St. Thomas football racked up the awards following its first season in the Pioneer Football League with first-year running back Hope Adebayo and first-year linebacker Luke Herzog receiving “Freshman Offensive Player of the Year” and “Freshman Defensive Player of the Year.” Coach Glenn Caruso was also nominated for the Stats Perform FCS Eddie Robinson Award for coach of the year, to add to the 17 all-conference and all-academic team awards the Tommies earned.
St. Thomas is the first school to have two first-year athletes receive one of the Pioneer Football League’s most prestigious honors since 2008. The team collected one first-team and six second-team All-PFL honorees, with six more All-PFL honorable mentions in its first season playing at the NCAA DI level.
Adebayo and Herzog are in their second academic year at the university but have first-year athletic eligibility due to missing their first-year season due to its cancellation by COVID-19.
“Neither Hope nor Luke was ever asked to be Superman,” Caruso said. “They were simply asked to do their 1/11 of that play that they were asked to do 70 times a game, times ten games a season.”
Adebayo didn’t receive his first collegiate start until the sixth game of the season against Stetson University, where he ran the Tommies’ season-long run of 78 yards on the game’s first play from scrimmage.
“For Hope to have the season that he did is a tremendous testament to his hard work and his talent,” athletic director Phil Esten said. “Hope earned it 100%.”
By the end of the season, the running back ranked sixth in the PFL in total rush yards with 658 yards. Adebayo also finished fourth in rushing TDs with 12 on the season.
Herzog made a name for himself as a first-year player, ranking 10th in sacks (4 total) and 37th in the PFL in total tackles (47 total). His first sack came against Stetson and continued with a two-sack game against Marist College the following Saturday.
Both players said they expected to have success due to the high level of preparation and training, tallying over 80 practices in the off-season.
“I was expecting us to have a season like we did,” Herzog said. “I know the kind of work we put in in the offseason … with COVID, so I was expecting that.”
Caruso noted that the team exceeded their “absurdly high” expectations, but it never had to do with the wins or individual awards.
“Our expectations never had anything to do with a number of wins or a score of a game or trying to win a league or any of those types of measurable goals,” Caruso said. “Our expectations were to be able to lay the foundation with an attitude and culture of love for one another that would sustain us in what was a very difficult transition.”
In his PFL debut, the 14-year head coach is one of 17 finalists for the Eddie Robinson Award. The winner of the award will be announced Dec. 14.
Caruso led the Tommies to a 7-3 overall record and a 6-2 PFL record, falling only to the University of San Diego and Davidson College, who both tied for first place.
“Even though individual awards are never going to be the priority of our program, it is a tremendous indicator that the future is bright,” Caruso said.
PLF Team Awards
Junior offensive lineman Matt Weimann was the team’s lone All-PFL first-team selection. Weimann helped the Tommies to the second-best rushing attack in the conference (192 yards/game).
Adebayo, senior running back Nick Rice, and senior offensive lineman Mike Ruggeri secured second-team All-PFL honors. Ruggeri supported the Tommies’ strong rushing game, in which Adebayo finished second in yards per rush (5.95), third in touchdowns (12), and fourth in rushing yards (643) against PFL opponents. Rice added three TDs on the ground for St. Thomas, all coming in the final two games of the season.
On the defensive side, Herzog and senior defensive backs Luke Glenna and Isaiah Hall took home second-team All-PFL accolades. Herzog finished with 8.5 tackles for loss and four sacks on the second-best total defense (292.6 yards allowed/game) in conference play. Glenna was the team’s leader with 65 tackles, four interceptions and two fumble recoveries. Hall accumulated three interceptions while making 27 tackles.
Sophomore linebacker Jonathan Bunce, senior defensive back Joe Hird, and sophomore linebacker Jack Mohler took home honorable mention on the defensive side. Offensively, first-year OL Alec Rasmussen and junior tight end Max Zimmerman joined the list of players who earned honorable mentions, while sophomore punter Kolby Gartner was the sole St. Thomas specialist to receive a PFL end-of-season award.
Ending a week full of conference awards, the Tommies put up six Academic All-PFL honorees, with senior defensive lineman Seth Bickett collecting first-team honors.
Senior running back Nick Rice, senior quarterback Cade Sexauer, Bunce and senior defensive linemen Noah Borgeson and Brent Robley took home Second-Team Academic All-PFL honors.
Cam Kauffman can be reached at kauf8536@stthomas.edu.
Olivia Paradise can be reached at para4336@stthomas.edu.