Penguins eye first MVFC title against Redbirds

Local Sports Penguins eye first MVFC title against Redbirds By NEEL MADHAVAN November 12, 2026 4 min read Correspondent photo / Robert Hayes YSU fifth year Fresh Walters scores a 28-yard touchdown during the first half against the Racers. Trending YOUNGSTOWN -- When Youngstown State's seniors and fifth-year players opted to return to the program after last year, they did so with one goal in mind -- to chase championships. The Penguins have the opportunity to claim one of those championship trophies on Saturday in their regular season finale when Illinois State comes to town for a noon kickoff (ESPN+/570 WKBN) at Stambaugh Stadium. A win against the Redbirds would clinch at least a share of the Missouri Valley Football Conference regular season title for the first time in program history. YSU has not won a conference title in football since winning the formerly-named Gateway Football Conference in 2006. "It would mean everything to us, but then it's also bigger than us," senior safety Cam Smith said. "For everybody that comes out to the games -- as you guys know, my Dad and my brother played here, too, so it's bigger than us. We got the whole community behind us. We got all the fans that come out every week that support us. So to get that done, not just for us and for ourselves to say that we were successful, but for the City of Youngstown, I feel like it's huge." Not only would a win earn a share of the conference title, but it would also likely seal an at-large playoff bid, a top-8 seed and a first-round bye in the FCS playoffs. If YSU ends up sharing the league trophy with South Dakota State, the Jackrabbits would snag the league's playoff autobid by virtue of their head-to-head victory over the Penguins in Brookings, S.D., on Sept. 26. "When you go 1-0, what's 1-0 do for you? If you can go 1-0 this week -- we had visions, we had goals six, seven years ago coming in here. These guys that are fifth-year seniors know," head coach Doug Phillips said. "We want a championship-level locker room. Well, that's a lot of work. There's times you gotta prune. Pruning is for others to blossom. Sometimes you gotta look at the low-hanging fruit, and if it didn't mesh with what you're trying to build, you had to prune it. "Coming in here, I think our goal was a 3.0 GPA, and we're at a 3.4 overall team GPA. We've achieved that. One was having the opportunity to win the Missouri Valley Football Conference, and 1-0 gives you an opportunity to do that. ... We don't talk about it until it gets to the week, but that's what 1-0 this week means. We're achieving something bigger than us." The FCS playoff committee's first edition of rankings that came out on Oct. 20 put YSU on the No. 3 seed line. But their most recent seeding on Nov. 5 dropped the Penguins to the No. 5 line. However, plenty can still change between now and Selection Sunday on Nov. 22 at noon on ESPNU. "Things that are out of your control, I try not to put too much thought," Phillips said. "Things that we can focus on every week is just how can we go 1-0, and I applaud our guys for doing that. Hasn't been pretty, but you find ways to win football games." In recent years, YSU has typically been on the playoff bubble at this point in the season, just trying to build up a resume worthy of an at-large bid. But this year, the Penguins have won a school-record six straight MVFC games, and as a result, they've been ranked in the top-10 of the Stats Perform FCS Top-25 poll for the entirety of the season. The team's playoff resume stands by itself. YSU will have a chance to extend its win streak on Saturday against No. 15 Illinois State and add to their FCS-leading tally of four ranked wins. "We're trying to do something that's bigger than us all, and this is a huge game," Phillips said. "Do I want pressure on? Heck yeah, I want pressure on them. I want pressure on this day. I want to see how they respond, because it gets to a point in the season where you lose, you go home. That's pressure. You gotta find ways in a season to create that pressure in situations. "You gotta be ready to play at 12:02 in the Missouri Valley Football Conference in November, and you're playing for something. Everyone's playing for something, and both these programs are playing for a lot."