Who says there's no spring football in Division III? The University of St. Thomas was able to play a full spring game this past week in preparation for its foreign tour.

Division III rules permit a school to play against foreign competition as often as one out of every three years. In getting ready for that trip, a team can have 10 fully padded spring practices.

Since those practices can only involve returning players, no incoming recruits, and only players who are going on the trip, usually there aren't enough players to have a full spring game. But since St. Thomas' foreign tour is to Winnipeg, a seven-hour drive away across the Canadian border, 85 suited up for practice, culminating in a Tommie-Tommie game on Sunday.

The normal Division III spring practice is 16 sessions spread over four or five weeks, without pads or helmets. Only in recent years did Division III schools vote to permit the use of an actual football. St. Thomas' conference, the Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference, restricts teams even further, to seven practices.

St. Thomas plays a Manitoba U23 all-star team. The Tommies went 7-3 last season, losing to St. John's in the closing minute on a disputed call at the goal line and falling to St. Olaf in six overtimes.

Thiel and Albright have taken advantage of the opportunity to play in Canada in recent years as well, while Hope has played in Mexico within the past decade. Every summer, several Division III schools also take advantage of the opportunity and travel to Europe.