By MONTE DUTTON

Furman (5-4, 3-3 SoCon) and Chattanooga (4-5, 3-2) are vastly different schools with vastly different football programs. Somehow, the Paladins and Mocs tend to play fine games against each other.

Among the SoCon middlings, the teams that play at noon on Saturday at Chattanooga’s Finley Stadium are in each other’s way.

The Paladins average 24.8 points, 101.3 yards on the ground and 247.6 through the air. The Mocs’ matching numbers are 29.3, 201.7 and 183.8. Both have beaten East Tennessee State and Samford. Both fell to Western Carolina. The Citadel beat Chattanooga; the Paladins conquered the Bulldogs.

Furman’s head coach, Clay Hendrix, and Chattanooga’s, Rusty Wright, are close. Wright is a former Paladin assistant.

In Chattanooga, Furman faces a team on the rise. Furman follows Western Carolina, which barely held on to defeat the Mocs last week, 35-28. Chattanooga has played the conference’s toughest schedule of outsiders in ranked teams Memphis in the FBS and FCS powers Tennessee Tech and Tarleton (Texas) State.

Last year Chattanooga put an end to Furman’s three-game series winning streak with a decisive 41-10 triumph at Paladin Stadium.  In 2023, Furman clinched the SoCon championship with a 17-14 triumph and defeated the Mocs again, 26-7, in the second round of the playoffs. All-time the Paladins have won 18/27 road games against Chattanooga.

A better performance is required than the one the Paladins generated in a 52-28 loss to Mercer last Saturday at home, where Furman had just eight first downs and 227 yards. Freshman C.J. Nettles rushed for a career-best 105 yards, including a 67-yard scoring jaunt, in a losing cause.

“The thing that continues to show up for us is a lack of consistency in the ability to execute,” Hendrix said.

After consecutive 10-3 seasons, Furman struggled through a 3-8 campaign in 2024. The Paladins are still young. A victory in Chattanooga would at least double last year’s victory total.

“We as coaches have got to get our guys to execute at a higher level,” Hendrix noted. “We had all kinds of chances (versus Mercer). The third quarter got away from us. We’ve still got a chance to finish really strong.

“Another thing that keeps showing up is the number of one-on-ones we keep losing. It’s a sport of one-on-ones. You’re not going to win them all, but you’ve got to win your share.”

The Paladins’ top two receivers are freshman Evan James (45 catches, 544 yards, 3 TDs) and redshirt sophomore Ja’Keith Hamilton (28/296,5). James is only six receptions shy of Furman’s freshman season record despite missing three games due to injury.

Furman’s defense took heavy damage from the Bears. Redshirt sophomore Joshua Stoneking has 19 tackles for loss and 12.5 sacks, still leading the FCS in those categories despite a quiet game against Mercer.

“It’s just a next-play mentality,” said inside linebacker Raleigh Herbert of Cumming, Ga. “Things are going to go good, and they’re going to go bad.

“It’s a little frustrating. We know if we stay on the field, we’ve got to get some stops. … We’ve got to start making some of those plays we didn’t make.”

Freshman Caleb Easterling scored on a 100-yard kickoff return.

Ian Williams could be the nation’s most accomplished and versatile kicker. He averages 43.6 yards a punt and has made 11/14 field-goal tries. Twice in his career he’s made 57-yard field goals.

“I definitely have a big leg,” said Wlliams, a graduate from Charlotte, N.C. “I’d definitely like to give a 60-yarder a try.”

Furman, in Hendrix’s view, is still “a player development place. … We’ve got to keep developing players. You’ve got those young guys trying to execute at the level we want. They don’t have the reps built in, but we’ve played nine football games, and we shouldn’t be making the mistakes we’re making.”

Injuries have hampered the progress. Leading rusher Gavin Hall went down last week and underwent wrist surgery.

Chattanooga quarterback Camden Orth, in his seventh year at his third school (Bowling Green, Long Island, Chattanooga), has completed 123/218 passes for 1,684 yards, with 13 touchdowns and nine interceptions. The leading rusher, Justus Durant, has 613 yards in 128 carries. He is a senior who started out at Shorter (Ga.).

In addition to ESPN+ streaming and Nexstar Network (CW 62 in the Upstate) linear broadcast options, the contest will be aired over Furman flagship The Fan Upstate (97.7 FM/1330 AM in Greenville, 97.1 FM/950 AM in Spartanburg) with Dan Scott, David Cobb and Tom Van Hoy on the call.

The Furman men’s basketball team tips off its regular-season home schedule Friday evening when defending Sun Belt Conference champion Troy visits Timmons Arena.

The Paladins (0-1) enter Friday in search of their first win after dropping a 97-71 decision to defending Big South Conference champion High Point on Monday at the Field of 68 Tip-Off Marathon in Rock Hill.

Troy enters Friday’s game, the first meeting between the Trojans and Paladins, at 1-0 following a 103-97 overtime victory at Kent State on Monday night against a Golden Flashes team predicted to finish third in the MAC. Theo Seng led the Trojans with 24 points and Victor Valdes added 23.

Dani Carnegie led Georgia with 19 points in a 91-45 victory over Furman in women’s basketball Thursday evening at Stegeman Coliseum in Athens.

Carnegie, a 5- 9 sophomore guard, connected on 5/8 shots from three-point range and complemented it with eight rebounds, three assists and three steals.

 Georgia shot .493 percent from the field and made 7/15 attempts from three-point range (.467). The Bulldogs outscored the Paladins 44-12 in the paint and converted 26 Furman turnovers into 26 points.

Raina McGowens and Chantelle Stuart led Furman with eight points each.

 Furman plays at Vanderbilt on Monday in a 7 p.m. EST contest.

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