Big plays help Paladins rally past ETSU

Ja'Keith Hamilton hauls in the go-ahead touchdown in Furman's
31-22 win over ETSU Saturday. Photo courtesy of Furman

On a Saturday in which Furman was missing its most dynamic offensive player, it had its best offensive performance this season. Meanwhile on defense, this year's simple formula of "sacking the quarterback = win" held true as Furman topped East Tennessee State, 31-22, at Paladin Stadium.

Each side of the ball was responsible for two of the wildest plays in program history to first, give the Paladins the lead late in the fourth quarter, and then to seal the win. Furman trailed 22-17 at its own 47. On a 2nd-and-8 play, Trey Hedden was hit as his threw. As the wounded duck of a pass floated high into the air, an interception with less than four minutes left likely would've doomed the Paladins. But on a career-high day for Ja'Keith Hamilton, the sophomore receiver noticed what happened from the start. He raced to the ETSU 46, snatched the ball out of mid-air and went untouched to the end zone for a 53-yard touchdown.

"I knew that when I jumped for the ball I was going to get hit, so I was just bracing for it," Hamilton said of the catch. "But all of a sudden, I stayed up."

Hedden's two-point pass to Luke Clyburn gave Furman a 25-22 lead with 3:57 remaining. The touchdown was a replica of the one Chattanooga scored against the Paladins in the regular season meeting two years ago. Furman rallied from that crazy touchdown to clinch the Southern Conference championship that day. There was no title at stake Saturday, but it appeared that ETSU might be on the same course on its ensuing possession.

The Buccaneers drove to the Paladins' 26-yard line with 10 seconds left. That would've been a 43-yard field goal attempt to tie but on second down, ETSU took one more deep shot for the win. Joshua Stoneking wrapped up another brilliant performance by getting to Bucs' quarterback Jacolby Criswell just as he released the ball. Criswell's pass wasn't as ducky as Hedden's, but it was short and easily picked off by Jordan Miller. Senior linebacker Luke McLaughlin implored Miller to go down, but the freshman wasn't having that. He raced 95 yards untouched for a touchdown as time expired and Furman erupted in celebration.

"When I hit the quarterback and went down, I was just kind of praying for an incompletion or something," Stoneking said. "Then I just heard the crowd roar and I turned around to see J-Mill going down the sideline. I was just like, 'thank goodness.' "

It was a bit of a historic win for the Paladins (4-1, 2-0 SoCon), who rallied from a 22-7 third quarter deficit. That marked the third time this season Furman's come back from a second half deficit to win and it's the fifth-largest comeback victory since 1973.

"I'm proud of our guys. We've got a group that kind of hangs in there and fights and stays together. We've had to do that a bunch of times this year," Furman coach Clay Hendrix said. "I thought we played exceptional defensively and offensively, we did some of the best things we've done all year."

Hedden also put his name in the Furman record book in a much happier fashion than other quarterbacks did before him. The 12 quarterback performances that resulted in at least 26 completions in a single game for an individual prior to Saturday all had one thing in common - the Paladins lost.

Not anymore.

Hedden completed 36-of-49 passes for 358 yards with two touchdowns and one interception. It was the second-highest completion total for a single game and the third-highest passing yardage total. Of the top nine in single-game passing yardage, Hedden is just the second to win.

"What a job Trey did. He's a tough dude," Hendrix said. "I thought we did a really good job of protecting him against a really talented front. Trey's done a good job of figuring out his role and how he fits into everything. I think we're still figuring that out a little bit."

Hedden did it without the services of Evan James, the freshman sensation who leads Furman in receiving this season. After James suffered a shoulder injury at Samford a week earlier, the Paladins had things well in hand but went through a pretty lethargic fourth quarter. Another key pass catcher this year was out with an injury Saturday in tight end Jackson Pryor. There had to be some wonder as to how Furman would respond without James for an entire game against a much better defense in ETSU (2-4, 0-2).

The Paladins responded with a 500-yard day of total offense, the most allowed by the Bucs to an FCS team in two years. Last season, no SoCon team had more than 397 total yards against ETSU. On Saturday, Hamilton finished with 11 catches for 141 yards, while Ethan Harris had 11 for 81. That's got to be one of the very few times, if not first ever, that Furman had two receivers with double-digit receptions in the same game. There are plenty of games in Furman history where that would've been impossible simply because there weren't 20 passes thrown.

Meanwhile, Furman's running game finally had a breakthrough. The Paladins ran for 142 yards and averaged 4.3 yards per carry as a team. Gavin Hall led the way with 101 yards on 23 carries. It was Furman's first 100-yard rusher since Hall ran for 121 at VMI last season.

"We've got a depth in that (wide receiver) group. We've played a lot of guys there and it's not like they haven't been productive. ... Clyburn stepped up today with Jackson Pryor out," Hendrix said. "And that's all helped the running game. ... We didn't have quite as many safeties in the box this week."

Those big offensive numbers didn't translate on the scoreboard in the first half Saturday. In the first quarter, Furman possessed the ball for 13:02 and outgained ETSU, 155-8, but trailed 8-7. The Bucs opened the scoring when Cole Keller blocked a punt and then fell on the loose ball in the end zone. It was the first blocked punt suffered by the Paladins since ETSU's last visit to Greenville two years ago. On the PAT, the Bucs' kicker shifted to a slot position, the holder took a shotgun snap and ran to his right for a two-point conversion.

Furman responded with a 12-play, 83-yard drive. Despite starting with a false start prior to the first play for the second consecutive possession, the Paladins never faced a third down until 3rd-and-goal from the one-yard line. That's where Hedden snuck in for a touchdown to help cut the lead to 8-7.

After former Iowa starting quarterback Cade McNamara started the game for the Bucs, Criswell - a former North Carolina starting quarterback - came on in the second quarter. He promptly led ETSU on a touchdown drive on his first possession and played most of the rest of the game.

It was a frustrating second quarter for the Paladins. They drove to the ETSU 38 before Hall was dropped for a three-yard loss on 3rd-and-2. After Stoneking sacked Criswell on a fourth down at the Furman 45, the Paladins drove to the Bucs' 15. They had to settle for a 33-yard field goal try by Ian Williams, but it sailed wide right.

Stoneking sacked McNamara on the final play of the half to go into halftime with the Bucs leading 15-7.

"I was a little ill with our guys at the half," Hendrix said. "I just thought we spent a lot of time in the first half trying to find ways to beat Furman."

