best among all Southern Conference schools.
"I’ve been telling our team that we’ll go anywhere to play for a national championship, and next week we’re going to Boone," said fourth-year Furman head coach Bobby Lamb, whose team snapped Furman’s four-game playoff losing streak to Atlantic 10 competition dating back to 1999. "I’m very proud of our defense, because for the second straight week they’ve made the plays when we’ve had to have them down the stretch. It looked like we were going to wrap this one up earlier, but give Richmond credit. They made a lot of plays, too, and Stacy Tutt was tough to stop. We’re certainly glad to get the win."
Martin, whose 18-yard touchdown pass to Daric Carter in the first quarter established a new school career touchdown passes record (42), breaking the old standard set by head coach Bobby Lamb (41, 1982-85), also became the Paladins’ all-time leading passer with 5,513 yards, surpassing Braniff Bonaventure (5,379 yards, 1992-96). The Nashville, Tenn., senior completed 17-of-25 passes in the contest, including a career high 11 to All-Southern Conference wide receiver Justin Stepp, who also racked up a career high 143 yards in receptions.
Furman outgained Richmond 443-348, rushing for 194 yards and passing for 249, and tallied a season best three quarterback sacks. William Freeman topped the Paladins’ defensive effort with 10 tackles and 1.5 sacks, and Wallace Artis added eight stops, two tackles-for-loss, and a sack.
The Paladins fell behind 7-0 on the game’s first possession when Richmond, on the strength of 42-yard run by Tutt to the Furman 18, covered 66 yards in five plays for a 15-yard touchdown strike from Tutt to Joe Stewart less than two minutes into the contest.
The Paladins answered by moving 77 yards in nine plays for a score, which came on Daric Carter’s 18-yard catch and run into the end zone to knot the score a 7-7 at the 9:39 mark of the first quarter.
Richmond regained the lead on its second possession after Tutt dropped back to pass before scrambling off the right side into the end zone untouched to cap a 10-play, 60-yard drive.
Furman went up 17-14 in the second quarter, scoring 10 points on a 2-yard run by Felton and a 36-yard field goal by Scott Beckler.
Taking the second half kickoff, the Paladins moved 39 yards to the Richmond 23, but on a third-and-two play Felton’s fumble was recovered by the Spiders’ Dan Mangiero.
Richmond, however, failed to capitalize and could muster just 68 yards on its next five possessions against Furman’s defense. The Paladin, offense, meanwhile, padded its advantage with a four-play, 63-yard drive in the third quarter, highlighted by a 46-yard completion from Martin to Patrick Sprague to the Richmond 17. Three plays later Felton bulled over from 1-yard out to make it 24-14.
Following a Richmond punt, Furman appeared set to take total control on the game by moving 68 yards to the Spider 10, but Daric Carter’s 8-yard run to the 2 was nullified when the Paladins were penalized 10 yards for holding. After a Martin incompletion on third down, Beckler failed to convert a 38-yard field goal, and the Spiders regained possession and methodically moved 79 yards in 13 plays for a 13-yard touchdown pass from Tutt to Ben Teufel with 8:20 left. A bad snap from center on the PAT, however, allowed Furman to maintain a 24-20 lead.
The Paladins took the ensuing kickoff and notched three first downs and burned 4:33 of clock, but the drive stalled and a Martin pooch kick was downed at the UR 15 with 3:47 to go.
Richmond used seven plays to advance to the Furman 33, but a 15-yard run by Tim Hightower to the 18 was wiped out with a holding call, which gave the Spiders first-and-20 at the Furman 43. After two plays failed to advance the football, Tutt scrambled for 13 yards to the 30. The Paladins appeared to have halted Richmond’s advance when, on a fourth-and-seven play, Tutt was tackled following a two-yard rush to the 28, but Furman was whistled for an offsides infraction, which moved to the ball to the 25.
On fourth down, Tutt rolled left, but his pass to Matt Hale fell incomplete, and Furman took over on downs with 1:03 left.
The win was Furman’s third straight over Richmond and second over an Atlantic 10 team in 2005 (44-41 2OT win over Hofstra).