NC State - Sept. 18

[cavedweller2]

Punished their tails so bad in 84 and 85 they hired our coach.

[apaladin]

Y'all don't remember in 1976 when Furman won the season opener @NCState 18-12?

I think the highest Massey Index team we won was 1919 Oglethorpe, but that was after a brutal loss to GaTech.

I remember. Was hawking soft drinks walking the stadium steps in Carter (no -Finley yet) Stadium that day. Stopped selling just after halftime, so I could watch these guys in purple pants.

Also, I remember that Oglethorpe Team…pretty sure that Stormy Petrel squad was the 1st Team to run an RPO-based Offense.

I had forgotten completely that Bo Rein was complaining about never getting his RC Cola fix during the second half.

LOL - Unless Coach Bo was sitting in the upper deck with a bottle of Jack or Jim and looking for a Coke or Sprite mixer, I was not responsible for servicing him on game days. My exclusive clientele tipped extremely well - both in cash & sending ‘improved’ merchandise back down the row to their 16 year old vendor.

I was there, went in, bought a soft drink from FUBEAR, sat down by chance next to Art Baker's wife, watched Whitehurst direct a win with a late TD. After the game , drunk Furman students (seriously) stood at the parking lot gate while traffic directing State fans out of the lot, taunting them all the way. I thought the score was 17-12 though.

I am sure the score was 17-12. Some sites say 18-12 but I am sure it was 17-12.

[Affirm]

If we were to beat NC State Saturday, would that be the highest-ranked team Furman has ever beaten in football in the modern (or any) era? If not, who did we ever beat that was ranked higher than NC State is ranked. (I realize they may have fallen from top 20 or top 25 rankings following last Saturday, but there are other ratings systems of course.)

I do not believe anyone on here puts as much of an emphasis on computer rankings as you do. I think you may be the only one that mentions them.

Jackal, you are definitely wrong about that; and I can suppose, if I wish to, that the only reason you make such statements is to denigrate me for whoever knows why.
So, computer rankings or voter opinion/popularity polls, my basic question is still the same.
Where is NC State presently ranked?
What teams ranked higher than NC State is now ranked have we beaten, and when?
Yes, I’ve seen the silly answers.
It was a sincere question.
What’s so bad about that?
I’m not saying trying to be funny is bad. Thanks to you funny men.
But still, just wanted to know the answer. If you MUST post, you could just say “don’t know, sorry”.

[FU3]

So. Many. Words. I think the vast majority of us certainly appreciate Jackals insightful (if at times purple tinged) take on Furman athletics.I know I do.

[FUBeAR]

If we were to beat NC State Saturday, would that be the highest-ranked team Furman has ever beaten in football in the modern (or any) era? If not, who did we ever beat that was ranked higher than NC State is ranked. (I realize they may have fallen from top 20 or top 25 rankings following last Saturday, but there are other ratings systems of course.)

I do not believe anyone on here puts as much of an emphasis on computer rankings as you do. I think you may be the only one that mentions them.

Jackal, you are definitely wrong about that; and I can suppose, if I wish to, that the only reason you make such statements is to denigrate me for whoever knows why.
So, computer rankings or voter opinion/popularity polls, my basic question is still the same.
Where is NC State presently ranked?
What teams ranked higher than NC State is now ranked have we beaten, and when?
Yes, I’ve seen the silly answers.
It was a sincere question.
What’s so bad about that?
I’m not saying trying to be funny is bad. Thanks to you funny men.
But still, just wanted to know the answer. If you MUST post, you could just say “don’t know, sorry”.

Massey has NCSU @ #56.
He has Furman at #168 and says Akron & Connecticut are the only FBS Teams we could beat.

He also has Vandy 46 spots ahead of the ETSU Team that dominated them a week ago.

Also, Massey had Mercer going 1-9 just 2 weeks ago, but after beating an NAIA Team only slightly worse than they were beaten by non-schollie, Morehead St & then losing a game by 34 points, he now has the Bears tying for the SoCon Championship & just being edged out (by 4 points) of the SoCon AutoBid by ETSU in a 4 way tiebreaker with Samford & Wofford also tying for the title (but those 2 fall out of his mix in the 1st ‘round’ of the tiebreaker - record vs. all tied teams). Interestingly, he has Furman beating both Mercer & ETSU, but losing to Woffy, Samford, and Chatt.

