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As Harvard enters the week at No. 25 in the Stats Perform FCS Top 25 Poll, the Crimson (2-0, 1-0 Ivy) is hoping to maintain an undefeated season as the third stop on its crusade for postseason contention brings the team to Holy Cross (0-5, 0-1 Patriot) at 2 p.m. on Saturday in Worcester, Mass.

Last year’s nail-biter against the Crusaders culminated in a failed two-point conversion by the Crusaders that was intercepted by then-sophomore defensive back Damien Henderson — helping the Crimson survive the game despite errors on both sides of the ball.

So far this season though, the Crimson’s play on both sides of the ball has been stellar. Harvard has scored 100 points across its first two games for the first time since 1932. And last week, the Crimson lived up to its potential, flawlessly dominating Brown to open its Ivy League season.

Holy Cross, a perennial Patriot League contender, sits at just 0-1 in conference play and has a viable path to winning their seventh straight Patriot title. Though the Crusaders have yet to win a game, the Crimson has been careful not to underestimate a team that has lost nearly all of its games by less than one possession.

“The goal for us, obviously, is to make this thing competitive very early, stay and fight, and give ourselves an opportunity down the stretch to pull this one out,” said Crusaders’ head coach Dan Curran.

“I’m definitely super excited for the opportunity with the guys. If we can keep the momentum going and keep doing our job, we’ll come out with a win,” Harvard captain Ty Bartrum said.

Senior quarterback Jaden Craig — coming off a 317-yard, four touchdown performance against Brown that earned him Walter Payton FCS Player of the Week honors — has drawn national attention with his pocket presence, mobility, and accuracy, including from several NFL scouts.

“There’s a reason why he’s a legitimate NFL draft prospect, and they got a very good offensive line,” Curran said of the Crimson’s offense.

Without star wideout Cooper Barkate — who’s currently leading the ACC in receiving yards at Duke — Craig has transitioned to his new weapons seamlessly. With a backfield of sophomore D.J. Gordon and junior Xaviah Bascon leading the way, offensive coordinator Mickey Fein is poised to continue distributing more touches to the skilled duo.

A plethora of tight ends and receivers have filled Barkate’s shoes, including junior Seamus Gilmartin, senior Cam Henry, and senior Dean Boyd. Having completed 77% of his passes with zero interceptions, Craig and company will hope to keep the ball out of the Crusaders’ hands.

“It's led to the success we’ve had in these first two games, being as positive as we are in turnover margin,” Aurich added.

Obsession over the ball is a mentality that’s carried over to the defensive unit as well for the Crimson.

“The ball, the ball, the ball,” Henderson said. “That’s the most important thing in the program. Turnover differential is probably the most telling stat in win or loss.”

Bartrum has played a critical role at safety all season, and against Holy Cross last year, recovered a fumble for an 88-yard touchdown. Now, the captain says the game will come down to Harvard’s ability to execute on all fronts.

“We’re going to need to be on our P’s and Q’s in terms of execution, assignment, alignment,” he said.

Henderson, who had the game-winning interception last year, believes that the Crimson can avoid another back-and-forth game by firing on all cylinders of play.

“You don’t want it to come down to overtime or even a last second play,” said Henderson, now a third-year starter. “We’ve got to do all the little things and just do everything we can to not get into those situations and win the game on our terms.”

So far this season, the Crimson has executed at the highest level. The team currently sits near the top of the FCS in multiple categories, including offensive sacks allowed (first), team passing efficiency (second), defensive yards allowed (first), and red-zone defense (first).

Regardless of how well the team has played so far — and the fact that the Crusaders are currently winless — Harvard still highly regards its competition.

“They could easily be 4-1 right now, and we shouldn’t think any different of them just because they did lose those close games,” said second-year head coach Andrew Aurich. “We should understand that we’ve got to make sure we do execute at a high level because their back is completely against the wall here.”

Making the trip down I-90, the Crimson will be met with a ferocious and excited Crusader fanbase, hungry for its first win of the year.

“It also happens to be Homecoming weekend, Hall of Fame weekend, so it’s a big one for our program and for school. And our guys are excited to get back out against a very talented Harvard football team,” Curran said.

The focus won’t change for the talented Harvard squad. The Crimson will continue to be focused on the mantra that has defined the Aurich era: going 1-0 on the week.

“They’re going to be motivated to coming in here,” Aurich said. “We know we got to execute at a high level and that's what we’ve done the last two weeks.”

– Staff writer Connor Castañeda can be reached at connor.castaneda@thecrimson.com. Follow him on X @castanedasports.

—Staff writer Elyse C. Goncalves can be reached at elyse.goncalves@thecrimson.com. Follow her on X @e1ysegoncalves.

—Staff writer Akshaya Ravi can be reached at akshaya.ravi@thecrimson.com. Follow her on X @akshayaravi22.