MIAC Profiles of Excellence: Steve Groth, University of St. Thomas

Many kids stop playing a sport in the course of their high school years, for a variety of reasons. Most leave for good, but some come back before their high school years are over. It is unusual, though, for someone to quit a sport in high school and take it back up again in college after a five year absence. It is hard to imagine them being successful after that long of a break. But that is the path Steve Groth of the University of St. Thomas football team has taken towards becoming one of the most respected and feared defensive backs in the conference.

“I played football in ninth grade, but in the first week of practice of my sophomore year, I just didn’t feel playing football was the right thing for me to do, so I quit,” said Steve. “It wasn’t until my sophomore year at St. Thomas that I really thought about playing again. I went out my junior year, made the team, and have been helping the team ever since.”

Steve was born and raised in Apple Valley, MN, one of the far southern suburbs of the Twin Cities. He and his brother Mike attended schools in the Apple Valley-Rosemount-Eagan school district. “Mike’s two years younger than me,” said Steve. “He is a junior at St. Thomas now. He played football here last year, but chose not to this year.”

After attending Rosemount High for his freshman year, Steve enrolled at Eastview, which was a brand new high school opening in the district. “It was Eastview’s first year, and there were no seniors,” said Steve. “We lived in the Eastview part of the district. I could have used open-enrollment to stay at Rosemount, but I decided against that. My class was the second class to graduate from Eastview.”

That fall, Steve went out for football, and was slated to be one of the starting cornerbacks. During the first week of practice, Steve began to have doubts about playing. “It was a combination of things,” he recalled. “Because there were no seniors, there was a lack of leadership on the team. There were a lot of new faces, people I didn’t recognize. It just was something I was not comfortable with; I just didn’t feel it was the right thing I should be doing.”

Over the weekend, he discussed his feelings with his dad and phoned the coach and expressed his concerns to him. “The three of us sat down and talked about it,” aid Steve. “They tried to talk me out of it. I have a stubborn streak and I had made up my mind. Nothing they could say was going to change my mind.” After that, Steve left the team and focused on basketball.

Steve had played on the frosh team at Rosemount. As a sophomore, he was the starting point guard on the Eastview JV for the first two games, as well as suiting up for varsity. In the second varsity game, he came off the bench and canned 11 points in eight minutes of playing time. After that, he started every game on the varsity.

That first year was a formative year for Eastview and the basketball team struggled to a 7-17 finish and was eliminated early in the playoffs. In Steve’s junior year, the Lightning caught fire in midseason, reeling off nine consecutive wins, beating every conference foe in that run. They finished the year 17-7, losing in an upset in the second round of regional play. “That is still the best record in Eastview history,” said Steve with a wry smile.

In his senior year, Steve led the Lightning to a 12-12 record, which included a loss in the second round of the playoffs. Steve was voted team captain his junior and senior years and his teammates voted him team Defensive Player of the Year both of those seasons. He was named to the All-Conference team his senior year after receiving Honorable Mention as a junior.

In addition to his achievements on the basketball court, Steve received the Lightning Award his senior year. “It’s an award given to one male and one female athlete for excellence in athletics and academics,” he explained.

In the summer between his sophomore and junior years, Steve played AAU basketball. “I played for the Minnesota Elite, which was in its first year,” he said. “It was a good way to get experience and exposure and to play against some good competition. We played in a number of tourneys around Minnesota, as well as in Nebraska and Las Vegas.”

That was Steve’s only summer of AAU ball, but starting in his junior year of high school, he began spending a lot of time in the weight room. “I didn’t have time for basketball that summer, as the aeration business was doing well,” said Steve.

Steve had always been working in the general landscaping field in the summers. “Back in middle school, I started mowing a few lawns, and over time added more clients to my list,” he said. That led to aeration. “The spring of my junior year, my friend, Tom Tan, and I bought a pair of used aeration machines,” Steve said. “We ended up making a lot more money than we planned. It was a great experience for both of us, though.”

As he looked at college options, Steve was more concerned with academics than athletics. ”I liked the idea that I could play basketball if I came to St. Thomas, but more importantly, I liked the reputation of the school’s business program,” Steve stated. “I also liked the fact that it was close to home and my business. I pretty much knew I was going to come to St. Thomas for a while before I officially decided. I looked at a couple of other places, and considered UW-River Falls and UM-Duluth, but neither one was ever a serious option.”

His freshman year, Steve played on the Tommie JV basketball team. During that year, football coach Don Roney introduced himself to Steve and talked to him about considering coming out for football the following fall.

