The Florida A&M University Football team suffered their first shutout in conference play in 11 years Saturday, as they dropped a 25-0 Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference decision to Hampton University at Armstrong Stadium.It was the first shutout overall for FAMU since a 62-0 setback at the hands of Virginia Tech in 2004, and it was the first conference shutout since an identical 25-0 decision was dealt to them by Bethune-Cookman in 1988 in Tampa.
Saturday’s setback virtually ended the Rattlers NCAA playoff hopes, but a bigger question for FAMU (7-3, 5-2 in MEAC) is the health of the squad.
Senior quarterback Curtis Pulley exited the game in the first half after re-aggravating a groin injury, then backup Eddie Battle injured his shoulder late in the game. Plus all three starting Rattler receivers – Kevin Elliott, Adrian Smith and Isaac West all left the game with injuries.
David Legree and Herbert Bynes split time at quarterback, leading the Pirates (5-5, 3-4 in MEAC) to 464 total yards Saturday, while the Rattlers managed just 184 total – their lowest of the season.
Third string quarterback Martin Ukpai led all FAMU runners with 48 yards on five carries in the final two series of the game, followed by Philip Sylvester, who ran for 45 yards on 10 carries.
Battle finished the game Saturday with 32 yards passing on eight completions (16 attempts), with two interceptions, while Pulley was five of seven for 22 yards in the first period.
GAME NOTES: Saturday’s loss, coupled with South Carolina State’s win over Morgan State, assured the Bulldogs the 2009 MEAC title. SCSU (9-1, 7-0) will claim the league’s automatic NCAA playoff berth for the postseason which begins November 28.
WHAT’S NEXT: The Rattlers will close out the regular season next Saturday in Orlando against Bethune-Cookman University in the 30th Florida Classic. Kickoff will be 2:30 p.m. for the nationally-televised contest (ESPN Classic) at the Florida Citrus Bowl.
Ukpai...Ukpai... Ukpai...Ukpai...Ukpai...
ReplyDeleteAwful.
ReplyDeleteI am thinking that Curtis will be able to play on Saturday.
ReplyDeleteJoe Taylor is over rated.
ReplyDeleteWhy are we paying Joe Taylor that large amount of money? When he was at Hampton he never got out of the first round of the playoffs.
ReplyDeleteI understand that Joe Taylor was Dr.Ammons hire. If we can keep Dr. Ammons running the University we could bring in a better coaches. When you hire a coach that's been in the leauge as long as Joe Taylor has all other coaches know his plays inculding the coaches that worked for him. All coaches have an ego inculding coach Taylor he thought he was going to go into Hampton and win running the same game plan...what a waste. FAM will go 7-4 next year.
ReplyDeleteI don't know too many football teams that would have any type of chance of winning if there starting QB who is also the focus of the team and top two receivers on the team and in the league aren't playing. It's one game. JT is building a program, which doesn't happen overnight.
ReplyDeleteOnce again our some of our so called "fan base" is being unrealistic. Lets look at what Taylor has done since he has been hear. Year one 9-3, so far year two 7-3, with one loss to the University of Miami. Lets keep this in mind also, this was the first year in five or six years that we went undefeated in Bragg stadium, that goes back to the Billy Joe days. Now that is the football side of the program. I think out of 62 guys, about 25 were on the academic honor roll last semester, and out of the 24 seniors, the vast majority are actually on tract to graduate either this fall or spring. Believe it our not, the man knows what he is doing, he is earning his money, and not only will the wins come, but the program will be the strongest in black college football within the next two years because of what he does for these men off of the field.
ReplyDelete11:28. A couple of things. First, there should have been game planning that did not include Pulley. We should not have needed Pulley to beat Hampton.
ReplyDeleteSecond, you're right on everything else. People seem to forget that just a few months ago we were sitting at 3-8.
Although I am a Billy Joe fan, one of the downsides to what coach Joe was that he built his program with transfers, either from JUCO's or Division IA's, and therefore, alot of those guys did not graduate. With the new NCAA rules, no team will be able to build their programs in that manner due to the graduation rate ratio scale that they have. Also, lets keep in mind, when coach Joe got here it was about year four before we got to the playoffs and years five, six and seven before we became dominate in the playoffs.
