With ESPN casting a national spotlight on the game, a Division-III record 17,327 fans clad in purple and red flooded Clemens Stadium in Collegeville Saturday for the 84th Tommie-Johnnie game.
The day began with a live broadcast of “SportsCenter on the Road” with anchors Matt Barrie and Sara Walsh; it ended with a 35-14 St. Thomas victory – the first in three years.
Senior Paul Hedman, a member of Caruso’s Crew, left home at 2 a.m. with eight other group members to make it to the 6 a.m. broadcast.
“We were really pumped for it,” Hedman said. “We were able to be on national TV, which was really cool. Even though most of the fans were Johnnies, we were able to get a lot of screen time as Tommies.”
Caruso’s Crew showcased its traditional hard hats, oversized tools and fake facial hair on the live broadcast with several other dedicated Tommie football fans and members of the cheer and dance teams.
Sophomore Trevor Haman also cheered along with the St. Thomas crowd and thought the national exposure was great for the team and D-III athletics.
“The fact that (ESPN) came to a D-III football matchup is unbelievable,” Haman said. “It’s a huge step forward for us because D-III sports, and even D-II sports, get overshadowed by D-I sports. But when you have a rivalry like Tommie-Johnnie getting as much if not more attention than some D-I games, it’s great.”
The two-hour live broadcast featured interviews with players, coaches, fans and alumni, and it told the story of the century-old rivalry between St. Thomas and St. John’s.
Senior Frank Hoffman, another fan in attendance, thinks the national exposure was well deserved by the St. Thomas team.
“When I saw that SportsCenter bus pull up, I was so happy,” Hoffman said. “There are so many dedicated players, and it was a good time seeing those guys get the attention they deserve. They put in a long time practicing and preparing for these games, and they deserve SportsCenter coming to the field.”
St. Thomas President Julie Sullivan said she was proud to see so much purple on ESPN.
“I think it’s awesome,” Sullivan said. “I was so proud of our Tommie spirit and seeing all of our students. The spirit and the purple and the mascot made me so proud and so thrilled.”
In addition to TV viewers, a lot of Tommie fans made the road trip to Collegeville, helping set the record for attendance at a D-III football game. They were part of a crowd that included nearly 5,000 more fans Saturday than at last year’s Tommie-Johnnie game at O’Shaughnessy Stadium in St. Paul.
Sophomore Carmen Carballo thinks the record makes St. Thomas a prominent D-III school.
“We have massive spirit,” Carballo said. “Even though we’re a small school, we still have crazy spirit, and we support our sports no matter what, and I think that’s part of the reason we broke the record.”
President Sullivan was pleased with the crowd and thinks it represented both universities well.
“I think it says a lot about our alumni, our students and our families,” Sullivan said. “This is a rivalry that the whole state of Minnesota is looking at today.”
Lauren Andrego can be reached at andr0090@stthomas.edu.