BATON ROUGE, La. -- Florida A&M vs. Southern is never just another SWAC game. It's brand, it's pride, it's who runs this side of HBCU football.

We're going to keep it simple: five things the Rattlers must do — and can do — to beat the Jaguars.

1. Win the discipline battle
This game might come down to who gives it away in hidden yardage.
Look at the penalty profiles:

• FAMU is literally top of the nation at protecting the football — 0 fumbles lost, tied for No. 1 nationally. That's elite ball security.
• Southern? 7 fumbles lost — bottom 15 in FCS.

Now zoom out to penalties:

• FAMU: just 38 total penalties, best in the SWAC and top 1/4 of the country.
• Southern: 64 penalties, bottom 10 nationally, and one of the most flagged teams in the SWAC.

That matters for two reasons:

1. Free first downs. Southern's defense already struggles to get off the field (111th nationally in first downs allowed), and then they bail offenses out with flags. Give FAMU's offense freebies and you let the Rattlers control tempo without even having to win every snap.
2. Hidden yardage. Southern is giving away field position in a game where they do not want to give FAMU short fields (Southern is 102nd in scoring defense at 34.3 points allowed per game; they crack if you make them defend short grass).

If FAMU plays to identity — protect the ball, stay clean, make Southern keep snapping it — that's advantage Rattlers.

2. Force Southern into 3rd down
Southern wants to run the ball and stay ahead of the sticks. You cannot let them stay in rhythm.
Here's why:

• Southern's 3rd down offense converts just 34.8% (88th nationally).
• When Southern gets behind schedule and it becomes a passing down… they're not built for that.

The mission is obvious:

Win 1st and 2nd down. Make it 3rd and 6+. Then get off the field.
Make tackles when you're supposed to. Don't miss fits. Don't let 2nd and 3 become 2nd and 1.

3. Let RJ Johnson play point guard and trust your kicker to finish drives
FAMU offense snapshot:

• Scoring: only 18.3 points per game right now, middle of the SWAC, not where we're used to seeing it.
• Total offense: 335.0 yards per game (8th in SWAC).
• BUT: QB RJ Johnson is completing 64.1% of his throws — that's top 5 in the conference. He's not reckless, he's not throwing the back-breaking pick (only 4 interceptions total for the team; tied 3rd nationally). He plays grown-man football.

That's exactly the profile you want in this matchup.
You do not need hero ball. You need chain-moving ball:

• Take the high-percentage throws.
• Use Kenari Wilcher as a space problem (22.0 yards per kick return, 43.0 receiving yds/game, 18.4 yards per catch — he is an efficiency cheat code).
• Stay on schedule, don't live behind the sticks.

And when drives stall? That's not failure for FAMU. That's points.

Because the hidden weapon in this game is Daniel Porto:

• 81.8% on FGs (top 20 nationally).
• 1.5 FGs per game (No. 1 in the SWAC, top 5 nationally).

Translation: if FAMU crosses the 35, that's basically 3 points waiting.
So offensively the formula is: protect the ball, stay composed, get 3 if you can't get 7, stack pressure.

4. Flip the field and make Southern drive 70+ every time
Southern is not built for long, mistake-free marches. So don't give them short fields.
Here's where FAMU has a real edge: special teams and hidden yardage.

• Punting: FAMU's Bobby Engstler is averaging 43.4 yards per punt, which is No. 1 in the SWAC and top 20 nationally. That is NFL-leg stuff at the FCS level.
• Southern's net punting is 31.0 yards — bottom 10 nationally. FAMU's return game? Dangerous enough to punish that.
• Kickoff return defense: FAMU's allowing just 16.55 yards per return, top 20 nationally. That means Southern's average start is going to be worse than they're used to.

If Engstler keeps pinning Southern and Porto keeps turning midfield drives into points, Southern has to answer with 10, 12, 14 play drives against a FAMU defense that can hit, strip, and close.
The math is in FAMU's favor there.

5. Steal a possession — Southern will give you one
This is the closer.
Southern's turnover profile is soft:

• 7 fumbles lost already this season.
• Overall turnover margin is dead even (0.00), middle of the pack.

FAMU?

• Tied for No. 1 in the entire country with 0 fumbles lost.
• Only 4 total turnovers all year. That's championship DNA football.

So here's what that means on game day:

• You don't have to force three takeaways. You just need one.
• One strip sack. One peanut punch. One tipped ball that turns into 3 points.
• Because FAMU does not give you the ball back.

That is demoralizing for an opponent. When Southern coughs it up — and statistically they will — that's the swing moment. That's where you break them.