The Yale Bulldogs host the Holy Cross Crusaders tomorrow at the Bowl in the Elis’ opening contest. Kickoff is slated for noon and the game will air on ESPN+.
Holy Cross enters the contest with an 0-3 record following close losses to Northern Illinois, New Hampshire, and Rhode Island. No opponent has scored more than 19 points on the Crusaders this season and Holy Cross was able to limit #6 Rhode Island to just 9 points last week in a 7-9 loss in Worcester. In Week 1, the Crusaders nearly pulled off an upset over a decent FBS squad in Northern Illinois, falling by just 2 points. Holy Cross’ three losses have been decided by a total of 7 points, so this is a dangerous, battle-tested squad to face early in the season.
The Crusaders’ offense is led by sophomore QB Cal Swanson (6’3”, 210 lbs.) who has completed just 53.4% of his passes this season for 407 yards, 1 touchdown, and 2 interceptions. Swanson is a transfer from Illinois and was originally a 3-star recruit out of high school. While Swanson is not as elusive as Sluka, he is a very capable runner who currently leads Holy Cross in rushing yards with 111 yards or 3.2 yards per carry. Swanson has struggled with accuracy as he completed just 48.3% of his passes versus Rhode Island without a touchdown. Junior RB Jayden Clerveaux (5’11”, 220 lbs.) is a very talented back who earned 1st Team All-Patriot League honors in 2024. Clerveaux has had a slow start to the 2025 season with only 108 rushing yards (3.3 yards per carry) and 2 touchdowns. Senior WR Max Mosey (6’0”, 200 lbs.) is also a returning 1st Team All-Patriot League performer and leads the Crusaders with 14 catches for 167 yards. Junior WR Charly Mullaly (6’0”, 195 lbs.) is another solid receiving option for Holy Cross and is 2nd on the team in receiving yards with 98. Senior TE Nathan Schillinger (6’4”, 250 lbs.) is a returning starter from 2024 and is a good run blocker who will occasionally be targeted on passes. Holy Cross’ offensive line averages 304.0 lbs. across the board and is led by senior G Cam Nolan (6’3”, 305 lbs.) who was a 2nd Team All-Patriot League selection in 2024. Three starters return from 2024, although the offensive line has struggled against the quality of the opposition giving up 12 sacks and paving the way for just 2.9 yards per carry through three games. The key for the Bulldogs in this contest will be to shut down the running game and force Swanson into uncomfortable passing situations on 3rd downs as Holy Cross has struggled to convert on 3rd downs with just a 29.0% conversion rate.
Holy Cross has a very impressive defense that is a notch above the squad from 2024. Senior S Tommy Bestpitch (5’11”, 195 lbs.) has been the most active defender early in the season with 22 tackles and half a tackle for loss. Junior CB Cam Jones (5’11”, 190 lbs.) could be the most talented defender on the roster and was a 2nd Team All-Patriot League honoree in 2024. Junior CB Eli Thompson (5’10”, 185 lbs.) is another experienced defensive back who has blanketed receivers and racked up an interception and two pass breakups through three games. The only newcomer in the defensive backfield is junior S Garrett Baldwin (6’0”, 185 lbs.) who is third on the team with 18 tackles. Junior LB Cam Santee (6’3”, 235 lbs.) is a returning starter who has played very well with 21 tackles, 2.5 tackles for loss, and 3 pass breakups. After starting at safety for the past two seasons, junior Carlo Crocetti (6’3”, 230 lbs.) has moved to linebacker and has been active in run support and pass support with 8 tackles and an interception. Sophomore LB Lathan Croley (6’0″, 210 lbs.) is very athletic for a linebacker and has racked up 13 tackles on the season. The defensive line is led by senior DE Christian Ross (6’2”, 250 lbs.) who has started since his sophomore season. Ross has been disruptive off the edge with 11 tackles, 2 tackles for loss and a sack. The interior of the defensive line is very stout featuring junior DT Brice Stevenson (6’1”, 295 lbs.) and sophomore DT Jordan Pritchard-Sewell (6’1”, 290 lbs.), both of whom have started since their freshman seasons. Yale will need to find a way to spring Pitsenberger loose in the running game to burn the clock and take pressure off of the inexperienced quarterback. While Reno does not typically showcase any exotic trick plays early in the season, creative play calling will be necessary to create home run threats against a tough defense.
Senior K Luis Palenzuela (6’0”, 200 lbs.) is 2 of 5 on field goal attempts this season with a long of 34 yards. Freshman K Owen Saraceno (5’8”, 170 lbs.) missed his only field goal attempt last week versus Rhode Island. Sophomore P Ethan Moss (5’10”, 190 lbs.) has played well with an average punt of 38.3 yards and two punts have gone over 50 yards in distance. In what is expected to be a very tight contest, Yale’s special teams units will need to limit the mental mistakes to secure a win.
Go Bulldogs! Beat the Crusaders!
5 replies on “Holy Cross Preview”
Regarding the lack of information coming out of Sports Information, and from the coaching staff, and the lack of promotion coming from the Athletic Department, the response is simple: when they come asking for donations, be as forthcoming with the funds as they’ve been with their updates.
I used to bring groups of people to the games . It was a tremendous experience. Hey Mr. H , I had a good time can we go again . I stopped doing it a few years ago.
The reason being, why should I care . When Yale doesn’t. ? I’m actually getting desensitized to the situation . I have some great memories. But Yale can pound sand
Where is everyone? Yale won today and looked decent in the second half. They wore down the very good HC defense.
I’M watching the game film with Coach Sidliecki (i.e. the game on ESPN on demand).
Good win for the boys in blue, Nico Brown is looking to be the next star receiver for the bulldogs, Holy Cross defense wasn’t able to handle Yale’s physicality. Defense looked great besides a couple of penalties, everybody was flying around.Also noticed that Egodogbare was not on the field but was on the sideline with a knee brace.