Youngstown State started the 2012-13 season on the right foot with a big 80-73 road win at George Washington of the Atlantic-10.  Blake Allen paced the Penguins with 19 points, including four three-pointers, but the bench and free throw shooting to close the game out made the difference.

Damian Eargle was fouled with 40 seconds left in the game as he sank a shot to break a 71-71 tie.  Eargle hit the free throw to complete the three-point play and put YSU ahead.

Allen’s 3-pointer with 2:40 left put Youngstown State ahead 71-65, but the Colonials charged back with six straight points, the last of which was an  Isaiah Armwood dunk following a Penguins’ turnover. Armwood led George Washington with 18 points.

Youngstown State made six free throws in the final 25 seconds, and the Penguins escaped victorious after nearly blowing a late lead.  The bench played a big role in the season opening win.

Newcomer Bobby Hain played 27 minutes off of the bench and contributed 19 points and 11 rebounds for the Penguins.  DJ Cole picked up the slack off of the bench for Kendrick Perry who did not make a basket in nine shot attempts.  Cole played 28 minutes and scored twelve points and had a pair of big steals.

With the win, his 75th at YSU, Jerry Slocum tied Mike Rice for third on the school’s all-time wins list.

Not much time to celebrate this one as the Penguins head South for a game with the Georgia Bulldogs on Monday.

Youngstown State (6-4, 3-4) kept their playoff hopes alive with a 31-7 victory at Western Illinois.  The Penguins played a very methodical game and had a big edge in the time of possession, 39:52 to WIU’s 20:08, nearly a twenty minute difference.

Jamaine Cook (above) carried the ball 32 times for 113 yards in the win.  Cook scored the first Penguins touchdown on the opening march of the game with a two-yard plunge to give the Penguins an early 7-0 lead.

Western Illinois freshman QB, Hayden Northern scored on a fourth-and-goal from the one to tie the game.  The touchdown was the first for the Leathernecks since October 6.

YSU’s defense buckled down after the Leathernecks scored.  The defense played well in the win, limiting Western Illinois to 142 yards of total offense for the afternoon.  The numbers do not lie, 52 yards on 23 carries is a damn good defensive showing.

Meanwhile, the Penguins run game was in high gear.  YSU would finish the game with 225 rushing yards on the ground.  Kurt Hess and Torrian Pace scored touchdowns on the ground.  Adaris Bellamy looked healthy as he tacked 60 rushing yards onto the total.  The offensive line blocked well and their lone blemishes were a couple of penalties for false starts.

Hess had some problems with his passing as he was picked off to give Western Illinois the starting field position of YSU’s 17 on their lone scoring drive.  Hess did make some good passes in the win, however,  and finished the game 14-22 for 152 yards.

So the stage is now set for a meaningful war with Indiana State at Stambaugh Stadium next week.  If Indiana State wins, they will get in.  If YSU wins, there is a good chance that they will get in.  The loser of this game will definitely see their season end.

The Sycamores had a bye week, giving them a couple of weeks to prepare for the Penguins.  The vanilla ball-control offense Eric Wolford used to defeat the Leathernecks with was a perfect script of simplicity that Indiana State will learn little they already didn’t know when reviewing it.

The last two games against Western Illinois and South Dakota could be called cupcake games, but it should be noted that the teams ahead of YSU in the standings played one, or both, at some point this season as well.  The timing couldn’t be better though for the Penguins, as getting on a little roll is huge going into a game that definitely puts the season on the line next week.

Youngstown State rallied to outscore Pitt, 43-17, in the second half to post a season-opening 64-50 win on the road.  The victory was the first over a Big East team since 1991 and also the first over a BCS Conference opponent since 1997.

Brandi Brown (above), playing in her last season for the Penguins, spearheaded a furious comeback after the Penguins trailed 33-21 at the half.  Brown scored 11 of her game-high 16 points in the second half.  She also collected 11 rebounds for Youngstown State.

Brown was joined by Monica Touvelle and Melissa Thompson in double figures for YSU.  Touvelle shot 4-10 from three-point land and Thompson, who finished with 13, played a well-rounded game for the Penguins.

Surprisingly, the undersized Lady Penguins held their own on the boards.  Pitt finished the game with a 34-32 edge in rebounds, but Bob Boldon‘s scrappy team is getting used to a disadvantage in size that they are able to compensate for with hustle and technique.

