St. Thomas will be looking to end its longest losing streak of Coach Glenn Caruso's tenure when it opens its third season in the Pioneer League on Saturday.
The Tommies (1-2) have lost consecutive games — at South Dakota and at Harvard — for the first time since the 2007 season, when they closed out a 2-8 season with four consecutive losses. Caruso was hired in January 2008.
The Tommies, the defending Pioneer League champion and heavy favorite to repeat in the conference coaches' preseason poll, play host to Morehead State (Ky.), which was picked 10th in the preseason poll. The Tommies and Eagles have never met in football.
St. Thomas has a 10-game winning streak in the Pioneer League dating to 2021. The Tommies have won 27 consecutive games at O'Shaughnessy Field — the longest home winning streak in college football. The Tommies haven't lost at O'Shaughnessy since the 2016 season.
Morehead State (1-1) was idle last week after losing at Mercer 48-22 on Sept. 9. Last season, the Eagles were 2-9 overall and lost their last six conference games to finish 1-7 in the league.
Here are four other Minnesota college football story lines this week:
MIAC opens conference play
Bethel, ranked No. 19 in Division III, plays at No. 8 St. John's on Saturday as MIAC teams begin their third season of the divisional format (Northwoods Division and Skyline Division).