Furman’s football team took on Southern Conference foe Western Carolina University on Saturday, Oct. 11 in Cullowhee, N.C. The Dins suffered a 52-7 rout at the claws of the Catamounts.

In the first quarter, the teams were evenly matched, with dormant offenses and active defenses on both sides.

In the second quarter, Western Carolina’s offense unloaded onto Furman. Their 24-7 scoring run began with a 44-yard field goal from freshman kicker Marcus Trout, which put the Catamounts up 3-0 a mere 37 seconds in the quarter.

On the next two possessions, the Catamounts’ redshirt sophomore quarterback Taron Dickens fired two touchdowns in less than four minutes, putting Western up 17-0 with 7:39 left in the half.

With 1:38 left in the half, Furman sophomore quarterback Trey Hedden threw an interception to redshirt junior defensive back Ken Moore Jr., who ran the ball 64 yards for a touchdown. This extended the Catamount lead to 24-0.

Furman’s offense then put together a scoring drive as graduate tight end Joshua Burrell caught a pass from Hedden for an 8-yard touchdown with 13 seconds left in the half. The 75-yard, 10-play drive attempted to stop the bleeding for The Paladins.

However, the Catamounts responded immediately in the third quarter, ending any hopes of a Furman comeback. Dickens hit redshirt junior wide receiver Malik Knight for a 42-yard touchdown, adding seven more points to the scoreboard for Western and putting them up 31-7.

The rest of the second half was more of the same. The Catamount offense seemed unstoppable as they added 28 points in the half. Their defense caused Furman to go scoreless in the second half, ending the game with a score of 52-7.

Dickens had 220 passing yards on the day, adding four touchdowns for Western Carolina.

The Catamounts gained 522 yards on offense compared to Furman’s 366. The Paladins also suffered four turnovers in the game, including Moore’s pick-six.