The opportunistic Penguins play at Buffalo on Tuesday at noon.

Youngstown State will travel to Macomb, Illinois, for their final regular season road contest to face Western Illinois.  The Penguins (5-4, 2-4) are trying to regain the swagger that had them ranked as high as third in the polls.  Then October came.  The Leathernecks (3-6, 1-5) are having a pretty tough campaign as well, but hope that the adrenaline will propel them to a victory on Senior Day.

The Penguins have preached all season long that they will not look ahead, but rather, focus on the opponent of the week.  Coach Eric Wolford also vowed that this team could not put all of its eggs in one basket, but a loss would surely eliminate the Penguins from any hopes of postseason life.  The eggs are in one basket every week.

If the Penguins can secure a win in Macomb, next week’s contest against Indiana State will have huge playoff implications that could seed the winner.  One week at a time though, as the focus is on the Leathernecks of Western Illinois.

Last season, the Penguins won a lopsided 56-11 verdict at Stambaugh Stadium.  The Penguins have owned the Leathernecks in the recent years, winning seven of the last eight games, and now hold a 16-11 edge in the series.  Even though Western Illinois has lost seven of their last eight, senior WR Charles Chestnut vows that his team is going to do all they can to win.

The Penguins have turned up the pressure, recording eleven sacks in the last three games.  Aronde Stanton and Nick DeKraker have a sack in each of the three games.

Offensively, Kurt Hess needs one more touchdown pass to take sole ownership of the most touchdowns in a career.  The junior signal caller is tied with Tom Zetts at 51 aerial tosses.  RB Jamaine Cook (above) is the reigning MVFC Offensive Player of The Week as he popped out 203 yards on 42 carries last week in the win over South Dakota.

Cook is also chasing some historical marks.  He can set the career mark at YSU for all-purpose yardage if he can accumulate 180 yards.  He also trails Adrian Brown by 163 yards for second place on the all-time rushing yardage list.

“The win last week definitely helps us get our confidence back on track”, said OL Lamar Mady.  “Everybody is level-headed and working hard to be prepared for the next game.  We want to get the whole offense running strong again.”

Kickoff from Macomb is 2 pm EST (1 pm CST) and the game will be carried on WFMJ. Don’t count YSU out yet.

Youngstown State senior tailback Jamaine Cook was named the Missouri Valley Football Conference’s Offensive Player of the Week for his performance against South Dakota, the league announced on Sunday.

Cook rushed for a 203 yards on 42 carries and had a touchdown in the Penguins’ 13-10 win over South Dakota. Cook had season-high totals in both carries and yards in the contest. He scored on one-yard run in the third quarter. He moved into third in rushing yards for a career in school history and eclipsed 1,000 yards for the third consecutive season. He had 103 yards on 23 carries in the first half and 90 on 19 totes in the second half.

He moved into third place in school history in career rushing yardage. Cook now has 3,815 and trails just Adrian Brown at 3,978 and Tamron Smith at 4,866 in school history. Against South Dakota, Cook had 42 carries for 203 yards. The carries rank as the fourth most in a single game in school history. The 203 yards is the 21st time in school history a Penguin has eclipsed the 200-yard mark in a contest.

Other players honored for their performances on Saturday were S Caleb Schaffitzel of Missouri State (defense); LB T.J. Lally of South Dakota State (newcomer); and PK Justin Syrovatka of South Dakota State (special teams).

The Penguins return to action on Saturday at Western Illinois. Kickoff is set for 2 p.m. Eastern/1 p.m. Central.

Youngstown State University needed to win a game in the worst way.  South Dakota, the new kid on the block in the Missouri Valley Football Conference came in with a 1-7 record.  When the two struggling teams faced off, the Penguins ended up ahead, 13-10, and halted a four-game losing streak.

The Penguins defense, for the most part, played a very solid game.  The offense did enough to win.

“It was an ugly win, but obviously we will take it”, said Eric Wolford.  “The defense played great.  It starts up front.  Going in, I had some concerns about their running game, but our front seven held them in check.”

Kurt Hess found Nate Adams (below) in the first quarter to give YSU a 6-0 lead.  The normally reliable David Brown, the teams extra point specialist, hit the right goalpost to record his first miss in 35 attempts this season.

