Coach Caruso has engineered a huge turnaround at St. Thomas in his four years taking them from a bottom-dwelling team to two straight undefeated regular seasons. He has developed a national reputation for installing dynamic, high-scoring attacks on offense in his previous stops at Macalester, South Dakota and North Dakota State. Caruso, as the 2010 recipient of the Liberty Mutual Coach of the Year Award, is instrumental in the St. Paul community and helped start a charitable organization with the money from the award. He is known for developing both winners on and off the field as he has had at least one player named to the AFCA Good Works team for a record 12 straight years.
2011 ON FIELD RESULTS
Regular Season Record: 10-0
D-III Playoff Seeding: 2nd
COMMUNITY COMMITMENT
- Created Bucky’s Pride Foundation (with the money from the Liberty Mutual Coach of the Year Award)- a foundation set up to support the families of children dealing with cancer and blood disease (as he himself was diagnosed with a rare blood disorder at an early age)
- Founder of the Reading Recess Program where athletes and students read to youngsters on a weekly basis
- Team participated in 2011 Up ‘Til Dawn Benefit with players writing 2,000 letters to garner support for the award
- Coach helps with Toys for Tots, Relay for Life and Coats for Kids
- Coach holds annual youth football camp in St. Paul
- Donates both time and money to Listening House for the Homeless, Old Timers Club, UST Business Challenge and Time to Fly Children’s Cancer Research
- Coach has made donations to various elementary schools throughout the area
- Volunteers at the Relay for Life event for the American Cancer Society as well as at the annual Vision Walk for the Foundation for Fighting Blindness
Awards
*At age 36, Coach Caruso became the youngest ever recipient of the Liberty Mutual Coach of the Year award when he won it in January 2011 *In 2010, Caruso was also voted the AFCA Regional Coach of the Year as well as MIAC Conference Coach of the Year.