Defense closes the gap in second scrimmage

Warren JFK High graduate Josh Cayson scored the winning touchdown.
& lt;a href=mailto:mollica@vindy.com & gt;By PETE MOLLICA & lt;/a & gt;
VINDICATOR SPORTS STAFF
YOUNGSTOWN -- Everybody is breathing a lot easier in the Youngstown State football camp after the defense finally made its presence known.
The Penguins' spring drills have been dominated by the offense for most of the first four weeks of practice, but on Friday, the defense began to come around.
The offense still won the second jersey scrimmage of the spring, 27-22, but had to score on its last series to pull out the victory. The offense won the first scrimmage, 43-15.
Seeing red
That means that the offense will wear the red jerseys for the remainder of spring practice and into the fall, when they resume drills in August.
"I think today we took a step forward toward being a better football team on both sides of the football," YSU head coach Jon Heacock said.
"We took good care of the football, and at the same time we defended it much better," Heacock said.
"Our first-team offense didn't turn the ball over today. But on the other hand, the defense didn't force any turnovers. Overall, it was a much better scrimmage," Heacock said.
Junior tailback Josh Cayson, a Warren John F. Kennedy High graduate, raced 13 yards around his left end to score the scrimmage-winning touchdown on the final series.
Redshirt freshman quarterback Tom Zetts of Boardman had another fine outing as he connected on a 21-yard pass to junior wide receiver Kyle Smith that set up the winning score.
By the numbers
Zetts, who threw for more than 200 yards in the first scrimmage, was 10 of 15 for 110 yards.
Junior Aaron Marshall from Detroit, the team's starter for most of the past two seasons, finished 6 of 13 for 34 yards.
Senior Ryan Wisecarver was 3 of 6 for 49 yards and threw the only touchdown pass, a 32-yarder to freshman redshirt Dustin Helle of Girard.
The YSU running game was again sparked by Cayson, redshirt sophomore transfer Monquantae Gibson and senior Matt Rycraft, along with sophomore Justin Reams.
Gibson led the way with 88 yards on 11 carries, while Rycraft, who spent last season as backup quarterback, was moved to wide receiver and spent a good portion of the scrimmage at tailback. He finished with 73 yards rushing on 12 carries and scored one touchdown. He also caught two passes for 32 yards.
Cayson finished with 60 yards on 13 carries, while Reams added 68 yards on 13 tries.
Defensively
Friday, the defense also had its share of standouts as it came up with 11 stops behind the line of scrimmage, including three quarterback sacks.
Senior linebacker Justin Martin came up with the only turnover as he recovered a fumble by Reams. The fumble was forced by sophomore linebacker Marty Hutchinson of Newton Falls.
Junior defensive lineman Justin Scholes had one sack and a tackle for loss, while junior Brandon Brown of Ursuline had another sack for the defense.
Sophomore wide receiver T.J. Peterson led the receivers with four catches for 70 yards, including a 43-yard play from Zetts, while Smith had two catches for 27 yards.
Senior wide receiver Phil Larmon, who has had a great spring, said he can't remember a spring like this one.
"I've been here since Coach Tressel was still here, and I've never seen the offense dominate a spring like it has this year," Larmon said. "Normally it is the defense that is dominating, while the offense struggles early trying to find themselves.
"It is certainly building our confidence up early this year," Larmon said.
The Penguins' players and coaches will welcome some 400 youths to a free football camp this morning at 10 at Stambaugh Stadium.
The team was scheduled to practice Sunday afternoon, but that session has been moved to Monday afternoon.
& lt;a href=mailto:mollica@vindy.com & gt;mollica@vindy.com & lt;/a & gt;