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Furman is 28-7 in home games under head coach Clay Hendrix and will go in search of an 11th-straight home triumph Saturday vs. Charleston Southern.
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This will mark just the third all-time meeting between the two programs, with Furman winning each of the previous two, including a 24-19 triumph in North Charleston two years ago.
Furman's football program isn't used to big losses. That includes against FBS programs. Sure, the Paladins have had a few over the years, but nothing like what it had to endure in its 2024 season opener at Ole Miss, which saw the Paladins fall, 76-0, marking the fifth-worst loss in program history. The Paladin loss also marked its worst loss ever to an FBS foe since re-classification of the SoCon to FCS in 1982, as well the most points it has surrendered in a game since 1969 (L, 77-14 to Davidson) and worst margin of defeat since 1955 (L, 0-81 to Army).
For a program that lost 17 starters, yet still holds a national ranking in the current FCS poll, clocking in at No. 15 in the most recent STATS Perform FCS poll, the season-for all intents and purposes-really begins with the first home game of the 2024 season and a visit from FCS Charleston Southern. Furman's first game will be the third-straight season in which the Paladins will celebrate "Dins After Dark", which will be themed "The Trilogy."
The Paladins will don a special third uniform, as they have each of the past two seasons to celebrate the home opener.
Charleston Southern will play its first of two-straight ranked FCS foes, having to do battle with #14/15 Richmond next Saturday and then could face a potentially ranked UT-Martin team later in the season. The Bucs also close out the 2024 season with their FBS opposition, heading to Tallahassee, FL., to take on the Florida State Seminoles.
As far as the preseason polls are concerned in the Big South-Ohio Valley Conference, the Bucs were selected to finish sixth in the nine-team league.
While Furman had a forgettable loss in week one, the Bucs lost in agonizing fashion to cross-town rival The Citadel, dropping what was a 21-20 decision in the opening week. It ended an 11-game losing streak for the Bulldogs and was the first win of head coach Maurice Drayton's tenure at the helm of the Bulldogs' football program.
The Bucs are coming off a 2023 season that saw the Bucs improve as the season progressed under their then first-year head coach, finishing off a 4-7 season, which included a 2-4 mark in Big South-Ohio Valley Conference action.
The Bucs won all of their games in North Charleston last season and are still in search of their first road win under Giardina. The Bucs have lost 20 of their last 28 road games dating back to the start of the 2019 season, which includes a season-opening, 46-13, setback at Furman to commence that campaign.
Furman, meanwhile, has been exceptionally tough to beat on their home field in recent seasons, entering Saturday's contest with 10-straight wins at Paladin Stadium, as well as 13 of the last 14. Under head coach Clay Hendrix, who is in his eighth season as the head coach. the Paladins have won 28 of their 35 home games.
The last non-conference team to come into Paladin Stadium and come away with a win was in Clay Hendrix's very first home game as head coach in 2017, with Elon posting a 34-31 win over the Paladins back in 2017.
Furman has spent 22 consecutive weeks ranked inside the FCS Top 25, reaching as high as a No. 2 ranking last season and have won 189 games in its 44 seasons at Paladin Stadium.
Charleston Southern will play its first of two-straight ranked FCS foes, having to do battle with #14/15 Richmond next Saturday and then could face a potentially ranked UT-Martin team later in the season. The Bucs also close out the 2024 season with their FBS opposition, heading to Tallahassee, FL., to take on the Florida State Seminoles.
As far as the preseason polls are concerned in the Big South-Ohio Valley Conference, the Bucs were selected to finish sixth in the nine-team league.
While Furman had a forgettable loss in week one, the Bucs lost in agonizing fashion to cross-town rival The Citadel, dropping what was a 21-20 decision in the opening week. It ended an 11-game losing streak for the Bulldogs and was the first win of head coach Maurice Drayton's tenure at the helm of the Bulldogs' football program.
The Bucs are coming off a 2023 season that saw the Bucs improve as the season progressed under their then first-year head coach, finishing off a 4-7 season, which included a 2-4 mark in Big South/Ohio Valley Conference action.
