Paladins Steal One Late from Bucs

 

Furman wide receiver Ja'Keith Hamilton on one of his 11 receptions in the game (photo courtesy of Furman athletics)

GREENVILLE, S.C.—Furman finally got its offense going in full unison, gaining 500 yards and  sophomore quarterback Trey Hedden continued his efficient play under center, passing for 358 yards and a pair of scores, as the Paladins scored 24 unanswered points in the second half to stun East Tennessee State, 31-22, in a key Southern Conference victory on Family Weekend at Paladin Stadium.

The Paladins fell behind 22-7 on the opening play of the second half, as Devontae Houston went 75 yards to the house, giving the Bucs an early two-score advantage, but the Paladins rallied with 24 unanswered points to close out the win on home turf.

With the win, Furman improved to 4-1 overall and 2-0 in Southern Conference play, while the Bucs tumbled to 2-4 overall and dropped 0-2 in SoCon play. With its fourth win this season, the Paladins snapped a three-game home losing streak to SoCon foes at Paladin Stadium and have now eclipsed the win total from 2024. 

The game could prove to be a turning point for both teams, as it relates to the SoCon title chase and FCS Playoff conversations, as the Bucs, which are under the direction of first-year head coach Will Healy, likely now will see their FCS playoff  hopes and SoCon title hopes fade to black following the loss after bringing in a roster stocked with FBS talent. 

Hedden finished his afternoon by connecting on 36-of-49 for 358 yards, two touchdowns and an INT. Hedden also had a 1-yard scoring plunge to for Furman's first score of the day. 

In the absence of leading receiver and freshman sensation Evan James, both Hamilton and Harris hauled in a combined 22 passes for 222 yards and two TDs. Hamilton had a career day, hauling in 11 passes for 141 yards and two scores, while Harris hauled in 11 passes for 81 yards in the game.

Furman's ground attack was powered by a heavy dose of Gavin Hall, as he became the first Paladin to rush for 100 yards in a game this season, finishing the contest with 101 yards on 23 carries.

Cade McNamara and Jacolby Criswell combined the duties under center for ETSU. 

McNamara started the game and played a quarter, and finishing the day connecting on 2-of-7 passes for 11 yards, while Criswell saw action over the most of the final three quarters, completed 7-for-14 passes for 100 yards with an INT.  Criswell was most effective rushing the football, as he finished the contest with 73 yards and a score on 15 attempts. All told, both FBS power four transfers combined to go 9-of-22 passing for 111 yards and no TDs with an INT. 

The ground attack for the Bucs was led by Houston, who returned to the backfield following a three-game absence, finishing the game with 150 yards on 22 carries, with half of his rushing yards coming on the first play of the second half.

The Bucs did out-gain the Paladins on the ground (275-142), however, in addition to holding a 148-yard advantage in total  yards, the Paladins held advantages in passing 32yards (358-100), total snaps (82-76), and time of possession (35:32-24:28). 

Furman's 500 yards of total offense in the win marked the first time the Paladins have gained over 500 or more yards in a game since knocking off Stetson, 48-7, last season, gaining 510 yards of total offense in that particular contest. 

The last Southern Conference foe, which saw the Paladins gain 500 or more yards against a SoCon foe against was on Oct. 21, 2023, as the Paladins knocked off No. 8 Western Carolina, as Furman would end up with 508 yards in the 29-17 win over the Catamounts on that particular occasion. 

Furman's win marked its 15th in 17 games played at Paladin Stadium, and it marks the eighth in 10 meetings since the Bucs rejoined the SoCon back in 2016. The Paladins have now won 31 of 40 all-time meetings between the two foes. 

Certainly not to be overlooked Saturday was another strong effort from Furman's defense, and in particular, the pass rush, which once again was a major influencer on the outcome. 

The Paladin defense sacked ETSU quarterbacks four times on the day, with the nation's leader in sacks, Joshua Stoneking, coming up with three of them as a part of a seven-tackle effort.  Sophomore defensive back Billy Lewis led Furman's defense with nine tackles and Caldwell Bussey matched Stoneking's seven stops along the defensive front, and contributed the other sack the Paladins recorded in the win. 

How It Happened: 

ETSU won the opening toss and deferred to the second half, however, Furman would net a pair of first downs and reach the 47 before having to punt the ball over to the Bucs, who started their first offensive series at their own 20. 

After a roughing the passer penalty netted the Bucs a first down, the Paladins held the Bucs on the next series of downs, as Joshua Stoneking got a strong rush in on starting quarterback Cade McNamara, and the Paladins batted the ball in the air, but no one on the defensive line could quite come up with the INT.

