After a victorious outing last Saturday against the Columbia Lions the Harvard football team looks to continue its winning ways tomorrow afternoon against the Crusaders of Holy Cross.

The Crimson looked impressive in its 24-7 win over Columbia at home last Saturday, in a game highlighted by the unveiling of a revamped Harvard offense that is a threat to score on every play.

The new-look offense will be put to the test on Saturday when it faces Holy Cross' flex defense, which emphazises pressure on the quarterback and on the running game.

"Their defense brings a lot of pressure and uses a lot of blitz packages with one-on-one coverage downfield," senior quarterback Brad Wilford said. "It is a personal challenge to get the ball to a receiver one-on-one before the rush gets to you."

On Saturday, Wilford rose to the challenge of leading the Crimson offense, amassing 190 yards on 12-of-22 passing against the Lion's defense.

Against Holy Cross, he will be facing a team against which he has enjoyed considerable success. Last season, Wilford came off of the bench in the fourth quarter against the Crusaders to lead the Crimson back from a 14-7 deficit to a 20-14 overtime win.

Wilford will be the starting quarterback again against Holy Cross. His solid performance against Columbia kept him ahead of senior quarterback Rich Linden on the depth chart. And according to Coach Tim Murphy there is no quarterback controversy.

"A quarterback controversy only occurs if you have two poor quarterbacks or two great ones," Murphy said. "And here it doesn't exist, since Brad Wilford played as well in his first start as anyone could have expected."

The Holy Cross game has always been important for now second-string quarterback Linden. He made his debut as a starter against the Crusaders in '96 as a first-year, going 12-of-22 for 175 yards and two touchdowns in a 28-25 win. And last year he was benched midway through the game in favor of Wilford.

The key to the passing game against Holy Cross, however, will not be the quarterbacks but the performance of the inexperienced offensive line and receiving corps, as the Crimson will face a variety of blitz packages.

Despite these concerns Murphy expressed confidence in the offensive line.

"[The offensive line] played very well against Columbia apart from some foolish penalties," Murphy said. "The offensive line will be solid."

The line will have to be very well prepared in order to block the blitzes that Holy Cross will throw at them. With eight and sometimes nine men on the line of scrimmage for the Crusaders, it will be a challenge to give Wilford enough time to pass.

Similarly, the inexperienced receiving corps will have to be on top of its game in order to get open quickly before the rush gets past the offensive line.

"The freshman receivers had an auspicious day against Columbia," Murphy said.