GREENVILLE, S.C. (Furman SID) — The Furman Paladins are back in the Football Championship Subdivision (FCS) Playoffs, earning an at-large bid to the 24-team field of playoff teams, it was announced today.
Furman (8-4, 6-2 SoCon), ranked No. 16 in the STATS FCS Poll released earlier today, will hit the road to face Ohio Valley Conference champion Austin Peay (9-3, 7-1 OVC), ranked 18th in the FCS Poll, this Saturday at 1 p.m. ET on ESPN3 at Fortera Stadium in Clarksville, Tenn.
The playoff berth is the 18th for Furman — tops among current Southern Conference schools and second in the last three years under third-year head coach Clay Hendrix.
The Paladins, who own an 19-16 all-time playoff record, have played for three FCS (formerly I-AA) Championships and captured the league’s first national championship in 1988, defeating Georgia Southern, 17-12, in Pocatello, Idaho.
The Paladins dropped two of their first three games this season, including setbacks to FBS foes Georgia State (48-42 loss) and Virginia Tech (24-17), before winning seven of their next eight outings. Furman was ranked ninth in the FCS Selection Committee’s Top 10, which was released on Nov. 6, and moved as high as seventh in the AFCA Coaches Poll on Nov. 11 before falling to Wofford, 24-7, on the road in the SoCon season finale on Nov. 16.