Eleven seconds into the second half the lead stretched to 22-7. That's how long it took ETSU's Devontae Houston to race 75 yards for a touchdown on the first play.

Furman never faced a third down on its ensuing possession. The eight-play, 75-yard drive that was capped by a 10-yard touchdown pass from Hedden to Hamilton. If the Paladins had to punt at that point after allowing a big play to fall behind by 15, who knows what the rest of the game might've played out.

"I think maybe that was the biggest drive of the game," Hendrix said. "To come out and answer after the long run."

Furman forced a three-and-out on ETSU's ensuing possession when McLaughlin and AJ Burrell stopped Houston for no gain on a 3rd-and-1 play. The Paladins followed with another scoring drive as Williams made a 44-yard field goal to cut the lead to five with 6:51 left in the third quarter. The Bucs looked to answer Furman's field goal with one of their own, but Caldwell Bussey blocked it to leave the score at 22-17 heading to the fourth quarter.

The final quarter began with some kind of miscommunication when Hedden's pass was intercepted with no Paladin near the ball for the first turnover of the game. It was negated when Furman's Demetrius Baldwin sacked Criswell on a third-down play forcing a punt.

On its ensuing possession, Furman drove to the ETSU 19. After a 3rd-and-6 pass was caught by Kerry King for three yards, the Paladins went for it on 4th-and-3. In a "pound your head against the wall" kind of moment, Hedden's pass was complete to Devin Hester ... for one yard.

"We just had a lot of faith in our defense. ... I debated about kicking a field goal and making it a two-point game, but it's 4th-and-3," Hendrix said. "Once again, we just didn't run a deep enough route. ... Either way, we were going to have to stop them again on defense. So even if we didn't make it there, I was confident we'd get the stop and get the ball back and we did."

Once again, Furman's defense forced a punt which led to the Paladins' go-ahead score.

Not to be lost in the celebration of Miller's interception to end the game should be what Miller did three plays earlier. ETSU took its first shot to the end zone and Criswell's pass was nearly caught by Karim Page. Page got both hands on the ball as he crossed into the end zone before Miller popped the ball out with his left hand for an incompletion.

"Obviously, the last play is going to be the one that gets seen, but that was an easy pick for J-Mill," said safety Billy Lewis, who was the closest other defender on the breakup. "The play before was just a heck of a defensive back play. If they score the touchdown there, we're down with 30 seconds left."

The victory likely wouldn't have been possible without Furman cleaning up its play along the way. After six penalties for 50 yards in the first quarter, the Paladins had just one penalty in each of the last three quarters.

In addition to his big pass breakup and interception, Miller had four tackles and earned SoCon Defensive Player of the Week honors. Lewis finished with a game-high nine tackles, while Stoneking and Bussey each had seven, to lead the defense. Stoneking finished with three sacks, padding his FCS-leading total to 9.5 sacks and 13.5 tackles-for-loss this season. With eight games left in the regular season, Stoneking already has the seventh-highest sack total for a season in school history.

Furman will travel to Western Carolina next Saturday at 2:30 p.m.

Seven sacks power Paladins past Samford

Joshua Stoneking had two of Furman's seven sacks in the Paladins'
31-13 win at Samford Saturday. Photo courtesy of Furman

HOMEWOOD, Ala. - For the second time this season, Furman was shut out in the fourth quarter Saturday. This time, it didn't matter. Over the first three quarters, the Paladins were solid on offense and spectacular on defense as they opened Southern Conference play with a 31-13 win at Samford.

Despite seven sacks by Furman's defense, the Bulldogs actually had the statistical edge offensively as they finished with 389 total yards while the Paladins had 377. That was thanks to a fourth quarter in which Samford outgained Furman, 140-35. That final quarter reeked of the Presbyterian fiasco in week two. Unlike that day, it seemed that both teams knew the game was essentially over when Furman took a 31-7 lead to the fourth quarter Saturday.

The Paladins (3-1, 1-0 SoCon) would've certainly liked to have run the ball better, especially in the fourth quarter against what probably should've been a worn down defense on a very hot afternoon in Alabama. But the bottom line is Furman had its least stressful game this season and it's most lopsided road win since thumping VMI, 41-3, on Oct. 22, 2022.

"A bunch of guys showed up, a bunch made plays and a bunch pressured the quarterback. I think we're getting better. Offensively, we're a little inconsistent," Furman coach Clay Hendrix said. "Our guys are working hard. We've got to practice a little better. There's some things we can do there with attention to details. We're still getting our best personnel guys where they need to be.

"We've got a lot of work ahead of us, but it's nice to go home with a win. We've won here four times in a row. That's hard to do, so I'm proud of our guys."

In terms of starting and ending a half, the Paladins had their best game of the year. Furman was in danger of going three-and-out to start the game but on 3rd-and-11, Trey Hedden hit Kerry King for a 12-yard gain. Two plays later, Hedden found freshman sensation Evan James for a 34-yard gain and added another 12-yard pass to King on the next play. On 3rd-and-2 from the Samford 17, James went in motion, took a handoff from Hedden, turned the corner and raced untouched to the end zone. It was the Paladins' longest run this season.

Later in the first quarter, Gavin Hall had a pair of 14-yard runs, James had a 15-yard catch and Ethan Harris - in his first game since the opener - had a 14-yard reception. Those were sandwiched around a 4th-and-1 conversion by Jayquan Smith. That all led to Hedden's seven-yard touchdown pass to Joshua Burrell for the tight end's first score as a Paladin.

Samford got on the board midway through the second quarter on a drive in which it was gifted 30 yards to start as the SoCon tradition of horrific officiating in this series continued. On the first play, Furman defensive end Malaki Dobbins was offsides but also flagged for roughing the passer after sacking quarterback Quincy Crittendon. The official said it was "forcible contact above the shoulder." Replay showed it was not. No part of the 6-foot-3 Dobbins hit the 5-foot-11 Crittendon above the shoulder. It was a perfect form sack, although it would've been wiped out by the correct offsides call. That would've only been five yards rather than 15.

On the next play, Dobbins got to Crittendon again as did Luke McLaughlin. He was able to spin away from both though and threw it away as a flag flew in the secondary. Furman safety AK Burrell was penalized for a 15-yard personal foul facemask. There was no replay to see what happened, but you typically don't see any kind of facemask call in the secondary. Much less on a ball that's thrown away.

The Paladins still had a chance to get off the field on 4th-and-4 later in the drive, but Crittendon scrambled for seven yards. On the next play, CJ Evans turned a simple swing screen pass into a 25-yard touchdown.

