1996 Florida A&M Rattlers football team

1996 Florida A&M Rattlers football
MEAC champion
NCAA Division I-AA First Round, L 25–29 vs. Troy State
Conference	Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference
Record	9–3 (7–0 MEAC)
Head coach	Billy Joe (3rd season)
Home stadium	Bragg Memorial Stadium

1996 Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference football standings

v t e	Conf							Overall
Team		W		L					W		L
No. 12 Florida A&M $^		7	–	0					9	–	3
No. 20 Howard		6	–	1					10	–	2
North Carolina A&T		4	–	3					8	–	3
South Carolina State		4	–	3					4	–	6
Hampton		3	–	4					5	–	6
Morgan State		2	–	5					4	–	7
Delaware State		2	–	5					3	–	8
Bethune–Cookman		0	–	7					2	–	9
$ – Conference champion ^ – NCAA Division I-AA playoff participant Rankings from The Sports Network poll

The 1996 Florida A&M Rattlers football team represented Florida A&M University as a member of the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC) during the 1996 NCAA Division I-AA football season. Led by third-year head coach Billy Joe, the Rattlers compiled an overall record of 9–3, with a mark of 7–0 in conference play, and finished as MEAC champion. Florida A&M completed their season with a loss against Troy State in the NCAA Division I-AA First Round.

Schedule

Date	Opponent	Rank	Site	Result	Attendance	Source
August 31	at Tennessee State*		Vanderbilt Stadium Nashville, TN	W 35–20	31,782	[1]
September 7	Tuskegee*		Bragg Memorial Stadium Tallahassee, FL	W 56–0	24,726	[2]
September 21	at No. 6 Jackson State*	No. 22	Mississippi Veterans Memorial Stadium Jackson, MS	L 9–16	38,500	[3]
September 28	Howard	No. 21	Bragg Memorial Stadium Tallahassee, FL	W 21–20	7,741	[4]
October 5	vs. Hampton	No. 21	RCA Dome Indianapolis, IN (Circle City Classic)	W 59–58 ^6OT	62,037	[5]
October 12	North Carolina A&T	No. 16	Bragg Memorial Stadium Tallahassee, FL	W 24–23		[6]
October 19	at Delaware State	No. 15	Alumni Stadium Dover, DE	W 47–26		[7]
November 3	Morgan State	No. 12	Bragg Memorial Stadium Tallahassee, FL	W 83–12		[8]
November 9	at Southern*	No. 13	A. W. Mumford Stadium Baton Rouge, LA	L 17–21	15,969	[9]
November 16	vs. South Carolina State	No. 16	Georgia Dome Atlanta, GA (Budweiser Super Showdown)	W 20–6	24,800	[10]
November 23	vs. Bethune–Cookman	No. 13	Houlihan's Stadium Tampa, FL (Florida Classic)	W 41–7		[11]
November 30	at No. 5 Troy State*	No. 12	Veterans Memorial Stadium Troy, AL (NCAA Division I-AA First Round)	L 29–25	10,200	[12]
*Non-conference game Rankings from NCAA Division I-AA Football Committee Poll released prior to the game

References

1. "Showing strength of Sampson". Tallahassee Democrat. September 1, 1996. Retrieved August 12, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
2. "FAMU rips imitator 56–0". St. Petersburg Times. September 8, 1996. Retrieved August 12, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
3. "Jackson State defeats turnover-prone FAMU". South Florida Sun Sentinel. September 22, 1996. Retrieved August 12, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
4. "Rattlers maintain dominance of Howard". Florida Today. September 29, 1996. Retrieved August 12, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
5. "Florida A&M wins one long affair". The Indianapolis Star. October 6, 1996. Retrieved August 12, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
6. "Errant kick gives FAMU tense win over Aggies". Greensboro News & Record. October 13, 1996. Retrieved August 12, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
7. "Florida A&M rattles Hornets". The News Journal. October 20, 1996. Retrieved August 12, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
8. "Fla. A&M hammers Morgan State, 83–12". The Baltimore Sun. November 3, 1996. Retrieved August 12, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
9. "FAMU falls short st Southern, 21–17". The Orlando Sentinel. November 10, 1996. Retrieved August 12, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
10. "Sampson lifts Florida A&M". The Atlanta Journal & Constitution. November 17, 1996. Retrieved August 12, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
11. "It was a Classic mismatch". St. Petersburg Times. November 24, 1996. Retrieved August 12, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
12. "Trojans avoid being bitten by Rattlers". The Dothan Eagle. December 1, 1996. Retrieved August 12, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.