Posts Tagged ‘Kurt Hess’

Two seasons ago, Youngstown State University (4-1, 1-0) learned what Indiana State’s Shakir Bell was all about as he racked up over 250 rushing yards in the game, mostly in the first half.  Bell reached a milestone, going over the 4,000 yard career plateau last week in a heartbreaking loss.

Last season, Youngstown State finished the season on a high note, defeating the Sycamores at home in the season finale, 27-6.

Notable in last season’s win was the absence of Bell in the first half.  Some sources say Bell was held out because he was injured, which is inaccurate.  Bell was withheld from starting the game for disciplinary reasons.  He was plenty healthy when he ran the ball 18 times for 54 yards.

For the Penguins to win, the biggest key to a victory is to shut Bell down, period.  Mike Sanford, in his first season at the helm for the Sycamores is a smart enough coach to know where the ISU bread is buttered.

The Penguins have to utilize the momentum they built in the second half comeback last week against a very hard-nosed Southern Illinois team.  Kurt Hess has to continue to protect the ball and make smart decisions.  The Penguins defense, led by captains Dom Rich and Donald D’Alesio will have to stay focused on shutting Bell down and playing with the same intensity that they used in the second half last week.

If the Penguins are successful in neutralizing Bell to some extent, they will have succeeded in taking Indiana State out of their comfort zone and will dictate the tempo of the game.

The Penguins last started MVFC play 2-0 in 2006 when they went on to win their first three contests. In the previous 16 years, YSU has opened Valley play 2-0 on four previous occasions – 1999, 2000, 2005 and 2006. It was a combined 20-6 in league play those years.

Youngstown State got back on the winning track with a 52-17 win over Duquesne.  The Penguins came out a little sluggish, but shook off the hangover with enough vigor to look impressive heading into league play.

The thing that stood out in the win was balance.  The defense really hit hard Saturday, credit them for the low-scoring output from Duquesne.  Offensively, there was true balance as the run and pass games were both effective.  More impressively, both phases got major contributions from many different players.  Whether it was Ruiz or Pace, Hess to Bryan, or Hess to Adams — it will end up being a hard film to grade for Southern Illinois.

“We got a lot of balance”, said Wolford.  “We have to do a better job of getting some guys in.  When they load up the box, we have to be able to throw the ball down the field, and we did that well today too.  We dropped three potential interceptions and if we keep contain, we get sacks too.”

The 3-1 record that YSU takes into Missouri Valley Conference play comes without a true gauge of what to expect.  The three wins — against Duquesne, Morehead State, and Dayton should all have been wins.  The loss to Michigan State fell well below the expectation of making a good showing.  When combining the results of those four games, nothing is certain entering the conference schedule.

The Penguins put up the only points in the first quarter on a 40-yard field goal form Joey Cejudo.

The defense started to really put some licks on the Dukes in the second quarter.  Once the offense got their hands back on the ball, the Penguins rode the back of Torrian Pace.  The senior running back carried the ball five straight times to cover the last 19 yards of the scoring drive.

Dom Rich recovered a fumble to give Youngstown State the ball back, but the Dukes ended the scoring threat forcing the Penguins to punt.  Once the Guins got their next possession, Andre Stubbs broke a reverse for 44 yards but it was called back due to an illegal block in the back.

The Penguins recovered from the penalty, and then some, tallying two touchdowns before the end of the first half.  Martin Ruiz, who seems to be emerging as the Penguins number one tailback, had a nine-yard scoring run.

With 46 seconds left in the first half, Kurt Hess found his tight end, Nate Adams, across the middle for a 52-yards scoring play.  The late burst put the home team ahead, 24-0, at the break.

“We came out a little sluggish”, said Adams.  “I’m glad Kurt found me though, it always feels good to be in the end zone.  Going into conference play with confidence is big for us.”

Duquesne came out to start the second half not looking at all like a defeated team.  The Dukes engineered a nice 75-yard scoring drive which ended on an Ethan Dorsey one-yard plunge and made the score 24-7.

The Dukes wasted little time scoring their next six.  On the first play of their second drive, Dillon Buechel found Gianni Carter for a 63-yard hookup to make it 24-14.

