The St. Thomas football team’s (8-2 overall, 6-2 MIAC) season ended Sunday when the NCAA announced the team did not receive one of the five at-large berths into the 32-team playoff field.

This announcement marks the first time in four years that the Tommies did not make the NCAA tournament.

Six-year coach Glenn Caruso’s team finished the season on a four-game winning streak after defeating St. Olaf 45-22 Saturday. He said after clinching the MIAC championship three years in a row and receiving automatic playoff births in those years, to leave the Tommies’ fate to the NCAA selection committee this season was “our fault.”

“You can argue until you’re blue in the face, are we deserving of being in, but the bottom line is we gave other people opportunities to decide our future, and that’s not something that we are too accustomed to around here nor do we think is OK,” Caruso said.

St. Thomas fell to St. John’s 20-18 in the third week of the season and Bethel 28-21 Saturday, Oct. 19. The Tommies tied for second in the conference with the Concordia-Moorhead Cobbers.

The senior class posted a 46-5 record since 2010, including three MIAC championships and three deep NCAA playoff runs. Caruso said the 21 seniors were a unique group.

“It’s the first time anybody in that room has never been to the postseason, and it’s not a good taste in your mouth right now,” Caruso said. “Hopefully, if we do things right, we can use it as a tremendous motivating factor for what might be greatness down the road.”

Kyle Jonas can be reached at jona7984@stthomas.edu.