Penguins show promise at Pitt

As I sat there Saturday night watching the Youngstown State men's basketball team battle against Pittsburgh, I wondered how this same team could get blown off the court against teams like Buffalo and Boston University.
I'm not going to suggest that YSU had a chance of upsetting the 20th-ranked Panthers, but they played them as tough as any of Pitt's six other opponents this year.
The Penguins are definitely not as bad as their 2-5 record indicates, and it's possible the team learned that against Pitt.
Baumann excels
For the Penguins to excel this season, they will need the effort they got from 6-foot-8 senior Adam Baumann, who, although a little undersized, still held his own against Pitt's "giants" and finished as the game's top scorer with 16 points.
Baumann needs help offensively, as 37 points is not going to win many games. Senior TeJay Anderson needs to be more of a scoring threat. He got the shots Saturday, just didn't hit them, although nobody really shot well for the Penguins.
But the effort the Penguins put forth was something to watch. They fought for every loose ball and every rebound, even though they were outmatched.
"I was so proud of them," said YSU coach John Robic. It was Robic who said before the game that the Penguins must earn respect from Pitt and that the effort needed to come before the first timeout.
"They did that and they continued right on throughout the rest of the game," Robic said.
Remember also the Penguins played without their top two freshmen in point guard Mike Woodard and guard Quin Humphrey, both out with the flu.
The Penguins need to carry that effort into Thursday night's Horizon League opener against Wright State at Beeghly Center.
The Penguins play three games within a five-day span, beginning with Wright State, and all are at home where they are 2-0. Following Wright State, the Penguins play host to former Mid-Continent Conference opponents Oakland (Mich.) and Missouri-Kansas City.
Klacik is finalist
Assistant football coach John Klacik is one of three finalists for the head coaching position at Wayne State (Mich.) University.
Klacik has been the offensive coordinator for eight of the 15 seasons that he has served on the YSU coaching staff. He was with the Penguins for all four of their national championships.
While we're throwing rumors around, how about this one? Nick Cochran as the Penguins' next offensive coordinator, should Klacik get the Wayne State job.
Cochran is offensive coordinator at Girard High, his alma mater, and has received praise for his innovative offense.
The problem with Cochran is getting him out of Girard, where he was a standout in both football and basketball before taking a scholarship to Ohio State. After two years with the Buckeyes, Cochran came to YSU and led the Penguins to the I-AA national championship game in 1992, where they lost to Marshall.
There are many who feel Cochran was the best athlete to come out of Trumbull County since Paul Warfield.
He would certainly fit in well with the Penguins.
XPete Mollica covers YSU athletics for The Vindicator. Write to him at mollica@vindy.com.