SoCon 2023 Predictions and Power Rankings - Week 4

[FUBeAR]

Away
Home
Time
Prediction


https://soconsports.com/images/2019/9/23/logo_mercer.png?width=30Mercer (http://www.mercerbears.com/)
https://soconsports.com/images/2019/9/23/logo_furman.png?width=30Furman (http://www.furmanpaladins.com/)
1P
FUBeAR‘s Co-GOTW


https://soconsports.com/images/2023/5/30/Terriers_StackedWHITE.png?width=30Wofford (http://woffordterriers.com/)
https://soconsports.com/images/logos/VMI_spider_four_color-2015.png?width=30VMI (https://vmikeydets.com/)
1:30P
Can they both lose?


https://soconsports.com/images/logos/Charleston_Southern.png?width=30Charleston Southern (http://www.csusports.com/)
https://soconsports.com/images/2019/9/23/logo_wcu.png?width=30Western Carolina (https://catamountsports.com/)
2:30P
GO CATS!!


https://soconsports.com/images/2019/9/23/logo_chatta_91.png?width=30Chattanooga (http://www.gomocs.com/)
https://soconsports.com/images/2019/9/23/logo_samford.png?width=30Samford (http://www.samfordsports.com/)
3P
FUBeAR‘s Co-GOTW


https://soconsports.com/images/2019/9/23/logo_citadel.png?width=30The Citadel (http://www.citadelsports.com/)
https://soconsports.com/images/logos/s5.png?width=30South Carolina State (http://scsuathletics.com/)
6P
FUBeAR could possibly consider offering a probationary return to SoCon status with a win by the bellhops …possibly…



FUBeAR’s Power Rankings (Predictions later in the week)

1A) Furman - Nice FBSLite Win on the road. Solid exhibition season. Heads into Conference Play with a few more questions than any Paladins might have liked, but Furman has…and will…find answers.

1B) Mercer - Due to North Alabama’s nice win over Tennessee Tech this past week, the briefly hibernating Bears moved back up into a tie for the SoCon Top Spot this week. The MaconMen also have some lingering questions. Coach Cronic is a noted answer man. Look for the Bears to challenge.

3) WCU - Excellent OOC road win for the surging Catamounts last week and another tough OOC challenge against a Charleston Southern Team that is clearly good enough to be at the very top of the CAA. The CullowheeCats keep answering questions and silencing doubters. Can’t imagine any voter wouldn’t have WCU hovering near or in their Top 10 this week.

4A) Chattanooga - What is seeming to now be just a bad hiccup vs. a complete vomitus @ North Alabama is buoying up the Mocs. Critical road game this week.

4B) Samford - We knew they didn’t stand much of a chance on the Plains, but heading into Game 4 without a D1 win is not a good look for the Defending SoCon Champs. Hard to believe it’s come this early, but this week’s matchup with the Mocs is make or break for the bullpups season.

And…the rest…alphabetically…2 more relegations this week…

SoConINO - East Tennessee
SoConINO - The Citadel
SoConINO - VMI
SoConINO - Wofford

[caribbeanhen]

Lmaoa

[crusader11]

WCU should be above Mercer.

[Mocs123]

I'm glad the Mocs managed to keep their place in the SoCon...teams seem like they are dropping fast.

[The Cats]

Away
Home

Prediction -The Winners


https://soconsports.com/images/2019/9/23/logo_mercer.png?width=30Mercer (http://www.mercerbears.com/)
https://soconsports.com/images/2019/9/23/logo_furman.png?width=30Furman (http://www.furmanpaladins.com/)
1P
Furman


https://soconsports.com/images/2023/5/30/Terriers_StackedWHITE.png?width=30Wofford (http://woffordterriers.com/)
https://soconsports.com/images/logos/VMI_spider_four_color-2015.png?width=30VMI (https://vmikeydets.com/)
1:30P
VMI


