August 14, 2001

PALADIN LINEBACKERS HIGHLIGHT
TUESDAY PRACTICE SESSIONS

GREENVILLE -- After putting his squad through the second day of two-a-day practices in shorts and helmets Tuesday, Furman head coach Bobby Johnson indicated he was pleased the work of the Paladin linebackers.

"I thought they (linebackers) had a really good day with several interceptions and pass deflections," Johnson said following the two-hour afternoon practice. "That is one area we wanted to improve on over last year, breaking on the thrown football, and we had an exceptional day. John Thrift, I think, had a couple of interceptions, and Will Bouton had one or two knockdowns, so I think we're making some progress in some areas that hurt us last year."

Furman, which returns 10 defensive starters this year and two of its three starting linebackers, ranked fifth in the Southern Conference in pass defense a year ago, facing a league high 350 passes and yielding 214.7 yards per game. Furman's 60.0 percent opponent completion percentage was the second highest by a league team.

The strong work of Furman's linebackers on Tuesday underscores the overall progress the Paladins are making in the preseason, according to Johnson.

"We're much further along at this point than we've been at this time in past years, primarily because of the number of veterans we have in our program," Johnson added. "They (the veterans) are ready to progress and move on, and that, in turn, puts pressure on the young guys to learn."

Wednesday marks the Paladins' final practice day in shorts and helmets before going to full pads on Thursday. Practices begin at 6:20 a.m. and 3:20 p.m. and are open to the public. Fan Day is scheduled for Saturday at 1:00 p.m. at Timmons Arena prior to Furman's scrimmage, which starts at approximately 2:30 p.m. at Paladin Stadium.

Furman, which opens the 2001 season at Wyoming on Sept. 1, returns 19 starters off a 2000 squad that posted a 9-3 record. The Paladins were ranked No. 6 in the Sports Network NCAA I-AA Preseason Football Poll, which was released on Monday.