Furman football knocks off No. 7 Chattanooga, climbs in SoCon standings

Staff, wire reports
·2 min read

Tyler Huff passed for 203 yards and a touchdown and ran for 132 yards and a score to help Furman beat Chattanooga 24-20 at Paladin Stadium on Saturday.

The Paladins (7-2, 5-1 SoCon), ranked No. 24 in the Stats Perform FCS Top 25 poll, moved into a tie for second place in the conference with Mercer (7-2, 5-1). The teams play Nov. 12 in Macon, Georgia. Samford (7-1, 5-0) leads the SoCon.

It was the Paladins' first win against a Top 10 FCS program at Paladin Stadium since 2018.

Furman took a 24-10 lead early in the third quarter on Huff’s 30-yard touchdown pass down the middle to Ryan Miller, who broke a tackle at the 5 and scored.

Chattanooga, ranked No. 7 in the Stats Perform FCS poll, rallied with a field goal late in the third quarter and a 5-yard TD run by quarterback Preston Hutchinson two minutes into the fourth. The Mocs (6-2, 4-1) fell to fourth in the SoCon.

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Huff was 16-for-25 passing with an interception and he rushed 20 times, including for a 22-yard touchdown, and became the first Paladins quarterback to rush for more than 100 yards since Chris Forcier in 2010. Devin Abrams had 34 yards rushing, including a 5-yard touchdown, for Furman, and Miller caught four passes for 64 yards.

The Furman defense intercepted two passes, including one by Micah Robinson on the first offensive play of the game. Hugh Ryan made the other pick, the eighth of his career, deep in Furman territory midway through the second quarter.

Hutchinson passed for 270 yards with one touchdown. Tyron Arnett had six catches for 100 yards, and Gino Appleberry rushed 22 times for 56 yards. The Mocs averaged only 2.6 yards rushing per attempt.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

Furman Paladins quarterback Tyler Huff (6) looks for an open pass while playing against North Greenville Crusaders at Paladin Stadium in Greenville, Thursday, September 1, 2022.
Furman Paladins quarterback Tyler Huff (6) looks for an open pass while playing against North Greenville Crusaders at Paladin Stadium in Greenville, Thursday, September 1, 2022.

This article originally appeared on Greenville News: Tyler Huff leads Furman football to SoCon win vs. No. 7 Chattanooga