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WR Isaiah Johnson helped set the tone with a TD reception just 60 seconds and only three plays into Saturday afternoon's game at Furman.
Mark Haskett

Football Daniel Hooker, Associate Athletics Director for Media Relations

Postgame Notes - at Furman

Postgame Notes
(RV/RV) Western Carolina 52, Furman 20
Paladin Stadium
Greenville, S.C. | Saturday, Oct. 19, 2024
Att: 9,897
 
With the Win:
  • Western Carolina opened Southern Conference play at 3-0 for a second-straight season – and for just the fifth time dating back to 1978 … the Catamounts also moved above the .500 mark through the midway point of the season – or seven games – for a second-consecutive season – and just the seventh time since 2000;
  • Halted a two-game series slide for the Catamounts against the Paladins with WCU's first series win since edging Furman 43-42 back in Kerwin Bell's first season in 2021;
  • Snapped a four-game road losing skid for WCU in the series with Furman, earning WCU's first road victory against the Paladins since 2014;
  • Moved the Catamounts to 12-4 over the last four years in games following the bye week – WCU finished 2021 with a 4-1 mark after the bye and went unbeaten in three attempts (3-0) in 2022 … Last season, WCU was 2-3 after its open date and is currently 3-0 in 2024;
  • Coupled with Mercer's road loss at Samford, the Catamounts remain the lone unbeaten team in the Southern Conference at 3-0.
 
Post-Game Notes:
  • Western Carolina's 52 points scored are the most by the Catamounts in the series with Furman all time – and tied for the most scored by either team, matching Furman's  point total in the 2007 win in Cullowhee (W, 52-21);
  • WCU's offensive explosion bumped several of the team's offensive averages – the Catamounts raised their 2024 passing average by 55.3 yards (320.6 yds/gm) … slightly increased the rushing average by roughly three yards (131.9 yds/gm) … combining to raise the squad's total offense average by 58.2 yards to 452.4 yds/gm … WCU's seasonal scoring average also increased by four points to 28.4 ppg;
  • Cole Gonzales had a career day against Furman, passing for a career-best 620 yards – his fifth career game with 500 or more passing yards – while matching his career-best with five touchdown passes marking his fourth five TD game;
  • With Saturday's performance, Gonzales now ranks THIRD on WCU's career passing charts with 6,287 yards – by-passing Mike Pusey (1977-79 - 6,160 yards) … His five TD passes give him 49 in his career to remain in third place on the career ledgers, just one behind second-place Troy Mitchell (50, 2012-15) and 15 shy of all-time leader Tyrie Adams (64, 2016-19);
  • Gonzales finished with 610 yards of total offense at Furman – 620 passing but -10 rushing – to give him 6,796 career yards of total offense to remain fourth in WCU's record books – just 36 yards shy of third-place Lonnie Galloway (1990-93 – 6, 832 yards);
  • Records set by Western Carolina's offense in the 52-20 win at Furman:
    • Team total offense – 801 yards (652 yards passing, 149 yards rushing)
      • Previous WCU record – 766 yards vs. Presbyterian (384 rush, 382 pass)
      • Previous SoCon record – 795 by Chattanooga in 1978
    • Team passing yardage – 652 yards, WCU at Furman
      • Previous WCU record: 513 yards, WCU vs. ETSU in 2023
      • Previous SoCon record: 642 yards, Marshall vs. VMI in 1991
    • Cole Gonzales – WCU passing yards in a single game – 620 yards
      • Previous WCU record: David Rivers, 474 yards vs. Wofford in 2000
      • Previous SoCon record: Liam Welch of Samford – 582 yds vs. ETSU (9/25/2021)
      • Ranks seventh in NCAA FCS history for passing yards in a single-game:
        • 1 – 730 yds, Taylor Heinicke, ODU (vs. New Hampshire, 2012)
        • 2 – 662 yds, Brady Attaway, SFA (vs. Prairie View, 2013)
        • 3 – 660 yds, Braden Hanson, North Dakota (vs. Montana, 2012)
        • 4 – 647 yds, Cole Kelley, SE Louisiana (vs. UIW, 2021)
        • 5 – 624 yds, Jamie Martin, Weber State (vs. Idaho State, 1991)
        • 6 – 623 yds, Drew Hubel, Portland State (vs. Eastern Washington, 2008)
        • 7 – 620 yds, Cole Gonzales, WCU (at Furman, 2024)
  • Following all games concluded on Saturday, Gonzales advanced in several of the national rankings in the NCAA FCS – Gonzales now LEADS the nation in total offense (329.6 yds/gm) … Ranks fifth in the nation in passing average (306.86 yds/gm) and has thrown for the sixth-most yards in the country (2,148 yards) … His 10 touchdown passes rank him tied for 36th in the NCAA;
  • While Gonzales was having a career day passing, several WCU receivers had career days on the receiving end … Gonzales spread the ball around to 11 different receivers with four of the five players to record receiving touchdowns coming on the backend of passes from Gonzales:
    • WCU had THREE players finish with 100 receiving yards in the win – Isaiah Johnson (117), Zion Booker (103), and Jai Boyd (102) … It was the first time the Catamounts had multiple 100 yard receivers since Censere Lee (5-for-164) and Raphael Williams (8-for-102) gave WCU two over the century mark in the last meeting at Furman in 2022;
    • WR Zion Booker posted his second-consecutive 100-yard receiving game, leading the Catamounts with a career-high eight catches for a career-best 103 yards;
    • WR Isaiah Johnson caught a career-high six passes for his career-best 117 yards, the second-most by a Catamount receiver this season;
    • WR Jai Boyd finished with a career-best three catches for a career-high 102 yards;
    • TE Jake Young caught a career-best four passes, finishing with 38 receiving yards – his second-most this season;
    • WR Santana Fleming caught a pair of passes for 24 yards at Furman, matching his career-best for catches set against Campbell while posting his career-high for yards;
    • WR Malik Knight scored his first career touchdown reception on a 32-yard pass from redshirt freshman QB Taron Dickens in the fourth quarter;
  • WCU had four players record 100 yard performances against Furman – the three wide receivers with Isaiah Johnson at 117 yards, Zion Booker with 103 yards, and Jai Boyd 102 yards – RB Branson Adams led the way with 118 yards, rushing for a team-best 70 yards while catching one pass for 48 yards;
  • RB Jalynn Williams continued his strong return to the WCU lineup, scoring his sixth rushing touchdown of the year to give him eight career rushing scores … Williams has six TD among his 14 rushes this season;
  • Junior RB Branson Adams eclipsed the 1,000 yard rushing mark for his WCU career with 70 yards gained on nine touches ... He ended the Furman game with 1,028 career rushing yards;
  • Junior LB Hayward McQueen Jr. led the Catamounts with 11 total tackles at Furman, marking his third career double-digit tackle game … LB Blue Monroe recorded a career-high eight tackles including four solo stops … Canton, N.C., native DL Caleb Bradford recorded his first career tackle at Furman that came on his first quarterback sack;
  • Sophomore DB Zayveon Wells tallied his first career interception in the fourth quarter;
  • Senior kicker Paxton Robertson also had a career day, scoring a career-high 10 points including a single-game best 7-for-7 on PATs and finishing 1-for-2 on field goals, hitting a 26 yarder;
Miscellaneous Notes:
  • WCU's captains for Saturday's game were senior RB #5 Jalynn Williams … DL #8 Jaquarius Guinn … OL #66 Derek Simmons … and OL #74 Jordan Daniels;
  • Furman won the opening coin toss and elected to defer to the second half … Western Carolina received the opening kickoff with the Paladins getting the football to start the second half.
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Players Mentioned

