After jumping two spots in the polls, the No.7-ranked St. Thomas football team will seek its sixth-straight victory when it hosts Hamline for homecoming Saturday afternoon at O’Shaughnessy Stadium.

The Tommies (5-0 overall, 3-0 MIAC) have won seven straight games against Hamline and haven’t dropped a homecoming contest during coach Glenn Caruso’s tenure. Caruso said he anticipates a heavy alumni presence at the game.

“It’s a great tip of the hat to those alumni that bled the same blood on the same field that we have for so many years,” Caruso said.

Quarterback Kyle Johnson leads the Pipers, and his average of 200 passing yards per game puts him fourth in the MIAC. Still, linebacker Steve Harrell said the Tommie defense will not have any new challenges Saturday.

“At this point, we have seen almost everything. With Hamline I wouldn’t say they have anything we haven’t already seen,” Harrell said.

Last week, the St. Thomas defense held dynamic Augsburg quarterback Ayrton Scott to 194 passing yards and one touchdown and forced two interceptions. Scott, who’s third in the MIAC in passing and rushing, tallied only 51 rushing yards on 16 attempts.

The Tommie defense is holding opponents to under seven points and just over 207 yards per game. Harrell said St. Thomas needs to work on following through on each play.

“Coming off of last week, we need to improve on finishing plays and tackles in order to be successful from our perspective,” Harrell said. “Our game plan will put our players in the best position, so really all it comes down to is finishing.”

The Pipers (2-4 overall, 1-3 MIAC) have traditionally had a strong running game but are second-to-last in the conference in rushing this year.

On the other side of the ball, Hamline has been allowing nearly 311 yards per game, which is second fewest in the conference behind St. Thomas. In last week’s 42-7 loss to Bethel, the Pipers conceded 331 yards. It’s going to be tough for Hamline to halt the St. Thomas ground attack of running backs Jack Kaiser and Jordan Roberts. Kaiser said the duel-treat running game means less wear and tear on both ballcarriers.

“It preserves our bodies in the long run … (keeps) us healthy,” Kaiser said. “Taking pounding hits off each other is going to be an enormous winning edge.”

Both Kaiser and Roberts play an integral role for the MIAC’s most potent offense. Roberts is second in the conference in rushing with just under 125 yards per game and first in touchdowns with 12, while Kaiser has found the end zone in all but one game this year.

“By no means is it tough sharing the load with Roberts,” Kaiser said. “He’s a great running back that will help this team win games.”

Backed by a stout defense and a prolific offense, Caruso said the key to this week’s game will be the Tommies’ ability to win the turnover battle.

“When we turn the ball over, that’s where we start losing our rhythm on offense,” Caruso said. “When we get turnovers, that’s where we start stacking up good plays.”

Jesse Krull can be reached at krul7386@stthomas.edu.