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Until that site is complete, I want to predict the YSU-Illnois State score. I will say ILSU wins it 28-24; but if Zetts can pass the ball: YSU will have a chance to win this game.. This team will be hungry after a loss and will do everything in their power to make sure they do not have 3 losses.

eGuins LINK: Join the Forums to talk YSU Sports, the new home of the YSU football blog…. as we expand to include all sports!

For months Penguins fans have had this date circled: October 21. Why you may ask? This is a game we’ve wanted to win for 6 years now, the last time we beat these pesky Panthers. This year we are playing this game at our place with a better team in the Top 5….Say what you want, but YSU is a better at home winning 11 in a row, and sure the last team to beat us at home was these damn Panthers, but that will end this year. Heacock will get his first win vs. Farley in his coaching career.

I will also say this game will be packed. I am predicting 19,500 will be down at Stambaugh at 4:00pm today!! YSU will get the win behind their 12th man effect. Screw the Dome effect, YSU WILL ICE THESE PANTHERS AT THE ICE CASTLE!!!

YSU WINS THIS GAME 42-27…

GO PENGUINS BABY!

This is our chance to move this program forward and shut the critics up. We already beat 2 ranked Top 20 teams; but many I-AA Fans still don’t think we are the real deal yet.

Let’s show them they are all wrong and get this 6-1 team to the 7-1 mark on the year and help get them into the playoffs…

HOPE TO SEE YOU DOWN THERE SATURDAY!!!

PAINT STAMBAUGH RED!!!

Statistically WIU had 10 more yards on offense than the Penguins, but YSU made the plays when they needed them. The biggest play of the game was when WIU TB Herb Donaldson fumbled on the 1 yard when WIU was on a 9 play 44  yard drive, a fumble which cost them 7 points and a tie game. Just two plays later Mason rolled through the middle for a 95 yard TD run, the longest in YSU History. Congrats!

Tom Zetts had another good performance going 13 of 21, with an interception, but had 130 yards through the air. The Penguins allowed two late 4th quarter scores, but with a 21 point 4th quarter lead, the game was pretty much final.

WIU is a very good team on offense, but their defense is horrible. They need a lot of work on that side of the ball, and if they can fix that up, expect this team to be a force in the future of the Gateway!

Next Up: THE UNI PANTHERS.. I expect everyone to be down at the Ice Castle SATURDAY AT 4; we need a SELL OUT!

This is by far the biggest game of the year for the Penguins as we hit the meat of the Gateway schedule, but it could also be the toughest game of the year, exception Penn State. Don’t be fooled by the 3-3 record of Western Illinois; they could very easily be 5-1 right now; but suffered 4th losses to SIU and WKU. They put 24 up on SIU and 35 on WKU; so they have the offense to beat anyone. The thing they have lacking them for them is their defense. Its not a surprise, if you put 24 and 35 on the board and lose: then your defense needs some work.

The good thing for YSU is this; Mo Gibson is back. So WIU can’t just lock on and target Mason all day, they will have to worry about Gibson as well, who is just as legitimate in my opinion. Our defense needs to play their best all game long, LaFalce of WIU does not make mistakes, WIU does not make mistakes. They just do not turn the ball over, which they capitalize off of. We need to hold them to 3 and out as much as possible tonight.

My final prediction: YSU-31 WIU-21.

Watch the Game LIVE online at the link above and talk the game in the comments here! GO PENGUINS

The YSU Penguins are coming off a 55-17 route of Indiana State on Saturday Afternoon, a game which showed that this team has yet to play a full 4 quarter game and a team which has many holes on offense, but also the defense. For a time there in the 3rd quarter; when YSU went up 34-3, the Penguins took the Sycamores for granted, and before you knew it, it was 34-17.

In the fashion Jon Heacock approaches these matters, he finally took out Justin Reams and put starting TB Marcus Mason back in, and guess what: It Worked. I for one am very fed up we just take Mason out when we get a lead. I think its key to run up the score as much as we can [reasonably of course: 60 or Less Points] and get the backups some time late. We need our starters to play 4 quarters from here on out, and taking them out at halftime is not the way to do that.

The scary thing from that 3rd quarter was Indiana State passing all over the YSU Secondary; this was the same starting secondary that played in the first half. The team of Jason Perry-Codera Jackson-Chris Goffer-and Dorian Chenault. They looked like a deer in the headlights as they could not stop any of ISU’s passing plays on about 3 drives. They really need to get their act together soon, because this secondary is not playing as well as they could be. The should not be giving up 201 yards through the air, which the talent we have back there; that is unacceptable.

