‘We just always gonna finish’: Florida A&M ekes out win in the MEAC/SWAC Challenge

ATLANTA – Florida A&M University is once again leaving Atlanta with a win and a trophy.

The defending Celebration Bowl champion defeated Norfolk State University 24-23 at the Cricket MEAC/SWAC Challenge on Saturday, earning first-year head coach James Colzie III his first win with the program. 

Colzie knew his Rattlers would face adversity. The game’s ebbs and flows included Florida A&M trailing 14-0 in the first quarter before coming alive in the second half and taking its first lead of the game in the third quarter.

“Believe it or not, we are a much different team than we were last year. New guys, new guys in different spots, new faces,” Colzie said. “You lose the player of the year on both sides of the football, some other guys are going to have to play better. At times we did, and at times we didn’t. … We didn’t get down when we got down, and I’m extremely excited that it’s something to build on.”

Florida A&M quarterback Daniel Richardson, a transfer from Florida Atlantic University, was named MEAC/SWAC Challenge Most Valuable Player. He finished the game with 22 completions, throwing for 286 yards and three touchdowns.

“Coach said it’s gonna be some times they gonna punch you in the mouth. It’s about responding and how you gonna come right back,” Richardson said. “At the end of the day, I felt like we were calm. … We started off slow, but we were able to pick that up.”

Several Florida A&M players said the first half of the game felt similar to their last appearance in Atlanta in December 2023 at the Celebration Bowl, where they trailed by 14 points in the first quarter before ultimately coming back to win that game as well.

“We just always gonna finish. We’re always gonna work. Ain’t really too much to it,” said wide receiver Jamari Gassett, who finished with eight catches for 110 yards and two touchdowns. “We got a game plan. They came out with something different, but we stuck to our game plan. We made little tweaks, but we stuck to our game plan.”

Post-game quotes from the coaches 

Florida A&M’s Colzie: “I thought our offense did a really, really good job of answering, you know, once we got down 14 to 0, and let us get our wits about ourselves, and ultimately, [it was a] great football game. I told Rattler Nation that I was hoping for a little adversity. I don’t think I wanted it to be that much, but congratulations to our team.”

Norfolk State head coach Dawson Odums: “We got a chance to put a lot of people on notice. I’m proud of these guys, the coaches, our program. We came a long way, we came up one point short, but what I tell our guys is that I can be excited for victory. I’m humble in the loss. I always try to find the positives. We ran the football, and for the most part of the game, we stopped the run. We held a really good football team in check for most of the game. We [were] in a football game all the way to the last horn.”

Top performers

Florida A&M’s Richardson completed 22 out of 30 passes for 286 passing yards and three touchdowns. Gassett, Richardson’s top target, finished with eight catches for 110 yards and two touchdowns. 

Florida A&M running back Thad Franklin Jr. and tight end Koby Gross combined for six catches for 84 yards and one touchdown.

Norfolk State running back Kevon King finished the game with 14 carries for 146 yards and two touchdowns. The Spartans’ running back corps finished the game with 227 rushing yards on 43 attempts.

Memorable moments

Norfolk State’s King ripped off an 82-yard run in the first quarter to score the first touchdown of the game.

A Norfolk State player threw up on the field in the first quarter, and on the next play quarterback Jalen Daniels scored on a quarterback keeper to give the Spartans a two-possession lead.

Florida A&M linebacker Aric Horne tackled Norfolk State quarterback Daniels at the goal line in the fourth quarter, preventing the Spartans from converting the two-point conversion and maintaining the Rattlers’ one-point lead.

Gassett’s first touchdown of the night gave the Rattlers their first lead of the game late in the third quarter. He caught a 9-yard touchdown later in the third quarter to extend the Rattlers’ lead.

Norfolk State’s Spartan Legion marching band entertained the 22,210 fans in attendance with renditions of “Rain” by SWV and Tommy Richman’s “Million Dollar Baby.” Florida A&M’s Marching 100 performed Muni Long’s “Made for Me” and Kendrick Lamar’s “Not Like Us.”

Colzie earned his first win as the Rattlers’ head football coach, and the team rewarded him with a Gatorade bath.

“I expected it and took it like a champ. It was cold and I got Gatorade in my eyes,” Colzie told Andscape. “I want to keep winning, but I don’t think I should be doused in Powerade every week. But we keep winning [and] I will welcome that.”