YSUsports.com - No. 2/3 Penguins Return Home to Face No. 18/23 Northern Iowa

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No. 2/3 Penguins Return Home to Face No. 18/23 Northern Iowa
     The No. 2/3 (Coaches/SportsNetwork) Youngstown State Penguins are back home for the first time since Sept. 9, and welcome No. 18/23 Northern Iowa to Stambaugh Stadium on Saturday, Oct. 14. Kickoff for the contest is scheduled for 4 p.m. The Panthers have won three of four games from YSU, including two at Stambaugh, since the series was renewed in 1996.
     Youngstown State is coming off another hard fought victory after beating Illinois State 14-12 on Oct. 7. The win was YSU’s eighth straight on the road and sixth straight conference road win. It was also the Penguin’s first victory in Normal, Ill., since 1979. The Youngstown State defense forced six turnovers and made a fourth-and-inches stop late in the game to preserve the win. Sophomore quarterback Colby Street made his first career start and played the entire first quarter before Jeff Ryan entered the game and finished the contest at the controls of the YSU offense.
     Northern Iowa (3-2 and 1-1) had Saturday off after defeating Illinois State 34-28 on Sept. 30 in Cedar Falls, Iowa. The Panthers are 3-0 at home this season, but have lost both games outside of the UNI Dome.
     The Penguins enter the game with a 5-0 record, the third time under Coach Jim Tressel that YSU has opened a year with five wins. It is also the seventh 5-0 start in the school’s 60-year history. In the two years where Tressel squads have started 5-0 they have finished with 11 and 13 wins and one national title.
     The last time the Panthers played at Stambaugh Stadium, they handed YSU its worst home loss in Coach Jim Tressel’s 15 seasons, a 42-14 decision.
     Since YSU joined the conference in 1997, the Penguins are 14-6 in league play.

Last Time Out: Youngstown State 14, Illinois State 12
     • The Penguins improved to 5-0 with a 14-12 victory at Illinois State. With the win, YSU has now started a season 5-0 for the third time under Coach Jim Tressel. For the second straight game, the Penguins had to come from behind and then hold on late for the victory. YSU jumped out to a 7-0 when Colby Street connected on a nine-yard touchdown pass to Sean Guerierro in the first quarter. Following that drive, Illinois State came back and cut the lead to 7-6 on a Walter James six-yard touchdown carry. ISU’s Jake Strader made two second-quarter field goals as the Redbirds built a 13-7 lead. In the third, YSU recovered a fumble on the ISU one-yard line and Eric Lockhart scored on a one-yard to give the Penguins a 14-12 lead with 10:48 remaining in the third quarter. Then it was a battle of the defenses. Despite forcing six turnovers, the biggest play by the Penguin defense may have come with 3:17 left in the game. ISU faced a fourth and inches at the YSU 30, but Kevin Glenn was stuffed on a quarterback streak for no gain and the Penguins took over on downs. YSU ran the clock out picking up two first downs.
     • For the third consecutive game, the Penguins were outgained but still picked up the victory. That marks the second straight season where YSU was outgained in the total yardage category in three straight games and picked up three victories. In 1999, YSU was outyarded by Indiana (Pa.), Western Illinois and Indiana State on three consecutive Saturday’s but the Penguins still came out victorious.
     • YSU forced six turnovers for the first time since Nov. 29, 1997 against Hampton . The Penguins had four interceptions and recovered two fumbles in the game. Justin Dellarose intercepted his first pass of his career, while Tim Johnson, Chris Conwell and LeVar Greene all added to their career totals. Eight different players have intercepted a pass this season.
     • Streaks: Youngstown State has now won eight straight road games dating back to Sept. 11, 1999 at Western Michigan. The Penguins have won six consecutive conference road games since losing at Illinois State on Nov. 14, 1998.
     • Colby Street made his first career start at quarterback in place of an injured Jeff Ryan. Street completed three passes for 38 yards and engineered a 50-yard touchdown drive.
     • Team captains for the game were senior place kicker Troy LeFever, nose tackle Montrial Thomas and senior wide receiver Denver Williams.

Breakdown of the Northern Iowa Panthers
     The Panthers bring a solid offense into the battle with the Penguins. UNI is averaging 29.8 points per game and 362 yards per game through five contests. However, the Panther defense is allowing 29.6 points and 425.2 yards per game.
     Leading the Panthers offense is quarterback Ryan Helming. Helming is averaging 246.4 yards per game through the air and has thrown 10 touchdown passes with only two interceptions. Richard Carter (61.8 yards per game) and Michael Gerrell (40.6 yards) lead the ground attack.
     Northern Iowa opened the season with a 47-14 win over Morningside before losing two consecutive road contests at Boise State and Southern Illinois. UNI has rebounded beating 10th-ranked Stephen F. Austin and defending Gateway champion Illinois State.
     On defense, Ryan Doak leads the team with 68 tackles and two interceptions. He also has a team-high four tackles for losses.

All-Time Series Against Northern Iowa
     The Panthers have had some success against Youngstown State in the 14 meetings between the two schools.
     Since the series resumed in 1996, the Panthers have won three of four games. In 1996, UNI won 23-10 at Stambaugh Stadium. At the UNI Dome in 1997, the Panthers pulled out a 35-32 victory. In 1998, UNI handed Coach Jim Tressel his worst home defeat with a 42-14 defeat on senior day. Last year, the Penguins avenged that defeat handing UNI its only home loss of the season, 29-20.
     Last Meeting: The Penguins handed UNI its only home loss of the season with a 29-20 victory on Oct. 23, 1999. In a game that featured five lead changes, YSU scored the game’s final 10 points to earn the victory. Mark Griffith kicked a 20-yard field goal midway through the fourth to give YSU the lead and Adrian Brown scored on a 67-yard run. Jeff Ryan threw for 183 yards and rushed for 64 in the win.