The Bucs won all of their games in North Charleston last season and are still in search of their first road win under Giardina. The Bucs have lost 20 of their last 28 road games dating back to the start of the 2019 season, which includes a season-opening, 46-13, setback at Furman to commence that campaign.
Furman, meanwhile, has been exceptionally tough to beat on their home field in recent seasons, entering Saturday's contest with 10-straight wins at Paladin Stadium, as well as 13 of the last 14. Under head coach Clay Hendrix, who is in his eighth season as the head coach. the Paladins have won 28 of their 35 home games.
The last non-conference team to come into Paladin Stadium and come away with a win was in Clay Hendrix's very first home game as head coach in 2017, with Elon posting a 34-31 win over the Paladins back in 2017.
Furman has spent 22 consecutive weeks ranked inside the FCS Top 25, reaching as high as a No. 2 ranking last season and have won 189 games in its 44 seasons at Paladin Stadium.
Furman backup quarterback Jace Wilson came off the bench to direct three touchdown drives, as Furman held off Charleston Southern in thrilling fashion with a 24-19-win on September 19, 2022 at Buccaneer Field.
The Paladins found themselves behind 19-10 in the third quarter, as Vinson Davis hauled in a 97-yard scoring pass from Isaiah Bess midway through the third quarter and a Sam Babbush 28-yard field goal, which was highlighted by an 82-yard run from JD Moore, getting the Bucs well inside the Paladin red zone. The Paladin defense was able to hold the Bucs to the Babbush field goal attempt, and with 3:13 remaining in the third, the Paladins found themselves behind by nine.
On perhaps the most crucial drive of the entire game for the Furman offense, Wilson would rise to the occasion. In desperate need of points and with the Bucs having seized momentum of the game, the Paladins needed only six plays to drive 65 yards, taking a little over two minutes off the game clock, as Wilson found All-America tight end Ryan Miller on the near side of the field on a 3rd-and-2 play, and it would be Miller that did the rest, sprinting 44 yards for a score and following the Axel Lepvreau PAT, the Paladins were within two points, at 19-17 with 59 seconds remaining in the third quarter.
Early in the fourth quarter, Charleston Southern reached midfield, and had the ball with a first down at the 50. However, following a short completion from Bess-to-Davis, the Paladin defense forced its third turnover of the day, when outside linebacker Jalen Miller delivered a big hit to dislodge the ball from Davis, and strong safety Kam Brinson came away with the football at the Charleston Southern 49, giving the Paladins back the momentum and the football.
Furman would chew up all 49 yards on the ground against a suddenly tiring Bucs defense. Wilson did most of the work on the final run of the drive, dashing 22 yards to paydirt to help the Paladins re-take the lead, 24-19, with 10:30 remaining in the game.
The Paladins were far from out of the woods, however, for the second-straight week, the Paladin defense would help Furman close out an important road win.
On Charleston Southern’s ensuing drive of the game, the Paladins would see Isaiah Bess complete one of his five passes in the contest, finding standout wide receiver Cayden Jordan for a 24-yard gain on the opening play of the drive, getting the ball all the way to the Bucs 49. After a run of five yards by Bess on a 3rd-and-4 play got the ball down to the Paladin 40 and gave the Bucs a first down, the Paladin defense would stiffen.
On the very next play following Bess’ first down scamper, Paladin linebacker Dan Scianna broke through and brought down Bess for an eight-yard loss. From there, the Paladins eventually forced a David Gelb 39-yard punt, and the Paladin offense would get the ball back on their own 10 with 7:52 remaining.
As Charleston Southern’s defense continued to show noticeable signs that it was tiring as the game wore on in the warmth of the Low Country sun, the Paladins in-turn continued to rely on its ground game, namely preseason All-SoCon running back Dominic Roberto. Roberto opened the drive with runs of 14 and eight yards to get the Paladins out to their own 32-yard line.
Following a false start penalty against the Paladins, Roberto rushed for a yard and then Wilson found Michigan State grad transfer tight end Parks Gissinger for a 10-yard gain and a first down to the Paladin 38.
