Clemson football “escaped” Atlanta on Monday but didn’t seem to escape the controversy that came along with the offensive performance. Finally, after a week of criticism (due or undue), Clemson flips the page to Week 2 this week. Today’s “Bless Your Heart” deals with the Furman University Christian Knights, or otherwise known as the Purple Paladins.
The Furman game is always a fun time when it gets scheduled. Everyone from Clemson knows someone (or several someones) who went to FU. My mother is a Furman alum. She graduated during the time when Furman was a name you heard during basketball season, when a name like “Clyde Mayes” dominated the local and national scenes.
My wife, although an admitted South Carolina fan (lord bless we’re working on her), has a degree from Furman where she, like many others, spent more time at the library than the stadium. A close family friend of both of ours is currently a walk-on for the team as a freshman.
The school is a short drive from my house, and if you’re looking for gorgeous campus to walk around or hike, or even catch a game, Furman is a neat little spot in North Greenville County. I’d go as far to say that Furman is probably the FCS program that I root for the hardest on that level (apologies to all my friends who attended Wofford or The Citadel).
But for one week every 3 or 4 years (it seems), I have to change my tune.
So, for all my FU friends and family, sorry but here it goes:
Your school stinks.
We get it- your academics are hard, and you’ll probably be a doctor or a lawyer or a politician one day, but all that gets a collective “eye roll” from Tiger fans when you come down I-85 on Saturday. Death Valley is a different animal when compared to playing in a high school sized stadium against North Greenville.
This year’s Paladins got off to a roaring start by throttling the aforementioned Crusaders of NGU mercilessly by a score of 52-0. Since 2018, head coach Clay Hendrix has implemented a quasi-flex bone offense that has had success in his short tenure. I say “quasi” because everyone saw what happened when Paul Johnson left GT, so naturally there have to be some other concepts to help the ‘Dins move the ball.
Furman is coming off a 52-0 victory in their season opener, but the task ahead of them with Clemson football is much tougher this week
Furman’s offense runs through Tyler Huff. In limited action last Thursday, he threw for 189 on 10 completions and ran for additional 94 yards. The kid looked good.
But that was a D-II defense. The defense he faces Saturday will be from a different universe. More than anything he has seen at Furman or in his time at PC.
In the end, I think this game comes at the perfect time for both teams. Clemson has seen what it can do well, and what it needs to work on. This is the game it can “work on things”. For Furman, it’s a chance to take on top competition and see where they stand. They don’t have to win the game Saturday, or even come close for that matter, but it can help them in the long run with any deficiencies they may have as well.
And at the end of the day, it’s just fun to get to have a wry smile on your face when you hear from your friend, family, or (**cough cough**) wife say, “well it wasn’t as bad I thought it would be.”
Clemson wins this one and plays reserves for most of the 2nd half.
Enjoy the week, wear a raincoat, and Furman fans…bless your heart.
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