Youngstown State University kicked off the 2010 football season with a new coach and a new attitude.  The Penguins ventured to Happy Valley under the guidance of new coach, Eric Wolford, to face the #14 Penn State Nittany Lions and coaching royalty, Joe Paterno.  The game was entertaining through the first half and a Penguin fan could grasp the nerves of a potential upset.  However, Penn State flexed some muscle in the second half and ran off 41 unanswered points in posting a 44-14 victory over YSU.

Much can be said about the positives that YSU displayed.  The one that fans should really be encouraged by was that this team fought until the final whistle and not once during this game did anyone quit or hang their head in defeat.  That attitude can be credited solely to Rookie Coach Eric Wolford.  The two touchdowns that YSU scored were a first in the sense that they had never hit paydirt against a BCS opponent, and they did it twice.  Another encouraging sign was the play of Kurt Hess.  For a kid that had never taken a snap at the college level, to complete 84% of your passes and not turn the ball over the entire game will do wonders for your confidence and the team’s faith in Hess as a leader.

The people who are veterans coming back played well.  If you have the game taped, go back and watch LG Eric Rodemoyer’s performance.  He will grade out at only a couple of negative plays and was driving Penn State lineman off of the ball the whole game.  Dominique Barnes (pictured) caught 11 passes for 134 yards and scored a touchdown.  The pitch and catch from Hess to Barnes capped a 3-play 80-yard drive that put the Penguins ahead 7-3.  YSU would hold that lead for almost a quarter.  Three Penn State field goals and a touchdown had the Nittany Lions ahead 16-7 at the half.

The second half may have exposed some things YSU has to get better at.  Chaz Powell returned the second half kickoff 100 yards to boost the lead to 23-7.  Penn State definitely outplayed YSU on special teams and the Penguins will need to improve in that area moving forward.  The other thing the Penguins need to do is eliminate penalties.  Saturday afternoon YSU had 8 penalties for 65 yards, way too much against any team.

Penn State was also quarterbacked by a freshman, Robert Bolden.  Bolden started a little sluggish but got rolling on a scoring drive before the half.  Bolden ended up 20-29 for 239 yards and two TD’s.  His favorite target was Brett Brackett, a senior co-captain, who caught 8 passes for 98 yards.  Evan Royster was pretty well kept in check by the Penguin Defense as he carried the ball 11 times for 40 yards (3.6 ypc).

Joe Paterno finished the game with career victory #395, most among major college coaches.  Eric Wolford dropped to 0-1 career with the loss, but much better days will come for this young coach.  If Wolford coaches 45 years, he might be where Paterno currently sits in the win column, I have that much faith in him and the great staff he has assembled.  One guarantee from this website, YSU will not finish any worse than fourth place in the Missouri Valley Football Conference this season.

Youngstown State has to now shift their focus to the home opener against Pioneer League 2009 Champion, Butler.  By whacking the negatives and expanding on the positives, there isn’t a team left on YSU’s 2010 schedule that should not be concerned about losing.