Over a decade of hardships vital to FAMU football's happy ending, championship season | G. Thomas
ATLANTA ― They did it.
They finally did it.
The Florida A&M Rattlers can call themselves the outright Black College Football National Champions for the first time since 2001 after beating Howard 30-26 in the HBCU Celebration Bowl.
And just like the hard-fought title game Saturday, it was a long and adverse road for the Rattlers to reach the mountaintop of HBCU football.
More specifically, the Willie Simmons era and the preceding years of his tenure.
Simmons departed Prairie View A&M to become the head coach of FAMU, which hadn’t had a winning season since 2011.
It was quite the leap of faith for Simmons to leave three consecutive winning seasons at PVAMU — a program that didn't have a positive record since 2010.
However, Simmons has galvanized his Rattlers to a 45-13 record since his 2018 arrival. His most recent FAMU team finished with a 12-1 record, a SWAC and HBCU title.
“When we came here in 2018, we had a goal to build a championship culture,” Simmons said after leading FAMU to its first Celebration Bowl win Saturday.
“We have our seven goals that we start the seasons with. The sixth goal is the Celebration Bowl, and the [seventh/last] goal is to build a sustainable championship culture year to year. It’s what we do in recruitment and academically.
“We’re not here because of me alone. We’re here because everyone who loves Orange and Green supports these young men, and it feels great to hoist that trophy up after such a long time.”
But Simmons has endured his share of hardships during his tenure at FAMU.
In 2018, Simmons’ first year on the job, FAMU was in play to win the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference championship until a late three-game losing streak knocked them out of contention.
Next, the Rattlers finished with a MEAC-best 7-1 record but couldn’t represent the league in the 2019 Celebration Bowl due to a self-imposed postseason ban implemented by FAMU earlier that year.
2021 saw FAMU transition to the Southwestern Athletic Conference and leave the MEAC.
The Rattlers faltered to Jackson State 7-6 in the Orange Blossom Classic, their SWAC debut, leading them to the runners-up in the East Division race.
However, FAMU did reach the Football Championship Subdivision playoffs but was thwarted 38-14 by Southeastern Louisiana.
Lastly, FAMU began its 2022 season shorthanded 26 players due to NCAA certification issues ahead of its season opener at North Carolina. The Rattlers suffered their worst loss to an HBCU, falling 59-3 to Jackson State in the 2022 Orange Blossom Classic in the ensuing week before going on a nine-game winning streak to finish 9-2, then being on the receiving end of the infamous FCS playoff snub.
But Simmons weathered the storm and didn’t panic amidst adversity to stay true to his goal: leading the return of winning FAMU football.
That set the stage for the 2023 season.
FAMU entered the year intending to control its destiny to reach Atlanta.
Luckily for the Rattlers, the season began with a sense of normalcy where all they had to do was handle business in the classroom and on the gridiron.
The national-championship-winning FAMU football team responded by sweeping the SWAC and only suffered a 38-25 loss to Division I-FBS South Florida in a winnable game.
At last, the season ended with the confetti falling from the rafters of Mercedes-Benz Stadium.
“Coaching is our ministry,” Simmons reflected.
“There’s so many life lessons that we learn through this game. You learn how to overcome adversity, pick yourself up when you’re down, and learn how to work together. The way you do anything is the way you do everything. There are certain characteristics that you have to display all the time. If you take those same things to the classroom and community, you'll be successful in life.
“I tip my hat to our young men for continuing to believe in us.”
Orange Blossom Classic Champions.
And finally, Celebration Bowl/Black College Football National Champions.
FAMU must get strategic to fit this year's quintet hardware in Galimore-Powell Fieldhouse’s trophy case.
Those are some good problems to have.
“I’m so thankful to be the head coach at Florida A&M,” Simmons said.
"I’m overwhelmed with joy to be able to lead this phenomenal program because of what it means to my family and community.”
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 beat hardships to 'STRIKE' gold | G. Thomas
