Correspondent photo / Robert Hayes Youngstown State quarterback and Girard graduate Mark Waid, shown here last week against Northern Iowa, needs to help create some offense for the Penguins.

If first-year Youngstown State coach Doug Phillips wasn’t aware of the challenges of being in the best conference in the FCS prior to taking the job, he is learning quickly.

After facing the No. 1- and No. 5-ranked teams in the country, the Penguins now welcome No. 11 Southern Illinois to Stambaugh Stadium in a Missouri Valley Football Conference matchup.

The Salukis are fresh off one of the biggest victories in program history, a 38-14 win over previously top-ranked North Dakota State. That ended the Bison’s 39-game win streak and opened eyes across the country. Balanced and on the upswing, SIU provides yet another tall task for a Penguins team searching for an identity.

YSU’s offense continued to struggle last week in a 21-0 shutout. The defense played rather well in each of the first two games, but an inexperienced offensive line and two young quarterbacks have led to major issues for a YSU offense that has seven points in two games.

QUARTERBACKS

YSU — Phillips has remained steadfast in playing both Mark Waid and Joe Craycraft thus far into the season. Phillips said he needs more time to evaluate their play before making a decision. Neither has been consistently effective, in part because of a lack of a run game and pass protection, but Waid has put together a few more drives than Craycraft. It’ll be interesting to see if Phillips decides to stick with one over the other with the offense playing so poorly. Some type of change needs to happen to spark the offense.

SIU — Sophomore Nic Baker was named the MVFC’s Offensive Player of the Week for his performance against North Dakota State. He completed 17-of-23 passes for 254 yards, one touchdown and zero interceptions. It may help YSU that there is some film on Baker now, so the Penguins can better prepare for his strengths and weaknesses. He’s only 5-foot-9, but his size didn’t hurt him against the Bison. He wasn’t much of a running threat against NDSU, but he did run for 12 TDs as a senior in high school.

EDGE — SIU

RUNNING BACKS

YSU — There were at least some signs of life from the running backs against UNI after being shut down in Week 1. It still wasn’t nearly enough to make the opposition respect the run game. This is an area that must improve for YSU to have any chance of establishing consistency on offense. London Pearson remains the starter despite not gaining a yard against UNI. Jaleel McLaughlin looks like he could take over after averaging nearly 5 yards a carry against the Panthers. His speed gives him an edge over Pearson.

SIU — Romeir Elliott is the Salukis’ primary running back, and the 5-6, 190-pound sophomore is a handful. He ran for 89 yards and two TDs, averaging nearly 5 yards per carry, against NDSU. Backup Javon Williams Jr. provides more power at 6-2, 245 pounds. He also ran for two TDs against the Bison and was one of conference’s best backs in 2019. The Penguins need to keep the run game in check, or the SIU offense will open up.

EDGE — SIU

WIDE RECEIVERS

YSU — C.J. Charleston should be returning from a two-game absence what appears to be COVID-19 related. The redshirt freshman from Gates Mills has game-breaking potential and should be a welcome addition to an offensive lacking big plays. The Penguins have struggled to get the receivers involved, and while some of that falls on a struggling offensive line and young QBs, YSU needs to find different ways to get its playmakers involved.

SIU — Southern Illinois coach Nick Hill said junior wide receiver Avante Cox “might be the best skill player in the country” after a seven-catch, 138-yard performance. The Wyoming transfer (5-10, 170) is a first-team all-MVFC selection who now has 24 receptions and 323 yards in three games. Fellow receiver Landon Lenoir (6-1, 192) is the younger brother of Lance Lenoir, a former FCS star at Western Illinois. Landon is pretty impressive as well. The honorable-mention all-MVFC pick provides a bit more size (6-1, 192) than Cox and caught a TD las week.

EDGE — SIU

OFFENSIVE LINE

YSU — A unit that was already having its problems was without its best player — left tackle Dan Becker — last week. He should be back, and the hope is that the more this group plays together, the better it will become. Continuity and communication are important parts to the line. There are problems creating holes in the run game and protecting the QB (3 sacks last week), so there’s a lot of room for improvement.

SIU — Three starters returned up front for the Salukis, including first-team all-conference pick ZeVeyon Furcron (6-2, 327). After struggling against North Dakota to start the season, allowing four sacks and rushing for 90 yards, SIU was much better against NDSU, allowing one sack while rushing for 170 yards. Their success will play a big role in the young QB’s consistency.

