Furman University

Honors & Awards
2024 Southern Conference Academic Honor Roll
2023 Southern Conference Academic Honor Roll

2023 — Fashioned an excellent second season of play, moving into the starting lineup at nose guard, where he earned the nod in all 13 games...proved to be a central figure on a Furman defense that topped the SoCon and ranked among FCS leaders in virtually every statistical category, including, among others, scoring defense (18.2 ppg), rushing defense (96.9 ypg), total defense (316.0 ypg), and sacks (38), with the sacks tally ranking as second most in Furman history...helped Furman rank second in the FCS in turnover margin (+1.31) and third in turnovers gained (27)... strong play helped key Furman’s 10-3 season headlined by a SoCon championship and FCS quarterfinal round playoff appearance...squad was ranked sixth in the AFCA FCS final poll...logged 35 tackles, including 4.5 for-loss, and three sacks...had season high five-tackle performances in a 37-3 SoCon title win over VMI and at FCS second-ranked Montana (35-28 OT loss) in quarterfinal playoff contest....named to the Southern Conference Academic Honor Roll for the 2023-24 school year.

2022 — Transfer who joined the Paladin program in January of 2022 following a year at Lehigh...took part in spring practice and enjoyed a solid first season of action...saw duty in all 13 games, working as a backup defensive tackle and nose guard...tallied 26 tackles and 4.5 sacks for a loss of 19 yards...sacks tally tied for the team lead with Alex Maier...played a pivotal role in Furman’s 10-3 season that featured a stretch of seven consecutive wins and an at-large bid to the FCS playoffs, where the Paladins claimed a 31-6 first round home win over Elon...10 wins represented the most by Furman since 2005...team finished a consensus 10th in final AFCA and Stats Perform Polls...campaign was fueled with strong work by Furman’s defense, which led the FCS in turnovers gained (29)...helped the Paladins rank first in the SoCon in scoring (20.2 ppg) and red zone defense (71.7 percent, 28x39)...registered four tackles and 2.5 sacks against Elon...also credited with four tackles versus No. 11 win over Mercer (23-13 win)...also credited with four tackle and a sack against VMI (41-3 win)...named to the Southern Conference Academic Honor Roll for the 2022-23 school year.

2021 — Earned playing time in eight games as true freshman at Lehigh...tallied 16 tackles, including 1.5 sacks...registered a season high five tackles versus Colgate...had four stops against Penn....credited with his first sack versus Georgetown (23-9 win)...had two tackles, including a half-sack in season finale against Lafayette (17-10 win)...entertained 11 college offers, including one from Furman, out of high school before signing with Lehigh...other offers included FBS programs Air Force, Army, Navy, and Coastal Carolina.

High School: 2021 graduate of Lord Botetourt High School...football coach was Jamie Harless...two-time first-team all-conference and all-state...helped lead Lord Botetourt to a 14-1, state runner-up season in 2019 and 9-1 playoff team in 2020...also competed in track & field, specializing in the shot put.

Personal: Full name is Xavier James Stephens...born June 26, 2003, in Roanoke, Virginia...son of Tim and Tawanda Stephens...brother, Isaiah, plays football at Coastal Carolina...also has two sisters, Ava and Asia...health sciences major.