‘SportsCenter on the Road’ to come to Tommie-Johnnie

Posted on by
Running back Brenton Braddock stiff arms a Johnnie defender in 2013. This year, ESPN’s “SportsCenter on the Road” will join the pregame festivities. (Jake Remes/TommieMedia)
Running back Brenton Braddock stiff arms a Johnnie defender in 2013. This year, ESPN’s “SportsCenter on the Road” will join the pregame festivities. (Jake Remes/TommieMedia) 

A national audience will get a special taste of the Tommie-Johnnie football rivalry when ESPN brings “SportsCenter on the Road” to Collegeville, Minnesota, next weekend as part of the pregame festivities.

The network announced the trip live on air Saturday morning.

This is the first time SportsCenter has made an extended live visit to a Division-III campus, according to a St. Thomas news release.

“SportsCenter on the Road” has been on location for the NBA Finals, NFL draft and other heralded sporting events in years prior. Its presence adds to the highly charged Tommie-Johnnie atmosphere, which has seen record attendance in recent years.

The 2010 game between St. Thomas and St. John’s in Collegeville set a Division-III football attendance record of 16,421, and the matchup in past years has drawn well over 10,000 fans when held at O’Shaughnessy Stadium.

The show will air live from 6 a.m. to 8 a.m. Central Standard Time, before the 1 p.m. kickoff at Clemens Stadium. ESPN will not broadcast the game itself, but a live webcast of the match will be available at www.gojohnnies.com. WCCO 830 AM will also have live coverage of the match.