Youngstown State University
UNI
Penguins Return Home for a Homecoming Conference Matchup
10/13/2026 2:00:00 PM | Football
Youngstown State vs. UNI
Oct. 17, 2026 | Stambaugh Stadium
Youngstown, Ohio | 6 p.m.
Broadcast Information
TV – ESPN+ (Drae Smith, Chris Sammarone)
Radio Network – 570 AM WKBN
Internet Radio – 570wbkn.iheart.com
App Audio - iHeartRadio App (Steve Leslie, Bob Hannon)
Penguins
2026 Record: 5-2, 3-1 MVFC
Last Game: YSU 57, ISU 24
Head Coach: Doug Phillips (Seventh Season)
X: @ysufootball
Panthers
2026 Record: 3-2, 2-0 MVFC
Last Game: UNI 24, ND 17
Head Coach: Todd Stepsis (Second Season)
X: @UNIFootball
Series History
All-Time Series: UNI leads 26-11
Last Meeting: Youngstown 35-32 (2025)
In Youngstown: UNI leads 11-7
| Opponent | Date | Location | Video | Audio | Live Stats |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 |
Saturday Oct. 17 | 6 PM |
Stambaugh Stadium Youngstown, Ohio |
ESPN+ | 570 WKBN | Live Stats |
No. 6 ranked Youngstown State continues conference play this Saturday against No. 19 UNI at Stambaugh Stadium. Kickoff for the annual Homecoming contest is set for 6 p.m. The game is available on ESPN+, WKBN 570 AM and iHeart Radio.
• Last Saturday in a 57-24 win at Indiana State, YSU's offense was led by QB Beau Brungard, who threw for a career-high 386 yards and three touchdowns while completing 25-of-34 passes. He added two rushing scores, bringing his career total to 56 and breaking Adrian Brown's school record of 55 which had stood since 1999.
• YSU totaled 696 yards of offense, the third-highest mark in school history, with 417 passing yards and 279 rushing yards. TB Jaden Gilbert led the ground game with 163 yards on 16 carries and a career-high three touchdowns, while WR Lynn Wyche-El had 10 catches for 118 yards.
• The Penguins (5-2, 3-1 MVFC) fell behind 7-0 early before Gilbert scored on runs of 14 and 65 yards to give YSU a 15-7 lead following a Brungard two-point conversion.
• YSU erupted for 21 second-quarter points. Brungard gave YSU a 22-10 lead with a one-yard keeper. Gilbert's third rushing touchdown of the half made it 29-17 before Brungard connected with Wyche-El for a 36-yard score to extend the lead to 36-17.
• On the first play from scrimmage of the second half, Brungard tossed a 75-yard touchdown pass to Bryan Hunt making it a 43-17 contest.
• The Sycamores scored their final touchdown to make it 43-24 before Brungard threw his third TD pass of the game, a 16-yard strike to Jeremiah Sanders at 9:19 of the third quarter. In the fourth, Brungard's record-breaking score produced the final margin.
• UNI (3-2, 2-0 MVFC) upset No. 4 North Dakota last weekend at home. Carried by their defense and special teams, the Panthers forced five turnovers on UND with three fumble recoveries and two interceptions. UNI opened league play with a home win over Illinois State.
• The last three meetings between the Guins and Panthers have been decided by a total of seven points.
• The Penguins have a bye week next Saturday before closing out the month of October on Halloween with home contest vs. North Dakota.
Brungard Making History
QB Beau Brungard is set to make his 33rd straight start at QB on Saturday. For his career, he has rushed for 3,162 yards on 541 carries and now has a school record 56 touchdowns. His 56th rushing score broke the school record of 55 held by Adrian Brown. Through the air, he is 648-of-939 for 7,304 yards and 55 touchdowns. Brungard now holds both the most offensive plays (1,480) and the most offensive yards (10,466) for a career in school history, along with numerous other marks. In 2025, he lead the FCS with 4,702 total offensive yards while rushing for 1,468 yards and 27 touchdowns. He completed 277-of-403 passes for 3,234 yards with 26 TDs. He added another score on a 50-yard touchdown reception against Murray State. In 12 games in 2024, Brungard rushed for 998 yards on 159 carries and scored 16 times, passed for 2,141 yards and completed 209-of-314 passes for 12 touchdowns.
