Penguins calling on 12th man against Redbirds

October 7, 2015 at 12:08a.m.

By Steve Wilaj

YOUNGSTOWN

For the Youngstown State fans skeptical of the impact they can have by filing into Stambaugh Stadium, Penguins defensive back David Rivers has a message for you.

It’s one that No. 7 YSU is pushing as fourth-ranked Illinois State comes to town for a primetime matchup Saturday night.

“We would like to get a full stadium and pack it, because it’s a big game,” Rivers said. “We want to feed off the crowd. Whether people believe it or not — having that home field advantage — it really does something to the offense and defense.”

YSU (3-1, 1-0 Missouri Valley) knows it will need all the help it can get against its Missouri Valley Football Conference foe come 7 p.m. on Saturday. After defeating the Penguins, 35-21, on Nov. 8 last season, ISU (3-1, 1-0) ran off five more victories before narrowly falling to North Dakota State in the FCS National Championship game.

All things considered, YSU head coach Bo Pelini is hopeful for a strong crowd, although after underwhelming turnouts for the first two home games (in part due to rain), he realizes there are no guarantees.

“I would hope so, but I guess I expect a big crowd at every game,” Pelini said. “It’s been a little disappointing up until now, but we’ll see how it goes. Let’s just hope we get people to come out this Saturday.”

While the Penguins distributed 16,622 tickets for their home-opener against Robert Morris on Sept. 13, the crowd was more around 5,000 at kickoff under a steady rain. Following the contest, Pelini challenged the fan base — “If you want to have a winner, you better support this team and get people in the seats” — and saw a small increase of 17,428 distributed tickets for YSU’s Sept. 19 home game against Saint Francis.

Still, that rain-hampered crowd didn’t live up to its announced total, either.

But with clear skies in the forecast for Saturday night, a top-five team in town and the Penguins coming off of a dominating 31-3 win at South Dakota last week, the ingredients are seemingly in place for potentially filling a Stambaugh Stadium that holds up to 20,630 people.

As of Tuesday night, approximately 11,965 tickets were sold for the contest.

“It’s awesome when you walk out of the tunnel and you know there’s a lot of people behind you,” tight end Shane Kuhn said. “So hopefully it doesn’t rain.”

The lack-of-attendance issue came to light during the Eric Wolford era (2010-14), especially towards the end. In 2013, YSU averaged just 13,506 fans per home game, while it averaged only 12,096 fans per home contest last season – the two fewest totals in the past 15 years.

It’s something that has surprised Pelini upon his return home this season. But while he certainly wants attendance to improve, the first-year coach knows he can only do so much.

“I’ve been gone out of the community long enough that I really can’t speak on [lack of attendance],” Pelini said. “I don’t really know why that is. My job is to coach and put a product out on the field that they want to come see. Hopefully they understand what this university [is]— I mean, it’s a focal point and a big part of this community and town — and hopefully people will rally behind that.”

Strickland questionable

The Penguins may once again be without their starting left tackle Trevor Strickland, as Pelini said the senior is questionable to play against Illinois State due to “personal issues.” The 6-foot-7, 300-pounder started the first three games of the season before sitting out last week’s game at South Dakota. He also started all 12 games in 2014. Sophomore Cameron Fraser started in Strickland’s absence against the Coyotes.

“He has some personal issues that we’re handling internally,” Pelini said. “We’ll go from there and see how it plays out.”