GREENVILLE, S.C. – Furman rallied with 24 unanswered points in the second half to erase a 22-7 deficit and claim a 31-22 victory over Southern Conference foe East Tennessee State Saturday afternoon at Paladin Stadium. 
 
The come-from-behind win improved the Paladins to 4-1 overall and 2-0 in SoCon play. ETSU slipped to 2-4 overall and 0-2 in the conference.
 
Trailing 22-7 after ETSU's Devontae Houston raced 75 yards for a touchdown on the opening play from scrimmage in the third quarter, Furman's offense went 75 yards in eight plays to trim the margin to 22-14 on Trey Hedden's 10-yard touchdown toss to Ja'Keith Hamilton. The Paladins marched 47 yards on their next possession and Ian Williams connected on a 44-yard field goal with 6:51 left in the third quarter to trim the ETSU lead to 22-17
 
The Buccaneers maintained their five-point lead until the final four minutes of the fourth quarter. With the Paladins facing second down and eight at the Furman 47, Hedden was hit as he released a pass that fluttered high in the air. Hamilton, running across the middle leaped in front of a pair of Buccaneer defenders to grab the pass and raced to the endzone for a 53-yard touchdown with 3:57 left. Hedden connected with Luke Clyburn in the back of the endzone for the two-point conversion to extend the Paladin advantage to 25-22.
 
ETSU drove to the Furman 26 yardline on its ensuing possession and spiked the ball with 10 seconds to play. With one timeout available, the Buccaneers elected to take a shot at a long pass before trying a potential game-tying field goal, but Jordan Miller stepped in front of the pass at the five yard line and raced 95 yards on the final play for the 31-22 victory. Miller's final-play heroics ranked as the third longest interception return in school history.
 
Hedden completed 36 passes on 49 attempts for a career-high 358 yards and two touchdowns on the afternoon while Hamilton posted 11 catches for 141 yards and two scores. Gavin Hall rushed for 101 yards on 23 carries.
 
The Paladins totaled a season-high 500 yards of offense, including 358 through the air and 142 on the ground. Joshua Stoneking led the Paladin defense with three sacks and fellow defensive linemen Caldwell Bussey contributed with seven tackles and a blocked field goal.
 
Houston rushed for 150 yards and two touchdowns to lead the ETSU offense. 
 
Furman returns to action next Saturday at E.J. Whitmire Stadium in Cullowhee, N.C., when it visits Western Carolina. Kickoff is slated for 3:30 p.m. on ESPN+.
 
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