COLLEGEVILLE, Minn. – The Saint John's University football team will travel to Regina, Saskatchewan, in May for two practices and in two controlled scrimmages on Saturday, May 7, head football coach Gary Fasching announced Wednesday, March 16.

The Johnnies are scheduled to make the 11-hour trip Friday, May 6, and scrimmage the Regina Thunder, a member of the Canadian Junior Football League, twice before returning May 8. Practice will be held Saturday morning, followed by a scrimmage in the afternoon at Leibel Field. SJU made the same trip in 2013 prior to Fasching's first season as head coach.

The NCAA allows teams participating in an international trip, which is permitted to each institution once every three years, 10 padded practices. The extra practices are in addition to the seven non-padded spring workouts, which begin April 3, that are allowed by the MIAC. SJU is expected to hold 15 of the 17 practices at SJU (six non-padded and nine padded).

"This will be a great opportunity for our staff and our team to start working together and get ready for the upcoming 2016 season," Fasching said. "We will use the extra practices to work on skill development and evaluate the talent we have coming back."

SJU is scheduled to hold its Red and White spring game at 1 p.m. Saturday, April 30, in Clemens Stadium. The Johnnies begins the 2016 campaign with preseason practice on Sunday, Aug. 14, and the season opener is scheduled for 1 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 3, vs. St. Scholastica.