SPARTANBURG, S.C. – Wofford took advantage of two second-half turnovers by Furman to build a 19-6 lead and held on to upset the second-ranked Paladins, 19-13, in the regular season finale for both teams on Saturday afternoon at Gibbs Stadium in Spartanburg, S.C.
The loss halts Furman's overall and Southern Conference road winning streaks at eight games, as well as the Paladins' 13-game league winning streak. The 24-team 2023 NCAA Division I Football Championship field will be announced at 12:30 p.m. ET Sunday on ESPNU.
Wofford (2-9, 2-6 SoCon) took the lead with 5:09 left in the first half when Ryan Ingram broke free up the middle on a fourth-and-one play and sprinted 53 yards for a touchdown to give the Terriers a 10-6 advantage. Furman (9-2, 7-1) drove into Wofford territory on its opening possession of the second half, but on fourth-and-one at the Terriers' 33-yardline the Paladins fumbled the handoff and Maximus Pulley scooped up the fumble and raced 64 yards to up the lead to 16-6.
Furman's
Carson Jones was intercepted late in the third quarter and Bridger Jones converted on a 42-yard field goal with under a minute left in the quarter to push the margin to 19-6. The Paladins answered with 12:07 to play on an 11-yard touchdown run from
Myion Hicks to trim the Terriers' lead to 19-13.
A sack and a forced fumble gave the Paladins the ball at the Wofford 39 on the next possession, but Furman went three-and-out and was forced to punt. Wofford advanced the ball to the 18 before being forced to punt and Furman got the ball back at its own 49 with 1:37 to go. The Terriers, however, forced four consecutive incomplete passes and were able to run out the clock to secure the victory.
Furman was held to just 188 yards of total offense, including a 3-for-15 effort on third downs. Hicks rushed 11 times for 70 yards to lead the Paladin offense while Jones completed 18-of-38 passes for 99 yards.
The Paladin defense limited Wofford to only 184 yards and forced four turnovers in a losing effort.