WORCESTER, Mass. - The Holy Cross football team kicked off their offseason weight room testing Monday night.

The Crusaders came running into the weight room while D.J. Fields cranked music with strobe lights flashing and smoke machines pumping. The energy was high, the gains were big and everyone involved with the program was pumped. 

"It's been great, first day of testing, really excited," said quarterback Matt Sluka. "A lot of guys here proved themselves from the long winter we had."

"Tonight is really exciting, we lost a lot of guys last year," said offensive lineman C.J. Hanson. "Having to do exceptionally well in the offseason, coming in today and seeing all these guys dominate their weight, everyone going up, it's truly a special thing to see."

"There's no better way to start off the season than with this right here," said wide receiver Jaylen Coker. "Everyone's been putting in the work and it's obviously demonstrated right here."  

Monday's first test focused on cleans, with bench press testing coming on Tuesday and squats on Wednesday.