Youngstown State vs. Robert Morris
Sept. 6, 2025 | Stambaugh Stadium
Youngstown, Ohio | 2 p.m.

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

Penguins
2025 Record: 1-0
Last Game: YSU 24, Mercyhurst 15
Head Coach: Doug Phillips (Sixth Season)
X (Formerly Twitter): @ysufootball

Colonials
2025 Record: 0-1
Last Game: West Virginia 45, RMU 3
Head Coach: Bernard Clark, Jr. (Eighth Season)
X (Formerly Twitter): @RMU_Football

Series History
All-Time Series: YSU leads 5-0
Last Meeting: YSU 48-28 (2023)
In Youngstown: YSU leads 5-0

Opponent	Date	Location	Video	Audio	Live Stats
	Saturday Sept. 6 | 2 PM	Stambaugh Stadium Youngstown, Ohio	ESPN+	570 WKBN	Live Stats

    The Youngstown State football team plays host to Robert Morris this Saturday at Stambaugh Stadium. Kickoff for the contest is set for 2 p.m. The game is available on ESPN+, WKBN 570 AM and iHeartRadio.
    • YSU opened the 2025 campaign with a 24-15 victory over Mercyhurst last Thursday night at Stambaugh Stadium. The Guins were led by QB Beau Brungard who had 145 yards rushing on a career-high 28 carries and DB Dathan Hickey who had 13 tackles, an interception and a fumble recovery in his Penguins debut.
    • The Penguins offense scored touchdowns on their first three possessions of the contest at Jaden Gilbert opened the scoring before Brungard had two short scoring runs. 
    • The YSU defense was strong forcing four turnovers - two interceptions and two fumbles - while stopping the Lakers on fourth down on two other drives.
    • Hickey was credited with 13 total tackles, 10 of which were solo stops. He added an interception, a forced fumble and a fumble recovery as well playing his first collegiate game in 706 days. He was named the MVFC and Stats Perform National Player of the Week for his performance.
    • Brungard rushed for 145 yards while passing for 114. It was the fourth time in the last 14 games in which he rushed and threw for more than 100 yards in a game.
    • Besides Hickey's interception, Justin Wimpye had his first pick as a Guin against the Lakers. YSU intercepted just two passes during the 12-game 2024 campaign. The Guins also recovered two fumbles, which was half of the 2024 total in just four quarters.
    • RMU (0-1) suffered a 45-3 setback at West Virginia last Saturday. The Colonials hung tough with the Mountaineers trailing just 10-3 at halftime.
    • YSU leads the all-time series against the Colonials by a 5-0 margin. The last contest was a 48-28 Penguins victory in 2023. All five meetings have occurred since 2015.
    • The Penguins play their next two contests on the road and do not have another home game until an October 4 contest against South Dakota State at Stambaugh Stadium. 

Defense With Four Takeaways

    The Penguins forced four turnovers in the season opener vs. Mercyhurst with two interceptions and two fumble recoveries. The Guins also stopped the Lakers on a fourth-down attempt late in the third quarter.
    That marked the most turnovers forced in a game by YSU since Nov. 19, 2022 (Southern Illinois).
    In 12 games last year, the Guins had three interceptions and four recovered fumbles.

Hickey Garners Honors

    Senior DB Dathan Hickey picked up conference and national honors for his performance in the win over Mercyhurst.
    He was named the Stats Perform's National Defensive Player of the Week and the MVFC Defensive Player of the Week.
    Hickey's YSU debut was impressive as he was credited with 13 tackles to go along with a key fourth quarter interception and a forced and recovered fumble in the second quarter.
    A transfer from Yale, Hickey had not played a collegiate game in 706 days. His interception came in the fourth quarter with 2:15 left and YSU clinging to a nine-point lead. He returned it 21 yards and YSU was able to run out the clock.
    Hickey is the first Penguin to earn the MVFC defensive honor since Alex Howard on Nov. 7, 2022.

First-Time Starters
    The Penguins had 11 first-time starters in the bout with Mercyhurst last Thursday night.
    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. 

Brungard Shows Off Run Skills

    Junior QB Beau Brungard set the school single-season record for rushing yards by at quarterback a year ago and is off to a fast start in 2025.
    In the opener, he rushed for 145 yards on a career-high 28 carries. He added a pair of four-yard rushing touchdowns in the game.
    Brungard rushed for 998 yards on 159 carries and scored 16 touchdowns in 2024. He averaged 83.2 yards per game and an impressive 6.3 yards per rush.
    Five times in 13 career starts he has rushed for more than 100 yards.
    In the final two games of the 2024 campaign, he threw for 522 yards on 49 completions and three scores. He also rushed for five combined scores in those games.

Specialists Off to Good Start

    The Penguins' specialists group features an impressive array of experience and it showed in game one.
    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.
    Against Mercyhurst, Lastovka had a 37-yard field goal and three PATs. Kilpatrick averaged 52.7 yards on three punts, with a long of 63.
    Last season, Kilpatrick was selected as the FCS Punter of the Year by the Augusta Sports Council. In 2024, on 40 punts, Kilpatrick averaged a school-record 46 yards an attempt.
    Lastovka has made 30 field goals in 26 career contests. Floyd has started 39 games (25 at Pitt, 13 at Buffalo and one at YSU).
    Lastovka has made 50 straight PATs dating back to Nov. 18, 2023.

