Youngstown State Penguins football The Youngstown State Penguins football team represents Youngstown State University in college football . Youngstown State currently plays as a member of the NCAA at the NCAA Division I Football Championship Subdivision ( formerly known as Division I - AA ) and are a member of the Missouri Valley Football Conference ( MVFC ) . The Penguins have played their home games in Stambaugh Stadium , more commonly called " The Ice Castle , " since 1982 . YSU football has been one of the leading programs in NCAA Division I Football Championship Subdivision , winning four national championships under former head coach Jim Tressel , second only to Georgia Southern ( 5 ) . Overall , YSU has made 11 playoff appearances since Division I FCS ( then Division I - AA ) was formed in 1978 . History . Early history . The YSU football program began in 1938 as an Independent NCAA team under head coach Dwight " Dike " Beede . The Penguins played their first game on September 15 , 1938 in a 0 – 6 – 12 loss to Geneva College and won the first game in program history . About a month later , on October 22 , 1938 , Youngstown State won its first game with a 20 – 0 shutout at Westminster College ( PA ) . The Penguins won their first home game on November 3 , 1938 with a 20 – 14 win against Davis & Elkins College . Longtime head coach Dwight " Dike " Beede made a historical impact on the game of American football after noticing on - field confusion due to officials using whistles to signal a penalty . Beede invented the penalty flag and it was used for the first time during a game on October 17 , 1941 against Oklahoma City University at the Youngstown ' s Rayen Stadium . The flag is now standard at all football games . Dwight Beede retired from the program after the 1972 season and was replaced by Rey Dempsey starting in the 1973 season . After 35 years as an independent program the football team joined NCAA Division II in 1973 . In the 1974 season , the penguins qualified for the Division II playoffs after going 8 – 1 in the regular season . YSU fell 14 – 35 against Delaware in the program ' s first playoff game . Following the 1974 season , Dempsey he left Youngstown State to become a special - teams coach for the Detroit Lions 1975 , he was In the three seasons at YSU he compiled a 12 – 8 record . Bill Narduzzi became the third coach in program history in 1975 . The team joined the Mid - Continent Conference in the in 1978 and recorded a 9 win regular season under Narduzzi and claimed the Mid - Continent Conference Championship . Narduzzi led Youngstown State to its first playoff win on November 25 , 1978 against Nebraska - Omaha . The 21 – 14 win advanced the team into the Division II Semifinal Playoff Game where the Penguins lost to Eastern Illinois 22 – 26 . The team finished the season with a record of 10 – 2 , the first 10 - win season for the program . The 1979 season saw Youngstown State claim their second Mid - Continent Conference Champions going undefeated in conference games and losing only a single game to Delaware . The Penguins defeated South Dakota State 50 – 7 in the Division II Quarterfinal Playoff Game and shutout Alabama A & M 52 – 0 in the Division II Semifinal Playoff Game . The win in the semifinal round gave Youngstown state its first appearance in an NCAA Football Championship . The Penguins faced the Delaware Fightin ' Blue Hens in the Zia Bowl in Albuquerque , New Mexico for the NCAA Division II Championship . In the championship YSU was defeated by Delaware 21 – 38 and finished the season with a record of 11 – 2 . In 1981 , Youngstown State joined the Ohio Valley Conference ( OVC ) . After going 2 – 8 – 1 in the 1980 season , playing a majority of Division I opponents , the Penguins finished their first season in Division I and the OVC with a record of 7 – 4 , including an upset of Cincinnati who was playing as a Division I FBS Independent . Recent history . The program ' s most successful period came from 1986 – 2000 under Jim Tressel . Tressel lead the Penguins to four NCAA Division I - AA National Championships . In 1991 , YSU won its first national championship , defeating Marshall ; and won two more national championships in the following three seasons : against Marshall in 1993 and Boise State in 1994 . The Penguins won a fourth title in 1997 with a 10 – 9 victory against McNeese State . The Tressel Era of YSU football also included two stints as national runner - up in 1992 and 1999 . YSU ' s four national championships is second in DI FCS only to Georgia Southern ' s five national titles . Tressel was also named Division I - AA Coach of the Year in ’ 91 , ’ 93 , ’ 94 and ’ 97 . Tressel left Youngstown State following the 2000 season to coach Ohio State , where he coached from 2000 – 2010 . Tressel resigned from Ohio State in 2011 after an NCAA investigation of rules violations during the 2010 season and Ohio State self - vacating their wins for 2010 season . Tressel first incident with the NCAA came during his tenure as YSU head coach when it emerged in 1994 that Ray Issac , the quarterback on the Penguins ' 1991 national championship team , had received substantial benefits from Mickey Monus , who was a major benefactor to Youngstown State University . Over Issac ' s college career Monus gifted $ 10 , 000 in cash and the use of several cars . The NCAA made an inquiry after being tipped off to Monus ' actions , but dropped it after a cursory internal investigation by Youngstown State . The true scope of the violations was only revealed in 1998 , when Isaac admitted tampering with a juror in Monus ' fraud trial . Youngstown State admitted to a lack of institutional control and docked itself some scholarships , but was allowed to keep its 1991 title since the statute of limitations had run out . His successor , Jon Heacock , did not win a national championship , but still delivered consistent seasons and took them to a national semifinal appearance in 2006 ( losing to eventual national champion Appalachian State ) prior to resigning following the 2009 season . Eric Wolford , a Youngstown native who has been labeled a top recruiter at the NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision level , was named the sixth head coach in school history on Dec 15 , 2009 . Wolford recorded a 3 – 8 record in his first season in 2010 . Despite the record , Youngstown State led at some point in all but one game they played . The streak was ended in the first game of the 2011 season when YSU lost to Michigan State 6 – 28 and never held a lead in the game . The 2011 Season featured improvment to a 6 – 5 record , highlighted by a victory over eventual FCS National Champion North Dakota State . The Penguins beat the University of Pittsburgh , 31 - 17 , on September 1 , 2012 at Heinz Field in Pittsburgh . This marked the first time the Penguins have ever beaten a Bowl Championship Series team , though they have several wins over Football Bowl Subdivision teams from non - automatic qualifier conferences , such as the MAC . Home venue . YSU plays its home games at Stambaugh Stadium , nicknamed " The Ice Castle " , which has an official capacity of 20 , 630 , one of the largest in Division I FCS . If the team were to be moved to Division I FBS , they would likely play in the Mid - American Conference , due to their geographic location and former rivalry with the University of Akron Zips . The Zips , who are currently a member of the MAC , held contests against the Penguins for the Steel Tire from 1940 to 1995 . Youngstown State leads the overall series 19 – 14 – 2 . Notable alumni . The Penguins have sent 21 players to the NFL , one of which ( Donald Jones ) is currently playing . Some of their most well - known football alumni include current ESPN Analyst Ron Jaworski , Jeff Wilkins , Paul McFadden and Cliff Stoudt . In addition , many college football coaches have been associated with Youngstown State . Alongside Tressel , former University of Kansas head coach Mark Mangino and current Michigan State head coach Mark Dantonio began their coaching careers at YSU , and former Notre Dame head coach Bob Davie played for the Penguins . See also . Youngstown State Penguins