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Penguins’ opponent is big on running the ball
By Joe Scalzo
YOUNGSTOWN
At the bottom of the North Dakota State depth chart, the Bison list the average weight of each position group, starting with the offensive line: 298.
“They’re proud of how big they are,” said Penguins coach Eric Wolford, whose team plays host to the Bison on Saturday at Stambaugh Stadium. “They’re gonna want to come in here and push us around and get a win.”
The Bison (3-2, 0-2 Missouri Valley) started the year with a win over Big 12 member Kansas and also beat nationally-ranked South Dakota. But they’ve stumbled in league play, falling to the conference’s only two unbeaten teams: Northern Iowa (16-9) and Western Illinois (28-16).
“They’re a very talented football team; I can see why they beat Kansas,” Wolford said. “Their defense is only giving up 14 points per game, they’re near No. 1 in almost every special teams category and the thing that’s most impressive to me is they’ve outscored their opponents 71-17 in the second half.
“That tells me they wear you down.”
Like Youngstown State, NDSU is a run-first team, with D.J. McNorton leading the way with 73 carries for 472 yards (6.5 average) and four touchdowns.
Quarterback Brock Jensen, who suffered a turf toe injury last week but is expected to start Saturday, is a threat to run or throw, rushing for 158 yards and two TDs while throwing for 538 yards, four TDs and no interceptions.
“They’re looking to run the ball; that’s their M.O.” said senior CB Brandian Ross. “Off that they do play action deep balls.
“So we want to first stop the run, then try not to let anything get over our heads.”
The team’s main target is Warren Holloway, a speedster who has 20 catches for 394 yards and three TDs.
“He’s a fast guy, real fast,” said Ross. “He’s a deep threat and he runs great routes.
“I have a challenge on my hands.”
And, of course, there’s that big offensive line, which has two starters 6-foot-6 or taller. YSU’s offensive line measures up well, with an average weight of 295 and four of the five starters at least 6-4.
“Their guys lift weights year-round and they look like they’ve spent time in the weight room,” Wolford said. “They’ve got all kinds of muscles popping out in their pants and jerseys.”
Defensively, NDSU runs a 4-3 defense that looks to stop the run first, not always successfully. (The Bison are giving up 165 yards rushing per game.) They’ll blitz a little bit but nothing excessive.
Wolford compares the Bison to Nebraska’s old teams, that tried to wear down opponents in the second half. It’s a philosophy embraced in the Valley and Bison coach Craig Bohl even said his program has a very similar philosophy to YSU’s, particularly in the type of players they recruit and how they want to win.
“[YSU] is in the region of the country where you get a lot of hard-nosed, blue-collar guys that are going to get their hard hat and lunchpail and go to work and smack you in the mouth,” Bohl said. “We like to think we’re that way as well.
“It’s going to be a whale of a ball game. We’re excited about it.”