ReplyDeleteWe would be crazy to say that based off of this year that Coach Taylor (soon to be in the College Football Hall of Fame) is not earning his money. I think what we will see in February will put alot of that type of conversation to rest, with the caliber of recruits that he has on tap to sign.
One final note, it has taken Buddy Pugh almost eight years for his ball club to get where they are this year. Now, I wish them the best because it is going to take a dominate performance from them this year and next for the MEAC to get more than one team into the playoffs in the future. But back to my point, it is going to take Coach Taylor and his staff time to build the type of program that he needs to get us where we all want to be, simply, it not going to happen over night.
My final thought is this, like the University of Memphis former football coach said last week at his final press conference, instead of criticizing the job that he was doing, ask the coach what can you do to help the program!
The coaches have been asking for funds for recruitment for years here at FAMU, and that has caught up with us the year. Although our starting 22 can play with anyone on our level, that second 22 can't. That is why SCSU dominated us because on the defense side of the ball they probably played 20 different guys and there was no drop off. And with the injuries that we have received as of late, we can see why certain folk are starters and others are either the second or third wave.
Finally, if they (the coaching staff) don't have funds to recruit, funds for scholarships so the entire team can stay in Tallahassee during the summer, funds for better facilities, etc., to me all of this criticism that we are placing on the coaching staff is a moot point. Simply, you can expect a coach, no matter who they are, to compete against a football program (where a team that has at least 15 to 20 guys that are on the second team could actually be starters on either side of the ball) while he only has a good football team (a team with 22 starters with alot of drop off on the second and third level).
Just My Opinion.
Okay it's soooo apparent that some comments on this topic have come from the campus higher ups I’m around you guys enough to catch some of your key words that’s in your everyday vocabulary...you guys make me laugh...
ReplyDeleteNow let's be realist...over the past 16 years while Joe Taylor was at Hampton he won 3 MEAC titles with D-1 transfers. Joe Taylor never, let me repeat NEVER got out of the first round. In the big games he get’s out coached or his players under perform in the games or they should have been better prepared. I was at the game on Saturday I’ll be for first one to say that we got “OUT COACHED”. the coaches, did’nt spend time trying to talk to the players, needless to say that there was no adjustments from the coaches to put them in position to win the game.
There’s a different in saying you’re a winner and pretending to be one. FAMU have close to 90 years of playing football. If I am critical of the team it’s because the Football program has spoiled us. Not over the past decade but for most of those 90 years in having a winning program. 9-3, 8-4, 7-5 will continue to be the record while Coach Taylor will be here. We will continue to graduate great athlete with mediocre seasons but before you condemn me in my comments just ask yourself will you continue to accept seasons like this from our teams? Because you get what you pay for..
I called the SID office you are right...I was unaware that Coach Taylor never has gotten out the first round of the NCAA playoffs... but there's a first time for everything.
ReplyDeleteI think we could have won with my son Pop Warner Coach. Ruben Carter didn't leave the cubber bear he just couldn't coach.
I also found out if we don't graduate players we loose scholarships and I understand that we have a program in place to help student athletes that was not in place when Billy Joe was here.
What I don't understand is having a great student athlete and you've played and graduated from this University that we love...why do you let them attend another University. My child has no say in this matter. He's a Rattler born, Rattler Bread, He'll be a Rattler til the day he's dead... what are you doing to help the program?
Now, dat wuz a sho 'nuff ass whoopin' there.
ReplyDelete3:37 We let our children make their own choices about the college they will attend because we are not going to sacrifice our kids' happiness. If my kids say they would be happy at ABC College, then they get to go to ABC. I have seen what happens when parents force kids to attend specific colleges, just to boost the parent's ego. A lot of times, it ends up being a mistake.
ReplyDeleteFAMU was great for us, but that doesn't obligate any of us to force our children or grandchildren to attend.
To 3:26, this is 1:57. Thanks for the post,but let me first say I am no where near higher administration at FAMU (but thanks for the compliment, I guess:-)). I am just a graduate that loves FAMU football just like you, but I am realistic about what to expect.