Dale Peterman returned for the Penguins and made several big defensive plays.

“It felt good, I have been waiting a long time “, said Peterman.  “Coach Tresey and Davis stress that turnovers win games.  David Rivers returned one and we got some fumbles,we felt pretty good.”

The Penguins would roar back angrily with their own scoring drive of 84 yards as Ruiz cashed in with a four-yard jaunt, his second touchdown on the day, that would give YSU a 31-14 lead.  He would add a third score from five yards out on the very next drive to make it 38-14.

Hess found Marcell Caver (above) for a 55-yarder that made it 45-14 to start the fourth quarter.  Jody Webb made it 52-17 with 5:20 left in the game on a ten yard tally. David Rivers added an exclamation point with a pick six to make it 59-17.

Hess would finish the game 15-25 for 292 yards and a pair of touchdowns.  Ruiz paced the ground attack with his three touchdowns and 66 yards on 18 carries.  Pace add 65 yards on 17 carries.  Nate Adams caught four passes for 104 yards.

For Duquesne, Buechel finished 21-38 for 362 yards, but took a solid licking the last play he was in.  Kevon Caffey nailed Buechel from behind.  Carter had four catches for 134 yards to lead the Dukes.

The letters MS stand for two things in YSU’s recent past – Morehead State and Michigan State.  The similarities stop with the coincidental initials.  Mark Dantonio’s offense only had two touchdowns on offense coming into Saturday’s contest, but got dialed in at YSU’s expense.  The Spartans amassed seven touchdowns and rolled to a 55-17 win against the Penguins.

The trick for YSU(2-1) will be to pick up the pieces and move on.

“We will use the 24-hour rule”, said Coach Eric Wolford.  “Obviously, we are disappointed, we got whooped out there today.”

Muired in quarterback controversy this season, the Spartans got a good performance from Connor Cook (below).  The Spartan starter completed 15 of 22 passes and had four touchdowns in the first half before being replaced halfway through the third period with the game seemingly decided.

The Penguins got off to a rough start.  Michigan State deferred after winning the toss.  The opening kickoff was mishandled by Andre Stubbs, who fell on the ball on the YSU five-yard line.  The first two plays were passes, both to Michael Wheary, and both   unsuccessful attempts.  The Penguins punted, and the Spartans established early dominance.

At the half, the Spartans held a commanding 35-10 lead.

YSU got a touchdown running the option to the left side with Kurt Hess pitching to Martin Ruiz for a 5-yard score.  Joey Cejudo kicked the extra point and also would nail a 34-yard field goal.  That was all of the scoring for the Penguins in the first half.

“Schematically, we were ready, we just didn’t execute”, said Hess.  “They were a really well coached team and they capitalized on our mistakes.”

Hess finished the game 11-27 for 121 yards and a touchdown.  YSU was paced by Ruiz who had 11 carries for 36 yards and four catches that added up to 57 yards, including a 34-yard connection with Hess for a second half touchdown.

YSU had two turnovers, one on a first half option pitch that Martin Ruiz took his eyes off of looking upfield.  The other was in mop up time as Wheary mishandled a kickoff return that yielded  field goal.

“That has been a problem for us that we need to correct”, said Wolford.  “We took the guy out who fumbled the first time and the new guy did the same thing, so we will have to keep working on that.”

“We will keep working to improve and we will get better”, said Ruiz.  “We need to make some corrections.”

The Penguins only managed eight first downs and lost the time of possession by nearly a 2-1 margin (39:09 – 20:51).

“When you go 2-12 on third down and get beat in time of possession that badly, you are not going to win very many football games”, said Wolford.

The Penguins look to rebound next week against Duquesne.

 

This is the last time, in all probability, that Youngstown State University (2-0) will play Michigan State in a football game.  Two years ago, YSU made it interesting before ultimately falling 28-6.  That loss marked the end of the “money beatings”.  A money beating was when a I-AA, or FCS, school would travel to a larger opponent’s facility and come home with a big check and hopefully, their health.

The level of competitiveness the Penguins showed that night carried over to Pitt last season.  The result was a win, and the “money beating” banter has turned to “hurry up and get these little schools off of your schedule” in the Big-10.

