The SoCon Spread

Furman safety AK Burrell (photo courtesy of Furman athletics) Turnovers Doom Paladins for Second-Straight Week F or the third-straight season, Wofford got the better of the I-85 rivalry, as the Terriers handed Furman a 31-13 setback on a sunny, mid-October Saturday afternoon at Gibbs Stadium. The win snapped a three-game SoCon losing streak for Wofford, as the Terriers claimed their second-straight win to improve to 2-5 overall and 1-2 in Southern Conference action. Furman fell to 4-3 overall and 2-2 in SoCon play.  Prior to Saturday, Wofford's last SoCon win had been a 19-13 win in Greenville last November. It marked the third-straight season the Paladins had ended a loss to Wofford with 13 points.  The Paladins held a slight advantage in total yards (329-325), but couldn't overcome three costly turnovers, while the Terriers only committed one miscue on the afternoon. Over the past couple of games, Furman has committed eight turnovers, which have led directly to 38 points...

WCU defensive back Ken Moore Jr. picks off one of his two passes in Saturday's win over Furman (photo courtesy of Catamount athletics) CULLOWHEE, N.C.—For a second-straight season, the number 52 was Purple Magic for Western Carolina, as the Catamounts hammered Furman, using a defensive performance that forced five Paladin turnovers, which included a 64-yard INT return for a score by Ken Moore Jr., and the Catamounts claimed a demonstrative, 52-7, win in a battle of SoCon unbeatens Saturday afternoon at EJ Whitmire Stadium. With its fourth-straight win, Western Carolina improved to 4-3 overall and 3-0 in Southern Conference play, while the Paladins fell to 4-2 overall and 2-1 in SoCon. Furman’s 45-point loss to the Catamounts marks its first loss by such a margin to an FCS foe since 2014, when the Paladins dropped a 45-0 homecoming contest to Samford.  Dating back to the start of the 2022 season, the Catamounts are 14-5 in SoCon games, which included winning six SoCon games in 202...

  Setting the Scene: Furman and Western Carolina are set for the latest battle of Purple Supremacy Saturday, and though it might not be a Top 10 matchup, it's no less important than the one two years ago.  Once again, the clash between the two purple-clad teams that call the SoCon home will be between two teams with undefeated SoCon marks, with the Paladins and Catamounts both sharing a 2-0 record in Southern Conference play entering Saturday's big showdown at beautiful E.J. Whitmire Stadium. Kickoff is set for 2:30 p.m. and it should be a great atmosphere and a sea of some shade of purple on both sides of the stadium. If you haven't been to E.J. Whitmire Stadium, I can't do the setting justice with words. Simply, it's a beautiful setting for a college football game.  It's the type of game that will see the morning of Saturday Oct. 11 arrive and it might as well shut down downtown Cashiers as well as Jackson County from the magnitude of the game alone.  It's...