GREENVILLE, S.C. -- The University of Georgia and Auburn University claim the Deep South's Oldest Football Rivalry, but simple calendar reading tells a different story.

The fact of the matter is Furman and Wofford tangled on the gridiron earlier (1889)  — and, in fact, on four occasions — before the Bulldogs and Tigers laced it up for the first time (1892), and the Paladins and Terriers are set to renew their rivalry this Saturday when the two square off in Spartanburg in a 1:30 p.m. contest at Gibbs Stadium.

The game, which represents the 95th meeting between the two Upstate Southern Conference foes, will be live streamed by ESPN+ and aired over flagship ESPN Upstate and its four powerhouse stations: 97.7 FM/1330 AM in Greenville, and 97.1 FM/950 AM in Spartanburg.  The broadcast can also be accessed via Audacy.com, as well as through FurmanPaladins.com.

Furman leads the all-time series 54-33-7.

The Terriers won the last meeting, 24-7, in Spartanburg in 2019 and have captured five of the last six clashes and seven straight over the Paladins in Spartanburg, dating back to 2008.  Furman and Wofford didn't play this past spring after Covid issues forced the Terriers to end their season prior to the scheduled Apr. 17 contest in Greenville.

After opening the season with wins over North Carolina A&T (29-18) and Tennessee Tech (26-0), Furman (2-2, 0-1 SoCon) has dropped its last two outings, including a 24-3 home verdict in Paladin Stadium two weeks ago.  Head coach Clay Hendrix's squad was idle this past Saturday.

Wofford (1-3, 0-2 SoCon), meanwhile, enters Saturday's fracas having dropped three straight, including a 27-21, SoCon season opening verdict at East Tennessee State on Saturday.  The Terriers kicked off SoCon play two weeks ago with a 31-23 setback at VMI.

To find the win column on Saturday the Paladins have to become re-acquainted with the end zone, an area they've visited only once in the last eight quarters.

Central to turning things around on offense will be finding a ground attack that has struggled in the last two games, accumulating just 183 yards and no touchdowns.  The Paladins will look to tackle Anderson Tomlin and center Evan Jumper to help clear the way for experienced backs Devin Wynn and Devin Abrams.  Abrams has climbed to seventh on Furman's career rushing yards ledger (3,693 yds., 27 TDs), while Abrams is just 38 yards shy of 1,000.

Furman's passing game has shown some potency this fall thanks, in large measure, to an experienced receiving corps paced by fifth-year senior wideout Ryan DeLuca (career 64 rec., 983 yds, 9 TDs) and All-America tight end Ryan Miller (career 52 rec., 887 yds., 11 TDs).  The emergence of true freshman wideout Joshua Harris (14 rec., 189 yds., TD) has been a plus.

Junior quarterback Hamp Sisson performed solidly in the season opening win over North Carolina A&T, passing for 362 yards and three touchdowns, and helped key the shutout over Tennessee Tech, but he's struggled in the the Paladins' last two outings, opening the door for true freshman signal caller Jace Wilson, who made his career debut in the second half against Mercer.

Furman's defense appears solid enough to keep the Paladins in games and could clearly benefit with the aid of more offensive support.  There's experience up front in junior nose guard Cameron Coleman, senior tackle London Lewis, and end Landon Lawrence, who combined have seen action in 92 games and registered 35 starts.

Senior bandit Adrian Hope, who stepped up in the Paladins' 34-14 triumph over Wofford in 2018 on the way to All-America honors, will look for a repeat performance on Saturday.  His 24.5 sacks rank third all-time in program history.

Furman's secondary is paced by junior cornerback Travis Blackshear (17 tack., 3 INT, 6 PBU, FR) and safeties Hugh Ryan (22 tack.) and DiMarcus Clay (2 INT).

The Paladins have a weapon in placekicker/punter Timmy Bleekrode (8x10 FGs, 41.7 avg.).