Michigan State is an interesting opponent for the Penguins to face this week for a number of reasons.

First and foremost, the Spartans are on the bubble of cracking into the big poll.  Interestingly enough, Michigan State has six touchdowns in their two wins this season, four by the defense, and just two from the offense.  Three of the Spartans touchdowns have been scored by a defensive end, Shilique Calhoun, which makes him the team leader in scoring.

One of the other six Michigan State touchdowns came from a local who is a Spartan.  Kurtis Drummond, a Hubbard grad, made a spectacular one-handed snag and raced to the end zone.  Speaking with Drummond via telephone, the Spartans will not overlook the Penguins.

“Kurt Hess has a great arm”, said Drummond.  “You don’t just accidentally rack up 700 yards of offense in a week.  He has the ability to put the ball in places that many can’t, and he also reads defenses very well.”

The admiration was clearly mutual coming from Hess.

“I got to see him play when he was in high school”, said Hess.  “I went to a game with Marc Kanetsky and couldn’t believe how fast he {Drummond} was.  He is a ball hawk and plays very fast.”

When asked about next week’s matchup with Notre Dame, Drummond said, “We are not looking ahead at all, this is the game on our schedule this week.  You are the first person to get me to say the words Notre Dame.  Youngstown State was the only college team I ever saw play a game until I got here, so this matchup has added excitement for me.”

Drummond may not be the only excited Spartan welcoming Youngstown.  There is a ton of local connectivity between the two schools.  Head Coach Mark Dantonio was a YSU coach in the mid-to-late eighties, as was his co-offensive coordinator Jim Bollman.  Pat Narduzzi, the current Spartans defensive coordinator, played for his father Bill at YSU in 1986 before transferring.  Jim Tressel’s nephew, Mike Tressel, is the linebackers coach.

YSU Coach Eric Wolford could not praise Dantonio and his staff enough.

“He {Dantonio} should be given credit for turning Cincinnati’s program into a powerhouse.  Those guys that came after him there should give him their bonus checks because he instituted a great program.”

Watching film on Michigan State has to be tough because of the lack of offensive production.

“They have used four quarterbacks”, said D. J. Moss.  “Coach Tresey will have to put together the defensive game plan that could give us a chance to win.  They {MSU} are extremely well coached.”

Wolford knows that the Big-10 games are going to be done for awhile after Illinois next season.  He commented on the opportunity the players have with this game.

“I hate to see that end”, said Wolford.  “Our guys really look forward to going and playing in a special environment like Michigan State or any of the bigger facilities.  It is nice that they can get the chance to play in front of 60,000 to 100,000 fans.  We were a really young football team when we were there two years ago, a lot of our guys were freshmen and sophomores, they are older now, but we know that we can’t sneak in like we did two years ago, and that those coaches will have their team’s attention this week.”

I will not rule out the possibility of the Penguins pulling off a second straight FBS upset.  They have to score a few points and hold a struggling offense down.  If Hess can get hot, and the role players like Carson Sharbaugh, Kyle Sirl, Martin Ruiz, and Joey Cejudo can contribute like they are capable of, it might be another wild day.

“I’m not going to make any predictions”, said Wolford.  “All I can say is that we expect to play well.”

The game will be televised on the Big-10 Network and kickoff is slated for 2 pm.

Youngstown State University played the first game of a two-week swing that may feature the best team they will face all season (Michigan State) and the least talented team (Morehead State).  Phase one of the experiment went well as the Penguins rolled to a 67-13 victory at home.

Coach Eric Wolford and staff executed a game plan that did what it should have against a non-scholarship school like Morehead State.  The Penguins dominated all three phases of the game, convincingly.  The performance will vault the Penguins into a more confident state of mind before heading to East Lansing next week when the shoe is completely on the other foot.

Kurt Hess (below) got back on track, turning in a solid first half only performance.  Hess was 16-19 for 282 yards and three touchdowns.  The Hess TD’s were to Andre Stubbs, Andrew Williams, and Marcel Caver.  All three touchdown passes were in the first quarter, which ended with YSU ahead, 22-0.