Censere Lee

#10 Censere Lee

WR
5' 11"
Sophomore
Branson Adams

#2 Branson Adams

RB
5' 9"
Junior
Jai Boyd

#15 Jai Boyd

WR
6' 2"
Redshirt Freshman
Caleb Bradford

#97 Caleb Bradford

DL
6' 1"
Redshirt Junior
Santana Fleming

#13 Santana Fleming

WR
5' 10"
Redshirt Freshman
Hayward McQueen Jr.

#5 Hayward McQueen Jr.

LB
6' 1"
Junior
Paxton Robertson

#46 Paxton Robertson

K
6' 0"
Senior
Jake Young

#87 Jake Young

TE
6' 3"
Redshirt Sophomore
Zion Booker

#1 Zion Booker

WR
5' 10"
Sophomore
Taron Dickens

#8 Taron Dickens

QB
5' 11"
Redshirt Freshman
Cole Gonzales

#9 Cole Gonzales

QB
6' 0"
Junior
Jaquarius Guinn

#8 Jaquarius Guinn

DL
6' 2"
Senior

Players Mentioned

Censere Lee

#10 Censere Lee

5' 11"
Sophomore
WR
Branson Adams

#2 Branson Adams

5' 9"
Junior
RB
Jai Boyd

#15 Jai Boyd

6' 2"
Redshirt Freshman
WR
Caleb Bradford

#97 Caleb Bradford

6' 1"
Redshirt Junior
DL
Santana Fleming

#13 Santana Fleming

5' 10"
Redshirt Freshman
WR
Hayward McQueen Jr.

#5 Hayward McQueen Jr.

6' 1"
Junior
LB
Paxton Robertson

#46 Paxton Robertson

6' 0"
Senior
K
Jake Young

#87 Jake Young

6' 3"
Redshirt Sophomore
TE
Zion Booker

#1 Zion Booker

5' 10"
Sophomore
WR
Taron Dickens

#8 Taron Dickens

5' 11"
Redshirt Freshman
QB
Cole Gonzales

#9 Cole Gonzales

6' 0"
Junior
QB
Jaquarius Guinn

#8 Jaquarius Guinn

6' 2"
Senior
DL