The first points of the day would come from ETSU’s special teams at the 9:30 mark of the opening quarter, as Cole Keller blocked a field goal and recovered it in the end zone for a touchdown to make it 6-0. Then on the PAT, the Bucs used a fake, with holder and punter Nate Bracket taking the ball around the corner for two points, giving the Bucs an 8-0 lead.

Furman’s third drive of the game would yield the game’s first offensive points, as Trey  Hedden snuck it over from a yard out to give the Paladins their first points of the day, and Ian Williams came into to boot through the PAT, getting the Paladins to within a point on the scoreboard, at 8-7 with 3:53 remaining in the first quarter. The drive covered 82 yards and used 11 plays. The Paladins weren’t particularly clean when it came to avoiding infractions in the opening quarter of play, as they were penalized six times for 55 yards, however, the Paladins completely dominated the opening 15 minutes of football, out-gaining the Bucs, 155-8, in total yards.

In the second quarter, ETSU increased its lead back to eight when Devontae Houston scored on a 1-yard scoring plunge with 9:42 remaining in the opening quarter, giving the Bucs a 15-7 lead. The Bucs’ most successful offensive drive of the day was led by Jacolby Criswell, who helped the Bucs on a 12-play, 79-yard scoring drive to help ETSU pad its lead.

Late in the half after a sack by Joshua Stoneking set up Furman in great field position, it would be all be for naught, as Ian Williams missed a 33-yard field goal and the Bucs went to the half holding an eight-point, 15-7 lead.

On the opening play of the second half, ETSU took a double-digit lead in a game for the  third time this season, and once again the result ended up being the same. Houston's 75-yard run to open the second half gave the Bucs a 22-7 lead. 

Furman, however, would begin to have some offensive success from that point and chip away at the Bucs lead. The Paladin offense came right back after ETSU's scoring drive and provided an answer, using eight plays to cover 75 yards, with Ja'Keith Hamilton capping the scoring drive with the first of his two scoring catches in the game, hauling in a 10-yard scoring strike from Hedden to get the Paladins back to within eight, at 22-14, following Ian Williams' PAT with 11:11 remaining in the third quarter.

Following a stop by the Furman defense, Williams would connect on a 44-yard field goal with just under seven minutes remaining in the third quarter to get the Paladins to within five, at 22-17.

Furman was able to keep the deficit at five after the Bucs drove to the Furman 29 and had to settle for an Ewan Johnson 46-yard field goal attempt, which was blocked by Caldwell Bussey to keep the score right where it was. 

The Bucs would maintain their advantage until just under five minutes remaining in the game. Furman got the ball back with 5:57 remaining moved the ball up to near midfield where it would face a 2nd-and-8 from the Furman 47. 

Hedden faced an all-out blitz from the Bucs and he was hit as he released the ball causing the ball to float high into the air and created a jump-ball situation between Furman's Hamilton and ETSU defensive back William Wells, in which Hamilton snagged the ball mid-air and then with open real estate in front of him, sprinted 53 yards for the go-ahead score with 3:57 remaining.

Instead of kicking the PAT, the Paladins opted to go for a two-point conversion and Hedden connected with his 6-7 tight end Luke Clyburn in the back of the end zone to complete the conversion attempt, giving the Paladins a 25-22 lead.

On the ensuing drive, ETSU made good use of the clock to drive the ball just inside the range of place-kicker Ewan Johnson, reaching the Paladin 26 with 10 seconds remaining and one timeout left. 

The Bucs elected to go for the win one last time before trying to set up the game-tying field goal, however, it backfired.  ETSU's Criswell took the snap in the shotgun but faced heavy pressure from Furman's Stoneking on one side and from redshirt freshman and Appalachian State transfer Garrison Butler on the other, as both converged at the right moment hitting Criswell from each side as he let go of the football and causing the ball to fall well short of its intended ETSU receiving target and into the waiting arms of Furman redshirt freshman cornerback Jordan Miller, who raced 95 yards for the score as time expired. Miller's score provided the final margin of nine, at 31-22, setting off wild celebrations among the purple-clad Paladin players.

Up Next:

Furman heads to Cullowhee next Saturday to battle Western Carolina (3-3, 2-0 SoCon) in another key league matchup. Western Carolina got a record-setting performance from Taron Dickens in just his third start of the season, as he would set an NCAA record with 46-consecutive completions before leading the Catamounts to a narrow 23-21 win over winless Wofford. 

The Catamounts pounded Furman 52-20 last season at Paladin Stadium, rolling up SoCon records of 800 yards of total offense, including a league record 652 yards through the air. Kickoff for the contest in Cullowhee is set for 2:30 p.m. at beautiful EJ Whitmire Stadium. 

Postgame Press Conference: