Wednesday, October 29, 2014
By Joe Scalzo
YOUNGSTOWN
As if his 6-foot-7, 300-pound frame wasn’t startling enough, Youngstown State left tackle Trevor Strickland has shoulder-length dyed-blond hair that, on game days, pops out of the cut-off shirt sleeve he wears on his head.
When asked about the hair, teammate Stephen Page laughed and said, “I like it. It’s a nice flow.”
Added safety Tre’ Moore, “Pretty nice. Better than mine.”
Compliment-wise, this is about as good as it gets for Strickland, who has the misfortune of being coached by a former offensive lineman, Eric Wolford, who takes the philosophy of, “If you don’t have anything good to say, it makes your linemen tougher.”
Wolford and his staff made an exception following last weekend’s win at South Dakota State, giving the weekly offensive lineman of the week award to all five starters.
“We gave those guys a little bone,” Wolford said. “I guess we’re being nice on Sunday morning.
“We don’t like to do that too much. It’s just the nature of the position. I played the position and have a lot of experience with that position and I’ve been burnt in the past. You just keep beating on them and they respond to that.”
YSU’s line — which consists of Strickland and Justin Spencer at tackle, Brock Eisenhuth and Dylan Colucci at guard and Page at center — has helped the Penguins average 204.2 rushing yards per game (which ranks third in the Missouri Valley) while allowing just eight sacks (second-best in the MVFC).
Not bad for a unit that features just one senior (Page) and has four first-time starters.
“I think we’re doing really well,” Page said. “We’ve shown the past three weeks that we’re a very physical O-line. We’re working hard, we have less missed assignments each game, which shows that we’re growing and we’re learning. Because we are still young, so I think as we gain experience, we also gain confidence.”
Last week’s win was a big confidence boost, since the Penguins controlled the line of scrimmage against a Jackrabbits team that prides itself on being good up front. YSU out-rushed SDSU 163-137 and did it on 13 fewer carries (42-29).
“The past couple years, they have physically dominated us and it kind of left a bad taste in our mouths,” Page said of SDSU. “We like to think of ourselves as a very physical team and for them to out-physical us, that didn’t sit well with us. We really just wanted to go out there and kind of whip them a little bit.”
Spencer has earned three offensive lineman of the week awards, while Colucci has one. There were three games when nobody won it, including back-to-back against Missouri State (which YSU won 14-7) and Western Illinois (a 30-24 loss).
“Compliments are small and far between with [line coach Carmen Bricillo] or Wolf,” Strickland said with a sigh.
At least Strickland has his hair to fall back on. Page, meanwhile, is starting to grow a pretty decent beard, which may end up turning heads by the end of the year.
“I actually do have a bet going [with Strickland],” Page said. “If we win conference, I have to dye the beard [blond].”
YSU (6-2, 3-1) is one game behind Illinois State (7-0, 4-0) and North Dakota State (8-0, 4-0) in the standings. The Penguins play both in November.
Stay tuned.