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FAMU football shows resolve in comeback to beat Howard in HBCU Celebration Bowl | Takeaways
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- FAMU football shows resolve in comeback to beat Howard in HBCU Celebration Bowl | Takeaways
ATLANTA― Make more room for the Galimore-Powell Fieldhouse's trophy case.
Florida A&M is bringing the Black College Football National Championship hardware to Tallahassee.
The Rattlers (12-1) defeated the Howard Bison (6-6) 30-26 in the HBCU Celebration Bowl Saturday before 41,108 fans here at Mercedes-Benz Stadium .
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According to FAMU's media guide, the win represents the program's 16th HBCU national championship.
"Great day to be a Rattler," FAMU head coach Willie Simmons said.
"I can't say enough about these guys and what they endured this season. We knew had a chance to be special this season. But we knew it wouldn't be given to us every season.
"Now, we're champions and no one can take that away."
FAMU outgained Howard 357-187, with the teams combining for 30 fourth-quarter points.
FAMU quarterback Jeremy Moussa threw three touchdown passes in the fourth quarter, including two to Kelvin Dean Jr. Moussa completed 19 of 32 passes for 289 yards, three touchdowns and two interceptions.
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The Rattlers rallied from deficits of 14-0 in the first quarter and 26-24 in the fourth. They also squandered a 24-16 advantage in the third quarter that set up the game's furious final 15 minutes.
FAMU regained the lead on a 21-yard touchdown pass from Moussa to Dean at the 13:45 mark in the fourth quarter.
FAMU trailed 26-24 with 7:15 left in the game following a Howard pick-six.
However, Moussa connected on a 38-yard scoring strike to wide receiver Jah'Marae Sheread at 5:46 to recapture the lead.
Linebacker Isaiah Major 's interception with 1:45 remaining sealed the win. FAMU finished with three interceptions, two in the fourth quarter.
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Dean was rewarded the Offensive Most Valuable Player for three catches, 87 yards, and two receiving touchdowns. Major won the Defensive MVP for six tackles (one for loss) and an interception.
"It means the world," the MVP Dean said. "This is my first time winning something huge in my life, so I can't complain.
"It doesn't feel real at all."
FAMU is the second Southwestern Athletic Conference team to win the Celebration Bowl, joining the 2016 Grambling State Tigers as the only teams to defeat the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference 's representative.
The Rattlers (12-1) finished their season on an 11-game winning streak. The Bison finished 6-6.
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The Celebration Bowl payout is $2 million, with $1 million apiece going to the SWAC and MEAC to disperse to its teams.
FAMU gets troubled by Howard to open the game
The game started shaky for the Rattlers.
After allowing the opening kickoff to go for 63 yards by Howard returner Ian Wheeler , FAMU allowed a four-play, 27-yard drive ended by an 8-yard touchdown by Jarett Hunter .
On the ensuing defensive drive, FAMU was placed in another short-field situation after Howard sacked Moussa to take over on the 37. The Bison scored on a 3-yard rush by wide receiver Kasey Hawthorne .
Additionally, FAMU had two penalties nullifying touchdowns.
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FAMU defensive lineman Anthony Dunn Jr. sacked and forced Howard quarterback Quinton Williams to fumble before linebacker Allen Smith Jr. returned it for a touchdown. But it was called back due to a facemask on the sack.
The Rattlers pulled out a trick play where wide receiver Marcus Riley got an end-around pitch and launched a touchdown pass to Moussa. It got called back due to holding.
FAMU committed four penalties for 38 yards in the first half.
The Rattlers gave up a safety in the second quarter when the Bison sacked Moussa in his team's endzone.
"I told the team we played our worst half of football all season," Simmons said. "We came out with championship jitters and did some uncharacteristic things."
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FAMU starts to see opportunities open, takes them to pull ahead of Howard
The Rattlers scored just 10 points in the first three quarters.
But FAMU began testing Howard's top Football Championship Subdivision passing defense.
First, Moussa looked for Riley as the speedy receiver beat two Howard defenders before the pass fell between his hands.
Next, Moussa found receiver Nick Dixon wide-open for a play that would have gone for a touchdown. But it was called back since the ball touched the turf before the catch.
The third time was the charm, however.
Moussa connected with Dean for a 21-yard touchdown on the next play to pull them ahead 17-16 with 10:58 remaining.
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"We had a couple plays that we were saving," Moussa said. "All I did was my job while the rest of the guys did theirs.
"And great things happened."
Moussa and Dean found each other again for a 53-yard touchdown on the next drive.
"We've been in this situation several times," Dean reflected on the early deficit. "It wasn't anything we had to get adjusted to. We had to stick to the gameplan and make it work."
A wild fourth quarter pushes FAMU to be crowned HBCU champions over Howard
Things began to look bleak for the Ratters in the fourth quarter.
FAMU squandered its lead on a pick-six from Moussa to Howard defensive back Carson Hinton to allow the Bison to pull ahead 26-24.
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But the Rattlers quickly regained the lead on Moussa's 38-yard touchdown to Sheread.
FAMU also had two late interceptions by defensive back Kendall Bohler , who got his first pick of the season, and Major's game-deciding interception.
"You know what the offense is going to present to you in clutch situations," Major said. "I went with my hunch and made a play on the ball to come up with the interception."
The Rattlers totaled three interceptions, with defensive back Deco Wilson notching one in the second quarter.
FAMU Black College Football National Championship Seasons
1938 Black College National Champions William M. Bell 8–0 SIAC
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1942 Black College National Champions William M. Bell 9–0 SIAC
1950 Black College National co-champions Jake Gaither 8–1–1 SIAC
1952 Black College National Champions Jake Gaither 8–2 SIAC
1953 Black College National co-champions Jake Gaither 10–1 SIAC
1954 Black College National co-champions Jake Gaither 8–1 SIAC
1957 Black College National Champions Jake Gaither 9–0 SIAC
1959 Black College National Champions Jake Gaither 10–0 SIAC
1961 Black College National Champions Jake Gaither 10–0 SIAC
1962 Black College National co-champions Jake Gaither 9–1 SIAC
1977 Black College National Champions Rudy Hubbard 11–0 SIAC
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1978 Black College National Champions Rudy Hubbard 12–1 SIAC
1998 Black College National co-champions Billy Joe 11–2 MEAC
2001 Black College National co-champions Billy Joe 7–4 MEAC
2019 Black College National co-champions Willie Simmons 9–2 MEAC
2023 Black College National Champions Willie Simmons 12–1 SWAC
*List compiled from FAMU Football Wikipedia*
Gerald Thomas, III covers Florida A&M University Athletics for the Tallahassee Democrat. Contact him via email at gdthomas@tallahassee.com or on the app formerly known as Twitter @3peatgee .
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This article originally appeared on Tallahassee Democrat: FAMU Football: Rattlers storm back to beat Howard for HBCU title | Takeaways
