A 32-yard field goal from sophomore kicker Louis Hyde with 59 seconds left sent St. Thomas to a stirring 12-9 win over Michigan Tech in the team’s Division I debut on Saturday at Kearly Stadium in Houghton, Mich.

After 95 weeks without competition, the longest layoff period for any FBS or FCS program, the Tommies (1-0) battled back from a 6-point deficit in the final quarter, capping a six-play, 24-yard drive to defeat the Division II Huskies (1-1).

“I think it’s a beautiful life lesson of when there’s time on the clock, you stay positive, you lean on your brothers and you work,” Tommies coach Glenn Caruso said in a postgame interview with ESPN Radio.

Junior defensive back Johnson Fallah’s interception with 14 seconds left secured the win for the Tommies, who had not competed since their Nov. 16, 2019 victory over Bethel University.

The Tommies are the first football program in 28 years to move directly from Division III to Division I.

They were originally scheduled to play St. Francis (Ill.) for their home opener on Sept. 4, but the game was canceled because of COVID-19 complications.

The program’s transition to Division I was not easy due to COVID-19 setbacks and postponements leading up to the season. For Caruso, building a new team in a new division made the game worth more than a victory.

“When you build something, it’s going to take a lot of adversity before you can make a step forward,” he told ESPN. “Any step forward without adversity is not worth it and these are things that we have to learn to embrace.”

Before the game, Caruso said, he received over 150 messages from “proud” Tommie alumni and fans supporting the team back home.

“Not one of them mentioned anything about winning,” he said. “Not one of them mentioned anything about the score. They mentioned pride in the people and passion for the great sport of football, and I’m grateful for that.”

Some Tommie fans, including St. Thomas students, gathered at Tiffany Sports Lounge in St. Paul to cheer on the team as the sports bar streamed the game free for patrons.

Junior Elyse Zeswitz said she heard that “Tiff’s” would be showing the game and decided to bring a few fellow Tommies with her to watch.

“We wanted to come support the football team, so we thought we’d have a nice lunch and watch the game together,” she said.

Zeswitz and her friends cheered late into the fourth quarter as Fallah intercepted a pass by Michigan Tech quarterback Will Ark with 14 seconds remaining.

“I think it just shows our perseverance as a team that, even though we’re the underdog, we can still come through and get the win. I think that there’s a bright future ahead for us,” Zeswitz said.

St. Thomas juniors Cecelia Schneeman and Hannah Nellis, who joined Zeswitz at Tiffany, said they’ve been waiting for the Tommies’ return to competition and the new Division I culture on campus.

“We’re really excited for St. Thomas, and we can’t wait to see all the great things that they do this upcoming football season,” Schneeman said.

“I think it’ll be really good for all of the players and the school just to have a sense of community,” Nellis added.

The Tommies are set to face their first Division I competition against Northern Iowa, in the Missouri Valley Conference, at 4 p.m. Sept.18 in Cedar Falls, Iowa.

Olivia Paradise can be reached at para4336@stthomas.edu.
Cam Kauffman can be reached at kauf8536@stthomas.edu.