ON THE ROAD AGAIN

By Pete Mollica

YSU starts league play early against S. Dakota

YOUNGSTOWN — When the Youngstown State and South Dakota State football teams clash Saturday night in the opening contest of the Missouri Valley Football Conference, it will be the earliest that the Penguins have ever opened conference play in the school’s history.

YSU, which is coming off a 43-0 loss to Ohio State in the season opener last week, will also be playing its second straight road game to open the season, something that hasn’t happened since the 1993 season, which also just happens to the season the Penguins won their second national championship with a 13-2 record.

Saturday’s contest, which will kickoff at 7 p.m. from Brookings, S.D., is the earliest any Missouri Valley Conference (formerly the Gateway Football Conference) game has been played since Sept. 1, 1990 when Northern Iowa hosted Southern Illinois.

Only one Missouri Valley Conference game was played earlier than that one and that came in 1986 when Illinois State hosted Eastern Illinois on Aug. 30.

Youngstown State football coach Jon Heacock is excited about the meeting with the Jackrabbits, even if it comes so early in the season.

“It’s game two of a 12 game season and you have to prepare for each game like it is the only game of the year,” Heacock said. “It is going to be an exciting weekend there since South Dakota State will be playing their first conference game as a full-fledged member of the Football Championship Subdivision. It will be their home opener, under the lights and more than likely before a packed house.

“It will be another great challenge for our football team, but it’s one that we look forward to making.”

Saturday’s game will mark the first time the Penguins have played at South Dakota State since the 1974 season. They won that meeting 35-21 and sport a 2-1 overall record in Brookings.

Although this will be the first season the Penguins have opened the season with two straight road games, they had done that two other times in 1987 and 1989. In all three seasons the Penguins have gone on to make the playoffs.

Last year’s meeting

A year ago the Penguins and Jackrabbits battled here at Stambaugh Stadium with the Penguins pulling out a 23-17 victory after squandering a 17-0 lead.

The Jackrabbits had battled back to tie the game at 17 with 9:30 remaining in the contest, but the Penguins came back to score on a Brandon Nicholson 2-yard run with 2:46 remaining and then Vince Gliatta intercepted a Ryan Berry pass in the closing minute to seal the victory.

Gliatta also got into the scoring column when he blocked a punt and returned it two-yards for a touchdown. The Penguins had a two-yard scoring run by Jabari Scott and a 38-yard field goal by Brian Palmer to open a 17-0 lead.

Last time in Brookings

When the Penguins and Jackrabbits met last in Brookings back in 1974, the two teams scored all 56 points in the first half.

The Jackrabbits had built an early 21-7 lead in the second quarter, but the Penguins, behind quarterback Cliff Stoudt, rallied as Stoudt threw an 83-yard touchdown pass to Dave Ferguson to tie the score and scored on a one-yard run to give the Penguins their first lead. He later connected with Russ Musiel on a 31-yard touchdown pass just before halftime to close out the scoring.

Success in openers

Since joining the Missouri Valley Conference in 1997, the Penguins are 9-2 in conference openers. The last time the Penguins lost a conference opener was back in 2004 when Western Kentucky defeated them 44-19. The Hilltoppers also handed the Penguins their other conference opening loss back in 2002 13-7. Both games were played at Western Kentucky.

mollica@vindy.com