The Youngstown State football team visits Western Illinois this Saturday afternoon at Hanson Field in Macomb, Ill. Kickoff is set for 4 p.m. Eastern/3 p.m. Central time. The game is available live on ESPN+, WBCB TV, WKBN 570 AM and iHeartRadio.
    The Penguins (3-3 overall, 1-2 MVFC) picked up a wild 48-42 win over Indiana State last Saturday at Stambaugh Stadium. The Guins built a 17-point second-half lead in the game and then held on for their first conference win of the campaign. Five different players scored touchdowns, including two by Jaleel McLaughlin as Colt McFadden added a pair of field goals.
    One play into the contest, the Guins trailed by a touchdown. YSU answered right back with a Bryce Oliver 50-yard touchdown grab and a Dra Rushton one-yard TD plunge to take a 14-7 lead. After the Sycamores tied the contest, Latrell Fordham returned a kickoff 98 yards for a touchdown. With the contest tied at 21, the Guins took a two-scored lead following a 68-yard run by McLaughlin and 10-yard keeper by QB Mitch Davidson. 
    Leading 35-28 at halftime, YSU extended its lead in the third quarter with 10 straight points. McLaughlin scored on a 10-yard run before McFadden connected on a 33-yard field goal. The Sycamores wouldn't go away scoring back-to-back touchdowns to pull within 45-42 late in the third quarter.
     Late in the fourth quarter, McFadden added a 42-yard field goal to increase the lead to 48-42 with 1:42 remaining. The Guins then stopped Indiana State on four straight plays to seal the victory.  YSU played keep away in the second half holding the ball for 22 minutes. For the game, the Guins had 36:41 in time of possession.
    Western Illinois (0-6, 0-3) dropped a 30-7 contest at Southern Illinois last Saturday in Carbondale, Ill. SIU jumped out to a 23-0 first-half lead before Western was able to get on the scoreboard late in the second quarter on a 30-yard toss from Henry Ogala to Naseim Brantley.
    The Salukis scored on their first drive of the second half and neither team was able to score the rest of the game. Southern Illinois was able to keep control of the football, owning time of possession at a clip of 41:21-18:39. The Leathernecks played two quarterbacks in the contest while Brantley finished with 71 yards receiving. 

Last Time Out: YSU 48, ISU 42
    YSU picked up its first MVFC win of the season beating Indiana State 48-42 on Saturday at Stambaugh Stadium.
    One play into the contest, the Guins trailed by a touchdown. YSU answered right back with a Bryce Oliver 50-yard touchdown grab and a Dra Rushton one-yard TD plunge to take a 14-7 lead. After the Sycamores tied the contest, Latrell Fordham returned a kickoff 98 yards for a touchdown. With the contest tied at 21, the Guins took a two-scored lead following a 68-yard run by McLaughlin and 10-yard keeper by QB Mitch Davidson. 
    Leading 35-28 at halftime, YSU extended its lead in the third quarter with 10 straight points. McLaughlin scored on a 10-yard run before McFadden connected on a 33-yard field goal. The Sycamores wouldn't go away scoring back-to-back touchdowns to pull within 45-42 late in the third quarter.
     Late in the fourth quarter, McFadden added a 42-yard field goal to increase the lead to 48-42 with 1:42 remaining. The Guins then stopped Indiana State on four straight plays to seal the victory.  YSU played keep away in the second half holding the ball for 22 minutes. For the game, the Guins had 36:41 in time of possession.

Now In the Top Five
    TB Jaleel McLaughlin now ranks fifth in NCAA history in career rushing yards with 7,434 yards on 1,138 carries (6.5 per rush) and 72 touchdowns in 51 games. He eclipsed the 7,000-yard mark with a solid 150-yard outing at NDSU on Oct. 1.
    He is the active career NCAA leader in attempts, touchdowns and yards. He is now just 89 yards from moving into fourth place all-time.
     In 22 games at YSU, he has rushed for 2,686 yards (122 yards per game average) and scored 24 TDs. He has rushed for more than 100 yards in 16 of his last 21 contests at YSU, including five of six this season. In 28 games at Notre Dame, he had 24 100-yard outings. In 51 games, he has eclipsed the 100-yard mark on 40 occasions.

NCAA Career Rushing Yards Leaders

1. Nate Kmic (Mount Union | 2005-08) - 8,074
2. Danny Woodhead (Chadron State | 2004-07) - 7,962
3. Levell Coppage (Wis.-Whitewater | 2008-11) - 7,795
4. Franklyn Quiteh (Bloomsburg | 2010-13) - 7,523
5. Jaleel McLaughlin (YSU/ND Ohio | 2018-22) - 7,434

Davidson Dazzles In Starts 
    Junior QB Mitch Davidson has started the past two games for the Penguins and has provided a spark leading the offense to eight touchdowns and five field goals  in those contests.
    In the past two games, he is 35-of-57 for 503 yards and three touchdowns. Against Indiana State last Saturday, he had two touchdown passes, tying a career-high.
    In his first career start, he completed 21-of-32 passes for 280 yards and two first-half touchdowns against North Dakota. The 280 yards passing were the most in a game by YSU QB since Montgomery VanGorder threw for a school-record 418 yards at Western Illinois on Sept. 29, 2018.

Jackson Has Monster Game
    DE James Jackson had one of the best games of his YSU career against Indiana State. Jackson had three solo sacks against the Sycamores.
    His biggest sack came on the final ISU drive of the game when he registered a third-down stop for a three-yard loss against Cade Chambers. He now leads the team with four sacks this year.
    For his YSU career, Jackson has played in 41 career games while starting the last 24. He has been credited with 69 career tackles.

