Perhaps more so than any other college program in the area, Holy Cross gets overlooked far too much.

A legitimate FCS contender every season now under head coach Bob Chesney, the Crusaders will hit the field at UConn on Saturday looking to open the season with a little bit of history. Holy Cross hasn’t beaten an FBS team since winning on the road at Army in 2002.

It would be a heck of a way to start the road to three-peating as Patriot League champions and an opportunity to create some invaluable momentum right out of the gate. Holy Cross received 45 points and five first-place votes to finish atop the league’s preseason poll, so everyone else expects them to continue having success as well.

In the original depth chart ahead of the UConn game, Chesney is keeping everyone on their toes as both Matt Sluka “or” Marco Siderman are listed at QB. In his defense, Chesney had said they’d be rolling with both guys this year throughout the summer. Arguably the strongest position on the Crusaders roster is running back with seniors Peter Oliver and Jonathan Abrams back and looking to go out as champions.

Spencer Gilliam and Ayir Asante are the 1-2 guys at receiver, but the position has good depth with Connor Kennedy, Jalen Coker, Tenio Ayeni and big man Jack Jewell (6’3, 205) all looking to make an impact. Sean Morris and Cullen Honohan are both listed at 235 lbs. and Morris is 6’4, so the tight end position should be a huge strength as well.

There’s some youth up front with sophomore Luke Newman listed as the starting left tackle and junior Pat McMurtrie slotted into the top right guard position. John Brekke will be at left guard and senior Nick Olsofka will run the ship at center.

Defensively, experience and leadership will be key since the Crusaders currently have nine seniors slotted into starting spots. Benton Whitley and Dan Kuznetsov will start at defensive end with Noah Johnson and Jason Modak in the middle. Liam Anderson and Liam Doran are both back at middle linebacker with junior Jacob Dobbs getting a starting nod as well. Devin Haskins is the lone junior in the secondary at corner. John Smith is slotted in the opposite CB slot with Grant Holloman (SS), Terrell Prince (WS) and Walter Reynolds (FS) all starting the year as “1’s” at their position.

Derek Ng had a solid year kicking in 2021 and returns for his senior year with freshman Jack Norris behind him. Ng will also punt if necessary but that job is currently reserved for Patrick Haughney. Tyler Purdy, Asante and Jared Kreimer are all listed as possible kick off and punt return specialists.

There is a legitimate chance that Holy Cross beats UConn on Saturday afternoon in Connecticut, but if they don’t I truly believe it will be their final loss of the season. That’s not to say that the Patriot League is some cakewalk because it’s obviously not, but when you look at the amount of upperclassmen – talented upperclassmen at that – that are back and you combine it with two young, explosive quarterbacks and speed at the skill positions, it’s hard to believe the Crusaders won’t be right back on top of the league again and making noise in the FCS postseason.

Following the loss to South Dakota State in the FCS playoffs, Chesney talked about his team having to remember the feeling and carry it with them throughout the offseason whether they were in the cafeteria or the weight room. It’s not every day you get to play the No. 1 team in the country in that type of atmopshere.

Just a few months later, the Crusaders are ready to get back on the field and start their journey back to that spot.