Furman looked to answer on its ensuing drive, which began with a 23-yard kick return by Devin Hester who was driven several yards out of bounds with no flag. A screen pass to Hall on 3rd-and-6 resulted in a four-yard loss and the Paladins settled for a 54-yard field goal attempt. Ian Williams' kick sailed wide right ending his streak of 12 consecutive made field goals.

Defense and special teams gave the Paladins a huge boost going into halftime. With less than a minute left in the half, Furman sophomore captain Raleigh Herbert batted a pass, collected the ball and returned the interception 47 yards for a touchdown.

"We had a pressure off the edge. I went up for the play, saw the quarterback kind of staring at me while he threw it. I got a hand on it and saw it floating up in the air a little bit," Herbert said. "Thankfully I had this new set of gloves on from the equipment staff and I was able to take it home.

"I looked back and saw the quarterback kind of tailing me, so I said, 'man, I gotta kick on the burners.' I'm not too fast. When I saw him kind of tail off, I knew it was scot-free."

Samford tried to answer in those remaining 48 seconds of the half. Backup quarterback Brady Stober scrambled for 13 yards to the Furman 40. The ball moved to the 30 when cornerback Keon Jones was penalized for holding on a flag that flew at the end of Stober's run. On the final play of the half, the Bulldogs attempted a 36-yard field goal but it was blocked by Joshua Stoneking preserving Furman's 21-7 lead.

Samford got the ball to start the second half but its drive ended on 4th-and-2 at midfield when Crittendon was stopped for no gain by Marc Hernandez and McLaughin. It was the second consecutive game that McLaughlin was part of a big fourth down stop at midfield.

King caught passes for 14 and 24 yards, respectively, on Furman's ensuing possession. That led to a four-yard touchdown pass from Hedden to Ja'Keith Hamilton, pushing the lead to 28-7.

"At halftime, we made a big deal about the start of the second half," Hendrix said. "We get the stop at midfield and offense goes right down and scores. I think that was big."

The Bulldogs' next two drives were stopped thanks to sacks by Caldwell Bussey and Stoneking and their next by Stoneking dropping Crittendon for no gain on 3rd-and-2.

On Furman's ensuing possession, Hester caught a 35-yard pass but fumbled. Smith made a great hustling play to race down the ball and recover it. That led to Williams' 40-yard field goal that pushed the lead to 31-7 with 1:08 left in the third quarter.

The scoring drive was also helped by a great 21-yard catch by James, but he was injured on the play. After leaving the injury tent with his pads off, James went to the locker room. He came back out with his left arm in a sling.

"It's a shoulder deal. He's going to miss some time," Hendrix said. "How much? I don't know, but we've had worse. It will just be a matter of how quickly he can recover."

Half of Samford's 140 yards in the fourth quarter came on a 70-yard touchdown pass from Crittendon to Preston Bird with 11:49 left. There was a flag in the offensive backfield on the play, but there was no holding. A winless Samford team that allowed seven sacks and attempted 47 passes was never guilty of holding Saturday. Instead, an illegal hands the face on Furman made for a 1.5-yard two-point conversion attempt for the Bulldogs. It remained 31-13 though as Herbert and McLaughlin hammered Samford receiver Jaden Gibson short of the goal line.

The lethargic final quarter came to an end when Furman was finally able to kneel out the clock thanks to an interception by freshman defensive tackle Garrison Butler.

Hedden finished with 272 yards on 28-of-41 passing with two touchdowns and no interceptions. It was the second consecutive game with no turnovers for Hedden as Furman enjoyed a 3-0 advantage in turnovers Saturday. James had seven receptions for 88 yards along with two carries for 35 yards, while King finished with eight catches for 81. Hall led the rushing effort with 65 yards on 16 attempts.

"I play the z, x and h (receiver), so whenever a guy's tired or needs to go out, I can step into any of those roles," King said. "I just lean on those guys and we just do our thing. ... Each of us (receivers) have our unique abilities but each of us can go out and do the same thing. We can all play those different positions because of how coaches prepare us."

Stoneking, who earned SoCon Defensive Player of the Week honors for the second time this season, finished with six tackles, including two sacks. He leads the country in tackles-for-loss (10.5) and sacks (6.5) this season. McLaughlin had a game-high 11 tackles, including one sack and a forced fumble.

"Defensive, we were really solid all day. You take a couple of plays away and they didn't get much of anything," Hendrix said. "We made some bad decisions and lost a guy (on the long touchdown) back there and we've got to clean up a few penalties. I'm kind of interested to see a few of those penalties though."

Furman returns to action Saturday when it hosts ETSU at 2 p.m.

Receivers have answered the bell for Furman

Ja'Keith Hamilton had career highs in receptions (seven) and receiving yards
(104) in Furman's 28-24 win at Campbell. Photo courtesy of Furman

Going into this football season, Furman had shoes to fill in a few areas but it felt like the most were at wide receiver. Last year's leading receiver, Colton Hinton, hit the transfer portal and is now at Coastal Carolina. Last year's second-leading receiver, Ben Ferguson, has yet to see any action in 2025 as he's dealing with a lingering back issue. Those two combined for 998 of Furman's 2,469 receiving yards last year and 83 of its 223 receptions.

John Holbrook, who averaged 14.9 yards per catch in limited action as a freshman in 2024, was lost for this season due to a knee injury suffered in the spring. The leading returning receiver healthy enough to play in the season opener was Ethan Harris, who hasn't played since that win over William & Mary due to injury.

On paper, there may have been questions surrounding the receiver position entering this season. In person, Paladins coach Clay Hendrix got all the answers he needed this offseason.

"I think I said several times in the preseason that it's a very talented group and they just continue to make plays," Hendrix said.

Three games into this season, that group has proven Hendrix right. During Furman's 28-24 win at Campbell on Sept. 13, true freshman Evan James had 10 receptions for 134 yards including a game-winning, 30-yard touchdown. Sophomore Ja'Keith Hamilton had 104 yards on seven catches, including a 28-yard effort on an inside screen pass that set up a touchdown that put the Paladins up 18-17 late in the third quarter.

James and Hamilton became the first Furman duo to have 100-plus receiving yards in the same game in 11 years. James' 10-reception effort established a new single-game record for Furman freshmen. For the season, James leads the Southern Conference and ranks 11th nationally averaging 97 yards receiving per game.

