GREENVILLE, S.C. -- ESPN Upstate (WORD-AM), the top-rated sports talk show station in the Greenville-Spartanburg market, will serve as the flagship station for Furman football and men's basketball for the next two years, it was announced today by director of athletics Jason Donnelly.

The partnership will make Paladin football and men's basketball broadcasts available over ESPN Upstate's four powerhouse stations: 97.7 FM/1330 AM in Greenville, and 97.1 FM/950 AM in Spartanburg.  Broadcasts can also be accessed via RADIO.COM, the fastest growing digital audio app in the U.S., as well as through FurmanPaladins.com and Tune-In.

"Furman Athletics is proud to announce another important strategic partnership as Greenville's college athletics team," said Donnelly.  "Being aligned with ESPN Upstate enables our football and basketball programs the opportunity to be broadcast and gain widespread exposure on the top sports radio station in the Upstate. We are excited to continue growing our Furman Paladins brand and fan base with ESPN Upstate in the years ahead.  I appreciate the great work led by Dan Scott, 'the Voice of the Paladins', and our athletics staff to solidify this partnership."

"This partnership is big win for us, Furman University, our advertisers and, most importantly, our listeners," said Steve Sinicropi, Senior Vice President and Market Manager, Entercom Greenville-Spartanburg. "We look forward to delivering complete coverage of Furman's football and men's basketball programs, including play-by-play on game days and expanded Furman programming throughout the week, to the fast-growing ESPN Upstate."

In addition to game broadcasts, ESPN Upstate talk shows will feature weekly in-season appearances by Paladin head football coach Clay Hendrix and men's basketball head coach Bob Richey.

Hendrix is in his fourth year as head coach at his alma mater, where he has directed Furman to a 2018 SoCon championship and FCS playoff appearances in the last three years. A three-year starter as a Paladin, he played a key role in three SoCon Championship teams under Furman Hall of Fame coach Dick Sheridan in the early-mid 1980s, and later served as an assistant coach for 19 years (1988-06), during which time the Paladins won six more league crowns and became the first FCS private school to win a national championship (1988).

In the span of just three years as Furman's head coach, Richey has firmly established himself as one of the nation's top young basketball mentors, evidenced in a 73-26 career record (.737) that ranks him ninth among Division I head coach coaches.  He has coached the Paladins to back-to-back, school record 25-win seasons, and Furman to its first appearance in the AP Top 25.  The Paladins' 12-0 start to the 2018-19 campaign included wins over defending champion Villanova and NCAA Final Four participant Loyola-Chicago.

Furman has served as co-host to NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament first and second round action in Greenville in 2003 and 2017, and will serve as co-host for first and second round play in 2022 and 2026. In 2023 the school will co-host NCAA Women's Basketball Regional action at Greenville's Bon Secours Wellness Arena.

Listeners can tune in to ESPN Upstate (WORD-AM) in Greenville-Spartanburg on-air, as well as nationwide on the RADIO.COM app and website. Fans can also connect with the station on social media via Twitter, Facebook and Instagram.