Have some patience and it’ll all be fine

February 2, 2019

SOUTHFIELD, Mich. — I have a key card for my room and a pass for Friday morning’s buffet breakfast. That’s all I had on me, along with my phone. One round of the berries, melon, yogurt and oats and another trip for a bit of eggs, potatoes and bacon. If you’ve ever been to a hotel breakfast buffet, you know bacon is a luxury. I told Robb Schmidt, Youngstown State University men’s basketball play-by-play announcer, that I was living right having bacon. He shook his head and thought I was weird. My wife, Michele, would concur. I enjoyed myself anyhow. I then headed upstairs ...

Stop, look up from your phone screen

January 29, 2019

YOUNGSTOWN — Screen goes blank. Quick vibrate on an attempted restart. Nothing. Quick trip to my cell phone provider confirms my worst fears. My phone is dead. A new one isn’t coming until Monday. Weird feeling not having that tether cord attached, being the slave to that handheld device, checking Facebook, Twitter, email and texts at every spare moment. It felt good — freedom I haven’t experienced in a decade or so, like the first warm day of spring and driving for an hour or two. You don’t know where you’re going, but it just feels right. So did this. It was a big ...

YSU women all about consistency

January 25, 2019

YOUNGSTOWN — The dribbles of the basketball reverberate among the walls, as well as the yells emanating from those players honed in on one task. Some are louder than others. All have the same goal: improvement. John Barnes stood near center court, where a media table would be on game day. He pulls a piece of paper from his back pocket, looks at it and keeps to the regiment on the floor of the Beeghly Center. It’s something his Youngstown State University women’s basketball players and coach have come to expect in his sixth season. There are three seniors, one a graduate ...

Defense the key for YSU against Wright State

January 17, 2019

KEITH GUNTHER is bound to be there, surround by his Ursuline boys basketball team, looking at the action on the Beeghly Center floor. All eyes are on Mark Hughes, the Wright State University senior guard. Hughes and his Raiders have that same green and white color scheme as Ursuline, so the rooting interest is there either way. The Youngstown State University men’s basketball team hasn’t beat Wright State at Beeghly Center since 2014. It must be the Hughes factor since his Raiders haven’t lost in his hometown since he’s played for the defending Horizon League Tournament ...

Pelini, YSU need to take next step

January 16, 2019

There was a lot of hype when Bo Pelini was hired at Youngstown State, and rightfully so. Many in the media, locally and nationally, felt the Penguins, as the saying goes, might have outkicked their coverage with the hiring — meaning not many expected a coach of his caliber to come to YSU. Now, after an up-and-down four seasons, there is a lot of heat on Pelini — and rightfully so. When you’re a high-profile coach coming to your hometown, fans expect a lot, and with a Penguins fan base that is often, well, delusional in regard to success, even more is expected. The first ...

EOWL on the move after duals change

January 10, 2019

THERE are lot of strange things you’ll hear coming from the corner of a wrestling mat. For those not familiar with the sport, coaches sit in the corner of the mat during tournaments and shout instructions — among other things — during the match. The moves they scream out have all kinds of interesting names. There’s cement mixer, gator roll, crucifix, banana split, the broomstick, fat-man roll and the always-trusty ball and chain (don’t ask what that one is). Those are the nicer words you hear from a coach. Some of the other ones, which are generally spoken when the ...