The hosting Penguins won the game, 35-13, but not without a tooth-and-nail fight



Josh Kniess rushed for more than 100 yards for the second time in as many games this fall



Sept. 3, 2004


Final Stats



Youngstown, Ohio - As odd as it may sound when you look at the final score, the NCAA Division II Rock earned the respect of hosting Division I-AA power Youngstown State in the course of dropping a 35-13 decision.

The Rock held YSU to 56 yards in total offense in the first half and held a 6-0 advantage at halftime.

The Penguins stung SRU for 21 third-quarter points, but five minutes into the fourth and final quarter, SRU trailed by only eight points, 21-13.

In the end, YSU simply had too much firepower for The Rock to overcome. The Penguins finished the game with 364 yards in total offense.

But, in the end, The Rock also had 315 yards in total offense. That marked the second time in as many games this fall that SRU had amassed more than 300 yards in offense.





Leading the way, again for the second time this fall, was junior running back Josh Kniess. The former Slippery Rock Area High School standout had 134 rushing yards to surpass the century mark for, you guessed it, the second time this fall.

Freshman Corey Manfull celebrated his return to his home area of northeastern Ohio by rushing for 52 yards, 18 of which came on his first collegiate touchdown run (10:10 of the final period).

Redshirt freshman quarterback Nate Crookshank passed for 115 yards on a 13-of-30 throwing effort.

Crookshank's favorite receiver was senior H-back Brandon Richardson, a native of northeast Ohio who had career highs in catches and yards with seven and 57, respectively.

Redshirt freshman kicking specialist Ryan Daniel accounted for seven of The Rock's points with a pair of first-half field goals (31 and 26 yards) and a fourth-quarter extra point kick.

The Rock goes in search of that elusive first win on Sept. 11 when it travels to Shepherdsville, W. Va., to take on West Virginia Intercollegiate Athletic Conference power Shepherd in a 1 p.m. game.

SRU lost its season opener, 20-17, to Bloomsburg on Aug. 28.