WORCESTER, MA – Holy Cross Athletics and the Worcester Red Sox are pleased to announce they have teamed up to bring college football to Polar Park this fall. The game will take place at the new home of the WooSox in Worcester's Canal District on Saturday, October 23 when the Holy Cross Crusaders host the Colgate University Raiders at 6:00 p.m. in a key Patriot League rivalry game. It will mark the first time the ballpark will be transformed into a football field.
 
Ticket information will be announced in the coming weeks, with presale available for Holy Cross football and WooSox season ticket holders beginning June 14. The on-sale date for the general public will follow shortly thereafter. All Massachusetts COVID-19 guidelines regarding capacity and safety protocols at Polar Park will be followed. 
 
"The Worcester Red Sox are pleased to fulfill one of the visions of Polar Park with this partnership," said Worcester Red Sox Chairman and Principal Owner Larry Lucchino. "Thanks to Edward Bennett Williams, Holy Cross has played a major role in my life, and it is wholly appropriate that this respected neighbor be the first to demonstrate our ballpark's versatility as a civic asset."
 
Edward Bennett Williams, the legendary lawyer and sportsman, was Lucchino's mentor and a proud alumnus of Holy Cross. The principal at Williams & Connolly in Washington, D.C., EBW was also president and part-owner of Washington's NFL club and owner of the Baltimore Orioles.
 
Spectrum News 1 will produce and televise the contest live throughout Central Massachusetts. The game will also be shown nationally on ESPN+. 
 
"All of us with the WooSox are pleased to host our neighbors up on the hill overlooking Polar Park," said Worcester Red Sox General Manager and Executive Vice President/Business & Real Estate Dan Rea.
 
"We are excited to collaborate with the Red Sox organization to bring the first-ever college football game to Polar Park," said Marcus Blossom, Holy Cross Director of Athletics. "One of our strategic objectives as a department is to further the establishment of Holy Cross Athletics within the fabric of Worcester, and this game is another step towards achieving that goal. I know the entire Holy Cross community will enjoy this beautiful ballpark and a revitalized Kelley Square."
 
Holy Cross has a long history of football excellence and will enter the 2021 season having won back-to-back Patriot League titles. In total, the Crusaders have won eight league championships and will return 12 all-conference selections to the gridiron this fall. Entering its 126th season in 2021-22, the Holy Cross football program is one of the most storied in New England, having featured such greats as Gordie Lockbaum, George Connor, and Bill Osmanski. More than 80 Crusaders have gone on to play professional football, including current Detroit Lion Kalif Raymond '16. In his three years coaching the Crusaders, head coach Bob Chesney has won two league titles, seen 35 all-conference selections, and was named the 2019 Patriot League Coach of the Year.
 
While Polar Park opened on May 11 for the first of 60 Worcester Red Sox home games during the 2021 Triple-A baseball season, the WooSox and City of Worcester leaders have plans to use the ballpark for a number of different events both during the season and off-season. 
 
Season tickets for the 2021 Holy Cross football season will go on sale on Thursday, May 20. For further details on the fall classic, fans can email info@woosox.com or call the WooSox at 508-500-1000.