The St. Thomas football team is not used to playing Thursday night games, but defensive back Sean Hamlin said he is looking forward to the team’s midweek contest against Wisconsin-River Falls at 7:10 p.m. Thursday on Ramer Field.
“We are attacking the week just like any other game, just having the schedule bunched up a bit more,” Hamlin said. “I think this is a great way to see how this team can handle adversity early in the year.”
After the 52-7 win against Wisconsin-Eau Claire last Saturday, coach Glenn Caruso said the team will carry that momentum into this week’s game.
“The obvious positives were the rhythm with which our team got into fairly quickly,” Caruso said. “That doesn’t always happen as early as it did.”
River Falls is coming off a 17-14 loss against St. John’s University, a game that slipped away from the Falcons in the final two seconds when the Johnnies’ freshman kicker Alexi Johnson made a 40-yard field goal to give St. John’s the win.
“I would expect fully that (River Falls will) bounce back … after reflecting on what happened to them last week,” Caruso said.
The Falcons are under third-year coach Matt Walker, who has yet to coach a team that has defeated the Tommies. River Falls went 2-8 last season, including a 2-5 record in the WIAC. However, Caruso said the Falcons’ record doesn’t fully reflect their team’s talent.
“The simple fact that they’re in their third year under a new staff, I think gives them a lot of confidence,” Caruso said. “The program is still new and energetic, yet at the same time they know they can grow and get better.”
Last season against the Tommies, the Falcons resorted to their passing game. Quarterback Ryan Kusilek passed the ball 74 times, completing just 34, en route to a 43-9 loss. Against St. John’s, Kusilek completed 22-of-35 passes for 238 yards and two touchdowns.
“He’s a neat quarterback, there’s no question,” Caruso said. “He reminds me greatly of our types of quarterbacks; he’s a creator, a point guard, a competitor.”
Last season, the Falcons rushed for 13 yards against the Tommies, but accumulated 98 return yards and 342 yards through the air. The Tommies piled up 636 total offensive yards.
“We have just been preparing to play fast; first stop the run game like we always plan on doing and make them throw the ball,” Hamlin said. “Just focusing on running to the football and doing our jobs right in the secondary.”
River Falls’ defense hasn’t been particularly strong in the past, but Tommie wide receiver Pete Fitzsimmons is more concerned about what the Falcons are doing as an offensive unit.
“River Falls has a solid secondary and although their defensive line is not that big they have quick feet and hands,” Fitzsimmons said. “But we don’t really focus on them when it comes to practice. We focus on constant improvement and being the best us we can be everyday.”
Caruso said the River Falls players work together to pick up slack.
“I think all three of their phases, offense, defense and special teams, flow sequentially well off one another,” Caruso said. “When one phase is struggling, the other two tend to pick it up.”
Kyle Jonas can be reached at jona7984@stthomas.edu