Plane rides have not been kind to Richmond in 2026. Holy Cross pushed the Spiders around on both sides of the ball, dominating our defense on the ground while our offense once again failed to pull its weight.
Game Thoughts
For the 2nd straight road game, the Spiders couldn’t put it together. The way we lost was surprising, but the loss itself wasn’t a shock. We’ve continued to play with fire all season, and against a Patriot League contender on the road, we saw just how quickly our shortcomings could be exposed.
This past weekend was disheartening for a number of reasons. Losing control of our Patriot League and playoff destiny sucks, no doubt. We’re not out of it yet, but we now need help from others (more on that in the Villanova Preview). The defensive letdown wasn’t pretty either, as we saw just how much a dominant O-line can take over a game. But what hurt the most was watching our offense get off to such an excellent start in the biggest game of the year, only to unravel as the afternoon went along. There was so much to like in the opening quarter — running wider, targeting receivers downfield, and finally finding some offensive rhythm. Yet it all quickly disappeared, leaving us with the same questions we’ve been asking for months.
One sequence I do want to point out: Richmond led 14-13 at halftime and forced a quick 3 & out to open the 3rd quarter. Six plays later, we faced 4th & 2 from the Holy Cross 41-yard line. We took a delay of game and ultimately pinned the Crusaders deep, but Coach Huesman was irate on the sidelines after apparently wanting to call timeout and go for it. I’m not sure how that message didn’t get communicated in time, but that’s a fourth down I would’ve liked to see us attempt. Holy Cross followed with a 96-yard TD drive, and the Spiders crossed midfield just once more the rest of the afternoon. I’m not saying converting that 4th down would’ve changed the outcome, but if Huesman wanted to go for it, we needed to give ourselves that opportunity.
Offense
Another solid 1st quarter that fizzled fast. I always say I’m trying not to repeat myself, but two touchdowns on 11 drives is nothing new for this offense in 2026. For the fourth time in our last five games, we were held to 14 points or fewer.
2nd half offense — Another 2nd half that looked all too familiar. The contrast between our halves has become so stark that it’s really the only thing I want to discuss. I’ll dive deeper into the full-season trends next week, but the last three games tell us everything we already know.
Against Fordham, Colgate, and Holy Cross, we had 18 first-half drives. Six resulted in points — nothing spectacular, but respectable. Over those same three games, we had 15 second-half drives. Zero points. The Spiders’ offense hasn’t scored after halftime since Lafayette. Of those 15 drives, only two gained more than 25 yards. We’re not just failing to score; we’re barely moving the football, consistently losing the field-position battle and leaving our defense to play with its back against the wall.
To pour salt in the wound, our defense scored a second-half touchdown against Fordham, meaning the defense has actually outscored the offense after halftime over the last three games. That’s an easy way to end up with two conference losses.
Passing game — Our passing attack is becoming increasingly predictable, and our continued 2nd-half struggles suggest opposing defenses are adjusting faster than we can respond. We started fast against Holy Cross, getting Andreas Hill his first deep reception of the season, but it wasn’t long before the windows closed and we had nowhere else to turn. It was another week of completing just 50% of our passes with too few explosive plays, and two issues in particular stood out.
The middle of the field continues to be a glaring weakness. We’re able to connect on some outside throws early, but as defenses adjust, we struggle to find answers elsewhere. Over the last three games, we’re throwing over the middle just 22% of the time and completing only 33% of our passes, a troubling sign of how effectively opposing defenses are dictating what we can do. The outside throws can only take us so far, and once those windows close, our offense has shown little ability to adjust.
Even more frustrating, though, is our inability to consistently get the ball into the hands of our best playmakers. Good offenses find ways to involve their most productive players, even when defenses make them a priority. Look at Colgate against us last week. They repeatedly went to their top target, Matt Fogler, who finished with 10 receptions for 180 yards. Meanwhile, when Richmond desperately needed a spark against Holy Cross, two of our biggest offensive weapons were practically nonexistent in the passing game.