Adams released to the right pylon as Hess scrambled around before completing the easy three yard pitch and catch.  The touchdown completed a drive that covered 84 yards in 15 plays.  The catch would be the only one Adams would have in the game.

With less than a minute to play in the first half, the Penguins tried a trick play.  Hess got the ball to Micheal Wheary who never crossed the line of scrimmage.  Wheary cranked up a pass from about 12 yards and unloaded into a crowded end zone.  The result was a red zone turnover with less than a minute to play in the half.

Youngstown State took the opening kickoff to start the second half and drove 75yards in nine plays.  The big play in the drive was a 28-yard run by Jamaine Cook that got the ball to the one yard line.  Cook would plunge in on the very next play and Brown would knock in the extra point to make it a 13-0 YSU lead.

South Dakota put together their most productive drive of the afternoon.  Eric Wolford said earlier in the week that Coyote quarterback, Josh Vander Maten, was a threat with his arm and his feet.  Vander Maten proved to be dangerous on the drive as he rushed for 39 yards on four carries and threw three completions for another twenty yards.

“The month of October was very difficult, we had to fight for 60 minutes to get a win”, said Wolford.  “I have been places where guys miss classes, talk back, and have discipline issues.  We aren’t having those issues here.”

The Penguins defense stiffened, however, and the Coyotes had to settle for a 37-yard field goal from Kevin Robb.

After the South Dakota field goal, Youngstown State mounted a drive that would kill a lot of clock.  The YSU special teams blunder of the week was up next.  Brown lined up for a 45-yard field goal.  The field goal was blocked and South Dakota ended up with possession inside the Penguins 50.

What happened next encapsulated what has gone wrong for the Penguins in the last four weeks.  The Coyotes used two plays to go 47 yards and make it a 13-10 game.  On the short possession, Dale Peterman picked up a 15-yard penalty on a flea-flicker that Vander Maten ended up keeping with all of his receivers covered, for a modest ten yard gain.  On the next play, Jasper Sanders gashed through several missed tackles for a 22-yard score.

Once YSU got the ball back with over ten minutes left in the game, they went back to the running game to grind the clock.  After a couple of first downs, the Penguins punted.  Nick Liste hit a nearly perfect punt that rolled into the right pylon for a touchback.  Football truly is a game of inches.

South Dakota got the ball back and after picking up a first down, faced a fourth-and-eleven on their own 41 yard line.  Aronde Stanton sealed the deal as he dragged Vander Maten down to force a change of possession.

“I tried to strip him, so my initial reaction was to just hold on”, said Stanton.  “We have been getting better.  This win gives us confidence to go into the next game.  If we don’t win the rest of our games, we know we don’t have a chance.”

For the Penguins, Cook carried the ball 42 times for 203 yards, a season-high in yardage, and a career-high in attempts.  The 42 carries were the fourth highest amount attempted in YSU history.  Hess finished 11-17 for  133 yards.

“Hats off to the offensive line, they did a great job up front”, said Cook.  “I feel fresher carrying the ball 42 times in a win than I would twenty times in a loss, I’m sure I will feel it tomorrow.”

“The coaches deserve all of the credit for putting a great game plan together”, said OT DJ Main.  “We definitely executed the game plan better than we have.  The offense struggled and the defense played great and kept us in the game, we executed when we had to.”

With the news that Indiana State was losing, there was a sudden renewal of hope for the Penguins.  If they can win at Western Illinois next week, they face Indiana State at home on November 17.  If they can win that game, both teams would have four losses and YSU would be selected over ISU because of the head-to-head logic.

The 2012 football season that started with such a bang is fizzing away.  After a 4-0 start, and then an 0-4 stretch, the Youngstown State University Penguins have gone from the headlines to the bread lines in just a month.  There is no magical answer as to why, but a logical guess would be turnovers, failing to defend any passing game, and special teams weekly blunders.

Coach Eric Wolford knows that this stretch has been taxing on the psyche of his players and assistant coaches.  Turnovers are not something that can be schemed against. Period. Any team that turns the ball over as much as YSU has in the last three games (11) will not win, and sometimes not even get close to winning.

Okay.  So what happens now?  The Penguins could very easily pack up the tent and post the ‘wait until next year’ taunts, ala Cleveland sports teams since 1949, or the Penguins can continue to try to win games.

