​Sep. 26—YOUNGSTOWN, Ohio — For a moment, the South Dakota Coyotes looked like it might carry the momentum from its near-upset at Boise State into its Missouri Valley Football Conference opener.Then Youngstown State took over the second half. The Penguins turned a competitive game into a runaway Saturday afternoon at Stambaugh Stadium, outscoring the Coyotes 24-7 in the second half on the way to a 47-28 victory in conference play.The difference came on both sides of the football, but particularly in the way Youngstown State quarterback Beau Brungard attacked the Coyotes defense with his legs and the way the Penguins defense capitalized on USD quarterback Austyn Modrzewski’s mistakes.Brungard, the 2025 Walter Payton Award winner, put together a performance that made it difficult for USD to keep pace. He completed 13 of 17 passes for 159 yards and a touchdown, but his biggest impact came on the ground, where he rushed 28 times for 170 yards and three touchdowns. He repeatedly extended plays when the pocket broke down and also hurt the Coyotes with designed quarterback runs, turning what could have been passing downs into big chunks of yardage.”They took us to the woodshed today,” USD coach Matt Vitzthum said on the Coyote Sports Network radio broadcast after the game. “It starts with me. I was not good enough at the head coach position, and we were not ready to go.”That wasn’t the game that appeared to be developing in the opening 30 minutes. Modrzewski was efficient early, completing 11 of his first 12 passes for 107 yards and a touchdown. His scoring pass came on a 9-yard connection with Tysen Boze, and the Coyotes moved the football effectively enough to keep themselves within striking distance.Youngstown State, however, produced a critical field goal in the final seconds of the first half to take a 23-14 advantage into the break.But USD came out of the break with an answer, as the Coyotes put together a drive that lasted just more than 6 minutes, and backup quarterback Jackson Proctor capped it with a 22-yard touchdown run. It was Proctor’s second rushing touchdown of the afternoon and his first two touchdowns in a South Dakota uniform. He had scored from 7 yards out to tie the game at 7-all earlier in the first quarter.”We’re going to continue to try to use him and his skill set,” Vitzthum said about Proctor. “He goes to work every day. I love his approach. We’ll continue to do what we can to involve him. But yeah, we got a lot of work to do.”Proctor’s second touchdown cut Youngstown State’s lead to 23-21, giving the Coyotes an opportunity to seize control. Instead, it marked the closest USD would get. The Penguins scored 24 consecutive points from there, and 17 of those points came directly off three second-half turnovers by Modrzewski.Youngstown State’s defense began making Modrzewski uncomfortable, forcing him into situations where the efficiency he displayed in the first half disappeared. Cam Smith and Darvens Tunis each intercepted him