“Offensively, we wanted to come up and prove what we could do”, said Hess.  “We played up to our potential today.  I had a sharper week of practice.  I appreciate the reps that our backups got today, it is nice to see all of the talent live up to expectation.”

In the second quarter, the YSU rushing game did all of the scoring for the Penguins.  Martin Ruiz tallied for a 14-yarder, Jody Webb scored on a nine-yard scamper, and Torrian Pace rumbled in from three yards out to stake the Guins to a 43-7 halftime lead.

Webb (bottom photo), who had the most yardage of all the YSU running backs, maximized his chances as he carried the ball 11 times for 122 yards.  He would score twice in the second half from seven and from 34 yards to put YSU ahead 53-7.  The second touchdown was an electrifying burst up the middle where Webb was dancing through Eagle tacklers like orange pylons.

“You got to see Jody Webb today”, commented Wolford.  “Sometimes you don’t even have to block for a guy like that.”

Defensively, the Penguins had fun, with the exception of one series.  Travis Williams (above) had a big sack in the first quarter which knocked the Eagles staring quarterback, Logan Johnson, out of the game.

“We got it all together in the locker room and knew we could put on that kind of a dominating performance”, said Williams.  “Coach Tresey wants us all around the ball and the d-line is really showing up this Fall.  We played Morehead as if they were a Michigan State or a North Dakota State, we won’t take anyone lightly this season.”

To capitalize what kind of a day it was, on his first defensive snap of the year, David Rivers, a redshirt freshman, thwarted a fourth quarter Morehead State drive with an interception in the end zone.

The Penguins did a good job being playground bully on Saturday.  YSU amassed 718 total yards on offense (359 rushing, 359 passing).  They will need a nearly flawless effort next week in a game that they can win if they follow through on every detail, win the time of possession, and do not turn the ball over.

“It’s good to get a win”, said Coach Wolford.  “A lot of guys got to play today.  They kept trying to blitz us like crazy, so we had to continue to pass, whereas we would have preferred to run.”

“Michigan State is a Big-10 team, nationally ranked, and we are going up there to play in a great atmosphere.  You have to be up for a game like this.  We weren’t perfect today by any means.  It is a big football game.  We went for two after the first touchdown so teams would spend a little extra time making sure they line up right, but also because eight is better than seven.”

The depth that the Penguins have was really on display from the second quarter until the end of the game.  Wolford had to feel good about what he recruited with the production of his reserves.  Names like Tanner Garry and Parnell Taylor got action in the fourth quarter.

Youngstown State kicked off the 2013 campaign with a 28-10 victory over a scrappy Dayton team.  The defense did a great job of shutting down an experienced spread offense.  The offense looked a bit out of sync, but put together drives when they needed to.  Adaris Bellamy rattled off 203 rushing yards on just 17 carries.

“It is always good to get a win”, said coach Eric Wolford.  “We played very sloppy at times, we had some turnovers and a penalty that hurt us.  We did things, but we have to play better than we did tonight.”

Youngstown State established a strong ground game in the first half by picking up 176 rushing yards.  The Flyers were only able to pick up 27 yards on 16 first half carries.  Andre Stubbs (below) had 2 carries for 66 yards, most of it coming on a 60-yard scamper before the half.

Torrian Pace scored a pair of first half touchdowns.  The first touchdown, from two yards out, came on the Penguins opening drive which covered 75 yards on 15 plays.

Pace again scored for the Penguins with 2:33 left in the first half to stake the Guins to a 14-0 halftime lead.  The eight-yard touchdown was set up by the 60-yard run from Stubbs.

In the second half, Dayton got on the scoreboard as Stubbs fumbled a punt.  The Penguins defense did not allow much penetration, keeping Dayton out of the red zone, and the Flyers had to settle on a 37-yard field goal by William Will.

Bellamy took over on the Penguins next possession.  Bellamy dashed for 30 yards on a first-and-ten from the Flyers 40-yard line.  He got the ball on the next two carries and plunged into the end zone from three yards out at the 6:08 mark of the third quarter.  The touchdown by Bellamy made it 21-3 in favor of the Penguins.

“I felt good coming back, but don’t want to say it felt too good, as we were inconsistent and have to do a better job as a running back core.  We can do better”, said Bellamy.

