Furman
From NCAA College Football Information & Resource
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The Furman Paladins football team is an NCAA Football Championship Subdivision team that represents the Furman University in the Southern Conference. Furman's football program began play as early as 1889, when the team handled by William Beattie engaged Wofford in a 2-game series which the Paladins both lost (1-5 on Dec. 14, 1889 and 1-2 on Jan. 18, 1890). Since then, Furman had struggled to maintain its consistency as the team switched coaches several times in order to find someone who is capable in guiding the Paladins to a championship. In 1934, Furman finally hit paydirt under the tutelage of Coach Dizzy McLeod as the Paladins won their first conference title, the Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Association championship, after sweeping all four of their SIAA assignments. Furman left the SIAA in 1935 to become an expansion of the Southern Conference the following year. For the most part, Furman turned out below .500 season records and had to wait four plus decades to return to championship form. In 1978, Dick Sheridan successfully steered the Paladins, from a losing season the previous year, to champions the following year in winning the Southern Conference Championship (shared). Sheridan in only eight years with Furman, led his team to six SoCon titles, including four straight from 1980-83. Sheridan's stint with the team was only the 5th longest in terms of games coached, but it is by far the most productive as he carries the best number in terms of winning percentage (.745) among the past and present Furman coaches (technically, H.C. Granger is #1 with a spotless record but he only coached the team for two games). Furman also played in its first bowl game during Sheridan's last year with the team, losing a close one to Georgia Southern in the Diamond Bowl - Division I-AA Championship Game, 42-44. Sheridan's predecessor did quite well himself as he not only led the Paladins to three straight conference titles (1988-90), he also spearheaded the 1988 team to an NCAA Division I-AA National Championship. Furman won two more SoCon titles under two different coaches, with Bobby Johnson in 1999 and with Bobby Lamb in 2004.
As of 2006, Furman has been conference titlists 12 times and national champs once, with one Bowl Game played. 17 Furman teams have also been ranked in the final Division I-AA Polls, with the most recent 12th place finish in 2006. The team enters the 2007-08 season 11th and 9th in the Preseason Sports Network and AGS rankings, respectively.
Contents |
Ranking
- Have not ranked in the final major college polls.
| Year | Record | NCAA Rank | Sports Network Rank | USA/ESPN Rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1982 | 9-3-0 | 6 | ||
| 1983 | 10-2-1 | 2 | ||
| 1984 | 8-3-0 | 16 | ||
| 1985 | 12-2-0 | 2 | ||
| 1986 | 7-3-2 | 15 | ||
| 1988 | 13-2-0 | 5 | ||
| 1989 | 12-2-0 | 2 | ||
| 1990 | 9-4-0 | 12 | ||
| 1991 | 7-4-0 | 20 | ||
| 1996 | 9-4-0 | 13 | ||
| 1999 | 9-3-0 | 12 | 8 | |
| 2000 | 9-3-0 | 10 | 5 | |
| 2001 | 12-3-0 | 2 | 2 | |
| 2002 | 8-4-0 | 9 | 9 | |
| 2004 | 10-3-0 | 5 | 5 | |
| 2005 | 11-3-0 | 3 | 3 | |
| 2006 | 8-4-0 | 12 |
Scouting Report
| Category | SC Rank | Nat'l Rank |
|---|---|---|
| Scoring Offense | 6 | 23 |
| Scoring Defense | 6 | 86 |
| Total Offense | 6 | 27 |
| Total Defense | 5 | 86 |
| Turnover Margin | 7 | 85 |
| Pass Efficiency Defense | 7 | 109 |
| Kickoff Returns | 1 | 9 |
| Net Punting | 5 | 48 |
| Passing Offense | 4 | 50 |
| Passing Defense | 8 | 110 |
| Passing Efficiency | 5 | 30 |
| Punt Returns | 1 | 14 |
| Rushing Offense | 4 | 33 |
| Rushing Defense | 1 | 31 |
Championships
National Championships
- 1988 - NCAA Division I-AA National Champions
Conference Championships
- 1934 - Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Association Champions
- 1978 - Southern Conference Co-Champions
- 1980 - Southern Conference Champions
- 1981 - Southern Conference Champions
- 1982 - Southern Conference Champions
- 1983 - Southern Conference Champions
- 1985 - Southern Conference Champions
- 1988 - Southern Conference Co-Champions
- 1989 - Southern Conference Champions
- 1990 - Southern Conference Champions
- 1999 - Southern Conference Co-Champions
- 2004 - Southern Conference Co-Champions
Furman University Bowl History
- No Major Bowl Games Played.