ReplyDeleteFirst, since you called out coach Taylor's record in the playoffs, name just one HBCU coach that has at least one win in the playoffs outside of Billy Joe in the past twenty-five years...for that matter name one black coach period. So if we do replace Coach Taylor, who do you replace him with that has a winning record in the playoffs, a white coach from a dominate white program that goes to and win "big games every year?" Coach Taylor has always said that he has a blueprint for football success, and I think his record speaks for itself. The man built the powerhouse that is Hampton (and many HBCU fans argue that he never got what he needed at Hampton to get it done, that was part of the reason he was looking to leave Hampton to go to a PWC before we offered the position to him), where he actually went undefeated one season with the exception of the playoffs.
On another note, to use the logic that since Coach Taylor and his staff have never won a playoff game means they are not capable of winning "big games," would be the same as Florida State saying back in the early 80s that Bobby Bowden was not capable of winning big games because he never one the big ones... I think history speaks for itself on that one.
To answer your second question, Would I be happy with 9-3, 7-4, 8-3 seasons? Yeah depending on the season. Meaning, are we playing Miami, UGA, UF for paydays? Which more than likely means a loss, and also a loss of players in terms of serious injuries (this year we lost Brian Parker and he has yet to return to action since that game).
Third, Lets talk about that 90 year football history for awhile. Although we have a great legacy in football here at FAMU, much of that history centers around Coach Gaither and Coach Rudy Hubbard, so we are talking about the 1940s, 50s and 70s. The question is what did we do in the 1980s and the early 90s. I think people forget that prior to 1998 FAMU was a 9-8, 7-4, 8-3 program (above average program), when Billy Joe went out and got some great D 1A quarterbacks coupled with an innovative offense+florida speed took the team over the top. Also keep in mind Coach Joe (and once again I am a fan of the man) had a five year run where we could not be stopped until Bill Hayes put out the blueprint on how to beat the Gulf Coast Offense, from that point forward, we could not get over the MEAC hurdle.
My final point is this, I think that FAMU like Grambling, has probably the greatest legacy in terms of Football. In saying that our fan base has some very unloathy, unrealic goals. We love to remember the days of Gaither and Robinson, but what we forget, is that these programs are now recruiting against every school in the country with the vast majority having better facilities, more tutors, etc. Also keep in mind, these young men don't know who Jake Gaither or Eddie Robinson are, but they do know a nice what a nice football stadium and locker room looks like.
I am not saying lower your expectations for the program at all. What I am saying is be realistic about those goals....and if you want those goals to be heightened, do what they do at the "pwc's" put something on it.
Just my opinion.
7L20 p.m Willie Jefferies has made it outside of the first round, and Rudy Hubbard.
ReplyDeleteIn the past 25 years?
ReplyDeleteWell to be fair you only have 10 HBCU team that can make it to the playoff...All the Swac cant go.
ReplyDeleteWhoever said that Joe Taylor only won 3 MEAC titles at Hampton needs to do better research because he actually won 5 MEAC titles at Hampton. He won a title his first year in the MEAC and Hampton has only been in the MEAC since 1995. The man is a great coach of the game and most importantly LIFE.
ReplyDeleteAlso for those folk harping about Taylor being winless in the post season, I'm starting to question whether you even witnessed those games. It's obvious you didnt because then you would know that a football coach is limited in his abilities. The players have to execute. The coach cant put on the helmet and pads for them. Those playoff losses in 04 and 06 were heart breakers and down to the final wire. When an opponent converts a 4th and long fake punt into the winning TD with less than a minute to play in the game, that's not a coaching problem. That's poor player execution.
Coach Taylor has only had 1.5 recruiting classes under his wings. So he's 17-6 (including this Saturday's pummeling of BCU) and winning with another coach's players in his system. When Taylor is allowed more time to get his personnel that fit his system then the critics should return to this article and read how foolish they sound.
^^^Correction that should be 6 MEAC titles at Hampton. 6 MEAC titles in 13 years is nothing less than INCREDIBLE!
ReplyDelete