The Youngstown State football team concludes the regular season with a visit to Indiana State this Saturday. Kickoff for the contest at Memorial Stadium is set for noon. The game is available on WKBN 570 AM, iHeartRadio, ESPN3 and the Watch ESPN App and on WBCB TV.
    YSU (5-5 overall, 3-4 in the MVFC) suffered a disheartening loss to North Dakota State last Saturday in the home finale. The Penguins led 24-10 after three quarters before the Bison rallied to score 17 unanswered points in the fourth quarter to earn a come-from-behind 27-24 victory.
    The Penguins played a tremendous first half to take a 14-3 lead at the intermission. QB Ricky Davis capped off YSU's first possession of the game with a 13-yard touchdown run as the Penguins went on top 7-0 early. NDSU cut the deficit to 7-3 before Jody Webb scored on a 45-yard run just 2:38 before halftime. The Bison pulled within 14-10 on a Easton Stick one-yard run but YSU closed out the quarter with a 77-yard Webb touchdown jaunt and a 44-yard field goal by Zak Kennedy, his school-record 18th of the season, to go in front 24-10. NDSU scored the last 17 points to rally for the win. Stick had the winning score from four yards out with just 35 seconds remaining.
    Indiana State (4-6, 2-5) lost a tough home contest of its own last week falling 37-30 in overtime to Western Illinois. The Sycamores led 27-10 early in the third quarter before the Leathernecks rallied and eventually tied the game at 30 early in the fourth period. In overtime, WIU's Nikko Watson scored on a one-yard run and the Sycamores were stopped on downs during their lone possession. Indiana State jumped out to a 20-3 lead as well midway through the second quarter.
    YSU has won 20 of the 24 all-time meetings in the series, but the Sycamores have won three of the last five meetings, including a 27-24 overtime win at Stambaugh Stadium in 2014. At Memorial Stadium in Terre Haute, YSU is 11-1 with the lone loss coming in 2011 (30-24). The Guins won the last time the two teams played in Terre Haute, 35-24, battling through two lightning delays. Ten of the 24 meetings have been decided by a touchdown or less.

NDSU Notes
• YSU led for 56:15 of the contest after scoring on its opening possession. NDSU scored the game-winning touchdown in the final minute of the contest. (35 seconds remaining)
• Entering the fourth quarter, the Penguins led 24-10.
• TB Jody Webb amassed 269 all-purpose yards, the fifth-best single-game performance in school history. Webb had just 12 touches to amass 269 yards. He averaged 22.4 yards per touch.
• Webb rushed for a career high 132 yards in the contest, averaging 26.4 yards per rushing attempt.
• Webb scored on touchdown runs of 77 yards and 45 in the contest. • YSU ran for 245 yards in the contest, the most it has run for against NDSU since 2010 (247).  
• QB Ricky Davis had a career-high 61 yards on a personal-best 11 carries. He scored on a 13-yard touchdown run.
• PK Zak Kennedy's 44-yard field goal in the third quarter was his 18th made field goal of the season. The 18 breaks the previous mark of 17 that was held by several players.
• LB Lee Wright was credited with 14 tackles for the second time in the past three games. In the last three games he has 37 tackles.
• DE Derek Rivers recorded the 25th sack of his YSU career, an ongoing school record.
• YSU scored points on four of its first seven drives of the contest.
• The contest was the final home game for 11 YSU seniors who were honored before the contest.
• YSU committed no turnovers for the first time since the contest at Pittsburgh.
• Four of five Penguin losses have come by a combined 20 points.

North Dakota State Recap
    The Penguins led 24-10 after three quarters before second-ranked North Dakota State rallied to score 17 unanswered points in the fourth quarter to earn a come-from-behind 27-24 victory last Saturday at Stambaugh Stadium.
    The Penguins played a tremendous first half to take a 14-3 lead at the intermission. QB Ricky Davis capped off YSU's first possession of the game with a 13-yard touchdown run as the Penguins went on top 7-0 early. NDSU cut the deficit to 7-3 before Jody Webb scored on a 45-yard run just 2:38 before halftime. The Bison pulled within 14-10 on a Easton Stick one-yard run but YSU closed out the quarter with a 77-yard Webb touchdown jaunt and a 44-yard field goal by Zak Kennedy, his school-record 18th of the season, to go in front 24-10. NDSU scored the last 17 points to rally for the win. Stick had the winning score from four yards out with just 35 seconds remaining.

