The 2016 Youngstown State Penguins football team represented Youngstown State University in the 2016 NCAA Division I FCS football season. They were led by second-year head coach Bo Pelini and played their home games at Stambaugh Stadium. They were a member of the Missouri Valley Football Conference. Youngstown State finished the season 12–4 overall with a 6–2 mark in MVFC play to finish in third place. They received an at-large bid to the FCS playoffs, where they defeated Samford, Jacksonville State, Wofford, and Eastern Washington to advance to the National Championship Game, where they lost to James Madison.
Schedule
| Date | Time | Opponent | Rank | Site | TV | Result | Attendance |
|---|
| 7:30 pm | Duquesne* | | | ESPN3 | W 45–10 | 12,219 |
| September 10 | 2:00 pm | at West Virginia* | No. 20 | | RTPT | L 21–38 | 56,261 |
| September 17 | 4:00 pm | Robert Morris* | No. 20 | - Stambaugh Stadium
- Youngstown, OH
| ESPN3 | W 38–6 | 19,033 |
| October 1 | 4:00 pm | South Dakota | No. 20 | - Stambaugh Stadium
- Youngstown, OH
| ESPN3 | W 30–20 | 15,151 |
| October 8 | 3:00 pm | at No. 23 Illinois State | No. 15 | | ESPN3 | W 20–6 | 12,570 |
| October 15 | 7:00 pm | No. 21 Northern Iowa | No. 14 | - Stambaugh Stadium
- Youngstown, OH
| ESPN3 | W 14–10 | 13,373 |
| October 22 | 3:00 pm | at No. 7 South Dakota State | No. 13 | | ESPN3 | L 10–24 | 17,730 |
| October 29 | 4:00 pm | Indiana State | No. 15 | - Stambaugh Stadium
- Youngstown, OH
| ESPN3 | W 13–10 | 15,082 |
| November 5 | 3:30 pm | at No. 4 North Dakota State | No. 15 | | ESPN3 | L 3–24 | 18,332 |
| November 12 | 12:00 pm | Southern Illinois | No. 17 | - Stambaugh Stadium
- Youngstown, OH
| ESPN3 | W 21–14 | 11,262 |
| November 19 | 3:00 pm | at Missouri State | No. 15 | | ESPN3 | W 65–20 | 5,070 |
| November 26 | 5:00 pm | No. 23 Samford* | No. 13 | | ESPN3 | W 38–24 | 5,322 |
| December 3 | 2:00 pm | at No. 2 Jacksonville State* | No. 13 | | ESPN3 | W 40–24 | 18,838 |
| December 10 | 2:00 pm | No. 19 Wofford* | No. 13 | | ESPN3 | W 30–23 2OT | 8,066 |
| December 17 | 6:30 pm | at No. 3 Eastern Washington* | No. 13 | | ESPNU | W 40–38 | 5,233 |
| January 7, 2017 | 12:00 pm | vs. No. 5 James Madison* | No. 13 | | ESPN2 | L 14–28 | 14,423 |
- *Non-conference game
- Homecoming
- Rankings from STATS Poll released prior to the game
- All times are in Eastern time
|
Roster
| 2016 Youngstown State Penguins football team roster
|
| Players
|
Coaches
|
Offense
| Pos. |
# |
Name |
Class
|
| WR
|
2
|
Darius Shackleford
|
Fr
|
| WR
|
4
|
Damoun Patterson
|
Jr
|
| WR
|
5
|
Alvin Bailey
|
Jr
|
| QB
|
6
|
Hunter Wells
|
Jr
|
| QB
|
7
|
Nathan Mays
|
Fr
|
| WR
|
8
|
Robert Byrd
|
So
|
| WR
|
9
|
I'tavious Harvin
|
Jr
|
| WR
|
9
|
Isiah Scott
