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Hope Adebayo left Simley High School in 2019, weighing 185 pounds and eager to assist in St. Thomas’ transition from Division III to Division I football.
“I caught COVID coming in, of course,” he said. “Then I lost about 10 pounds. So I was really about 175.”
By the time he suited up for the Tommies, following that COVID year, Adebayo was a rock-solid 200 pounds and hard to bring down. And that has been a constant since 2021, as Adebayo enters his fourth season, part of a Tommies program that won seven games in its first D-I season and has not looked back.
Adebayo’s choice has worked out well for him, as he plays football while pursuing a degree in computer science. He plans to join his sister, Faith, a nurse, as a college graduate. His younger brother, Love, attends a junior college in California.
Faith. Hope. Love. Their parents, Emmanuel and Olu, are devout Christians and relied on the Bible when it was time to name their children. They also were willing to do anything to ensure a fine quality of life for them, immigrating to St. Paul from Nigeria in 2006, when Hope was a toddler. He eventually picked up football and became a star for the Simley Spartans before buying into St. Thomas coach Glenn Caruso’s promotion plan.
Adebayo rushed for 658 yards while scoring 12 touchdowns and was named the league’s freshman of the year in 2021. He rushed for 490 yards in eight games as a sophomore, then 766 yards last season. He was second team all-conference last season and was named to the Pioneer League’s honor roll.
Caruso uses multiple running backs during games, but Adebayo is the main ball carrier, rarely getting tackled for a loss while bowling over defenders.
“It’s tough,” said senior linebacker David Ayeni when asked about tackling Adebayo in practice. “He tries to make guys miss all the time. Him and I are roommates, so we will go over film together and talk football, and he let’s me know things I can do better, and I’ll do the same for him.
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