Nov. 14, 2007

By Willie T. Smith III, The Greenville News

GREENVILLE, S.C. -- Brantley Kendall's job, like top reserves on college football teams everywhere, is simple: be ready when the guy ahead of you needs a break.

For Kendall, a junior on the Furman University football team, the shoes he fills are particularly big. He backs up one of the top fullbacks in college football -- senior Jerome Felton.

After Saturday's Southern Conference game at Western Carolina, the Paladins' season will be concluded and the fullback job officially will become Kendall's.

Kendall has kept those thoughts on the back burner since enrolling at Furman, and he said he would have no problem doing that for another game. His thoughts are just about defeating the Catamounts and sending the senior class out with a winning season. Furman, which lost three of its first four games, enters the game with a 5-5 record.

"Looking at our record people may not think we have good leadership or whatever they want to blame it on," Kendall said. "Since I've been here, this is some of the best senior leadership we've had. I don't believe that was accurately reflected in our (early season) record. You can definitely see it now in how we're playing."

Despite his backup status, Kendall has made himself a valuable member of the team, not only as a blocker and runner but as a receiver out of the backfield.

"He does that as well as anyone on our team," Furman coach Bobby Lamb said.

In addition to rushing for 84 yards as a sophomore, Kendall caught five passes for 74 yards and two touchdowns. In the Paladins' opener that season, he caught a 19-yard pass for the go-ahead touchdown with 28 seconds remaining in a 17-13 win against Jacksonville State.

In a 13-10 victory over Georgia Southern that clinched a playoff berth, Kendall caught another 19-yard for a touchdown despite being closely guarded.

This year Kendall has rushed for 46 yards and a touchdown on six carries and caught six passes for 46 yards and two touchdowns.

Kendall says, despite the Paladins' poor start, it hasn't been difficult for the team to rebound.

"A lot of people would like to say we're still playing for the seniors," said Kendall. "A lot of the seniors actually say they prefer us not to actually play for the seniors but each of us are brothers on the team. That's the attitude we've developed. Just being a close-knit group, it wasn't a problem for us to go out and play for the guy you line up next to."