The last time the St. Thomas football team had at least three turnovers and more than three total fumbles, it was bounced from the NCAA tournament in the quarterfinal round last season in a 34-31 heartbreaker at the hands of Wisconsin-Oshkosh.
The team didn’t quite reach the eight turnovers it committed last season against the Titans, and it didn’t cost the Tommies (11-1 overall, 8-0 MIAC) the game, either; they were able pull out a 29-13 victory Saturday at O’Shaughnessy Stadium in the second round of the NCAA playoffs over Berry College (11-1 overall, 8-0 SAA).
However, the five total fumbles and three turnovers were more than unacceptable for coach Glenn Caruso.
“It’s gross. Our ball security was deplorable,” he said in a postgame press conference. “With a team that is as explosive as (Berry) can be … a need is moving the ball. We need to be able to finish some of those (drives) if we want to grow as a team.”
The Tommies started the game finishing those drives, with the offense playing some of the best football it had all season long. After a quick five-play, 23-yard opening drive, the Tommies scored on the three following drives. Wide receiver Gabe Green was on the receiving end of two of those scores, going for 36 and 16 yards.
“The guys up front have to do their job,” Green said. “They did that, I had time to get open and I had some really nice balls thrown my way.”
Green had a career day, recording both his first multi-touchdown game and his first game over 100 receiving yards. 73 of his 128 yards and both of his touchdowns came on the first four drives for the Tommies
“We didn’t really know what to expect coming into the game,” quarterback Jacques Perra said. “After a couple of drives, we got the hang of things and had a nice couple of play calls to get him open.”
Perra, too, was on pace for a career day through the first three scoring drives for the Tommies, throwing for 137 yards and two touchdowns on 12 attempts.
Then, over the next eight drives, the Tommie offense, which is second in all NCAA Division-III with a 52.2 points scored per game average, was held to 203 yards and no touchdowns over a period of more than 35 minutes that spanned the final three quarters.
All of the Tommies’ turnovers and fumbles committed happened in that time.
“I’m happy that (turnovers) … did not cost us a game,” Caruso said, “but if they don’t get rectified, they will.”
With the offense struggling through a majority of the game, the Tommies relied on their defense to help pull out the win.
The unit, which allows a Division III-best 147.8 yards per game and fifth-best 9.8 points per game, held an opposing offense to under 14 points for the ninth time this season.
“I love the way that our defensive unit plays cohesively,” Caruso said. “The star of the defense is the defense.”
The unit allowed a paltry 14 yards to the Viking ground game, the sixth time the Tommies have given up fewer than 15 yards to opposing rushing attacks.
“That’s a statement for us,” Caruso said. “You don’t stop a legitimate run game like we faced … this week without a lot of levels and layers.”
Against the pass, the Tommies struggled to contain the Vikings. St. Thomas allowed 266 yards through the air, the most since Week 5 in a Sept. 30 matchup against Augsburg.
“We would have liked to play a little cleaner defensively in the second half,” linebacker Dylan Andrew said. “We don’t even want the ball to come out (from the quarterback). That puts a lot of pressure on the cornerbacks.”
Andrew said he was excited to have “at least one more week” to continue to improve. The team will have to make those improvements quickly as they clash with Mary Hardin-Baylor Dec. 2 in Texas.
“Over the years, I’ve seen (Mary Hardin-Baylor) play the best. They are just a very cohesive team,” Caruso said. “I’m happy to have the chance to see the best of the best and see how we stack up.”
The Crusaders are the defending D-III national champions and will go into the showdown against the Tommies with an 11-0 record. They defeated Linfield 24-0 to advance to the quarterfinal round.
“There’s eight football teams playing left in the country. There’s no dogs (sic) left in the field. This is the pinnacle,” Caruso said. “It’s going to be a tough test, and I can’t wait.”
Noah Brown can be reached at brow7736@stthomas.edu.