Three With 10 Tackles

    The Guins had three players with 10-or-more tackles vs. Mercyhurst. Dathan Hickey led the way with 13 stops while Dayne Hodge and Carston Marshall each had 10.
    All three also made their first career starts. In fact, four of YSU's top six tacklers were making their Penguin debuts.

Returning All-MVFC Performers

    The Guins bring back four All-MVFC players from a year ago.
    Highlighting the group is first-team WR Max Tomczak and QB Beau Brungard, who earned first-team accolades as an all-purpose player.
    Punter Brendon Kilpatrick was a second-team honoree while OT Desmeal Leigh was an honorable-mention pick.

Tomczak Over 2,000

    WR Max Tomczak enters the game with 2,046 yards receiving. He ranks eighth in school history in career receiving yardage but is just 224 from second place.
    His 159 career receptions already rank him third behind Dominique Barnes (168) and Jim Ferranti (180). Ferranti owns the school record with 3,103 yards set back in 1979.
    A year ago, he 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 the final two games last year he had 20 receptions for 255 yards. 
    He's has at least four receptions in 16 of the last 19 games. 

O-Line Features Experience

    YSU's offensive line returns three starters from last season in tackles Desmeal Leigh and Shane Keenan and center Van Keen.
    Leigh has the most starting experience on the team with 26 starts. Keenan has started the last 13 contests and made his career start at right tackle against Mercyhurst.
    Keen started 10 times last season and has now stared nine straight contests at center.
    The Guins added Colgate transfer Isaac Perkins who started 15 games and fourth-year junior Joe Sferra will be on the line. Both started against the Lakers.

Harris Continues Surge

    CB DJ Harris was named to the MVFC All-Newcomer squad last year as a safety.
    This year Harris is now playing corner for the Penguins after playing safety last year. 
    Last season, Harris led the team with 57 total tackles and was second with 36 solo stops. He also led the team with 47 tackles in MVFC play with 28 solos and 19 assist.
    He ended the season with 35 tackles in the final four games. Against Mercyhurst, he had eight total tackles, including an impressive seven solos.

PSAC Offense Additions

    YSU picked up three playmakers from the PSAC in the offseason with TB Tahir Mills and WRs Flash Wilson and Mike Solomon.
    Mills rushed for 855 yards on 149 carries and scored eight touchdowns. On three occasions, he ran for more than 100 yards. He also caught nine passes for 93 yards and a TD.
    Solomon had 56 receptions for 786 yards and eight touchdowns. He was the Rock's leader in receiving yards and receiving touchdowns and had a breakout 26 catches for 304 yards in four postseason games.
    Wilson recorded 1,524 all-purpose yards with 32 kickoff returns for 842 yards and a touchdown while catching 57 passes for 637 yards and four touchdowns.
    Wilson had a 48-yard kickoff return in the opener while Solomon's lone reception was for a first down on a fourth-and-short.

Hodge, Hickey Step In

    DBs Dathan Hickey and Dayne Hodge made  instant impacts and bring a good wealth of experience to the YSU secondary.
    Hickey missed the campaign last season with an injury, but had appeared in 28 games throughout his career at Yale. Since the 2022 season he has played in only five games after appearing in 23 from 2018-21.
    Hodge played in 28 games and started 19 contests at safety for Tulsa since 2021. 
    In 2024, he played and 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.

Tomczak on Senior Bowl List

    WR Max Tomczak has been named to the 2026 Panini Senior Bowl Top 300 list.
    Tomczak is one of just five FCS players on the list that includes 276 players from Power Four programs. He is joined by UIW WR Jalen Walthall, North Dakota State WR Bryce Lance, Stephen F Austin DB Charles Demmings and Harvard QB Jaden Craig.

2025 Team Captains

    YSU has elected five team captains for the 2025 season. 
    The five players voted captains for the year are QB Beau Brungard (12), TB Ethan Wright (2), Punter Brendon Kilpatrick (40), DE Michael Voitus (42) and DB Dathan Hickey (11).
    Votius has been named a team captain for the second straight year.

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
    • Third-Team SI.com Preseason All-America
    • 3rd-Team Stats Perform Preseason All-America
Dathan Hickey | DB
    • East-West Shrine Bowl Watch List

Father-Son QB Starters

    QB Beau Brungard joined his father, Mark, as starting quarterbacks for the Guins. 
    Beau Brungard, a fourth-year junior, started for the first time in his career at Villanova. He  started every game for YSU last season.
    Mark made his starting debut on Sept. 2, 1993, at Western Michigan. He started every game of the 1993, 1994 and 1995 season.

Numbers of Note

• Turnover Margin: Since 1996, YSU is 159-49 when they win or tie the turnover margin. When committing more turnovers, YSU is just 32-95.
Since 1990 YSU is:
• 180-22-2 when holding opponents to fewer than 21 points in a game.
• 159-24 when rushing for 200-plus yards.
• 184-35 when scoring 28-or-more points.
• 98-14-1 when holding opponents to fewer than 100 yards rushing in a game.
• 214-24 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.