By MONTE DUTTON

I don’t know.

Writing has been my job for most of the years since I graduated college, and following Furman has been an earnest pastime since I was 17, and I still don’t know why Charleston Southern upset the Paladins, 24-20, on Sunday night.

An inexperienced team must learn how to win. No matter how advanced the analytics are, the effect of the tangible cannot be divorced from the intangible. Furman (0-2) won the tangibles.

The Paladins gained 79 more yards, amassed six more first downs … and committed four more turnovers. A field goal bounced off the right upright. When Furman had one last chance to win it, with 2:18 remaining at its own 25, the result was a delay-of-game penalty and four consecutive incompletions.

The drive, or lack thereof, used 19 seconds. Like sands through an hourglass, hope vanished.

“We’ll learn from this and get better,” said Furman head coach Clay Hendrix. “We’ll make progress, I’ve no doubt. Our guys will come back. Everything we want is still out there in front of us, and we’ve just got to do the things it takes to be a better team.”

The cataclysmic (76-0) loss at Ole Miss a week earlier seemed meaningless. The Rebels won big because they could, but a team cannot absorb such a loss without a bit of battle fatigue.

Charleston Southern (1-1) squandered a 21-3 lead a week earlier against The Citadel. Perhaps the Buccaneers somehow learned how to win in the aftermath of that adversity.

One of few on the Furman defense with considerable experience, bandit Luke Clark, said, “Certainly experience helps, but it’s always hard to win football games, no matter how experienced you are.

“I think it’s there. We’ve got to execute better.”

The defense hasn’t yet forced a turnover.

“We’ve got to do the little things exceptionally well,” Hendrix said, “and obviously we’re not doing those things that well right now.”

Perhaps next week, when Furman hosts scholarship-free Stetson, it will build confidence, audacity and resourcefulness, or whatever undefined quality it lacks. Perhaps the Paladins will learn from this the same way the Buccaneers did.

Furman wore special all-black uniforms and faded to it.

To reiterate, I don’t know.

Everything about the day was pleasant, even inspirational, except what everyone save the Charleston Southern fans came to see, which was the end of a 10-game Paladin Stadium win streak.

Quarterback Rob McCoy connected with Noah Jennings on a pair of first-half touchdown passes, and Charleston Southern’s defense forced four turnovers without committing any.

Trailing 14-10 at halftime, Furman took the lead on Myion Hicks’ one-yard touchdown run on its opening drive of the second half. After a Paladins turnover at their own nine-yard line, Autavius Ison put the Bucs back in front with a seven-yard run that capped a two-play drive with 6:46 to play in the third quarter.

Ian Williams connected on his second field goal of the night with 9:45 remaining to trim the deficit to 21-20, but CSU forced a fumble inside the Furman 20-yard line on the Paladins’ next possession and followed a 23-yard field goal by stopping the Paladins on downs to put the game away.

McCoy completed 12/23 passes for 143 yards and two touchdowns, while Ison rushed for 90 yards and a touchdown on 19 carries. Jennings finished with seven catches for 97 yards, including touchdown grabs of 27 yards and 31 yards in the opening half.

Furman outgained the Bucs 336-257 despite being held to 101 yards rushing. Freshman Trey Hedden threw for 193 yards and his first career touchdown, connecting on 12/25, but he fumbled twice and was intercepted at his own 32 to preface Charleston Southern’s go-ahead score.

“Trey came in and did some really good stuff,” said Hendrix, “but you’ve got to take care of the ball, I don’t care what level of football you’re playing.”

Carson Jones started and hit 6/10 passes for 42 yards and an interception. Hendrix inserted Hedden with 5:40 remaining in the first half, and the immediate result was a drive that ended with Hedden’s five-yard touchdown toss to Colton Hinton.

Hedden, a freshman from Tampa, Fla., went the rest of the way.

The teams were about equally unproductive on the grounds. Charleston Soucthern netted 114 yards and averaged 2.8 per carry. Furman had 101 and 2.7.

Myion Hicks, junior from Desoto, Texas, led the Paladins with 14 carries for 68 yards.

Grant Robinson caught five passes for 20 yards. Hinton caught four for 20. Joshua caught three for 34, but Ben Ferguson’s three spanned 108.

In the 2021 season, when Furman went 6-5, Hendrix often talked about “making the layups.” On Saturday, the Paladins had a touchdown called back by a penalty, dropped passes and senseless fumbles.

“It was a weird, up-and-down night,” said Hendrix.

That it was.

Take a look at the stats here.

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