Correspondent photo / Robert Hayes. YSU linebacker Mike Wells sacks Indiana State quarterback Keegan Patterson during the Penguins' 48-29 Senior Day victory on Saturday at Stambaugh Stadium.

YOUNGSTOWN — Prior to kickoff on Saturday, 23 seniors were honored on Beede Field at Stambaugh Stadium.

One-by-one, they each came out of the tunnel, embraced head coach Doug Phillips, greeted Youngstown State University President Bill Johnson and made their way down the field to greet their family members.

Whether they’ve been at YSU for five years or just one or two years, each senior has made an impact on the Penguins’ program.

The players that took the field against Indiana State wanted to make sure those seniors ended their final regular season home game on a high, as the Penguins pulled away from the Sycamores in the second half of a 48-29 win on Senior Day.

“Obviously I hope it’s not my last game. For the playoffs, hopefully we get another game in the Ice Castle,” said senior receiver Max Tomczak, who caught seven passes for 107 yards. “It always feels good to have the ball in your hands to make plays. In terms of doing it on my last home game, on senior night, it felt great. The first time I stepped on the field was four years ago, so time flies. It feels good just going out with a bang.”

In what has become customary for him this season, YSU quarterback Beau Brungard finished with six total touchdowns against Indiana State, three passing and three rushing.

He also threw for 264 yards and rushed for 90 yards on 17 carries. Two of Brungard’s touchdown passes went to tight end Austin Bray, who made his first appearance for the Penguins since Sept. 13 against Michigan State after missing the last seven games with an injury.

That brings Brungard’s total for the season to 42 total touchdowns — 21 passing and 21 rushing — as he continues to make his case for the Walter Payton Award, given each year to the best offensive player in the FCS.

“I’m so happy for him and proud of him,” Tomczak said of Brungard. “He’s one of my best friends. We’ve been living together for two-plus years now. He deserves everything he gets. He’s the hardest worker in the room. He’s the first one in the facility and the last one to leave. Everyone says that ‘this kid’s the hardest worker,’ but he is and I can attest to that. He’s the best player in the FCS. I truly believe that.”

For the second straight week, YSU’s defense gave up plenty of points and yards in the first half, but responded to limit the Sycamores after halftime.

Indiana State scored 26 points, while piling up 316 total yards in the first half, as they trailed the Penguins by five at the break. But YSU forced two turnovers in the first half — an interception by Makai Shahid that gave the Penguins the ball inside the opposing 10-yard line and a fumble recovery by DJ Harris that was forced by Connor Johannesen.

“We talked about just finding a way, because sometimes offenses are going to move the ball,” junior linebacker Mike Wells said. “It might look a lot easier out there than it may seem, but we’re just finding ways to get our offense the ball back because we have the best player in the country. So anytime we can get the ball in his hands, it’s a win for us.”

Sycamores quarterback Keegan Patterson completed touchdown passes of 11, 78 and 74 yards to Rashad Rochelle, as he finished with six receptions for 224 yards along with the three touchdowns.

“We made some mistakes there,” Phillips said. “You don’t want to fall down on a play, and we had them hit two big ones back-to-back that gave away 14 points. We gotta be better than that. At halftime, it’s just, ‘you got 30 minutes.’ You don’t want to have regrets the next 30 minutes. We challenged them all week. … Nobody was happy at halftime, but defensively, we had to get off the field.”

The Penguins locked Indiana State down defensively in the second half, giving up just three points and 176 total yards, as the offense pulled away.

After scoring four straight touchdowns in the first half, the Sycamores had a fumble, two punts, a field goal and a turnover on downs on their five possessions in the second half.

“I don’t think our guys get on an emotional wave. I think they control the tide,” Phillips said. “You have a Carston Marshall come and say, ‘Coach, don’t worry, we’re not going to let them get past 30.’ That’s what the linebackers are telling you as we’re going down the tunnel. Just having those guys, whether it’s adjustments, coverages or guys looking at each other, we got great leadership and holding each other accountable.”

Wells led the Penguins’ defense with a career-best performance, finishing with 10 total tackles and 3.5 sacks.

Even though the defense gave up yards, it was aggressive with its pressure, as YSU sacked Patterson five times and forced him into several incomplete passes.

“This team in general means a lot to me. Some of my best friends are seniors, so really just wanted to send them out with a bang and give them a good going off,” Wells said.

“We were able to just win some one-on-one battles and really push the pocket. We had a lot of blitzes going into this week, but the situation changes with what the calls are and some stuff just didn’t go as planned. We know their quarterback is good, but not so many quarterbacks are good whenever someone is in their face, so we really just emphasized pushing the pocket.”

YSU closes out the regular season on the road next week in the UNI Dome at Northern Iowa.

No. 20 Youngstown State 48, Indiana State 29

AT STAMBAUGH STADIUM

BY QUARTERS

ISU 6 20 0 3 — 29

YSU 14 17 7 10 — 48

TEAM STATISTICS

First Downs: ISU: 19, YSU: 25; Rushes/Yards Rushing: ISU: 37-173, YSU: 40-218; Yards Passing: ISU: 319, YSU: 264; Comp-Att-Int: ISU: 15-24-1, YSU: 23-30-0; Penalties: ISU: 6-70, YSU: 5-38; Fumbles-Lost: ISU: 2-2, YSU: 0-0; Total Yards: ISU: 492, YSU: 482; Offensive Plays: ISU: 61, YSU: 70

INDIVIDUAL LEADERS

Passing: ISU: Keegan Patterson 15-for-24 319 yds 3 TDs INT; YSU: Beau Brungard 23-for-30 264 yds 3 TDs

Rushing: ISU: Nick Osho 15 carries 102 yds TD; YSU: Jaden Gilbert 9 carries 91 yds 3 TDs

Receiving: ISU: Rashad Rochelle 6 rec. 224 yds 3 TDs; YSU: Max Tomczak 7 rec. 109 yds

Scoring summary

First quarter

YSU: Brungard 8 run (Lastovka kick) (3:59) (7-0)

ISU: Rochelle 11 pass from Patterson (Lopez kick missed) (2:10) (7-6)

YSU: Brungard 1 run (Lastovka kick) (0:27) (14-6)

Second quarter

ISU: Osho 2 run (2-pt pass failed) (11:05) (14-12)

YSU: Brungard 1 run (Lastovka kick) (7:32) (21-12)

ISU: Rochelle 78 pass from Patterson (Lopez kick) (6:46) (21-19)

YSU: Wilson 20 pass from Brungard (Lastovka kick) (3:54) (28-19)

ISU: Rochelle 74 pass from Brungard (Lopez kick) (3:01) (28-26)

YSU: Lastovka 39 field goal (0:14) (31-26)

Third quarter

YSU: Bray 2 pass from Brungard (Lastovka kick) (9:08) (38-26)

Fourth quarter

YSU: Bray 5 pass from Brungard (Lastovka kick) (12:55) (45-26)

ISU: Lopez 38 field goal (7;13) (45-29)

YSU: Lastovka 42 field goal (2:58) (48-29)