With a 24-17 victory over longtime Palmetto State rival the Citadel Bulldogs, the Paladins brought their record back to an even 2 and 2. The two teams took the field Saturday night in Charleston in what was Furman’s first Southern Conference game of the season. After two tough losses to Gardner-Webb and Coastal Carolina to open the season, we are riding a two-game win streak coming into the Oct. 5 Family Weekend home game against Elon. The victory was the 58th for the Paladins in the 93 game series between these two schools. With this win, Furman opens Southern Conference play with a 1-0 record, and with Appalachian State and Georgia Southern ineligible for postseason contention this year, we are only behind Wofford in the standings.
The game was decided halfway through the final quarter as redshirt sophomore Tanner Skogen scampered 13 yards into the endzone to break the deadlocked game. The score followed a huge interception by defensive back Reggie Thomas and a 43 yard completion from backup quarterback Duncan Fletcher to receiver Gary Robinson. Through four games, Robinson leads all Paladins with 16 receptions for 261 yards and two scores.
Freshman Duncan Fletcher opened the season as the third-string quarterback, but following a season-ending injury to backup and fellow freshman Dillon Woodruff in the Gardner-Webb game, he was promoted to second-string. After starter Reese Hannon was forced to leave the game with a knee injury in the third, Fletcher was given his first opportunity at the collegiate level. Fletcher did an excellent job once he came into the game, completing all three pass attempts totalling 61 yards, as well as running the ball four times for an additional 19 yards.
Furman’s first two touchdowns came in the second quarter on rushes of nine and two yards from sophomore Terry Robinson. Robinson scored both touchdowns as the quarterback in a wildcat formation where the ball is snapped directly to him and he runs with it in a designed play. He is the younger brother of wide receiver, Gary Robinson.
Other notable statistics from the game include 77 rushing yards on 16 carries for running back Hank McCloud, who led all rushers. This brings him to 337 rushing yards on the season, at an impressive 5.0 yards per carry. Place kicker Ray Early knocked a 34 yard field goal through the uprights in the first quarter to improve to 4 for 4 in his career against the Citadel Bulldogs. Greg Worthy led all tacklers with 10, to improve his team leading total to 42 on the year. Worthy was one of the Paladins’ top tacklers this year, and the senior strong safety is continuing that production into the 2013 season. Be sure to bring your parents out to the game next weekend against the Elon Phoenix. Kickoff is set for 1:30 p.m. in Paladin Stadium.