Kurt Hess (below) did a good job controlling the flow of the game.  Hess, however, did not have his best night ever passing the football.  The senior quarterback threw a first half pick and looked to be on a different page than his receivers at times.  Hess did manage to complete 8-18 passes for 68 yards.

Down 21-3, the Flyers engineered their best offensive drive of the game.  Quarterback Will Bardo found Robert Washington from 19 yards out to cut the Penguins lead to 21-10.

On the next Penguin possession, Hess was picked off by Matt Blanco at the Penguin 48-yard line.  Blanco returned the interception 36 yards to the YSU 12-yard line.  The Penguins defense was faced with a first-and-goal from the three.  Kyle Sirl made back-to-back tackles for no gain and a third and goal pass was incomplete.  On fourth and goal, Bardo tried to pass rolling right but was intercepted by Ali Cheaib.  The Penguins took over after the impressive goal line stand, a definite momentum killer.

“We blitzed the edge”, revealed Cheaib.  “I adjusted my course and when he threw it, I was able to change my course and come up with it.  The goal line stand was big because we showed we can make some plays on defense.  We kept encouraging each other to stop them and not let them score and we came up big.”

The Penguins put an exclamation point on the win when Bellamy broke an 80-yard run on third-and-one and got caught on the three.  The drive was punctuated on Martin Ruiz’s first ever touchdown that made it 28-10 with 6:58 to go in the game.

The most impressive part of this victory was the job that the Penguins defense did against a potent spread offense.  Excluding a drive that the Flyers scored on in the third quarter, Coach Tresey conducted quite a performance with a young defense.  There was constant pressure on Bardo, who proved to be very elusive.

The Penguins did plenty on the ground, finishing the game with 348 yards on 40 carries.  Bellamy had 203 yards on 17 carries.  Bellamy only had 129 yards in the whole 2012 season which was cut short by injury.  Pace added 47 yards on 11 carries.

For the Flyers, Bardo had a nice game and looked every bit the leader of the experienced Flyer spread offense.  He finished the game 17-33 for 172 yards.  He will have a good season for Dayton.

Nick Liste boomed punts of 62 and 64 yards that helped YSU in the battle of field position.

“I think I had a 69 yarder at Missouri, but that was in 40 mile an hour wind gusts, so it wasn’t so legit.  Credit the blocking that gave me time to use the proper mechanics to kick the ball”, comment Liste.

“You saw what a weapon Nick Liste is tonight”, remarked Wolford.  “He had two huge punts for us tonight and a good kickoff that they {Dayton} tried to bring out, but we were able to swarm them.  I was unhappy with the botched fair catch, and we have to work on eliminating those mistakes.”

 

The opening game for Youngstown State against Dayton should be a blowout, right?  Not so fast…  Dayton has a respectable football program.  They won five of their final six games last season.  They return eight starters on defense alone.  They have had 35 winning seasons out of the last 36.  They hold a 9-0 series advantage over YSU, and you can bet they have had this day circled on their calendar for months.

“Coach {Rick} Chamberlin is a UD alum, and that program has quite a bit of history”, said Coach Eric Wolford.  “Dayton is in a conference that gets an automatic bid into the playoffs now and they finished last year on a good note, we have to be ready to play.”

“Schematically, they will run a spread offense with four wide, they do some zone read, and they run some counter plays.  Youngstown State has never beaten Dayton at football, and we are taking that to heart.  Some of our alumni know that statistic and they will be watching.  It is a part of this program that involves them.”

The biggest concern that a spread offense poses to YSU is that the secondary will truly be tested.  Donald D’Alessio, Jameel Smith, Julius Childs, and DeVon McKoy will have to make plays.  Will Bardo has been the starting quarterback for Dayton for the past two seasons.  He had a hand in more than half of the offense that the Flyers put up last season.  His favorite target is Branden Johnson who had 28 catches in the first six games of 2012 before missing the rest of the season with a shoulder injury.

One of the Penguins captains, Dom Rich, commented on the opener.