"I think there are multiple guys in that (receiving) room that could do the same. It makes my job a lot easier when you have three or four guys in a concept that are winning in their route," said sophomore quarterback Trey Hedden, who threw for a career-high 314 yards in the victory. "For Ja'Keith, it's been a long time coming. He's put in a lot of work and we've grown a lot together, so I'm really proud of him. Obviously, Evan's done a really good job winning his matchups."

Hedden's right about the group collectively. The first two plays of the Campbell game were catches of 19 and four yards by East Carolina transfer Kerry King. That led to the first points of the game on Ian Williams' 23-yard field goal. King caught a third-down pass that set up the Paladins' first touchdown and later had an eight-yard catch where it appeared he may have stretched the ball across the goal line, but was ruled down at the one. Jayquan Smith scored on the next play as Furman took an 18-17 lead.

Devin Hester had just one catch against Campbell, but it was a crucial 16-yard gain to the Camels' 30-yard line. James caught the game-winner on the next play. When it comes to targets for Hedden, Furman tight ends Joshua Burrell and Jackson Pryor can't be overlooked. Pryor was banged up and questionable for the Campbell game, but he fought through it and hauled in Hedden's first touchdown pass.

"When you have so many guys, it makes it really hard for them to key in on one or two dudes," Hedden said. "It's a lot more one-on-ones, so we can take advantage of the guys that have good matchups instead of needing to force it to one guy."

The passing game success has not helped spike rushing numbers for Furman ... yet. The Paladins are averaging 2.6 yards per carry this season, the same paltry total it averaged last season and desperately hoped to improve on this year. For a program whose heyday was built on running the ball to set up big passing plays, the opposite might be the trick for the Paladins this season.

"We've got to be better at running the football, but if people are going to pack the box against us ... we've got to take advantage of the matchups we have there," Hendrix said. "Certainly with the level that Trey's playing at and the great job he's doing of getting them the ball, we're confident in doing that. It's a little bit of the old saying of 'take what they give you.' "

On to Samford

Last Saturday's bye week was sandwiched in between Furman's longest two road trips this season as the Paladins open SoCon play at Samford Saturday at 3:30 p.m. This appears to be an ideal week to repair whatever needs fixing on offense for Furman (2-1). The Bulldogs ranks 116th nationally in total defense, surrendering 485.5 yards per game. Their run defense ranks No. 81 allowing 179 rushing yards per game and the pass defense is 119th (307.5 yards per game). Meanwhile Samford's offense has seven interceptions and six lost fumbles for a total of 13 lost turnovers. No other FCS team in the country has more than 10.

Facing preseason SoCon Offensive Player of the Year Taron Dickens, in his first game back from suspension for Western Carolina, last Saturday didn't help the Bulldogs' defensive numbers. Dickens threw for 582 yards and rushed for 42 in the Catamounts' 50-35 win.

"They've played a really challenging schedule. They've played Baylor, a Western team that's I'm sure going to be one of the top offensive teams in the country ... and a West Georgia team that's undefeated," Hendrix said. "I think a lot of their issues stem from turnovers. If they turn it over five times against us, I'd like that but I don't think you can count on that."

On the other hand, the winless start for Samford (0-4, 0-2 SoCon) also includes a 40-13 home loss to The Citadel. On that Sept. 6 afternoon, a balanced Citadel attack produced 162 yards rushing, 168 passing and averaged six yards per play for its only win this season. In Citadel's other three games, its scored just 13 points combined.

Furman's defense will have to contend with a Samford offense that finally came to life last week. The Bulldogs had 576 total yards of offense and 34 first downs in the shootout loss. Samford quarterback Quincy Crittendon threw for 456 yards with three touchdowns and one interception. Despite being sacked four times, Crittendon also rushed for 53 yards.

Injury report

The bye week came at a crucial time for quite a few banged up Paladins, who should be ready to go this week. Harris should be back in the receiving mix, while every member of Furman's secondary is healthy for the first time all season.

Hendrix confirmed that linebacker Ryan Earl will likely miss the rest of the season with a torn ligament in one of his fingers. Senior Luke McLaughlin made his first career start at Campbell replacing Earl and finished with a team-high 11 tackles, including back-to-back ones for no gain on third and fourth down at midfield. That defensive stand set up the drive that ended on Pryor's touchdown catch.

"Byes are always good when you need one and we needed one desperately. We were a beat up football team. ... We've had nine defensive backs miss games this season. We'll be getting some back that haven't been able to play at all," Hendrix said. "Luke's just that guy. He's just dependable, runs really well and sees things really well. He's the classic guy that's stuck around here for five years waiting for his opportunity and did a heck of a job."

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James, Stoneking lift Paladins past Campbell

Raleigh Herbert (24), Demetrius Baldwin (93) and Joshua Stoneking (95) celebrate
 during Furman's 28-24 win at Campbell Saturday. Photo courtesy of Furman

BUIES CREEK, N.C. - Even though Furman's defensive line was hundreds of miles from home Saturday, it celebrated the Paladins' first ever meeting with Campbell by throwing a house party. "Home" is that unit's affectionate term for the opponents' offensive backfield. Furman spent much of Saturday ringing the Camels' doorbell with no answer. Whenever it was needed the most though, Joshua Stoneking metaphorically busted through the front door, raided the refrigerator and kicked his feet up on the coffee table.

Stoneking had 4.5 of the Paladins' 11 tackles-for-loss, including 2.5 sacks. The last sack came with 16 seconds left and sealed Furman's 28-24 victory.

"It's satisfying and gratifying to finish like we did," Furman coach Clay Hendrix said. "It was really big for our defense to just hang in there and what a sack on that last play."

In the Paladins' season-opening 23-21 win over William & Mary, their defense had 10 tackles-for-loss, including four sacks. The last of those four came from Stoneking on a third-down play with less than seven minutes to play and led to Ian Williams' game-winning field goal. In Furman's 39-38 overtime loss to Presbyterian a week later, the Paladins had just four tackles-for-loss and no sacks.

"Coach (Duane) Vaughn did a good job with he play call (on the last sack). It just let me go out there and play hard," said Stoneking, who earned Southern Conference Defensive Player of the Week honors. "We got home a lot the first week and won. Last week, we didn't get home and we didn't win. The burden falls on us up front in the trenches, so we took that hard and got better throughout the week."

While a new rising star helped Furman's defense finish off the win, a new one on offense put the Paladins ahead minutes earlier. True freshman Evan James caught 10 of 11 passes thrown his way and the last one resulted in a 30-yard touchdown from Trey Hedden with 4:50 left that helped Furman take a 28-24 lead.

