Box Score

COLLEGEVILLE, Minn. – No. 12 St. Thomas broke a 7-7 halftime tie with touchdowns on each of its first three second-half drives and defeated No. 8 Saint John's 35-14 in front of an announced crowd of 17,327, the largest recorded football attendance in NCAA Division III history, on Saturday, Sept. 26, in Collegeville.

The crowd eclipsed the previous record of 16,421 set in the 2010 Johnnie-Tommie game.

Junior running back Jordan Roberts, a Division I transfer from the University of South Dakota, led UST (3-0, 1-0 MIAC) with 230 yards and four touchdowns on 31 carries. He ran for 172 yards and three scores on 18 carries in the second half alone, including 74 yards on two fourth-quarter attempts. The Tommies out-gained SJU (3-1, 1-1 MIAC) 338-45 on the ground in the game.

Senior running back Sam Sura (South St. Paul, Minn.) scored both of the Johnnies' touchdowns on the day and rushed for 74 yards on 25 carries. The 74-yard performance enabled him to vault into third on SJU's all-time attempts list with 538 and into a tie with Matt Malmberg (1991-94) for third with 2,923 career rushing yards. 

Senior quarterback Nick Martin (Plymouth, Minn./Wayzata) ended the day 23 of 38 passing for 252 yards. He was sacked three times and threw two second-half interceptions, both of which were turned into offensive touchdowns for UST.

Senior tight end Nick Simon (New Ulm, Minn./Cathedral) recorded his first 100-yard receiving game with nine catches for 116 yards. He now has 14 catches for 188 yards and a touchdown in his last two games.

Senior wide receiver Josh Bungum (Paynesville, Minn.) also snagged nine passes for 91 yards.

Senior linebacker Drake Matuska (Kasson, Minn./Kasson-Mantorville) led SJU's defense with 11 tackles (five solo), including a tackle for loss, a pass breakup and a quarterback hurry.

Senior cornerback Trevor Warner (Murrieta, Calif./Vista Murrieta) intercepted UST's John Gould with 5:43 left in the first half, which led to the first of Sura's two touchdowns in the game and tied it at 7-7.

Gould finished 9 of 22 passing for 76 yards. He attempted only two passes in the second half and completed both for a total of 20 yards in the third quarter.

ESPN's "Sportscenter on the Road" broadcast its show live in Clemens Stadium, with a backdrop of an estimated 3,500 fans, from 6-8 a.m. Saturday morning.

The Johnnies travel to face Hamline for a 1 p.m. kickoff next Saturday, Oct. 3, at Klas Field in St. Paul.

Notes: SJU had an interception by junior cornerback Jeremy Piper (La Place, La./East St. John) and 40-yard return down to the Tommies' 8-yard line negated by a defensive pass interference penalty with the Tommies ahead 7-0 in the second quarter…Gould's pass was thrown well behind the intended receiver, directly to Piper, but the receiver's legs tangled with junior safety Lucas Glomb (Woodbury, Minn./Hill-Murray) in his attempt to cut and come back to the football…SJU had a first-and-10 opportunity from UST's 40-yard line late in the first half, but eventually punted…the Johnnies also had a first-and-goal from the Tommies' 7-yard line late in the game but turned the ball over on downs…the road team has now won each of the last four meetings between the two schools…Bungum moved into a tie with Dave Arnold (1969-72) for eighth on SJU's all-time receiving list with 2,038 yards.