Allianz Field is hosting the 89th annual “Tommie-Johnnie” rivalry football game this Saturday. The two NCAA DIII powerhouse programs meet once a year in the regular season for the historic rivalry.

The stadium, located off of Interstate 94 in St. Paul, is home to Minnesota United FC, the professional soccer team that competes in Major League Soccer in the U.S. Allianz Field opened its gates this past April for its debut season.

The day before the Loons host a crucial home playoff match, the venue will welcome a sold-out crowd to watch the venue’s first American football game there.

“This weekend is lining up to be one of the greatest weekends in Minnesota sports. The meaningfulness of this Johnnies-Tommies game, the possibility that it’s the last one in St. Paul, and then Minnesota United’s home playoff game in the MLS on Sunday, what an incredible weekend for sports it’s going to be,” Minnesota United CEO Chris Wright said.

“The fact that… it’s so close to the school, it makes all the sense in the world to host the Johnnies-Tommies game at Allianz Field.”

The turf at Allianz Field is grass, an unfamiliar surface for many college football players. However, the Tommies see no problem with it.

Running back Josh Parks is embracing the opportunity.

“It’s what we all played on growing up,” Parks said.

The grass was a major story ahead of the weekend, with Minnesota United announcing the replacement of the turf on Sept. 30 ahead of a probable home playoff game. Wright said the turf is “100 percent” ready to go, and it will be prepared for back-to-back games this weekend.

“We’ve made sure that the field is set for both Johnnies-Tommies and Minnesota versus the Galaxy,” Wright said.

Wright informed TommieMedia that there was never a possibility that the game date would have been changed or moved to a different venue. There were suspicions that the latter could have been a possibility due to the fact that Minnesota United hosts the Los Angeles Galaxy in the first round of the MLS Playoffs on Oct. 20, one day after Tommie-Johnnie.

“There was an agreement made this past Spring to host the game at Allianz Field, and we’re absolutely thrilled that we have the opportunity to host the Johnnie-Tommie rivalry,” Wright said.

The History

Although the game will be played at Allianz Field, it’s deemed a home game for St. Thomas with the Tommies choosing the venue.

In 2017, the Tommies hosted the Johnnies at Target Field, home to the Minnesota Twins. The game set a DIII attendance record with a crowd of 37,355, the largest crowd to ever attend a non-FCS football game.

Allianz Field already sold out the allocation of 19,400 tickets – the second highest expected attendance ever in a DIII game.

“It’s a game that we look forward to every single year. It’s been a lot of fun — Playing at Target Field, and even last year, I love (St. John’s) stadium – this year should hopefully be the best one,” St. Thomas running back Josh Parks said. “I think for us, it feels like a home game because we’re just going down the road.”

The two schools have been pitted against each other since 1920, competing in the Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference.

The No. 11 Tommies (4-1) will look to avenge a 2018 loss to the No. 4 Johnnies (4-0), where St. John’s quarterback Jackson Erdmann threw for a school record of 470 passing yards, and the Johnnies beat the Tommies 40-20.

“He’s a tremendous talent. There’s no doubt. He’s a really good football player and does a nice job of utilizing his skills, and we always love going against players like him,” Tommie football coach Glenn Caruso said. “It’s a fantastic rivalry that goes back many generations, but at the end of the day, what’s most important is we have two really good football teams playing good football.”

The Johnnies lead the rivalry 52-35-1, but the Tommies are 7-5 under Caruso.

The Tommies are looking to rebound with a statement win against the Johnnies, with pursuit of a MIAC title in mind.

Kickoff is scheduled for 1:10 p.m. Saturday at Allianz Field.

Jacob Schneider can be reached at schn6923@stthomas.edu.