|
So
|
| QB
|
11
|
Trent Hosick
|
Jr
|
| QB
|
12
|
Ricky Davis
|
Jr
|
| WR
|
13
|
Stefan Derrick II
|
Jr
|
| WR
|
16
|
Jermiah Braswell
|
Fr
|
| TB
|
20
|
Jody Webb
|
Sr
|
| WR
|
21
|
Darien Townsend
|
Jr
|
| WR
|
23
|
Donovan McWilson
|
Fr
|
| RB
|
24
|
Devon McNutt
|
Fr
|
| RB
|
28
|
London Pearson
|
Fr
|
| RB
|
29
|
Martin Ruiz
|
Sr
|
| TB
|
30
|
Joe Alessi
|
Fr
|
| WR
|
36
|
Zack Torbert
|
Fr
|
| RB
|
37
|
Tevin McCaster
|
So
|
| C
|
51
|
Cole McKenry
|
Fr
|
| G
|
54
|
Jarred Jones
|
Fr
|
| G
|
60
|
Gavin Wiggins
|
So
|
| OT
|
61
|
Justin Spencer
|
Jr
|
| G
|
64
|
Norman Fox
|
Fr
|
| G
|
67
|
Brock Eisenhuth
|
Sr
|
| OT
|
68
|
Connor Sharp
|
So
|
| C
|
69
|
Cole Newsome
|
Jr
|
| C
|
70
|
Vitas Hrynkiewicz
|
So
|
| OT
|
71
|
Cameron Fraser
|
Jr
|
| OT
|
72
|
James Wilson
|
Fr
|
| G
|
74
|
Jacob Zinni
|
Fr
|
| G
|
75
|
Jason Sims
|
Fr
|
| OT
|
77
|
Dylan Colucci
|
Sr
|
| OT
|
78
|
Jeff Rotheram
|
So
|
| WR
|
80
|
Lasander Washington
|
Jr
|
| WR
|
81
|
Ryan Emans
|
Fr
|
| WR
|
82
|
Samuel St. Surin
|
Fr
|
| TE
|
83
|
Kevin Rader
|
Jr
|
| TE
|
86
|
Shane Kuhn
|
Jr
|
| WR
|
87
|
Brad Good
|
Jr
|
| TE
|
88
|
Jacob Wood
|
Sr
|
| WR
|
89
|
Tre'von Williams
|
Fr
|
| TE
|
95
|
Anthony Parente
|
Jr
|
|
Defense
| Pos. |
# |
Name |
Class
|
| CB
|
1
|
Eric Thompson
|
Sr
|
| DE
|
2
|
Joshmere Dawson
|
Sr
|
| FS
|
3
|
LeRoy Alexander
|
Sr
|
| LB
|
4
|
Jonathan Pollock
|
Fr
|
| LB
|
5
|
Lee Wright
|
Jr
|
| LB
|
6
|
Jamar Pinnock
|
Sr
|
| CB
|
7
|
Kenny Bishop
|
Sr
|
| CB
|
8
|
Nate Dortch
|
Sr
|
| DE
|
9
|
Avery Moss
|
Sr
|
| S
|
10
|
Kyle Hegedus
|
Fr
|
| DE
|
11
|
Derek Rivers
|
Fr
|
| FS
|
14
|
Solomon Warfield
|
Jr
|
| CB
|
15
|
Avery Larkin
|
So
|
| FS
|
16
|
Jalyn Powell
|
Jr
|
| DB
|
17
|
Billy Nicoe Hurst
|
Jr
|
| CB
|
18
|
D. J. Thomas
|
Jr
|
| CB
|
19
|
Chrispin Lee
|
So
|
| DT
|
21
|
Jamal Smith
|
Fr
|
| CB
|
22
|
Darius Hall
|
Fr
|
| LB
|
25
|
Nathan Pittman
|
So
|
| SS
|
26
|
Jameel Smith
|
Sr
|
| SS
|
27
|
Kieran Winn
|
Fr
|
| LB
|
28
|
Malachi Newell
|
Fr
|
| CB
|
31
|
David Rivers III
|
Sr
|
| DE
|
33
|
Johnson Louigene
|
So
|
| CB
|
34
|
Mike Nash
|
Fr
|
| LB
|
35
|
Christiaan Randall-Posey
|
Fr
|
| FS
|
38
|
Logan Rhea
|
So
|
| LB
|
40
|
Jaylin Kelly
|
Sr
|
| LB
|
41
|
Curtis Parks
|
Fr
|
| LB
|
42
|
Armand Dellovade
|
So
|
| LB
|
45
|
Cole Kochman
|
Jr
|
| DE
|
50
|
Shereif Bynum
|
Fr
|
| DT
|
52
|
Savon Smith
|
So
|
| DT
|
53
|
Justin Metzel
|
Fr
|
| DT
|
55
|
Giacamo Cappabianca
|
Fr
|
| DE
|
59
|
Simon Smith
|
Fr
|
| DT
|
66
|
Cody Squiric
|
So
|
| DT
|
76
|
Lamont Ragland
|
So
|
| DT
|
90
|
Wesley Thompson
|
Fr
|
| DT
|
92
|
Donald Mesier
|
Jr
|
| DT
|
97
|
Rickey Hagood II
|
Sr
|
| DE
|
98
|
Fazson Chapman
|
Jr
|
|
Special teams
| Pos. |
# |
Name |
Class
|
| P
|
39
|
Nate Needham
