The season is a week away, and Furman head football coach Clay Hendrix still weighs his options at the quarterback position.

Tyler Huff’s successor remains under consideration as Hendrix and staff consider the merits of Carson Jones (6-2, 204, So.), Trey Hedden (6-3, 231, Fr.) and Nehuel Garcia (6-3, 202, R-Fr.).

They have a considerable legacy.

Gone is Southern Conference Player of the Year Huff, whose dual-threat ability helped lead the Paladins to a 20-6 record over the past two seasons, including a 14-2 SoCon mark, and last year’s league championship.  In Huff’s two years with the Paladins, Furman never lost a league game (13-0) he started.

“We’ve had some good competition there among three guys coming into the fall, with Carson, Trey and Nehuel battling to determine who will start,” said Hendrix. “They’ve had good preseasons and are all getting better. At the end of the week we’ll narrow it down at bit before we decide who will be in the first group. I think all three are guys we can win games with.

“They all have their own strengths but are similar ability-wise. They are certainly different from Tyler in that they don’t have his running ability, but they can all stretch the field, which they’ve shown. They make all the throws we want to make. When you combine that with the group of receivers we have, it makes us better offensively from that standpoint. Our guys have confidence in them.”

The favorite is Jones, who came off the bench for the injured Huff to direct the Paladins to a 17-14 SoCon title-clinching road win over Chattanooga last year, throwing the game-winning touchdown pass with less than two minutes remaining. The following week, in his first career start, he passed for 226 yards and four touchdowns in a 37-3 win over VMI. He finished the season with 542 yards passing (57/101, 2 INTs) and seven touchdowns and was named SoCon Freshman of the Year.

“Carson has been in our program for three years, which makes you think he should have the advantage,” stated Hendrix. “He’s played well in a couple of big games. The big key for him, and all our guys, will be consistency and the ability to take care of the ball. He’s done those things. He throws the ball well, is a good athlete and has good command of what we are doing.”

Hedden joined the Paladins in January as a mid-year enrollee out of IMG Academy and took part in spring practice.

“Trey is a big-body guy with a big arm and is a good athlete. He’s a real student of the game and seems to around here a bunch for extra tutoring and asking questions. He has a bright future, though he hasn’t played in a game. Somebody has to play in a game at some point.” 

Garcia begins his second season in the program.

 “Nehuel has made some really good progress from a year ago.”

 The Paladins also have Luke Hedrick (5-11, 190, R-Jr.), Isaac Ward (5-11, 185, Gr.), and Dixon Massingill (6-3, 180, R-So.) at quarterback.

“Luke has been in our program for four years. He will likely be our holder,” Hendrix said.

Hendrix announced the election of six team captains: the late defensive tackle Bryce Stanfield, wide receiver Joshua Harris, linebacker Evan DiMaggio, offensive guard Luke Petit, defensive end Jeremiah Jackson, and bandit Luke Clark.

Stanfield, who passed away on Feb. 9 following a brief illness, was the only captain elected by unanimous vote. The Acworth, Ga., product was a three-year letterman who saw action in 34 games and totaled 49 tackles and seven sacks during his Paladin career. He was awarded his Bachelor of Science degree, magna cum laude, in health sciences prior to his passing.

Harris is a preseason All-So pick who caught 42 passes for 380 yards and two touchdowns a year ago. Owner of 35 starts, the Newnan, Ga., product has 116 receptions, which ranks 12th at Furman all-time.

DiMaggio saw action in all 13 games and delivered 10 tackles and a pair of sacks in a 29-17 win over Western Carolina. He finished the season with 79 tackles, including 11.5 for-loss.  A redshirt senior and veteran of 43 games, the Buford, Ga., native, was named to the preseason All-SoCon squad.

Petit, a redshirt junior and preseason first team All-SoCon selection, is looking to return to form after sustaining a season ending knee injury six games into the 2023 campaign. The Akron, Ohio, native finished the season with six starts and 331 plays.

Jackson, a native of Fleming Island, Fla., and veteran of 32 games, started four contests in 2022 before injury ended his season.  The redshirt senior returned to the field last year and proved to be a major contributor, including delivering two sacks in the Paladins’ 17-14 title-clinching road win over Chattanooga.

Clark, who is coming off a season that saw him register 53 tackles and a team-leading six sacks, earned All-SoCon and was recently was named to the Stats Perform Preseason All-America squad. The product of Louisville, Ky., owns 26 starts and 12 sacks in his career.

The Furman men’s soccer team opened its regular season with a 1-1 draw versus CAA member UNC Wilmington Thursday night at Stone Soccer Stadium.

Lloyd Wamu Snell put the Paladins in front in the 12^th minute when Christian Kraus redirected Malachi Grant’s cross into the box and the junior buried his shot at the 11:34 mark.

After Furman compiled a 9-4 edge in total shots and 5-0 advantage in shots on target in the opening 45 minutes, UNCW went on the attack in the second half. The pressure paid off for the Seahawks at 79:25 when a flurry of shots inside the box ended with Alex Hornada punching his attempt past Furman’s Aaron Salinas to even the match.

UNCW outshot the Paladins 11-4 in the second half to finish with a 15-13 margin in total shots and 7-5 edge in shots on goal. Salinas stopped four shots for the Paladins while Viktor Engh turned away six Furman attempts.

Presbyterian scored a pair of goals on long-distance shots to edge Furman, 2-0, and spoil the Paladins’ home opener Thursday evening.

With the match knotted at 1-1 in the 65^th minute, the Blue Hose drew a free kick halfway between the top of the box and midfield. Gwen Keiser unleashed a shot that glanced off the fingertips of Furman goalkeeper Addison Corn and under the cross bar at 64:58 for the winning score.

Presbyterian (2-1) took the lead just 11:05 into the first half when Emilia Lieber ripped a shot over Paladin goalkeeper Reese DeJong to open the scoring. Furman answered less than 10 minutes into the second half on Ellie Herrmann’s driving shot from the top-right corner of the 18-yard box to tie the match, but the Paladins were unable to find the go-ahead goal before Keiser’s winner less than 11 minutes later.

Furman (1-2) outshot the Blue Hose 16-13 and managed a 9-8 edge in shots on goal. Kelly Hall recorded eight saves in goal for the Blue Hose while Corn stopped four second-half shots for the Paladins.

The Furman cross country teams are picked to win their 12^th straight SoCon crowns in preseason balloting conducted by the league’s 10 head coaches.

The Paladin women, who own the longest active conference winning streak in the nation on the women’s side, received nine first-place votes in the poll, totaling 81 points. The Furman men also claimed nine first-place votes and a total of 81 points after setting the league record for consecutive team titles last season.  

Samford was picked to finish second on the women’s side, followed by Chattanooga in third.  For the men, ETSU was slated in second place, while Mercer was picked third.  

Nine newcomers are set to join the Furman softball program and begin preparations for the 2025 season, according to head coach Stacey Johnson-Whitfield.

Logan Gunter (Silk Hope, N.C.), Rachel Hawkins (Miami, Fla.), Hope Marshburn (Clover), Sydney McGuirk (Excelsior, Minn.), Lily O’Bryan (Cleveland, Tenn.), Katie Peeler (Salisbury, N.C.), Madison Petty (Dade City, Fla.), Gracie Scott (Lexington), and Kate Stoltzfus (Fair Play) will begin classes at Furman later this month.

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