Furman University

Honors & Awards
2026 Southern Conference Academic Honor Roll
2025 Buck Buchanan Award Runner-Up
2025 FCS ADA National Defensive Player of the Year
2025 FCS ADA All-America (1st Team)
2025 Walter Camp Foundation All-America (1st Team)
2025 Stats Perform All-America (1st Team)
2025 AFCA All-America (1st Team)
2025 Associated Press All-America (1st Team)
2025 Football Central All-America (1st Team)
2005 Phil Steele All-America (1st Team)
2025 All-Southern Conference (1st Team)

2025 — Put together an outstanding season in his first full campaign as a starter...earned consensus first team All-America honors, landing nods from AFCA, Stats Perform, Associated Press, Walter Camp Foundation, FCS ADA, Football Central, and Phil Steele...seven All-America tabs are the most ever by a Paldin...selected FCS ADA National Defensive Player of the Year to become the third player in program history to capture national player of the year honors (1988 Jeff Blankenship, LB; 2001 Louis Ivory, RB) and seventh national player of the year in history of Furman Athletics...finished as runner-up for the Buck Buchanan Award, which is presented annually by Stats Perform to the top defensive player in the FCS...totaled a team leading 79 tackles and posted FCS highs in sacks (14.5), tackles for loss (23.0), and tackle yards for loss (132)...also totaled nine quarterback hurries, two forced fumbles, two pass breakups, and one blocked kick...his 14.5 sacks, which tied for the fourth most in Furman history, accounted for 56 percent of the squad’s 26 total sacks, and his 23 tackles for loss represented 33.3 percent of the Paladins’ tackles for loss on the season...was named SoCon Defensive Player of the Week a league best three times...accorded first team all-conference honors in voting by league head coaches...posted multi-sack performances in five of his 12 games (all starts)...had a pair of season high 10-tackle performances against Mercer and Chattanooga...played a pivotal role in Furman’s 28-24 victory over Campbell, totaling six tackles, including 4.5 for a loss of 21 yards, and a forced fumble...performance versus Campbell registered 2.5 sacks for a loss of 15 yards, his final one coming on fourth down at the Furman 17 with 16 seconds remaining, giving the Paladins the ball and the victory....recorded a season high three sacks against East Tennessee State (31-22 win) and two-sack performances versus William & Mary (23-21 win), Samford (31-13 win), and The Citadel (24-14 win)...named to the SoCon Academic Honor Roll for the 2025-26 school year.

2024 — Earned playing time in eight games as a reserve...totaled 13 tackles, including one for-loss...had a pair of pass breakups and a blocked kick against Stetson...tallied a season high four tackles versus Chattanooga.

2023 — Made his collegiate debut against VMI (37-3 win), recording one tackle (for-loss)...awarded redshirt and extra year of eligibility.

High School: 2023 graduate of Cardinal Gibbons (4A) High School, where he was a teammate of Paladin tight end Brock Chappell...played defense end, tackle, and fullback...football coach was Steven Wright...helped lead Cardinal Gibbons to a pair of conference championships and state championship (16-0) in 2021, his junior year, defeating Chambers, 12-0, in championship game...team went 9-3 in 2022, his senior year, making second round of state playoffs...two-time all-state selection...named conference defensive player of the year as a junior and conference MVP his senior yer...named defensive MVP of in 919 vs. 252 All-Star Game.

Personal: Full name is Joshua Perry Stoneking...born March 20, 2005, in Cary, North Carolina...son of Jennifer and Anton Stoneking...has two brothers, Anton and Grant...father played football at Purdue...brother, Anton, played quarterback at Stonehill College...uncle, Brian Stoneking, was an All-America defensive lineman at Anderson (Ind.)...business administration major.