“We are 0-9 against this team,” said Rich.  “With the spread offense, we expect them to pass a lot and try to make big plays.  We have to be ready to play as a team.  As Coach Tresey said, we are ‘more fast and more physical’ this year.”

Kurt Hess is getting a chance to show his skills in front of family and friends making the trip from Dayton, where Hess played high school football.

“It is going to be cool to go up against my hometown team.  I am excited that my family and friends are going to come here to a nice environment.  It will be nice to share this experience with all of them.  You don’t hear about Youngstown State too much there.”

“We are sick of waiting, let’s just play”, said Hess, a self proclaimed nervous energy machine.

“I only have two classes Thursday.  I will do all I can to just get ready and think about the game.  I will listen to music and just focus on what I need to.  Everybody has their own way to get prepared.”

Kickoff is set for 7:30 and there are still some tickets remaining.  Support the Penguins!

 

Saturday’s practice marked the end of camp for the Youngstown State football team. The Penguins open the campaign hosting the Dayton Flyers on Thursday.  They will now transition into a weekly routine… sort of.

“Today was like a Tuesday practice because we are only that many days from Thursday already”, said Penguins Head Coach, Eric Wolford.

“I gave the guys a day off yesterday and we were out here banging pretty good today, but this will be the end of the banging until Thursday.”

Wolford and staff have solidified their depth chart to start the season.  Kurt Hess remains the number one quarterback and will have Torrian Pace (below) and Adaris Bellamy lining up behind him as backfield starters.

The wide receivers to start will be Andre Stubbs, Christian Bryan, and Michael Wheary.  Jelani Berassa, coming back from major surgery, will get some reps on a limited basis in the opener.  Kevin Watts, Marcel Caver, and Andrew Williams are listed as the second group of receivers.

“Whether or not I start or play, we are unselfish and unified as a team.  In order for us to be successful, we must remain selfless”, said Pace.

Up front, preseason All-Conference pick, Chris Elkins, anchors a raw offensive line at center.  Wolford has repeatedly said that this is the most athletic offensive line he has had to work with since he got here.  The rest of the offensive line named as starters are Andrew Sinko and Kyle Bryant at tackle, Brock Eisenhuth and Fred Herdman at guard and Nate Adams and Carson Sharbaugh to pretty much interweave at TE.

Joey Cejudo offers a very strong leg as the Penguins placekicker.  Even though seven is greater than three, Wolford seems like he is comfortable with Cejudo and will use him more than he has used a kicker in the past few seasons.  Nick Liste resumes his duties as the punter and kickoff specialist.

Stubbs and Bryan will return punts and kicks to round out the special teams for the Penguins.

Defensively, Joe Tresey (below) has the defensive units working in the right direction. Tresey is one of the most animated and vocal coaches I have had the pleasure of watching and to his credit, never quits coaching.  After practice on Saturday, Tresey was out there running suicides with his defense after practice.  He is a stand-up guy who is accountable and accepts when all is less than perfect as his responsibility.

Teven Williams, Travis Williams, and Dom Rich comprise the most experienced and battle-tested part of the defense at the linebacker spots.  Ali Cheaib should see some time as well.

Up front, Terrell Williams and Eric Myers will start at the defensive end spots. Emmanuel Kromah will be the tackle, and Octavius Brown will start at nose.  D. J. Moss is a little banged up but should see action at nose for the ‘Guins on Thursday. Kyle Sirl, the Penguins wildcard on defense can line up just about anywhere and contribute.

The question marks that raise the biggest concern are the secondary spots.  Donald D’Alesio was banged up for most of camp but is working hard to get into game shape and is listed on the depth chart as the #1 strong safety.

“I’m not a hundred percent yet, but getting real close to it”, said D’Alesio.  “We have had a great camp and we are really looking forward to hitting someone else besides our own guys.”

Jamarious Boatwright is still a little wobbly but closing in on a return.  While he mends, Jameel Smith will handle the work at free safety.  Julius Childs and DeVon McKoy (below) will start at the cornerback positions.

McKoy, a transfer from Bowling Green, has had to learn the Penguins defense at a rapid clip.  The capable native of Columbus has met the challenge head-on and is excited with the opportunity.

