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Florida A&M at Prairie View A&M: Can Rattlers sustain success in SWAC road trip to Texas?
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- Florida A&M at Prairie View A&M: Can Rattlers sustain success in SWAC road trip to Texas?
After a two-week stand at home, Florida A&M football is headed to Texas to take on the Prairie View A&M Panthers.
ESPN Plus will broadcast the Week 11 Southwestern Athletic Conference game , scheduled for a 3 p.m. kickoff at Prairie View A&M's Panther Stadium.
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The Rattlers (5-3, 3-1 in SWAC) are on a two-game winning streak, most recently hosting homecoming and beating Texas Southern 52-28 . It was the Rattlers' first 50-point outing since 2019.
On the other hand, the Panthers (4-5, 2-3 in SWAC) traveled to Mississippi Valley State and won 17-16, which was their second straight triumph.
FAMU and Prairie View A&M are familiar with each other.
Saturday's matchup between FAMU and Prairie View A&M is the team's first meeting since last season's SWAC Championship game, in which the Rattlers won 35-14 . FAMU and Prairie View A&M also met in the 2023 regular season, with the Rattlers claiming a 45-7 victory .
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Let's meet the teams and predict who will win this season's Rattlers versus Panthers edition.
Florida A&M at Prairie View A&M: Tale of the Tape
Records
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FAMU (5-3) ― Last Game: W, 52-28 vs Texas Southern
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Prairie View A&M (4-5) ― Last Game: W, 17-16 at Mississippi Valley State
Head Coaches
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FAMU: James Colzie III (5-3 overall/all at FAMU)
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Prairie View A&M: Bubba McDowell (16-16/all at Prairie View A&M)
Players to Watch
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FAMU: Running Back Thad Franklin Jr., Defensive Tackle James Ash
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Prairie View A&M: Running Back Lamagea McDowell, Defensive End Fred Stokes
Team Historical Accolades
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FAMU: 17 claimed national championships (16 Black College, one NCAA Division I-AA)
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Prairie View A&M: Five claimed Black College Football National Championships
All-Time Series
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FAMU leads Prairie View A&M 7-3
Last Matchup
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FAMU 35, Prairie View A&M 14 (2023 SWAC Championship)
Florida A&M at Prairie View A&M: Meet the Teams
Prairie View head coach Bubba McDowell against Alabama State during their game at Hornet Stadium on the ASU campus in Montgomery, Ala., on Saturday September 24, 2022.
FAMU and Prairie View A&M have much to play for as the regular season reaches its final month of games.
The Rattlers are third in the SWAC East behind Jackson State and Alabama State. The Panthers are third in the SWAC West after Southern and Alcorn State.
Every game counts.
FAMU is tasked with finishing a game on the road, something it failed to do last time the Rattlers traveled and lost at Jackson State 35-21 . All of Prairie View A&M's four wins have been by a possession.
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FAMU's offense is coming along with Daniel Richardson quarterbacking the unit, and running backs are starting to hit their stride . Last week, FAMU rushed 36 times for 236 yards and finally got its first rushing touchdown of the season thanks to Thad Franklin Jr.
On defense, FAMU's defense has become disruptive by forcing turnovers in its last four games alongside improved defensive line play. FAMU has intercepted opposing quarterbacks nine times and recovered four fumbles.
FAMU also has 16 total sacks, led by linebacker Nay'Ron Jenkins' three. Jenkins also leads the Rattlers with 50 tackles.
Prairie View A&M has the SWAC's seventh-best scoring offense out of 12 teams.
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The Panthers unit is led by their passing attack led by quarterback Jaden Johnson, who has an efficient 61 completion percentage for 918 yards, seven touchdowns, and three interceptions. Prairie View A&M running back Lamagea McDowell has helped the offense by punching in five rushing touchdowns.
Prairie View A&M is ninth in the SWAC, allowing 393.8 yards per game. The Panthers have allowed at least 20 points in seven of their eight Football Championship Subdivision games.
Panthers defensive end Fred Stokes has starred at Prairie View A&M with 24 tackles, a team-leading 10 tackles for loss, and 3.5 sacks.
Florida A&M at Prairie View A&M: Who will win?
The Florida A&M Rattlers lead against Texas Southern in the 4th quarter, Saturday, Nov. 2, 2024.
On paper, FAMU has a better team than Prairie View A&M.
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But it's not hard to believe the Panthers will enter Saturday with animus against the Rattlers for the two beatdowns they received a season ago.
Plus, FAMU is on the road this time.
So expect this game to be more hotly contested than last season's meetings.
But, the Rattlers will continue to keep their SWAC hopes alive while Prairie View A&M's dwindle.
FAMU 33, Prairie View A&M 16
BOLD PREDICTION: FAMU will have more rushing touchdowns than passing.
Florida A&M at Prairie View A&M ― Week 11, SWAC
When: Saturday, Nov. 9 at 3 p.m. Eastern Time
Where: Panther Stadium; Prairie View, Texas
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Broadcast: ESPN Plus, Rattlers mobile application
Tickets: Purchase Here
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: Florida A&M football at Prairie View A&M: Predicting the Week 11 SWAC game?
