2018 Youngstown State Penguins football team

2018 Youngstown State Penguins football
2018 Youngstown State Penguins football
Conference	Missouri Valley Football Conference
Record	4–7 (3–5 MVFC)
Head coach	Bo Pelini (4th season);
Offensive coordinator	Brian Crist (1st season)
Co-defensive coordinator	Richard McNutt (1st season)
Co-defensive coordinator	Donald D'Alesio (1st season)
Home stadium	Stambaugh Stadium
	Seasons ← 2017 2019 →

2018 Missouri Valley Football Conference standings
v t e
Team	W		L	W		L
No. 1 North Dakota State $^	8	–	0	15	–	0
No. 3 South Dakota State ^	6	–	2	10	–	3
No. 23 Northern Iowa ^	5	–	3	7	–	6
Indiana State	5	–	3	7	–	4
Western Illinois	4	–	4	5	–	6
Illinois State	3	–	5	6	–	5
Youngstown State	3	–	5	4	–	7
South Dakota	3	–	5	4	–	7
Missouri State	2	–	6	4	–	7
Southern Illinois	1	–	7	2	–	9

$ – Conference champion ^ – FCS playoff participant Rankings from STATS Poll

The 2018 Youngstown State Penguins football team represented Youngstown State University in the 2018 NCAA Division I FCS football season. They were led by third-year head coach Bo Pelini and played their home games at Stambaugh Stadium. They were a member of the Missouri Valley Football Conference. They finished the season 4–7, 3–5 in MVFC play to finish in a three-way tie for sixth place.

Preseason

Award watch lists

Award	Player	Position	Year
Walter Payton Award^[1]	Tevin McCaster	RB	SR

Preseason MVFC poll

The MVFC released their preseason poll on July 29, 2018, with the Penguins predicted to finish in fourth place.^[2]

Predicted finish	Team	Votes (1st place)
1	North Dakota State	390 (39)
2	South Dakota State	270
3	Northern Iowa	258
4	Youngstown State	248
5	Illinois State	248
6	South Dakota	206
7	Western Illinois	163
8	Southern Illinois	139
9	Missouri State	90
10	Indiana State	41

Preseason All-MVFC Teams

The Penguins placed six players on the preseason all-MVFC teams.^[3]

Offense

1st team

Tevin McCaster – RB

Vitas Hrynkiewicz – OL

Gavin Wiggins – OL

Steven Wethli – LS

Defense

1st team

Armand Dellovade – LB

2nd team

Bryce Gibson – DB

Schedule

Date	Time	Opponent	Rank	Site	TV	Result	Attendance
September 1	2:00 p.m.	Butler*	No. 25	Stambaugh Stadium Youngstown, OH	ESPN+	L 21–23	11,219
September 8	6:00 p.m.	at No. 14 (FBS) West Virginia*		Mountaineer Field Morgantown, WV	AT&TSN Pitt	L 17–52	58,446
September 15	2:00 p.m.	Valparaiso*		Stambaugh Stadium Youngstown, OH	ESPN+	W 42–7	14,913
September 29	4:00 p.m.	at Western Illinois		Hanson Field Macomb, IL	ESPN3	L 38–45	4,352
October 6	6:00 p.m.	Southern Illinois		Stambaugh Stadium Youngstown, OH	ESPN+	W 17–14	14,581
October 13	3:00 p.m.	at No. 2 South Dakota State		Dana J. Dykhouse Stadium Brookings, SD	ESPN+	L 7–36	14,357
October 20	6:00 p.m.	South Dakota		Stambaugh Stadium Youngstown, OH	ESPN+	W 29–17	11,112
October 27	2:00 p.m.	Indiana State		Stambaugh Stadium Youngstown, OH	ESPN+	L 17–43	9,090
November 3	3:30 p.m.	at No. 1 North Dakota State		Fargodome Fargo, ND	ESPN+	L 7–17	18,028
November 10	12:00 p.m.	No. 22 Northern Iowa		Stambaugh Stadium Youngstown, OH	ESPN+	W 31–10	8,407
November 17	1:00 p.m.	at Illinois State		Hancock Stadium Normal, IL	ESPN+	L 28–35	5,583
*Non-conference game Homecoming Rankings from STATS Poll released prior to the game All times are in Eastern time

Game summaries

Butler

	1	2	3	4	Total
Bulldogs	7	0	0	16	23
No. 25 Penguins	7	0	14	0	21

At West Virginia

	1	2	3	4	Total
Penguins	0	7	10	0	17
No. 14 (FBS) Mountaineers	7	14	21	10	52

Valparaiso

	1	2	3	4	Total
Crusaders	7	0	0	0	7
Penguins	7	14	14	7	42

At Western Illinois

	1	2	3	4	Total
Penguins	7	0	10	21	38
Leathernecks	6	10	14	15	45

Southern Illinois

	1	2	3	4	Total
Salukis	0	7	0	7	14
Penguins	3	3	0	11	17

At South Dakota State

	1	2	3	4	Total
Penguins	7	0	0	0	7
No. 2 Jackrabbits	9	7	7	13	36

South Dakota

	1	2	3	4	Total
Coyotes	0	0	10	7	17
Penguins	19	3	0	7	29

Indiana State

	1	2	3	4	Total
Sycamores	3	13	7	20	43
Penguins	7	3	7	0	17

At North Dakota State

	1	2	3	4	Total
Penguins	0	0	7	0	7
No. 1 Bison	0	7	0	10	17

Northern Iowa

	1	2	3	4	Total
No. 22 Panthers	0	7	3	0	10
Penguins	7	7	14	3	31

At Illinois State

	1	2	3	4	Total
Penguins	3	10	8	7	28
Redbirds	7	7	7	14	35

Ranking movements

Ranking movements
**Legend:** ██ Increase in ranking ██ Decrease in ranking
— = Not ranked RV = Received votes
	Week
Poll	Pre	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	Final
STATS FCS	25	RV	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—
Coaches	24	RV	—	RV	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—

References

^ "FCS football: 2018 Walter Payton Award watch list". August 1, 2018. Retrieved August 1, 2018.
^ "North Dakota State Picked to Win 2018 MVFC Title".
^ "Preseason All-Conf and Team (PDF) - Missouri Valley Football Conference" (PDF).

[1] "FCS football: 2018 Walter Payton Award watch list". August 1, 2018. Retrieved August 1, 2018.

[2] "North Dakota State Picked to Win 2018 MVFC Title".

[3] "Preseason All-Conf and Team (PDF) - Missouri Valley Football Conference" (PDF).

[1]

[2]

[3]

v t e Youngstown State Penguins football
Venues	Rayen Stadium (1938–1981) Stambaugh Stadium (1982–present)
Bowls & rivalries	Steel Tire (Akron; 1940–1995)
Culture & lore	Pete and Penny "Red and White" 1941 Oklahoma City game
People	Head coaches NFL draftees
Seasons	1938 1939 1940 1941 1942 1943 1944 1945 1946 1947 1948 1949 1950 1951 1952 1953 1954 1955 1956 1957 1958 1959 1960 1961 1962 1963 1964 1965 1966 1967 1968 1969 1970 1971 1972 1973 1974 1975 1976 1977 1978 1979 1980 1981 1982 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987 1988 1989 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023 2024
National championship seasons in bold