Furman to face the Citadel in 103rd meeting of the SoCon’s most played rivalry Saturday
The Furman Paladins are set to face the Citadel Bulldogs for the 103rd time on Saturday afternoon in Paladin Stadium, adding another installment to the Southern Conferences all time most contested rivalry matchup.
The Paladins (3-1, 1-0) come out of their bye week to face the Bulldogs (0-5, 0-2) concluding the festivities of Furman’s Family Weekend with the game at Paladin Stadium at 2 PM EST on Saturday afternoon.
Furman is coming into the game rested, with a week off between their last contest and Saturday’s game. It’s hard to say if the week of rest was needed, as the Paladins have been rolling so far in 2023.
In their last appearance on the gridiron prior to the bye, the Paladins creamed Mercer 38-14 to open SoCon play.
As a result of the impressive win over Mercer (who was ranked 23rd in the AFCA FCS poll at the time) the Paladins vaulted up to the #4 spot in the latest edition of the AFCA rankings. Now, Furman will be looking to improve to 2-0 in conference play against the Citadel on Saturday.
“I thought we played our most complete game against a really good Mercer team,” Furman head coach Clay Hendrix told the media including the Furman Joust podcast on Monday. “I thought [going into the season] that we had a chance to be a good football team, and I still think that. Great teams, really good teams, they continue to get better. I feel like we kinda have.”
It’s been a tough year to date for the Citadel, as the Bulldogs will be looking to turn their ship around in Greenville after an 0-5 start, including two SoCon losses.
Last week, the Bulldogs fell to Western Carolina 49-14 at home, continuing the Citadel’s miserable start to the year. Offense has been hard to come by for the Citadel in 2023, as the Bulldogs are averaging a mere 6.8 points per game, the worst by any team in the FCS or FBS this season by a nearly 3 point margin.
“I think college football is about matchups,” Hendrix said when asked how Furman has prepared for the struggling Citadel. “People get enamored by yards, and how many yards, but who are the yards against? Who’d you struggle more against? Sometimes maybe not such good [offensive] teams are pretty good defensive football teams.”
Last season the Paladins conquered the Bulldogs on the road in Charleston, 21-10. The rivalry match has been played 102 times prior to Saturday, making it the longest tenured matchup in Southern Conference history. Furman owns a dominating 67-32-3 lead in the series and have emerged victorious in 14 of the last 20 games between the two schools.
There’s nothing better than a weekend of fun, family, and football, and the intensity of a rivalry only adds to the Furman Family Weekend festivities. Win lose or draw, we’ve got Furman Football tomorrow in Greenville.
2023 statistics:
Furman Football
PPG: 33.75
Points allowed (per game): 24.75
Rushing Yards (team): 655 yds
Passing yards (team): 835 yds
Rushing leader: QB Tyler Huff (218 yds, 4 TDs), RB Dominic Roberto (189 yds, 4 TDs)
Passing leader: QB Tyler Huff (706 yds, 2 TDs)
Receiving leader: WR Joshua Harris (18 rec, 177 yds), WR Kyndel Dean (11 rec, 152 yds)
Tackles leader: S Hugh Ryan (29 tot, 17 solo)
The Citadel Football
PPG: 6.80
Points allowed (per game): 43.60
Rushing yards (team): 613 yds
Passing yards (team): 517 yds
Rushing leader: RB Cooper Wallace (202 yds)
Passing leader: QB Graeson Underwood (294 yds, 2 TDs), QB Dustin Fletcher (211 yds, 1 TD)
Receiving leader: RB Cooper Wallace (9 rec, 110 yds, 2 TDs), TE Tyson Trottier (2 rec, 94 yds, 1 TD)
Tackles leader: LB Thomas Wyatt (39 tot, 22 solo), DB Carson Walter (36 tot, 29 solo)
Television information:
ESPN+, 1 PM CST/2 PM EST
Furman vs the Citadel will be streamed exclusively on ESPN+ starting at 2 PM EST on Saturday afternoon.
Radio broadcasts can be found on The Fan Upstate and its four main stations: 97.7 FM/1330 AM in Greenville, and 97.1 FM/950 AM in Spartanburg.
Additionally, radio broadcasts can be found on Audacy.com, as well as through furmanpaladins.com.
For more news and coverage of all Furman Paladin athletics, be sure to follow The Furman Joust podcast on twitter, or visit our website at furmanjoust.com.
