Represents Florida A&M University in the sport of American football
Florida A&M Rattlers football First season 1907; 118 years ago (1907 ) Head coach James Colzie III 1st season, 7–5 (.583)Stadium Bragg Memorial Stadium (capacity: 19,633)Field surface AstroTurf Location Tallahassee, Florida NCAA division Division I FCS Conference SWAC All-time record 598–343–22 (.632) Bowl record 29–24–2 (.545) Claimed national titles 17 (Div. I FCS ): 1978 (Black College ): 1938 , 1942 , 1950 , 1952 , 1953 , 1954 , 1957 , 1959 , 1961 , 1962 , 1977 , 1978 , 1998 , 2001 , 2019 , 2023 Unclaimed national titles 1 (Div. II ): 1962 Conference titles 38 Rivalries Bethune-Cookman (rivalry )Colors Green and orange[ 1] Marching band Marching 100 Website FAMUAthletics.com
The Florida A&M Rattlers football team represents Florida A&M University in the sport of American football . The Rattlers compete in the Football Championship Subdivision (FCS) of Division I of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA). Starting with the fall 2021 season, the Rattlers will compete in the East Division of the Southwestern Athletic Conference (SWAC), after a long tenure in the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC).[ 2] They play their home games at Bragg Memorial Stadium in Tallahassee .
The Rattlers have won 16 black college football national championship , 29 Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SIAC) titles, eight MEAC titles, one SWAC title and one I-AA national title in the history of their football program. During the 2004 season, the Rattlers briefly attempted to move up to Division I-A (now known as the FBS ) and become the only HBCU at college football's highest level, but the team was forced to abort its bid.[ 3]
History
Classifications
1952–1972: NCAA College Division
1973–1977: NCAA Division II
1978–2003: NCAA Division I–AA
2004: NCAA Division I–A
2005–present: NCAA Division I–AA/FCS
Conference memberships
† In 1978, FAMU was a member of SIAC, a Division II conference. FAMU had successfully petitioned the NCAA for Division I classification (Division I-AA in football), which took effect on September 1, 1978.[ 5]
The Rattlers have been part of a couple controversies in recent years. In 2022, FAMU almost had to forfeit a week 1 game against North Carolina because 20 players were academically ineligible to play. In July 2023, Florida A&M halted all football related activities after a rap video containing explicit lyrics was filmed in their locker room.
Annual Classics
Championships
National, Black College
The Rattlers claim 16 historically black colleges and universities (HBCUs) championships [ 6] 15 come from official HBCU championship selectors, while the 2021 claim is the result of an NCAA power ranking of FCS HBCU teams.[ 7] [ 8]
National
National, Division I–AA/FCS
Florida A&M has one championship in the division formerly known as Division I-AA. They are the only HBCU to play in and win a I-AA/FCS championship game.
National, Division II/College Division
One Florida A&M team has been awarded a national championship from NCAA-designated designated major selector , as they were declared Associated Press (AP) small college national champion for the 1962 season. While the school holds the distinction of being the first HBCU to win an NCAA football title, the championship is not claimed by the university.
Year
Association
Division
Coach
Selector
Record
1962
NCAA
College Division
Jake Gaither
Poll
9–1
Conference championships
Bragg Memorial Stadium Florida A&M has won 38 conference championships, 31 outright and 7 shared.
Year
Coach
Conference
Record
1937
William M. Bell
Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference
7–1–1
1938
William M. Bell
Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference
8–0
1942
William M. Bell
Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference
9–0
1943
Herman Neilson
Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference
7–3
1945
Jake Gaither
Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference
9–1
1946
Jake Gaither
Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference
6–4–1
1947
Jake Gaither
Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference
9–1
1948
Jake Gaither
Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference
8–2
1949
Jake Gaither
Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference
7–2
1950 †
Jake Gaither
Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference
8–1
1952 †
Jake Gaither
Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference
8–2
1953
Jake Gaither
Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference
10–1
1954
Jake Gaither
Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference
8–1
1955
Jake Gaither
Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference
7–1–1
1956
Jake Gaither
Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference
8–1
1957
Jake Gaither
Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference
9–0
1958
Jake Gaither
Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference
7–2
1959
Jake Gaither
Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference
10–0
1960
Jake Gaither
Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference
9–1
1961
Jake Gaither
Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference
10–0
1962 †
Jake Gaither
Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference
9–1
1963 †
Jake Gaither
Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference
8–2
1964
Jake Gaither
Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference
9–1
1965
Jake Gaither
Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference
7–3
1967
Jake Gaither
Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference
8–2
1968
Jake Gaither
Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference
8–2
1969
Jake Gaither
Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference
8–1
1977
Rudy Hubbard
Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference
11–0
1978
Rudy Hubbard
Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference
12–1
1988 †
Ken Riley
Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference
6–4–1
1990
Ken Riley
Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference
7–4
1995
Billy Joe
Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference
9–3
1996
Billy Joe
Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference
9–3
1998 †
Billy Joe
Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference
11–2
2000
Billy Joe
Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference
9–2
2001
Billy Joe
Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference
7–3
2010 †
Joe Taylor
Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference
8–3
2023
Willie Simmons
Southwestern Athletic Conference
11–1
† Co-champions
Bowl games
This is a partial list. The Rattlers have an overall bowl record of 29–24–2.
[ 9]
NCAA Division I-AA/FCS playoff results
The Rattlers have appeared in the I-AA/FCS playoffs eight times with a record of 5–7. They were I-AA National Champions in 1978, the first year of Division I-AA.
Year
Round
Opponent
Result
1978
SemifinalsNational Championship Game
Jackson State Massachusetts
W 15–10W 35–28
1996
First Round
Troy State
L 25–29
1997
First Round
Georgia Southern
L 37–52
1998
First Round Quarterfinals
Troy State Western Illinois
W 27–17 L 21–24
1999
First Round Quarterfinals Semifinals
Appalachian State Troy State Youngstown State
W 44–29W 17–10 L 24–27
2000
First Round
Western Kentucky
L 0–27
2001
First Round
Georgia Southern
L 35–60
2021
First Round
Southeastern Louisiana
L 14–38
Alumni in the NFL
Over 60 Florida A&M alumni have played in the NFL,[ 10] including:
References
^ FAMUAthletics.com Style Guide (PDF) . Retrieved June 12, 2016 .
^ "SWAC Announces Addition of Florida A&M as Full Member" (Press release). Southwestern Athletic Conference. June 4, 2020. Retrieved June 8, 2020 .
^ Powell, Robert Andrew (October 9, 2004). "Florida A&M Tries to Recover From Failed Bid" . The New York Times . Retrieved May 7, 2016 .
^ Connelly, Bill (May 4, 2016). "That time FAMU nearly made it in college football's top level, but the timing was all wrong" . SB Nation .
^ Cooper, Barry (August 31, 1978). "Florida A&M granted Division 1 status" . Tallahassee Democrat . Tallahassee, Florida . p. 1B. Retrieved May 13, 2019 – via newspapers.com.
^ "FAMU to join Southwestern Athletic Conference in 2021" . June 6, 2020.
^ "The final HBCU football power rankings for the 2021 season" .
^ "Simmons rebuilds FAMU football, Rattlers eye HBCU national championship in Celebration Bowl" .
^ http://fs.ncaa.org/Docs/stats/football_records/2022/Bowls.pdf [bare URL PDF ]
^ "Florida A&M Players/Alumni" . Pro-Football-Reference.com .
See also
External links
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