Later in the drive, the Paladins faced a 3rd-and-3 at their own 45. Wilson made his lone mistake of the afternoon, as he didn’t see talented Bucs linebacker Garrett Sayegh covering the underneath receiver for the Paladins, and he stepped in front of the sophomore’s pass to intercept it and returned it 21 yards well inside Paladin territory to the 33 where he would be brought down by Wilson. During the return, Charleston Southern was flagged for an illegal block during Sayegh’s return, giving the Bucs the ball at the Furman 43 with 3:57 left.
A little over a minute later, the Paladins sealed the win on a 4th-and-7 play from Furman’s 21, as Dominic Morris intercepted a desperation pass from a Bucs quarterback for a second-straight week, picking off Bess’ pass to the corner of the end zone to give the Paladin offense the ball back with 2:43 remaining. Roberto and Devin Abrams rushed for a pair of first downs, allowing the Paladins to run out the clock on their third win of the 2022 season.
It appeared the Paladins were going to have an easy time coming up with the win in the opening moments of the game. For the second week in a row, the Furman defense got an early interception from its defense, as Micah Robinson picked off a Ross Malmgren pass at the Paladin 29, and his 25-yard return help set up the Furman offense in good stead for its first possession of the day, as the Paladins set up shop near midfield at their own 47.
Following a 25-yard completion from starting quarterback Tyler Huff to wideout Wayne Anderson Jr. on a 4th-and-4 play, the Paladins had the ball well inside CSU territory at the Charleston Southern 15. However, Abrams was stopped for a gain of one yard, and then Huff would be sacked for a loss of five yards on the next play. Huff would scramble and then opted to run the ball on the next play, however, he was stopped for a loss of four and fumbled the football in the process, as Chavon Fields recovered at the Bucs 24 to thwart the opening threat by the Paladin offense of the afternoon.
On the next drive, Paladin linebacker Braden Gilby, who led Furman with 11 tackles, would force Bucs running back TJ Ruff to fumble the football after hauling in a short pass from Malmgren, and it would be Furman linebacker Jalen Miller that recovered at the Charleston Southern 16. After the Paladin offense failed to get a first down, Axel Lepvreau trotted on for a 30-yard field goal, which split the uprights to give the Paladins a 3-0 lead with 8:10 remaining in the first quarter.
The Bucs settled into the game, scoring the next nine points to take control of the contest. The first touchdown of the day came after Furman’s second fumble of the day, as Cally Chizik fumbled David Gelb’s punt after a three-yard return, and the ball was recovered by CSU’s JD Moore at the Paladin 24.
Four plays later, the Bucs faced a 4th-and-goal at the Paladin 1, and it would be Roderick Hawkins who plunged through the Furman defense from a yard out to give the Bucs a 7-3 lead with just over five minutes remaining in the opening quarter. CSU would get another chance to put points on the board towards the end of the opening quarter, however, the Paladins nullified the opportunity. On a 4th-and-4 play from the Furman 29, Sam Babbush lined up for a 46-yard field goal attempt, however, Furman’s Jack Barton leaped high and got a hand on the ball to knock the ball to the turf well short of the mark with 3:02 remaining in the opening quarter, preserving Furman’s four-point deficit.
Charleston Southern’s second score of the opening half would be set up by a David Gelb 77-yard punt early in the second quarter, as the ball would be downed at the Furman 1. Following a Paladin false start penalty, Dominic Roberto was stopped in his own end zone for a loss of a yard and the Bucs were awarded two points for the safety, taking a 9-3 lead with 11:14 left in the opening half of play.
Furman’s defense eventually forced a punt on the next Charleston Southern drive, and the field position battle continued, as Gelb continued to keep the Paladins hemmed deep in their own territory.
With 6:11 remaining in the half, Furman’s Chizik fair-caught a Gelb punt at his own seven. Huff completed passes of 6 and 7 yards to Kyndel Dean and Joshua Harris, respectively, to get the Paladin offense a little breathing room and got the Furman offense a first down out to its own 20. Huff then rushed for four more, and then found Miller on an 11-yard connection to get the ‘Dins to their own 40.