https://soconsports.com/images/logos/Charleston_Southern.png?width=30Charleston Southern (http://www.csusports.com/)
https://soconsports.com/images/2019/9/23/logo_wcu.png?width=30Western Carolina (https://catamountsports.com/)
2:30P
Western Carolina


https://soconsports.com/images/2019/9/23/logo_chatta_91.png?width=30Chattanooga (http://www.gomocs.com/)
https://soconsports.com/images/2019/9/23/logo_samford.png?width=30Samford (http://www.samfordsports.com/)
3P
Samford (home field advantage does it)


https://soconsports.com/images/2019/9/23/logo_citadel.png?width=30The Citadel (http://www.citadelsports.com/)
https://soconsports.com/images/logos/s5.png?width=30South Carolina State (http://scsuathletics.com/)
6P
SC State (again, home field adv. does it)




Power Rankings

1. (1) Furman (2-1, 0-0 SoCon)
Next: Mercer (2-1, 0-0 SoCon)

2. (2) Western Carolina (2-1, 1-0SoCon)
Next: Charleston Southern (1-2)

3. (3) Mercer (2-1, 0-0 SoCon)
Next: at Furman (2-1, 0-0 SoCon)

4. (5) Chattanooga (2-1, 1-0 SoCon)
Next: at Samford (1-2, 0-1 SoCon)

5. (4) Samford (1-2, 0-1 SoCon)
Next: Chattanooga (2-1, 1-0 SoCon)

6. (7) ETSU (1-1, 0-0 SoCon)
Next: Bye

7. (8) VMI (1-2, 0-0 SoCon)
Next: Wofford (0-3, 0-0 SoCon)

8. (9) The Citadel (0-3, 0-0 SoCon)
Next: SC State (0-3)

9. (6) Wofford (0-3, 0-0 SoCon)
Next: at VMI (1-2, 0-0 SoCon)

[bonarae]

Mercer
Wofford
WCU
UTC
S.C. State - toss-up

[BlackNGoldR3v0lut10n]

After an extended hiatus, I am back. To say that I am not happy with how ETSU is playing on the gridiron is an understatement. Thankfully, they off this week but I foresee more beatdowns for the Buckinquitters until Furman Georgie get axed the question. Without further ado, this is where I see this:

1) Furman - thinks every one of you should write Scott Carter a thank you note
2) Mercer - doing mighty well for themselves
3) Western Carolina - can this team finally make a playoff run
4) Chattanooga - might have a outside chance of making the playoffs
5) Samford - made an honest effort against the War Eagles but blew it
6) VMI - got mauled by a pack of wolves
7) A Citadel - got blown off the tracks
8) (TIE) East Tennessee State - got burninated by a side who gave Big Brother all they can handle
(TIE) Wofford - lost to a Presbyterian team who to my understanding is the worst team in FCS

This Week's Games
Mercer @ Furman (Game of the Week) - Paladins defend their house for another Lamb Bowl win
Wofford @ VMI - Keydets score their first conference win
Charleston Southern @ Western Carolina - Catamounts win this one handliy
Chattanooga @ Samford - Mocs steal one on the road
A Citadel @ South Carolina State - Chuckydogs get sent home battered and bruised

PS I saw the predictions for the Austin Peay-ETSU game in another thread and it is obvious very few of you saw what Austin Peay did against Big Brother.

[The Cats]

After an extended hiatus, I am back.

Welcome back!

[Mocs123]

It looks like it should be a week of competitive games in the SoCon this week. I expect most of these games to be close and could go either way.

Mercer - 24
Furman – 31 – I guess FUBeAR wins either way, but I think the Paladins are the better team, even if only by a small margin, so I’ll take them by one score at home.

Wofford - 21
VMI – 24 – Two teams struggling offensively, and this game could go either way, but I’ll take the home team by a field goal.

Charleston Southern - 17
Western Carolina -28 – Will the Catamounts have a let down after a big OOC win – maybe a little, but they still dispose of the coastal Bucs with ease.

