By MONTE DUTTON

On the occasion of Clay Hendrix’s 61^st birthday, it’s time to pay homage to one of Furman’s monumental careers.

Hendrix played on great Furman football teams and has coached great Paladin elevens. Calling a team an eleven has fallen out of use, but that’s still how many there are a time.

Hendrix still coaches the Furman way, updated by wisdom, experience and changing times.

Hendrix and his staff sell the school and bring in players who want to be there. Most of them stay, and if they leave, it is often because Furman has no more education to provide them.

How long can this go on? The modern version of football’s Furman way has been around since 1973. Art Baker, who wasn’t a Furman graduate, planted the seeds. Dick Sheridan, who came with Baker, picked the fruit, and the tree became a family.

Every head coach since has played and/or coached under Sheridan.

Hendrix is likely the last of a breed.

It doesn’t work everywhere.

In the movie Patton, a German intelligence officer refers to Gen. George S. Patton as “a magnificent anachronism.”

The Furman way is a magnificent anachronism. It works as well now as 51 years ago.

Interacting with Clay Hendrix is one of my favorite pastimes. He almost always smiles when he sees me coming, whether it’s outside a locker room, in a media conference or in the wings of Timmons Arena. The reverse is also true.

Hendrix is humble, humorous and intensely competitive. He knows how hard it is to do what his teams do. He knows that the opposition is trying, too.

Summer to date is a series of academic honors and schedule announcements, but that changes shortly.

Meanwhile, away we go …

Furman’s Ben Vander Wal is a member of the Honors Court provided by the National Association of Basketball Coaches (NABC).

Vander Wal, a rising junior, averaged 5.9 points and 4.6 rebounds per game during the 2023-24 season while helping Furman to a 17-16 overall record and 10-8 Southern Conference mark.

The Elmhurst, Ill., native, who is majoring in communication studies, carries a 4.0 grade-point average. A forward, Vander Wal played in 30 games and recorded 10 starts for the Paladins last season. He scored in double figures four times, including 15 points and 13 rebounds in Furman’s victory over VMI on Feb. 14.

Women’s soccer announced a schedule that features 11 home matches, one against ranked Clemson.

After opening the season with exhibition tests at Duke (Aug. 5) and Gardner-Webb (Aug. 8), Furman begins the regular season with trips to Charleston Southern on Aug. 15 and South Carolina on Aug. 18.

The home schedule opens with three consecutive games at Stone Stadium, beginning with an Aug. 22 matchup versus Presbyterian.

SoCon play begins on Sept. 19 at Mercer. The 2024 SoCon Women’s Soccer Championship begins with first-round action on Oct. 29.

Andrew Burr, in his 20^th season as head coach, returns nine players from last year’s 7-5-7 squad that made at least 11 starts.

Take a look at the schedule here.

Four Paladins earned individual Academic All-Academic distinction, while the Furman women’s and men’s track and field programs earned Division I All-Academic Team status, under the auspices of the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association.

Furman honorees are: Megan Marvin, Sr., 3.90 economics, Chapel Hill, N.C.; Sierra Bower, Jr., 3.42 accounting, Carbondale, Colo.; Cameron Ponder, Sr., 3.46 economics, Winston-Salem, N.C.; and Dylan Schubert, Sr., 3.28 health sciences, Loveland, Colo.

To qualify as a USTFCCCA All-Academic Track & Field Team, the team must have had a cumulative team GPA of 3.00 or better.  The cumulative GPAs of all student athletes on the NCAA’s squad list must be included.  The Paladin men’s team posted a cumulative team GPA of 3.4, while the women recorded a cumulative GPA of 3.73.

In partnership with Pepsi, Furman Football’s Family Plan returns for another season to provide families in the Upstate an affordable season-ticket option.
The package includes four season tickets in sections 1, 5 & 6, for only $420 (additional season tickets can be added for $105 each).

Thanks to Pepsi, fans who take advantage of this special package will receive one season parking pass and four Furman hats for each family plan purchased.
Fans can take advantage of this great deal online here, and using the Promo Code: “Pepsi” at checkout to receive Furman Football Family Plan pricing.
Paladin fans can renew or purchase new season tickets online by clicking here, or by calling Dwight Covington at 864-607-5148 or Houghton Flanagan at 864-294-3517 or by emailing Houghton.Flanagan@Furman.edu.

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