By MONTE DUTTON

Some football coaches poormouth in the preseason. They hedge their bets.

Others try to build confidence by analyzing their teams optimistically, seeking to build confidence in the ranks.

Furman head coach Clay Hendrix has a novel approach. He just says what he thinks.

The Paladins have taken heavy losses from the 10-3 team that won the Southern Conference and advanced to the FCS third round (after a first-round bye) before losing in overtime to Montana, 35-28, which in turn fell in the finals to South Dakota State.

Hendrix and his staff have constructed a program, not just built a team. He thinks he’s got another fine team.

Time will tell, but the plans are the best-laid. As coaches are prone to say, someone’s got to step up. At least a dozen are young men we shall get to know better.

Looking at the fall’s football schedule, it looks as if I’ll have a twinbill on Sept. 28 when Chattanooga visits Furman at 2 p.m. and Davidson takes on Presbyterian in Clinton at 7.

The following week, the Paladins are at The Citadel and PC travels to San Diego. As much as I enjoyed a trip to that lovely California city in the 1980s, I shan’t return unless somehow my novel, The Graduate Transfer, gets published and I’m summoned to Hollywood to negotiate movie rights.

In two months.

One never knows. I’ve received some lovely rejection notes.

Kickoff for Furman’s Sept. 7 football home opener versus Charleston Southern is set for 6 p.m. at Paladin Stadium.

The game, officially billed as “FU After Dark,” represents the lone home night contest on Furman’s six-game Paladin Stadium slate this fall.

Furman and Charleston Southern first battled in Paladin Stadium in 2019 in a game the Paladins won, 46-13.  Furman claimed a 24-19 victory at Charleston Southern during the 2022 season.

Under the direction of head coach Clay Hendrix, who in seven seasons has compiled a 51-29 overall record (.638) and 39-16 SoCon worksheet (.709), the Paladins are ranked No.14 in the FCS in the Hero Sports Preseason Top 25 Poll.

Furman kicks off the season on Aug. 31 at Ole Miss.

Furman men’s golf team won an Outstanding Team Academic Award from the Golf Coaches Association of America.

The Paladins posted a 3.54 GPA to join 58 other NCAA Division I teams that earned the distinction.

To be eligible, a college must submit GPAs for each player on its official squad list for the academic year, and teams with a combined 3.5 GPA and above earn the award.

“As coaches, awards like this make us as proud as the wins and trophies on the course,” stated head coach Matt Davidson.  “Especially at an academically challenging school like Furman, it means our students are managing their time well and prioritizing both golf and school at a very high level.”

As football season approaches, I expect to streamline the site name. Since the coverage – Furman and Laurens County – is difficult to convey in a word, I may stick with Wellpilgrim (com, net, et al.). Or, if anyone thinks of anything snazzy, I’ll take it under advisement.

A shorter name makes it more likely that readers go directly to the site without linking through social media (not that there’s anything wrong with that).

Advertising alone will not keep me going, but there’s room for a few more. Every ad is inset in every story.

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