ATLANTA — Football season is in full swing, and Florida A&M is 1-0.
The Rattlers held the ball for the final six minutes of the game, stifling a late-game comeback in the MEAC/SWAC Challenge Saturday night in Atlanta against Norfolk State.
Before the game, FAMU first-year head coach James Colzie III emphasized to fans that he wanted a little adversity and admitted afterward that he and the fans got more than they bargained for.
“Well, I don’t think I wanted it to be that much,” Colzie said. “But congratulations to our team. It was a job persevering and working through the adversity, and I am extremely excited to go home with one and zero.”
Norfolk State, which finished 3-8 last year and 1-4 in the MEAC, looked dominant in the first quarter. The Spartans, led by head coach Dawson Odums, relied heavily on rushing, amassing 162 of 169 total offensive yards on the ground.
The Spartans also dominated in possession, holding the ball for over nine minutes in each of the first two quarters.
NSU silenced the large FAMU crowd within the first two-and-a-half minutes of the game with an 82-yard rushing touchdown by junior Kevon King. The Spartans added to their lead on their second drive with a quarterback keeper from sophomore transfer Jalen Daniels to make it 14-0.
King rushed for 146 of NSU’s 227 rushing yards, scoring two touchdowns in the process.
The Rattlers cut into NSU’s lead with less than a minute to go in the first quarter on a 20-yard pass from new transfer quarterback Daniel Richardson to junior running back Thad Franklin Jr.
Sophomore Michael Smith, a Tallahassee native, made his first extra-point attempt of the season to put the Rattlers within one possession.
Early in the second quarter, grad transfer Cameron Gillis nailed a 33-yard field goal to close the lead to one.
Despite struggling early to respond to the Spartans’ rushing attack, the FAMU defense settled in, allowing just 65 rushing yards for the rest of the game.
When questioned about his team’s reliance on rushing throughout the game, Odums stood firm.
“If somebody can’t stop something, why would you go to something else?” Odums said. “We literally ran the ball down the HBCU national champs’ throat tonight. We buzzed them up and down the field all night long in the running game. So why would we stop?”
Colzie said his team’s performance against the rush was a concern and something to improve upon for next Saturday.
“Giving up 250-plus yards a game is not going to put us in a position to be one of the teams here again in December,” Colzie said. “Our defensive line kept shifting and not protecting the gap, so yeah, there are some things we’ll need to work on as we continue through the season.”
Richardson, however, provided another bright spot for the game as he won MVP honors for the MEAC/SWAC Challenge.
Richardson was 22 of 31, throwing for 286 yards with 32 rushing yards. The experienced QB took no sacks and threw no interceptions. One of his passes was a deep 55-yard completion to senior Jamari Gassett early in the third quarter to take the lead.
Gassett finished the game with eight receptions and over 100 receiving yards.
“I feel like he’s special,” Richardson said of Gassett. “I mean, especially in practice, he’d be like, ‘Man, give me the ball. I’ll be open.’”
When asked how this game will prepare the Rattlers for the rest of the season, Richardson remained confident.
“We don’t lose at Bragg,” Richardson said. “But we have to start faster on both sides of the ball and on special teams. When you start fast, you get into a rhythm, and I don’t think anybody can stop us.”
FAMU will play its first home game against South Carolina State on Aug. 31 at 6 p.m.