Beau Brungard is the name that jumps off the page for Youngstown State, and for good reason. The reigning FCS Player of the Year is coming to Kroger Field on Saturday as the Penguins’ unanimous All-American quarterback, fresh off a 2025 season in which he piled up 3,230 passing yards, 1,468 rushing yards and 53 total touchdowns.
Kentucky offensive coordinator Will Stein has already made clear what he thinks of Brungard.
“He’s an elite player,” said Stein. “Not just good, not just average. He’s elite.”
But Brungard is only the headliner. Youngstown State brings a full cast of players who can make life difficult for Kentucky, including a dangerous running back, a new receiver, an NFL-caliber tackle and two defensive playmakers. Here are five more Penguins worth knowing before Saturday’s season opener.
#7 Jaden Gilbert, RB
Youngstown’s ground game isn’t built on Brungard alone. Jaden Gilbert gives the Penguins another serious threat out of the backfield, and he was back at it last week against Mercyhurst.
The senior tailback carried just five times in that game, but he turned those touches into 89 rushing yards and a touchdown. He also added three catches for 31 yards and another score.
Gilbert posted more than 1,000 total yards alongside Brungard a year ago, and he gives Youngstown the kind of versatility that makes the offense hard to pin down. Stein called the Penguins’ offense the best in FCS.
#1 Lynn Wyche-El, WR
Youngstown’s receiving room has some new faces, and Lynn Wyche-El is the one who stood out in the opener. A fifth-year transfer from Grand Valley State and a Detroit native, he arrived as part of the Penguins’ turnover at wide receiver after several key departures from last season.
In the season opener, Wyche-El led Youngstown State in catches, finishing with six receptions for 41 yards and a touchdown. After one game, he’s the new receiver to keep an eye on.
#78 Desmeal Leigh, LT
Desmeal Leigh may not be a household name, but he has the kind of profile NFL teams notice. The 6-foot-7, 325-pound left tackle has been described as “an FCS mammoth with big-time NFL Draft potential” and as a First Team All-American FCS selection.
He has started 39 straight games on Youngstown’s offensive line and is one of two FCS players on the Senior Bowl’s Top 300 list. In Stein’s view, Leigh belongs among the best players in FCS, right there with Brungard.
#3 Mike Wells, EDGE/LB
Mike Wells also got singled out by Stein this week, and the numbers explain why. Stein described Wells as disruptive against both the run and the pass as a boundary end, noting that he had 15 tackles for loss and 10.5 sacks last season.
Wells is also on the preseason radar for FCS Defensive Player of the Year. He opened 2026 with four tackles and 2.5 TFLs against Mercyhurst.
#5 Carston Marshall, LB
Carston Marshall rounds out the defensive names to know. The fifth-year Will linebacker drew praise from Stein as well, with the Kentucky coordinator saying, “He’s a really good linebacker. He can play the run, play the pass, he’s very fast, can run sideline to sideline, makes tackles.”
Marshall was a steady force last season, finishing second on the team with 71 tackles in 13 games. He led all Penguins with seven tackles in Week 0.
In Other News...
Mark Mitchell Saga Left Kentucky Fans Wanting One Answer On J Batt
Mark Mitchells transfer chase had Kentucky fans looking for a late-summer boost, but the forwards path never got far enough to become a true Wildcats storyline. Mitchell, a member of the high school class of 2022, was trying to take advantage of a temporary court-ordered fifth season of eligibility, and Kentucky had reason to be involved until the Southeastern Conference declined to exempt him from its transfer restrictions. In the end, he went back to Missouri, leaving Kentucky with more questions than answers about how much room the program actually had to maneuver.
For Kentucky, the more interesting figure in the background is new athletics director J Batt, who did not arrive until late July and had limited say in a situation shaped by league-level rulings and timing. The episode also feeds a bigger argument around NCAA rules for players who have gone pro but still hold college eligibility, while quietly reminding Kentucky fans that roster-building questions are not limited to basketball, either, with recruiting concerns already looming around football under Will Stein. [Read more 🡒]
Kentucky Just Entered A Tough Race For A Rising Big Man
Kentucky has jumped into the mix for one of the more intriguing big men in the 2025 recruiting pool, extending a scholarship offer to Akol Nyok as the high school evaluation period picks up. The 7-foot-1 center has been drawing more attention in recent weeks, and his profile is only getting bigger as schools continue to sort through the next wave of frontcourt talent.
Nyok entered the cycle as a three-star prospect on Rivals, but his rising stock has started to put him on more radars as a four-star-level target. For Kentucky, the offer adds another name to a crowded race for a player whose size alone makes him hard to ignore, and the competition figures to keep building as more programs make their own push. [Read more 🡒]
Kentucky Faces A Bigger Kenny Minchey Question Than Week 1
Kenny Mincheys move from Notre Dame to Kentucky already made him one of the more intriguing players on the roster, and now his role has taken on a different kind of weight. The fourth-year quarterback is in line to lead the Wildcats when the season opens, giving Will Stein a first-time starter to shape in a way he has not had to do before.
Stein and offensive coordinator Joe Sloan have both pointed to Mincheys progress during fall camp, with the staff focused on getting his mobility and playmaking back to where it was before. The bigger question is not whether Kentucky believes in his talent, but how quickly he can grow into a job that asks a lot from the start, especially when Steins past quarterbacks arrived with far more game experience already behind them. [Read more 🡒]