In a back and forth brawl, Mercer football (7-1, 6-0 Southern Conference) bested the Furman Paladins (5-4, 3-3 SoCon), 52-28 on the road, remaining undefeated in conference play. The team covered 628 yards of total offense, led by freshman quarterback Braden Atkinson ‘29, who finished the game with 426 yards and four scores.
But despite the Bears' strong statistics, the game started off in Furman's favor. The Paladins scored on a 14-yard pass from quarterback Trey Hedden to wide receiver Evan James, though the home team missed the extra point kick afterwards to go up 6-0 early in the first quarter. After false starts put a damper on a short Mercer drive, the Furman added to the scoreboard off a 67-yard touchdown run from running back CJ Nettles, shocking a Mercer defense that had led the conference in defending the run.
The Paladins led the game 13-0 until Bears tight end Malik Simmons ‘26 caught a 21-yard touchdown pass from Atkinson halfway through the first quarter, capping a 12-play, 88-yard drive that shifted the momentum heading into the second quarter.
The Bears quickly took the lead in the second off of a score from running back CJ Miller ‘27, who caught a 18-yard touchdown from Atkinson. The Bears twice more before the end of the first half: Miller rushed up the middle for a 6-yard touchdown and Reice Griffith ‘27 hit a 44-yard field goal with a minute to go in the second quarter. The Bears heavily relied on Atkinson and Miller in the first half, often alternating short, outside screen passes with strong plunges down the middle. Atkinson had a season-high 33 first-half pass attempts while Miller totaled 16 touches and a score going into the break.
Furman's special teams came out of the half strong with a 100-yard kickoff return for a touchdown by, cutting Mercer's lead to four points. The Bears answered quickly as Atkinson connected with wide receiver Adjatay Dabbs ‘28 on a 63-yard bomb to put Mercer up 31-20. The reception helped Dabbs record his second straight 100-yard game, his third such game of the season. Furman answered with a 64-yard touchdown pass to bring the Paladins back within one score of the lead.
Mercer finished off a 28-point third quarter with two lengthy drives that showcased Atkinson’s deep-threat ability. The freshman signal caller threw three straight completions over 15 yards and capped a 79-yard drive off with a 1-yard quarterback sneak up the middle to extend the Bears' lead.
After allowing 13 points in the first quarter, Mercer's defense regained its recent dominant form and forced three straight punts before Donovan Watkins '28 recorded an interception to give the offense another chance to run up the score.
“Furman has had so much success over the last 25 years in this conference, they are naturally someone you want to play well against,” Head Coach Mike Jacobs said during the post-game press conference. Jacobs added that despite being down 13-0 in the first quarter, the team did not panic.
“It’s a big win for us to give us momentum going into these next two weeks,” safety Kaleb Hutchinson ‘27 said.
Mercer heads to Western Carolina University (6-3, 5-0 SoCon) next week, the only remaining undefeated team in the SoCon.
Nevaeh Wilson '28 is majoring in Journalism and minoring in Film Studies. She has been writing for The Cluster since her freshman year, and has worked for Mercer's ESPN studio. She enjoys watching college and professional sporting events.