Roberto gained 4 and 5 yards, respectively, on the next two plays to set up a 3rd-and-1 play for the Paladins at their own 49. On the next play, Huff raced around the left side for a gain of 10 to the Charleston Southern 41, however, came out of the game with an upper body injury. He would not return the for the remainder of the game.
Jace Wilson to the rescue. Furman’s starter in four games last season, caught a high snap from Wyatt Hughes, who was making his first-ever start at center in place of Evan Jumper, who was out with a minor injury, and handed the ball to Roberto all in one motion, leading his talented running back with the ball, as the 231-lb running all-league running back already had a full head of steam going forward. His 11-yard run got the Paladin offense down to the CSU 30.
Wilson floated a well-thrown ball to the left corner of the end zone, which was intended for Harris on the next play, however, the ball fell incomplete. After another 9-yard gain by Roberto got the ball to the 21, his number was called again on 3rd-and-1, however, this time the Bucs defense was ready for it, stopping him for no gain.
Facing a crucial 4th-and-1 play at the 21 with under a minute remaining until the half, Wilson hooked up with Miller for a 16-yard pass around the right side, getting the Paladins down to the CSU 5-yard line with 38 seconds remaining in the opening half. On the next play, Wilson rolled left and opted to pull the ball down and sprinted to the left corner of the end zone, giving the Paladins the momentum and their first TD of the game with 27 seconds to play in the opening half. The drive concluded what was an impressive 14-play, 93-yard drive that took 5:44 off the clock and gave the Paladins a 10-9 halftime lead.
Offensively, the Bucs were led by quarterbacks Ross Malmgren and Isaiah Bess, who combined to complete 18-of-36 passes for 179 yards and a TD, with two INTs.
Vinson Davis was the favorite target of the two quarterbacks, as the Buccaneer redshirt freshman wideout hauled in seven passes for 105 yards, which included a 97-yard scoring catch.
On the ground, the Bucs got 122 yards and a touchdown from JD Moore.
Charleston Southern brings a team into this Saturday's matchup that is much improved under its second-year head coach, and the one area the Bucs really got better at was under center, with quarterback Rob McCoy, who showed he was a nice addition from the transfer portal by delivering what was a strong performance in the season opener against The Citadel.
He finished the contest completing 20-of-25 passes for 290 yards, with a touchdown and no INTs. The talented graduate transfer also added 40 yards rushing to complete his strong performance, however, despite that, it wouldn't be enough to enable the Bucs to get over the top in what was a tight contest.
McCoy was exceptional at times in the season opener for the Bucs offense, which racked up 383 yards, outgaining the visitors from just down the road by 23 yards. McKoy has good versatility and can offer a dual threat.
McCoy also did a nice job of spreading the football around to multiple receivers, as seven Bucs made a catch, and four Bucs had three or more catches in the contest. During his fifth season at Sacred Heart last season, McCoy saw action in 10 games, as he connected on 105-of-194 passes for 1,033 yards, with three TDs and five INTs. McCoy was also the Pioneers' third-leading rusher last fall, finishing out the season with 157 yards and a touchdown on 65 attempts.
It was certainly a good start to his Bucs career, as he led an 11-play, 82-yard drive for CSU to open the game. Just before the half, McCoy posted his first-career touchdown pass as the Bucs signal-caller, hooking up with wideout Jamil Bishop on a 64-yard bomb to make it 14-0 with 2:24 left in the half. It was one of three passes hauled in by Bishop in the game, as he finished with three catches for 86 yards and the one touchdown. The Bucs would eventually see their lead balloon to 21-3 early in the second quarter.
Chris Rhone was McCoy's favorite option in the passing game in the opener, as he is another player that made an impact right away after coming in from the transfer portal from Coastal Carolina. The redshirt junior receiver hauled a team-high five passes for 90 yards, including a long reception of 35 yards. He saw only limited action during his time with the Chanticleers. Bishop originally came to CSU this season from Division II power Frostburg State, where he finished with 422 receiving yards and four scores last season.
