Someone has to stick up for the Tommies this week. Will Rich Mies be that guy? If nothing else, he’ll be eloquent. As a columnist for the College Sporting News, he’s seen his share of football games—including Johnnie-Tommie games—and knows how to be objective. He’s also got a fun little twist to his background that makes his take on this game more interesting than most. Read on to see what Rich thinks about the Minnesota Rosary Rumble.
—Mr.Shoes
Tommie/Johnnie Week.
Rich Mies, SJP/UST
No matter what the sport, the week leading up to the battle between Saint John’s and St. Thomas is as good as any rivalry week gets anywhere in sports. This week, the rivalry is at its finest as the two prepare for battle on the gridiron, which many Tommies feel is the only playing field SJU can beat us on.
Of course, the Johnnie response to that is that football is all that matters, and general popular opinion confirms that. Football IS king in the American sports world, by far the country’s most popular sport.
I have “mixed allegiances” during Tommie/Jonnie Week. I am the “son of a Jonnie,” which almost sounds obscene. I have numerous relatives who attended SJU and CSB over the years, including the son of one of my cousins who is on the football team there this year. I experienced four years of joy behind the Pine Curtain at the Prep School, back when Harry Burns was shy and quiet and we both were thinner. But I decided four years of Saint John’s was enough; anything more and I feared I’d end up wearing a black robe.
So I shook the dust of Stearns County off my shoes and enrolled at what was then the College of St. Thomas. I quickly became a “purple partisan” but part of my heart continued to love SJU football, and has always remained attached to it.
How could it not? There isn’t a better venue for football than SJU and the fans there are amazing in their support and loyalty to their team. Of course, winning 90+% of the time helps with that, but the support goes deep enough that I think even if SJU had a couple of losing years the fan base would remain strong.
I know my story is not unique, although I am one of a small collection of Prep grads to go on to St. Thomas.
There are hundreds if not thousands of tales of torn loyalty between the red and the purple. Each year, there are players on each team whose parents or uncles/aunts attended the other school. Players on both sides have friends and former teammates lining up across from them.
An excellent example of that can be found looking at the two starting quarterbacks. Your guy, Alex Kofoed, was a star at Rocori. Our guy, David Sauer, was his backup for two years and replaced him after Alex graduated and became a star in his own right in two seasons as the starter. They are close friends, although I doubt there will be much communication between them until Saturday. But after the game, you can bet they will catch up.
Brandon Keller makes a huge FG to help John Gagliardi to win #408 in 2003
To me, that is the beauty of the rivalry between SJU and UST. For the 60 minutes (or nine innings or whatever measure of time is used for the game), there is a white-hot intensity of competition, as strong as can be found anywhere. But once it’s over, the old friendships and familial ties bring us back together.
People talk about great rivalries and argue which one is best and biggest. Michigan/Ohio State? Notre Dame/Southern Cal? Please, these “big rivalries” are one-sport wonders. I’d compare Tommie/Johnnie to Army/Navy……..or the Hatfields and the McCoys.
So, what to expect from the Toms? The cupboard is far from bare, despite the misleading 2-5 record. Sauer has a good arm, averaging 223 yards a game this year while completing 60.4% of his passes. He has thrown ten TDs, but also has ten interceptions. When Sauer is on, he is trouble for any defense. He has a strong arm, and uses a good mix of long and short passes.
He is blessed with, arguably, THE top receiver in the MIAC, P.J. Theisen, who is back after missing football and track last year with an injury. Fully healed, he has moved to the top of UST’s all-time list in receiving yards and receptions. He has 182 catches for 2,693 yards, including 50 for 667 this year. He has hauled in 15 touchdown balls in his last 13 games. A multi-time All-American in track, Theisen was a finalist for the Draddy Award last year, an honor known as the Academic Heisman (your guy was a semifinalist, but, hey, you got the conference title and playoff berth so it’s a wash). The kid has speed, quickness and great hands.
If Theisen is covered, Sauer looks to Sam Moen and Tony Margarit, both of whom are solid receivers, averaging over 50 yards a game.
The running game can be UST’s Achilles Heel, but Jake Casey and Scott Brink are both explosive enough to keep the defense wary. If the “D” backs off the run, they can – and will- make teams pay for that mistake.
Across the line, the Tommie defense is young. Of the 15 players seeing extensive playing time, 12 are sophomores or freshmen. There is plenty of talent there, but there are the occasional “rookie miscues,” which can be frustrating at times. But they also have the ability to give SJU its sternest test thus far.
Based on the two team’s records heading into this game, a casual observer might predict a blowout (a “monkey stomp” as some call it). But anyone familiar with the lore and history of the Tommie-Johnnie rivalry knows that all bets are off when these two square off. Wins and losses mean nothing; ditto for national rankings and the standings. When the purple and the red clash, anything can – and often does – happen.
I’d like to go out on the limb and predict a Tommie win, I really would. If it comes to pass, I may be seen doing a horrible, destined-for-YouTube, imitation of the jig. But I don’t think I’ll be needing my dancing shoes this weekend. It will be a hard-fought battle, like SJU-UST always is, but this time the Red Machine has more octane than the Purple. 31-14.
But a thousand memories added to the legend of Johnnie/Tommie, the Greatest Rivalry in College Sports. Period.
