ORLANDO, Fla. (Nov. 21) - The toughest season in Florida A&M Football history ended on a damp Saturday evening here in the Orlando Citrus Bowl, as archival Bethune-Cookman won a hard-fought 35-14 Mid Eastern Athletic Conference victory over the Rattlers in the Florida Blue Florida Classic.
"It was a disappointing loss for our program. We came in with great emotion and energy, but we made too many crucial mistakes, but we still competed until the end," said head coach Alex Wood.
"This was a disappointing season, not what we expected. But we felt we had our chances every week, so it was a tough year," Wood concluded.
FAMU (1-10, 1-7 MEAC) had their first one win season since 1943, and it was the first 10-loss season ever in the school's storied history.
With the win, the Wildcats (9-2, 7-1 MEAC) earned a share of the 2015 MEAC title, thanks to North Carolina Central's 21-16 win over rival North Carolina A&T in Greensboro Saturday, which left three teams tied for first - B-CU, NCCU and A&T - at 7-1.
Saturday's win was the fifth straight for B-CU, which still trails the Rattlers in the overall series, 48-20-1, and in the Classic series, 21-15-0.
Four FAMU turnovers proved fatal to the Rattlers hopes, three coming on consecutive possessions to start the second half, turning a manageable 21-14 deficit into a 35-14 hole.
Bethune-Cookman grabbed a 14-0 first quarter lead as quarterback Quentin Williams directed a pair of scoring drives, capping the first with a 13-yard TD dash, before he ended the next with a 21-yard strike to Jawill Davis.
But the Rattlers struck back in the second period, pulling to within 14-7 on Kenny Coleman's six-yard TD aerial to Montavious Williams with 13:32 left in the half.
The Wildcats extended their edge back to 14 points, when Williams hit Jamie Wilson with a 13-yard scoring toss for a 21-7 count with 9:07 left, before FAMU's Classic MVP Devin Bowers barged in from seven yards out with 4:20 to go for a 21-14 halftime score.
FAMU, which used both Coleman and Carson Royal at quarterback, when cramps hit Coleman hard in the second quarter, went with Royal to begin the third.
The Rattlers would turn the ball over on their first three possessions - two Royal interceptions and a controversial fumble by Bowers at the goal line, with the last two leading to Wildcat scores.
Bowers' knee appeared down in television replays, but after review the officials awarded the ball to B-CU, which drove 80 yards in 12 plays, capped by Anthony Jordan's five yard run for a 28-14 lead.
A Royal interception set the 'Cats up on the FAMU 37 yard line, and seven plays later, Williams found Wilson for their second scoring hookup, a 10-yarder with 12:41 left in the game.
NOTES AND NUMBERS: Devin Bowers turned in his second 100-yard rushing game, finishing with 117 yards on 23 carries, and one score, to capture MVP honors for FAMU, while Quentin Williams snapped up top honors for the Wildcats, passing for 225 yards and three scores on 15-of-18 passes, while rushing for 78 yards and another score.... Anthony Jordan led B-CU with 106 yards rushing on 17 carries, while Jawill Davis led Cookman with 115 receiving yards on six catches... Montavious Williams topped the Rattler receivers with six grabs for 57 yards and a score, followed by Brandon Norwood with four catches for 50 yards... Kenny Coleman was 11-for-18 passing for 87 yards, a score and a first period interception, while Carson Royal went 5-for-14 for 66 yards and two interceptions.... John Boston led FAMU with nine tackles, followed by Curtis Alexander and Neal Cunningham with seven tackles each, while Robert Way led Cookman with 10 tackles.