Ain’t Computer Rankings awesome!

[FUBeAR]

So. Many. Words. I think the vast majority of us certainly appreciate Jackals insightful (if at times purple tinged) take on Furman athletics.I know I do.

At times?

C’mon man…

[apaladin]

Looked up that ‘76 NC State game in the Furman media guide. We were right, It was 17-12. Remember when we used to get media guides? Always looked forward to getting the printed edition every year.

[FurmanATT]

I'm sending Caleb Gilbert and Danny Barletta to Raleigh. I'd go, but someone's got to stay home and hold down the fort of three local sports sites. I'd love to be there -- I've seen Furman defeat the Wolfpack twice -- but my young employees want to be there so badly. They'll do a fine job. -- MD

[FurmAlum]

I was at that game too. Graduated in '76 and was at home in N.C. looking for a job. My Dad and I drove down to Raleigh to see it.

The Charlotte Observer headline was "Furman Stuns State!". If my memory is right, that was Bo Rein's first game.

[FUBeAR]

Update…

1st Team All-ACC LB & Tackles leader
Starting Safety vs. MSU

[DungeonRealm]

[The Jackal]

Just for curiosity's sake, I went back and pulled up the NC State game from 2017. Our guys gave a good account of themselves, as that NC State team included the #5 pick in the draft, Bradley Chubb.

Noticeable is the transformation of our defense. Our front seven that day:
DE Chinedu Okonya
NG Jaylan Reid
DT Jonah Tibbs
MLB Tyler Voyles
WLB AK Olusanya
SPUR Joe Farrar
BAN Chris Washington

That was a solid group. At the same time, we are probably a few inches taller and 20 pounds heavier across the board this season.

[AstroDin]

one obvious difference from the 2017 team NG…
Coleman 6-3 304
Stokes 6-0 288
S Johnson 6-1 301

I think the biggest athletic difference from 2017 to the 2021 defense front is at Bandit and DE.
Bandits
Hope 6-1 233
McKoy 6-2 231
Clark 6-3 243
DE
Lawerence 6-3 260
Jackson 6-0 256
Stanfield 6-2 252

With Sochovka out DT is a place where some backups can step up.
Behind London Lewis…
Barton 6-4 264
T Rodgers 6-3 255
The way the defensive coaching staff substitutes I'm not sure this is a problem.
Because I'm not a coach I can bring up an uneducated idea.
With the depth at OL, could we see Ryan Lamb move over this year?
Lamb 6-2 305 was a two-way player at OG and NG in high school, he's also very quick for a 300-pounder.

[The Jackal]

I had not noticed this in real time, but it wouldn't surprise me if this is the play where Sochovoka injured his knee - Blackshear's interception. Loses his footing and then gets folded up on.

[The Jackal]

one obvious difference from the 2017 team NG…
Coleman 6-3 304
Stokes 6-0 288
S Johnson 6-1 301

I think the biggest athletic difference from 2017 to the 2021 defense front is at Bandit and DE.
Bandits
Hope 6-1 233
McKoy 6-2 231
Clark 6-3 243
DE
Lawerence 6-3 260
Jackson 6-0 256
Stanfield 6-2 252

With Sochovka out DT is a place where some backups can step up.
Behind London Lewis…
Barton 6-4 264
T Rodgers 6-3 255
The way the defensive coaching staff substitutes I'm not sure this is a problem.
Because I'm not a coach I can bring up an uneducated idea.
With the depth at OL, could we see Ryan Lamb move over this year?
Lamb 6-2 305 was a two-way player at OG and NG in high school, he's also very quick for a 300-pounder.

Watching the TTU game, you can see the benefit of cross training the defensive linemen.

You can tell the coaching staff feels comfortable with Jackson, Stanfield and Johnson rotating in. Clark is listed as a bandit, but at 6'3 243 he's essentially a 4-3 DE who is big enough to go hand-on-the ground inside (a similar build to Dru Seabrook).

The flexibility of guys like Clark, Lewis, Stokes, and Coleman allows them to play different positions along the defensive front. So, while you'd like to have Socovhoka, Furman can mitigate his loss a bit by not pigeon-holding their linemen into specific positions.