Other options in the passing attack coming into Saturday evening's contest will be a pair of returnees, in Jaden Scott (3 rec, 44 yds, 14.6 YPR) and Noah Jennings (4 rec, 27 yds, 6,7 YPR). Jennings and Scott ranked first and third, respectively, in receiving for the Bucs last season, with Jennings finishing the 2023 season with 26 catches for 410 yards and a touchdown, while Scott posted 15 grabs for 166 yards and one score last season.
Jennings' standout freshman campaign last season was good enough to garner him a spot on Phil Steele's Freshman All-America team and played in 10 of 11 games for the Bucs last season.
When it comes to the ground game, the Bucs have several solid options to look to, including Autavius Ison (9 rush att, 26 yds, 1 TD, 2.9 YPC), Tyson Greenwade (6 rush att, 24 yds, 1 TD, 4.0 YPC) and Isaiah Gordon (3 rush att, 5 yds, 1.7 YPC) being the most prominent of the Bucs' ground-gainers. Both TJ Ruff and JD Moore, who were Charleston Southern's two top rushers last season, have moved on.
Ison finished as the team's third-leading rusher as a freshman for the Bucs last season, seeing action in nine of the 11 games for CSU, rushing for 189 yards and a touchdown on 62 attempts. He is versatile as a receiving option, as well as being a speedy option in the ground attack.
Gordon and Ison give the Bucs a nice one-two punch in the backfield, with both running back skillsets coming in being complementary of the other. Ison is the speedier option of the two, while Gordon provides a powerful running style, which is especially useful in short-yardage situations.
In the season-opening loss to The Citadel, the offense looked much improved over the unit that we witnessed last season, as the Bucs scored 20 or more points in only four games last fall. The Bucs had more explosive plays in the opener against the Bulldogs than they did the entire 2023 campaign.
With that said, one thing the Bucs could hang their hat on last season was the defensive side of the football and that is once again an area that should be a source of strength this season. The two areas that appear as the most notable strengths on the defensive side of the football this season are the defensive backfield and along the defensive front.
Former Western Carolina transfer and defensive end Darrius Bell (3 tackles) is back, and he anchors the defensive line this fall for the Bucs. Bell posted seven tackles-for-loss and four sacks in 2023.
Jalen Pugh (3 tackles) was brought in from Albany State to help bolster the defensive front during the off-season. Mikah Riley (1 tackle), Laron Davis (1 tackle) and Devonte Turner (1 tackle, 1 QBH) are a trio of other veterans on the defensive line for the Bucs, and redshirt sophomore David Portu (1 tackle, 1 QBH) rounds out the potential impact players along the defensive front. Portu came to CSU via the transfer portal by way of Coastal Carolina.
The Bucs got a big performance in the season opener from linebacker Steve Zayachkowski, who garnered Big South/Ohio Valley Conference Player of the Week honors, posting eight tackles, a tackle-for-loss, a sack, a forced fumble and a quarterback hurry.
Despite losing last season's leading tackler Malik Barnes, the Bucs have plenty of young and up-and-coming talent in the middle of that defense in 2024. Looking to step up and into a more leading role at linebacker this fall is Chandler Evan Perry (1 tackle, 1 FR), who posted 37 tackles and 4.5 tackles-for-loss last season.
Joshua Hill (5 tackles, 0.5 TFL) and Tylan Hollis (4 tackles) offer the type of veteran leadership at linebacker that can serve as a strong foundation for this defense to continue to build upon and Giardina's second season as the head coach.
Finally, the secondary, which might be the strength of this defensive unit, with safeties Trayson Fowler (5 tackles, 1.0 TFL) and Dominic Pagano returning to anchor the unit this fall. It's a unit that is formidable at all three levels, however, a unit that is still improving as an overall unit in year two under Giardina.
Furman came into the 2024 season with a lot of unknowns on both sides of the football, but particularly the offensive side, which offered a few more unanswered questions coming into the season than say the defensive side of the ball. Unfortunately, there wasn't much clarification provided in the season opener either, as there wasn't enough discernible time to tell what the Paladins have on that side of the ball in what was a 76-0 loss to No. 6 Ole Miss.
