While South Dakota State and North Dakota State tied for the Missouri Valley Football Conference title last year, it was Youngstown State that went the furthest in the playoffs. The Penguins advanced all the way to the FCS national championship, where they fell 28-14 to James Madison.

It was a bit of redemption for coach Bo Pelini, who was just two years removed from his ouster from the University of Nebraska, where he’d gone 67-27 in seven tumultuous but largely successful seasons (they won at least nine games every year and went 3-3 in Bowl games Pelini coached).

And though he’s in his third year at the FCS level, Pelini is still something of a firebrand in college football, certainly the first person anyone thinks of when they hear the name Youngstown State.

After guiding last year’s team to a 12-4 record and sending defensive ends Avery Moss and Derek Rivers on to the NFL, Pelini seems to have reloaded quickly, as the Penguins are 2-1 (with an overtime loss to FBS Pitt) and ranked 5th in the FCS Top 25 poll, just one spot behind the 4th-ranked Jackrabbits of South Dakota State, whom YSU hosts Saturday night.

Pelini hasn’t shied away from controversy, either, recruiting convicted rapist Ma’lik Richmond to the team and playing him even after a public outcry (after school officials effectively banned Pelini from playing Richmond, Richmond successfully sued for full reinstatement, and played in YSU’s last game).

That aside, by following up last year’s title run with a strong start this year, Pelini’s Penguins should be prepared to make Saturday’s game the biggest of the week in FCS football.

Here’s what the 49-year-old coach had to say about the matchup and the two teams in his weekly press conference.

On the game

“I’d put it up against any game being played in the country. BCS conference or not, these are two teams that can line up and beat a lot of football teams out there.”

On SDSU

“I have a tremendous amount of respect for South Dakota State and how they play. They’re a really well-coached football team. They play physical. They’re good in all three phases. (SDSU coach John Stiegelmeier) has a culture going over there, where the kids are accountable and disciplined. They play tough and they play physical and to me those are the signs of a good team.”

On SDSU’s offensive skill players

“All three (quarterback Taryn Christion, wide receiver Jake Wieneke and tight end Dallas Goedert) are really good players. They have some good running backs and they all run hard. They play football the right way.”

On getting off to a good start (YSU trailed SDSU 14-0 after only a few minutes in last year’s 24-10 loss to the Jacks)

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“We don’t want to fall behind early but if you do it’s a four-quarter game. They do a nice job early in games, they’ll give you a couple things you haven’t seen and you have to react well. We have to execute our gameplan.”

On the health of quarterback Hunter Wells

“Everybody’s ready to go. Knock on wood.”

On the SDSU offense

“They’re a very balanced offense, a well-thought out offense. The quarterback – obviously we all know they have playmakers all over the field, but it starts with the quarterback. He can hurt you with his arm or he can hurt you with his legs. They’ll have a few designed quarterback runs and a lot of run/pass option. It’s a multi-faceted offense, so you better be on-point defensively and you better be able to make adjustments during the game.”

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On the SDSU defense

“They’re not fancy. They play good technique; they’re sound in what they do. They’ll blitz some but they’re not a huge blitz team. They’re well-coached and just kind of do what they do, so you’ve got to execute well against them.”

On his players’ respect for SDSU

“They have the necessary respect for the opponent coming in here. (The No. 4 team) gets your attention and gets you to prepare that much harder and be ready to go.”

On stopping Wieneke and Goedert

“You’ve got to be physical when you get your hands on them. The quarterback does a nice job of giving them a chance to catch the ball, so you better play the ball. If you’re right there and you’re not ready to get your hand on the ball they’re going to make the catch. You’ve got to be in position and be strong at the ball.”

On what the game means for both teams

“It’ll be a good test for us and for South Dakota State. I think you’ll learn a lot about your football team. It’s your next assessment for where you are. How far have we come in the last month and how far we still have to go. Win or lose there’s still going to be a lot more out there for us to do as far as getting better. Even if we win we’re not a finished product.”

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On protests during the national anthem (which aren’t an issue at college games, since teams are in the locker room during the anthem)

“I think there’s a time and a place, and in my humble opinion that’s not the time or the place. To each their own, but that’s my opinion.”

On whether the Penguins’ success is building excitement on the YSU campus

“I know our kids are excited. I’m in my cave so I don’t know what’s going on on campus unless it’s in our film room. I’m really hoping there’s a good crowd on Saturday night, because I think both teams deserve it. Hopefully we’re at a point where people understand there’s good football being played here.”