Black College Sports Page by Lut Williams

[Bilal Mahmud المكافح المخلص]

LUT WILLIAMS BCSP Editor

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ALL SMILES: (L. to R.) Florida A&M head football coach Willie Simmons, President Dr. Larry Robinson and Athletics Director Tiffany Sykes clutch the championship trophy after the Rattlers’ 30-26 win over Howard in Saturday’s Cricket Celebration Bowl VIII.

ATLANTA, GA, Dec. 16, 2023 – Grad senior quarterback Jeremy Moussa threw three fourth-quarter touchdown passes to allow SWAC champion Florida A&M to come back from an early 14-0 deficit and pull out an exciting 30-26 win over MEAC champion Howard in Cricket Celebration Bowl VIII Saturday.

The win, just the second for the SWAC in eight season-ending contests vs. the MEAC, means the Rattlers (12-1) are the 2023 Black college SportS page Div. I FCS national champions. An announced crowd of 41,108 at Mercedes Benz Stadium witnessed the back- and-forth affair.

The win for the Rattlers in their first time in the Celebration Bowl and third year since leaving the MEAC to join the SWAC, comes 35 years to the day after the Rattlers under head coach Rudy Hubbard won the first NCAA I-AA (now FCS) championship in 1978. Hubbard’s team also finished 12-1.

“We’ve said all season long that Rattlers never quit and we proved it today,” said victorious FAMU head coach Willie Simmons during the postgame presentation of the trophy.

After a sluggish and mistake-filled first half and scoreless third quarter, the Rattlers came to life.

They began the fourth quarter down just 16-10 but took their first lead
at 17-16 when Moussa hit running back Kelvin Dean Jr. for a TD from 21 yards out. The scoring play came after Moussa completed an
18-yard pass on 4th-and-5 from the Howard 39. It capped a 12-play, 83-yard drive that began late in the third quarter and came with 13:45 left in the final stanza.

After a Howard three-and-out, the Rattlers struck again. This time they needed only three plays to cover 70 yards with Moussa hitting Dean again, this time on a wheel route that covered 53 yards. After Cameron Gillis’s PAT, FAMU led 24-16 with 10:48 to play.

Howard struck quickly, scoring the next ten points to take a 26-24 lead. First, Bison QB Quinton Williams completed two passed for 44 yards to Nah’Shawn Hezekiah to set up Aaron Bicketon’s 40-yard field goal. On the second play on the ensuing FAMU possession, Howard defensive back Carson Hinton stepped in front of a Moussa pass in the flat and rambled untouched 27 yards to paydirt with 7:14 left on the clock.

FAMU needed just four plays to retake the lead as Moussa hit running back Terrell Jennings for 15 yards and Dean for 13 yards before connecting with wideout Jah’Mare Sheread behind the Bison defense for a 38-yard TD. A two-point attempt failed leaving FAMU up 30-26 with 5:46 on the clock.

Howard would get two more possessions but both ended in Williams interceptions. He first threw into triple coverage and was picked off by FAMU DB Kendall Bohler. After three running plays and a punt, the Rattlers gave the ball back to Howard with 1:50 left.

On first down however, Williams’s screen pass was picked off by FAMU linebacker Isaiah Major sealing the win. FAMU picked up one first down before kneeling three times to run out the clock.

“One thing we pride ourselves on not doing is beating ourselves,” said Howard head coach Larry Scott in the postgame press conference. “We kind of did that a little bit and hurt ourselves in that regard. However, I’m proud of this football team and what we started here, what we accomplished and what we’ll continue to build upon.”

Dean, who finished with three catches for 87 yards and the two scores, was named the

game’s offensive MVP. Moussa was 19 of 32 for 289 yards and the three TDs but also threw two interceptions. Jennings led FAMU rushers with 68 yards on 19 carries and one TD. Major was named the game’s defensive MVP after posting six tackles and the game-sealing interception. Junior linebacker Johnny

Chaney Jr. led the Rattlers defensive effort with 11 tackles.Williams had trouble figuring out the Rattlers’ tough defense. He finished
with just 14 completions in 27 attempts for 106 yards and three picks. The Bison also managed just 87 rushing yards on 28 carries. Kenny Gallop Jr. and Robert Jones III had seven tackles each to lead Howard.

The Bison (6-6) had a promising start. Ian Wheeler returned the opening kickoff 63 yards to the FAMU 27. Four plays later, running back Jarrett Hunter scored from the 8 to put the Bison up 7-0. FAMU gave the ball right back to the Bison as Moussa was strip sacked by Christian White with Hinton recovering at the FAMU 37. The Bison needed six plays to cover the distance with wide receiver Kasey Hawthorne scoring from the Wildcat formation on a 3-yard run. Less than five minutes into the game and Howard was up 14-0.

FAMU got its only first-half touchdown after a 32-yard Bickerton punt put the Rattlers in business at the Bison’s 46 late in the first quarter. Nine plays later, Jennings went over from 3 yards out to cut the lead to 14-7 less than three minutes into the second quarter.

After a Howard punt, the Rattlers got the ball back at their own 16 with 10:57 left in the period. Moussa was sacked on back-to-back plays, the second coming as he retreated to the end zone and was taken down by Howard defensive lineman Darrian Brokenburr for a safety. Howard was then up 16-7 with 9:37 left in the half.

FAMU got its final points of the half as Gillis nailed a 41-yard field goal :11 seconds before halftime. It came after Williams was picked off by Deco Wilson at the Rattlers’ 38. The scoring drive covered 39 yards in 11 plays.

[Bilal Mahmud المكافح المخلص]

[Bilal Mahmud المكافح المخلص]

[Bilal Mahmud المكافح المخلص]

Kofi Bilal Mahmud Eid AlFitr 1443 A.H.

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