Things are starting to look up for the Florida A&M football offense.
In their last two games, the Rattlers’ offense has turned a corner, as they’ve strung together two consecutive high-scoring outputs to coincide with two victories.
First, FAMU beat Alcorn State 33-28 for homecoming two weeks ago, and then escaped Baton Rouge with a 43-35 win over Southern last Saturday, Oct 25.
Both were Southwestern Athletic Conference wins as FAMU kept its postseason hopes alive.
FAMU averages 38 points per game in its last two outings. That’s a significant increase from posting 15.4 points per game during a 1-4 start to the season, the program’s worst since 2016.
“We’re finding ways to get in the endzone as opposed to kicking field goals,” FAMU head coach James Colzie III told local media in his weekly pregame press conference on Oct. 27.
“Offensively, we’re going in a much, much better direction than we were at the beginning of the year.”
Against Southern, FAMU ended its third-down woes, converting nine of 15 in the Week 9 game. A plus 50% third-down rate was the first time the Rattlers accomplished that feat since their 33-25 defeat over Albany State in Week 3.
Obviously, extending drives leads to points. More specifically, touchdowns.
“You want to score points every week,” the FAMU coach said. “We put up 33 and then put up 43. We won both of those games. That starts with getting the ball to your playmakers, taking care of the football, being great on third down, and putting the ball in the endzone.”
That must continue in FAMU’s next game versus Jackson State, this Saturday, Nov. 1, a Week 10 contest that has SWAC East standings and HBCU postseason implications.
The Jackson State Tigers’ offense is second in SWAC scoring among 12 teams with an average of 33.6 points per game behind Alabama State’s 41.9. Jackson State has the league’s highest yards per game at 489.1.
The Tigers’ scoring average is 21st in the Football Championship Subdivision, while their yardage places sixth out of 129 teams.
However, Jackson State may be without its star quarterback, JaCobian Morgan, who got injured in last week’s 26-24 loss to Grambling State and was seen on crutches and a walking boot.
Freshmen signal callers Jared Lockhart and Parker Stofa replaced the Preseason SWAC Offensive Player of the Year and Black College Football National Championship-winning quarterback.
Jackson State hasn’t named a starting quarterback for the FAMU game.
“Don’t get me wrong, you want to take the points when you can,” Colzie said, considering the possibility of an offensive battle in the FAMU versus Jackson State game. “But seven points against this bunch is going to be a hell of a lot better than three this weekend.”
FAMU football QB RJ Johnson III has improved right before our eyes
RJ Johnson III experienced growing pains in his first season as the Rattlers’ starting quarterback.
The redshirt sophomore who transferred from the Toledo Rockets won FAMU’s starting quarterback job ahead of August’s season opener versus Howard. It was his first time starting, let alone playing in a college football game.
Johnson’s rawness was evident as he struggled early in the season. He stared down open receivers as plays developed and took sacks by holding onto the football for too long.
It eventually led to Johnson’s benching, when FAMU turned to backup quarterback Jett Peddy before its 45-7 loss to North Carolina Central in Week 7.
“Compared to what we were running offensively the first game of the year to what we’re doing right now is just a product of him growing,” Colzie said of Johnson. “He’s continuing to grow and trust his coaching. Don’t get me wrong, he has not been perfect. It’s been a work in progress, week in and week out. Excited about where he is but also excited about where he can be.”
Johnson was always efficient, with a high completion rate and no turnovers. But his yards per passing attempt were low.
Johnson finally hit a new gear in his return as the starter versus Alcorn State in Week 8.
He completed 26 passes on 38 attempts for 323 yards, ran five times for 50 yards, and scored a passing and rushing touchdown apiece. The Atlanta native was named the SWAC’s Co-Newcomer of the Week for the performance.
Against Southern, the FAMU quarterback went 22 for 32 for 287 passing yards, had 36 rushing yards on six attempts, and a passing and rushing touchdown.
On the season, Johnson has completed 120 of 185 passing attempts for 1,420 yards, 38 rushing attempts for 118 yards, thrown for seven touchdowns, rushed for two, and has zero interceptions.
“Their quarterback is the leader of that team,” said Jackson State head coach T.C. Taylor. “He’s playing great. We’ve got to be on our A-game and go out here and execute at a high level this weekend. Because they’re playing good football right now.”
Behind Johnson are running back Jamal Hailey and wide receiver Goldie Lawrence.
In FAMU’s most recent win versus Southern, Hailey had a breakout performance after replacing the injured Thad Franklin Jr.
Hailey, a transfer from Western Michigan, had 19 rushing attempts for 157 yards and three touchdowns against Southern. He was the Rattlers’ first single-game 100-yard rusher, earning the SWAC’s Newcomer of the Week.
Goldie Lawrence has also been utilized in different capacities for the Rattlers in his second year on the team.
The former Florida State Seminole housed a 33-yard touchdown run on a reverse play versus Alcorn State. He then followed up versus Southern with four receptions for 95 yards, and a 74-yard touchdown pass from Johnson en route to the Rattlers icing the win.
“We’re finding different ways to get different people the football. And it’s worked out for us,” Colzie said. “When you do that and you get other people making plays, it makes the defense have to worry about a lot of different things. RJ’s doing a much, much better job of getting the ball to those people.”
FAMU football’s improved offense to face Jackson State, a top defense in SWAC, FCS
Colzie is entering the SWAC showdown versus Jackson State “extremely excited” for the game plan that FAMU offensive coordinator Henry Burris and staff will put together.
But the Jackson State defense is no slouch.
It ranks third in the SWAC in total defense, first in the league’s run defense category, and 35th in total defense in the FCS.
Hoping to overtake the No. 1 spot in the SWAC East with a win and other results across the league this week, FAMU aims to play a balanced, opportunistic offensive game against Jackson State.
“They’re pretty stout up front,” Colzie said. “You can’t throw it every down. When we run the football, we’ve got to make sure we’re effective, staying on our blocks, and making sure we hold on to the football as we get first downs. That helps our quarterback, making sure we’re balanced. We’re just maybe picking different times when we run and pass against one of the best defenses in the country.”
FAMU versus Jackson State kicks off at 7 p.m. this Saturday on Ken Riley Field at Bragg Memorial Stadium.
ESPN+ will televise the game, and it will also be available on Tallahassee’s local radio airwaves via 96.1 JAMZ.
Florida A&M (3-4, 2-1 in SWAC) vs Jackson State (5-2, 3-1 in SWAC)
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: Why FAMU football’s surging offense is ‘extremely excited’ for SWAC duel vs Jackson State
Reporting by Gerald Thomas III, Tallahassee Democrat / Tallahassee Democrat
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
