Aug. 22, 2007
By Andrew Miller, The Charlesston Post & Courier
GREENVILLE -- A preseason top-10 ranking. Seventeen returning starters on a senior-laden roster. A senior quarterback with an established backup in place. Three straight playoff appearances and four postseason berths in the last five seasons.
Add one of the top young football coaches in the country to the mix and what you've got is a team poised to make a championship push this fall.
While the rest of the Southern Conference and the country races to catch up to Appalachian State -- the two-time defending national champion -- the Furman Paladins might already have a team in place to topple the Mountaineers from their lofty throne.
"This team has a chance to be very good," said Furman coach Bobby Lamb, who has compiled a 43-19 mark in five seasons with the Paladins. "We need some things to happen for us. We've got to find a playmaker at wide receiver and our offensive line has to come together, but when it's all said and done there's no reason why we can't be in the mix at the end of the season.
"It takes a little bit of luck to win a championship, and you've
got to stay healthy. It's a lot harder to win a national championship than it used to be because the competition in the conference and across the country is so much better, but we've certainly got the talent in place to make a run at it."
Lamb should know a good team when he sees it. As a record-setting quarterback, Lamb led the Paladins to the SoCon title in 1985 and a spot in the national championship game. As an assistant coach he watched the Paladins march to a national title in 1988 and finish as runners-up in 2001.
"We had our best team in 2004 and we lost a heartbreaker to James Madison in the quarterfinals by one point," Lamb said. "I see a lot of similarities to that 2004 team in this year's team. This is a veteran team. They've got a lot of playoff experience and they're used to playing in big games. Only time will tell how good this bunch is."
The Paladins will only go as far as senior quarterback Renaldo Gray can take them, Lamb said.
The fifth-year senior showed flashes of brilliance during an injury-plagued junior campaign. The Greenwood native completed 95 of 168 passes for 1,184 yards and four touchdowns.
"He was only healthy for about three games, but when he was healthy he was very productive," Lamb said. "He has really committed himself in the offseason to getting his weight down. He's lost 20 pounds from the end of last season. It's his football team and he's been tremendous throughout our preseason camp."
If something happens to Gray, backup Jordan Sorrells has plenty of game experience.
"We've got a great insurance policy with Jordan Sorrells," Lamb said. "The one good thing about Renaldo getting hurt was that Jordan got a lot of great game experience. We feel like we've got two starting quarterbacks."
Running back Cedrick Gipson and bruising fullback Jerome Felton, a preseason All-American candidate, give the Paladins two potent weapons in the backfield. Felton, who has dropped 10 pounds since last season, has rushed for 1,647 yards and an eye-popping 43 TDs over the last two seasons.
"He's amazing," said Wofford coach Mike Ayers. "If he gets his pads headed north, you'd better hold on because he's going to bring it. He's the Purple Bus."
The Paladins return three starters on their offensive line and seven lettermen, who saw significant playing time in 2006.
"We've got a lot of experience on the offensive line. Even the guys who didn't start last season got a lot of reps," Lamb said.
With eight starters back and nine of the top 11 tacklers returning from last season, Lamb is optimistic the Paladins' defense will be even better than they were a year ago.
"I like our speed on defense and we've got a lot of veterans back," Lamb said. "We're a lot more solid up the middle of our defense than we were last year. We've worked very hard with some of our schemes to generate pressure on the quarterback. That's been a problem for us in the past.
"The interior of our defensive line is so much better than it was two years ago, it's not even funny. We've got a lot of depth up front. The big key for us will be who's going to replace (former Stratford High School) Roy Ravenell. Jay Jay Mars and Channing Welch are vying for that job. You don't replace a guy like Ravenell, but I think they're going to be productive."
Furman's showdown with the Mountaineers will take place on Oct. 27 at Paladin Stadium.
"People look at the schedule and the first game they look for is going to be the Appalachian State game," Lamb said. "It's hard not to. It's a huge game. It's had big implications on the conference championship the last four years. Hopefully, when that game rolls around we're still in the hunt for a conference championship.
"We haven't had a whole lot of luck against them. We've got to go out and make some plays. We were the last (Division I-AA) team to beat them and that was at home, and we've got them back here again."
Lamb said winning the school's 12th SoCon title won't be easy.
"We could have a better team than we did last year and not have as good a record," Lamb said. "The Southern Conference is as good as I've seen it. Appalachian State is Appalachian State. I think The Citadel is going to have the best team they've had in 10 years. Wofford will have its best team since they won it in 2003. Georgia Southern is going to bounce back. Elon and Chattanooga are going to be better. It's going to be a war each and every Saturday."
