Look, Furman should be favored to win this game.
Samford is higher ranked, but that's really the product of voters over-valuing Kennesaw State in the preseason. Oddly, Furman will benefit from KSU's lofty preseason ranking if they happen to beat Samford, which is odd, considering we don't play KSU.
I digress.
At this point, you can make some reasonable comparisons. Both teams played top 5 FBS teams and a variety of teams that range from bad to pretty good. Both teams have handled their business to this point.
On paper, Furman is the better team. Better on offense. Better on defense.
The matchup I am excited to watch is Furman's DBs against Samford's QB. Furman has built a very good defensive backfield and leads the league in interceptions. Samford's QB has been very good at avoiding turnovers in the passing game. I expect Furman is going to be able to throw a lot more sub packages at Samford than WCU or Tennessee Tech did. Furman's ability to get their hands in passing lanes and tackle from the backfield may be the difference.
Samford is plenty good enough to beat Furman. Both teams are going to lean on their defenses to force the opposing offense out of their comfort zone. Both teams are going to want to dictate their style of play.