Chattanooga -31 – This is another game that could go either way, but the Mocs finally put four quarters together last week, so I think they go on the road to take care of business in Homewood.
Samford -28

The Citadel -14
South Carolina State – 17 – I could see this one going either way so I will go with the home team by a FG – I hope I’m wrong and the SoCon gets an OOC win.

Power Rankings:


Furman – Nice OOC win last week.
Western Carolina - Great OOC win – probably the best the SoCon has.
Mercer – Resting up for the Lamb Bowl
Chattanooga – Took care of business in convincing fashion.
Samford – Nothing to be ashamed of vs. an SEC foe.
ETSU – I know AP is pretty good, but still….
VMI – Got a paycheck last week.
Wofford – Presbyterian?????? Really??? They don’t even have scholarships..
The Citadel – Rebuilding in Charleston

[caribbeanhen]

VMI vs Wofford in the Yawn Bowl

[rtzlunar]

VMI vs Wofford in the Yawn Bowl
The bottom four SoCon teams in the Toilet Bowl.

[FUBeAR]

The bottom four SoCon teams in the Toilet Bowl.
*Toilet Bowl SERIES (TBS) …

hey…maybe Turner Broadcasting would be interested in airing it. They used to show campy horror movies in The SuperStation, didn’t they?

[BlackNGoldR3v0lut10n]

*Toilet Bowl SERIES …

hey…maybe Turner Broadcasting would be interested in airing it. They used to show campy horror movies in The SuperStation, didn’t they?

My money's on ETSU bringing home the toilet. Honk if any of you had ETSU going from spitting Supa Hot Fire (IYKYK) to being an unbearable dumpster fire in two seasons.

[rtzlunar]

Is it too late for the Bucs to back out of their upcoming 2 games with North Dakota State?

[Chalupa Batman]

*Toilet Bowl SERIES (TBS) …

hey…maybe Turner Broadcasting would be interested in airing it. They used to show campy horror movies in The SuperStation, didn’t they?

I think the Irrelevant Bowl Series (IBS) would be fitting too.

[SU DOG]

I think the Irrelevant Bowl Series (IBS) would be fitting too.

LOL! Nice job there Batman.

[FUBeAR]

I think the Irrelevant Bowl Series (IBS) would be fitting too.
Looks like we have a Sponsor for the trophy already lined up…

https://i.ebayimg.com/00/s/ODAwWDgwMA==/z/kRsAAOSwkeFen1kH/$_3.PNG

[The Cats]

https://www.facebook.com/catamountsports/videos/222314230543278

[OrangeAndBlack]

Mercer @ Furman -- How do you not pick Furman at home here? I'm hoping Mercer has some magic though and wins, 31-27
Wofford @ VMI -- 10-3
Charleston Southern @ WCU -- 35-17
UTC @ Samford -- 27-20. Can't pick Samford to win a game til they get a D1 win.
The Citadel @ S Carolina St -- 17-10

[FUBeAR]

Mercer @ Furman -- How do you not pick Furman at home here? I'm hoping Mercer has some magic though and wins, 31-27
Wofford @ VMI -- 10-3
Charleston Southern @ WCU -- 35-17
UTC @ Samford -- 27-20. Can't pick Samford to win a game til they get a D1 win.
The Citadel @ S Carolina St -- 17-10
Mercer @ Furman -- How do you not pick Furman at home here? - Mercer has a better record (2-2) @ Furman than they do vs. Furman in Macon (2-3)

Wofford @ VMI -- 10-3 - Looks like way too much Offense for either of these Teams to muster. 2-0 in favor of VMI's Drum & Fife Corps over both of the Football Teams is the current Vegas play on this one. Both Teams' Fans are praying for a massive and immediate Covid outbreak. FUBeAR heard Wofford's Athletic Department already has their 'Out of an Abundance of caution for the Health, Safety and Well-being of the Student Athletes' statement typed up and ready for release.