On a day in which James shattered the freshman single-game receiving record with 134 yards, he caught a pair of third-down passes on the game-winning drive. While the first one only gained seven yards on 3rd-and-11, Furman caught a break when 12 Camels took the field for the punt return. The penalty extended the drive and the Paladins took advantage. Four plays later, James caught an eight-yard pass into Campbell territory on 3rd-and-6. Hedden then found Devin Hester for a 16-yard gain to the 30.

On the next play, James lined up in the left slot and went straight after the snap. James faked to his right, making a Camels' safety bite that way and then went left to the end zone all by himself. He simply turned around and waited for Hedden's game-winning pass to arrive like he was fielding a punt.

Following a typical Ian Williams' touchback through the back of the end zone, Campbell quarterback Kamden Sixkiller guided the Camels down the field. Campbell didn't face a third down until it reached the Paladins' 35-yard line and on that 3rd-and-3, Sixkiller beat Furman's blitz with a screen pass to running back JJ Cowan for six yards. On 3rd-and-3 at the Furman 22, Cowan took a delayed draw handoff for seven yards.

On 4th-and-5 from the 10, Stonefield rushed to the right forcing Campbell's left tackle into the backfield. After curving his way toward Sixkiller, Stonefield shifted left and devoured the quarterback as the Paladins erupted in celebration.

"We had a bunch of guys step up. ...  We're not a finished product by any means, but we keep playing a little better each week which we will have to," Hendrix said. "I'm excited for the (bye) week because there's some things we can get better at. I think we can really have a chance to get healthy as we head into the conference schedule."

Furman found a path to victory after what was shaping up to be a frustrating first half offensively. It didn't look that way initially. On the first play of the game, Hedden hit Kerry King for a 19-yard gain. The Paladins first running play was a 10-yard carry by Gavin Hall into Campbell territory. Later on that opening drive, Hedden threw a 26-yard pass to Ja'Keith Hamilton down to the Camels' five-yard line. A false start prior to the next play pushed the Paladins back for the first time and they ended up settling for a 23-yard field goal by Williams.

Trailing 7-3 early in the second quarter, Furman had a first down at the Campbell 30. After a toss sweep to James, he pulled back to pass. King was a step ahead of his defender with nobody else between him and the end zone. James' pass went behind King though and right to the Camels' Chase Arrington for the lone turnover of the game.

That miscue could've buried the confidence of a lot of players who were playing high school football 10 months ago, but James was unfazed.

"I've got a great coaching staff and great teammates, who just uplifted me, told me to keep my head up and just go on to the next," said James, who earned Stats Perform FCS National Freshman of the Week honors. "Forget about that play and go make more plays."

The teams traded three-and-outs before a huge defensive stand by Furman gave the Paladins the ball back at midfield. On 3rd-and-2 at the Campbell 49, Cowan was stopped for one yard by senior linebacker Luke McLaughlin, who was making his first career start in place of injured starter Ryan Earl. On 4th-and-1 at the 50, Sixkiller was stopped for no gain by McLaughlin and Billy Lewis.

After disastrous final possessions of the first half that resulted in turnovers - and scoring opportunities for opponents - each of the first two weeks, Furman's offense got this one right Saturday. On 3rd-and-6, Hedden waited just long enough for tight end Jackson Pryor to get open over the middle for a 24-yard touchdown.

"We got a little lucky there. We tried to get them to jump. They didn't really jump enough to get a penalty, but Chris (Luna) snapped it anyway and we executed the play," Hendrix said. "Jackson had a high ankle (sprain) and we weren't even sure if he was going to play. He was really limited."

One of the most impactful plays of the game followed. After Campbell was flagged for offsides on the PAT, Furman's offense took the field again. With Hedden under center, 278-pound defensive tackle Demetrius Baldwin - who had one of those 11 tackles-for-loss - entered at fullback, while 310-pound noseguard Joseph Perez-Garibay came on as sort of an H-back to the left. With those two big blockers leading the way, Jayquan Smith ran for a two-point conversion as Furman took an 11-7 lead with 1:26 left in the half.

That successful two-point conversion certainly came in handy on Campbell's last possession when it had to go for it on fourth down rather than trying a game-tying or game-winning 27-yard field goal.

"The two-pointer was big the whole game because I kept thinking they might chase some points earlier on, but they didn't," Hendrix said.

Campbell did manage to steal some momentum before halftime when Alex Crabb hit a 34-yard field goal on the half's final play to cut the lead to 11-10 at the break.

The Camels took all the momentum when they opened the second-half with a 13-play touchdown drive that took nearly seven minutes off the clock. After Cowan's one-yard touchdown run, Campbell kicked the PAT for a six-point lead.

Furman answered with an 84-yard drive of its own. It included a pair of third-down conversions that resulted in a 19-yard catch by James and a 28-yard gain on an inside screen pass to Hamilton. With the ball at the one, Baldwin and Perez-Garibay checked in again and Smith easily ran into the end zone behind them as Furman took an 18-17 lead with 3:36 left in the third quarter.

Campbell regained the lead on the second play of the fourth quarter when Cowan scored from seven yards out. The Camels again kicked the PAT to take a 24-18 lead. Furman cut the lead in half on its ensuing possession when Williams drilled a 28-yard field goal. The Paladins then forced Campbell to punt for the first time since early in the second quarter, which set up the game-winning drive.

"Props to our offense. There were some moments there where we'd let them score, but they'd come back and score and keep us in the game," Stoneking said. "We kept telling the offense that we were going to give them the ball back and we did in the end."

Hedden earned SoCon Offensive Player of the Week honors after finishing with a career-high 314 yards on 26-of-35 passing with two touchdowns and no interceptions. It was Hedden's first game without a turnover since the 48-7 win over Stetson last Sept. 14.

In addition to James' 134-yard day, Hamilton finished with 105 yards receiving on seven catches. It marked the first time two Paladins had more than 100 yards receiving in the same game since Jordan Snellings (118) and Andrej Suttles (103) did so on Nov. 15, 2014. On that day, PJ Blazejowski completed all 15 of his pass attempts in a 31-14 win over Wofford.

"Trey obviously had a big day and I thought we protected him great," Hendrix said. "Evan obviously had a big day as well, but Ja'Keith Hamilton really had a couple of big catches too."

