Oct. 6, 2007
Final Stats
GREENVILLE, S.C. -- Renaldo Gray connected with Larry Hedden on a 5-yard touchdown pass in the fourth quarter to break a tie game and help propel Furman to a 27-17 win over Coastal Carolina in football action Saturday afternoon at Paladin Stadium.
Gray's go-ahead strike to Hedden with 10:30 remaining came two plays after the Paladins' R.J. Webb recovered a fumble by Paladin tailback Cedrick Gipson on a 37-yard run to the Coastal Carolina 6 yard line.
Scott Beckler added a 42-yard field goal with 6:35 left to stretch the advantage to 27-17, which Furman preserved with a strong pass rush over the Chanticleers' final two possessions.
The victory snapped a three-game losing skid for Furman (2-3) -- its longest since 1998. The loss was the third straight for Coastal Carolina (1-4).
"I was very proud of the way we fought back in the second half and won the game despite kicking ourselves in the foot with turnovers," said Furman head coach Bobby Lamb. "Our defense kept stopping them and giving our offense opportunities, and we finally managed to cash in on a couple. We also got a good lift from our special teams with a punt return for a touchdown, a blocked punt, and a long field goal."
"Furman is a very good football team," said Coastal Carolina head coach David Bennett. "I voted them in the Top 25 again this week because I knew who they had lost to and knew they were still a very good football team. We had some opportunities today. We created some turnovers, but we didn't capitalize on them and you can't afford to not take advantage of opportunities against a team like Furman."
Furman forged a slim 244-227 advantage in total offense in a contest that included six turnovers, including four by the Paladins. Furman, however, racked up five sacks in the game and was credited with two interceptions and seven pass deflections.
Solid special teams play set the table early for Furman, which grabbed a quick 7-0 lead on a 63-yard punt return for a touchdown by R.J. Webb midway through the first period.
After stopping Coastal Carolina in three plays on its next possession, the Paladins' Mike Brown blocked a punt by the Chanticleers' Ben Erdman at the Coastal 18. Three plays later Beckler connected on a 29-yard field goal to give Furman a 10-0 advantage.
Coastal Carolina rebounded with a pair of William Richardson touchdown strikes on its next two possessions to take a 14-10 lead.
Richardson's 14-yard touchdown pass to Santini Washington early in the second quarter got the Chanticleers on the board, and after Marrio Norman intercepted a Gray pass the Paladin 43, Richardson capped the drive with a 17-yard scoring toss to Jerome Simpson with 7:33 to go in the first half.
Furman regained in the lead in the third quarter on a 1-yard touchdown run by fullback Jerome Felton -- the 54th of his career, a new school record.
A Paladin fumble at its own 29 led to a Justin Durham 42-yard field goal that knotted the game at 17-17 with 12:52 to go, but Furman quickly answered, using a 14-yard pass from Gray to Patrick Sprague and fumble recovery by Webb at the Chanticleer 6 following a 37-yard by Gipson. Two plays later Gray connected with Hedden in the end zone for the go-ahead score.
Beckler provided Furman with its final 10-point margin with a 42-yard field goal with 6:35 remaining.
Thomas Twitty led the Paladin defense with a career high 17 tackles. Furman's five sacks gave it 16 on the season, two more than the Paladins recorded in 12 games a year ago.
The Paladins take on arch-rival The Citadel next Saturday in Charleston in a 3:00 p.m. game while Coastal Carolina entertains Chowan in Conway next Saturday beginning at 7:00 p.m.