[Catamount87]

Predictions

Mercer at Furman: It's a close call but the Din's horse nip the bears in the arse.
Wofford at VMI: 11 points/game vs 10.7 points/game. I'll go with who gets to a double digit score first.
CSU at WCU: Cats have way too many weapons for the bucs
UTC at Samford: Do the dogs see the train barreling down the track at them? This has the potential to a repeat of the WCU game for Samford.
The Citadel at SCSU: Wills the coastal pups actually score? It won't be a win if that's what you're thinking.


Power Rankings

1. Furman - but that margin is starting to get thin
2. (Tie) WCU and Mercer - they've distinguished themselves from the rest of the field.
4. UTC - right on the heels on 2.
5. Samford - Is there is smoke appearing, I think I hear the precursor alarm bells
6. ETSU - the dumpster has gone from smoldering to on fire

Also rans (in no particular order). VMI, Wofford, Citadel

[wcugrad95]

Mercer @ Furman - FU hold a slim 5-4 advantage in the series, and I expect this one to be a close game. I'll give the edge to the home team but expect Mercer to remain ranked.
Wofford @ VMI - simply going with the home team.
CSU @ WCU - The Bucs have a stout D and I expect this to be pretty close. But WCU has enough big plays and playmakers and an improving D and get the win.
Citadel @ SC State - would love for another OOC win for the SoCON, but Citadel is just not in a good place right now.
UTC at Samford - I'll vote this GOTW over FU/Mercer mainly because Samford really needs a win. I think both teams are top-25 worthy, and going with a gut feeling on the home team.

Power Rankings:
I am still going with tiers until everybody has played 2 conference games.
Furman
WCU/Mercer/UTC in whatever order you like
Samford - can move back up with a win this week
VMI/ETSU - I think they have a little more than the bottom 2 but ETSU really needs to show something after last week
Wofford/Citadel

[Sir William]

Mercer at Furman
Wofford at VMI
ChuckSouth at Western
Chattanooga at Samford (mild upset)
The Citadel at SC State


Power Rankings

1) Furman
2) Western Carolina
3) Chattanooga
4) Mercer, Samford (tie)

Pick your favorite ocean and enter here

6) ETSU
7) VMI
8) Wofford
9) The Citadel

[FUBeAR]

Mercer at Furman
Wofford at VMI
ChuckSouth at Western
Chattanooga at Samford (mild upset)
The Citadel at SC State


Power Rankings

1) Furman
2) Western Carolina
3) Chattanooga
4) Mercer, Samford (tie)

Pick your favorite ocean and enter here

6) ETSU
7) VMI
8) Wofford
9) The Citadel

That’s a toss-up between Billy and Alleta. But, if FUBeAR is gonna enter either, guess he best go with Alleta, a popular choice.

…AND…

NORTH ALABAMA -VS- MERCER


Team
1
2
3
4
F


UNA
7
0
0
0
7


MER
7
3
0
7
17


DATE: 08/26/2023

CHATTANOOGA -VS- NORTH ALABAMA


Team
1
2
3
4
F


UTC
0
10
10
7
27


UNA
14
7
0
20
41


DATE: 09/02/2023

https://st4.depositphotos.com/2172759/25676/v/450/depositphotos_256764096-stock-illustration-cartoon-thinking-face-isolated-on.jpg

[Sir William]

True. It's a close toss up for UTC, Mercer and Samford presently on any given Saturday.