All told, the Paladins had 10 first-time starters in their season-opening loss at Ole Miss last time out. It was a stark contrast from the 541 starts that departed during the off-season. In Saturday night's season-opening loss at Ole Miss, the Paladins had 104 combined starts entering the matchup, with 35 of those belonging to veteran wideout Joshua Harris.
The 541 starts was Furman's starts that graduated among starters and did not include starts made by reserves during their careers that were either lost to graduation or to the transfer portal. It's a remarkable contrast in experience from one season to the next.
There were some bright spots in the way of chunk plays in the passing game, with the Paladins getting a couple of those when starter Carson Jones (15-of-25 passing, 119 yds, 1 INT) was in the lineup. It will be interesting to see if true freshman Trey Hedden (4-of-9 passing, 27 yds) sees any action in Saturday night's home opener. He was neck-and-neck with Jones for the starting job during the preseason.
The junior signal-caller played most of the night, leaving midway through the third quarter, with freshman Trey Hedden replacing him under center late in the third. Both Jones and Hedden were involved in a heated battle for the starting quarterback responsibilities during fall camp, with Jones eventually winning the starting position.
The running game was almost non-existent in the season-opening loss to the Rebels, mustering just 26 yards on the ground. Both the nature of the game, which saw Furman trailing big early, and the Rebels sheer size and strength up front had everything to do with the struggles in that department last Saturday night.
Both Grant Robinson (6 rush att, -1 yd) and Myion Hicks (6 rush att, 23 yds, 3.8 YPC) figure to get a large majority of the carries this season, with freshman Gavin Hall (3 rush att, 5 yds, 1.7 YPC) and graduate student Bailor Hughes (6 rush att, 11 yds, 1.8 YPC) providing supplementary support.
There were four new starters along the offensive front this past Saturday night, with Luke Petit sporting the most starting experience along the front, having been a starter the entire 2022 campaign and for six games last season before suffering a season-ending injury in a 27-21 win at Samford.
The Paladins did surrender four sacks to the Rebels in the season opener, but for the most part did an effective enough of a job with pass-blocking to give Paladin signal-callers enough to produce at least a couple of chunk plays in the contest.
The Paladin offensive front this fall are redshirt seniors Blake Hundley (OT) and EJ Wilson (OG). Redshirt freshman Chris Luna started and went most of the way at center for Furman in the opener, while Ryan Lamb, who started and saw significant time at right guard, even recorded a reception in the loss to the Rebels. His catch came off a deflected pass and went for five yards.
Wide receiver is an area of strength for the Paladins in 2024, with big-play threats at both tight end and wide receiver. Joshua Harris (3 rec, 59 yds, 19.6 YPC) and Colton Hinton (5 rec, 14 yds, 2.8 YPR) are Furman's two best deep threats, while Ben Ferguson (2 rec, 17 yds, 8.5 YPR) offers the best set of hands as a part of that Paladin receiving unit.
At tight end, both Florida State graduate transfer Joshua Burrell (2 rec, 43 yds, 21.5 YPR) and sophomore Brock Chappell (1 rec, 0 yds) offer a pair of complimentary downfield options in the passing attack, and Burrell can cause matchup problems with his speed at tight end.
The Paladins will be anxious to get their first points of the season, and it marks the first time Furman has been shutout in its season-opening game since dropping a 33-0 contest at Clemson in 1998. Although it was hard to tell in the season-opener, the Paladins should feature a more pass-oriented offensive approach this season, however, how they supplement those arrays of options in the ground game will be something intriguing to watch Saturday evening.
Most of Furman's overall maturity as a football team is on the defensive side of the football, where a strong front seven highlights that experience returning on the defensive side of the ball, while a very green secondary will look to hope for a more positive experience in the home opener against the Bucs than the one they experienced last Saturday night in Oxford.