McLaughlin finished with a game-high 11 tackles, while Lewis had 10 tackles, including one tackle-for-loss and a pass breakup. McLaughlin will be asked to continue to step up as Earl, who led Furman in tackles with 14 over the first two games, is out for the season with a torn ligament in a finger. The nature of the injury was such that Earl needed immediate surgery to avoid the tear becoming more serious.

The Paladins were also without starting safety Caleb Williams due to injury. AK Burrell made his first career start and saw his first action since 2023 after missing all of last season and spring practice this year because of a knee injury.

Stoneking had six tackles and also forced a fumble. The sophomore ranks second in the country in tackles-for-loss (8.5) and third in sacks (4.5). The only players ahead of Stoneking have played one more game than him.

Furman (2-1) has a bye this week and will open SoCon play at Samford on Sept. 27 at 3:30 p.m.

Catastrophic turnovers return, doom Paladins

Furman's Gavin Hall had 64 yards rushing and two touchdowns before an injury forced
him out after the first series of the third quarter Saturday. Photo courtesy of Furman

Among the many things Furman was looking to fix from last football season, turnovers were at the top of the list. Namely, ones that Paladins coach Clay Hendrix described as "catastrophic." In the 2025 season opener, Furman's only giveaway hampered things but didn't reach a catastrophic level as the Paladins pulled out a win.

The victory over William & Mary was a redeeming one in many ways and may have given hope that all the stink of 2024 had washed away. That hope only grew stronger last Saturday at Paladin Stadium when Furman raced out to a 21-point lead over Presbyterian. But three catastrophic turnovers dashed those hopes. Two of those giveaways started an epic collapse by the Paladins and the third helped cap it as the Blue Hose rallied for a 39-38 win in overtime in a game that had a near two-hour lightning delay midway through the fourth quarter.

"It's certainly a disappointing end to a long day. Congratulations to Presbyterian. They just outcoached us and outplayed us," Hendrix said. "Offensively, we couldn't do anything in the second half after controlling the whole first half. ... Our kids fought and played hard. All those things, but that's no good if you don't execute at a high level and we're just not doing that."

After the teams traded touchdowns in the first quarter, Furman had three consecutive touchdown drives in the second quarter to take a 28-7 lead with 5:01 left in the first half. After forcing a three-and-out, the Paladins were looking for more. On a third-and-five play at midfield, Trey Hedden's wide receiver screen pass was batted at the line of scrimmage and picked off by PC nosetackle Terry Mikell at the Furman 41. Hedden had completed 18 of his first 19 passes prior to that pick.

Two pass plays from Collin Hurst to tight end Nathan Levicki followed. The second of those was a great one-armed catch in the end zone for a 17-yard touchdown as the Blue Hose cut the lead to 28-14 going into halftime.

"The way we ended the half with the turnover was just a big-time disappointment," Hendrix said. "To not only not score, but also give up points."

In the first half a week earlier, Furman led William & Mary 14-7 and drove to the Tribe's 18-yard line with 37 seconds left. Hedden was strip sacked and the fumble recovery was made 23 yards up the field. William & Mary proceeded to march to the Furman 10-yard line, but missed a 28-yard field goal on the final play of the half. Despite the miss, the momentum stayed with William & Mary as it scored touchdowns on each of its first two drives in the second half.

On Saturday, Furman looked to snatch momentum back when it drove to the PC 33 to open the second half. But on a third-down play, Hedden held the ball too long as a rusher came right at him. He was hit as he threw and the wounded duck landed in the arms of PC linebacker Jason Briones at the 26.

Hurst returned the favor on the next play when Billy Lewis had to likely make history as the only Paladin ever to have an interception on the opponents' first play of each half. Lewis returned the pick to the Blue Hose 12-yard line and once again Furman was in prime position to help begin putting the game away. But after a four-yard run by Gavin Hall was wiped out by an illegal formation penalty, Hedden was sacked for a loss of six on the next play. Hall was dropped for a loss - and knocked out of the game - on the next play and Furman ended up settling for a 34-yard field goal by Ian Williams and a 31-14 lead with 9:43 left in the third quarter.

Unfortunately for the Paladins, that was a sign of things to come offensively. The "R" part of the RPO had issues all day anyway. Without Hall, who accounted for 64 of Furman's 107 yards on the ground, Furman's offense simply vanished for the rest of the half. After 17 first downs and 274 yards of total offense in the first half, Furman had two first downs and 42 yards on that opening drive of the second half. For the rest of regulation, the Paladins had no first downs and a total of 29 yards on 18 plays.

"Gavin had a thigh contusion. He might have been able to go back, but we felt a little better off with other guys going," Hendrix said. "But we certainly missed having him in there because he had a really good first half. I thought he was finally starting to feel it again."

In the midst of all Furman's three-and-out shenanigans, the lightning that had caused delays at Georgia and Clemson reached Paris Mountain. That delay came with Furman leading 31-21 with 6:45 remaining in the fourth quarter and PC facing 2nd-and-6 at the Paladins' eight-yard line. As we sat in the press box for the next hour and 41 minutes, it was hard not to wonder if all of that 6:45 remaining would've already been gone had Furman taken a 28-, 31- or 35-7 lead into halftime as it appeared it was going to do.

It was eerily reminiscent of the team's last meeting 11 years ago in Clinton when the kickoff of that game was delayed for an hour and 47 minutes.

Unfortunately for the Paladins, it got even more like that last meeting once play resumed. Furman's well-rested defense held the Blue Hose to a 25-yard field goal with 6:25 left to cut the lead to 31-24. Less than two minutes later, Furman's defense was right back out there as freshman tailback CJ Nettles could never tuck away a handoff and PC recovered the fumble at the Paladins' 12-yard line.

On the next play, former Christ Church receiver BJ Atkins made a terrific catch falling down along the side of the end zone for a touchdown to help tie the game with 4:31 left. In that 2014 meeting that set offensive football back about 50 years, PC recovered a Furman fumble midway through the fourth quarter and drove for the game-winning touchdown in a 10-7 victory.

"If you score 31 points in regulation, you probably should win but those two (second half) turnovers were killers," Hendrix said. "I think if we punt the football those two times, we probably win the game. That's been a nemesis that we just kind of keep doing."

After the game-tying score Saturday, Furman answered with another three-and-out capped by a two-yard pass completion from Hedden to Joshua Burrell on 3rd-and-3. The Blue Hose' ensuing drive reached Furman's 41 before they took consecutive delay of game penalties on fourth down to run out the clock and force overtime.