He opted to play intramural football and basketball in his sophomore year, and continued to spend a considerable amount of time in the weight room. There, he got to know assistant football coach Tom Flood. “Coach Flood and I talked a couple of times,” said Steve. “He got me thinking about playing football again. The more I thought about it, the more I wanted to do it. By spring of my sophomore year, I pretty much decided I was going to try out. I took part in informal conditioning and running sessions with guys on the team. As I got to know a number of the players, I felt more certain than ever that I should play.”

In the fall of 2002, after a five year absence from the game, Steve was back in pads and cleats. He quickly worked his way into the starting lineup and became one of the pleasant surprises for the Tommies that season. He finished with 63 tackles, seven breakups and three interceptions. He broke the school record for tackles in a single game with 20 in the Tommies’ loss at Saint John’s.

“Steve is one of the best athletes I have ever been around,” said teammate John Kaiser. ”For him to have been away from organized football for as long as he was and step in and start at cornerback is a testament to that. In my opinion, that is one of the most difficult positions to play, and he is performing at an all-conference level. Steve exudes a quiet confidence that others on our team can feed off. He is not a very vocal guy, we have others on the team that fill that role, but by his actions and effort, he sets a great example in practice, and games.”

Last year, he racked up 73 tackles, five breakups and three interceptions. He was named to the All-MIAC Second Team. Thus far this season, Steve is the Tommies’ leader in interceptions with two (through four games), and has 24 tackles, including 17 unassisted. He also has one forced fumble.

After football season last year, Steve decide to take a stab at running track. “I was talking with our other cornerback, Jeremy Krentz, about offseason training, and the idea of running track came up,” said Steve. ”Not having run competitively before, I really didn’t know what I was getting myself into.” He ended up placing fourth in the MIAC meet in the 100 meter dash and ninth in the 200. “My success is a tribute to coach [Steve] Mathre. He trains his athletes so they are at their peak for big meets.” Steve isn’t planning to run track again this year, calling last spring “a wonderful, one-time adventure.”

Because he hadn’t played his first two years at St. Thomas, Steve had eligibility left to use this fall. The more he thought about it, the more he wanted to play one final season, so he arranged his class load so he would graduate in December instead of last May. “I kind of knew all along I was going to come back for this year” he stated. “Seeing how much joy my dad got from coming to our games was a big part of that. Plus, I was enjoying playing and some of my closest friends are guys from the team. Being part of the game last year where Saint John’s coach {John] Gagliardi got his 409th win convinced me to come back for this fall. That game was just such an incredible experience to be part of that I wanted one more year.”

According to coach Roney, “Steve is a very interesting character. He is very intense on the field and very quiet off the field. He has tremendous strength and is a tremendous athlete. To give you an example, last spring Steve went out for track to keep himself in shape and he ended up finishing fourth in the conference in the 100 meter dash. We don’t have other guys walking around our campus that could do that. Steve is a quiet leader but an excellent leader because of his great skills. He got a late start in football at St. Thomas but his performance is a tribute to how hard he has worked at it. Steve has a great sense of humor and is an excellent person it just takes a little longer to get to know him.”

Away from the playing field, Steve is involved in several community service projects with his teammates. “This is my first year of being involved in the team project of working with Habitat for Humanity, “he said. “But for the past two years, I’ve been involved with some of the guys from the team in helping put on a Christmas party for the kids of the faculty here at St. Thomas. It was a lot of fun, and I expect to be involved in it again this December.”

Steve is a Marketing major with a 2.85 GPA. He will graduate in December. He is currently interning with 3M in their Marketing department, and very much enjoys the work. “It is a great learning experience for me,” he stated. “I’d like to eventually become a sale rep for 3M, or work in a similar capacity. I’m a big outdoors enthusiast, so I could see myself going into sales for Columbia or any other maker of hunting and fishing equipment.”

“As a friend, I didn't really know Steve until he came out for football,” said Kaiser. “We were both the same class in school, but I guess I really never ran into him around campus. Now, we hang out all the time together. Steve lives with his family in Apple Valley, but stays at my apartment a few nights a week to cut down on drive time during rush hour, and all that. We generally do almost everything together, which is nice because we each have someone our own age to relate to. Steve is an exceptional cook. Every Monday, he cooks a big meal for a bunch of guys. So far, we've had ravioli made from scratch, and pork loins, to go along with stuffing and whatever else he feels like preparing. So, that's also an added bonus to having Steve on the team.”

Looking back, Steve has some regrets his decision to give up football in high school. “Now, in hindsight, not playing was a big mistake. But at the time, it seemed right and things have worked out well for me.”

Conversely, he is more than satisfied with his choice to enroll at St. Thomas, as well as his decision to come back to the gridiron. “St. Thomas has been the right place for me to be. I’ve been able to expand my horizons here. I’ve made friends here that I know I’ll keep for life. The academics, athletics and the relationships with my friends and teammate—things that are important to me—are things I will remember when I look back.