Ready to go: YSU opens fall camp with expectations abound
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YOUNGSTOWN -- Upon walking into Youngstown State's football facility in Stambaugh Stadium, there's an unmistakably distinct vibe in the air surrounding the program.
Preseason expectations for the Penguins are as high as they've been in a number of years, likely since the team was coming off an appearance in the FCS championship game in 2017.
With YSU returning plenty of talent and experience on both sides of the ball from a team that went 8-5, including a Walter Payton Award-winning quarterback in Beau Brungard, it's easy to see why.
In what looks like a wide-open Missouri Valley Football Conference, YSU will have a chance to make a run -- having been picked third in the conference's preseason poll, its highest projection in almost a decade. Plus, most preseason FCS rankings slot the Penguins in the top-15, with some even projecting YSU in the top-10.
"We love that. Our leaders that we have, Carston Marshall, me, Desmeal Leigh, Beau Brungard, we've always been guys that are built for the pressure," fifth-year linebacker Mike Wells said. "We love that expectation. To me, that's a good thing. People have high hopes for you and that helps you live up to those high hopes.
"I know the guys are loving it. Beau Brungard preaches to the offense that they know things are expected from them, and they're going to go out there and work like it every day. I know the defense, we're going to go out there and work like it every day too. We're lucky the fans believe in us. That's all it is. Expectations are people believing in us."
Now that spring football and summer workouts are in the rearview mirror, the first real step towards meeting those expectations for the 2026 season began Monday, as the Penguins opened fall camp in preparation for their season opener against Mercyhurst.
"It's a little different nowadays with camp. I mean, they've been here all summer," head coach Doug Phillips said. "They've been training. They've been conditioning, running around in shorts. Now you add helmets, you add depth charts and then the strain of all that. Now you gotta play football."
With the opener almost exactly a month away on Aug. 27, the next four weeks of fall camp are a marathon, rather than a sprint.
It's back to basics to start off. Phillips said the Penguins put more of a focus on fundamentals during summer workouts than they ever have, including tackling, ball security, catching and ball disruption, and that will continue during the early portion of fall camp.
"You assume they know nothing. It starts with our fundamentals," Phillips said. "They key is though, can you play with those fundamentals in the third and fourth quarters for 60 minutes and be able to finish a game? So that's the push that we're making."
After starting in spider pads this week, YSU will break out the full pads starting Saturday. Then the Penguins will scrimmage on Aug. 8 and 15, before beginning game-week prep on Aug. 20.
While there are established starters returning on both offense and defense, Phillips said there's a ton of competition for positions and playing time.
"You either rise us the depth charts or you can fall back, and you make that determination," Phillips said. "The competition that we have across the ball gets me most excited, and we probably haven't had as much competition in the last couple years as we do now. We got a lot of fifth-year seniors, but we also have a lot of guys going into their third years that want to get on the football field and that's what creates that competition every day."
Some of those key position battles are at wide receiver on offense and in the secondary on defense.
The Penguins have options and depth at receiver after bringing in a handful of transfers. At defensive back, however, a couple players missed out on spring practice recovering from surgeries for injuries. Those players are back now and they will get their chance alongside those that played during spring.
"I feel like we have depth at receiver, so I'd like to see who emerges there," Phillips said. "I could say the same thing in our secondary with our safeties. I really like our safeties, but I couldn't tell you right now who's going to be the one that rises to the top. There's that competition at those spots, throw in corner, linebacker -- they're all wide open, and I want to see who rises to the top."