Last Year Against ISU
    YSU rallied late to force overtime, but Indiana State won 27-24 after kicking a 28-yard field goal following a Penguin turnover at Stambaugh Stadium last November.
    The Guins took a 7-0 lead as Martin Ruiz scored the first of his two touchdowns midway through the first quarter. After the Sycamores tied the contest, Joey Cejudo made a 34-yard field goal to give YSU a 10-7 halftime lead.
    In the third, ISU had a pair of scoring runs and went in front 24-10 early in the fourth on a 25-yard field goal by Eric Heidorn.
    YSU then marched 77 yards in 18 plays to pull within a touchdown on a two-yard scoring pass from Hunter Wells to Nate Adams. After forcing a quick three-and-out, YSU was back in the end zone and forced overtime with 1:20 remaining on a four-yard score by Ruiz.
    In overtime, Mark Sewell intercepted a Wells pass on the first play. On ISU's possession, Heidorn kicked a 28-yard field goal for the game-winning points.

Series History
    YSU has won 20 of the 24 all-time meetings in the series, but the Sycamores have won three of the last five meetings, including a 27-24 overtime win at Stambaugh Stadium in 2014. At Memorial Stadium in Terre Haute, YSU is 10-1 with the lone loss coming in 2011 (30-24). The Guins won the last time the two teams played in Terre Haute, 35-24, battling through two lightning delays. Ten of the 24 meetings have been decided by a touchdown or less.

Winning Season On the Line
    The Penguins are going for their fifth straight winning season on Saturday. A win over Indiana State would give the Guins at least six wins for the fifth straight season.
    Also, only Head Coaches Bill Narduzzi and Jon Heacock posted winning seasons in their first campaign with the program. Head Coach Bo Pelini will join the pair with a YSU win on Saturday.

The Wright Stuff
    Sophomore LB Lee Wright has had 37 tackles the past three games. Of those 37, 32 have been solo stops.
     He had a career-high 14 tackles in the win at Western Illinois. The 14 stops were the most by a Penguin in a game since Sir DeMarco Bledsoe had 15 against Austin Peay in 2009.
    Wright was credited with 13 solo stops out of his 14 tackles and had a sack.
    In the win over Missouri State, he had nine total tackles, including eight solos, a forced fumble and a pass breakup.
    Against North Dakota State he had 14 more tackles, 11 of which were unassisted.

Williams In Rare Company
    WR Andrew Williams is one of only two players in school history to record more than 2,300 yards receiving, 16 touchdown catches and at least 135 receptions.
    Jim Ferranti (1976-79) had 186 receptions, 25 touchdowns and 3,103 yards in his career. Williams has 138 receptions, 16 touchdowns and 2,347 yards in his career.

Kennedy Sets FG Mark
    Freshman PK Zak Kennedy has made a school-record 18 field goals this season. Kennedy became the first kicker in school history to kick more than 17 in a campaign when he converted a 44-yard kick against North Dakota State in the third quarter.
    Kennedy is just the fifth kicker in school history to make at least 17 field goals in the same season joining Mark Griffith, Jeff Wilkins (twice), Robert Fozkos and Paul McFadden.
    The 18 field goals are the most by the Penguins since 2007 when Brian Palmer (14) and Stephen Blose (1) combined on the effort.
    Kennedy and Wilkins (1990) both made at least 17 field goals as freshman.

Webb Has All-Around Game
    Junior TB Jody Webb accumulated 269 all-purpose yards in the Penguins contest North Dakota State. Webb had five rushes for 132 yards and had scoring runs of 77 and 45. He caught three passes for 57 yards and returned four kickoffs for 80 yards.
    His 269 all-purpose yards are the fifth most in a game in school history and most since Jamaine Cook had 311 against Illinois State.

Balanced Offense
    Through 10 games, the Penguins are averaging 204.6 yards rushing per contest and 204.3 yards passing a game, showing once again they are a balanced offensive unit.
    YSU has 2,046 yards rushing this season and 2,043 yards passing for almost a 50/50 split. YSU has second six more touchdowns via the rush then in the air.
    Five times this season YSU has amassed more than 400 yards of total offense so far. The season-best output was last Saturday against Missouri State as YSU had 644 yards.

Stubbs With Big Season
    Senior WR Andre Stubbs has had the best receiving year of his career with 38 receptions for 479 yards.
    Stubbs has had five-or-more receptions in four of the past six games. He has a touchdown catch in two of the past three contests.
    In the two games prior to the Missouri State contest he had career highs with six receptions against Southern Illinois and Western Illinois.
    Stubbs' previous career best for receptions was 29 set in 2013 while his high in yards was 365 last year.

