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YSU gets a shot at MVFC champs
By JOE SCALZO
YOUNGSTOWN
YSU football coach Eric Wolford believes there’s a time and place to treat a game like it’s the Super Bowl.
Today isn’t it.
“When you start approaching it like that and make it out to be too big, maybe guys get tight,” said Wolford, whose Penguins play host to defending conference champion Southern Illinois in their Missouri Valley Football Conference opener today. “I think there’s a certain looseness that you need to have.
“And there’s a period of time where you want to tighten the screw down and make sure you’re focused and ready to go.”
Southern Illinois (1-2) has dominated YSU in recent years, winning six of the last seven meetings, including a 33-0 victory two years ago at Stambaugh.
But the Salukis enter today’s game having lost two straight, blowing an 18-point lead in the final 16 minutes to Southeast Missouri State last weekend.
“I’d be willing to bet they’ve been talking all week about finishing,” Wolford said. “We’re going to get their best shot and I would expect that from a champion.”
Wolford clearly admires the Salukis’ program, believing their coaches do a good job of evaluating their own talent and recruiting good athletes to push those players. Case in point: The Salukis aren’t sure whether to start senior Chris Dieker or sophomore Paul McIntosh today. Rather than call it a quarterback controversy, Wolford called it a quarterback competition and said it’s a good thing.
“We’ve got to get back to being one of those teams that teams are chasing,” Wolford said. “Right now, they’re not chasing us. We’re chasing them.”
Southern Illinois coach Dale Lennon praised YSU’s offense, particularly its running backs and receiver Dominique Barnes, and called the Penguins’ defense “really solid.”
“They’ve definitely got the program going in the right direction,” he said.
Wolford agrees but doesn’t want people to make too much of today’s game. He admitted YSU is at a talent disadvantage against Southern Illinois and said the Penguins will need to play extremely well to win.
“On paper, when you play teams that are more talented than you, how are you gonna win?” he said. “You better do everything right, you better take care of the football and you better find a way to make a play in crunch time.”
Senior safety Andre Elliott has spent this week trying to explain to the younger players the difference between conference and non-conference games.
He said it comes down to focus.
“They have to be dialed in 100 percent because every game in this conference matters,” he said. “If we want to make it to the playoffs, we have to try and win every game starting at home, so this week we’ll get that first ‘W’ and we’ll roll on from there.”
YSU is planning a “Red-out,” urging the community to wear red and fill the stands.
A noisy crowd could help the Penguins — especially on third down — but Wolford said he won’t be any more amped up than usual.
“I’m pretty much on edge all the time,” he said. “On game day I’ve got one speed.
“This is what I love to do. It’s my passion and this is a game of passion. It’s a game of intensity and I believe it’s contagious. That’s the way our staff is, that’s the way we coach and that’s the way we play.”