Youngstown State has about as diverse a QB run game as any team in the country. So far in 2026 Brungard has 60 carries for 291 yards and four touchdowns. He’s also passed for over 1,000 yards and ten touchdowns, six of those coming against Duquesne. When the Penguins get into tight games they lean on Brungard’s legs to get them out of trouble. Against South Dakota State, the Penguins built three passing concepts, RPOs and play action, off those QB runs, and they were creative with it. In this article we’ll break down those three concepts and why you should add them to your arsenal if you run the QB run game a lot in your offense.
Play Action Off Power Read
Youngstown State runs a lot of power read, so the next logical step is to build a play action off this look with the jet motion. Here the Penguins do that combined with four verticals. Where this stresses the defense is the four strong feel with the jet motion plus the running back on the rail. It forces the defense to push coverage and identify verticals quickly and who they’re responsible for, which the Jackrabbits struggle with here. The Tampa “hole” player identifies the tight end running vertical late and can’t get there to make a play. The motion, combined with play action, combines with the threat of YSU’s run game to cause all of these issues on the back end, leaving the tight end with a lot of room to work with. Great design by the Penguins.
This is just a creative variation where the Penguins run a field hitch RPO off their QB counter run scheme. It’s very simple for the quarterback. Read the field overhang, if he works toward you to fit the run, throw the hitch. That’s what happens here and it’s a nice gain for the Penguin offense.
Our last example is a play action off Q draw by the Penguins. Obviously you understand by now how much they run the Q at Youngstown State. And several times earlier this game they ran Q draw and Q draw variations. Now they run a Q draw play action, insert the tight end through the B gap, and throw a seam to him for a touchdown. This is every defensive coach’s nightmare, smash with a vertical that was inserted through the offensive line. Strike up the 7-on-7 debate, I can hear offensive coordinators pointing to this play in the summer already. Can’t wait for that discourse to start anew.
Final Thoughts
Youngstown State does a great job calling their offense at the FCS level. Led by QB Beau Brungard, they attack the defense with plus one QB run game, RPOs, and well designed play action schemes. They’re going to be a great offseason study for many high schools around the country that have athletic QBs they need to build their offenses entirely around. But until then, steal these three plays this week and add them to your arsenal in your QB run, RPO, and play action game.
ONCE SPORT: A complete video analysis software for any sport.
Once Sport Analyzer is a powerful, yet easy-to-use video analysis software with advanced tagging, 3D telestration, automatic tracking, and live analysis – built for coaches and analysts at all levels.