Youngstown State vs. Murray State
Oct. 25, 2025 | Stambaugh Stadium
Youngstown, Ohio | 2 p.m.

Broadcast Information
TV – ESPN+ (Drae Smith, Chris  Sammarone)
Radio Network – 570 AM WKBN (Bob Hannon, Steve Leslie, Anthony Romo, Ron Potesta. Mike Orto)
Internet Radio – 570wbkn.iheart.com
App Audio - iHeartRadio App

Penguins
2025 Record: 4-3, 1-2 MVFC
Last Game: YSU 40, Illinois State 35
Head Coach: Doug Phillips (Sixth Season)
X: @ysufootball

Racers
2025 Record: 0-7, 0-3 MVFC
Last Game: South Dakota State 35, Murray State 14
Head Coach: Jody Wright (Second Season)
X: @racersfootball

Series History
All-Time Series: Murray State leads 6-3
Last Meeting: YSU 34-17 (2023)
In Youngstown: Tied 2-2

Opponent	Date	Location	Video	Audio	Live Stats
	Saturday Oct. 25 | 2 PM	Stambaugh Stadium Youngstown, Ohio	ESPN+	570 WKBN	Live Stats

    The 21st-ranked (AFCA/Coaches Poll) Youngstown State football team entertains Murray State in the Penguins' annual Homecoming contest this Saturday. Kickoff for the tilt at Stambaugh Stadium is set for 2 p.m. The game is available on the ESPN+, WKBN 570 AM and iHeartRadio.
    • YSU is coming off an impressive come-from-behind 40-35 win at then No. 10 Illinois State last Saturday in Normal, Ill. The Guins scored three fourth-quarter touchdowns to overcome a 28-19 deficit and stun the Redbirds. In the fourth, QB Beau Brungard had two rushing TDs and a passing score to spearhead his second fourth-quarter comeback this season.
    • The Guins led 12-0 at Illinois State before trailing 14-12 at halftime. In the second half, YSU trailed by two and nine on two occasions. Down, 28-19, the Guins reeled off 21 unanswered points in a span of 6:01 of the fourth quarter to seize control.
    • QB Beau Brungard was named the Stats Perform National Player of the Week and the MVFC Player of the Week after setting a school-record with 528 yards of total offense. He is the first FCS player to throw for 300 yards and rush for more than 100 in game since UIW's Lindsay Scott on Dec. 3, 2022.
    • At Illinois State, wide receiver Fresh Walters caught his first career touchdown pass, an impressive 53-yard in the fourth quarter. WR Mike Solomon hauled in a 36-yard scoring toss for his second TD in as many games.
    • WR Max Tomczak hauled in four passes for 53 yards in the win and now has 192 career catches in his YSU career. Earlier this season, he broke the previous school mark of 186 by Jim Ferranti that had stood since 1979.  Tomczak has a reception in a school-record 40 straight games. Entering the game against Murray State, Tomczak has 2,533 receiving yards which trails Ferranti's 3,103.
    • Murray State (0-7, 0-3 MVFC) suffered a 35-14 loss at South Dakota State last week. The Racers and Jackrabbits were tied 7-7 before SDSU scored three straight touchdowns. MSU had two scores of longer than 60 yards.
    • This is the first meeting in Youngstown between the schools since 1987 when both were members of the Ohio Valley Conference. YSU won at Murray on Nov. 18, 2023, and is 3-6 in the all-time series.

Defense With 10 Takeaways

    The Penguins forced 10 turnovers in seven games, which has by far exceeded their total of seven from 12 games in the 2024 campaign.
    YSU forced four turnovers in the season opener vs. Mercyhurst with two interceptions and two fumble recoveries. That marked the most turnovers forced in a game by YSU since Nov. 19, 2022 (Southern Illinois).
    Against RMU, the Guins turned a late second-quarter fumble into a TD. Against Michigan State, Towson and South Dakota State the Guins had interceptions. At Illinois State, two interceptions led to 10 points in the victory.
    Last year, the Guins had three interceptions and four recovered fumbles. 

Among the Best in the FCS

    QB Beau Brungard is among the nation's top performers in numerous rushing and offensive categories.
    • First in Total Yards Per Game (364.9)
    • First in Total Offense Yards (2,554)
    • First in Total Plays (364)
    • Second in rushing TDs (12)
    • Third in total TDs (12)
    • Third in yards per game (132.4)
    • Third in points scored (72)
    • Third in Scoring Per Game (10.3)
    • Fourth in rushing yards (927)
    • Sixth in rushing attempts (141)
    His 2,054 career rushing yards rank him 14th among active FCS players.

