The McNeese State football team excelled in every aspect of the game as they scored on offense, defense, and special teams to defeat Youngstown State 28-13 on Saturday night at Stambaugh Stadium.

Senior tailback P.J. Mays led YSU (1-1) in both rushing and receiving, running 21 times for 90 yards and catching five passes for 73.

After punting on its first possession, McNeese State (2-0) scored on its next two to take an early 14-0 lead. With 6:48 remaining in the first quarter, junior B.J. Sams ran for 25 yards on a reverse to find the end zone for the Cowboys first score.

After a Penguin punt, quarterback Scott Pendarvis broke several tackles to avoid being sacked and hit Jermaine Martin on the right side for a 28-yard touchdown completion to round out the first-half scoring.

In the opening minutes of the third quarter, McNeese forced a YSU punt after just three plays. Youngstown State punter Kosta Karapetsas kicked to the McNeese State 19 where Sams outraced everyone en route to an 81-yard touchdown return giving the Cowboys a 21-0 lead.

Mays finally broke up the shutout with 4:05 remaining in the third quarter with a two-yard scamper to cap an eight-play, 60-yard drive.

McNeese State struck back in the fourth quarter as YSU was gaining momentum. Roderick Royal intercepted a Luis Gonzalez pass and returned it 20-yards to the end zone for a 28-7 lead.

Darius Peterson scored with 1:13 remaining in the game for the Penguins on a one-yard rush to finish the scoring.

Despite the loss, Head Coach Jon Heacock expressed some positives on the game. He said the defense played well after the first quarter and was basically beaten by the big play against a team that showed championship characteristics.

"They are a playoff caliber team in game two of the season and reality says we are not," he said. "But it's not time to cash in the chips yet."

Youngstown State used three quarterbacks in the game. Colby Street got the starting call and Gonzalez first appeared in the game early in the second quarter. Both Street and Gonzalez took snaps in the second half and senior Justin Green took over on the last series for the Penguins and led the team to the endzone. Street went 5-of-10 for 88 yards and

Gonzalez passed for 104 yards and an interception while going 7-for-15 and Green finished going 2-of-3 for 26 yards. Mays also threw a pass on a halfback option.

After the game, Heacock said that the quarterback situation was now wide open.

"We've got an issue at quarterback," he said. "We need to find a quarterback to spread things out and move this team."

Senior tight end John Schumacher caught two passes for 56 yards with a long of 48 and Jerald Burley was on the receiving end of two passes for 36 yards in his return from an ankle injury. He also had a 42-yard kickoff return.

Leading McNeese State's 190-yard rushing effort was Vick King who had a game-high 98 yards. Pedarvis was 12-of-20 for 122 yards and a touchdown.

For the game, YSU had 304 total yards of offense, while McNeese had 312. YSU passed for 218 and rushed for 86 while the Cowboys threw for 122 and rushed for 190.

YSU has next weekend off before opening Gateway Football Conference play at Western Kentucky on Sept. 21. McNeese State plays at Division I Louisiana-Monroe next Saturday.