The 1995 class of YSU Hall of Fame inductees includes five former football players, and each inductee has a unique story about his experience of wearing the red and white, proudly representing Youngstown State University both on and off the field of play.
Each class has an uniqueness about it, but the 1995 class will mark the first time that a father-son will have been enshrined by the school in its athletics hall of honor.
When Pat Durina takes his place at the podium tonight, he will officially join his father Mike (Hall of Fame Class of 1987) as the only father-son team to be so honored in any sport at YSU.
The Durina name is a most recognized athletic name in and around the Youngstown area. Father Mike made a name for himself on the gridiron scholastically at nearby Campbell Memorial High School, and starred for the late Dwight "Dike" Beede for the Penguins from 1946 to 1949.
Son Pat was born and raised in Youngstown, starring scholastically at nearby Ursuline High School and from 1976 to 1980, was a big reason that the Penguins became a household word in the NCAA/Division II ranks under the late Bill Narduzzi.
A hard hitter who had a nose for the football, and an even harder worker in practice as he prepared for an upcoming opponent, Pat Durina knew only one way to play football-110 percent full tilt 110 percent of the time!
As a scholastic gridder, he helped the Fighting Irish to the 1975 Steel Valley title and counts their win over arch-rival Cardinal Mooney High School as one of the most memorable games he played in before a packed house at South High School Stadium.
A First-Team All-Steel Valley Conference selection during both his junior and senior campaigns, he was an All-NEO choice and an All-State selection as a senior in 1975 as well. He served as team captain also
For his efforts, he was named the Youngstown Touchdown Club Defensive "Back of the Year" as a senior, and was also named the Amer-Negro Police Association Offensive Player of the Year that same season. He was installed in the U.H.S. Hall of Fame in 1988.
While college offers poured in, it didn't take Pat long to decide that he wanted to play just a block down the road at his hometown college, YSU.
While he played on both sides of the football as a scholastic standout, it was as a defensive back that he would concentrate while in college and that is where opponents learned of his excellent coverage skills.
A co-captain as a senior, he helped the Penguins to a 34-21-1 overall mark during his stay, two consecutive play-off appearances (1978 and 1979) and a runner-up crown in 1979 when they competed in the Division II championship in Albuquerque, N.M. in the Zia Bowl game.
As a freshman, he made his collegiate debut season a most impressive one as he registered 45 tackles (36 Solos) with one interception and two tackles for loss.
His sophomore season (1977) was one he would like to forget as he was redshirted due to injury, yet still had 10 tackles and one tackle for loss.
The following year he returned to action by registering 56 total tackles (29 solos) with three interceptions and a fumble recovery while as a junior in 1979, he had 74 tackles (53 of which were solos) and a career high six pick-offs. The team posted back-to-back double-digit win seasons, the very first in school grid history.
His senior year, he registered 50 tackles with four interceptions and four tackles for loss, giving him a career total of 235 tackles (164 solos), one fumble recovery, 14 interceptions for 339 yards in return yardage, an average of 24.2 yards per pick-off. He also had seven tackles for loss.
He is married to the former Carla Clemens, and they are the proud parents of two daughters, Lindsey Rose and Ken Michelle
He has been employed with Federal Express locally for the past 13 years.
