to center, St. Thomas has posted 24 100-yard rushing performances and has allowed just 11 sacks, including only three this season. The Tommies’ 70 touchdowns ranked third most in D-III, behind Mount Union and UW-Whitewater. UST also broke school season records for rushing yards (3,238), total offense (5,556 yards), and points (506).

The Tommies were the lone conference team -- and one of just eight Division III programs -- to reach 11 football victories.

PHOTOS: Top to bottom, Ben Wartman, Fritz Waldvogel, Josh Ostrue

Click here to view the D3Football.com All-America team:

http://www.d3football.com/tow/09/allamericans.htm