YOUNGSTOWN – The Youngstown State football team is back in the FCS playoffs.

The team gathered inside Stambaugh Stadium as the brackets were released at noon on Sunday. And after 23 of the 24 teams were revealed, YSU finally heard its name called.

YSU will host Ivy League champion Yale on Saturday at noon. It will be the first time the Penguins have faced an Ivy League program.

“This started last January to get to this point,” YSU head coach Doug Phillips said. “The flip from 4-8 to 8-4, now we get into the playoffs. Now guess what? It’s a new season. Learn from the 12 games that we played and play our best football right now.”

It’s the Penguins first trip to the playoffs since 2023, when they hosted and beat Duquesne before falling to Villanova in the second round.

Phillips learned a

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