YOUNGSTOWN — It’s always a gamble making a mid-season quarterback change, but credit Youngstown State coach Doug Phillips and his staff for being willing to do so by benching Demeatric Crenshaw for Mitch Davidson.

And give even more credit to Davidson for proving it was the right decision.

In YSU’s 35-30 loss to then-No. 22 North Dakota on Saturday, Davidson went 21-for-32 for 280 yards and two touchdowns. He set career highs in passing yards, attempts and completions and tied his career mark for passing scores. The 280 yards also marked YSU’s season high in passing.

Davidson really found his mark across the middle of the field, where Max Tomczak, Luke Hensley and Latrell Fordham were able to combine for 11 receptions. He also got the ball to YSU’s top receiver, Bryce Oliver, eight times for 88 yards and a score, giving the Penguins that much-needed downfield threat.

Perhaps what was more impressive was his decision making. There were only a couple truly ill-advised decisions, and even then, they weren’t costly.

By contrast, Crenshaw was completing less than 50 percent of his passes — 37-of-76 (48.68%) — through the Penguins’ first four games, and he wasn’t able to get his run game going either — just 44 yards and one touchdown.

Simply put, Davidson was the shot in the arm the Youngstown State passing game needed if its to become an asset instead of a liability.

While that was a pleasant development for the Penguins, there are still plenty of questions remaining.

Special teams miscues proved costly Saturday after YSU had gotten away with some mistakes in that facet earlier this year. Offensively, the Penguins didn’t finish drives and had to settle for early field goals, which certainly factored into things late. And defensively, YSU continues to give up chunk plays, often in critical third down situations, that allow opponents to sustain drives.

Special teams-wise, Paddy Lynch had a couple miscues, the first a 21-yard shanked punt that gave UND good field position and the other a blocked punt on a play in which he bobbled the long snap. That blocked kick was returned three yards for North Dakota’s final score, which proved to be the game-winner.

Placekicker Colt McFadden had a mostly strong night, but he did push a 42-yard field goal wide right that otherwise would’ve given YSU a chance to run the clock down and just kick one at the end later on.

Then, too, the offense was dissatisfied even having to settle for field goals in the first place, and will need to start finishing drives if the Penguins are to get back on track as we enter the second half of this college football season.

On defense, the Penguins still are doing well at stopping the run, but chunk plays through the air continue to plague them. Part of that this week was Tommy Schuster’s evasiveness in the pocket, but this YSU secondary at times in recent weeks has had troubles getting itself off the field in third-and-long situations.

Finally, there’s the big picture question: Can YSU do enough now to get itself into the playoffs, or at least in the conversation?

It starts this week with a must-win game at home against Indiana State, but in terms of the season as a whole, the margin of error for YSU is now razor thin.

In what’s been a down year for the Missouri Valley, it’s likely the conference gets only four or five teams into the postseason. Right now, four of those seem like locks — North Dakota State, South Dakota State, Southern Illinois and North Dakota.

That leaves maybe one more spot up for grabs. The nice thing for the Penguins is the team’s with which they’re directly competing for that potential last spot are still on the schedule, including a Week 12 upset opportunity at home against what likely will be a ranked SIU.

But to stay in the conversation, YSU will need to enter that game with no more than four losses, and the Penguins have three now.

A path is potentially there, but it narrowed considerably with the loss to UND.

jwhetzel@tribtoday.com