TD Scorers Aplenty
    The Penguins had five different players find the end zone in the win over Indiana State. TB Jaleel McLaughlin, TB Dra Rushton, QB Mitch Davidson, WR Latrell Fordham and WR Bryce Oliver.
    McLaughlin had the 23 and 24th rushing touchdowns of his YSU career while Oliver caught his 12th career touchdown pass. It was the first career rushing for scores for Rushton and Davidson. Rushton's only other touchdown was a catch at Missouri State in April 2021. 
    Fordham became the first Penguin to return a kickoff for a touchdown since Jody Webb in November 2015.

Highest-Scoring Victory
    The 42 points allowed by the Penguins against the Sycamores were the most allowed in a victory in program history. Last season, YSU won a wild 44-41 overtime contest against UIW at Stambaugh Stadium which was the previous mark.
    YSU has allowed 38-or-more points five times and came away with a win.

High-Scoring Wins

YSU 48, Indiana State 42 - 2022
YSU 44, UIW 41 (OT) - 2021
YSU 41, Towson 39 - 1998
YSU 40, Akron 39 - 1986
YSU 40, Eastern Washington 38 - 2016

Trowers, Lenton Step Up
    The top two tacklers for the Penguins are DBs Jordan Trowers and Quincy Lenton.
    Trowers, a first-year starter, leads the team with 38 tackles, including 27 solo stops. Entering the 2022 campaign, Trowers had played in two career games and did not register a tackle.
    Lenton is second on the squad with 30 stops, including 20 solos. Last season he had 15 tackles in the final four games of the campaign. He has started 14 games combined in his YSU career - the spring and fall of 2021 and this year.

McLaughlin No. 2 in the FCS
    TB Jaleel McLaughlin ranks second this week in the FCS in rushing yards per game averaging 142.7 a contest. He trails Monmouth's Jaden Shirden who is at 144 per contest. In seven games, Shirden has 1,013 yards while McLaughlin is at 856 through six games.
    In three MVFC contests, McLaughlin has rushed for 488 yards (162.7 per game). His 32 carries vs. Indiana State were his most since Nov. 30, 2019 when he was at Notre Dame College.

McLaughlin's Top YSU Games
242 - UIW (2021)
203 - Duquesne (2022)
200 - Indiana State (2022)
185 - Southern Illinois (2021)
166 - South Dakota (2021 Spring)

Oliver A Top Target
    WR Bryce Oliver has been a big touchdown producer for the Guins during his Youngstown State career.
    In 15 games played at YSU, Oliver has 54 receptions for 682 yards and 12 touchdowns.
    This season he has 30 catches for 416 yards and four touchdowns. In the last two contests he has 231 yards on 15 grabs and two scores.
    In 2021, he finished the year with eight receiving touchdowns, the most by a Guin since   2011. Playing nine games last season, Oliver had 24 catches for 266 yards and eight touchdowns.

200-200-100 A Rarity
    For just the second time in school history, YSU had a player rush for more than 200 yards, a quarterback throw for more than 200 yards and a receiver amass more than 100 yards receiving in contest.
    Against Indiana State, Mitch Davidson had 223 yards passing, Jaleel McLaughlin had 200 yards rushing and Bryce Oliver had 143 yards receiving.
    The only other time that occurred was on Nov. 6, 2012, at Illinois State. Kurt Hess had 250 yards passing, Jamaine Cook had 213 yards rushing and Dominique Barnes had 113 yards receiving.

Impressive Fourths for YSU
    The Penguins made finishing games a key during the offseason. YSU has allowed just 29 points so far - three touchdown and three field goals - in the fourth quarter this season.
    YSU has outscored its opponents by a 45-29 margin in the fourth this year.
    In the fall of 2021, YSU was outscored by 30 points and in the spring of 2021, the Guins were outscored by 20 points. So far, the Penguins are a plus-16 in fourth quarter point differential.

Experience On the Lines
    The Guins have a wealth of contributors and experience on both the offensive and defensive lines.
    The offensive line features Mike McAllister  (23 starts), Jaison Williams (23), Aidan Parker (22), David Metzler (13) and Ryan Johnson (10). McAllister, Williams and Parker all started for the first time in the spring of 2021. Metzler made his first-ever start at left tackle at Michigan State in 2021 as a redshirt freshman.
    The defensive line features veterans James Jackson (24 starts), Dylan Wudke (19) and Chris Fitzgerald (16).

Fifth With Multiple 200s
    TB Jaleel McLaughlin is one of just four players in school history to rush for at least 200 yards in a game on three occasions. He joins YSU greats P.J. Mays, Marcus Mason and Paris Wicks in eclipsing the 200-yard mark as players to accomplish the feat in three games.

200-Yard Rushing Games
1. P.J. Mays (2000-02)    4
2. Marcus Mason (2005-06)    3
2. Paris Wicks (1979-82)    3
2. Jaleel McLaughlin (2021-22)    3

Touchdowns By Current Guins
    The Penguins have nine players on their roster who have scored touchdowns while at YSU. TB Jaleel McLaughlin leads the team with 26 total touchdowns while Bryce Oliver is the leader in receiving TDs with 12.

Numbers of Note
• Turnover Margin: Since 1996, YSU is 149-46 when they win or tie the turnover margin. When committing more turnovers, YSU is just 27-85.
Since 1990 YSU is:
• 173-22-2 when holding opponents to fewer than 21 points in a game.
• 151-22 when rushing for 200-plus yards.
• 173-30 when scoring 28-or-more points.
• 91-14-1 when holding opponents to fewer than 100 yards rushing in a game.
• 203-21 when leading entering the fourth.
• 92-3-2 holding opponents to 10 points-or-less.