Who will lead the next chapter of FAMU football? Here are some possible early targets.

The search has begun for Florida A&M’s next head football coach.

Willie Simmons resigned from the Rattlers Monday, two weeks after leading the program to its first Southwestern Athletic Conference Championship and HBCU Celebration Bowl wins.

Simmons was named Duke's running backs coach Monday under new head coach Manny Diaz.

FAMU assistant head coach and cornerbacks coach James Colzie III currently serves as the Rattlers’ interim head coach while the administration identifies candidates to become the Rattlers’ 19th full-time head coach.

Here are some possible early candidates to lead the next era of FAMU football.

Author's Note: Unless noted otherwise, there's no report that the candidates listed have expressed interest in Florida A&M’s head football coach vacancy.

KJ Black — Los Angeles Rams Offensive Assistant Coach

KJ Black spent 2019-2021 on FAMU’s coaching staff, ending as the team’s co-offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach.

He departed for the NFL’s Bill Walsh Diversity Coaching Fellowship with the Los Angeles Rams, where he’s now an offensive assistant.

Black, born in Jacksonville and raised in Louisville, was instrumental to former FAMU quarterback Ryan Stanley winning the 2019 Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference Offensive Player of the Year in a season that saw the signal caller break the Rattlers’ all-time passing record.

Before leaving FAMU, Black identified and recruited former Rattlers quarterback Jeremy Moussa, who won the SWAC Offensive Player of the Year in 2023.

Black also has SWAC ties as a player, starring at quarterback for Prairie View A&M, where he holds several passing records, a SWAC Championship, and a SWAC Offensive Player of the Year nod.

Terry Bradden Jr. — Kansas City Chiefs Defensive Line Assistant Coach

HBCU Premier Sports has reported that Kansas City Chiefs assistant defensive line coach Terry Bradden Jr. has voiced interest in the FAMU head coaching vacancy.

Bradden has been on the Chiefs’ staff since 2017, starting as a defensive assistant.

Last season, Bradden worked alongside Chiefs defensive line coach Joe Cullen and oversaw the team record the NFL's second-most 55 sacks on the way to winning Super Bowl LVII. He also helped the Chiefs win Super LIV as a defensive quality control coach.

The Riveria Beach native has college coaching experience, working as Florida Atlantic’s quality control special teams coach in 2014 and Bethune-Cookman’s quarterback graduate assistant in 2016. In 2015, he became the youngest head coach and athletic director in the state of Florida while at his alma mater, Inlet Grove High School at 24 years old.

Bradden has HBCU student-athlete ties, playing quarterback for Howard before transferring to Tuskegee.

James Colzie III — FAMU Interim Head Coach

James Colzie III holds the interim head coach tag while FAMU conducts a “thorough but swift search" for its next head coach, according to FAMU Vice President and Director of Athletics Tiffani-Dawn Sykes.

FAMU players have endorsed Colzie becoming the head coach in a letter to FAMU President Larry Robinson and Sykes.

Colzie joined FAMU’s staff in 2022 and was promoted to assistant head coach to accompany his cornerback coach duties for the 2023 season.

Colzie, a 1993 Florida State national championship defensive back and former grad assistant from 2004-2006, coached FAMU cornerback Kendall Bohler to an All-American nod while his running mate Eric Smith got All-SWAC Second Team honors in 2023.

Colzie also has head coaching experience at Saint Mary’s in Canada, finishing with an 18-20 record and two Atlantic University Sport title appearances in 2017 and 2018.

The Miami native career has been on Division I, Division II, U Sports (Canada), and National Junior College Athletic Association levels.

Corey Fuller — Florida State Director of Football Relations

Corey Fuller would have to cross the railroad tracks to coach at FAMU.

FSU’s director of football relations has done it before.

Fuller served as FAMU’s interim head coach for four games in 2014, going 1-3 in a year where the Rattlers finished 3-9.

The 1993 Florida State national championship-winning defensive back has coached local high schools, including Gadsden County and Godby, where he went 70-39 as a head coach.

Fuller, from Tallahassee and a Rickards alum, played 10 seasons in the NFL after getting drafted 55th overall by the Minnesota Vikings in 1995.

Quinn Gray ― Albany State Head Coach

Quinn Gray is a name familiar to Rattler Nation.

The FAMU Sports Hall of Fame quarterback led the Rattlers to 2000 and 2001 MEAC titles alongside Division I-AA (now Football Championship Subdivision) playoff appearances in the same years as a starter.

Gray just completed his first season as head coach at Division II HBCU Albany State, which finished 6-5 and second in the Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference.

Gray also was FAMU’s associate head coach, offensive coordinator, and quarterbacks coach from 2011-2014 and head coached local high school Lincoln.

The Fort Lauderdale native has been within the SWAC landscape, coaching Alcorn State’s quarterbacks from 2020-2022.

Billy Rolle ― Former FAMU player and assistant coach

Billy Rolle has a long history with the Rattlers and the state of Florida.

FAMU fans have been advocating for him to be considered to fill the head coaching vacancy.

The FAMU Sports Hall of Famer was a star defensive back on the Highest of Seven Hills from 1980-1984.

Rolle most recently worked on Simmons’ staff, joining in 2018 and serving as a special assistant to the head coach and nickelbacks coach, retiring before the 2023 season. He’s still been present and supportive of FAMU during his retirement.

As a head coach, the Miami native won four Florida High School Athletic Association state championships, leading Northwestern to two in 1998 and 2007. He won with Killian in 2004 and Southridge in 2016.

Rolle has coached and developed eventual NFL Pro Bowlers, quarterback Teddy Bridgewater, and wide receiver Amari Cooper.

Ryan Smith ― FAMU Associate Head Coach and Head Coach of the Defense

Ryan Smith has been one of the most essential pieces to the Rattlers’ success.

He joined FAMU’s staff in 2018, alongside Simmons, and built the Dark Cloud Defense into a national powerhouse.

This season, the Rattlers finished second in FCS total defense.

Smith coached All-American Markquese Bell, who plays linebacker for the Dallas Cowboys, and 2021 Buck Buchanan winner and defensive end Isaiah Land, who plays for the Indianapolis Colts.

In 2023, FAMU linebacker Isaiah Major won the SWAC’s Defensive Player of the Year and is the Rattlers' highest-touted pro prospect.

Before FAMU, Smith worked at Alabama as an offensive quality control coach in 2015, helping the Crimson Tide win the national championship, and served as Florida’s assistant recruiting coordinator from 2016-2018.

The Perry native also head coached on the high school ranks at Gainesville, Deland, and his alma mater, Taylor County.

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 coach search: Who might replace Willie Simmons?