EDGE — SIU

DEFENSIVE LINE

YSU — This unit continues to be one of the strengths for the Penguins. The problem has been that the defense is on the field too much, and the line gets worn down over the course of four quarters. The line should get a big lift with DeMarko Craig likely returning at tackle. He had a huge freshman season in 2019 (11.5 tackles for loss). Youngstown native Vinny Gentile (Cardinal Mooney) has played well at the other tackle spot, and James Jackson and Antoine Cook provide veteran leadership at defensive end.

SIU — An experienced defensive front is led by senior Anthony Knighton, who is three sacks shy of setting the school’s all-time record. He has not recorded a sack yet this season, but the 6-4, 250-pound senior could wreak havoc against a young Penguin line. Fellow end Jordan Berner (6-5, 255) is another solid player for the Salukis. Although he has been relatively quiet this year (one tackle), he had seven tackles-for-loss and three sacks as a junior.

EDGE — Even

LINEBACKERS

YSU — Robert Morris-transfer Grant Dixon and sophomore Griffin Hoak have been solid in the middle of YSU’s defense, as the two are tied for the team lead in tackles with 15. Similar to the line, they’ll get worn down if the Penguins’ offense can’t do a better job sustaining drives. SIU boasts a balanced offense that just put 38 on one of the best teams in the nation, including four TDs and 170 yards on the ground. YSU needs to make the Salukis as one-dimensional as possible.

SIU — The Southern Illinois linebacking corps is Nos. 1, 2 and 3 in tackles for the Salukis. Senior Bryce Notree (6-3, 225) leads the way with 16. Junior Bryson Strong has 13, and junior Makel Calhoun, who led SIU in sacks in 2019 with seven, has 12 stops. It’s an impressive group that helped hold North Dakota State to 109 yards rushing and 268 total yards.

EDGE — SIU

SECONDARY

YSU — The defensive backs have probably been the biggest surprise thus far into the season. They played against one of the conference’s top quarterbacks last week, holding Will McElvain to 15-of-30 passing for 183 yards, zero TDs and one interception. Redshirt freshman Troy Jakubec snagged the first interception of his career and his size (6-1) and speed have helped him play well against two of the MVFC’s best receivers. Safety Zaire Jones may be the best player on the defense and is one of the team’s leaders.

SIU — The Salukis lead the MVFC in allowing just 110 yards passing per game this season. Most of the secondary is new, with Jonathan Thompson being one of the few returning starters. Safety Qua Brown, the team’s leading tackler in 2019, played in Week 1 against North Dakota and led SIU in tackles with eight, but he didn’t play last week and wasn’t listed on the depth chart. Safety Clayton Bush is fourth on the team in tackles (10) and also has an interception. Fellow safety Roderick Campbell is a Northwestern transfer.

EDGE — Even

SPECIALISTS

YSU — The punting game was awful last week. True freshman Paddy Lynch took some big steps backward after a strong start, averaging 33.8 yards on five punts, including three that were shanked. Phillips may make the move to Nick DeSavlo, who started as a freshman in 2019. Jake Coates is one of the league’s best punt returners, and the Penguins could use a big play from special teams with an offense searching for an identity.

SIU — In an odd coincidence, both teams use punters who are from Australia (YSU’s Paddy Lynch is from Queensland, Australia). SIU’s Jack Colquhoun, a Melbourne native, is averaging 42.5 yards on 12 kicks. Place kicker Nico Gualdoni is 3-of-3 on field goals with a long of 39. The Salukis have not returned a punt or a kick for more than 31 yards, and they haven’t allowed any big plays on special teams either.

EDGE — SIU

PREDICTION

A good start would go a long way for the Penguins, who need some type of momentum to spark an offense that has been mostly inept this season.

The Penguins can’t keep relying their defense, which has been worn down in both games because it’s constantly on the field. The defense does give YSU a chance to upset the Salukis, who may be overlooking the Penguins after a shocking win over North Dakota State. For that to happen, Youngstown State’s offense needs to find an identity — and fast. Expect some wrinkles (maybe a trick play or two) from the offense as it searches for some success.

In the end, that’s a lot to ask from a young, inexperienced group that faces its third ranked team in the last three weeks.

SIU, 27-10