Bryce Allen had one target. Jaiden Fair had zero. Between them, not a single reception.
Fair was our most explosive player against Colgate, and Allen leads our receiving corps in receptions, yards, and touchdowns. Yet somehow, they combined for just one target against Holy Cross. I’m glad we found more opportunities for Andreas Hill, but that shouldn’t come at the expense of getting our other playmakers involved.
Of course, defenses can take away certain options, and I’m not suggesting that simply calling their numbers guarantees success. But when two of your most productive receivers combine for one target in a game where the passing offense is struggling, it’s fair to question whether we’re doing enough to create opportunities for them. Whether it’s formations, route combinations, pre-snap movement, or simply finding different ways to attack coverage, something has to give. Right now, we’re making it far too easy for opposing defenses to limit what this offense can do.
Defense
The defense can’t pitch a gem every week, but allowing 323 rushing yards is a mess. This felt a lot like the Lafayette game in reverse, as the Holy Cross O-line wore the Spiders down and ran their way to a win.
The Crusaders’ game plan reminded me of what Fordham did. Quick passes to neutralize our pass rush, very few downfield throws to avoid turnovers, and a steady dose of running to wear us down. Whenever we generated pressure, their QB was quick to throw the ball away, avoiding negative plays and helping Holy Cross control possession for nearly 35 minutes.
Missing personnel certainly played a role, even if it wasn’t the deciding factor. Devin Geronomi was out, as was Daniel Sellers. Both are consistent tacklers, and Sellers gives our D-line a ton of versatility. After some early-season struggles, we’d tackled much better in recent weeks, but the shifty Holy Cross backfield made us look foolish for much of the afternoon. Again, we’re not magically winning that game with #22 and #47, but I do think we execute better in certain situations with two key pieces of our defense on the field.
Snaps — With Holy Cross throwing for less than 100 yards, this was all about the running game, and the Spiders couldn’t hold up for four quarters. We ran more plays than they did in the 1st quarter, but were outsnapped in each of the final three. Unsurprisingly, their success on the ground only grew as the game went along.
We limited big plays early on, but they broke a couple of chunk runs in the 2nd half that helped put the nail in the coffin. Those plays showed just how worn down our defense had become, and while that doesn’t excuse allowing 300+ rushing yards, it helps explain how things unfolded as the game went along.
Chunk plays — Two explosive runs defined the 2nd half, and both highlighted a great schematic adjustment by Holy Cross. Below are the looks on the 39-yard run and 62-yard TD run.
The Crusaders aligned both TEs next to each other, off the ball, in a double-wing/double H-back look. The Spiders set our defensive strength to that side, with TJ Baldwin lined up as a 3-tech in the B-gap. At the snap, both TEs led through the A-gap, effectively running away from Baldwin and forcing our second-level defenders to fill the interior gaps. As we saw, that didn’t happen.
Holy Cross had plenty of success running the ball beyond these two plays, but their biggest gains showed just how effectively they were able to manipulate our defensive alignment. They got our front set one way and had an excellent plan to attack it.
Special Teams
Another nice game from Jaiden Fair, fielding punts well on a windy day and finally getting something going for the KOR unit. His kickoff returns of 31 and 23 yards were our two longest of the season — nothing special, but nice to see some improvement from that group.
Ned Gray is officially the muffed punt king. He helped create his fifth turnover of the season in the 1st quarter, with another sidewinding punt getting muffed and setting up our offense for its second TD. Gray also averaged 42 yards per punt on six attempts, a solid number given the windy conditions.
I’m not sure what we’re going to do about Kyle Bitsko. Another missed field goal brings his season total to eight, and this one seemed to take the wind out of our sails. What’s especially concerning is that seven of those eight misses have come from 40 yards and in. He’s got a big leg, but if we learned anything from Jayden Alsheskie last season, it’s just how important consistency on the shorter kicks can be.
Next Post
2026 — Game 10: Villanova Preview – Friday, November 6th
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