Anchoring the core of that Paladin defensive line are nose tackle Xavier Stephens (1 tackle, 1.0 sack) and defensive end Jeremiah Jackson (1 tackle) are the veteran-most Paladins along the defensive front, while they will be supplemented along the defensive front by players like Caldwell Bussey (1 tackle) and newcomer Joshua Stoneking (2 tackles, 1 PBU, 1 QBH), who saw a significant amount of action in the season-opening loss at Ole Miss.
The second level of the defense includes a pair of preseason All-SoCon selections, in both bandit linebacker Luke Clark (), as well as inside linebacker Evan DiMaggio (5 tackles), who made his presence known several times in the opener with a couple of big hits.
DiMaggio broke through the line and had an apparent sack of Ole Miss quarterback Jaxson Dart negated for a questionable facemask infraction upon further review of replay. DiMaggio is a defensive player that can make life tough for the opposition, both as a run-stopper up the middle, as well as a blitzing linebacker.
Clark's 6.5 sacks led the Paladins last season, as he paced a unit that distributed its sacks totals broadly throughout a defensive unit that amassed 38 quarterback takedowns last fall.
One of the linebackers to keep your eyes trained on this season is Amaah Achina (4.0 tackles, 1.0 TFL), who was a starter in each of the past two seasons, however, suffered a season-ending injury in his first action of the season in each of the two past campaigns. Achina is fast, a sure-tackler, and an impact player for the Paladin defense.
To say the back end of the Paladin defense was thrown to the fire in the season opener against Ole Miss would be a major understatement. The young Paladin secondary, which had to replace all five starters (counting spur linebacker/safety) heading into the season, with three of those having garnered preseason or postseason All-SoCon in 2023, including one, in cornerback Travis Blackshear, that garnered All-America accolades last fall.
Add to that the fact that two starters during the preseason--safety AK Burrell and spur Justin Hartwell--and the Paladins got even younger, with less depth along the back line. With that said, there is some promise that has been shown in its youthful defensive backfield.
Young cornerbacks like Hysan Dalton (3 tackles, 1 PBU), Jaylen Moson (3 tackles), and Charles Ingram IV saw plenty of action last Saturday night in the loss at Ole Miss and will be significant pieces of a young secondary that has plenty of speed and athleticism, but just lacks overall game experience. Graduate transfer Mo Perkins (7 tackles, 1 QBH) will be a key performer and has made the move from corner to 'spur' linebacker/safety due to the injury losses in preseason camp.
Perkins's experienced leadership among a young number of first-time starters could be key. He transferred into the Paladin football program during the off-season as a graduate transfer from Division II Midwestern State.
Caleb Williams (7 tackles, 1 PBU) is a potential all-conference performer at safety, and he will team with Georgia State graduate transfer Jalen Tate (2 tackles), Tre' McCloud (5 tackles), as well as redshirt freshman Billy Lewis (7 tackles) as potential playmakers this season at safety this season.
Furman will be honoring Bryce Stanfield in its home opener against Charleston and throughout the 2024 season. The Paladins first home game against Charleston Southern will be the first home game without Stanfield, who suffered a pulmonary embolism after attending but not participating in a football-related preseason workout on Feb. 7, 2024, and two days later and surrounded by a family of teammates, coaches, administrators, passed away at Greenville Memorial Hospital. He was just 21 years old.
Just before he passed, Stanfield was conferred his Bachelor of Science degree in health sciences magna cum laude by Furman President Dr. Elizabeth Davis in what was a moving ceremony just before passing.
Almost seemingly by divine order, Furman's season opener will fittingly fall on Sept. 7 or 9/7, which was Stanfield's number in his three seasons as a letterman for the Paladins. Bryce will be remembered for his infectious personality and his bright smile he always seemingly had when around his teammates and those whom he loved.
Stanfield was unanimously voted by teammates to be an honorary captain for the Paladins this season, and when fellow captains Jeremiah Jackson and Luke Clark took the field in the season-opener at Vaught-Hemingway Stadium, held up Stanfield's jersey to walk out for the coin flip to open the campaign in a fitting tribute.
Furman 31, Charleston Southern 17
