YSU faces a trying future

The 2004 football season is over for Youngstown State University, a second straight seven-loss campaign and disappointing in the fact that the Penguins were close to a much better finish that just didn't happen.
Saturday's season-ending 34-28 loss at Southwest Missouri State ended a two-game winning streak, and instead of heading to 2005 with a promising future, a cloud hangs over the Penguins once again.
YSU coach Jon Heacock knows that he has his back against the wall with only one year remaining on his five-year contract.
Heacock, following this year's 4-7 record (2-5 in the Gateway), has a career record of 24-21, but 14 of those losses have come in the last two seasons as the Penguins have fallen to the bottom of the Gateway standings.
Heacock and Robicin similar situations
Heacock will go into the 2005 season as a lame-duck coach, the second in the YSU athletic program, joining men's basketball coach John Robic.
Heacock has an advantage over Robic because the YSU football team has a lot of talent returning next season, while Robic is going into the final year of his contract with an untested and young team.
But even with a lot of talent returning, Heacock has a major job ahead of him, and this next recruiting season will have his job hanging in the balance.
Nobody knows the situation better than Heacock, who spent seven seasons as Jim Tressel's defensive coordinator before taking over when Tressel left for Ohio State in 2001.
"All we really have is some promising players returning," Heacock said Saturday. "We haven't won anything and we have a lot of work ahead of us."
Defense will befocus for the future
The major job the Penguins have this off-season is to rebuild the defense, especially the front line. Heacock feels that he must find size and ability on the line, and he's going to find it in the junior college or Division I-A transfer areas.
"What we need is that Harry Deligianis type of player," said Heacock, talking about the former 300-pound All-American defensive tackle who led the Penguins to the 1997 national championship.
Heacock also indicated that after taking care of the defense, which gave up almost 400 yards per game and way too much yardage on the ground, he must find a big, quick wide receiver to go with his smallish, but talented returning receivers next year.
Again Heacock must go the way of junior college or transfer route because he needs someone who can come in and play immediately. In redshirt freshman quarterback Tom Zetts, Heacock feels that he already has the Penguins' future and Zetts has done nothing to prove him wrong as he has used this first season to improve greatly.
His performance in the season finale was outstanding, throwing three touchdown passes and accounting for 212 passing yards. He did throw a costly interception in the final quarter that led to SMS's final three points.
But in the season finale it was the defense's inability to stop the Bears' offense that led to the defeat. Allowing a team to use up more than 10 minutes and 20 plays in one drive that covered 76 yards indicates something needs to be changed.
Coach needs playoffpush to save job
If Heacock is going to save his job, the Penguins must return to the Division I-AA national playoffs next season. He'll have an offense that will return almost intact, one that will have a much more experienced quarterback and several outstanding running backs. The offensive line was much improved and could be the strength of the unit next season. All they need is a big, good wide receiver.
The defense is the big question mark, and no YSU team that has been successful has had anything less than a sound defense.
Then there's the coaching staff -- who will stay and who will look elsewhere, rather than hang on with a coach in the final year of his contract?
Once again it is a difficult time for the Penguins.
XPete Mollica covers YSU athletics for The Vindicator. Write to him at mollica@vindy.com.