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JUCO kicker Brown commits to YSU
By Joe Scalzo
YOUNGSTOWN
The Youngstown State University football team picked up its second junior college recruit this week when Ventura (Calif.) Junior College kicker David Brown committed to the Penguins.
Brown (5-foot-10, 165 pounds) earned second team all-Northern Conference honors for the Pirates, who went 5-5 this fall. He made 8 of 16 field goals with a long of 47. He also made 36 of 38 extra points.
The Penguins are expected to sign a half-dozen more junior college recruits on Wednesday, according to a source familiar with the team’s plans.
Brown played with San Diego State out of Nordhoff High School, although he did not appear in a game.
He will challenge YSU kicker Jake Smith for playing time. Smith, who will be a junior next fall, handled kickoffs for the Penguins this season.
YSU will lose kicker Stephen Blose to graduation, one of 21 seniors from this fall’s 3-8 team.
Blose set a school record by making 55 straight extra points and made 11 straight field goals to finish his career, the second longest mark in YSU history.
Brown is YSU’s ninth commitment in the 2011 class. Butler County (Kan.) Community College lineman Lamar Mady — YSU’s other junior college recruit — verbally committed to the Penguins on Friday.
Penguins coach Eric Wolford has said he’d like to bring in 30 players this offseason.
YSU will lose 21 seniors from this season, with 17 of those seeing game action last fall.
Wolford has targeted many of the Mahoning Valley’s top players, securing five commitments: Warren Harding RB Demond Hymes, Girard WR Landon Smith, West Branch lineman Brandon Ferguson, East CB Mike Thomas and Fitch DL Steve Zaborsky.
YSU has offers out to two other local players: Poland WR/DB Darius Patton and Ursuline RB/DB Akise Teague, who committed to Cincinnati last weekend.
Teague hails from Wolford’s alma mater, Ursuline, and was Ohio’s Mr. Football winner this fall.
Patton has offers from several Division I schools, including Wisconsin, Michigan, Michigan State and Indiana. His father, Shawn, was a running back on the Penguins’ 1994 national championship team.
Hemfield Area (Pa.) QB Dante Nania and Norwin (Pa.) WR Christian Bryan also have verbally committed to the Penguins.