First Time Starters
Through seven games, YSU has had 18 different players make their first career start. Against Mercyhurst starting for the initial time were: Jeremiah Sanders, Bryan Hunt, Cam Smith, Jordan Pritchard-Sewell, Raleigh Collins III, Dev Holman, Maximillian Johnson and Evan Anderson. At Kentucky, those Penguins making their first career starts included Darvens Tunis, Roderick Owens Jr., Lynn Wyche-El and Lachlan Amore. Against Duquesne, Mason Ludwig and Brandon Chambers Jr., made their first starts at YSU. At SDSU, Dominic Julius started at corner. Against USD, Michael Wright Jr. and Lemondte Chambers made their first start for the Guins. Lorenzo Jenkins made his first career start at SIU. Of the 17 first-time starters, 11 are on defense, four are on offense and two are on special teams.
McDonald Scores Fifth TD
TE Alex McDonald has scored five touchdowns during his career. Against South Dakota, a four-yard pass in the end zone from Beau Brungard to give the Guins a 33-21 lead early in the fourth quarter. He hauled in a touchdown grab previously at South Dakota State. At Indiana State, he had a career-long 38-yard reception where he was tackled at the one. During the 2025 season, McDonald had TD grabs at Towson, North Dakota State and UNI.
Most Receiving TDs by a TE Since 2010:
10 – Nate Adams (2011-14)
8 – Will Shaw (2011-12)
7 – Miles Joiner (2018-19)
5 – Alex McDonald (2022-Present)
Gilbert Key Dual Threat
TB Jaden Gilbert continues to be one of Guins' key offensive weapons in 2026. So far this year, Gilbert has 56 rushes for 412 yards and six touchdowns while catching 21 passes for 165 yards and two scores. At Indiana State last Saturday he had one of the best outings of his career. He rushed a career-high 16 times for 163 yards and three scores. It was the second time in his career that he eclipsed the 100-yard mark (SIU - 2025). The Honorable-Mention All-MVFC selection finished last season with 665 rushing yards on 95 carries, finding the end zone three times.
Wells Highly-Touted
Defensive end Michael Wells is in his fifth year with the Guins. Wells is coming off an explosive 2025 season. He was credited with 50 total tackles – 25 solos - 25 assists. He had 15 TFLs, highlighted by an impressive 10.5 sacks with 11 QB hurries, four pass breakups, three fumble recoveries and two forced fumbles. He is on the watch list for the 2026 Buck Buchanan award; he is the first defensive player to be on the list for Youngstown State since Derek Rivers in 2016. This season, Wells has 23 tackles, including eight TFLs. Seeing more double teams, he has two QB hurries, three pass breakups and a fumble recovery through six games.
Guins Hot In The Red-Zone
The Guins offense now leads the FCS in total red-zone scores with 33 (29 touchdowns) and is tied for second with Towson with 12 red-zone passing touchdowns. The unit also leads the FCS with 17 rushing red-zone scores. YSU has 35 red-zone possessions this season and the only two non scores were kneel downs at the end of the Mercyhurst and SIU contests.
Lastovka Leads Specialists
Senior PK Andrew Lastovka is in his fourth season with the Guins. He has played in 45 games, making 48 field goals and 174 PATs. He made all four of his field-goal tries this year (two at SDSU, two vs. USD). Last Saturday, he eclipsed the school marks for career PATs made and attempted which had been held by Jeff Wilkins since 1993. This season he is 34-of-36 on PAT tries. One miss came with backup holder Beau Brungard in that role. Lastovka's longest career field goal came from the 2024 season finale against UNI when he made a 51-yard field goal. He's made final-play game-winning kicks against Illinois State (2023) and Towson (2025) during his career.
