Rough going: YSU’s offense struggles indoors at WATTS


By Charles Grove

cgrove@vindy.com

YOUNGSTOWN

A day after what everyone called one of the best spring practices of the year, it was anything but Saturday morning at the Watson and Tressel Training Site for the Youngstown State offense.

Receivers dropping balls and a sputtering offense showcased inconsistencies the Penguins are attempting to fix before Friday’s Red-White Game.

“We looked like a varsity Division V high school team out there today. It was terrible,” YSU quarterback Hunter Wells said. “We’re all Division I athletes and we’re here for a reason. We’ve got to have higher expectations.”

When receivers weren’t dropping balls, be it during scrimmages or within position drills, quarterbacks were throwing interceptions or missing receivers by miles across the middle.

“There’s guys moving around to different positions, but I told them, ‘That’s no excuse,’” YSU head coach Bo Pelini said. “I thought it was a pretty good day yesterday and a little bit inconsistent today.”

YSU quarterback Ricky Davis said that a goal of the offense before Friday should be limiting mental errors.

“As an offense we’ve got to be more consistent,” Davis said. “It’s very inconsistent with the mental errors.”

YSU tailback Jody Webb went down about two-thirds through Saturday’s practice after taking a hit. He stayed down on the turf for about five minutes before walking off the field. Webb limped straight to the training room. After practice Pelini said Webb should be fine moving forward and isn’t afraid of further injuries during the remaining spring practices.

“We’ve got to get our work done,” Pelini said. “If a guy gets hurt he gets hurt. We’ve got guys who need to get better and we’re going to practice accordingly.”

One receiver who stood out from the rest of the group was I’tavious Harvin.

Harvin beat members of the secondary on hesitation routes a few occasions to catch some deep balls on an otherwise gloomy day for the YSU wideouts. Despite missing much of spring ball this year after pulling a hamstring in the first practice, Harvin says he likes where he is at the moment.

“I’m hoping [hesitation routes] will be a big part of the offense because I’m a speed type of guy,” Harvin said. “I like where I am, though. Me being out helped the younger guys so they can work on the little things they need to work on.”

As the Red-White Game looms less than a week away, Harvin says the receivers are putting in extra work on off days by working with the quarterbacks to fix timing and depth issues on routes.

“We need to work on the depth of our routes,” Harvin said. “We know what we’re doing but the routes will be short at times and the quarterback won’t be ready to throw the ball.”

As far as the quarterback battle is concerned, YSU offensive coordinator Shane Montgomery said the number of injuries this spring has limited the ability to set apart the quarterabacks. A starter isn’t expected to be named until the fall.

“We’re a little light on numbers so we haven’t had as many scrimmage situations as we probably would have in the fall,” Montgomery said. “We’ll have a bit more time in two-a-days where we can go for two or two-and-a-half weeks and put them in more situations.”

YSU plans practices on Monday and Wednesday from 4 p.m. to 6 p.m. before Friday’s Red-White Game, which is set for 7:30 p.m.

By using this site, you agree to our privacy policy and terms of use.

» Accept
» Learn More