Keep in mind, at 4-3 going into last week, this team was ranked #22.  If the Penguins can defeat South Dakota this week and Western Illinois next week, they may very well end up right back in the polls at 6-4.  If that does happen, the home finale against Indiana State will have plenty of importance in determining whether or not the Penguins will play the following week.

In true Penguin fashion, however, these games must be won one week at a time.  Kurt Hess has struggled.  Jamaine Cook has had limited production in two of the last four games because the Penguins have trailed, meaning the pass game becomes the dominant choice on offense.  In obvious passing situations, teams can sit back and use numbers to conjure turnovers.  They can also send more than what can be blocked to hurry or sack Hess.

Defensively, consistency is the biggest issue.  South Dakota’s Tyler Starr, a sophomore linebacker, thinks his team is struggling with the same issues on the defensive side of the ball.

“It comes down to discipline and execution”, said Starr.  “People can get carried away during a game and miss an assignment or take a play off here or there.  Suddenly what was a 7-7 game becomes a 21-7 game, and you are trying to figure out what just happened.”

When asked who is a bigger threat to his defense, Hess or Cook (pass or run), Starr gave an honest and candid answer.

“They are both great players.  We have to concentrate on shutting down the run game early and force them to pass.”

The meeting against South Dakota will be the first ever.  USD is in its first year in the Missouri Valley Football Conference.  It will also mark the 71st Homecoming game in school history.  Since relocating to Stambaugh Stadium, the Penguins are 20-10 in Homecoming games.

The game has the potential of being a blowout for the home team, or a disastrous next chapter in a book Penguin fans do not want to read.

“It’s not hard to see that turnovers have made the difference in these last few games”, said Wolford.  “We preach how important it is to take care of the ball, and we have failed to do that.”

The Homecoming Parade will start at Noon and the game will kickoff at 2 pm.

The Youngstown Phantoms were tricked a few times but ended up with a majority of the treats against the Indiana Ice.  Youngstown broke a seven-game losing streak and won their first contest since October 6 with a 6-5 triumph on a special Halloween game.

In the first period, Indiana jumped out to a 1-0 lead.  Drew Smolcyski converted a powerplay opportunity into a goal at the 4:51 mark.  Smolcynski’s fifth goal of the season was assisted by Tyler Pham and Robbie Baillargeon.  Phantoms goaltender, Sean Romeo, was beaten on a shot from about ten feet away with slight traffic impairing his vision.

The first period would end with the Phantoms outshooting the Ice, 8-7, but trailing on the scoreboard by a goal.

In the second period, Sam Anas scored his third goal of the season to tie the game.  The game-tying goal was scored 3:15 into the second period.  Anas was assisted by Austin Cangelosi and James Mazza on the goal, the third of the season for Anas.

The Phantoms would grab the lead later in the second period.  Tommy Davis scored his first goal as a Youngstown Phantom.  Eric Sweetman made a nice pass through traffic and Davis was able to redirect the puck enough to beat Dalton Izyk on his stick side to give the Phantoms a 2-1 edge.

The Ice would rally to tie the game on a Woody Hudson goal, but the Phantoms headed into the locker room ahead 3-2 thanks to a JT Stenglein score with just under 30 seconds remaining in the period.  Stenglein notched his sixth goal of the year and was assisted by Luke Stork to vault the Phantoms back into the lead.

In the third, the Ice retaliated quickly.  With 17:33 left in the game, Smolcynski and Baillargeon ran a beautiful give and go with Smolcynski scoring the goal.

The Phantoms, doing all they could to break a seven-game losing streak, scored 1:02 later to reclaim the lead at 4-3.  Stork was the recipient of a gorgeous pass right in front of the goal crease and was able to beat Izyk for a goal.  JJ Piccinich garnered an assist.

The Phantoms then quickly made it a 5-3 lead.  On a powerplay, John Padulo recorded his first goal at the 5:25 mark of the third.  Padulo took a pass from Stenglein  to beat Izyk.  Cangelosi received an assist on the Padulo score.

Indiana would continue the offensive war with 12:13 left in the game when they made it 5-4 in favor of the Phantoms.  Rinat Valiev scored for the Ice to keep the fans on edge as the lead shrunk back to a single goal.

