Holy Cross football holds off Bryant surge, hikes record to 10-0
WORCESTER — Holy Cross seniors played in their final regular-season home game Saturday, but if all goes according to plan, they will be back at Fitton Field for playoff football in a couple of weeks.
Nationally ranked HC, which last weekend captured its fourth straight Patriot League championship and automatic Football Championship Subdivision postseason berth, survived a second-half Bryant surge and defeated the Bulldogs, 36-29, to run its record to 10-0.
Next Saturday at Georgetown, the No. 5/6 Crusaders can match the great 1987 and 1991 HC teams, which both finished the regular season 11-0, and likely solidify a top-eight seed and first-round bye for the playoffs.
“It’s great to be able to get the ‘W’ on Senior Day,” said HC senior safety Walter Reynolds, whose fourth-quarter interception in the end zone was one of the biggest plays of the game. “We’re excited. This ride has been amazing.”
Holy Cross has won nine straight at home, and 15 consecutive regular-season games.
HC senior running back Peter Oliver of Auburn and St. John’s High rushed for a season-high 140 yards and two touchdowns. In the second quarter, HC senior kicker Derek Ng set a program record for longest field goal with a 52-yarder.
The HC defense dominated Bryant, which came in averaging 33.6 points, in the first half. The Crusaders held the Bulldogs to 48 yards and five first downs over the first 30 minutes and had two takeaways, and HC jumped to a 22-0 halftime lead.
In the second half, though, the Bulldogs (3-7) certainly showed flashes of their fifth-ranked passing offense. Sophomore quarterback Zevi Eckhaus threw for 313 of his 348 yards in the second half, and three touchdowns.
“I think they committed to strictly the pass game (in the second half),” Holy Cross coach Bob Chesney said. “In the first half, they tried to be more balanced. In the second half, they said, ‘We’re going to throw the ball over and over and over again.’ They had some nice route concepts and found us in a couple different coverages. We made some good adjustments. We had some bodies on people, but we just didn’t make the play.
“After the first half, I thought we were in really good shape,” Chesney said. “Then that all kind of changed.”
Bryant opened the second half with a 10-play, 75-yard scoring drive. Eckhaus’ 20-yard touchdown pass to junior Landon Ruggieri got the Bulldogs within 36-26 of HC with 8:27 left. Bryant got in the red zone twice more in the last six minutes. The first time, Eckhaus’ 41-yard completion moved the Bulldogs to the HC 7. On second-and-goal, Reynolds intercepted Eckhaus in the end zone.
“It’s just the preparation that goes into it,” said Reynolds, who had a fumble recovery in the first half, “watching film, understanding what the other team is trying to do. I saw the man in front of me, and I read his release, and I was able to know what was coming, and I made a play. That preparation is key.”
'A tough game'
Later, Bryant drove to the HC 19, but settled for a field goal with 3:36 to play.
The Crusaders were 2 of 7 on third down in the second half and went three-and-out on two late fourth-quarter possessions, but sophomore running back Jordan Fuller sealed the win with a long first-down run with seconds left.
“It was a tough game,” said Holy Cross junior quarterback Matthew Sluka, who was 12 of 21 for 144 yards and TD passes to Phoenix Dickson and Justin Shorter. “The first half we had it going our way. They came back and had some answers. Everyone fought hard and stepped up in the end.”
Oliver, who helped key HC’s running game last week against Lehigh, powered through Bryant’s defense on touchdown runs of 34 and 39 yards.
“It was impressive to watch him run the ball the way he did,” Chesney said. “Lowering his pad level, finding seams and then just taking off when he had to − how tough and how physical.”
In the fourth quarter, tempers flared on the Bryant sideline following a HC punt return, resulting in unsportsmanlike penalties against both teams and the ejection of a Bulldogs player.
When things settled down, Oliver rushed for his second TD as the Crusaders took a 36-19 lead with less than 10 minutes left.
Holy Cross had the ball for more than half of the second quarter during a 17-play possession that ate up 8:21 on the clock.
The Crusaders drove inside the Bryant 20, but penalties (four for 35 yards), stymied HC. One of the flags was for a false start when Ng lined up for a 47-yard FG. The infraction moved back Ng to his record-setting distance.
“I was actually selfishly happy,” Ng said with a laugh, “because I was at that range where I have plenty of distance going that direction downwind, and then 52 should have been fine. In the back of my mind, I hate thinking about, ‘Oh my God, this is the record,’ but I just focused getting through the ball and having my own swing, and it worked.”
Holy Cross had 470 yards of offense, Bryant 404.
“It was a tale of two halves,” Chesney said. “It wasn’t quite enough today on a lot of fronts, but bend don’t break. That quarterback and those receivers are great. You have to give them credit. When all is said and done, we have to continue to play better football.
“It’s not the greatest,” Chesney said, “but it’s a win, especially on Senior Day, to be able to celebrate these seniors and how far they’ve come, how hard they worked to get to this moment. I’m glad we could send them off Fitton Field for the regular season with a win.”
Contact Jennifer Toland at jennifer.toland@telegram.com. Follow her on Twitter @JenTolandTG
This article originally appeared on Telegram & Gazette: Holy Cross football runs past Bryant to improve to 10-0