Tomczak Sets Catch Record

    WR Max Tomczak broke the YSU all-time receptions record earlier this month during the contest at North Dakota.
    Tomczak now has 192 receptions, which eclipsed Jim Ferranti's mark of 186 that had stood since 1979 until this year.
    With his 2,533 yards receiving, Tomczak is still in contention to reach Ferranti's school mark of 3,103 yards. 
    This year, Tomczak he has 37 catches for 530 yards and four touchdowns. In 2024, Tomczak had 73 grabs for 904 yards and four touchdowns. He had 56 catches for 669 yards in 2023 and 26 for 430 yards in 2022. In three games this season, he has 190 yards on 14 receptions.
    He has caught a pass in a school record 40 consecutive contests. Tomczak also has at least four receptions in 22 of his last 25 games.

Specialists Own Experience

    The Penguins' specialists group features an impressive array of experience.
    YSU has third-year starters in punter Brendon Kilpatrick and placekicker Andrew Lastovka. New to the lineup is long snapper Byron Floyd, who started for two seasons at Pitt and one at Buffalo, before transferring into the program.
    Kilpatrick was selected as the FCS Punter of the Year by the Augusta Sports Council in 2024.  
    Lastovka has made 38 field goals in 32 career contests, including two as time expired. He has made 74 straight PATs dating back to Nov. 18, 2023.
    Kilpatrick is averaging 47.2 yards a punt this year. At Illinois State he had a career-long 67-yard punt. Eight of his 24 kicks are longer than 50 yards. Floyd has started 45 games (25 at Pitt, 13 at Buffalo and seven at YSU).

First-Time Starters

    The Penguins have had 22 first-time starters so far this season.
    On offense, WR Flash Wilson, guards Joe Sferra and Isaac Perkins, TB Jaden Gilbert and TE Austin Bray started for the first time. On defense, DBs Dathan Hickey, Justin Wimpye and Dayne Hodge, LB Carston Marshall and defensive lineman Ebony Curry Jr., Thomas Jolly and Collin Vaughn started for the initial time. 
    Against Robert Morris, LB Graydon Rollins, WR Mike Solomon and TE Alex McDonald were first-time starters. 
    At Michigan State, WR RK Dandridge and TB Tahir Mills started. At Towson, DT Cameron Cunningham, DB Jussiah Williams-West and TE Michael Manna all started for the first time. At North Dakota, RT Nick Nielsen started for the initial time.

National Honors Piling Up

    The Penguins have had the Stats Perform National FCS Players of the Week on offense, defense and special teams this season. In fact, QB Beau Brungard is a two-time honoree.
    Brungard was named the National Offensive Player of the Week following his record-setting performances against Robert Morris and Illinois State. PK Andrew Lastovka was named the National Special Teams Player of the Week after kicking the game-winning field goal at Towson. DB Dathan Hickey took top national Defensive honors following the opener vs. Mercyhurst.

Hodge Headlines Back End

    DB  Dayne Hodge has played a key role on the defense after bringing a good wealth of experience to the secondary. 
    In seven games at YSU, Hodge is tied for the team lead in total tackles with 43 (24 solos and 18 assists). On three occasions he's registered nine-or-more tackles, with a season-high 10 against Mercyhurst in his YSU debut. At Illinois State, he picked up his first YSU interception.
    Hodge played in 28 games and started 19 contests at safety for Tulsa. 
    In 2024, he started 11 games. Hodge finished second on the team with 60 tackles (30 solos and 30 assists) with three pass breakups. In 2023, he played in all 12 games and started eight contests and registered 57 stops.

Harris, Shahid Step Up

    CB DJ Harris and SS Makai Shahid are key veterans in the secondary. Shahid ranks fourth on the team with 35 tackles while Harris is tied for fifth with 28. 
    Harris made a big-time interception deep in Penguin territory at Illinois State last Saturday that helped stop a Redbird drive and eventually set up YSU's go-ahead score.
    In two seasons a starter, Shahid has 92 tackles, including 57 solo stops. He had 56 stops in 2024. Harris has 84 total tackles at YSU, including 55 solo stops. In his collegiate career, he has 135 tackles (84 solos). 

