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UNH set for big Saturday playoff matchup at Holy Cross

By Allen Lessels - UNH Athletic Communications | Dec 2, 2022

Max Brosmer and the Wildcats take on No. 8 seed Holy Cross in Worcester, Mass. on Saturday. (Courtesy photo by Gil Talbot/UNH Athletics)

DURHAM – The University of New Hampshire opened the 2019 season with a tough-to-take, 13-10, loss to the College of the Holy Cross, the last time the two team.

The two square off again on Saturday at noon back on Fitton Field in Worcester, Mass., in a second-round game in the NCAA FCS Division I tournament that carries high stakes.

The game features some notable locals. Nashua North and Merrimack alums Curtis Harris Lopez (safety) and Jared Dyer (defensive lineman) are sophomores at Holy Cross, while Merrimack alum Joe Eichman is a defensive back and Alvirne alum Brendan Graham a freshman tight end at UNH.

A very nice season will end for one of the teams. The other will advance to the Round of 16 to play either Delaware or No. 1 seed South Dakota State in the playoff quarterfinals. The Blue Hens play at South Dakota State on Saturday at 3 p.m.

That 2019 game in Worcester went down to the wire. UNH scored the first touchdown of the day with just under seven minutes left in the fourth quarter. The Wildcat defense came up with a huge stop on its own 2-yard line with just over two minutes to go, but as UNH tried to run out the clock, the ball was fumbled in the end zone and Holy Cross recovered for a winning TD,

“It’s coming full circle,” said UNH senior receiver and captain Brian Espanet, who along with several other seniors and team veterans played in his first game that day.

The game was an inadvertent passing of the torch, of sorts.

The Wildcats, a year removed from a historic run of 14 consecutive FCS playoff appearances, were coached on an interim basis by Rick Santos, who stepped in when Sean McDonnell stepped away for a season on a medical leave. UNH finished 6-5 and just outside the 24-team tournament.

Then came the pandemic and a year missed – the team played one game in the spring of 2021 – followed by a tough 2021 campaign after which McDonnell retired and Santos took over.

In the meantime, Holy Cross, under coach Bob Chesney, established itself as a New England power. In 2019, the Crusaders won the Ivy League and qualified for the NCAA tournament and finished 7-6 after a loss in the first round of the tournament.

They went to the FCS tournament again in the abbreviated 2020 season that was played in the spring of 2021 and again lost in the first round. 

Last year, Holy Cross went 9-2 in the regular season, won a playoff game against Sacred Heart and lost to Villanova in the second round, 16-10.

This year, the fifth under Chesney, the Crusaders have put it all together. They went 11-0 in the regular season, including a 53-52 overtime win over Fordham that helped secure the Patriot League championship, and a last-second 37-31 win over Buffalo, an FBS school. 

Holy Cross picked up the No. 8 seed in the tournament and thus had a first-round bye.

UNH earned its second-round spot with an impressive 52-42 win over Fordham at home last Saturday.

“For us, this is an opportunity to show we can be one of the best teams in New England,” Santos said. “Right now they are the best team in New England. The last four years have proven that. They’ve beaten some elite teams in our conference. They’ve beaten some elite teams in the Ivy League the last couple years. They’ve obviously handled themselves extremely well in the Patriot League.” 

The Wildcats are 9-3 overall and won a share of the Colonial Athletic Association championship with a 7-1 league mark.

With coordinator Brian Scott calling the shots and sophomore quarterback Max Brosmer and junior running back Dylan Laube leading the way behind a line that has been getting more and more productive, the offense has picked up the pace in recent weeks.

Laube had a school-record 424-all-purpose yards and scored four touchdowns against Fordham. He had 29 carries for 157 yards and three scores and four catches for 127 yards, including an 87-TD play on UNH’s second play from scrimmage that set the tone for the game.

The Wildcats averaged 24 points a game through their first seven contests. They averaged 39.8 points in their last five to push them to 30.6 points a game for the season.

“It’s good to know the gears are finally moving in the right direction,” said junior offensive lineman Matt O’Neill. “At this point, only this week is guaranteed so we’ve got to keep those gears rolling and translate the last couple of weeks into the next one.” 

The offense is up against a stingy Holy Cross defense.

The Crusaders, led by defensive coordinator Scott James, have allowed an average of 19.9 points a game, while the offense averages 39.1 points. James worked with the safeties at UNH for five years before moving over to Holy Cross for the last five.

On the flip side, Casey DeAndrade, an All American defensive back at UNH, spent the past three seasons at Holy Cross before returning to the Wildcats as an assistant coach working with defensive backs this season.

Brosmer passed for a career-high 348 yards with three touchdowns against Fordham. For the season, he’s completed 242 of his 384 passes (63 percent) for 2,915 yards with 25 touchdowns and five interceptions.

Santos challenged Brosmer going into the Fordham game to keep up with touted quarterback Tim DeMorat.

Holy Cross junior QB Matthew Sluka is dangerous, too, as a thrower and runner.

Sluka has passed for 25 touchdowns with three interceptions and has also run for 918 yards and eight scores.

Jordan Fuller, a sophomore running back from North Hampton, N.H., who played at Governor’s Academy, has rushed for 528 yards and 13 touchdowns.

Holy Cross ranks No. 3 in the FCS in turnover margin at plus-14. The Crusaders have not lost a fumble all season and have turned the ball over only four times.

The defense has 10 interceptions and eight fumble recoveries.

The Wildcats had three takeaways against Fordham, their best total since they had the same number in their opener against Monmouth.

Eichman, a junior safety from Merrimack, N.H., had a fumble recovery against Fordham and leads the team with four takeaways. Junior defensive back Randall Harris and redshirt freshman Brendan Tighe had interceptions against Fordham.

“Coach will always say, ‘Make sure you run to the ball because when you run to the ball, good things will always happen, whether it’s a tip, an overthrow, or whatever it may be,” Eichman said.

Eichman and the Wildcats will look to make good things happen again on Saturday.

“Going into the playoffs, we know it’s one and done, win or go home,” Eichman said. “Everything matters at this point and right now they do have the keys to be the king of New England. That’s how we’re looking at this game. We’re on a mission to get back on top and they’re the next team in our way.” 

 

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