The Southwestern Athletic Conference Volleyball Championship runs through Tallahassee.
Literally.
Florida A&M will host the SWAC Tournament title game on campus at the Al Lawson Center. The eight-team single-elimination playoff began Friday, Nov. 21, and ends with the SWAC Championship game Sunday, Nov. 23.
The winner obtains an automatic bid to the Division I NCAA Volleyball Tournament.
FAMU, the defending SWAC champions, entered postseason play as an eight seed after finishing the 2025 regular season with an 11-16 overall record and 9-7 in the SWAC.
The Rattlers took down one-seed Prairie View A&M Panthers (18-11, 15-1 in SWAC) 3-1 in the tournament’s opening match on Friday and then rolled past Alabama A&M 3-1 on Saturday, Nov 22.
FAMU advanced to the SWAC Championship on Sunday at 2:30 p.m. in a match with Southern.
All tournament games will be available to watch on SWAC TV.
“We’re happy it’s here. This is the year that we need it to be at home with how much we struggled early on,” FAMU head coach Gokhan Yilmaz told the Tallahassee Democrat.
“We’re fortunate to be picking up our game at the right time, also.”
FAMU lost 10 players from last year’s SWAC Championship team that went on to play the Nebraska Cornhuskers in the NCAA Tournament.
Pair a young team with an injury-riddled roster, and you have FAMU opening its season with a 2-10 record.
Fast forward, FAMU has won six of its last seven matches. It most recently swept the SWAC Tournament’s two-seed, Jackson State, on the road to wrap up the regular season last Sunday, Nov. 16.
Star middle blocker Farah Farooq leads FAMU.
The 6-foot-1 junior is atop the SWAC and ranked 24th in Division I with a .404 hitting percentage. Moreover, her 98 blocks at the net are second in the SWAC.
As a team, FAMU holds its opponents to a .0176 hitting percentage, second in the SWAC behind Jackson State. Additionally, the Rattlers are second in the SWAC with 2.23 blocks per set.
“We’re going into it with a little bit better momentum on our side,” Yilmaz explained. “But it’s a younger team, which we’re not used to. But we’re happy that it’s feeling like it’s coming together at the right time.”
A large contingent of Rattlers sports fans will be in Orlando for the FAMU football team’s Florida Classic rivalry game against Bethune-Cookman on Saturday, Nov. 22.
Football has established itself as FAMU’s flagship sport. Volleyball has made a case, too.
The Rattlers have won three of the last four SWAC titles in 2021, 2022, and 2024. FAMU joined the SWAC in 2021.
“All the Rattlers that are in Tallahassee and the surrounding areas ― they want to come and support our program and also see high-level volleyball when they have a chance. This is a great opportunity,” the FAMU coach said of the homecourt advantage.
“Looking forward to hosting it here.”
See the SWAC Volleyball Tournament schedule at FAMU’s Al Lawson Center
All times are in Eastern Standard Time. All games can be watched on SWAC TV.
Friday, November 21
Saturday, November 22
Sunday, November 23
Gerald Thomas, III is a multi-time award-winning journalist for his coverage of the Florida A&M Rattlers at the Tallahassee Democrat.
Follow his award-winning coverage on RattlerNews.com and contact him via email at GDThomas@Tallahassee.com or on the app formerly known as Twitter @3peatgee.
This article originally appeared on Tallahassee Democrat: FAMU volleyball needs fan support for on-campus SWAC Tournament title match
Reporting by Gerald Thomas III, Tallahassee Democrat / Tallahassee Democrat
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