Romeo (above) got beat with 10:23 left on another numbers disadvantage.  The Ice tied the game, 5-5, as the new pest in town, Smolcynski scored again.

The Phantoms went back in front with 9;46 remaining.  Todd Koritzinsky got in on the offensive fireworks,  Koritzinsky took a feed from Stenglein in beating Izyk for his first goal of the season, a recurring theme in the game.

Going into South Dakota State, Eric Wolford knew that his Youngstown State team needed to play a better second half to win.  The Penguins (4-4, 1-4) outscored the Jackrabbits, 21-6 in the second half.  The problem was that South Dakota State had built a 35-7 halftime lead that proved to be too much of a deficit to overcome, as the Jackrabbits extended the nightmares for the Penguins with a 41-28 win.

In the first half, SDSU quarterback Austin Sumner threw touchdown passes to four different receivers.  Zach Zenner scored the other touchdown on an eight yard run.  The Jackrabbits really turned the momentum when they intercepted a Kurt Hess pass in the end zone with under two minutes remaining in the half. Sumner marched his team right down the field and finished the drive when he found Jason Scneider with just three seconds of play left in the half.

Hess scored the Penguins lone first half touchdown on a 15-yard run to the right pylon.  The junior quarterback had two touchdown passes in the second half, giving him 50 for his career.  He only needs one more to tie the record for career touchdown passes at Youngstown State.  Hess finished the game 25-42 for 270 yards with two touchdowns and two picks.

The Penguins gave up another touchdown on the first offensive play of the second half for the Jackrabbits.  Sumner found Aaron Rollin on a post for a 49-yard touchdown to make the score 41-7.

The Penguins then showed a lot of heart and tried to at least make a game of it.  Hess found Christian Bryan and Will Shaw for scores.  In between the two touchdown passes, the Penguins got a defensive touchdown when Aronde Stanton ended up with a tipped ball and rumbled 19 yards to keep hope alive for the rejuvenated Penguins.

Shaw had his best day as a receiver for the Penguins.  The senior TE finished the game with 10 catches for 120 yards to lead all receivers.  Jamaine Cook, who was only really used in the first quarter-and-a-half, finished with 19 carries for 80 yards.

The playoff hopes of the Penguins took a big hit with the loss.  However, they can still get in as long as they win the next two and knock off Indiana State in the finale.  Indiana State won again Saturday and the Penguins would want them to win the next two weeks also.

The Youngstown Phantoms, coming off of a rough road trip, needed to nab a win at home.  The big hurdle to clear to succeed this goal would be to knock off unbeaten Lincoln.  The Phntoms had chances but could not hit the back of the net as often as they would have liked, falling 4-1 to the still undefeated Stars.

In the first period, the Stars jumped out to a quick 1-0 lead.  Daniel Willett scored just 2:06 after the puck was dropped.  It was Willett’s first goal of the season and was unassisted.

The Phantoms showed some life when they tied the game at a goal apiece.  At the 8:21 mark, Luke Stork tallied his third score of the year.  Todd Koritzinsky and JT Stenglein  were credited with assists on the game-tying goal.

The Stars then hit the gas pedal scoring two more goals to take a 3-1 lead into the first intermission.  Tommy Schutt and Luke Johnson scored the two goals against Phantoms goaltender, Patrick Spano (above).  Sean Romeo would replace Spano to start the second period.

The Phantoms had chances to score in the second period, once on a breakaway, and once on a powerplay.  The Stars had only 18 shots on goal compared to 23 for the Phantoms.  Nobody could hit the twin in the second though, and the Stars retained their 3-1 lead.

Many Phantoms missed the game because of injuries.  Kyle Connor (upper body), Alfred Larsson (hand), John Padulo (hand) and Dan Renouf (wrist) were just a few of the scratches for the Phantoms.  The physical prowess that Padulo and Renouf present on defense was obviously missing.

In the third period, the Phantoms seemed to physically keep up better than the first two periods.  Again, when it seemed the Phantoms would tighten the game up with a goal, the Stars would clamp down on defense.

Lincoln ended up taking less shots (26) than the Phantoms (30), but their shots were easier scoring chances.  Take nothing away from Stars goalee, Jacob Teichroeb, who made some very nice plays between the pipes to preserve the in for the Stars (7-0-0).