The Youngstown State Department of Intercollegiate Athletics is pleased to announce the creation of the James. D. Briney Penguin Football Education Scholarship to enhance the YSU Athletics Scholarship Endowment Fund.
Going to college was a dream for Briney. However, being one of five children, in a single-parent home, the expense of higher education seemed out of reach. But he was athletic, and a good student, and was lucky enough to receive a scholarship.
Briney played football in Fremont, Ohio from 1971-73 where he was a three-time letterwinner as a center. In 1973, he was on the Fremont-Ross Little Giant team that won the Buckeye Conference Title. During that time, the Little Giants went 27-3 while he was the starting center playing alongside the likes of Rob Lytle and Bob Brundzinski.
He went on to play for Capital University on a full football scholarship. He had a double major in both Business and Elementary Education. He learned that if something is worth having, it’s worth working hard for.
After college, he relocated to the Pacific Northwest. Briney parlayed his education into a successful construction company with his brother in Salem, Ore. He retired in 2012, and moved back to Fremont, Ohio, to be closer to his mother and sister, and assist his wife, Susan, care for her parents.
He learned first-hand the benefits of receiving a life-changing scholarship and therefore felt the need to establish the James. D. Briney Penguin Football Education Scholarship. Recipients will be a qualified member of the YSU football team striving towards an undergraduate or graduate degree in Education.
“A good teacher may be remembered by many, but an exceptional one impacts lives and changes them for the better,” Briney said. “It is my hope that the student-athletes who receive this scholarship are those exceptional teachers.”
Paul McFadden, President of the YSU Foundation, said Briney’s contribution to Youngstown State is special considering he never attended the university.
“The fact that James wants to contribute to a student-athlete’s education here at YSU is outstanding,” McFadden said. “The experience he had as a student-athlete had a major impact on his life. We are excited to have him support our student-athletes who hopefully can take advantage of this opportunity like James did.”
For more information, or to endow an athletic scholarship at Youngstown State University, contact the YSU Foundation at (330) 941-3211 or contact Dan Kopp at dkopp@ysufoundation.org
