Monday, October 31, 2005
YOUNGSTOWN -- Momentum is such a big key in the game of football. Saturday, the Youngstown State football team took that big asset right out of the contest in a crucial Gateway Conference matchup against Northern Iowa. The Penguins lost the game to the Panthers, 21-7. But when the game was tied at 7-7, there was a moment that could have been a turning point in the contest. YSU played a horrible first quarter against UNI -- they totaled just 29 yards (12 passing and 17 rushing) and one first down. Sophomore quarterback Tom Zetts had a terrible first quarter (2-of-5 passing). The three he missed were by a mile, including a key fourth-and-1 pass to a wide-open Demetrius Ison. But then it all changed. Turnaround leads to tying touchdown Trailing 7-0, Zetts drove the Penguins 83 yards in 12 plays, connecting on seven of eight passes. His success included hitting the last seven in a row. He capped the drive with a perfectly executed 10-yard touchdown pass to freshman tight end Derrick Bush to tie the contest. On the next series, YSU junior defensive back Codera Jackson and senior end Brandon Brown combined to force a turnover. Jackson hit the arm of UNI quarterback Eric Sanders and the ball fluttered into Brown's hands at the UNI 45. But when the Penguins offense came onto the field, sophomore backup Vince Gliatta was at quarterback. And Gliatta did not play for one series, but the next two. Gliatta is a very good backup quarterback, but this was definitely not the time or the place to put this young man into the contest. Zetts had just completed one of the best drives he's led all season long and the offense was finally clicking. But when Gliatta failed to pick up a yard on fourth-and-1 from the UNI 36, the ball changed hands and the momentum went with it. Panthers seized the opportunity The Panthers scored on the next series in just three plays. They took a 14-7 lead and the Penguins were never in the game again. If Gliatta is that important a part of the YSU offense, then he should be the starter. If Tom Zetts is the starter, then let him play. You didn't see UNI coach Mark Farley pulling out Sanders, who wasn't even playing at full strength. This was not Slippery Rock, Northeastern or Liberty -- this was a key Gateway Conference game with playoff implications on the line. If Zetts was hurt [and he wasn't], then that's another matter. The kid had just completed his last seven passes, drove the team 83 yards for the tying score and then sits out the next two offensive series. Maybe someday somebody will explain the reasoning behind that move. I'm no coach and I don't want to be, but the decision just didn't seem to make any sense at the time. The loss, although not disastrous to the Penguins' playoff hopes, hurt and puts enormous pressure on the team in the two remaining games. Two straight wins would make life better YSU still controls its own destiny. Two straight wins and the Penguins will be Gateway champions and earn the automatic bid into the I-AA playoffs. That probably would include a first-round home game. Win one and the situation gets a little stickier. It might mean that the Penguins would end up tied for second in the conference standings. And depending on who they are tied with, it could mean relying on the NCAA selection committee's decision to put two or three teams from the Gateway into the playoffs. The Penguins have been down that road before and most times the decision has gone against them. YSU junior tailback Marcus Mason was in the papers in the Illinois-Iowa area over the weekend and not because he is the Penguins leading rusher this season. Mason, who transferred to YSU this summer from the University of Illinois, was named as the reason the Illini football program has been put on a one-year probation by the NCAA. Released after receiving various benefits Mason was released from the Illinois program in 2004 after receiving impermissible lodging and transportation, impermissible use of a vehicle and pay for work he didn't perform from a Illinois booster. Mason has since paid back all money and sat out a three-game suspension. He has met all the NCAA requirements to become eligible with the Penguins. XPete Mollica covers YSU athletics for The Vindicator. Write him at mollica@vindy.com.