Pass Defense Stout
    YSU has allowed its opponents to complete just 78 passes in 185 attempts (42.2 percent). The next closest team in the FCS is Alcorn State which has allowed 86 completions.
    The Penguins, who have been either first or second the FCS in passing defense this season, are second in the country allowing 122.3 passing yards per game behind Alcorn State (113.7). That is the fewest since 1996 when YSU allowed 118.2 a game.
    YSU has allowed more than 155 yards passing in a game just twice this year. Last year that total was eclipsed on 10 separate occasions.
    The Guins are averaging 7.8 completions allowed per contest. Only twice have they allowed double figures in completions this season (15 by Southern Illinois and 11 by Pittsburgh).
    YSU has surrendered eight passing TDs this season, and just three have come in the first three quarters. Last season, the Guins allowed 23 passing touchdowns in 12 games.

Two QB System
    The past four games, the Penguins have used QBs Hunter Wells and Ricky Davis to keep opposing defenses off balance.
    Against Missouri State, Wells threw for three touchdowns while Davis ran for a score and completed a career-high four passes. The duo combined for 306 yards and 19 completions against the Bears.
    At Western Illinois, both played key roles in the victory. Davis threw the first touchdown pass of his career in the first quarter while Wells had 152 yards on a wet and cool day. The duo combined for 204 yards and did not get sacked in 28 attempts.
    Against NDSU, Davis had career highs in rushing yards (61) and carries (11). He has rushed for a touchdown in three of the past four games.
    Neither was sacked until the final series against NDSU last Saturday. In 85 attempts the past three games, the pair was sacked just once.

Williams, Ruiz High On Lists
    Junior TB Martin Ruiz and senior WR Andrew Williams have continued to make a steady climb up the YSU career rankings.
    Ruiz ranks seventh in school history with 3,112 yards rushing and 634 career attempts. He is one of seven players in school history to rush for more than 3,000 yards in a career. He is now sixth in school history with 634 attempts. With 29 rushing touchdowns, he is tied for eighth with Paris Wicks (1979-82) and Darnell Clark (1990-93).
    Williams now ranks second in receiving yards with 2,348 yards, and his 138 receptions put him fifth in school history.  Also his 16 touchdown receptions tie him for fourth in school history with John Goode (1981-84).
    Ruiz ranks 10th in all-purpose yards with 3,908 while senior WR Andre Stubbs is 11th with 3,855.

Kennedy Keeps Kicking
    Freshman PK Zak Kennedy is having an outstanding first year with the program. Kennedy is 18-of-22 on field-goal attempts. His 18 made field goals are a school record.
    Kennedy's 49-yard field goal against Illinois State was the longest made field goal for the Penguins since Nick Terracina kicked a 56-yarder at Liberty in 2003.
    It was the longest made by a YSU kicker at home since Jeff Wilkins kicked a 51-yarder against James Madison on Nov. 9. 1991.
    He has made a field goal in nine of 10 games this season. He has attempted a field goal in every game this year. He has made all 10 of his attempts from inside 30 yards this season.

Rivers Owns YSU Sack Mark
    Junior DE Derek Rivers is the school's all-time sack leader with 25.
    After a two-sack performance against South Dakota State on Oct. 17, Rivers eclipsed the school mark of 22 which had been held by Jermaine Hopkins since 1995. Hopkins played for the Penguins from 1992-95, and his career sack totals include postseason contests.
    Impressively, it took Rivers just 28 games to break the 20-year-old record.
    Rivers has sacks in six games this season with two against Pittsburgh and South Dakota State. He has eight sacks on the year.
    Last season, Rivers registered 14 sacks while during his first campaign in 2013 he had three.

Williams A Top Target
    Senior WR Andrew Williams has caught a pass in 25 straight games.
    Williams has caught three-or-more passes in seven games this year.
    Williams has caught a pass in 42 of the last 44 games he has played in dating back to the start of the 2012 season. The only two times he failed to catch a ball was against Pitt in 2012 and at Western Illinois in 2013.
    Williams has caught 138 passes and is fifth in school history. His 2,347 receiving yards put him second in school history.

Webb is Big-Play Scorer
    Junior TB Jody Webb scored a pair of touchdowns in three games this season. Webb had two rushing scores against North Dakota State, Saint Francis and Pittsburgh.
    He scored on runs of 77 and 45 against North Dakota State, scored on runs of 22 and 20 yards in the win against Saint Francis and had touchdown runs of 75 and 27 yards at Pittsburgh.
    In his career, Webb has been a big-play touchdown scorer. Of his 23 career rushing touchdowns, 13 have been of more than 20 yards.