[caribbeanhen]

Power Outage Rankings

1. VMI Lost The Innovation Bowl to Bucknell
2. The Citadel - El Cid needs a pack of Camels
3. Wofford - lost to the Sunday School Presbyterians
4. ETSU it’s been all down hill since the lucky win over Kennydoll State
5. Samford - I can’t even get my daughter to go take a few pics but still a work in progress
6. Mercer - playing defense like the guy on the night watch at Pearl Harbor
7. There were Bells on a hill and will they finally hear them ringing in the playoffs?
8. McFurman & Wings

[FUBeAR]

Power Outage Rankings
0.0. The CAA’s Television Plan
0.5. The entire CAA…all 31 Teams
1. VMI Lost The Innovation Bowl to Bucknell
2. The Citadel - El Cid needs a pack of Camels
3. Wofford - lost to the Sunday School Presbyterians
4. ETSU it’s been all down hill since the lucky win over Kennydoll State
5. Samford - I can’t even get my daughter to go take a few pics but still a work in progress
6. Mercer - playing defense like the guy on the night watch at Pearl Harbor
7. There were Bells on a hill and will they finally hear them ringing in the playoffs?
8. McFurman & Wings

FYP

[SU DOG]

Mercer @ Furman - Paladins and it won't be all that close.
Wofford @ VMI - Keydets.
Chas Southern @ Western - Catamounts by a wide margin.
Chattanooga @ SAMFORD - Bulldogs win at home in a tough one.
The Citadel @ SCSU - South Carolina State, but I hope I am wrong on this one.

[kdinva]

Furman 38, Mercer 31
VMI 20, Wofford 13
WCU 42; Chuck South 13
Samford 34; UTC 30
The Citadel 20; SC State 18

[FUBeAR]

FUBeAR’s Weekly Prediculations



Away
Home
Time
TRUTH


https://soconsports.com/images/2023/5/30/Terriers_StackedWHITE.png?width=30Wofford (http://woffordterriers.com/)
https://soconsports.com/images/logos/VMI_spider_four_color-2015.png?width=30VMI (https://vmikeydets.com/)
1:30P
Wow…watching this game for a fan of either Team could only occur as a result of being sentenced to 3+ hours of cruel and unusual punishment or a proclivity for self-harm ideations and/or outright masochism. If this was the anklebiters and the bellhops, FUBeAR would love nothing more than to watch those 2 flail around futilely. Guess he’ll get that pleasure Mid-November…assuming they haven’t folded up their kennels and cots by then. But…we gotta make a pick…FUBeAR’s less of a loser is the big rat.

Final Score: VMI 13 - Wofford 6


https://soconsports.com/images/logos/Charleston_Southern.png?width=30Charleston Southern (http://www.csusports.com/)
https://soconsports.com/images/2019/9/23/logo_wcu.png?width=30Western Carolina (https://catamountsports.com/)
2:30P
Charleston Southern, clearly the 2nd best Team in the CAA, will be looking to sail up into the hills and come home with a new purple and gold fur coat. They choke on the fur BALL instead. WCU will not slip up at home and they will not allow a top-tier CAA Team to upset a SoCon Title contender. Hopefully Desmond Reid can get some well-deserved time off this week. RB tires only have so much good tread on them. Might need to save a bit for later.

Final Score: WCU 42 - CSU 7


https://soconsports.com/images/2019/9/23/logo_chatta_91.png?width=30Chattanooga (http://www.gomocs.com/)
https://soconsports.com/images/2019/9/23/logo_samford.png?width=30Samford (http://www.samfordsports.com/)
3P
OOOOH BOY! THIS ONE IS EXCITING! If the HomewoodHounds lose, they will have 2 SoCon losses, a 1-3 record, and 0 D1 wins heading into October. In other words - Season Officially Over. All those transfers jumpin’ back in the portal will look like when they blow the whistle after ‘Break’ at the public pool in Montgomery in July. If the TrainDrivingBirds lose, they’ll fall back to .500 SoCon & Overall. That means, based on recent history, they are 1 loss away from tanking the season with WCU & @ Mercer (2 Teams that have ended 2 of their recent seasons) on deck after an off-week (AKA @ Wofford). So, this is it. Loser, essentially, goes home. FUBeAR really likes what he’s seen of the Mocs since they let themselves get hoodwinked into thinking North Alabama was not a good Team. BUT…FUBeAR has continued to see a lack of discipline and blown assignments coming from Chatt’s D - particularly, the back end. Hiers, if his (meh) OL will give him time, will exploit this. Atopottamus, or whatever Chatt’s QB’s name is, has skills. He’s gonna get some too…as will Ford. Just see Sammy’s O being able to do enough to pull it out at home…