In OT, Furman's offense finally woke up. A 12-yard run by Jayquan Smith set up a two-yard touchdown run by Smith. PC had an immediate response though as Hurst threw a 22-yard pass on the first play and then a three-yard touchdown pass - Hurst's fifth - to Levicki. The Blue Hose went for two and the win and Levicki came through with a spectacular diving catch to secure the 39-38 victory.

Saturday's 21-point blown lead tied for the second-biggest one in a Furman loss since 1973. The Paladins led the Citadel 21-0 in 1998 before falling, 25-24. Those were second to Furman's 28-6 third-quarter lead that evaporated at the 1985 Division I-AA national championship as Georgia Southern rallied for a 44-42 win.

"We've got to have better answers in some cases and that goes back to me. That's where it all starts," Hendrix said. "This group has some talent. I just wish our growth was a little faster than where we are right now."

In addition to his team-high 64 yards on 15 carries, Hall also had two touchdowns for Furman (1-1). Hedden finished with 263 yards on 29-of-40 passing with one touchdown. Evan James caught eight of those passes for 89 yards. After spending much of the previous Saturday in William & Mary's backfield, the Paladins' defense never sacked Hurst despite 41 pass attempts - and 275 yards passing. Joshua Stoneking led Furman with eight tackles, including a tackle-for-loss and a pass breakup.

The Paladins will try to get back on track this Saturday at 3:30 p.m. when they face Campbell in Buies Creek, N.C. It will be the first ever meeting between Furman and the Camels.

Faith powers Furman's Smith back to gridiron

Jayquan Smith (28) runs for the game-sealing first down in Furman's
victory over William & Mary. Photo courtesy of Furman

Among the final moments of Furman's season opening win over William & Mary last Saturday, one seemed like it was out of a Disney movie. With the Paladins needing one more first down to seal the victory, they turned to running back Jayquan Smith.

Playing for the first time in 22 months, Smith had three carries earlier in the game but this was different. This was Furman coach Clay Hendrix and his staff believing a young man, who fought back from a devastating knee injury that required three separate surgeries to rebuild, had what it took to put the game away.

With William & Mary fully aware of what was coming, Smith carried to his left on first down and powered through a couple of tacklers to fall forward for six yards. On second down, he gained one. On third-and-three, Smith took his third consecutive handoff. After finding nowhere to go immediately ahead of him, Smith bounced to the right and found daylight. There was only one Tribe defender straight ahead of him, but another dove in from the side and grabbed his right ankle - just inches below the brace that protects his surgically repaired knee.

While the tackle prevented an even bigger gain for Smith, the eight yards he got were plenty. His longest gain of the day moved the chains and allowed the Paladins to run out the clock.

"I just said, 'God, let your will be done.' Playmakers make plays," Smith said. "My team needed a first down and I just said, 'let me take care of it.' "

While Hendrix said it was kind of a "heartwarming" thing to see, that's certainly not the reason they had Smith out there. Smith earned his way there through everything he showed coaches in preseason camp. Hendrix believes he's a nice compliment to starting running back Gavin Hall. While both are really strong, Smith is a little bigger.

"When we started August practice, I thought Jayquan had a really good spring and was really ahead of where I thought he'd be," Hendrix said. "And he had a really good summer, but he's still not out there getting tackled yet. Then (once tackling started) he's been really productive in the fall.

"In that situation on Saturday it wasn't a slight on Gavin at all. It was just more of a feeling of trust in the old guy. ... It wasn't like we were trying to do some sentimental moment."

Irony abounded in that moment. It was a bit similar to that fateful October day in 2023 when Smith was trying to help Furman run out the clock in the fourth quarter of a 28-14 win over The Citadel. On a third down carry with less than five minutes remaining, he went for five yards. He was stood up by one defender before another came in low to finish off the tackle.

While Smith immediately grabbed his knee, it didn't look nearly as bad as it turned out to be at first glance. All of his knee ligaments were torn and the knee itself was dislocated. Just like that this promising redshirt freshman, who had shown signs of becoming Furman's next standout back, was done for the season. As the weeks went by and more surgeries were needed, some might have wondered if he was done for good.

It was also ironic Saturday that Furman coaches had faith in Smith to get the job done because Smith's faith is a big reason he was back on that field. It was a long, arduous rehab, but Smith never lost faith that he would play again. 

"Some days looked better than others. Some days you have doubts. But in all God commands faith from his people, so I kept it and kept working," Smith said. "I trusted him with the outcome, so I'm very thankful that this day was that outcome."

Hendrix said Smith remained positive throughout those long months off from football. He said even though Smith couldn't participate, he'd show up at every practice. As it turns out, trying to get a Furman education can also serve as a big distraction from rehabbing an injury.

"He's a terrific student who wants to go to med school," Hendrix said. "He just has a lot of things going for him that he works hard at. He did a good job of keeping himself busy during that time away."

While Smith's faith remained strong, the anticipation of that first carry last Saturday made him nervous and excited at the same time. Things quickly got back to normal though.

"After that first carry, I was like, 'Alright, I've been doing this since I was four years old," Smith said with a smile. "I'm back."

Furman pulls out gutsy, team win over Tribe

Ian Williams hits the game-winning field goal in Furman's 23-21
win over William & Mary Saturday. Photo courtesy of Furman

Saturday's rematch with William & Mary offered a perfect opportunity for Furman to exorcise some demons from its devil of a 2024 season. Nobody who took the field at William & Mary last year and at Paladin Stadium in the season opener wanted that opportunity more than Ian Williams.

Now in Williams' fourth season of kicking for Furman, the all-American has missed two field goals of 30 yards or less in his career. Both came in that 34-24 loss in Williamsburg, Va. last September. On Saturday, Williams aced every shot he was given to bury that night in the past. Williams accounted for all of the Paladins' scoring in the second half with three field goals. The last of those gave Furman the lead with 2:43 left and the Paladins held on for a 23-21 win.

Saturday was a tale of redemption for some, resolve for others and nothing but guts for the entire team.

"I thought the strength of their team was clearly up front on both sides of the ball and that was obvious for much of the day ... but man, I thought we won the fourth quarter. That fourth quarter completely changed," Furman coach Clay Hendrix said. "Some many guys made plays, but Ian Williams. ... I've said he's the best (kicker) in the country and he is. We just trust in him.

"I'm just really proud of our team. That's about as much of a team win as I've been a part of in a long time."

The "team win" talk wasn't just cliche. It was literally true on the scoreboard as the Paladins got a defensive touchdown, an offensive touchdown and those three field goals on special teams. While all three phases were critical to winning, special teams was the most consistent part throughout the game.

