1985 Furman Paladins football team

1985 Furman Paladins football
SoCon champion
NCAA Division I-AA Championship Game, L 42–44 vs. Georgia Southern
Conference	Southern Conference
Record	12–2 (6–0 SoCon)
Head coach	Dick Sheridan (8th season)
Captain	Gene Reeder, Chas Fox, Bobby Lamb
Home stadium	Paladin Stadium

1985 Southern Conference football standings

v t e	Conf							Overall
Team	W		L		T			W		L		T
No. T–2 Furman $^	6	–	0	–	0			12	–	2	–	0
No. T–12 Appalachian State	6	–	1	–	0			8	–	3	–	0
Chattanooga	5	–	2	–	0			6	–	5	–	0
Marshall	3	–	3	–	1			7	–	3	–	1
The Citadel	2	–	4	–	1			5	–	5	–	1
Western Carolina	2	–	4	–	1			4	–	6	–	1
VMI	1	–	4	–	1			3	–	7	–	1
East Tennessee State	0	–	7	–	0			0	–	10	–	1
$ – Conference champion ^ – NCAA Division I-AA playoff participant Rankings from NCAA Division I-AA Football Committee poll

The 1985 Furman Paladins football team was an American football team that represented Furman University as a member of the Southern Conference (SoCon) during the 1985 NCAA Division I-AA football season. In their eighth year under head coach Dick Sheridan, the Paladins compiled an overall record of 12–2 with a conference mark of 6–0, winning the SoCon title. Furman advanced to the NCAA Division I-AA Football Championship playoffs, where they defeated Rhode Island in the quarterfinals, Nevada in the semifinals, and were upset by Georgia Southern in the NCAA Division I-AA Championship Game.

Schedule

Date	Opponent	Rank	Site	Result	Attendance	Source
September 7	at South Carolina State*		State College Stadium Orangeburg, SC	W 38–31		[1]
September 14	Newberry*		Paladin Stadium Greenville, SC	L 21–24		[2]
September 21	at Western Carolina		Whitmire Stadium Cullowhee, NC	W 31–27	12,635	[3]
September 28	at NC State*	No. 18	Carter–Finley Stadium Raleigh, NC	W 42–20	36,600	[4]
October 5	at Davidson*^A	No. 10	Richardson Stadium Davidson, NC	W 58–7	4,000	[5]
October 12	No. 7 Marshall	No. 9	Paladin Stadium Greenville, SC	W 34–3	11,072	[6]
October 19	East Tennessee State	No. 5	Paladin Stadium Greenville, SC	W 35–31		[7]
October 26	No. 15 Appalachian State	No. 5	Paladin Stadium Greenville, SC	W 21–7	12,224	[8]
November 2	Mars Hill*	No. 2	Paladin Stadium Greenville, SC	W 34–10	13,854	[9]
November 16	at The Citadel	No. 2	Johnson Hagood Stadium Charleston, SC (rivalry)	W 42–0	29,592	[10]
November 23	Chattanooga	No. 2	Paladin Stadium Greenville, SC	W 28–0	13,134	[11]
November 23	No. 7 Rhode Island*	No. 2	Paladin Stadium Greenville, SC (NCAA Division I-AA Quarterfinal)	W 59–15	9,454	[12]
December 14	at No. T–2 Nevada*	No. T–2	Paladin Stadium Greenville, SC (NCAA Division I-AA Semifinal)	W 35–12	10,461	[13]
December 21	vs. No. 9 Georgia Southern*	No. T–2	Tacoma Dome Tacoma, WA (NCAA Division I-AA Championship Game)	L 42–44	5,306	[14]
*Non-conference game Rankings from NCAA Division I-AA Football Committee Poll released prior to the game

A.^ Before the start of the season, Southern Conference directors elected to make this game count as a conference game for Davidson, but not for Furman.^[15]

References

1. "Furman comeback tops S.C. State". Anderson Independent-Mail. September 8, 1985. Retrieved March 25, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
2. "Newberry shocks Furman". The State. September 15, 1985. Retrieved March 26, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
3. "Furman escapes with close victory over Catamounts". The Charlotte Observer. September 22, 1985. Retrieved March 26, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
4. "Furman breezes past Wolfpack, 42–20". The News and Observer. September 29, 1985. Retrieved March 26, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
5. "Furman trounces Davidson 58–7". The Charlotte Observer. October 6, 1985. Retrieved March 26, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
6. "Furman rolls in 34–3 rout of foe Marshall". The Times and Democrat. October 13, 1985. Retrieved March 26, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
7. "Bucs get 31 first downs, but still lose to Furman". Kingsport Times-News. October 20, 1985. Retrieved March 26, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
8. "Paladins cruise past Mountaineers, 21–7". The Greenville News. October 27, 1985. Retrieved March 26, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
9. "Paladins rip Lions, 34–10". Asheville Citizen-Times. November 3, 1985. Retrieved March 26, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
10. "Bagwell propels Paladins past hapless Citadel, 42–0". The Times and Democrat. November 17, 1985. Retrieved March 26, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
11. "Paladins display their championship form, 28–0". The Greenville News. November 24, 1985. Retrieved March 26, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
12. Ian Thomsen (December 8, 1985). "URI is thrown out of play-offs, 59–15". The Boston Globe. p. 74 – via Newspapers.com.
13. "Furman more than semi-tough". Reno Gazette-Journal. December 15, 1985. Retrieved March 26, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
14. "Erk's Eagles land with a title". The Atlanta Constitution. December 22, 1985. Retrieved March 26, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
15. "The Lineup: Furman vs. Davidson". The Columbia Record. October 4, 1985. Retrieved November 26, 2022.