Final Score: Samford 48 - Chattanooga 45


https://soconsports.com/images/2019/9/23/logo_citadel.png?width=30The Citadel (http://www.citadelsports.com/)
https://soconsports.com/images/logos/s5.png?width=30South Carolina State (http://scsuathletics.com/)
6P
It is a real shame that this historic game is being played in a season when neither Team is good. Historic? Yes, their stadiums are 77 miles apart and CIT has NEVER been willing to play on SCSU’s campus. SCSU went to Charleston 3 years in a row (‘99-‘01) and lost, but the bellhops never returned a game. OTOH, SCSU and Furman had never played until they were paired up in the 1982 Playoffs - Furman’s 1st year in I-AA - and the Bulldogs came to Greenville as directed by the NCAA. Huge crowd, hard-fought loss for FU and Furman immediately inked a deal to open the ‘83 season @ SCSU in Orangeburg, SC. So…you don’t have to be a scholar of US and/or SC history to know why Furman’s actions were important and why this game, with The Citadel visiting this HBCU, this week is historic. Glad to see it!! Would love to pick the (hated) bellhops in this one…but FUBeAR thinks they are just looking at this season as a “knob year” and expect to lose all 11 games. They won’t quit, but they don’t expect to win…which means they won’t.

Final Score: SCSU 24 - The Citadel 14



FUBeAR’s Power Rankings (Predictions later in the week)

1A) Furman - Nice FBSLite Win on the road. Solid exhibition season. Heads into Conference Play with a few more questions than any Paladins might have liked, but Furman has…and will…find answers.

1B) Mercer - Due to North Alabama’s nice win over Tennessee Tech this past week, the briefly hibernating Bears moved back up into a tie for the SoCon Top Spot this week. The MaconMen also have some lingering questions. Coach Cronic is a noted answer man. Look for the Bears to challenge.

3) WCU - Excellent OOC road win for the surging Catamounts last week and another tough OOC challenge against a Charleston Southern Team that is clearly good enough to be at the very top of the CAA. The CullowheeCats keep answering questions and silencing doubters. Can’t imagine any voter wouldn’t have WCU hovering near or in their Top 10 this week.

4A) Chattanooga - What is seeming to now be just a bad hiccup vs. a complete vomitus @ North Alabama is buoying up the Mocs. Critical road game this week.

4B) Samford - We knew they didn’t stand much of a chance on the Plains, but heading into Game 4 without a D1 win is not a good look for the Defending SoCon Champs. Hard to believe it’s come this early, but this week’s matchup with the Mocs is make or break for the bullpups season.

And…the rest…alphabetically…2 more relegations this week…

SoConINO - East Tennessee
SoConINO - The Citadel
SoConINO - VMI
SoConINO - Wofford

[SU DOG]

Did I read this correctly? Are things so bad in Johnson City that they don't even know their schedule? Surely I read this too quickly, but here is what it says.(?)

ETSU faces first SoCon opponent in Samford Saturday | WJHL | Tri-Cities News & Weather (https://www.wjhl.com/sports/college-sports-2/etsu-bucs/etsu-faces-first-socon-opponent-in-samford-saturday/)

[ElCid]

Did I read this correctly? Are things so bad in Johnson City that they don't even know their schedule? Surely I read this too quickly, but here is what it says.(?)

