Simmons sees West Florida as ‘a quality opponent’

By St. Clair Murraine
Outlook Staff Writer

Since the football schedule was released earlier this year, there have been plenty of questions about why the FAMU football team is playing the West Florida Argonauts when such a matchup doesn’t help any chance of making the FCS playoffs.

The reference to last year’s game against Albany State, another Division II opponent was constant, as it was looked at as the one game that kept the Rattlers out of consideration for a spot in the FCS playoffs.

All that doesn’t matter, though. The Rattlers’ big goal is to win the Southwestern Athletic Conference championship and get a berth into the Celebration Bowl. Seems the Rattlers are well on their way after defeating Jackson State in the season opener.

The real challenge will begin after Saturday’s home opener against West Florida, the first of two Division II opponents on the Rattlers’ schedule. They kickoff on Ken Riley Field at Bragg Stadium at 6 p.m.

Coach Willie Simmons was quick to point out that the Argos isn’t a team that the Rattlers could sleep on.

West Florida is “a quality opponent,” Simmons said during a post-game press conference, following the Rattlers’ 38-24 loss to the South Florida Bulls. “West Florida won a national championship a couple years ago. This isn’t a pushover. This is a very, very quality opponent.

“This is the biggest game we would ever play in our lives because it’s the next one on the schedule. I feel confident this group will be ready to play.”

The other Division II team on the Rattlers’ schedule is Lincoln University (Oakland, Calif.) in their final home game on Nov. 11 at Bragg Stadium. By then, FAMU would have played six of its seven remaining conference games.

FAMU’s loss to South Florida marked the fifth time the Bulls beat the Rattlers in as many meetings since 2005.

FAMU went into the game with a 10-game winning streak that was the third longest in the nation. Last time they played the Bulls, USF also scored 38 points to win in 2021.

When they kickoff against West Florida, the Rattlers will be defending the second longest (15) home winning streak in the nation. The Argos, a former Gulf South Conference champion, is coming into the game ranked sixth in the nation among Division II programs.

Hours before the Rattlers fell to USF last Saturday night to give the Bulls their first win in two games, the Argos defeated McKendree University 35-3. It was the second consecutive game in which West Florida’s defense allowed just a field goal.

Against the Bulls, the Rattlers’ defense held South Florida to 360 yards of total offense, 33 yards fewer than FAMU accrued. The defense also sacked Bulls quarterback Byrum Brown six times.

“That up-tempo, high-powered offense that they run, I thought our defense stood toe-to-two with it,” said Simmons. “This defense has a chance to be as good as any I’ve been around. These guys are special. They fly around, they tackle well (and) they get after the quarterback.”

Five turnovers, however, were too much for the Rattlers to overcome.  The turnovers weren’t all that hurt the Rattlers. They were flagged 12 times for 115 yards.

Three of the turnover came when the Bulls intercepted quarterback Jeremy Moussa, which he defended afterward.

“I’m not looking for any one guy,” said Moussa, who completed 24 of 43 passes for 374 yards. “Whoever is opened, I give the ball to. When it comes time to look at matchups, I will do so but I’m just taking what the defense gives me.”

FAMU was in the game up until the final 10 minutes of the fourth quarter. The defense made the biggest play in the first two minutes of the quarter when Bulls quarterback Byrum Brown was sacked by Gentle Hunt and Anthony Dunn. That pushed the Bulls back to FAMU’s 44 in the midst of a scoring drive. The Rattlers responded with a 45-yard touchdown pass from Moussa to Kelvin Dean, cutting the deficit 31-24 after the PAT by Cameron Gillis with 10:04 left, completing a drive that took for plays to cover 90 yards in 2:06.

On the ensuring USF possession, Isaiah Major got the Rattlers final sack of Brown before the Bulls eventually got the ball down to the Rattlers 31. Brown found Naiem Simmons on the next play for a score that left the Rattlers in a two-touchdown deficit for the first time since the second quarter. 

A sack of Moussa and an interception by Logan Berryhill wiped out the last opportunity the Rattlers had from the USF 18 with 2:08 left.