MIAC Profiles of Excellence: Paul Sommerstad, University of St. Thomas

Deciding on a college can be a difficult journey, particularly for an athlete who is recruited by numerous schools. Weighing the options and advantages each of the schools offers can be a complex process. For Paul Sommerstad, the process of elimination was based on deciding what he wanted in a college. That led him to his decision to enroll at the University of St. Thomas.

“I was recruited by a lot of Division II and III schools in the area,” Paul recalled. “I decided early that I wasn’t interested in the D-II schools, because of the extra demands of playing sports at that level. I wanted a school with good academic programs. I wasn’t sure what I wanted to major in but was pretty sure it would be something in Business. I almost didn’t play sports in college, then thought about playing basketball as well as football, but finally decided to just play football.”

Paul grew up in Apple Valley, one of the far southern suburbs of the Twin Cities. “We lived in Eagan, a neighboring suburb, till I was five,” he said. “But Apple Valley has been home for me.” Paul has a younger brother, Pat, who is a freshman at UST. “He’s an outside linebacker. It’s really nice having Pat as a teammate this season.”

Apple Valley is part of the Apple Valley-Rosemount-Eagan school district. When Paul was entering ninth grade, the district opened a new senior high school, Eastview. “We lived inside the boundaries of the Eastview part of the district,” said Paul. “While I could have opted to go to one of the other high schools in the district, I was fine with going to Eastview. That first year, there were no seniors.”

Paul was a standout player in football and basketball. He also dabbled with track for a spring. “I played baseball growing up but I didn’t play my freshman year, “said Paul. “I had a good relationship with the track coach, so I decided to go out for track my sophomore year.” Paul competed in the 300 meter hurdles that year. He chose to forgo track his junior and senior years, choosing to spend more time in the weight room. “I wanted to bulk up for football.”

On the hard court, Paul spent his freshman year on the JV but moved to the varsity after that, playing forward. As a sophomore, he was the sixth man. Eastview finished 17-7 that season, which remains the best record in Eastview history. The Lightning were upset in the second round of Sectional play. Paul moved into the starting lineup as a junior. In his junior and senior years, Eastview finished .500, and lost in the early rounds of Sectional play. Paul earned All-Conference Honorable Mention as a junior and made the All-Conference team his senior year. He was also named to the Academic All-State team his senior year.

Paul was part of the Eastview football program all four years. “I spent my freshmen year on the freshman team,” said Paul. “There was a quasi-rule that no freshmen could play on the varsity.” The following year, he split time between the sophomore team and the varsity, playing wide receiver. Paul converted to cornerback for his junior year and won a starting spot. He started at free safety his senior year. “We had a lot of good players on the team that year,” recalled Paul. “We reached the Section final. We lost to unbeaten Rochester John Marshall, ending our season.”

Paul’s play caught the eyes of many of the coaches in Division II and III in the area. He pretty quickly decided he didn’t want to go to a Division II school, as he wanted a more balanced college life and felt the emphasis on sports at Division II would hinder that. He focused his search on the Division III schools in the area. “I took part in Minnesota Private College Week in my junior year,” he stated. “During that week, I spent time at St. Thomas, Saint John’s, Hamline and Macalester. I was impressed with the academics at all four schools. Saint John’s recruited me pretty hard for football. Gary Fasching, one of their defensive coaches, kept in pretty regular contact with me. I really liked the school and its campus.”

St. Thomas also recruited Paul hard for football. “Head Coach Don Roney talked to me a lot and came to some of our games,” said Paul. “I wasn’t sure what I wanted out of college, but I was pretty sure I was going to major in Business or something related to that. St. Thomas’ Business program is top notch, and offers a lot of opportunities in the Twin Cities business community. Location was also a consideration. I liked the fact that UST was in the city.” Paul ultimately decided to enroll at St. Thomas.

He was an impact player on the Tommie defense his freshman year, working his way into the starting lineup as a defensive back. He finished fourth on the team in tackles with 52. He added a sack, a fumble recovery and a pair of interceptions. One of those pickoffs was a diving snare with 1:10 left that preserved UST’s 28-27 win over Gustavus. The Tommies finished 7-2 in MIAC play (7-3 overall) and in sole possession of third place.

UST finished in a three-way tie for third in Paul’s sophomore year. He started all ten games, recording 63 tackles, fourth-most on the team. Despite missing one game his junior year—the only game of his career Paul has missed—he earned All-MIAC First Team honors. His 61 tackles included 14 in a game against Concordia. Paul was also named t the All-West Region team. Despite Paul’s play, the Tommies struggled and finished 3-5 on MIAC play, good for a tie for sixth, and 3-7 overall.

