The University of St. Thomas football program officially announced its 2026 recruiting class Wednesday, including 28 high school signees and 10 transfers.
The Tommies are adding 18 offensive signees, 19 defensive signees and one special teams signee, mostly emphasizing regional recruiting. Thirteen of the signees come from Minnesota, followed by 10 from Illinois, five from Wisconsin, two from Iowa, two from Missouri and one from Nebraska.
“Something that we hold near and dear is getting competitive kids,” Coach Glenn Caruso said. “I think one of the metrics is that they play multiple sports. Love that about our kids and about our coaches finding them.”
St. Thomas also recruited well from outside of the region, pulling in two recruits from Texas and one from California, New Jersey and New York.
Caruso highlighted Illinois as a particular point of growth for the program after making recruiting high schoolers from the state a priority over the past year.
“Last year, that number from the Chicago area was at three,” Caruso said. “I did not think that that was enough for a school like ours. So I’m very proud that we were able to re-engineer that, and how we recruited, and we took eight from the state of Illinois.”
Versatility and athleticism were also key traits in the recruiting process. Of the 28 incoming high school athletes, 25 participated in multiple sports, something Caruso views as a competitive advantage.
“I think it’s fantastic, especially in this day and age, where everything is getting so uniquely selectorized for playing that one position in that one sport,” Caruso said. “It’s refreshing to see young men be able to just go out and play multiple sports and compete. And I think that that might not show on paper, but I do think that shows over time, that competitive nature, in the locker room.”
UST went 7-5 in 2025, and 5-3 in Pioneer Football League competition.
One of the biggest changes in the locker room coming up will be the number of tight ends. With only one senior graduating, the Tommies brought in four high school tight ends. Caruso explained that the team performed best with many tight ends on the field.
Along with the new tight ends, the Tommies looked for a player with the ability to catch 50-50 balls. Last year the Tommies’ pass game evolved into lots of backside post throws, meaning the team needed a player like incoming wide receiver Keefer Baxter from Winnetka, Illinois.
“He’s fast, he’s athletic, but he can catch those and adjust his body to catch those back shoulder throws.” Caruso said.
Caruso also said he was looking for an athletic punter for this class, and he landed on high school recruit Landen Sturges from Owatonna, Minnesota. Sturges is a four-sport athlete, playing both football and soccer in the fall.
Caruso expressed how he believes Sturges could make a play for the starting spot right away.
“I think he has the most dexterity and accuracy that I’ve ever been able to see here in a punter,” Caruso said. “He can place that ball a lot of different places, and it was fun to watch. He was a guy who really leaned in and wanted to be a great teammate for his team. He’ll also fight for kickoff reps as well.”
Former UST punter Elliot Huether led the PFL in yards per punt in 2025 before announcing on his personal Instagram that he was moving on from the university.
Caruso highlighted Buffalo sophomore quarterback Anthony Policare as one of the biggest transfers in this class. Caruso said senior Amari Powell is currently number one ahead of Spring ball, but “the position’s always open.”
“I said to (offensive coordinator) Coach MacIntyre, ‘give me your three most, in your opinion, competitive quarterbacks that we have in the portal,’” Caruso said. “Anthony was on the top of the list.”
The Tommies also maintained strong academic standards within the class. The group carries an average high school GPA of 3.7. Business and engineering remain the most common intended majors among incoming players, followed by pre-med and health science, as well as computer science and psychology.
Caruso expresses how proud he is of psychology making its way into the top five majors of the new signing class.
“I think one of the things that sets us apart is understanding human behaviors, understanding societal differences in norms, and being empathetic as a team, and psychology is a big part of that,” Caruso said. “It’s a big part of our program. It’s part of what we talk about often, and a lot of our guys are starting to get into that, even if they are a business major or an engineering major, picking that psychology up as a second major is something that we’re starting to see tick up.”
The Tommies will look to integrate the new signees as they continue preparing for the upcoming season, with the transfers already enrolled and on campus.
“Our staff does a tremendous job putting a class together like this,” Caruso said. “Especially as the climate continues to change throughout college football, but when it all comes together and you have a day like today, it’s pretty fun to be able to celebrate.”
Reagan Boschulte can be reached at bosc3829@stthomas.edu.
