The entire country now knows what those of us locally have seen for a few years now.
Matt Sluka is one of the best quarterbacks in the country, FCS or FBS. Throughout his career at Holy Cross, Sluka has steadily progressed into the QB we see now. Big, athletic, can run, can throw on the run, has great touch and can launch a deep ball (usually to Jalen Coker) if need be. He’s even got a little Hail Mary magic in that right arm.
After winning Patriot League Rookie of the Year as a freshman, Sluka put up over 1,500 yards passing, 11 TD’s and had 166 carries for 868 yards and 14 TD”s as a sophomore. Last year, it was 203 rushes for 1,234 yards (the most by any FCS QB) and 14 TD’s. That was JUST on the ground. Through the air, Sluka nearly reached the 3,000-yard mark with 26 TD’s and only four picks.
This is Sluka’s team now in every sense. There’s no more surprising people. Defensive coordinators are losing sleep at night trying to find ways to defend him. What’s it like having all the attention now? What’s it like now knowing you’re THE guy for a team with national title aspirations.
“It’s definitely more responsibility for me,” he acknowledged during Media Day at the always beautiful Fitton Field on Thursday. “Just making sure the younger guys were on top of their work. Making sure they’re learning and they don’t need any help. Just doing my part in making sure the team grows and adapts. We still have more things to do. Overall, yeah, I think it’s more pressure – I guess – on me in that aspect, as a young guy I could just run around and make plays. Everyone was really excited for me, but now it’s my job to be a leader and I’m grateful for that opportunity. I’m just really excited and happy to be here with the young guys.”
The Crusaders enter this year ranked in the top five in various FCS polls and both Sluka and fellow senior Jacob Dobbs have gotten plenty of preseason accolades, as have other teammates. If you’ve ever met Matt Sluka, you know none of the attention is going to change is low-key demeanor.
“I wouldn’t say in my day-to-day it feels any different,” he said. “I mean, obviously it’s great and publicity is great just to see my name everywhere, it’s wonderful to have, but I don’t think my day-to-day operation and day-to-day work really changes much. You don’t really wake up and read those. You don’t wake up and read the articles. You just kind of wake up and go to practice and get ready for your day. You miss a throw here and there, you just want to work on those throws…just being ranked a number, it doesn’t mean much to me right now until it’s all done.”
Last year’s historic season will always be a cherished memory by everyone that was part of it, but the building process for Holy Cross under Bob Chesney has always been about getting better. Well, after losing in the NCAA quarterfinals to the eventual National Champions South Dakota State, Sluka and the rest of his teammates were just two steps away from seeing what the view from the top of the mountain looks like. They know what it takes to get there and Sluka in particular feels like he has some unfinished business.
Four straight Patriot League titles doesn’t cut it anymore and with arguably the best QB in the country leading the charge, the men in purple and white are hoping for a different ending to the story in 2023.
“Unfortunately, we fell short last year and so, we just know that last year wasn’t enough work,” Sluka added. “We’re really excited to go back this year. We saw the No. 1 team in the country win the National Championship and I think we gave them the best run they had, so that’s exciting obviously. But, you know, that doesn’t really mean much when we get to this year. We’ve got a lot of shoes to fill. A lot of the freshman have to step up, but overall, it’s exciting to see the progression we’re making as a team.
“Our culture has just been better than ever, so I’m really excited for that.”