Guins Battle In 27-20 Loss at No. 2 South Dakota State

Guins Battle In 27-20 Loss at No. 2 South Dakota State

9/19/2026 10:34:00 PM | Football

Brookings, S.D. – The No. 9 Youngstown State football team dropped a hard-fought 27-20 decision to second-ranked South Dakota State on Saturday night at Dana J. Dykhouse Stadium.

With the loss, YSU falls to 2-2 overall and 0-1 in MVFC play while Jackrabbits improve to 3-1 and 1-0.

QB Beau Brungard completed 27-of-35 passes for 292 yards and had 32 yards rushing on 13 attempts. SDSU running back Josiah Johnson carried the ball 30 times and rushed for 238 yards and two scores.

After the Penguins were forced to punt to open the second half, the Jackrabbits increased their lead to 24-10 on a 16-yard run by Johnson at the 7:55 mark of the third quarter.

YSU crept within a touchdown when Brungard found Lynn Wyche-El on a 11-yard scoring toss. The play was initially called incomplete, but the Penguins' challenged and the play was overturned. It marked the fourth straight game that Wyche-El has caught a touchdown pass.

On the final play of the third quarter, Tristan Alvano made a 43-yard field goal to make the contest 27-17 entering the fourth quarter.

YSU faced a third-and-short at the SDSU 42-yard lin...