Author Topic: Lack of Early Football Excitement  (Read 29607 times)

Offline ytownchief22

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Re: Lack of Early Football Excitement
« Reply #30 on: July 27, 2018, 08:16:11 PM »
Haven't seen less excitement for a football season in a long time.

Offline The YO Show

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Re: Lack of Early Football Excitement
« Reply #31 on: July 27, 2018, 08:49:21 PM »
The problem is we have a lot of question marks. Hard to be excited when I have no idea what kind of team we have this year. Could go undefeated or could be 4-7. Who knows? Have some talent back, but you know we have some questionable areas and all knew coordinators. I would like to think odds are we are more likely to go 7-4 or better yet 8-3, but I have no idea.

Offline robmat2571

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Re: Lack of Early Football Excitement
« Reply #32 on: July 27, 2018, 09:50:10 PM »
4 star tight end Charles Reeves transferring to YSU from Pitt!  Good player!

Offline ytownchief22

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Re: Lack of Early Football Excitement
« Reply #33 on: July 27, 2018, 09:50:49 PM »
Charles Reeves Jr from Pitt is transferring here. Eligible immediately. 6-5 280 pounds from Steubenville. Was a top 15 TE out of high school. Had an offer from Alabama. Played TE at Pitt but wonder if he'll play DE here.
« Last Edit: July 27, 2018, 10:13:45 PM by ytownchief22 »


Offline Penquin68

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Re: Lack of Early Football Excitement
« Reply #35 on: July 28, 2018, 05:51:32 PM »
As I recall we have a tight end transfer from OSU also.  Not sure they will both stay at that position if they are strong players and both need to be on the field.  Good problem to have.

Any players from last year that have left the program; especially those that were counted on to start?

Offline IAA Fan

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Re: Lack of Early Football Excitement
« Reply #36 on: July 28, 2018, 06:21:02 PM »
As I recall we have a tight end transfer from OSU also.  Not sure they will both stay at that position if they are strong players and both need to be on the field.  Good problem to have.

Any players from last year that have left the program; especially those that were counted on to start?

Yu know we have had quite a few, most of the losses were posted on the board here. If I get time on vacation in a couple weeks, I am going to try and do a roster comparison from last year to this.

Offline ytownchief22

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Re: Lack of Early Football Excitement
« Reply #37 on: July 29, 2018, 01:03:08 AM »
None that were projected to start.

Online Double ET

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Re: Lack of Early Football Excitement - article from Warren Tribune
« Reply #38 on: July 29, 2018, 08:37:05 AM »
The first YSU Football article comes from Tribune and not Vindy:


YSU is destination

More area players desire to be Penguins
YSU SPORTS
JUL 29, 2018

JOE SIMON
Sports Reporter
jsimon@tribtoday.com
 
 

Tribune Chronicle file photo / R. Michael Semple Youngstown State football coach Bo Pelini has succeeded in recruiting a large number of area players to the downtown Youngstown campus.

YOUNGSTOWN — It was getting dark as Dra Rushton walked around the campus of Youngstown State University as a sophomore in high school, and he suddenly got a visitor.


“(YSU President Jim Tressel) pulled up next to me on the golf cart, him and his wife,” said Rushton, a 2018 Liberty graduate who will play football for the Penguins. “He was just asking if everything was all right, where we were staying, do we know where we’re going. He’s just always there to look out for you.”

Thing is, seven to 10 years ago, that visitor might not have been so nice, and it definitely wouldn’t have been the school president.

Things are changing at YSU, and for the best.

From numerous campus renovations and updates downtown, to improved facilities and a wide-ranging curriculum, the campus has enjoyed a major facelift. Area athletes are noticing as well.

Along with Rushton, the Trumbull County Player of the Year in football, players from Girard, Cardinal Mooney, Ursuline, Austintown Fitch, Canfield, Poland, Salem and Beaver Local all joined the program during National Signing Day in February.

They’ll team up with another large contingent (19) of area players already at YSU. A university that once had a stigma as being a commuter school that students settled for is now becoming a place people look forward to attending.

“Everyone from around the area who’s like, ‘I’ll probably just end up going to YSU.’ It’s really not like that anymore,” said John F. Kennedy graduate Jacob Coates, a sophomore who picked football at YSU over a track scholarship at Penn State. “They re-did Wick Avenue, they’re putting up new apartments downtown. They’re trying to connect downtown to the main campus to try to give it more of a campus feel.

“The whole school is going in the right direction. Everyone’s starting to see that it’s not just a school to say, ‘Hey, I’m going to commute from home and go to school there.’ Downtown is becoming way more live. Everyone’s kind of catching on.”

Indeed.

Rushton, who also had several choices of schools, said he talks to people his age and younger about all the improvements YSU has made in hopes of persuading them to get on board. Aside from simply enjoying being from the greater Youngstown area, Rushton said he was blown away at the sports facilities and equipment the Penguins use.

“All the time people ask, ‘Man, why’d you choose YSU?’,” Rushton said. “I’m like, ‘Man, YSU is like any other D-I (school). We’ve got inside facilities. We’ve got outside facilities. We’ve got great coaches. You know, we’ve got Bo Pelini! We’ve got a great coach. We have the same opportunities as those Ohio States and all those other D-Is have.’ I always tell them it’s not about the big names all the time. It’s about exposure, working hard and you’ll get noticed anywhere.”

An old rival of Rushton’s couldn’t agree more.

