GROVE: Change has been just fine for YSU

There are only so many different ways to write a story or column about the Youngstown State football team overcoming adversity, being a team of destiny, whatever narrative you wish to use.

But perhaps they’re just appreciably better than their competition.

We never really got a fair look at this team in the regular season except for maybe the final game or two as the Penguins rolled into the postseason instead of whimpering out like they did so many years previous.

I’m not really an enormous fan of football, but one of the things that fascinates me about the sport is how much things change from the beginning to the end of a season. Things change probably more than any other sport.

Players get hurt, second-stringers outperform the starters to create controversies and different teams call for different packages meaning certain players are more vital to success than another week.

Things have certainly changed a lot this year for YSU football.

Find me a successful team that has gone through more quarterbacks than this team and still managed to win. I’m not talking about just this year, I’ll give you all of time.

And it’s not as if I believe the coaching staff made a mistake in the way they handled the situation in fall camp. Ricky Davis was head-and-shoulders-above all three other quarterbacks and Hunter Wells was feet-and-ankles-below everyone else.

Jalyn Powell and Billy Nicoe Hurst were thrust into defending the top passing attack in FCS and only needed a half to settle in just like they were LeRoy Alexander and Jameel Smith.

The moving parts are the most interesting aspects of this team, but the pieces cemented in place are the real reasons for success. The offensive and defensive lines are the reason YSU is one game away from a national title.

With the exception of a case of turf toe and some bumps and bruises, the YSU offensive line has been a constant.

And the defensive line is one that nobody, with the exception of North Dakota State maybe, has slowed down much either.

Call it the eye-rolling cliche of “the game is won in the trenches,” but the instability of the offensive line a year ago is one of the main reasons YSU sat at home at this point last season.

In the days of flashy collegiate offenses with five wide receiver sets, it’s the running game and ability to stop the running game that’s been successful for YSU. The simplest solution is often the best.

The Penguins are gaining 249 yards per game on the ground in the playoffs while giving up 182.

It’s not a eye-popping stat, but when you take into account playing Wofford’s triple option and a Jacksonville State quarterback who was forced to run while only completing six passes, that’s a real recipe for success.

James Madison, predictably, is no pushover though. The Dukes are averaging 284 yards per game on the ground and Khalid Abdullah is picking up 122 yards per game and has found the end zone 20 times.

The Penguins will be playing in more games (16) than any other Division I football team this year. And it’s going to take one final game of consistent line play to win it all.

Charles Grove covers Youngstown State athletics for The Vindicator. Email him at cgrove@vindy.com and follow him on Twitter at @CgroveVindy