Flash Finding Form

    WR Ky "Flash" Wilson is becoming a key threat for the Penguins as the season moves in.
    Wilson has 723 all-purpose yards - 448 on kickoff returns, 256 receiving and 19 rushing - in six games. 
    At North Dakota, he had a YSU-high of 102 yards receiving on four receptions and returned a kickoff 54 yards and caught his second touchdown pass. At Towson, he opened the second half with a 76-yard kickoff return, a season long.
    

LBs Making Key Contributions

    The linebacking trio of Preston Zandier, Mike Wells and Carston Marshall are major contributors this year. 
    Zandier is tied for the team lead with 43 tackles while Marshall is third at 41. Wells has moved to more an edge role and has 21 tackles with a team-leading six TFLs and four sacks.
    In 40 games played, Zandier has 98 career tackles with 88 coming in the last two years. Marshall now has 50 career stops in 15 games while Wells has 49 total tackles in 34 games played. He had 23 tackles last season.

Brungard Shows Off Skills

    Junior QB Beau Brungard is set to make his 20th straight start at QB on Saturday.
    For his career, he has rushed for 2,054 yards on 328 carries with 31 touchdowns. He has thrown for 3,876 yards completing 367-of-557 passes (65.9 percent) and 23 touchdowns.
    Brungard is coming off a 328-yard passing and 200-yard rushing effort at Illinois State. With no confirmed numbers, he is believed to be the first player in FCS history to accomplish a 300-200 performance.
    Brungard set the school  and conference record for rushing yards by a QB against Robert Morris on Sept. 7. On 10 carries, he had 264 yards and four touchdowns. The 264 yards tied for the third-most in a game in school history and broke the MVFC record of 245 (2001).
    Nine times in 19 career starts he has rushed for more than 100 yards and five times he has been the MVFC Player of the Week.

O-Line Features Depth

    YSU's offensive line features four starters with double-digit collegiate starting experience.
    Desmeal Leigh has the most starting experience on the team with 32 starts. Shane Keenan has started 18 contests at both tackle and guard the past two years.
    Van Keen has started 15 straight contests at center and has a total of 19 career starts.
    Guard Isaac Perkins started 15 games at Colgate before joining the Penguins this year. He has started each of the first seven contests. Fourth-year Penguin Joe Sferra has also started all seven contests in 2025 as well.

The Wright Stuff

    TB Ethan Wright has returned to the lineup after suffering an Achilles injury at Southern Illinois last November.
    In three games this season, All-MVFC tilts, he has nine rushes for 50 yards while catching nine passes for 140 yards. At Illinois State, he took a screen pass 40 yards on 3rd-and-8 to help seal the victory.
    In 2024, Wright was named to the MVFC All-Newcomer squad. In 14 games at YSU, he has 145 carries for 727 yards and 27 receptions for 243 yards. In 32 career games played at UC from 2020-23, he had 215 yards on 44 attempts and caught five passes for 44 yards.

Preseason Accolades

Max Tomczak | WR
    • Senior Bowl Top 300
    • East-West Shrine Bowl Watch List
    • 2nd-Team Phil Steele Preseason All-America
    • 3rd-Team SI.com Preseason All-America
    • 3rd-Team Stats Perform Preseason All-America
Desmeal Leigh | OL
    • Third-Team SI.com Preseason All-America
Brendon Kilpatrick | Punter
    • FCS Punter of the Year Watch List 
    (2024 winner)
    • Third-Team SI.com Preseason All-America
    • 3rd-Team Stats Perform Preseason All-America
Dathan Hickey | DB
    • East-West Shrine Bowl Watch List

Numbers of Note

• Turnover Margin: Since 1996, YSU is 162-52 when they win or tie the turnover margin. When committing more turnovers, YSU is just 32-95.
Since 1990 YSU is:
• 181-22-2 when holding opponents to fewer than 21 points in a game.
• 161-24 when rushing for 200-plus yards.
• 187-36 when scoring 28-or-more points.
• 99-14-1 when holding opponents to fewer than 100 yards rushing in a game.
• 215-24 when leading entering the fourth.
• 95-3-2 holding opponents to 10 points-or-less.
• YSU is 23-6 when having a ball carrier with more than 200 yards in a game.