Going to the Wells
    Sophomore QB Hunter Wells has thrown 13 touchdown passes in 2015. In his 20-game  YSU career, Wells has thrown 27 touchdown passes. He ranks 11th in school history in career touchdown passes.
    Wells has thrown a touchdown pass in 14 of his last 17 games, including a high of three scores at Southern Illinois and against Missouri State this season.
    At SIU, he threw for a career-high 324 yards and had season bests in completions with 20 and touchdowns with three. Against South Dakota State on Oct. 17 he had a career-high 39 attempts.
    In eight of the 10 games this year, Wells has 25-or-more attempts.
     In his 20 games played, he has a touchdown pass in 15.

Alexander The Great
    Junior S LeRoy Alexander has been credited with 60 total tackles and 33 solo stops.
    He has a team-high three interceptions and returned a fumble 50 yards against South Dakota. He also has a pair of sacks, which ranks him second on the team .
    Against Illinois State he had a career-high 11 tackles, including seven solo stops. This season he has at least eight tackles in six contests.
    In his first YSU game at Pittsburgh, Alexander had a pair of second-quarter interceptions, including returning one 41 yards for a touchdown.
    The next week against RMU, Alexander had eight total tackles, a sack and an interception.
    He is the first Penguin with interceptions in the first two games of a season since 2001.

Ruiz Model of Consistency
    Junior TB Martin Ruiz has rushed for at least 74 yards in a game on 27 occasions in 34 career games played.
    On 14 occasions he has rushed for more than 100 yards, including a career-high eight times last year. Only seven times has he been limited to under 50 yards rushing in a game. This year he has rushed for more than 100 yards against Missouri State and Saint Francis.
    Additionally he has scored a touchdown in 22 games, with eight multi-TD performances.

Rivers on Watch List
    Junior DE Derek Rivers is among a group of FCS standouts who are named to the STATS Defensive Player of the Year Watch List.
    This year he has 45 tackles, including an impressive 32 solo stops. He has 14.5 TFLs and eight sacks on the campaign as well. Last season Rivers was a first-team All-MVFC honoree after being credited with 50 total tackles, including 17 TFLs and 14 sacks.

Stubbs Is A Mainstay
    Senior WR Andre Stubbs has amassed an impressive 3,908 all-purpose yards in his career. His total ranks 11th in school history, but among players who were primarily wide receivers he sits behind only Jim Ferranti (4,054).
    Stubbs has had more than 100 all-purpose yards in a game on 17 occasions.
    At Pittsburgh in the season opener he had a career-best 147 yards receiving on a career-high-tying six receptions. Last year, his best all-purpose performance came against Western Illinois when he had 158 yards.
    He has caught a pass in 39 of the 43 games he has played since the start of his sophomore season. Against South Dakota State he had a season-best 51 rushing yards on four carries.

Pelini Takes The Reigns
    The Penguins are under the direction of Youngstown native Bo Pelini this season. Pelini spent the past seven years at Nebraska before returning to his hometown last December. He is a graduate of Cardinal Mooney High School and grew up on Youngstown's South Side.

Veterans on Defense
    The Penguins have five players on the defensive side of the ball who have 80-or-more tackles in their careers.
    Senior LB Dubem Nwadiogbu leads the way with 151 stops while DE Terrell Williams has 122 and FS Tre' Moore has 108.
    Among juniors, LB Jaylin Kelly leads the way with 132 tackles, FS Jameel Smith has 130 and DE Derek Rivers has 108.

Offensive Line Shuffle
    The Penguins have continued to shuffle offensive lineman with success as the season has gone on.
    No one has started every game at the same position this year. YSU has started three different centers while eight different players have started a game. Additionally, three players who started the opener against Pitt are no longer starters.
    The last three games have seen true freshman Gavin Wiggins start at guard. Wiggins did not play in the first seven games of the season. Justin Spencer is the lone Guin to start all 10 games this year - nine at right tackle and one at left tackle.
    The groupings have played tough in front of QBs Hunter Wells and Ricky Davis allowing just one a sack the past three contests.
    
Numbers of Note
• Turnover Margin: Since 1996, the Penguins are 122-31 when they win or tie in the turnover margin. When committing more turnovers, YSU is just 21-59.
Since 1990 YSU is:
• 149-19-2 when holding opponents to fewer than 21 points in a game.
• 122-16 when rushing for 200-plus yards.
• 145-25 when scoring 28-or-more points.
• 76-9-1 when holding opponents to fewer than 100 yards rushing in a game.
• 176-15 when leading entering the fourth.
• 78-3-2 when holding opponents to 10 points-or-less in a game.
More recently:
• YSU has scored points in 90 straight games.