Paul was a Pre-Season All-America selection by Football Gazette this fall, and has been an important part of the Tommies’ success. With three games left, UST is 4-1 in MIAC play (5-1 overall), and trails Saint John’s for second place by half a game. Coach Roney gives him considerable credit for the defense’s performance: “Paul has been a tremendous leader for our team. Paul is in charge of our defensive backfield, he is a calming influence on guys because of his experience but he is also a hitter that gets our team motivated with his big hits.”

Teammate John Kaiser echoes Coach Roney: “Paul is a great leader. Being the free safety, in our defense he has a lot of responsibilities. He does a great job of communicating our alignments, or audibling a change of defense. On the field, Paul is one of the most intense competitors we have on our team, which helps to provide a focus and drive for our defense, and team as a whole. Paul is a very unselfish person, who really puts the team, and winning, first.”

Off the field, Paul has been very involved in his community. He has been active in the Student Athletic Advisory Committee, serving as Co-President his junior and senior years. “I wasn’t a rep my sophomore year, but went to a lot of the meetings, and got involved,” he said. “We’re working on getting improvements to the athletic facilities. We’ve worked with the Athletic Department on improving the visual impression of athletics. We’ve done this through things like banners commemorating UST’s championships in various sports as part of the “100 Years of Athletics” program last year. We’ve also worked on improving the visual appearance of the trophy cases.”

Paul has also been involved in Student Government, serving as a student athletic representative last year. He's been a volunteer tutor; participated in neighborhood clean-up days; has joined his teammates as a volunteer worker for the St. Thomas faculty/staff family Christmas party volunteer the last three years; and last year was co-director for the campus Toys-for-Teens drive.

Off campus, Paul remains active in his church at home, and has been a church confirmation sponsor to a youth in the parish. Last spring semester he was a volunteer one day each week with Native American youth at Minneapolis South High School helping as a tutor and with weight training and conditioning. He also volunteers one day a week at an elementary school, helping third and fourth graders improve their reading skills.

This fall, he was recognized for his community service by the American Football Coaches Association (AFCA), which named him one of 22 college football players nationally named to the 2004 Good Works Team. The AFCA team honors 11 Division I-A seniors and 11 seniors from Divisions I-AA, II, III and NAIA for exceptional community service beyond their classroom and on-field commitments. He is the seventh Tommie to be honored by the AFCA, joining Mark Warder (1998), Greg Kaiser (1999), Mike Westland (2000), Brian Brenberg (2001), Andrew Hilliard (2002) and John Kaiser (2003) as AFCA Good Works recipients.

“I think Paul's actions really speak for themselves,” said John Kaiser. “He is constantly doing volunteer work, and giving his time to help others. During the season, I know Paul is volunteering with 3rd and 4th grade students at a Minneapolis elementary school. I think his being named to the AFCA Good Works Team was only fitting for someone of Paul's character. Overall, the way in which Paul carries himself is a very good example for the younger guys on the team, and the children he is working with as well. Off the field, I think Paul is very laid back, and easy to get along with. He is usually the one who keeps everyone loose and on their toes with some weird comment or action. Paul is very fun to be around.”

Paul is a Financial Management major with an Economics minor. He sports a 3.58 GPA and will graduate this spring. He is exploring option in the banking industry as a financial advisor. “Ideally, I'd like to work for a financial advisory company,” he said. “I’d like to work in Financial Planning, doing things like helping manage 401(k) accounts and help families save and plan for college and retirement.”

He would prefer to stay in the Twin Cities or Chicago, but hasn’t ruled out relocating further away, if the right position presents itself. Grad School is an option, “but not a high priority now. Maybe once I’ve been working and the right situation comes up, then I will go to Grad School.”

This past summer, Paul worked for All Star Financial in Edina, a suburb of Minneapolis. “It’s run by a bunch of Oles,” said Paul with a laugh, as many of the people at All Star are graduates of MIAC rival St. Olaf College. ”But I really enjoyed it there.” At All Star, Paul worked with both individual financial planning and corporate planning. “I did things for them that I want to do after I graduate,” he said. “It was an excellent experience.”

Paul feels very fortunate for the time he has spent at St. Thomas. “I will be leaving here with a great education,” he said. “Plus, I’ve been associated with some remarkable people here—people I’ve met through athletics, classes and professors I’ve had. I wasn’t super gung-ho on playing sports in college. Playing football here has been great. It has been an experience I didn’t expect to have.”

Coach Roney feels fortunate to have Paul around. “He is the type of person that as a coach you are very proud of, he has been a four year starter at St. Thomas and has always been mature. Paul has had an excellent career here at St. Thomas and he has meant a tremendous amount to our program, especially with his leadership on the field and off.”