Youngstown State University
North Dakota
Penguins Play Host to Seventh-Ranked North Dakota
10/22/2024 2:00:00 PM | Football
Youngstown State vs. North Dakota
Oct. 26, 2024 | Stambaugh Stadium
Youngstown, Ohio | 6 p.m.
Broadcast Information
TV – ESPN+ (Drae Smith, Chris Sammarone)
Radio Network – 570 WKBN (Bob Hannon, Steve Leslie, Anthony Romo)
Internet Radio – 570wbkn.iheart.com
App Audio - iHeartRadio App
Penguins
Record: 2-6, 1-3 MVFC
Last Game: vs. South Dakota (L, 17-27)
Head Coach: Doug Phillips (Fifth Season)
X: @ysufootball
Fighting Hawks
Record: 5-2, 2-1 MVFC
Last Game: UNI (W, 41-7)
Head Coach: Bubba Schweigert (11th Season)
X: @UNDfootball
Series History
All-Time Series: UND leads 4-0
At YSU: UND leads 2-0
Win Streak: UND, 4 games
Last Meeting: North Dakota 35-30 (2022)
| Opponent | Date | Location | Video | Audio | Live Stats |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 |
Saturday Oct. 26 | 6 PM |
Stambaugh Stadium Youngstown, Ohio |
ESPN+ | 570 WKBN | Live Stats |
The Youngstown State football team entertains seventh-ranked North Dakota this Saturday evening. Kickoff at Stambaugh Stadium is set for 6 p.m. The game is available on ESPN+, WKBN 570 AM and iHeartRadio.
YSU (2-6 overall, 1-3 in the MVFC) jumped out to a two-touchdown advantage against fourth-ranked South Dakota, but the Coyotes scored 27 of the contests' final 30 points for a 27-17 win at Stambaugh Stadium last Saturday evening.
The Guins took the opening possession of the contest 82 yards in 11 plays and scored on a 15-yard pass from Beau Brungard to Brandan Serrano. On its next drive, YSU went 81 yards in 13 plays as Brungard scampered in from 11 yards out as the Penguins built a 14-0 lead.
In the second quarter, South Dakota tied the game following a touchdown pass and touchdown run. The Guins took a 17-14 halftime lead when Andrew Lastovka kicked a 39-yard field goal with four seconds remaining.
The Coyotes tied the contest midway through the third quarter and took the lead when Charles Pierre Jr. scored on a 50-yard rush for their first lead of the game. In the fourth, a 35-yard field goal by Will Leyland sealed the win.
North Dakota (5-2, 2-1) remained unbeaten at home with a 31-7 victory over UNI last Saturday at the Alerus Center. The Fighting Hawks scored the final 24 points of the contest after the Panthers tied the game in the second quarter.
With the score tied 7-7, UND scored two touchdowns in the final four minutes of the second half to take control. Leading 21-7 after three, the Fighting Hakws scored 10 points in a span of a minute-and-a-half to put the game away. UND rushed for 267 yards while holding UNI to 36 in for the contest and dominated in time of possession 37:08-22:52.
This is just the fifth all-time meeting between the programs and the first since October 2022. The two most recent games have been decided in the fourth quarter. At YSU in 2022, the Guins led 24-21 before two fourth-quarter UND touchdowns led to a 35-30 defeat. In 2021 at UND, YSU led 21-10 in the fourth before falling 24-21.
The Wright Stuff
TB Ethan Wright has been a huge addition after transferring from Cincinnati this fall.
Wright has started at tailback each of the past four games for the Penguins. In two of those contests he has rushed for season highs.
Against Indiana State, he had 81 yards on 15 carries and scored two touchdowns At Missouri State, he rushed for 76 yards on a season-high 17 carries and added a touchdown.
In five of eight games this year, Wright has rushed for 61 yards or more.
In 32 career games played at UC from 2020-23, he had 215 yards on 44 attempts and caught five passes for 44 yards. After eight games at YSU, he has 94 carries for 484 yards and 17 receptions for 109 yards.