Former Girard standout Michael Belcik is another Trumbull County player joining the Penguins. The speedy wide receiver said a big reason he decided to stay home was because so many friends of his, along with other local players, were making the same choice.

That wasn’t the only reason though. Belcik, born and raised in the area, said he’s always held YSU in high regard.

“To me, YSU has always been home,” Belcik said. “I’ve always been close to home, and I always drove past there as a child and looked at that stadium like it was an NFL stadium. Now I actually have the opportunity to play there. It’s an honor.”

The sudden influx of local talent resembles a similar time at YSU.

Back in the 1990s, numerous area players played roles in the Penguins winning four national championships under Tressel. His return, along with Pelini — a former Big Ten, SEC and NFL coach — is playing a role in a resurgent Youngstown.

“That had a big factor when deciding where to go for college,” Coates said of the two polarizing figures. “When I went on my official visit, all the guys were so welcoming, the facilities are great and the coaches as a whole are great guys, and they’re very, very good coaches. When I met one on one with coach Bo at the end of my official visit, he was easy to talk to, and overall he’s a good coach. I just kind of knew that’s where I wanted to be. It just felt right.”

The feeling seems to be spreading.

Offline ytownchief22

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Re: Lack of Early Football Excitement
« Reply #39 on: July 29, 2018, 09:48:46 AM »
Eh, that's a feel good story and all but many of these local kids who walked on or are given half schollies will make minimal to zero impact on the team. Bo likes his local kids tho but the talent has dropped off significantly.

Offline YSUGO

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Re: Lack of Early Football Excitement
« Reply #40 on: July 29, 2018, 12:01:59 PM »
I agree.  Basically the locals are their to build depth on the back end of
Roster.  I feel we are in big trouble on both lines and at the skill positions.  I hope I am wrong. 
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Online ucfpengbuck

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« Last Edit: July 29, 2018, 12:06:06 PM by ucfpengbuck »

Offline go guins

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Re: Lack of Early Football Excitement
« Reply #42 on: July 30, 2018, 09:37:52 AM »
I agree.  Basically the locals are their to build depth on the back end of
Roster.  I feel we are in big trouble on both lines and at the skill positions.  I hope I am wrong.
Soooo, do I read this as you have confidence in the LB's and kicking game?
As we stand now, we have -0- proven OTs and have lost our best DE and only proven pass rusher, so we should be concerned on the lines.  Hopefully the JUCO transfers bolster the OT position (God knows, they are big enough. Henry Yoboue is about the biggest thing I've seen on two legs!)  We will need Cook to fill his recruiting hype and Richmond to continue to develop at DE or I see issues on D.
I'm OK with the skill positions.  I think we are stronger at WR than the last few seasons, even though a couple of last year's guys are in NFL camps.  I think it is too bad Montgomery is "one and done" but I expect that one to be pretty darn good.  RB is talented and deep, TE is talented and deep. 
IMO anything short of a deep playoff run will be a disappointment.
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Offline The YO Show

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Re: Lack of Early Football Excitement
« Reply #43 on: July 30, 2018, 09:00:03 PM »
Ysu was picked 4th in conference preseason poll
NDSU
SDSU
UNI
YSU
Illinois State
South Dakota
Western illinois
SIU
Missouri State
Indiana state

Online Double ET

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Re: Lack of Early Football Excitement - Vindy article
« Reply #44 on: August 01, 2018, 08:32:19 AM »
On Vindy today:

Pelini is in final year of a 4-year deal at YSU

By Brian Dzenis

bdzenis@vindy.com

August can be a murky time in college football.

As teams start to report to camp, certain positions are unsettled.

At Youngstown State, the future of head coach Bo Pelini remains open-ended.

Pelini is in the final year of his four-year pact with the Penguins and the Youngstown native said he hasn’t had any talks with the university about his future.

“It’s something that when the time comes, we’ll talk about it. It’s something that I’m not really concerned with right now,” Pelini said. “It’s business as usual right now. I’m excited about this upcoming year. That’s what I’m focused on.

“There will be a time and a place for that.”

His $213,894 deal expires on Feb. 28, 2019. It’s the same time when Pelini’s previous employer, Nebraska, is done paying $7.65 million of buyout money after the Huskers fired Pelini following the 2014 season.


 
He’s gone 23-15 in three seasons in Youngstown, a run that includes a trip to the Football Championship Subdivision National Championship in 2016 and last year’s 6-5 campaign that ended with the Penguins missing the playoffs.

YSU athletic director Ron Strollo said he’s fine with waiting until the end of the season to broach the subject with Pelini.

“At the end of the year, we’ll have our evaluations and deal with it like we would any coach,” Strollo said.

From both an athletic and academic standpoint, Strollo is a fan of Pelini.

“We think he’s on the cusp of getting this program back to where we want it to be,” Strollo said. “Our hope is that he’s here for a long time and I hope we’ve made it a great place to work for him.”

PENGUINS EARN PRESEASON HONORS

Four Penguins players have made the Missouri Valley Football Preseason Team, the conference announced on Tuesday. All of the players were first-team selections and seniors.

Running back Tevin McCaster, one of two backs in the MVFC to top 1,000 yards rushing, was one of the three backs selected. He’s joined by center Vitas Hrynkiewicz and guard Gavin Wiggins as well as long-snapper Steven Wethli. The Penguins’ four selections tie North Dakota State for most first-team selections for offense.

The defensive preseason team will be announced today.

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