2021 SJU Football Schedule | 2020-21 SJU Football Roster

By Frank Rajkowski, SJU Writer/Video Producer

COLLEGEVILLE, Minn. - It was a difficult decision, but Saint John's University football coach Gary Fasching '81 and his staff came to the conclusion that what is best for their program is to spend this spring focusing on getting ready for next fall.

That's why the Johnnies will instead focus on player development and not play a competitive spring schedule.

"This was not an easy decision," said Fasching, who wanted to have three weeks of spring practice completed before making the final call. "We have seniors on this team who are planning to graduate and won't be coming back next fall. We know what we do this spring is it for them, and we're heartbroken about that. 

"But ultimately, we had to make the decision we felt was best for our football program and our campus community overall."

While Fasching said there remains the possibility of scheduling a scrimmage with another team, the Johnnies intend to continue with a spring practice schedule building up to an intra-squad spring game May 1 or 2 at Clemens Stadium.

Following the latest Minnesota Department of Health and MIAC COVID-19 protocols,  attendance at that game is expected to be limited to family members or guests of players.

Because of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, the MIAC announced last August that fall sports would be postponed until spring, though a fall practice period was allowed. An NCAA ruling gave teams 114 practices to use over the course of the 2020-21 school year.

Fasching said Saint John's used 35 practices last fall, leaving plenty left over for this spring. The Johnnies are working out on the field Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays with meetings scheduled on Tuesdays and Thursdays.

"This spring will be a little different than our typical spring practice schedule in that we'll be using it to do more evaluation," said Fasching, whose team graduated 14 starters (seven each on offense and defense) from a squad that finished 12-2 in 2019 and advanced to the NCAA Division III national semifinals for the first time since winning a national championship in 2003.

"I'm not sure we'll have our entire starting lineup in place, but we definitely want to have an idea of who are top two or three quarterbacks are going into the fall. We need to replace four of five starting offensive linemen, so we want to have an idea of who will step in there. We need to replace three starting linebackers, so we want to see who our top guys are there too.

"There is a lot we need to find out so that we come into next fall as ready to go as possible."

The Johnnies have already set their fall 2021 schedule, which is listed below (and linked above):

Sept. 4 vs. Aurora
Sept. 18 vs. Martin Luther 
Sept. 25 vs. Bethel 
Oct. 2 at Concordia 
Oct. 9 vs. Augsburg (Homecoming)
Oct. 16 vs. St. Olaf (Family Weekend) 
Oct. 23 at Gustavus Adolphus
Oct. 30 vs. St. Scholastica
Nov. 6 at Carleton
Nov. 13 at MIAC Championship Week

It's a schedule that has the Johnnies at home for five of their first six games, including non-conference matchups against Aurora (Ill.), a team Saint John's edged in a wild 51-47 shootout in the first round of the 2019 Division III playoffs, and Martin Luther, whom the Johnnies defeated in the first round in 2018.

With the departure of St. Thomas from the league, the fall 2021 season will also mark the debut of divisional play in the MIAC. Each MIAC team will play eight conference games, including four "in-division" games, three "crossover" games, and one "playoff" game based on placement in the standings during the final week of the regular season. The winner of the game between the two division champions will decide the league's automatic Division III playoff berth.

Macalester returns to the league in football and St. Scholastica will join the MIAC in all sports. The Northwoods Division will consist of Carleton, Gustavus, Saint John's, St. Olaf and St. Scholastica. The Skyline Division will be made up of Augsburg, Bethel, Concordia, Hamline and Macalester.

"It will be different," Fasching said. "I'm more of a traditionalist and I'd like to see teams play every other team in the conference. But the MIAC has done a great job of trying to keep our league intact and I think this is a good way of doing that. It will probably create some excitement as you get down to the end of the season and the two divisional champions get set to meet."

Of course, it means the end of the long and storied rivalry between Saint John's and St. Thomas. The two teams were scheduled to meet at U.S. Bank Stadium in 2020 in what would have been the last meeting before the Tommies move up to the Division I ranks (Football Championship Subdivision in football) beginning next fall. But with the Johnnies not playing a spring schedule, it appears that rivalry has come to a close.

"We are all disappointed that COVID means there won't be one final football game with the Tommies," Saint John's athletic director Bob Alpers '82 said. "We've enjoyed the great competition and relationships our schools, our players, fans, alums and coaches have had in all sports." 

"I would have loved to have played them in front of maybe 50,000 fans last fall at U.S. Bank Stadium," Fasching added. "That's what we were hoping for. But because of COVID, it didn't happen.

"We are sad to see St Thomas leave the league because it's been a great rivalry with so many good games over the years. But the MIAC is still an excellent conference and we continue to have really great rivalries with member schools."

Fasching said many factors went into the decision not to play games this spring. They included the fact that a number of Saint John's players are involved in spring sports, or are seniors who are taking this semester off in order to take advantage of an NCAA ruling allowing them an extra season of eligibility next fall.

In all, he said his team is without around 40 players, including three of four projected starters on the defensive line.

Unlike in other fall sports, the MIAC is not awarding a conference championship in football during the spring schedule, and there are no Division III playoffs. There was the risk of players being injured and not being ready to return next fall when a normal schedule is expected to resume.

But perhaps most importantly, both Fasching and Alpers cited the logistical challenges brought on by the continued spread of COVID-19. 

The number of games that had to be postponed or cancelled during the abbreviated MIAC winter sports schedule – as well as the number of postponements or cancellations football teams in other Division III conferences and at higher levels have already encountered this spring – demonstrated how daunting a task undertaking a spring football season would be.

"We witnessed first-hand what happened with our basketball and hockey teams this winter," Alpers said. "Although we did not have a single positive case in our winter sports, both basketball and hockey each had to pause for two weeks due to positive cases from schools we played. There is a very real possibility that we, or one of the schools we play, will have positive cases that will force our football team to pause. With our large squad size, we can't take the chance of having that many young men placed into quarantine or isolation, disrupting not only our season but also our residential program and in-person classes."

Since practice began three weeks ago, Fasching said there have been three positive tests. The whole team – around 157 players – was tested on March 26 and there were no positives in that round.

"We're doing everything we can to keep guys as safe as possible," Fasching said. "We're working in smaller groups and everyone is spread out and social distanced. Even when we go 11-on-11, no one else can be around. 

"Our guys are wearing masks under their helmets while still using mouthguards, which can be challenging. But everyone is taking every step they can to stay healthy."

When the Johnnies return for fall practice in August, Fasching expects an even larger group than usual to be on hand. And it will include plenty of new faces. 

He said six transfers joined the team at the semester break, including former Minnetonka (Minn.) High School quarterback Aaron Syverson, a transfer from Colorado State, and wide receiver Jimmy Buck, an Orono (Minn.) High School graduate who spent the last two seasons at Minnesota. They join several transfers who joined the team prior to the start of this school year, including former local prep standouts in running back Devin Vouk (Sartell-St. Stephen High School) and wide receiver Darian Washington (St. Cloud Tech), who both transferred from Division II St. Cloud State when the decision was made to eliminate the football program there in late 2019.

The team also brought in 73 freshmen last fall, and the expectation is that this year's freshmen class could number around 50. Then there are a number of seniors who will be back for an extra year of eligibility.

"It will be a challenge," Fasching said. "We've always had big squads here. But we're looking at the potential of around 230 or more. We know there will be a few kids who choose not to come back or continue. That happens every year. But we'll definitely have some equipment and space issues to face with that many guys. 

"That's a challenge we'll deal with, though. We just want to get the chance to play games again. And I think everybody in our program is looking forward to what next fall will bring."