| Year | Bowl Game | Opponent | Result | Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dec 21, 1985 | Diamond Bowl - Division I-AA Championship Game | Georgia Southern | L | 42-44 |
Schedule
| Date | Opponent | Location | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| 08.30.08 | Mars Hill | Greenville, S.C. | |
| 09.06.08 | Virginia Tech | Blacksburg, Va. | |
| 09.13.08 | Colgate | Hamilton, N.Y. | |
| 09.20.08 | Delaware | Greenville, S.C. | |
| 09.27.08 | Chattanooga | Greenville, S.C. | |
| 10.04.08 | Elon | Elon, N.C. | |
| 10.11.08 | Western Carolina | Greenville, S.C. | |
| 10.18.08 | The Citadel | Greenville, S.C. | |
| 10.25.08 | Appalachian State | Boone, N.C. | |
| 11.01.08 | Samford | Birmingham, Ala. | |
| 11.15.08 | Georgia Southern | Greenville, S.C. | |
| 11.22.08 | Wofford | Spartanburg, S.C. |
Roster
| No. | Name | Pos. | Ht. | Wt. | Yr. | Hometown/Prev. School |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | William Middleton | CB | 5-11 | 186 | SR | Atlanta, Ga./Marist |
| 2 | Adam Mims | SE | 5-9 | 187 | SO | Birmingham, Ala./Spain Park H.S. |
| 3 | John Castleberry | CB | 6-0 | 179 | JR | Cumming, Ga./Gainesville |
| 4 | R.J. Webb | SE | 6-2 | 200 | JR | Liberty, S.C./Pickens |
| 6 | Nathan Wade | FS | 6-0 | 175 | FR | Antioch, Tenn./Montgomery Bell Academy |
| 7 | Cody Worley | QB | 6-1 | 205 | SO | Rome, Ga./Calhoun |
| 8 | Jordan Griffin | CB | 5-10 | 165 | FR | Fairburn, Ga./Sandy Creek |
| 9 | Jordan Sorrells | QB | 6-2 | 205 | JR | Greenville, S.C./Greenville |
| 10 | Stephone LaFrance | TB | 6-2 | 219 | SO | College Park, Ga./Creekside |
| 11 | Dakota Derrick | QB | 6-5 | 200 | FR | Conway, S.C./Conway |
| 12 | Chas Short | PK | 6-3 | 194 | RS FR | Thomaston, Ga./Flint River Academy |
| 13 | Sederrik Cunningham | FLK | 5-11 | 187 | RS FR | Zaphyrhills, Fla./Zephyrhills |
| 14 | Daniel McFadden | SE | 6-2 | 180 | FR | Daytona Beach, Fla./Mainland |
| 15 | Mike Brown | TB | 5-8 | 176 | SO | Marietta, Ga./South Cobb |
| 16 | Bryan Hayes | QB | 5-11 | 179 | SO | Chester, N.J./Mendham |
| 17 | Trent Hawk | P | 6-0 | 173 | JR | Norcross, Ga./Norcross |
| 18 | Masharn Austin | CB | 5-8 | 185 | SR | Lawrenceville, Ga./Buford |
| 19 | Chris Stone | BAN | 6-1 | 186 | SR | Greenville, S.C./Clemson |
| 20 | Mitch McGrath | ROV | 6-2 | 180 | FR | Longwood, Fla./Lake Brantley |
| 21 | Matthew Gordon | FLK | 6-1 | 193 | FR | Birmingham, Ala./Briarwood Christian |
| 22 | E.J. Vinsang | CB | 5-10 | 185 | FR | Nashville, Tenn./Montgomery Bell Academy |
| 24 | Max Lerner | ROV | 5-11 | 188 | SO | Birmingham, Ala./Hoover |
| 25 | Adrian Baker | TB | 5-9 | 205 | RS FR | Maryville, Tenn./Maryville |
| 26 | Dustin Gourdin | CB | 5-11 | 198 | SO | Greer, S.C./Riverside |
| 28 | Thomas Twitty | FS | 5-11 | 192 | SR | Birmingham, Ala./Mountain Brook |
| 29 | Walt Lenard | TB | 6-0 | 201 | FR | Atlanta, Ga./Landmark Christian |
| 30 | Mark Standridge | CB | 5-9 | 181 | JR | Buford, Ga./Buford |
| 31 | Julian Hicks | BAN | 5-9 | 190 | JR | College Park, Ga./Riverwood |
| 32 | Hunter Twitty | LB | 6-0 | 225 | SR | Birmingham, Ala./Mountain Brook |
