Head Coach Bobby Lamb

December 31, 2001

FURMAN NAMES BOBBY LAMB HEAD FOOTBALL COACH

GREENVILLE, S.C. -- Bobby Lamb has been named Furman's new head football coach, director of athletics Dr. Gary Clark announced today at an 11:00 a.m. press conference at Timmons Arena.

Lamb, a Commerce, Ga., native who has served as an assistant coach on the Paladin staff for 16 years, becomes Furman's 21st head coach and succeeds Bobby Johnson, who accepted the head coaching position at Vanderbilt University on Dec. 23.

"Bobby Lamb is familiar to all of us and, as both a hall-of-fame quarterback and assistant coach, has played a major role in the outstanding success our program has enjoyed over the past 20 years," said Clark in making the announcement. "He is a member of the family and highly respected as a leader, teacher, and motivator. Those qualities, among many others, excite us about the future of Furman football under his leadership."

A former Paladin standout quarterback, 1987 Furman graduate, and 1995 inductee into the university's athletic Hall-of-Fame, Lamb, 39, has spent the last 13 years as quarterbacks coach and since 1993 has served as passing game coordinator. His assistant coaching tenure also includes work with the program's receivers and defensive ends.

As a member of the Paladin coaching staff, he has played a pivotal role in some of the greatest seasons in school history, including five Southern Conference championships, a national championship, and a national runner-up finish. Furman's record during his tenure as an assistant coach was 126-65-3 (.657).

Over the past three seasons Furman has posted a 30-9 record, won a pair of league titles, and earned three straight NCAA I-AA playoff bids and three Top 20 national rankings, including two Top 10 finishes. In 2001 Furman claimed a share of the league championship on the way to a 12-3 record and the program's third I-AA title game appearance, where the Paladins dropped a 13-6 decision to Montana.

Fueling Furman's team success during his span as an assistant coach has been the outstanding play of Lamb-developed quarterbacks. This past season he oversaw the emergence of Billy Napier into an all-conference performer. In his first season as a starter, Napier threw for 2,326 yards and completed over 60.0 percent of his passes. In the Paladins' I-AA semifinal playoff contest against Georgia Southern, the Furman junior completed all 12 pass attempts for 159 yards and a touchdown to help the Paladins to a 24-17 win, thereby halting the Eagles' national record 39-game home winning streak and handing the two-time defending national champions their first home playoff loss in 28 games.

Prior to Napier, Lamb assisted in the development of Justin Hill (1997-00) into an all-league player. In 1999 Hill directed Furman to a 9-3 record and league championship season that included a 28-3 win over North Carolina.

Before Hill, Lamb helped mold Braniff Bonaventure (1993-96) into an all-conference signal caller and national record holder for most consecutive pass attempts (217) without an interception. Bonaventure's emergence followed that of two-time all-conference quarterback Frankie DeBusk (1987-90), who Lamb mentored during the 1989 and '90 seasons. The only quarterback in league history to pace his team to three league titles and a national crown, DeBusk shattered several school records, many formerly held by Lamb, including career passing yards (5,851) and total offense (6,726).

Prior to taking over duties as quarterbacks coach in 1989 under then head coach Jimmy Satterfield, Lamb directed the program's defensive ends for two seasons, including a 1988 campaign that saw All-America performers Kelly Fletcher and Chris Roper play a crucial role in Furman leading the nation in scoring defense (9.7 ppg) and headlining the Paladins' drive to a school season best 13-2 record and I-AA national championship.

Furman's success during Lamb's tenure as an assistant coach only continued the level of achievement he helped deliver as an all-star prep and college quarterback.

Lamb came to Furman in 1982 under Dick Sheridan after fashioning a fine career at Commerce (Ga.) High School, where he played for his father, Ray Lamb, and alongside current Paladin assistant head coach and offensive line coach Clay Hendrix, who later starred with Lamb at Furman. In 1981 he was named by the Atlanta Journal-Constitution as its AA Back-of-the-Year after leading Commerce to a 13-1-1 record and state championship.

At Furman he put his impressive ability and field savvy on display beginning in his sophomore season when he stepped in for injured starting quarterback David Charpia to lead the Paladins to a 17-14 win over Georgia Tech on the way to 10-2-1 record, league championship, and I-AA semifinal playoff finish. In his first full season as a starter in 1984, he helped engineer Furman to an 8-3 record, including a 34-30 triumph over North Carolina State.

As a senior in 1985 Lamb recorded perhaps the most effective season ever by a Paladin quarterback, completing 133-of-228 pass attempts (58.3 percent) for 2,264 yards and 24 touchdowns (only six interceptions). His 171.20 passing efficiency rating led the nation and helped the Paladins post their fourth straight win over an I-A opponent with a 42-20 rout of North Carolina State. In addition to going undefeated in league play (6-0) and notching the program's third conference title in four seasons, the Paladins finished as national runner-up with a 12-2 record. In recognition of his outstanding play, Lamb was named Southern Conference Player-of-the-Year, South Carolina Male Amateur Athlete-of-the-Year by the South Carolina Athletic-Hall-of-Fame, and Carolinas Male Amateur Athlete-of-the-Year by the Charlotte Athletic Club.

In helping Furman to a 39-10-1 record (.790) during his playing career, Lamb, who still holds 10 school records and two league standards, helped fashion the second best four-year stretch in school history. As a player and coach, his tenure at Furman covers 20 years, during which time the Paladins have notched a 165-75-4 record (.684) and captured eight of the school's league record 11 league championships.

Lamb graduated from Furman in 1987 with a Bachelor of Arts degree in health and exercise science and in 1992 added a Master's of Education degree in the same field. He and his wife, Allyson Acker of Greenville, have two children: Sallie Emory, 9, and a son, Taylor Boyd, 7.