As Bob Richey has coached the Furman Paladins to lofty standards of success, one of the pillars of his program has been Built By Furman, and specifically, the Work While You Wait slogan. Most freshman who Coach Richey brings in are willing to sit a year and redshirt, or fully commit to the tough development program in Greenville. Former strength coach Matt Aldred has been a large proponent of this process, and it will continue to be essential to Furman’s success, even as he moves on. One of the players fits that exemplifies Work While You Wait to its core, is Marcus Foster.
Marcus Foster
Marcus Foster is a true embodiment of the “Work While You Wait” mantra, having redshirted his freshman season. During that season, instead of playing, he put on weight and began his development. As he got older he only got better, developing from a raw lengthy wing with no shooting touch, to his senior year as the team’s offensive focal point and an excellent rebounder. He added mobility and used his long wingspan to effectively defend most matchups. Marcus’ largest improvement areas were points per game, rebounds per game, and 3PT field goal percentage. So let’s dive in and look at his numbers over the years.
2020-2021 - 2.2 PPG, 2.2 RPG, 20% 3PT
Foster came in his freshman year (2019-2020) and was prepared not to play. He began that first summer at 182 lbs and needed to bulk up his lanky frame to fit the D1 game. He dutifully applied himself to Coach Richey’s plans and redshirted that season in order to develop. However, he came back the next year, his redshirt freshman season, and was a contributor in 18 appearances for the Paladins. He was raw, and as seen in his 3PT percentage, not yet at a level to be a shooting threat on the wing. But seeing 18 games in his first active year was proof that his redshirt year was a success. He showed flashes, with 6 points and 6 rebounds in his debut, as well as a couple 9 point outings in the non-conference.
2021-2022 - 8.5 PPG, 5.0 RPG, 35.8% 3PT
Sophomore year is a critical step in the development process because a player can either find their role in the team, or become lost in the shuffle of new and returning players. Marcus certainly found his role in his redshirt sophomore season right off the bat, and stepped into it. He demonstrated tremendous potential, recording back to back double doubles against USC Upstate and High Point. He scored 15 points in each, bolstered by 10 and 14 rebounds respectively. Over the course of the season, as the numbers suggest, Foster became a consistent rebounder off the wing, grabbing 5 per game. With his increased role, including 27 starts, the scoring naturally increased to 8.5, up over 6 ppg from the last season. A nod to the development program appears in his shooting numbers. Despite taking 71 more threes during this season, his percentage increased drastically, jumping up to a reliable 35%. He gained weight in order to contribute, jumping from 182 lbs in his true freshman summer to 210 lbs. Foster proved himself committed to the craft and his role on the team as Furman rolled into their championship season.
2022-2023 - 10.6 PPG, 5.1 RPG, 36% 3PT
In his resdhirt junior season, Marcus stepped into his role as the ultimate 3 and D guy, and a crucial piece to grabbing the conference championship. Throughout the season, Foster grabbed the starting job for 29 games and played in all 36. He slimmed down from 210 to 200 lbs to become a versatile scorer. His output increased yet again, up to 10.6 points per game, even as the third and sometimes fourth option on offense. Marcus more than doubled his 3 point shooting totals, putting up 180 threes but again increasing his percentage from that range. Marcus had developed from a raw, lanky bench piece to a crucial floor stretcher who could not be left alone from range. Late in the season, Foster hit the crucial dagger to put the Paladins up 11 in the SoCon Championship. He followed that up during the biggest win in program history going 4 of 9 from beyond the arc to knock out the 4 seed Virginia Cavaliers. As his offensive numbers improved, Marcus quietly became a high quality defender. He average 5.1 rebounds to go along with over a steal a game. He grabbed 5 rebounds against UVA, 9 against Chattanooga, and 6 against Western Carolina. In 3 of Furman’s biggest games he showed up, showing himself as a force on the glass. This is what the Work While You Wait mantra is about, building a freshman into a championship player who performs when the most eyes are on the them.
2023-2024 - 17 PPG, 7.5 RPG, 30% 3PT
Senior year - with Marcus Foster entering the portal and heading to Xavier - ended up being the final step of his journey through the Paladin development program. With the losses of Mike Bothwell and Jalen Slawson, Marcus Foster was to become the focal point of the offense with his running mate JP Pegues. Despite becoming a main target for defenses and entering with high expectations, Foster produced. He put up 17 points per game, an improvement of 15 since his freshman year. He became the top rebounder on the team, as a 6’4 guy diving down from the wing. The senior did experience a drop in three point efficiency, as more of his shots came from off the dribble or with a higher level of contest. Despite this, he kept it at 30%.
Marcus is only one of the success stories that can be attributed to the extraordinary developmental program that is known as “Built By Furman” and Work While You Wait mantra of the Paladins. From a redshirt sitting out his freshman year, to the leading scorer and rebounder and an All-Conference appearance, Marcus certainly put in the work.