GREENVILLE, S.C. — For the first time in the history of Furman University Athletics the Paladins have captured both Southern Conference Commissioner and Germann Cups in the same year, it was announced this evening by the league at its annual meeting in Hilton Head, S.C.

Initiated in 1970, the Commissioner's Cup recognizes the SoCon's top men's athletics program, and in 1987 the SoCon began the Germann Cup to honor the league's best women's athletics program.

This year's Commissioner's Cup is its second this decade (2020-21) for Furman and third overall — the most by the league's private institutions.  The Paladins have finished runner-up 10 times in the competition over the years.

The Germann Cup, named for the late SoCon commissioner Ken German, has been awarded to Furman 18 times — by far the highest tally among schools.  The Paladin women have also recorded eight runner-up finishes in the competition.

"This achievement is a powerful reflection of the collective strength of Furman Athletics and the remarkable consistency of success across our men's and women's programs," said Jason Donnelly, Furman's Vice President of Intercollegiate Athletics. "To earn both the Southern Conference Commissioner's Cup and Germann Cup speaks to the outstanding leadership of our coaches, the commitment and talent of our student-athletes, and the collaborative culture that defines the Paladins. We are incredibly proud of the way our programs continue to compete for championships while representing Furman with excellence in every aspect of the student-athlete experience."

The current scoring system, in place since the 2014-15 academic year, mirrors the one used in determining the Learfield Sports Director's Cup and is computed on percentage basis, with the top seven sports for each school counting toward its season total.  The SoCon sponsors 20 sports, composed of 10 men's sports, nine women's sports, and one co-ed sport, rifle.

Each sport carries a value of 10 points, with each spot in the standings given equal measure relative to how many schools sponsor that particular sport. For sports that determine a regular-season champion, there is a two-point bonus for winning the league tournament. Each school's total for the year is divided by 70 — the maximum number of points possible when counting seven sports — to determine its percentage.

Furman's men finished with 60.57 points, which converted to an .865 percentage.  Mercer placed second (.787), followed by Samford (.768), East Tennessee State (.714), and Western Carolina (.668), to round out the top five.

The Paladin women earned 58.81 points, an .840 percentage that bested Samford (.831), East Tennessee (.772), Chattanooga (.757), and Wofford (.702) among the top five.

Headlining Furman's march to this year's Commissioner's Cup was soccer, which claimed both regular season and tournament championships en route to the Paladins' first appearance in the College Cup — the sport's final four.

Cross country joined soccer in winning a SoCon Tournament title, the Paladins' 13th consecutive appearance at the top of the league podium, as did basketball, which defeated East Tennessee State, 77-61, in the SoCon Tournament championship game to notch its second NCAA Tournament appearance in the last four seasons.  

Furman's dominance in the Germann Cup included cross country's 13th straight SoCon Tournament crown, followed by tennis' regular season championship and golf's tournament title that netted a NCAA Tournament appearance.  

Furman's overall program depth also proved decisive as men's indoor track and men's golf recorded second place tournament showings.  Volleyball's second place regular season finish was among the seven women's qualifying sports that finished in the top half of their respective standings.

The Paladins' SoCon success has also translated to the national level as Furman finished the winter competition season in April ranked 115th nationally among all Division I athletic programs in the 2025-26 Learfield Directors' Cup (all sports) competition — first among SoCon institutions.

Furman paced SoCon schools in Learfield Directors' Cup competition last year and has led the way seven times over the last nine years.  The Paladins were the league front runner in March of 2020 when the worldwide Covid pandemic halted competition.

The winningest program in SoCon history, Furman has claimed 260 conference championships since joining the league in 1936.  The total includes 109 regular season crowns and 151 tournament titles, with Furman men combining for 135 championships and the Paladin women accounting for 125.

Furman's 139 total NCAA Tournament appearances are also the most by any former or current league member institution.

2025-26 Commissioner's Cup
(Men's Athletics – Final Standings)
1. FURMAN    .865
2. Mercer    .787
3. Samford    .768
4. ETSU    .714
5. Western Carolina    .668
6. Chattanooga    .566
7. Wofford    .538
8. UNCG    .476
9. The Citadel    .466
10. VMI    .369

2025-26 Germann Cup
(Women's Athletics – Final Standings)
1. FURMAN    .840
2. Samford    .831
3. ETSU    .772
4. Chattanooga    .757
5. Wofford    .702
6. Western Carolina    .669
7. UNCG    .544
8. Mercer    .514
9. VMI    .263 
10. The Citadel    .145