Against Holy Cross last season, Mike McLeod ’09 opened the Yale record book and definitively penned his name, twice. The tailback ran for 256 yards to set the school mark and added five touchdowns to tie the record in the 38-17 rout of Holy Cross in Worcester, Mass.

McLeod wasn’t the only rusher to break the back of the Crusader defense: Eli runners combined for 412 yards on the day. That number absolutely dwarfed Holy Cross’ dismal 45 yards on the ground, prompting head coach Jack Siedlecki to comment, “We really dominated this game physically.”

Holy Cross did manage to hold the advantage through the air on offense, as did most Bulldog opponents last season, racking up 260 passing yards in what amounted to a fruitless effort against a defense that picked off three Crusader passes.

McLeod’s dominant day could have been perhaps even more impressive had he not deferred to other Eli backs after helping his team build a 31-10 halftime lead.