| 33 | Brandon Boykin | LB | 6-0 | 223 | RS FR | Collierville, Tenn./White Station |
| 35 | Shaun van Rensburg | DE | 6-4 | 233 | JR | Jacksonville, Fla./The Bolles School |
| 36 | Brandon Williams | LB | 6-2 | 220 | SR | Tucker, Ga./Lakeside |
| 37 | Rick Furman | ROV | 6-2 | 192 | RS FR | Greenville, S.C./Christ Church Episcopal |
| 38 | Cardenal Coleman | FB | 6-0 | 227 | RS FR | Tennille, Ga./Washington County |
| 40 | Tersoo Uhaa | FB | 5-8 | 198 | FR | Gainesville, Ga./Riverside Military Academy |
| 42 | Brantley Kendall | FB | 5-10 | 225 | SR | Senoia, Ga./East Coweta |
| 43 | Chris Rogers | FB | 5-10 | 193 | SR | Hickory, N.C./Hickory |
| 44 | Pete Sanders | FB | 6-0 | 234 | SO | Stone Mountain, Ga./LSU |
| 45 | Chris Wiley | LB | 5-10 | 191 | FR | Anderson, S.C./Westside |
| 46 | Kadarron Anderson | LB | 6-1 | 224 | RS FR | Greenwood, S.C./Emerald |
| 49 | Clay Crosby | LB | 6-1 | 211 | SR | Easley, S.C./Easley |
| 51 | Philip Morris | DE | 6-1 | 238 | JR | Orangeburg, S.C./Orangeburg-Wilkinson |
| 52 | David Menocal | C | 6-2 | 251 | SR | Gainesville, Ga./Gainesville |
| 53 | Kevin McCarthy | LB | 6-0 | 202 | SO | Savannah, Ga./Savannah Christian School |
| 54 | Kyle McKinney | DE | 6-1 | 239 | JR | Atlanta, Ga./North Atlanta |
| 55 | Daniel Spisak | C | 6-1 | 250 | FR | Charlotte, N.C./Z.B. Vance |
| 56 | Adim Obata | DT | 6-0 | 260 | RS FR | Atlanta, Ga./Martin Luther King |
| 59 | Thomas Slaughter | OT | 6-4 | 272 | SR | Rock Hill, S.C./Northwestern |
| 60 | Tyler Haynes | OG | 6-2 | 271 | JR | Birmingham, Ala./Vestavia Hills |
| 64 | Nic Ayoob | OG | 6-3 | 288 | SO | Watkinsville, Ga./Oconee County |
| 65 | Heath Cockburn | OG | 6-1 | 282 | JR | Dalton, Ga./Northwest Whitfield |
| 66 | Kyle Rae | C | 5-10 | 229 | JR | Wilmington, N.C./John T. Hoggard |
| 67 | David Barrington | OT | 6-3 | 248 | RS FR | Montgomery, Ala./Montgomery Academy |
| 68 | McKenzy Opio | OT | 6-3 | 295 | RS FR | Flowery Branch, Ga./Flowery Branch |
| 69 | Dustin Chancellor | OG | 6-3 | 271 | SO | Byron, Ga./Peach County |
| 70 | Corey Ray | DT | 6-1 | 273 | JR | Birmingham, Ala./Moody |
| 71 | Antonio Frazier | OT | 6-4 | 274 | SO | Chattanooga, Tenn./Baylor |
| 72 | Daniel Leagans | NG | 6-1 | 246 | SR | Ware Shoals, S.C./Ware Shoals |
| 73 | Will Landers | OG | 6-3 | 263 | JR | Roswell, Ga./Roswell |
| 74 | Joel Bell | OT | 6-8 | 308 | SR | Spartanburg, S.C./Spartanburg |
| 75 | Ryan Lee | OT | 6-4 | 265 | RS FR | Carrollton, Ga./Carrollton |
| 76 | Matt Blades | OT | 6-6 | 275 | FR | Laurel Hill, N.C./Richmond County |
| 77 | Jordan Eshelman | OG | 6-2 | 254 | RS FR | Howell, Mich./Howell |
| 78 | Ricky Jones | DT | 6-4 | 266 | SR | Alpharetta, Ga./Centennial |
| 79 | Bryan Poole | 5-11 | 278 | FR | Marietta, Ga./Kennesaw Mountain | |
| 81 | Lance Canington | FLK | 6-1 | 200 | SR | Bel Air, Md./C. Milton Wright |
| 82 | Phillip Silverstein | TE | 5-5 | 230 | FR | Anderson, S.C./T.L. Hanna |
| 83 | Seth Skogen | TE | 6-4 | 220 | RS FR | Lookout Mountain, Tenn./Tennessee Temple Academy |