ETSU faces first SoCon opponent in Samford Saturday | WJHL | Tri-Cities News & Weather (https://www.wjhl.com/sports/college-sports-2/etsu-bucs/etsu-faces-first-socon-opponent-in-samford-saturday/)

This was a local news station. Bucs are off this week. They do play Samford next week. Looks like they hired an incompetent who just looked at the scheduling order and has zero attention to detail.

[OrangeAndBlack]

EDIT: I was saying there's no lines at the Vegas sports books, but it just popped in at the last second. Furman -11 and VMI -3.5 are the only SoCon lines so far.

[caribbeanhen]

The Furman DBs remind me of my old pitchback with those hands

[wcugrad95]

Pretty surprised by the Furman/Mercer result and the Chatt/Samford game so far. I expected those to be very tight scores. I also thought WCU would be in for a fight with the ChuckSouth defense. Not so much.

[gofurman]

The Furman DBs remind me of my old pitchback with those hands

the irony is we had SIX Turnovers the first week and led all of FCS. The entire FCS , in turnovers in 22! You can see how as our DBs, especially number 1 who is awesome, cut in front of the ball as you saw today. Not sure why he recently has the drops. Had a pick 6 last week and a ton interception last year

we reaally need to catch some. No denying that

that said, the announcer said three we dropped. Only one was a truly easy catch.

[gofurman]

EDIT: I was saying there's no lines at the Vegas sports books, but it just popped in at the last second. Furman -11 and VMI -3.5 are the only SoCon lines so far.

they are all on there. I’ll have to post the site you can play All fcs.
furman -10.5
vmi -3
western -18
I THUNK it was utc -3

[ElCid]

Wow. We suck big time. It's going to be a long hard road. We may very well go winless this year. I don't get what the coach is doing. He keeps saying we suck. I won't start complaining about him for at least two full years though.

[wcugrad95]

Citadel snuck up and beat WCU last season when we thought we might be pretty good, so you never know. But it looks pretty bad in Charleston right now. The SoCon is clearly a top and bottom half right now.

[Mocs123]

If you'd told me that WCU would beat Charleston Southern soundly, I would agreed with you, but 77 points - holy cow! Congrats to the Catamounts!!

[SU DOG]

If you'd told me that WCU would beat Charleston Southern soundly, I would agreed with you, but 77 points - holy cow! Congrats to the Catamounts!!

And congrats to the Mocs. Good game plan and very good team that took Samford to the shed today.

[caribbeanhen]

Sounds like the Bell is ringing loudly in Western Carolina

[wcugrad95]

I think the Mercer vs Furman game was closer than the final score shows. Not close, but closer. The Paladins were clearly much better, and it looked like an old-school FU game where they just wore the Bears down with sound football. But the Bears made plenty of mistakes to make it tough on themselves from the very start. IMO it was a top-5 team (Furman) beating a back-half top-25 team (Mercer). I was also surprised at how the Mocs handled Samford. I thought that game was probably not quite as close as even the final score indicated when heading in I thought Samford would play well to defend their home field.

I feel the SOCON has 4 teams worthy of ranking, it is just 2 of the 4 in WCU and UTC (well, at least WCU) were probably not expected to be quite this good - especially after week 1.

[PaladinNation]

^^^ WCUgrad, I mostly agree with you about the Mercer/Furman game being closer than the score.
Through three quarters, it felt more like a 10 point win game for Furman. But, a football game is played for four quarters.

In the fourth—Furman's lines physically whipped Mercer's o-line and d-lines. Furman could have scored more, they declined kicking another field goal on fourth down and just handed the ball off.

One note: Furman played the entire second half with it's 4 and 5 running backs. Roberto got nicked up and was held out in the second half. Grant Robinson is still out, and Kendal Thomas was also out for this game. Us Furman fans have been wanting to see more of Myion Hicks (SO 5-11 212) and Jayquan Smith (FR 6-0 208). I like what I saw, or should I say, I like how Furman's OC used them.

We saw some new old-school wrinkles from Furman, Huff under center, I formation, and some 3 TE looks.