By MONTE DUTTON

The toughest part of Furman’s Southern Conference football schedule lies ahead, most notably in the game on Saturday at Western Carolina and the one on Nov. 4 at Chattanooga.

When those two played, the Catamounts defeated the Mocs, 52-50, in their stadium, and that’s why, when the Paladins arrive in Cullowhee, N.C., on Saturday, Western Carolina will be ranked 14^th and eighth in the FCS polls where Furman is third and fourth.

Some years back, the Catamounts’ hilly Blue Ridge locale was known as Radio Free Cullowhee because of the way signals went in and out depending on the mountains’ temper. They must all have Sirius/XM now. E.J. Whitmire Stadium, which can accommodate 13,472, hosts the kickoff at 2:30 p.m.

Western Carolina (5-1, 3-0) has won five in a row since a 58-13 drubbing at Arkansas. Furman (5-1, 3-0) fell 47-21 in a second-game loss to similarly Southeastern Conference South Carolina. Guess what? The Razorbacks are 2-5. The Gamecocks are 2-4.

Small world, huh? That’s an apt description of Cullowhee.

Furman has won 10 straight SoCon games over two seasons. Western Carolina has won six in a row. Both schools wear purple. Thousands of people meet fans of both schools for the first time and ask, “What the hell’s your nickname?” Among the nation’s colleges there exist one other named Catamounts and none other dubbed Paladins. And the Vermont Catamounts don’t play football.

Western Carolina head coach Kerwin Bell, in his third year, was a star quarterback at Florida who, over 14 years, spent time on five NFL rosters and played in the Canadian Football League and the World League of American Football. He was previously a head coach at Jacksonville (Fla.) and Valdosta (Ga.) State and offensive coordinator at South Florida.

“They’re certainly running and throwing it well,” said Furman head coach Clay Hendrix of WCU. “and they’re playing really well on defense. The key for us is do what we do.”

“You know, we’ve been playing really good defense. … I think it still kind of seems like we’re the underdogs, and that’s okay. … We’re not gonna go out-talent them. As I always say, we’ve got talent, but we’ve got to be exceptional with execution, toughness, keep doing those things. It’s been a good winning formula for us.”

It is hardly unusual for Hendrix to bring to his media conferences a pair of 6’s – Tyler Huff and Hugh Ryan – but on Monday he brought a pair of Lukes – Clark and Shiflett – with him to the meeting room at Paladin Stadium. Clark is a junior by eligibility from Louisville, Ky., who ravaged Samford runners and passer from the bandit slot in Saturday’s 27-21 victory. Shiflett is a graduate wide receiver from Dalton, Ga., who caught three passes for 71 yards against the Bulldogs. He spent a year at Middle Tennessee State before transferring to Furman.

They’re proud, time-tested veterans, which aligns them with most of their teammates. Few college football teams are more experienced and familiar with one another.

“It’s been fulfilling,” Clark said. “It’s hard to not want to come back to this program and the people you’re around. … It’s rewarding. It’s exciting. Everyone looks forward to practice every day. The weeks have been flying by.”

They’ll need that cohesiveness to defeat Western Carolina, which is a bit more prolific and its players more nomadic. The Catamounts have scored 178 points in their last three games. They needed last weekend’s open date to catch their breaths.

The Catamounts have a prolific passer, Cole Gonzales (105/152, .695, 1,532 yards), and a similarly productive running back, Desmond Reid (115-862, 7.4 per carry).

Furman quarterback Tyler Huff, the SoCon offensive player of the week, has rushed for 391 yards and passed for 1,057. His completion percentage is virtually the same as Gonzales’. Huff (111/160) is at .694. Gonzales is at .695. Furman’s leading rusher, Dominic Roberto (87-394, 4.5) has netted just three more yards than Huff.

Huff is 15-3 as the Paladins’ starter and 14-1 against FCS opponents. Furman hasn’t lost a road game in the SoCon since Nov. 6, 2021, when Western Carolina won in Cullowhee, 43-42. In Greenville last year, Furman won, 47-40. This game has a high likelihood of points.

“Going on the road is pretty hard,” said Shiflett, “but even last year we’ve had a bunch of close games that we’ve found a way to win at the very end. … I think we’re very, very confident in close-out games.’

Both quarterbacks spread the ball around. Eight Catamounts and seven Paladins have caught at least 10 passes.

Western Carolina gains more yards on the average – 531.8 to Furman’s 375.2 – and both defenses yield about the same (WCU 373.5, FU 372.1).

“We’re not gonna sit here and ignore facts,” Clark said. “Very explosive team. Our main goal is just play our brand of football, eliminate explosive plays. Get the ball on the ground, tackle well … We need to tackle a little better, myself included.”

“Actually, I kind of like playing on the road. It’s just the people you’re around all the time,” Shiflett said. “There are no outside distractions, and it’s kind of more fun going on the road and winning.”

“They have a great quarterback and a great [offensive] line, but nothing changes,” Clark added. “We can get after that bunch. I know we can.”

The Catamounts are scary, but no one at Furman is scared.

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