In the first half, Furman had just 95 yards of total offense including seven rushing. Those numbers were a bit skewed by a pair of fumbles that netted 35 lost yards, but still a pretty paltry total. However, the Paladins held a 14-7 lead at the half thanks to Taylen Blaylock's 43-yard interception return less than two minutes into the game and Trey Hedden's four-yard touchdown pass to Evan James midway through the second quarter.

That touchdown was set up by Devin Hester's 75-yard kickoff return following William & Mary's lone score of the first half.

"That was a big, big-time return," Hendrix said.

Furman was poised to take a bigger lead into halftime when it put together its longest drive. The Paladins marched from their own 15 to the William & Mary 18 before disaster struck. Hedden was hit from behind as he was going to throw and the fumble was recovered by the Tribe 23 yards back up the field. It was the second time in which Hedden fumbled on a play where his arm could've possibly been going forward, but neither went to a video review. After Furman was flagged for pass interference, possibly on purpose with just a few seconds left, it avoided an extremely tough pill to swallow when William & Mary missed a 28-yard field goal on the final play of the half.

It was a different story in the third quarter. A questionable lack of a pass interference call on third down helped end Furman's opening drive of the second half. After the punt, the Tribe's first play resulted in a questionable pass interference call that was made. William & Mary quarterback Tyler Hughes threw the same deep ball again on the next play and this one was hauled in by Deven Thompson for a gain of 46 yards. That led to Hughes' quarterback sneak to help tie the game.

After a three-and-out by Furman, Hughes went on the attack again. He completed 4-of-5 passes on the next drive, including a nine-yard touchdown throw to Sean McElwain to put the Tribe ahead 21-14 with 5:26 left in the third quarter.

Honesty compels me to report that it was at this moment that I turned to a colleague in the press box and said, "this reeks of a 31-14 final."

Silly me.

Too many memories of last season for me I suppose. While this is still a young team and many on it went through some hard growing pains here last season, quite a few key parts of the 2025 Paladins are new to Greenville.

One of those is James, the true freshman, whose 19-yard reception on a third-down play on Furman's ensuing possession got the ball to the Tribe 34. That's well within Williams' range and he drilled a 50-yard field goal to cut the lead to 21-17 going into the fourth quarter.

"Opening up the season with a 50-yard field goal is definitely a fun thing to do," said Williams, who was Saturday's game captain in addition to the three season-long captains. "I give credit to Riley (Smith) and (Gray) Gitter. That was their first field goal snap and first hold, so congrats to them too."

After getting outgained 326-154 over the first three quarters, something just clicked and the Paladins dominated the final quarter. It started on the second play of the quarter. Furman freshman defensive end Malakai Dobbins, who had been grabbed, twisted and turned by William & Mary's offensive line much of the day, finally drew a flag for holding against the Tribe. On second-and-19, sophomore defensive end Joshua Stoneking had a sack and William & Mary punted one incompletion later.

On Furman's next possession, James caught another key pass to get into Williams' range. His 12-yard catch led to Williams' 42-yard field goal, which sliced the lead to 21-20 with 10:55 left.

William & Mary's ensuing possession ended when Dobbins swatted down Hughes' second-down pass and Stoneking sacked Hughes for a loss of nine on the next play. The Paladins outgained the Tribe, 83-26, in the fourth quarter and much of that success was due to the disruptive chaos caused by Furman's defensive line.

"I think it goes back to Coach (Duane) Vaughn and the preparation he put in with showing a bunch of different looks to the offense and confusing the offensive line," said Stoneking, who finished with another tackle-for-loss in addition to the two sacks.

After an eight-yard punt return by Blaylock, Furman's next possession began at its own 43. On the first play, Hedden threw deep to Hester for a gain of 24 to get back into Williams' range. All of a sudden, those running lanes that were clogged all day saw some daylight as Tribe defenders looked tired. It appeared that Furman was on its way for touchdown before a false start on third-and-two nixed that. Perhaps it was fitting that it left it up to Williams to drill the 32-yard game-winning field goal.

"It's a great feeling. ... The boys fought hard today. They're the ones out there fighting all game, so I just have to go in and do my job of putting the ball through the uprights," said Williams. "Going back to the offseason, this was a big game circled for me and I feel like it was for everybody. ... I wanted this one for sure.

"I love the guys on this team. They're the reason I came back another year. ... Plus I didn't feel like last year was the one to end on."

While the Paladins had the momentum, the Tribe still had a shot. On third-and-one on their ensuing possession, Blaylock provided a bit of a knockout for Furman. The grad transfer went untouched on a safety blitz and lit up William & Mary's Rashad Raymond for a four-yard loss. On fourth-and-five, it was the Paladins who finally got a benefit of the doubt on a close interference non-call when Blaylock broke up the pass.

"That (safety blitz) was all on Coach Vaughn just having the trust to make that great play call for us," Blaylock said. "He made the call, so we had to go make the play."

Furman still needed one first down to completely seal the win and this is where the "resolve" part of Saturday's victory came. Jayquan Smith, who was competing for the first time since suffering a horrific knee injury in October of 2023, was called on for that final drive. He ran for six yards on first down and one yard on second. On third-and-three, he took the handoff and powered his way for an eight-yard gain and victory formation followed.

"Just watching our team today, they are who I thought they were. I thought they we're going to be tough group, that's going to hang in there and has some ability," Hendrix said. "We're nowhere near where we've got to be, but I'm just really proud of how they hung in there and played. We stayed positive. The sideline was that way the whole day in all areas. We just kept making plays to give ourselves a chance."

Hedden completed 21-of-29 passes for 179 yards. He had no interceptions after throwing two at William & Mary last year. His favorite target was James, who finished with seven catches for 68 yards in his collegiate debut.

"In warmups before the game, I was a little nervous. As I got into the game, I got more comfortable though," James said. "When the ball came to me, I just made the plays that I knew I could make."

Ryan Earl had a team-high eight tackles for Furman, while Blaylock and Raleigh Herbert each had six. Five of those were solo stops for Blaylock, who had two tackles-for-loss in addition to his interception and pass breakup on the final defensive play. Herbert and Caleb Williams each had one sack.

Williams will probably need to make room on his trophy case for Southern Conference or national special teams honors this week. In addition to his 3-for-3 showing on field goals, he averaged 46.6 yards per punt with a long of 61. Five of his six kickoffs sailed through the end zone for touchbacks. The only one returned only reached the William & Mary 19.