Enough about the Indiana State game…. believe it or not I am very happy we won; don’t take my pessimism’s to heart as if I was upset, which I was not, I am just posting things that need to be looked at, of course the coaches know all that. I forgot the camera again, sorry, tailgating was on my mind…. Finally: I was way off on the attendance…. again. I will not tolerate it anymore. I was surprised we got nearly 17,000 to the game, but I think the weather is the reason that occured. We need to pack Stambaugh in 2 weeks… So I am gonna start a campaign to get butts in the seats, and I hope you all support us.

Next Up: Western Illinois; who is 3-3 and 0-2 in Gateway ball; but a team which is very dangerous… More on them later in the week. GO PENGUINS!

Its time to kick off the 2006 Gateway stint at Stambaugh Stadium this Saturday afternoon at 4 when the Indiana State Sycamores come to town to take on the Penguins. This game will not be close at all. Indiana State has lost 22 in a row dating back to 2004, when they last beat Illinois St. They have a decent offense, which put 35 on Purdue; the same amount of points Notre Dame just put on them. Although they have a decent offense, their defense is not that good. They will give up a load of yards on the ground, and that means a big day for Marcus Mason!

I predict YSU will win this game 52-10; I think we will have 35 by halftime. This is a game we can rest the starters and get some playing time in with our young guys. I also do not see a big crowd coming down to this game, with OSU playing at 3:30 vs. Bowling Green. I will say 13,000 are at this game; but that number will be much higher vs. UNI and SIU.

Go Penguins. Hope to see you down there Saturday!!!

You can bet that Coach Heacock gave these guys an earful at halftime, but they still came out sluggish on the initial drive as they went 3 and out and were forced to punt….. but then a yellow flag flies onto the field, the same flag created by Youngstown State’s own Dwight Beede; and a roughing the punter penalty changed the game as we know it.  From that point forward YSU poured 28 points on the Bears.

You can bet they had no idea what hit them, and if you were winning 10-9 and within 20 minutes you looked up and saw it was 37-10; you’d be saying what the hell just happened.

Well it was another win and the 11th straight win for the Penguins when a rusher rushes for at least 100 yards….. no surprise: once again Mason got those 100 yards + 30 more.

Youngstown St. really showed how strong they were in this game. The defense looked great in the 2nd half, especially Jason Perry who had an INT return for a TD, that is his 2nd on the year. He is the Gateway Defensive Player of the week, for the 2nd straight week!

This week we have Indiana St. They are coming in after a pathetic 55-3 loss vs. SIU. This score could be just as bad if not worse, but it all depends on what Heacock wants to do. He could pour it on and impress I-AA; or he could put the 2nd and 3rd stringers in after the 3rd quarter and not score a point again…… you decide.

GO PENGUINS

[PS: Picture Courtesy YSUSPORTS.COM]

Missouri State is coming in 1-3, and is coming with a 20-17 loss to Sam Houston St. last week in Sprinfield, MO. They have not played good at all on offense. They are averaging 21.5 points per game, but 45 of their points came against SW Baptist. There numbers in I-AA are very unimpressive, they are averaging just 15.5 vs. I-AA teams. That will not cut it, although they have given up just 36 points in their two (0-2) I-AA games this year.

Many MSU fans have said that their run defense is their strength, well I doubt it is as strong as UC-Davis’s impressive run defense, which YSU did run on, for 200 yards.

YSU will be able to run in this game and they will establish the run and run all day long. They will open up their attack with a pass here and there, and Irizarry / Peterson will have great games.

The defense showed a lot of promise last week, although they gave up 38 points. They will need to cut down on their mistakes in the Gateway, and it begins this week. MSU will have trouble running on us, so they will be forced to pass. The secondary needs to come up big and play their best game of the season. Remember: Every game this season they’ve given up at least 21 in a game. That MUST end in the Gateway.

I personally do not see this game being very competitive, but don’t underestimate any Gateway Opponent this year. They have a bright kicker in Nathan Stokes (11 for 11 XP and 3 for 4 FG), so if it came down to the kicker battle, we should be right on par with this kid, Palmer is having another good year, as is Joe Bisop. I predict YSU win this one 42-14.

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