Photo by Evi-Jane Garnett
On Saturday, March 16, Furman fans flocked to see a new-look Paladin football team for the annual purple and white scrimmage at Paladin Stadium. The Paladins have enjoyed a lengthy offseason, but the time was right for head coach Clay Hendrix to showcase the team heading into the 2024 season.
A significant question mark going into this season for the Paladins is how they will fare after losing almost 40 players to either graduation or the transfer portal. This year’s team will be without many of last season’s stars, including redshirt junior cornerback Micah Robinson, graduate cornerback Travis Blackshear, redshirt senior center/guard Jake Johanning, and many more. Additionally, the Paladins have a quarterback battle beginning to play out this spring.
Furman showcased several of its new players during the spring game, especially at quarterback. Football fans likely wonder who will be the starting quarterback in 2024, but all the signs from last season have pointed to sophomore QB Carson Jones. Jones is the only active QB on the roster to see game action last season.
Jones replaced graduate QB Tyler Huff for a short stint last season, noticeably during a 37-3 win against VMI, where he threw for 226 yards and four touchdowns. He was also selected to the SoCon All-Freshman team and SoCon Co-Freshman of the Year for his play.
Jones shared time with freshmen quarterbacks Nehuel Garcia and Trey Hedden. Jones completed 5/10 passes for 45 yards and an interception, while Garcia connected on 6/13 passes for 64 yards and a touchdown. Hedden, a 247Sports three-star QB prospect out of Tampa, Fla., was statistically the best out of them all. He completed 7/16 passes for 124 yards, two touchdowns, and two interceptions, as well. With all three QB1 candidates playing well, Hendrix has a tough decision to make as the season quickly approaches.
Defensively, the starting 11 will surely look different, as Furman only returns three defensive starters from last year’s team. Noticeable returners include All-SoCon senior LB/DE Luke Clark and senior NG Xavier Stephens, who both had multiple sacks in the spring game.
Sophomore LB Quay Rush made the play of the game on an intercepted pass, which he returned for a touchdown. Freshmen safeties AK Burnell and Billy Lewis also recorded interceptions.
Aside from the young depth chart, the Paladins have faced extreme adversity this offseason with the tragic loss of defensive tackle Bryce Stanfield. Losing a teammate, especially before the season, was excruciatingly hard on the team, coaching staff, and the Furman community. The Paladins kept a “97” on the back of their helmets at the spring game in honor of Stanfield. Overall, it was a successful outing for the Paladins. A great spring scrimmage is competitive, and this one did not disappoint.
The Paladins will kick off their regular season on Aug. 31 against the University of Mississippi in Oxford, Miss. The Ole Miss Rebels, a Division I FBS powerhouse, are pre-season favorites to compete for the Southeastern Conference championship and will be looking to start their season strong. For the Dins, upset will be the word of the day.