Johnson Sets Career High
Senior LB Devin Johnson has set a career-high for tackles this season with 32 stops. His previous career best was 25 in 2022.
He's had at least three tackles in each of the past seven games, highlighted by six vs. Valpo.
In 46 games played during his career, he has been credited with 86 tackles (57 solos).
Shahid Having Breakout Year
First-year starter Makai Shahid is having a solid debut season in the Penguins' secondary.
Shahid leads the team with 34 total tackles, including 25 solo stops so far this year.
On two occasions he has recorded seven tackles in a game - Indiana State and Villanova.
Tomczak Stepping Up
WR Max Tomczak is having a great 2024 campaign. Through eight games he has 43 receptions for 560 yards and two touchdowns.
He's had at least four receptions in every game this season, including a season-high-nine against South Dakota last Saturday.
Against Valpo, he had a career-high two touchdown grabs on four catches for 98 yards.
He caught 56 passes for 669 yards, and, in 2022 had 26 catches for 430 yards and two TDs.
For his career, Tomczak has 125 receptions for 1,659 yards and five scores.
Traugh Emerges At WR
Redshirt freshman WR Cyrus Traugh has emerged as a go-to receiver this season.
Through eight games, Traugh has 25 receptions for 314 yards and a team-high three touchdowns.
He had a breakout performance at Pitt with two touchdown receptions and four catches for 89 yards. At Pitt he had scoring catches of 44 and 25 yards accounting for both of YSU's touchdowns in the game.
His first career touchdown grab came at Villanova in the season opener.
Brungard Shows Off Run Skills
Sophomore QB Beau Brungard has rushed for 601 yards on 75 carries after seven games. He is averaging 75 yards per game and an impressive 6.6 yards per rush. In three games he has had 16 attempts, including last Saturday vs. USD.
He enters Saturday's game just 37 yards shy of Jeff Ryan's school record for most rushing yards by at QB in a single season.
Twice this year he has rushed for more than 100 yards - 194 vs. Valparaiso and 110 at Missouri State. Following the contest against Valpo he was named the MVFC's Offensive Player of the Week for his efforts.
Rushing Yards By QB
1. Jeff Ryan (1999) - 638
2. Beau Brungard (2024) - 601
3. Jeff Ryan (2001) - 521
4. Ray Isaac (1991) - 471
5. Keith Snoddy (1978) - 463
The King Penguin
Tailback Tyshon King has four rushing touchdowns in 2024. He had a season-high two scores against Duquesne.
This year he has rushed for 315 yards on 84 carries, including a season-high 67-yard performance against Duquesne.
In his first season at YSU last year, King rushed for 1,011 yards on 187 carries and scored nine touchdowns en route to earning second-team All-MVFC honors. Six times last year he has eclipsed the 100-yard mark.
Specialists Keep Excelling
The Penguins' specialists are two of the most talented at the FCS level.
PK Andrew Lastovka, who was 17-of-20 on field-goal attempts in 2023, has made eight of 11 attempts this season, including a season-long 46-yard boot at Pittsburgh. He is now 25-of-31 on field-goal tries in his career.
P Brendon Kilpatrick is averaging 47.1 yards per punt on 28 kicks this season. He has 11 punts of 50 yards or more, highlighted by two 65-yard boots. Additionally he has placed a dozen inside the 20-yard line.
He would rank sixth nationally, but is only averaging 3.5 punts per game, just below the NCAA's minimum qualifications of 3.6 attempts a contest. YSU leads all of FCS in Net Punting.
Rugged Schedule
YSU has had to face one of the toughest slates in the country in 2024. YSU has played then No. 6 Villanova, No. 1 South Dakota State, No. 4 South Dakota and now, No. 7 North Dakota.
Also, YSU has faced now nationally-ranked Missouri State, a Duquesne team that's one spot out of the top 25 and Pittsburgh which is 6-0 for the first time since 1982. The mentioned seven teams are a combined 36-11.
Kilpatrick Earns MVFC Honor
Brendon Kilpatrick was named the Missouri Valley Football's Special Teams Player of the Week following the Penguins' 21-14 win over Indiana State.
