Nowadays, the Clemson Tigers cast a huge shadow on the college football world, and one of the teams in that shadow is the Furman Paladins. Granted, as an FCS program, it’s usually easy to find cheap Furman football tickets. But the Paladins are a proud program with a long list of accomplishments. They’ve become a force to be reckoned with and a regular in the FCS Playoffs, making last-minute Furman tickets a hot commodity in the state of South Carolina, even if the Paladins play the role of little brother to Clemson.

The Glory of the 80s

Furman football was one of the pre-eminent college football programs in the south during the 1980s, albeit at the FCS level. Head coach Dick Sheridan took over the Paladins in 1978 and quickly brought the program to prominence. Over his eight seasons, Sheridan led Furman to six Southern Conference championships. More importantly, his tenure ended with the Paladins going 12-2 and losing the 1985 FCS National Championship Game to Georgia Southern 44-42. Jimmy Satterfield took the reins the following season and finished what Sheridan started, leading Furman to the FCS national championship in 1988.

The Second Wave

A few years after winning the 1988 national championship, Furman had fallen back to the middle of the pack inside the Southern Conference. However, the program has always been competitive and was the FCS national runner-up again in 2001. More importantly, the Paladins have had a resurgence in recent years. Head coach Bruce Fowler started the turnaround, leading the Paladins to a SoCon title in 2013. Head coach Clay Hendrix took over in 2017 and kept the ball rolling, making Furman perennial contenders in the Southern Conference and regular participants in the FCS Playoffs. Under Hendrix, the Paladins are officially back at the top of the Big South hierarchy and poised to stay there for a long time to come.