When Eric Wolford was hired as Youngstown State’s head football coach last December, he promised to recruit the state of Ohio like it's never been done.
Forty-nine 49 days later the results are in. Thirteen players are headed to Youngstown from the Buckeye state, five of which come from their own backyard.
“We’ve made people realize, you’re not just going to come into Youngstown here and these local areas and have your pick of whoever you want,” Wolford said. “We’re going to go after, we’re going to put a fence round this thing and a couple people will beat us here and there, but you’re not just going to walk in here and get whoever you want. This is as weak as we’ll ever be.”
Wolford said he is not willing to let local recruits slip through his fingers. Wolford’s first recruiting class features an offensive line that exceeds his own expectations, and one that includes a couple of Cardinal Mooney players.
“It feels good,” Mooney offensive lineman Eric Franklin said. “It feels good to have two, three other guys with me going to YSU, and stuff like that, and playing for Coach Wolford. It’s a great feeling.”
Offensive lineman Zach Larson said he remembers going to Youngstown State games in the ‘90s, and is excited to work on returning YSU football to the way it was then.
“I grew up and went to games my whole life, you know in the ‘90s, and I remember going to those games and it was hard to find places to sit in that stadium,” Larson said. “So I want to get it back and I just want to fill up there and get a few more rings.”
The Penguins have also inked three other recruits from the Valley. Newton Falls Defensive End Stephen Page, Mooney Cornerback Donald D’Alesio and Ursuline tailback Allen Jones signed on with Wolford Wednesday.
“Well I had to be really patient,” Jones said. “Not a lot of schools were jumping on, but once Wolford got hired and got talking to me and talked about YSU and thought about Youngstown, it’s just a great choice to make.”
“It’s great playing at home,” D’Alesio said. “We take pride in our football around here. And, we hope we can restore what YSU used to be and win a couple National Championships.
“He just relates to the kids,” Page said. “He came and saw me two days after he was hired, which really shows that he wants the program to change and he knows how to do it. First thing he said is he’s going to win a championship and with the kids he’s recruited, I bet it’s going to happen.”
During a press conference Wednesday, Wolford introduced his fist recruiting class and said the “future looks bright.”
“You’re not going to go out there and win the Daytona 500 driving a tractor,” Wolford said. “It’s just not going to happen. You got to have some players. You start putting classes like this together in a short period of time. I think it tells you the future looks bright.