Receivers Showing Their Stuff
The Penguins are relying on new faces in the pass game. Three of the top six pass catchers were not with the program in 2025. Leading the way has been playmaker Lynn Wyche-El. Through seven games, Wyche-El has caught a team-leading 42 passes for 538 yards and six touchdowns. He has scored a touchdown in every game this season, including two against Duquesne and South Dakota. WR Bryan Hunt has 17 catches for 264 yards and three touchdowns while Dorian Williams has nine receptions and Lorenzo Jenkins has eight. Jeremiah Sanders has 14 catches for 171 yards while Jaden Gilbert has 21 for 165 yards and a pair of scores.
Leigh On Senior Bowl List
OT Desmeal Leigh has been named to the Panini Senior Bowl Top 300 list. It marks the second straight year that the Penguins have a player named to the preseason list. Last year, WR Max Tomczak was a candidate to participate in the all-star game. Leigh is one of just two FCS players to appear on the list. He had started 40 straight games at left tackle for YSU during his career before missing the Duquesne game with an injury. He now has made 44 career starts in his four years with the program.
Top GPA In The MVFC
For the first time in program history the Penguins led the Missouri Valley Football Conference in GPA for an academic year. In 2025-26, the Guins' student-athletes accumulated a GPA of 3.36 to take the top spot. YSU beat out North Dakota State (3.31), South Dakota State (3.30) and North Dakota (3.28) in the league's annual rankings.
Yurcich And offense Success
Since joining the Penguins coaching staff in 2025, Offensive Coordinator Mike Yurcich has made a significant impact on the Guins' offense. Under Yurcich, YSU has recorded 14 games with 30 or more points, including 10 games with 40-plus points. The top five scoring performances came against Duquesne (70), Indiana State (57), Robert Morris (56), Murray State (51) and South Dakota (48). The offense now has seven games with 500-plus total offensive yards. This season so far YSU has gone over 500 against Indiana State (696), Duquesne (603) and South Dakota (502). During the 2025 season the offense eclipsed the 500-yard mark on four occasions - Robert Morris (593), Illinois State (561), Murray State (543) and Southern Illinois (648).
Lastovka Among Active leaders
YSU PK Andrew Lastovka ranks highly among FCS career leaders entering the contest against UNI. Lastovka has made the most (48) and attempted the most (62) field goals of any active FCS kicker during his 45-game career. He ranks second in the FCS in PAT attempts (179) and PATs made (174) behind Montana State's Myles Sansted.
New Faces On Defense
Multiple new members of the defense have stepped up to make contributions. DB Cam Smith has a team-leading 45 tackles and a interception while true freshman Roderick Owens Jr., has a forced fumble, interception and 34 tackles. DT Jordan Pritchard-Sewell has 17 tackles and two forced fumbles. Darvens Tunis has 15 stops and two picks. Stanley Clyne also has stepped up with six tackles and an interception.
O-Line Features Experience
YSU's offensive line features six players with multiple-game starting experience. Desmeal Leigh has the most starting experience on the team with 44 starts. Shane Keenan has started 27 contests at both tackle and guard the past three years. Van Keen has a total of 25 career starts between center and guard. Guard Isaac Perkins started 10 contests last year in his first year with the program and now has 16 starts at YSU. Prior to coming to Youngstown State, he started 15 games at Colgate. In 2025, Matthew Keeley made five starts at center while Nick Nielsen has started at tackle on six occasions. Both started the first seven games this year.
2025 Brungard Awards Haul
QB Beau Brungard continues to build off an extraordinary record-breaking 2025 season. Besides being the Walter Payton Award recipient, Brungard was the Walter Camp Foundation Player of the Year, FCS ADA Offensive Player of the Year, Unanimous first-team All-American: Walter Camp, FCS ADA, AFCA, Stats Perform, SI.com, Associated Press, Phil Steele. He was also the MVFC Offensive Player of the year. Only twice has their been a repeat winner of the award. He led the FCS in total offensive yards (4,702), total points responsible for (326) and tied for first in total touchdowns (28) and total points (168).
UP NEXT:
The Penguins are off next Saturday before a Halloween tilt against North Dakota at Stambaugh Stadium. Kickoff for the game against the Fighting Hawks is set for noon.
