St. Thomas Aquinas to play in postseason bowl in Las Vegas
St. Thomas Aquinas’ season will go on after the Raiders won the Class 7A state championship on Saturday.
The undefeated Raiders accepted an invitation to play in the GEICO State Champions Bowl Series on Dec. 21 at Bishop Gorman High in Las Vegas, according to a press release from ESPN.
St. Thomas will play Saint Louis High from Honolulu, Hawaii, at 9:30 p.m., and the game will be broadcast live on ESPNU.
Saint Louis is ranked sixth in the nation by USA Today, while St. Thomas is No. 3.
“Playing in the [bowl series] is an honor,” offensive lineman and LSU signee Marcus Dumervil said.
St. Thomas’ opponent on Saturday, Saint Louis, is 13-0 and won the Hawaiian Division I Open Champion. This year’s title was the Crusaders’ fourth straight.
Saint Louis is led by a talented linebacker corps that includes four four-star prospects: senior Notre Dame signee Jordan Botelho, senior Wisconsin signee Nick Herbig, junior Wynden Ho’ohuli and junior Mason Tufaga.
“It’s going to be a tough, physical game,” Dumervil said, “and we just have to come out, play hard, play fast and just do our job to win the game.”
Saint Louis alumni include Tennessee Titans quarterback Marcus Mariota and Alabama Crimson Tide quarterback Tua Tagovailoa.
The Raiders played in the 2016 GEICO State Champions Bowl Series, beating
Utah’s Bingham High after winning the Class 7A title.
State athletic associations from Arizona, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Nevada, Utah and Washington have approved their teams to play in the bowl series.