| 84 | Larry Hedden | TE | 6-5 | 241 | JR | Hoover, Ala./Briarwood Christian |
| 85 | Chris Truss | TE | 6-4 | 243 | JR | Atlanta, Ga./Riverwood |
| 86 | David Hendrix | SE | 6-4 | 196 | RS FR | Buford, Ga./Buford |
| 87 | Trey McCray | TE | 6-3 | 210 | RS FR | Greer, S.C./Rossview (Tenn.) |
| 88 | Matthew Cesari | PK | 6-0 | 173 | SR | Atlanta, Ga./Westminster |
| 89 | Chris Welborn | SE | 6-2 | 187 | SR | Fernandina Beach, Fla./Fernandina Beach |
| 91 | Gaines Burnett | DE | 6-2 | 257 | SR | Kathleen, Georgia/Houston County |
| 92 | Derrick Parrea | DE | 6-3 | 220 | RS FR | Dunnellon, Fla./Dunnellon |
| 93 | Korey Sims | FLK | 5-11 | 178 | JR | Lutz, Fla./The Cambridge School |
| 94 | Chris Yankow | DE | 6-1 | 215 | SR | Olyphant, Pa./Bishop O'Hara H.S. |
| 95 | Cody Reynolds | DE | 6-3 | 230 | SO | Falls Church, Va./George Mason |
| 97 | Justin Brown | NG | 5-11 | 260 | JR | Warner Robins, Ga./Warner Robins |
| 98 | Kenny Beck | DE | 6-3 | 230 | FR | Salem, Ala./Smith's Station |
| 99 | Sam Hopkins | DE | 6-4 | 218 | FR | Cincinnati, Ohio/Culver (Ind.) Military Academy |
| P.J. Moore | FLK | 5-10 | 179 | SO | Alpharetta, Ga./Milton | |
| Colin Anderson | QB | FR | Dallas, Texas/Principia Upper School | |||
| Leander Jones | CB | 5-11 | 170 | FR | Aiken, S.C./South Aiken | |
| Josh Moseley | BAN | 5-9 | 180 | FR | Newberry, S.C./Newberry | |
| Ben Granger | 5-11 | 165 | FR | Athens, Ga./Clarke Central/Navy Prep | ||
| Ryan Steed | 5-11 | 180 | FR | Mt. Pleasant, S.C./Pinewood Prep | ||
| Trevor Reeves | OG | 6-1 | 250 | FR | Belmont, N.C./South Point | |
| Will King | QB | 5-10 | 170 | FR | Rock Hill, S.C./Northwestern | |
| Thomas Williams | P | 6-3 | 185 | JR | Orlando, Fla./Trinity Presbyterian | |
| Chisom Onyeuku | LB | 6-1 | 210 | SO | Fayetteville, Ga./Fayette County | |
| Luke Wynn | SN | 6-3 | 230 | FR | Cordova, Tenn./Memphis University School | |
| Will White | OG | 6-3 | 300 | FR | Round Oak, Ga./Jones County | |
| Sterling Johnson | BAN | 6-0 | 200 | FR | Decatur, Ga. | |
| Brett Basik | ROV | 5-9 | 180 | FR | Birmingham, Ala./Briarwood Christian |
Coaches/Team Officials
- Bobby Lamb - Head Coach
- Drew Cronic - Wide Receivers, Recruiting Coordinator
- Tom Evangelista - Cornerbacks/Co-Special Teams Coordinator
- Jeff Farrington - Co-Defensive Coordinator/Safeties
- Carroll McCray - Offensive Line
- Roberto Pinilla - Defensive Line
- Bob Price - Placekickers & Punters
- Tim Sorrells - Offensive Coordinator/Running Backs
- Steve Wilson - Co-Defensive Coordinator/Linebackers
Notable Alumni in NFL
Furman Paladins in NFL
- Jerome Felton - Detroit Lions, FB
- Ingle Martin - Tennessee Titans, QB
References
- CSTV Div. I-AA Football Rankings
- Furman Alumni Tracker
- Furman Paladins Football Historical Data
- Furman University Wikipedia
- NCAA.org's 2006 Southern Team Report
External Links
- Furmanpaladins.com/Football
- Furman Paladins Football on USA Today
- The Unofficial Furman Football Page
| Southern Conference Football Teams |
|---|
| Appalachian State • Chattanooga • Elon • Furman • Georgia Southern • The Citadel • Western Carolina • Wofford |
