BIRMINGHAM, Ala. – On a day when Seibert Stadium was renamed Pete Hanna Stadium in honor of Samford University alum Pete Hanna, the Samford Football team's fourth-quarter comeback fell short as the Bulldogs were clipped 27-21 by the No. 5 Furman Paladins. 
 
At halftime of the game, family members and friends of Pete Hanna were honored at midfield with a ceremony officially renaming the stadium. Samford President Dr. Beck A. Taylor and Athletics Director Martin Newton were on hand for the ceremony. 
 
With the defeat, Samford falls to 3-4 on the year and 2-3 in Southern Conference play. Furman improves to 5-1 and 3-0 in the league. 
 
Graduate student Quarterback Michael Hiers led the Bulldog offense with 291 yards through the air on 36-of-41 passing and a pair of touchdowns to freshman wideout Brendan Jenkins. Despite finishing the day with negative yardage on the ground due to being sacked eight times, Hiers also made some key plays with his feet to prolong the attempted comeback. 
 
Wide receiver Chandler Smith spearheaded the Bulldog rushing attack on Saturday as the graduate student had a pair of reverses go for 38 yards and a touchdown. The backfield duo of Damonta Witherspoon and Jay Stanton combined for 37 yards on 15 carries. 
 
In the best game of his young Bulldog career, Jenkins hauled in seven passes for 77 yards and two touchdowns from Hiers. To go along with his 38 yards rushing, Smith caught seven balls for 44 yards on the day. R.J. Starkey added 51 more yards on six receptions.
 
On the defensive side of the ball, Noah Martin tied his career-high with 13 tackles on the afternoon. Martin also pushed his SoCon tackle-for-loss lead to 11 with 1.5 sacks against the Paladins. 
 
To aid Martin, Jaden Mosley tallied eight tackles of his own and half a sack, while Dontae Pollard hauled in his first interception as Bulldog to halt a Furman drive. 
 
Samford opened the scoring as the Bulldogs took the opening drive straight down the field that culminated with a 38-yard strike down the Furman sideline from Hiers to Jenkins to put Samford up 7-0. 
 
Furman tied the game on the first play of the second quarter as the Paladins punched in a touchdown from two yards out. Furman tacked on a field goal and a touchdown in the final moments of Seibert Stadium to take a 17-7 lead into the break. 
 
After a much-needed defensive stop to open Pete Hanna Stadium, Hiers found Jenkins for their second touchdown of the day. The score cut the Furman advantage to 17-14 with just over 10 minutes left in the third quarter. 
 
Furman answered right back with a touchdown of their own on the very next drive to give the visiting Paladins a two-score lead at 24-14. 
 
In the ever-important fourth quarter, Smith's 22-yard scamper to the end zone put a cap on a 15-play 80-yard drive that resulted in Samford getting to within three points at 24-21. 
 
Furman kicked a 46-yard field goal to push the visitor's lead to the final score of 27-21. 
 
After a defensive stop from both teams, Samford got the ball back with 3:22 remaining in regulation but was denied when Furman sacked Hiers on third down and backup quarterback Quincy Crittendon on fourth down to end the Bulldog threat. 
 
Samford continues SoCon action as the Bulldogs hit the road for a matchup at VMI on Oct. 21 before returning home to host The Citadel for Homecoming on Oct. 28. 
 
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