|
Fr
|
| PK
|
49
|
Connor McFadden
|
Jr
|
| LS
|
57
|
Steven Wethli
|
So
|
| P, TE
|
85
|
Mark Schuler
|
Fr
|
| PK
|
99
|
Zak Kennedy
|
So
|
|
- Head coach
- Coordinators/assistant coaches
- Legend
- (C) Team captain
- (S) Suspended
- (I) Ineligible
Roster
|
Game summaries
Duquesne
|
|
|
|
|
|
Total |
| Dukes
|
3
|
7
|
0
|
0 |
10 |
| Penguins
|
10
|
14
|
7
|
14 |
45 |
At West Virginia
|
|
|
|
|
|
Total |
| #20 Penguins
|
0
|
14
|
0
|
7 |
21 |
| Mountaineers
|
7
|
7
|
17
|
7 |
38 |
Robert Morris
|
|
|
|
|
|
Total |
| Colonials
|
0
|
0
|
6
|
0 |
6 |
| #20 Penguins
|
14
|
3
|
14
|
7 |
38 |
South Dakota
|
|
|
|
|
|
Total |
| Coyotes
|
3
|
0
|
3
|
14 |
20 |
| #20 Penguins
|
10
|
10
|
0
|
10 |
30 |
At Illinois State
|
|
|
|
|
|
Total |
| #15 Penguins
|
0
|
3
|
0
|
17 |
20 |
| #23 Redbirds
|
0
|
0
|
6
|
0 |
6 |
Northern Iowa
|
|
|
|
|
|
Total |
| #21 Panthers
|
0
|
10
|
0
|
0 |
10 |
| #14 Penguins
|
0
|
0
|
0
|
14 |
14 |
At South Dakota State
|
|
|
|
|
|
Total |
| #13 Penguins
|
3
|
0
|
0
|
7 |
10 |
| #7 Jackrabbits
|
14
|
3
|
7
|
0 |
24 |
Indiana State
|
|
|
|
|
|
Total |
| Sycamores
|
10
|
0
|
0
|
0 |
10 |
| #15 Penguins
|
0
|
6
|
0
|
7 |
13 |
At North Dakota State
|
|
|
|
|
|
Total |
| #15 Penguins
|
0
|
3
|
0
|
0 |
3 |
| #4 Bison
|
17
|
0
|
0
|
7 |
24 |
Southern Illinois
|
|
|
|
|
|
Total |
| Salukis
|
0
|
0
|
7
|
7 |
14 |
| #17 Penguins
|
7
|
7
|
0
|
7 |
21 |
At Missouri State
|
|
|
|
|
|
Total |
| #15 Penguins
|
14
|
20
|
17
|
14 |
65 |
| Bears
|
0
|
10
|
0
|
10 |
20 |
FCS Playoffs
First Round–Samford
|
|
|
|
|
|
Total |
| #23 Bulldogs
|
7
|
0
|
0
|
17 |
24 |
| #13 Penguins
|
7
|
3
|
14
|
14 |
38 |
Second Round–Jacksonville State
|
|
|
|
|
|
Total |
| #13 Penguins
|
17
|
3
|
14
|
6 |
40 |
| #2 Gamecocks
|
7
|
10
|
7
|
0 |
24 |
Quarterfinals–Wofford
|
|
|
|
|
| | |
Total |
| #19 Terriers
|
9
|
0
|
7
|
7 | 0 | 0 |
23 |
| #13 Penguins
|
0
|
13
|
7
|
3 | 0 | 7 |
30 |
Semifinals–Eastern Washington
|
|
|
|
|
|
Total |
| #13 Penguins
|
7
|
10
|
3
|
20 |
40 |
| #3 Eagles
|
10
|
14
|
7
|
7 |
38 |
Championship–James Madison
|
|
|
|
|
|
Total |
| #13 Penguins
|
0
|
7
|
0
|
7 |
14 |
| #5 Dukes
|
14
|
7
|
7
|
0 |
28 |
Ranking movements
Ranking movements
Legend: ██ Increase in ranking ██ Decrease in ranking
RV = Received votes т = Tied with team above or below | Week |
|---|
| Poll | Pre | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | Final |
|---|
| STATS FCS | RV | 20 | 20 | 16 | 20 | 15 | 14 | 13 | 15 | 15 | 17 | 15 | 13 | 2 |
|---|
| Coaches | RV | 22 | 20 | 17 | 15 | 13 | 12 | 12 | 14 | 13 | 15 | 14 | 12–T | 2 |
|---|
References
|
|---|
| Venues | |
|---|
| Bowls & rivalries | |
|---|
| Culture & lore | |
|---|
| People | |
|---|
| Seasons | |
|---|
National championship seasons in bold |