Penguins make first postseason in six years

Saturday's game will be televised nationally by ESPN2.
By PETE MOLLICA
VINDICATOR SPORTS STAFF
YOUNGSTOWN -- Youngstown State University's football team has returned to the postseason for the first time in six years as the Penguins will play James Madison on Saturday in the opening round of the newly named NCAA Division I Football Championship at Stambaugh Stadium.
Kickoff is set for 7:30 p.m., and the game will be televised live nationally on ESPN2.
The Penguins have not been to the postseason since the 2000 season when Jim Tressel was still the head coach.
Under Tressel, now head coach at Ohio State University, the Penguins won four national championships and played in two other title games all during the 1990s.
This will be the first trip to the playoffs for sixth-year head coach Jon Heacock, who missed out twice in 2001 and 2005 when the Penguins were 8-3, but failed to get a bid to the postseason.
"This is an exciting moment for YSU football," Heacock said. "We all sat here a year ago not knowing what was going to happen, and we went away disappointed. This year these guys took care of business out on the field."
YSU posted a 9-2 season record, 6-1 in the Gateway Conference, and won the league's automatic bid into the playoffs along with its first outright Gateway championship.
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"It's a humbling experience," said YSU senior captain Jason Perry from Warrensville Heights. "Last year at this time I was crying after we didn't get in."
"Everybody on the team has a share in this tribute; they all played a role is us getting to where we are today," Perry added.
Senior captain Ryan Jewell of Warren also was humbled by the experience.
"This group has been through a lot of hard times together and now we get to share some of the good times," Jewell said. "This is something that we've worked for our entire careers."
YSU athletic director Ron Strollo was excited about the Penguins getting on national television for the opener.
"There is no way that you could buy all the exposure that this university is going to get playing on ESPN at 7:30 p.m.," Strollo said.
"We were excited about getting seeded and to get a national televised game in our opener is way more than we ever expected," he added.
The Penguins received the No. 4 seed by the NCAA selection committee, which would enable them to host the first two rounds providing they win the opener.
James Madison (9-2) of the Atlantic 10 Conference, has played against the Penguins three times with a 1-2 record.
The NCAA Division I Football Championship includes 16 teams with eight first-round games slated for Saturday.
The national championship game is set for Dec. 15 in Chattanooga, Tenn.