Todor: Penguins’ play like team that believes

Around 12:30 p.m. on Saturday, flash bulbs popped and cell phones clicked off photos.

It’s not often Youngstown State has the lead in a money game — well, never, actually — but Dominique Barnes’ 80-yard sprint across the perfectly-manicured grass of Beaver Stadium had the Penguins in a 7-3 lead over Penn State.

The reaction throughout the stadium was strikingly different. Pure jubilation among the small contingent of YSU fans in the northeast corner of the cavernous stadium. Quite a bit of anger on the Penn State sideline, directed from head coach Joe Paterno to defensive coordinator Tom Bradley, who in turn wanted to know why 11 hand-picked high school All-Americans couldn’t chase down a 5-foot-11 FCS receiver.

And shock among the 90,000 or so souls decked out in blue and white gear.

What the play really showed, was that the Penguins competed, and that’s a good sign as Eric Wolford and Co. continue the climb back to national respectability.

“That touchdown,” said Wolford afterwards, “sent the message that we’re here to play.”

The message was intended for the players dressed in blue and white on the other side of the field. But it could also have applied to the veterans on his own team, who had been beat up and down by Pitt last season and Ohio State each of the two years before that, and the many newcomers on this year’s squad who may have believed they belonged on this field but needed some tangible proof.

Barnes — and quarterback Kurt Hess — gave that to them. Hess surveyed the field, got the ball in perfect timing to Barnes, who, once in he got in the clear, outran everybody on the Penn State defense.

The reaction of the Youngstown State sideline was a joyous contrast to the stadium.

“We’ve got the playmakers,” said senior offensive lineman Bobby Coates. “We’ve got to execute better, put up some points.”

Saturday, the offense stagnated for a time after Chaz Powell’s 100-yard kickoff return at the outset of the second half. (But, we’re not going to talk about that.)

Certainly, there isn’t another opponent on the schedule that can march out the speed and size like Penn State. That the Penguins went toe-to-toe for the entire first half is proof Wolford has the program headed in the right direction.

After the game, the coach said he was disappointed. But the excitement in his voice indicated otherwise. If he had been told Game 2 on the schedule was going to kick off in an hour he would have been ready to go.

That was evident on the Penguins’ final offensive possession, when Hess directed 80 yards in 15 plays and threw his second TD pass of the game with just 40 seconds remaining.

Sure, it was against Penn State’s second- and third-teamers, but it also displayed the never-say-die attitude that Penguins’ fans were hoping to see for the last eight months.

Rob Todor is sports editor of The Vindicator. Write to him at todor@vindy.com