YSU FOOTBALL Penguins playing for 7-4 finish

YSU has won both of the previous contests against Samford.
By PETE MOLLICA
VINDICATOR SPORTS STAFF
YOUNGSTOWN -- A year ago Youngstown State went into its final football game of the season needing a victory to reach the NCAA I-AA playoffs.
And although the Penguins outplayed Marshall University on that late November night, despite losing 38-24, they were still left out of the playoff selections the following day.
The Penguins don't have to worry about getting into the playoffs this year, but that doesn't put any less emphasis on today's season finale against Samford University at 1 p.m. in Stambaugh Stadium.
YSU has won its last two games and a victory today would give them a 7-4 record and an excellent finish to a disappointing year.
Headed to OVC
Samford brings a 4-6 record into the contest and the Bulldogs will be playing their final game as a I-AA independent. Next season they become members of the Ohio Valley Conference. This will be the third meeting between these teams and YSU has won both of the previous contests.
The Penguins defeated the Bulldogs 10-0 in 1991 in the semifinals of the I-AA playoffs and the victory put the Penguins into the national championship game against Marshall in Statesboro, Ga., when they pulled off an upset to win their first national crown, 25-17.
The teams met during the regular season in 1993 with the Penguins rolling to a 24-7 victory. The Penguins have never played at Samford.
In 1991 the Bulldogs were coached by Terry Bowden, who went on to coach Auburn University and is now a television broadcaster. The 1993 team was coached by Chan Gailey, who went on to coach the Dallas Cowboys of the NFL and is presently the head coach at Georgia Tech.
Today's game will be the final one for 18 YSU seniors, who will be introduced along with their parents in a pre-game ceremony. The Penguins finished 4-3 in the Gateway Conference and in third place behind league champion Western Illinois and runner-up Western Kentucky.
Western Illinois gets the league's automatic bid into the playoffs, while the Hilltoppers are expected to be the second team from the Gateway in the playoffs as an at-large selection.
The Penguins have never finished lower than third place in the conference and the 4-3 record equals their worst effort in the standings since they joined in 1997.
The Penguins have twice reached the I-AA national championship game (1997, 1999) without winning the Gateway title. Their 10-9 victory over McNeese State in the 1997 game is the only national championship for a Gateway Conference team.
mollica@vindy.com