“Right away, when I got here, I was thrown into the mix”, said McKoy.  “When I talked on the phone with the coaches, they told me there would be opportunities to step right in and here it is.  They threw me right into the fire, and I still have some little technique things to brush up on, but I am very excited with this chance.”

Wolford said that the coaching staff did something different in the locker room setup that he hopes will help keep the team unified.

“A lot of people don’t know that we arranged the locker room differently this season. We tried to put people from different positions next to each other, guys that would not normally talk much are now next to each other in the locker room.  I like the move in the sense that it has strengthened the unity of the guys and really helped them grow as teammates.”

On a November-like Friday night, Eric Wolford rolled out the early signs of what to expect in 2013, and it may not have been what people would have guessed.  The Red got the best of the White in the 41st Annual Spring Football Game, 17-10.

Defense has been echoed as the weakness since Wolford started at YSU. However, the effort of both defenses was the glaring improvement to give even the biggest pessimist in the barn a pitchfork to help find that buried needle.

“Our  defense has been a work in progress and it is a compliment to our coaches that they came out and played the way they did today”, said Wolford.  “Everyone knows that in any sport, you can’t win a championship without a good defense, and that is what we have been working toward.”

Coach Wolford was loose and joked with everyone before the game.  I got to descend from the press box to the 1st floor with the coach on the elevator, and he was in great spirits and very optimistic about both, the game, and the 2013 season.  During the scrimmage, he applauded the effort of seemingly everyone who played at some point.

As far as the game goes, the Red jumped out to a 10-3 lead at the half.  Demond Hymes plunged in from two yards out to put the Red ahead, 7-0.  The score was set up when Derek Rivers caught a tipped ball off of a Dante Nania attempt.

New kicker, Joey Cejudo, accounted for the rest of the first half scoring kicking a field goal for each team. Cejudo’s first attempt was good from 43 yards out and gave the Red team a 10-0 lead.

Cejudo then put the White team on the scoreboard with a 43-yard field goal.  Could it be a year of field goals?

“I was trying to give him some advice about kicking field goals”, joked honorary coach, Dr. Chet Cooper.  “The kickers did a good job tonight and I think I have him convinced to go for three instead of seven sometimes.”

In the second half, the Red team increased their lead to 17-3 when Aaron Edwards scooped up a fumble and raced 22 yards to the end zone.  Tyler Hogan kicked the PAT for the Red team.

Dale Peterman made a big play at around midfield for the White defensive unit.  Peterman drilled Hymes on a completion, knocking the ball loose.  Jamarious Boatwright pounced on the pigskin and the White team was back in business.

The White team would capitalize on the turnover and cut the lead to 17-10 with 5:02 left to play.  Nick Wargo capped the drive  with a six-yard toss to Justin Getz.

With two minutes left, the YSU video board was switched to the news of the second terrorist of the Boston Marathon being alive and now in police custody.  As I looked to the video board, I saw the flag flying at half mast, and realized that there are things beyond our control that change priorities.

The Red team used the continuous clock to their advantage as they were able to run the clock out and head to the locker room victorious.

“We have stressed competition” commented Wolford.  “When they had bad days, we make changes and wake them up.  As soon as a player starts to feel to good about himself, he will get complacent and take a step backwards.  So we stress to do the extra things that can make a player special.”

Regardless of the outcome of the Milwaukee at Youngstown State University basketball game Friday, 35-40 people had fun.  The YSU Student Athletic Advisory Committee hosted a field day for many Special Olympians.

YSU athletes from several different sports programs showed their hearts in a big way. Kurt Hess was painting faces (above).  Michael Klaus was a bit apprehensive about the makeover but with some urging, yielded to allow Hess to show his creative stroke.

In another section of the Beeghly Center lobby, there was a game of shuffleboard.  In another area, several were engaged in an arts and crafts session.  There were T-shirts for the participants too.

“It’s a great way to give back to the community”, said Torrian Pace.  “This is how to be a positive role model and to lift the spirits of people who sometimes get talked down.  It is a special day for the visitors, but all of the student athletes helping out see it as a special day too.”

The event, coordinated by Bre Romeo and Emily Wollet, was a huge success and any casual observer to the game who caught a glimpse of the activities was touched.