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FAMU football's affliction recurs at Florida Classic in 'gut-wrenching' fashion
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- FAMU football's affliction recurs at Florida Classic in 'gut-wrenching' fashion
ORLANDO ―The Florida Classic was the latest blow to a dismaying season for Florida A&M football.
On Saturday, Nov. 22, Rattlers lost to rivals Bethune-Cookman Wildcats 38-34 in the Florida Classic at Camping World Stadium.
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The Week 13 Southwestern Athletic Conference game was FAMU's first loss to its longtime adversary since 2019.
The Rattlers had defeated the Wildcats for four consecutive seasons from 2021 to 2024. FAMU's 2020 football season was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic, so the Florida Classic didn't happen that year.
"This one may take a little longer to put behind than maybe some of the stuff that has happened in the past," FAMU head coach James Colzie III told the media after the Florida Classic loss.
"They knew we had to have this one. They wanted to have this one. They did everything imaginable to win this football game," the FAMU coach added, in reference to his players. "We just didn't do it at the end."
Florida A&M Rattlers head coach James Colzie III (right) walks into Camping World Stadium for the Florida Classic rivalry football game versus the Bethune-Cookman Wildcats. The Wildcats defeated the Rattlers 38-34 in the Week 13 NCAA Southwestern Athletic Conference game in Orlando on Saturday, Nov. 22, 2025.
Winning the Florida Classic is mandatory.
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And after 10 games of ebbs and flows, a victory would've provided a glimmer of hope for the Orange and Green.
Instead, The City Beautiful reared its ugly head against the Rattlers to dim their hopes.
After FAMU (5-6, 4-3 in SWAC) mounted a comeback on Bethune-Cookman (6-6, 5-3 in SWAC) and both teams combined for 32 fourth-quarter points, it was Maroon and Gold confetti falling onto the turf at Camping World Stadium.
FAMU lost heartbreakingly as it allowed Bethune-Cookman quarterback and the game's overall Most Valuable Player, Timmy McClain, to toss a 41-yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Josh Evans against busted coverage with 22 seconds remaining.
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To make matters worse, it was 4th and 8, all or nothing for the Wildcats.
FAMU quarterback RJ Johnson III threw a Hail Mary, but the pass fell incomplete, signaling Bethune-Cookman to celebrate its first Florida Classic in over a half-decade.
Bethune-Cookman’s football team celebrates its win against Florida A&M during the Florida Classic, Saturday, Nov. 22, 2025, at Camping World Stadium in Orlando.
The loss followed the Rattlers' winning four of their previous five games this year. It also dropped Colzie's record to 12-11 in his two years as the FAMU head football coach.
"I feel for the guys," said Colzie, who described himself and FAMU football as "sad" and somber."
"A little bit of an up and down season for us, as we know. Guys really put all they could into this game. It was a gut-wrenching defeat. We should've won that football game."
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Running back Thad Franklin Jr. was FAMU's top performer on Saturday.
The graduate student rushed 11 times and picked up 118 yards and scored a 19-yard touchdown run to give the Rattlers a brief 34-31 advantage before allowing the game-winning score to the Wildcats.
He was named FAMU's Most Valuable Player for the Florida Classic.
Franklin's performance came a year after his 2024 showing, when he broke the Florida Classic's single-game rushing record with 195 yards.
Florida A&M's Thad Franklin Jr. (0) is stopped at the line of scrimmage by Bethune-Cookman during the Florida Classic, Saturday, Nov. 22, 2025, at Camping World Stadium in Orlando.
But his production wasn't good enough versus the Wildcats this time.
"We got a 24-hour rule to let it go," Franklin said. "Move on to the next one. Just have a better game next week and finish."
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FAMU football has to rally together to for season finale vs Mississippi Valley State
FAMU must have short-term memory.
There's still football left.
The Rattlers travel to Itta Bena to face the Mississippi Valley State Delta Devils for a makeup game after the October neutral-site Georgia Football Classic in Atlanta was canceled due to contract issues with the game's promoters .
Mississippi Valley State (1-10, 0-7 in SWAC) lost to SWAC West champion Prairie View A&M 59-6 on Saturday.
"You don't want to dwell because you still have one more game to play," Colzie explained. "But it's a tough locker room right now."
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The Rattlers have something to play for.
Florida A&M's Ace Cobb (5) catches the ball down the field during the game against Bethune-Cookman during the Florida Classic, Saturday, Nov. 22, 2025, at Camping World Stadium in Orlando.
Revenge.
Last November, the Delta Devils stunned the Rattlers 24-21 in Tallahassee . It snapped FAMU's 23-game winning streak on Ken Riley Field at Bragg Memorial Stadium, which spanned from 2019 to 2024.
"We took a loss last year on our home field when we shouldn't [have]," said Franklin, recalling last year's FAMU versus Mississippi Valley State game.
"We just got to go back and handle business next week."
Gerald Thomas, III is a multi-time award-winning journalist for his coverage of the Florida A&M Rattlers at the Tallahassee Democrat.
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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 football's 2025 season rears its ugly face in Florida Classic loss
