GREENVILLE, S.C. -- When the Cincinnati Bengals completed their 27-24 comeback overtime win over the favored Kansas City Chiefs to capture the American Football Conference Championship on Jan. 30, thoughts of an earlier Bengals' trip to the Super Bowl no doubt ran wild in the minds of Furman Paladins' fans.

How could they not?

Under the direction of head coach Sam Wyche '66 and featuring the play of running back/special teams standout Stanford Jennings '84, Cincinnati came within a chin strap of winning Super Bowl XXIII, deprived of glory by a last minute Joe Montana-to-John Taylor 10-yard touchdown strike in the 23-16 loss to the San Francisco 49ers.

Jennings certainly did his part for the Bengals, returning a late third quarter kickoff 93 yards for a touchdown (video) — at the time only the second kickoff return for score in Super Bowl history — to give Cincinnati a 13-6 lead.  Upon returning to the sideline following his touchdown burst, he was embraced by Wyche, leaving a lasting image of the two former Furman Paladins, as iconic announcer Dick Enberg reminded the television audience, no fan of the purple and white will ever forget.

For Jennings and Wyche, Super Bowl XXIII proved to be just one stage upon which they excelled, and which they distinguished themselves and their alma mater.

Jennings' Furman playing career (1980-83) was a hallmark of success that saw him rush for a then school record 3,868 yards and 39 touchdowns en route to reaping three Southern Conference Player of the Year scrolls — the first and still one of only two players to accomplish the feat in the league's long history.  

Due in part to his abilities, Jennings, a Summerville, S.C., native, who played his prep ball for Green Wave coaching legend John McKissick, helped the Paladins win four SoCon championships and beat both South Carolina (1982) and Georgia Tech (1983) — all under the tutelage of Furman and South Carolina Athletic Hall of Fame coaching great Dick Sheridan, who in December was inducted into the National Football Foundation/College Hall of Fame in Las Vegas, Nev., with Jennings looking on.

So good was Furman during that era that fourth quarters often proved to be rare experiences for Jennings, whose career rushing numbers would have been higher had the outcomes of so many games not been decided midway through the third period.

Jennings converted his brilliant Furman career and versatility into a nine-year tenure in the National Football League (NFL), playing seven seasons under Wyche in Cincinnati (1984-89), one year in New Orleans (1991), and his final season in Tampa Bay (1992), where he was reunited with Wyche, the Buccaneers' new head coach.

A member of both Furman and South Carolina Athletics Hall of Fame, Jennings has his Paladins' No. 27 jersey retired — among only three in program history to be accorded the honor.

A successful career in business, including his current position of regional sales manager with New Balance shoe manufacturer in Atlanta, Ga., followed his playing days, but while the stadium lights are in his past, Jennings has continued his legacy and influence at his alma mater, where he has served as a member of Fuman's Board of Trustees from 2002-17 and as a loyal supporter of the Paladins' football program, which benefits from a scholarship that bears his name.  His daughter, Kelsey, born the day before Jennings' famed kickoff return, and whose name adorned her father's Super Bowl cleats, followed her father to Furman, graduating in 2011.

Among the wide circle of Jennings' admirers is former Furman teammate and current Paladin head coach Clay Hendrix.

"I had the privilege of playing with Stanford," said Hendrix.  "His record as a player speaks for itself, but what I remember most about him was that he was a terrific teammate.   He has been an incredible representative of Furman University from his time as a student-athlete and NFL player, to his business career and service as a Furman trustee."

In terms of name recognition, Wyche has no peer among Paladins, even two years following his passing in January of 2020, at the age of 74. 

An Atlanta, Ga., native and member of both Furman and South Carolina Athletic Halls of Fame, as well as the South Carolina Football Hall of Fame, he served as Furman's starting quarterback in 1964 and '65, capturing All-SoCon honors as a senior.
 
Following graduation, he began a nine-year professional career, signing a NFL free agent contract in 1968 with Paul Brown's expansion Cincinnati Bengals.
 
He opened a chain of "Sam Wyche Sports World" stores in South Carolina before returning to professional football as the quarterbacks/passing game coordinator for Bill Walsh's San Francisco 49ers in 1979.  His first season with the 49ers coincided with the rookie campaign of Montana, one of the greatest quarterbacks in NFL history. With Wyche on staff, San Francisco won Super Bowl XVI in 1981.
 
After a one-year stint as head coach at Indiana, he was lured back to the NFL and to the Bengals to serve as head coach, leading Cincinnati to a pair of AFC Central Division Championships in 1988 and 1990 while earning AFC and NFL Coach of the Year honors.

While in Cincinnati he worked with Bengals quarterback Boomer Esiason in introducing the "no-huddle" offense to the sport, changing the game forever and ensuring the authenticity of his later "nohud" email address.

Following a five-year stint as head coach of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers (1992-96), he began his career as a broadcaster, working with both NBC and CBS, and later as an analyst for Southern Conference and Furman football broadcasts, which he maintained through the end of the 2019 season.

Wyche concluded his NFL coaching experience as an assistant with the Buffalo Bills (2004-06), after which he returned to the Upstate full-time, along with his wife Jane.  As a resident of Pickens County, which he served as a Commissioner, he assisted the Blue Flame football program as offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach over five campaigns.

Of many gifts and unique moments Wyche gave to professional football, one that is also destined to enjoy permanent resonance occurred on Dec. 10, 1989, at Cincinnati's Riverfront Stadium when Wyche grabbed a field microphone to scold Bengals' fans, upset with the game's officiating, about throwing items (mostly snowballs) onto the field.

Said Wyche (video), "Will the next person that sees anybody throw anything onto this field, point them out, and get them out of here. You don't live in Cleveland, you live in Cincinnati!"

So renown is Wyche's outburst that years later, upon his return to the Upstate, he was approached about the possibility of using his iconic message as part of public service announcement regarding spectator conduct.  When it was kiddingly suggested that for relevance "Cleveland" be substituted with a former SoCon locale or two, Wyche respectfully declined.

On Sept. 13, 2016, Wyche, suffering from congestive heart failure, underwent a successful heart transplant and made a full recovery, returning to the broadcast booth to work Paladin football games for three more seasons.

As with Jennings, Hendrix enjoyed a long friendship with Wyche, who he described as "a treasure for Furman University.  I so enjoyed being able to sit and listen to him talk about his experiences.  His innovation in the NFL is still being felt today.   He loved Furman and was so liked, admired, and respected by everyone.   He would do anything for Paladin Football and was a driving force in our Furman Football Players Association."

Through a rich career as a player, coach, entrepreneur, broadcaster, community leader, father, and friend, Wyche maintained his passion for people, putting his greatest stock in faith, relationships, and philanthropy.

Though likely impossible for any person to capture the complete essence of Wyche, former Bengal signal caller Boomer Esiason may have come as close any anybody when, following Wyche's passing, he said:

"He was funny, brilliant at football, complicated, forward-thinking and a great human being."