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The Furman Paladins open up the season at home against the William and Mary Tribe. These teams are tied with 8 wins each in their head-to-head matchups. William and Mary owns the most previous win with a 34-24 decision at Zable Stadium last season. Furman has an advantage at home, however, going 5-2 against the Tribe. Furman needs to make major improvements over last season, so let’s see how today plays out.
1st Quarter Highlights– Furman will kick off to the Tribe to open the game with the ball just barely staying in bounds but results in a touchback. First play of the game is a run with Rashad Raymond having a huge hole up the middle for a first down. William and Mary drops back for a short bubble pass that is intercepted by Taylen Blaylock and returned for a touchdown for the Paladins with 13:26 left to go in the first quarter. The Tribe’s second drive only nets one yard and they will punt giving us the first chance to see the Paladins offense. The Paladins offense goes three and out in their opening series of 2025. Quarterback Trey Hedden catches a lucky break with his own player recovering his fumble during a sack attempt. The defensive struggle continues back and forth between these two teams. William and Mary has a bad snap on a field goal attempt resulting in an intentional grounding penalty giving Paladins the ball with 2:30 to go in the first quarter.
2nd Quarter Highlights–
Tyler Hughes of the Tribe completes a 10-yard pass for a first down, then goes on a long scamper to put the Tribe at the Furman 3-yard line. Rashad Raymond takes a toss and stiff arms his way into the end zone from five yards out. William and Mary makes the kick tying the game at 7 a piece. Furman has a kick returner named Devin Hester, Jr. (no relation to Devin Hester formerly of the Bears) who has a long kick-off return putting Furman in fantastic field position. Furman takes advantage of the great field position with a touchdown pass from Trey Hedden to Evan James. The score is 14-7 Furman with 8:18 to go in the half. Raleigh Herbert of the Paladins comes off the edge untouched for a sack against Tyler Hughes helping force a Tribe punt. Furman was looking to get points before the half, but a fumble by Trey Hedden derailed those plans. William and Mary gets an untimed down to attempt a field goal before half. The Tribe misses the field goal leaving Furman a 14-7 lead heading to the locker room.
3rd Quarter Highlights- Furman’s opening drive shows some promise but ends in a punt. A questionable pass interference call on Deven Thompson of the Tribe results in a 15-yard penalty. The Tribe run the same play again to Deven Thompson which connects down to the 19-yard line of Furman. William and Mary caps the drive with a rushing touchdown by Tyler Hughes to tie the game at 14 points. After a defensive stop, the Tribe goes the distance for a touchdown to Sean McElwain from Tyler Hughes. After the extra point, William and Mary lead 21-14 with 5:28 to go in the 3rd quarter. Furman has a promising drive that turns into a 50-yard made field goal by Ian Williams bringing the score to 21-17. William and Mary has a long run on their first play bringing the 3rd quarter to an end.
4th Quarter Highlights- Furman’s defense starts the 4th quarter strong backing up the Tribe offense 10 yards forcing a punt. Furman has another promising drive that ends in a field goal by Ian Williams to make the score 21-20 with 10:15 to go in the game. Furman’s defense has put the Tribe behind the chains again hoping to get the ball back and take the lead. Demetrius Baldwin comes up with a huge sack on 3rd and long to force a Tribe punt with 6:40 to go. Furman takes over and Hedden immediately hits a pass to Hester, Jr for 24 yards to the William and Mary 33-yard line. Gavin Hall has a few solid runs, but Furman will settle for another Ian Williams field goal. Furman now is leading 23-21 with 2:43 to go in the game. Two incomplete passes by Hughes and a negative rush by Raymond turns the ball over on downs. Once Furman gets the ball, they convert one first down and go into victory formation. Furman Paladins move to 1-0 with a close contested battle against the Tribe, winning 23-21. The following video contains Coach Hendrix and the players of the game.
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