1983 Furman Paladins football team

The 1983 Furman Paladins football team was an American football team that represented Furman University as a member of the Southern Conference (SoCon) during the 1983 NCAA Division I-AA football season. In their sixth year under head coach Dick Sheridan, the Paladins compiled an overall record of 10–2–1 with a conference mark of 6–0–1, winning the SoCon title for the fourth consecutive season. Furman advanced to the NCAA Division I-AA Football Championship playoffs, where they defeated Boston University in the quarterfinals and were upset by Western Carolina in the semifinals.

1983 Furman Paladins football
SoCon champion
NCAA Division I-AA Semifinal, L 7–14 vs. Western Carolina
Conference	Southern Conference
Record	10–2–1 (6–0–1 SoCon)
Head coach	Dick Sheridan (6th season)
Captain	David Charpia, Ernest Gibson
Home stadium	Paladin Stadium
Seasons ← 1982 1984 →

1983 Southern Conference football standings

v t e	Conf							Overall
Team	W		L		T			W		L		T
No. 2 Furman $^	6	–	0	–	1			10	–	2	–	1
No. 9 Western Carolina ^	5	–	0	–	1			11	–	3	–	1
Chattanooga	5	–	2	–	0			7	–	4	–	0
Appalachian State	4	–	3	–	0			6	–	5	–	0
Marshall	3	–	4	–	0			4	–	7	–	0
VMI	1	–	5	–	0			2	–	9	–	0
The Citadel	1	–	6	–	0			3	–	8	–	0
East Tennessee State	1	–	6	–	0			3	–	8	–	0
$ – Conference champion ^ – NCAA Division I-AA playoff participant Rankings from NCAA Division I-AA Football Committee poll

Schedule

Date	Opponent	Rank	Site	Result	Attendance	Source
September 3	at South Carolina State*		State College Stadium Orangeburg, SC	L 3–13	14,823	[1]
September 10	Carson–Newman*		Paladin Stadium Greenville, SC	W 52–7	9,226	[2]
September 17	at Georgia Tech*		Grant Field Atlanta, GA	W 17–14	24,311	[3]
September 24	Marshall	No. 5	Paladin Stadium Greenville, SC	W 31–7	8,514	[4]
October 1	at VMI	No. 6	Alumni Memorial Field Lexington, VA	W 49–0	5,900	[5]
October 15	at Western Carolina	No. 5	Whitmire Stadium Cullowhee, NC	T 17–17	11,642	[6]
October 22	Appalachian State	No. 8	Paladin Stadium Greenville, SC	W 49–0	14,973	[7]
October 29	at Davidson	No. 8	Richardson Stadium Davidson, NC	W 55–7	3,800	[8]
November 5	East Tennessee State	No. 4	Paladin Stadium Greenville, SC	W 28–7	12,165	[9]
November 12	Chattanooga	No. 4	Paladin Stadium Greenville, SC	W 28–14	10,021	[10]
November 19	at The Citadel	No. T–2	Johnson Hagood Stadium Charleston, SC (rivalry)	W 49–21	17,890	[11]
December 3	No. T–13 Boston University	No. 2	Paladin Stadium Greenville, SC (NCAA Division I-AA Quarterfinal)	W 35–16	7,879	[12]
December 10	No. 9 Western Carolina	No. 2	Paladin Stadium Greenville, SC (NCAA Division I-AA Semifinal)	L 7–14	13,034	[13]
*Non-conference game Rankings from NCAA Division I-AA Football Committee Poll released prior to the game

References

1. "S.C. State rallies to defeat Furman, 13–3". The Times and Democrat. September 4, 1983. Retrieved November 30, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.
2. "Jennings, Lamb lead Furman over Carson-Newman in 52–7 drubbing". The Times and Democrat. September 11, 1983. p. 4b. Retrieved November 30, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.
3. "Tech upset by Furman". The Atlanta Constitution. September 18, 1983. Retrieved November 30, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.
4. "Furman does precision work in 31–7 victory over Marshall". The Greenville News. September 25, 1983. Retrieved November 30, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.
5. "Keydets routed". Daily Press. October 2, 1983. Retrieved November 30, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.
6. "Cats, Furman settle for 17–17 deadlock". Asheville Citizen-Times. October 16, 1983. Retrieved November 30, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.
7. "Furman routs injury-riddled Appalachian State". The Charlotte Observer. October 23, 1983. Retrieved November 30, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.
8. "Furman rolls over Davidson in 2nd half". The Charlotte Observer. October 30, 1983. Retrieved November 30, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.
9. "Big plays send Bucs to defeat". Johnson City Press. November 6, 1983. Retrieved November 30, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.
10. "'Heisman-like' Jennings effort rallies Furman past UTC 28–14". The State. November 13, 1983. Retrieved November 30, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.
11. "Furman's still champ". The Greenville Newa. November 20, 1983. Retrieved November 30, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.
12. "BU and Holy Cross end up by losing out". The Boston Globe. December 4, 1983. Retrieved November 30, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.
13. "Finally, Cats beat Furman". Asheville Citizen-Times. December 11, 1983. Retrieved November 30, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.