Correspondent photo / Robert Hayes. YSU senior receiver Lorenzo Jenkins eyes to make a move on junior defensive back Stanley Clyne during Saturday's Red-White Spring Game at Stambaugh Stadium.

YOUNGSTOWN — With a ton of returners offensively and a new defensive coordinator overseeing things on the other side of the ball, Youngstown State concluded spring practice with the annual Red-White Game on Saturday at Stambaugh Stadium.

Despite missing several key starters who missed the spring after undergoing surgery in the winter, the White team (defense) overcame three touchdowns by the Red team (offense) to secure the 29-23 victory.

“You want to see the offense making plays, you want to see the defense making plays. I thought we had plenty of that,” YSU head coach Doug Phillips said. “We got through unscathed, got out of spring healthy. You’re not going to win a championship in the spring, but you could lose one. So to see the competitiveness and physicality that we faced all spring and come out healthy is great. We learned a lot about ourselves. I think we grew as a football program.”

The first-team offense opened the scrimmage with a long, methodical drive that ended with Walter Payton Award-winning quarterback Beau Brungard completing a 3-yard touchdown pass to Ohio State transfer Dorian Williams.

From there, the defense got on the board with back-to-back three-and-outs, as the defensive reserves stood tall against backup quarterbacks Malachi Lewis and Zeb Kinsey.

“They’re all young, and I can’t imagine what goes through their heads in understanding protections and coverages,” Phillips said of the backup quarterbacks. “All of them, if you’re not Beau, are freshmen or redshirt freshmen, so it’s a tremendous learning opportunity for those guys. They’re only going to get better, so you’ll see that growth from now on.”

Brungard returned to lead another drive, but this time, the defense got off the field and held the first-team offense to a field goal, which Andrew Lastovka converted from 36 yards out to give the Red team a 10-9 lead.

After another pair of stalled drives from the offensive reserves, the first quarter ended with the Red team ahead 10-9.

The defense continued to impose its will to start the second quarter, as the first-team unit stopped a drive near midfield and another three-and-out by the defensive reserves put the defense ahead 13-10.

Nearing the end of the half, Brungard orchestrated his third scoring drive of the afternoon, finding Jeremiah Sanders, who made an acrobatic, diving 3-yard touchdown reception towards the sidelines. After a failed two-point try, the Red team led the White 16-13.

The White team then earned its first and only touchdown of the day on the ensuing drive, as defensive lineman Justin Thomas picked up a fumble by Kinsey and rumbled in from 20 yards out when the ball slipped out of Kinsey’s hands as he dropped back to pass.

By halftime, the White team led 25-16, as the defense minimized big plays and forced the offense to have to work its way down the field in order to score.

“We talk about discipline and how important discipline is, and you didn’t see many jumping offsides today, did you? You didn’t,” Phillips said of the defense. “That’s the focus, the discipline and belief. I see the buy-in from the defensive guys on that side of the ball. We had a lot of guys that didn’t participate in spring, but that’ll get fixed in the summer.”

The first-teamers didn’t play during a 20-minute, running-clock second half, as the reserves had their opportunity to shine.

True freshman Shane Cole had the reserve unit’s only touchdown of the period, leading the offense down the field, before capping the drive off with a 2-yard touchdown run by Da’Shaun Whatley.

The defense also added two more turnovers, as Ross Davidson and Baron White each picked off Cole on ensuing drives.

“We have over 100 players. We can go ones, we can go twos, we can go threes,” Phillips said. “We have a lot of guys that didn’t participate in spring, so for us, it’s always about preparing that guy to make them from a three to a two or a two to a one, because you never know when you’re going to have to call on him during the season.”

FIRST-PITCH FRIDAY

As part of the Cleveland Guardians’ “YSU Night” at Progressive Field, Brungard was invited to throw out the first pitch before the team’s game against the Baltimore Orioles on Friday night.

Brungard threw from the mound and while his throw may have been a little above the strike zone, his pitch landed with a firm thud square in the catcher’s mitt.

“That was awesome. That’s such a blessing that I had the opportunity to do that. It was lots of fun,” Brungard said. “I said yesterday, ‘it’s a lot farther [from the mound to home plate] than I thought it was, so I had to make up for that. It wasn’t a strike, but at least he caught it.”

The Springfield product played baseball growing up until seventh grade, but then opted to focus on track and field during the spring sports season once he got to high school.

Admittedly a Pirates’ fan, Brungard stayed for a few innings of the Guardians’ 6-4 loss to the Orioles, before coming back to Youngstown to prepare for the spring game the following morning.

“I enjoyed my time up there, and like I said, it was such a blessing,” Brungard said.