Football starts fall camp with record number of prospects

August 13, 2007

St. Thomas will play its 104th season of varsity football in 2007 with its biggest roster in school history.

Coach Don Roney, who is starting his 10th season, greeted 145 prospects Sunday on the opening of fall training camp. The Tommies graduated eight starters among his 17 seniors but have nearly 70 returning players. The newcomers include 60-plus true freshmen and a half dozen transfers.

UST will play six road games for the first time since 1966 and has just four home games. The Tommies open the season Sept. 1 in Pella, Iowa, against the No. 8-ranked Central College Flying Dutchmen. That's one of three nationally-ranked teams UST faces this fall. UST is home Sept. 29 to play No. 24-ranked Bethel, and play No. 3-ranked St. John's Oct. 27 in Collegeville.

The Toms travel again Sept. 8 to Dubuque, Iowa, to face Loras College, then start their home and conference schedule Sept. 15 vs. Gustavus.

Most of Roney's coaching staff returns. New assistants are former Macalester head coach Dennis Czech (running backs) and new full-time coach Brent Pradia (DBs, special teams).

Despite playing most of last season without preseason All-American P.J. Theisen, St. Thomas finished 6-4 overall and took fourth in the MIAC at 5-3. Three of their losses came to conference champion teams which all made the Division III playoffs and had a combined 28-2 regular-season record -- St. John's, Central and Bethel. A fourth loss came vs. 8-2 St. Olaf.

The Toms secured a first-division MIAC finish for the 11th time in 12 seasons. St. Thomas has won six or more games 19 of the last 26 seasons. UST went 3-1 on the road in 2006 and has won nine of its last 13 road games since 2004.

UST had 29 freshmen and sophomores on its 55-man travel group last season. That included 11 true freshmen and five transfers from the 2006 recruiting class.

Key returners

Theisen, who has more than 2,000 career receiving yards in 31 games, was lost for the season after injuring his foot in the first half vs. Gustavus on Sept. 23. He received a medical hardship to return as a fifth-year senior in 2007. The two-time Academic All-American will also compete next spring in track and field, where he's a five-time All-American.

Captains for 2007 will be four senior returning starters -- Theisen, fullback Don Jaeger, center Pat Cahalan and DB Pat Sommerstad. Other seniors looking for big seasons include returning starters Graham Gmach and Mark O'Connell on the offensive line; Matt Anderson at safety; and Justin Thom at linebacker.

Sommerstad, who was named second-team All-MIAC, started for his second season in a row and had 48 tackles, three interceptions, one fumble recovery and seven break-ups. On his three-year career, he has 81 tackles, six interceptions and five tackles for loss.

Cahalan will anchor an offensive line that graduated three players with starting experience.

Also back are the 2006 Offensive MVP, junior quarterback David Sauer; junior WR Tony Margarit; and the 2006 Special Teams MVP, sophomore WR-KR Sam Moen. In six starts, Sauer completed 58% of his aerials for 1,194 yards with 14 TDs and six intercentions. In 10 career games, he has 22 touchdown passes and 2,134 yards while completing 61%, and is 6-3 as a starter. Moen scored four touchdowns as a freshman punt returner/wideout last fall.

Juniors Jake Casey and Scott Brink return at halfback. Casey has 13 touchdowns and 1,200-plus rushing yards over the last two seasons. Brink, who transferred from Winona State in 2006, didn't make the travel squad early last season, but in the last six games scored five TDs, rushed for 420 yards and caught 12 passes for 173 yards.

On defense, the returners include five freshmen who started or played extensively -- CB Jeffrey Hilliard; linebackers Ross Petterson, Adam Johannsen and Joe Pyka; and DE Jacob Lewis.

The Tommies graduated several playmakers from that stingy defense -- including tackles Mike Rouse and Mike Hara, end Luke Rezac, and cornerback Justin Nwadiashi. Under first-year defensuve coordinator Blane Tetreault, UST allowed only six first-half TDs last season and the starters gave up just 16 touchdowns in 10 games. The UST defense allowed 12.5 ppg and 296 ypg and ranked 28th in Division III pass efficiency defense. The Toms held opposing QBs under 50% completion rate and just 154 ypg in the air. UST allowed only two gains of 35 yards or more in returns, rushes and receptions.

St. Thomas led MIAC teams and ranked 14th in Division III in turnovers at plus-11 in eight games. UST (15 lost, 26 gained in 10 games) fell three short of a school season turnovers record of plus-14. The Toms lost only five fumbles in 674 touches on rushes, passes, receptions and returns. UST's defense/cover teams had 16 interceptions and 10 recovered fumbles. The Toms were plus-3 in turnovers in 2005 in a 4-5 finish and plus-17 in 2004 in a 7-2 finish. The Tommie defense has 23 interceptions in its last 13 games, including 16 pickoffs last season.

Newcomers

The recruiting class includes four players who played in the 2007 Minnesota High School all-star game -- Totino-Grace's Matt Griswold (CB) and Matt Manion (OT); Prior Lake's Ben Wartman (RB); and Hopkins' Danny Kane (LB). The newcomer group includes five Cretin-Derham Hall grads, and three players each from state powers Eden Prairie, Totino-Grace, St. Thomas Academy, and Hopkins.

Among the transfers are 6-4, 285-pound OL Josh Ostrue of South St. Paul, who played at Division II St. Cloud State in 2006; 230-pound DL Scott Saehr of Pierz, who played at Central Lakes CC last fall; DB Bryan Villar of Tartan, who spent last season at Division II Augustana (S.D.); and 6-2, 285-pound DL Marcell Walker of St. Paul Harding, who played at N.D. State School of Science last season.

Another transfer, PK-punter Sean Barrett, was an all-stater at Mahtomedi High as a senior in 2005. Barrett, who didn't play sports at Iowa State University last school year, also may compete in golf this fall for the Tommies. He was co-medalist in the Class 2A state golf meet as a senior, and kicked the winning extra point in Mahtomedi's 27-26 overtime win over Holy Angels in the 2005 state championship game. Barrett set a state record as a senior for field goals made with 12.

The out-of-state newcomers include Cody Engelbrecht of Phoenix, who rushed for more than 3,000 yards in his final two seasons and played on two state championship teams; all-state RB Daniel Carr of Dickinson, N.D., who played in the Montana-N.D. All-Star Game; and QB Matt Joshi of Shawnee, Kan., who threw for 2,200 yards and 29 TDs and completed 60% of his throws in a 10-2 finish in 2006.

At least three incoming freshmen played on state champion baseball teams in their prep careers -- Joshi; CB Matt McQuillan of Cretin-Derham Hall; and LB Sean Stevenson of Gross Pointe Woods, Mich.

(Editor's Note: A full Tommie season preview will appear Aug. 20).