Against the Sycamores, Kilpatrick averaged 47.8 yards on five punts. He had kicks of 52, 51, 50, 44 and 42 in the win. He had two inside the 20-yard line and placed one inside the 10. His last punt put the Sycamores at their own eight with under six minutes left.
New Faces on Defense
This season, 13 different players have made their first career starts on defense for the Penguins.
Most recently, CB Payton Edwards (Indiana State transfer) and DB Andrew Centofanti started at Missouri State. The week before, LB Preston Zandier started at Pitt. Against Duquesne, DT Tyler Bukur, DT Nehemiah Dukes and CB Jordan Rudolph were starters.
Against Villanova in the season opener, first-time starters were SS Stephon Hall, FS Makai Shahid, DB Kerion Martin and CB Isaiah Hackett, LBs Mike Wells and Devin Johnson and DTs Joe Brown and Jaelen Crider.
Previous starters were CB Jaylen Castleberry, DE Dawan Martin and DE Hunter Allen. Allen and Castleberry have started every game so far this year.
Father-Son QB Starters
QB Beau Brungard joined his father, Mark, as starting quarterbacks for the Guins.
Beau Brungard, a third-year sophomore, started for the first time in his career at Villanova. He has started every game for YSU so far this season.
Mark made his starting debut on Sept. 2, 1993, at Western Michigan. Ironically both of those were season-opening Thursday night road games.
O-Line Features Experience
YSU's offensive line has a plethora of experience with three players starting more than 30 games.
That group features right tackle Jaison Williams (48 starts), Aidan Parker (46 starts), left guard David Metzler (33 starts) and left tackle Desmeal Leigh (21).
New to the lineup this year is Shane Keenan who has started eight times at right guard. Van Keen, who started twice at center in 2023, started the past five contests along the line, including a starting at center the last four games.
Grinding Down the Clock
The Guins, who ranked first in the FCS in time of possession averaging 35:06 per game in 2023, are currently first in the country again with an impressive TOP average of 36:44. YSU has the national lead by more than a minute over North Dakota State (35:30).
The Guins have held the ball for more than 40 minutes in three games this season (Duquesne, Missouri State and South Dakota State).
Scoring Drives Breakdown
By Plays
10 | 7-or-fewer plays
17 | 10-or-more plays
22 | 8-or-more plays
By Time
10 | 3 minutes or less
12 | 6-plus minutes
20 | 4-plus minutes
Williams Garners Multiple Preseason Accolades
Veteran OL Jaison Williams was named to multiple preseason FCS All-American teams.
Williams was tabbed a preseason Second-Team All-American by FCS Football Central/SI.com and a third-team All-American by Stats Perform.
In 2023, he earned second-team all-conference honors after being named Honorable-Mention All-MVFC in 2021 and 2022.
Five Earn All-MVFC Honors
YSU had five preseason All-MVFC selections. Garnering first-team accolades were OL Jaison Williams and TB Tyshon King.
Additionally, WR Max Tomczak was a second-team pick while long snapper Sam Merryman and placekicker Andrew Lastovka were honorable-mention selections.
2024 Team Captains
YSU has elected five team captains for the 2024 season. The five players voted captains for the upcoming year are Jaison Williams (54), Tyshon King (10), Michael Voitus (42), Devin Johnson (45) and Logan Pasco (34). Williams and King are the offensive captains, Voitus and Johnson are the defensive captains and Pasco is the special teams captain.
Numbers of Note
• Turnover Margin: Since 1996, YSU is 158-48 when they win or tie the turnover margin. When committing more turnovers, YSU is just 31-94.
Since 1990 YSU is:
• 179-22-2 when holding opponents to fewer than 21 points in a game.
• 158-23 when rushing for 200-plus yards.
• 182-34 when scoring 28-or-more points.
• 97-14-1 when holding opponents to fewer than 100 yards rushing in a game.
• 212-23 when leading entering the fourth.
• 95-3-2 holding opponents to 10 points-or-less.
• YSU is 21-6 when a back rushes for more than 200 yards in a game.
