St. Thomas announced its first nonconference Division I football opponents Monday, with games planned against Northern Iowa, South Dakota and North Dakota starting this fall.

The Tommies, who will begin transitioning to D-I in July, will play at Football Championship Subdivision powerhouse Northern Iowa on Sept. 18. They also have scheduled a home game against Northern Iowa on Sept. 7, 2024, and games at South Dakota (Sept. 9, 2023) and North Dakota (Sept. 5, 2026). St. Thomas will play in the Pioneer League for football, with this fall's eight-game league schedule expected to be announced soon.

All three Tommies opponents are members of the Missouri Valley Football Conference, one of the nation's premier FCS leagues. Northern Iowa, which begins its pandemic-delayed season this weekend, is ranked third in Athlon's preseason FCS poll.

RACHEL BLOUNT

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• Gophers senior golfer Angus Flanagan won a playoff on the third sudden-death hole and earned an exemption into the PGA Tour's Genesis Invitational this weekend at Riviera Country Club in Los Angeles. Flanagan made his tour debut at last year's 3M Open

• Gophers senior Stephanie Samedy was named Big Ten volleyball player of the week for the second week in a row following her team's sweep of No. 8 Penn State. The Gophers (8-0) remained ranked No. 5.